Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler (ドラゴンボールZ 激突!!100億パワーの戦士たち, Doragon Bōru Zetto: Gekitotsu!! Hyaku-Oku Pawā no Senshi-tachi; lit. "Dragon Ball Z: Clash!! 10,000,000,000 Powerful Warriors"), also known as Dragon Ball Z: Fight! 10 Billion Power Warriors,[2] is the sixth Dragon Ball Z movie, originally releasing on Japan on March 7, 1992.
It was released on VHS and DVD in the United States in August 2002, and also had a limited theatrical run (as part of a double-feature with the U.S. premiere of Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn) on March 17, 2006. These were the first Dragon Ball-related movies to receive a theatrical release in the United States. This film is a direct sequel to the fifth movie, Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge, and the first appearance of Vegeta in a movie.
Summary
Cooler's return
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Big Gete Star attached to Planet Namek
The movie begins with the Big Gete Star. The liquid metal exterior of the star molds itself around New Namek, absorbing its energy. Dende, who is now the Earth's guardian, senses the plight of his people and calls Goku to ask for help.
Gohan saves a Namekian warrior from a Cyclopian Guard's blast
Goku, Gohan, Oolong, Krillin, Yajirobe, Master Roshi, and Piccolo arrive and encounter an army of robots deployed on the planet to enslave the Namekians, whom they plan to use as biological fuel for the Big Gete Star. Goku demands that the robots leave peacefully, but their leader emerges and states himself to be "Cooler". Cooler admits that he was indeed burned critically in the fires of the Sun, but survived and is now back for revenge. As the others engage the robots, Goku prepares to battle Meta-Cooler alone.
Battle for New Namek
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Piccolo battles Cyclopian Guards
At first the Z Fighters have trouble penetrating the armor of Cooler's Cyclopian Guards, but Piccolo instructs them to concentrate their energy to one point, and doing so allows them to destroy a few of the robots. However, there are too many to handle and the warriors are captured along with the Namekians. However, Piccolo remains on the battlefield long enough to unleash a devastating attack which destroys the robots completely. He flies for the Big Gete Star to free his friends.
One of Cooler's metallic clones
Goku battles the Meta-Cooler, but it is apparent that Goku, even in Super Saiyan form, is no match for Cooler's "new metallic form", which gives him the ability to regenerate himself. Meta-Cooler reveals that the Big Gete Star constantly monitors his body, and fixes any problems or glitches that may occur (like Cooler's arm getting torn off for example) while also strengthening him in such a way that it can't happen the same way twice. Goku goes in for a final attack, but Meta-Cooler grabs him and starts to strangle him. Vegeta suddenly appears and saves Goku, himself transforming into a Super Saiyan. However, they are both still no match for Meta-Cooler and are only able to win by combining their power and unleashing a devastating attack which destroys the Meta-Cooler.
Cooler's final stand
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Goku and Vegeta battle a Meta-Cooler
However, a whole army of Meta-Coolers immediately shows up (FUNimation's dub has an explanation for this: to remedy the loss of one Meta-Cooler, the Big Gete Star has created a thousand). Outnumbered and drained of energy, Goku and Vegeta are captured and transported to create Metal Super Saiyans for Cooler's army (in FUNimation's dub, their energy is intended to power the machine planet). It is here that Goku and Vegeta finally learn the truth about Cooler's survival: following his defeat at Goku's hands, he was not destroyed completely, but his remains floated through space for a while, including pieces of his brain. Cooler's remains were assimilated into the Big Gete Star, allowing him to take control to the mechanical planet. Cooler begins draining Goku and Vegeta of their energy, but they flood the circuitry with too much power and overload it, causing it to collapse. All the Meta-Coolers are destroyed and the prisoners are freed.
As the others evacuate, Goku and Vegeta face Cooler alone. Cooler takes the form of a wired giant being and grabs Goku, squeezing him, until Vegeta slices Cooler's arm off. Goku fires a sphere of energy into Cooler and destroys his body. The Big Gete Star exits New Namek's atmosphere and explodes.
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Goku crash landing after defeating Cooler
Goku and Vegeta fall from the sky near the rest of the Z Fighters, and everyone rejoices. They then realize that Vegeta is nowhere to be found, and Goku looks up at the sky, noting that without Vegeta, they wouldn't have won. Indeed, Vegeta is flying in space in his Space Pod (which he used to follow Goku to New Namek) with the computer chip from the Big Gete Star in his hands. He crushes it and heads back to Earth.
Timeline placement
From Goku's mark-less gi, Dende being Earth's Guardian, and Vegeta transforming into a Super Saiyan, we can infer that this is an event from between when the Cell Games were announced and their opening.[3] Though there are inconsistencies with this such as Gohan's Pre-Cell Games appearence and his inability to turn Super Saiyan.
In Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, it is revealed that this film (along with Cooler's Revenge) takes place in an alternate timeline of Age 767.[4]
Releases
The Return of Cooler was originally released on VHS and Laserdisc in Japan. In 2006, Toei Animation released The Return of Cooler as part of the final Dragon Box DVD set, which included all four Dragon Ball films and thirteen Dragon Ball Z films. These were presented in a new widescreen transfer from the original negatives with a 16:9 aspect ratio that was matted from the original 4:3 aspect ratio.
FUNimation released The Return of Cooler for VHS and DVD on August 13, 2002 in both edited and uncut forms.[5] As was the case with all previous releases, the movie was released in an unmatted 4:3 aspect ratio. The DVD featured an English dub with an original score done by Mark Menza. In 2002, FUNimation bundled Lord Slug with Cooler's Revenge and The Return of Cooler in a new DVD box set. It was released on October 15, 2002, available in both edited and uncut forms.[6][7] The Return of Cooler was released theatrically with Fusion Reborn in 2006 as a double feature.
