Dragonball Evolution/YMMV

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Cliché Storm: There's an eclipse, an apocalyptic showdown, ancient sealed powers, an ordinary high school student, a Chosen One prophecy, and a tragically dead parent figure. But eclipse, ordinary high school student, and prophecy aside, this isn't the fault of the adaptation; just about all of the rest is present in the original anime and manga. Then again, the anime didn't attempt to squeeze "all of the rest" in at once.
  • Complete Monster: Lord Piccolo is an evil Namekian who attacked Earth alongside Oozaru, bringing the human race to brink of annihilation before he was sealed away by seven mystics. Returning 2,000 years later, Piccolo decides to seek out the seven Dragon Balls with the intention of wishing for eternal life, and then eliminating the human race in revenge for his imprisonment, beginning his search by destroying a village filled with innocent people. Piccolo would then attack Goku's grandfather, Gohan, in his home, before killing him by crushing him with the house's rubble. After Goku and his friends manage to retrieve the Dragon Balls, Piccolo has his servant Mai steal them, nearly killing Goku in the process. When Goku transforms into Oozaru during his final confrontation with Piccolo, the latter has Goku attack his own friends, while also having him choke Master Roshi to death before he could re-seal Piccolo. When Goku regains his senses and fights back at Piccolo, Piccolo vows he'll destroy the planet just to spite him.
  • Crowning Moment of Funny: The aforementioned unchangeable "Saiyan Hair" reasserting itself after Goku tries to slick it back with gel.
    • Master Roshi hops onto the motorcycle behind Bulma. A second later, she points her gun at his head and orders him to get his hands away from her or she'll fire.
  • Germans Love David Hasselhoff: Naturally, it did well in Asia (outside of Japan where it lost to Yatterman), going number one early on before dropping off. It should be noted that it was number one for several weeks at Asian box offices, and while the reception was mixed it is still rather popular and well-liked outside the US.
  • Ham and Cheese: James Marsters as Piccolo and Chow Yun-Fat as Roshi were awesome casting choices.
  • So Bad It's Good: Your mileage may vary, but most of the reactions were negative, even from those who never saw the animated series. That said, it can be enjoyable. A small minority think it was a decent film in its own right. And as stated above, alot of people in Asia love the film.
  • Special Effect Failure: See what Goku's head collided with when grandpa Gohan knocked him off. Sure, he was falling pretty fast, but melons shouldn't be THAT soft, should they? Also in the previous scene, one of Goku's kick didn't even touch his granpda. Force Kick in effect? The 2 consecutive failures can be seen in one video.
    • There's also that one scene with Goku and Piccolo in a Ki blast struggle... that ends with Goku shooting himself towards Piccolo with no propulsion whatsoever and in the same Kamehameha firing pose.
    • There's also a bad case of Styrofoam Rocks towards the end of the movie. You'll know it when you see it.
    • And let's not get started with either the obviously fake ape suit substituting for Oozaru or the wretched CG used throughout.
  • They Just Didn't Care: Though, at least one person cared. According to the script-writer, his original script was a much more faithful adaptation of the original, complete with Pilaf and his gang, Oolong, Pu'ar, the Nimbus, etc. Unfortunately, the script was changed a lot once it was out of his hands. To the point where he felt the need to issue the above-linked apology for the final product.
  • What the Hell, Casting Agency?: Ernie Hudson as movie exclusive character Sifu Norris.