FUNimation re-released Cooler's Revenge and The Return of Cooler on DVD and Blu-ray on November 11, 2008 as part of their "Double Feature" line.[8] This new set featured a brand-new widescreen transfer from Video Post & Transfer and a new audio mix for the English dub featuring the original Japanese score done by Shunsuke Kikuchi in addition to the old mix featuring the Menza score.
FUNimation repackaged the Double Feature DVDs into three new thinpak sets, the second of which was released on December 6, 2011 and included The Return of Cooler, Super Android 13!, Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan, and Bojack Unbound. These three sets were also released together in the Canada-only Dragon Ball Z: Complete Movie Collection featuring reversioned artwork of Goten and Trunks from Bio-Broly on the cover.
 American Box Art  The American double-feature DVD steel book case, released in 2008 alongside Cooler's Revenge  Double Feature Blu-ray version  Movie 4 Pack  Dragon Ball Z Complete Movie Collection |
Cast
A fourth English version released exclusively in Malaysia by Speedy Video features an unknown voice cast.
Music
- Opening Theme (OP): "Cha-La Head-Cha-La"
- Ending Theme (ED): "HERO (Kimi ga Hīrō)"
Battles
- Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan vs. Cyclopian Guards
- Goku (Base/Kaio-ken/Super Saiyan) vs. Meta-Cooler
- Goku (Super Saiyan) and Vegeta (Super Saiyan) vs. Meta-Cooler Corps.
- Piccolo vs. Meta-Cooler
- Goku (Super Saiyan) and Vegeta (Super Saiyan) vs. Meta-Cooler Core
Reception
The movie was released in theaters in Japan on March 7, 1992 as part of a double feature. It grossed a total of ¥2.48 billion (US $19 million).[10]
Trivia
- This movie's premise is overall similar to the Trunks and Androids Sagas in the anime:
- Cooler returns in a mechanical form, like Frieza's Mecha form.
- Cooler claims to have been drifting in space until his remains were merged with the Big Gete Star's main computer, which revived him, similar to Frieza drifting in space until being found by King Cold.
- Goku battles Meta-Cooler as a Super Saiyan and seems evenly matched with him until Meta-Cooler begins to strangle him before Vegeta turns up and kicks Meta-Cooler aside, demonstrating his Super Saiyan form, similar to Goku's battle with Android 19.
- Goku and Vegeta defeat the first Meta-Cooler by smashing him to pieces and then blasting him, like Future Trunks chopping Mecha Frieza up with his sword and then blasting him away.
- The core of the Big Gete Star-forming the Meta-Coolers is similar to Dr. Gero's Super Computer creating Cell.
- This is the first theatrical film in which Vegeta appears.
- This is one of the few films to not feature Earth as the main setting. This is also the only film that takes place on New Namek and the first movie where the Z Fighters fight a villain on a planet that is not Earth.
- Both Goku and Piccolo's outfits are altered slightly in coloration for this movie compared to the anime; Goku's outer shirt and pants are colored plain orange instead of red-orange, and Piccolo's sash is colored red instead of sky blue (which resembles both of their appearances in full-color chapters of the manga). They continue to wear these altered colors in the movies until after Bojack Unbound.
- The scene which Piccolo enters the Big Gete Star resembles the stargate sequence from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
- This is the first Dragon Ball Z material to hint that Dende would become the Guardian of the Earth, as the manga chapter revealing this, Cell vs. the Army, was not released until seven months after the film's release.
- The robot trying to cut up the captured Namekians and Z Fighters inside the Big Gete Star slightly resembles the medical droid from the Star Wars films.
- It is one of the first Dragon Ball-related movies to receive a theatrical release in the United States.
- One discrepancy is that Dende is Guardian of Earth at the beginning of the movie, by which time Gohan could turn Super Saiyan, which he appears incapable of doing in this film. Gohan is clearly younger than he was in the Cell Games because his hair is still long and he is still shorter than Krillin. Also, Goku and Gohan did not power down from Super Saiyan form from when they left the Hyperbolic Time Chamber in the anime/manga until after Cell was destroyed, but they are seen in their base forms in this movie.
- In the original FUNimation dub, Meta-Cooler has a slight mechanical sound to his voice, but in the Remastered edition, the sound effect has been removed, making Meta-Cooler's voice sound exactly like the original Cooler's.
- This is the last movie where Goku is seen using the Kaio-ken technique.
- A poster for the film depicts Cooler in his fifth form, despite this form not appearing in the film (sans the flashback sequence).
- In Cooler's Revenge, Goku used a blue ki blast to push Cooler into the sun at the end of the movie. The subbed version of this movie changes that ki blast to a Kamehameha, thus changing the overall scene from the previous movie.
- The 15th Shunsuke Kikuchi music package for the franchise starts here. The cues were designated "M13XX" codes, and this package would make its series debut in The Reunion.
- In the AB Group dub, the Big Gete Star is called "the Great Gedester".
Gallery
 The Return of Cooler poster  The Return of Cooler Dragon Box DVD Dragon Ball The Movies: Volume 6  New Planet Namek when the Big Gete Star arrives  A village on New Namek  Moori during the Big Gete Star's arrival on his planet .jpg "Riding In The SpaceShip (Return of Cooler).jpg (365 KB)") The Gang in the spaceship  A Namekian Warrior  A Cyclopian Guard fires a net at a Namekian  The Namekian Warrior breaks free  The Namekian Warrior attacks  A Cyclopian Guard strangles the Namekian Warrior  The Namekian Warrior on the ground  Gohan saves the Namekian Warrior  Gohan attacks  Gohan prepares a Masenko  Gohan's Masenko hits a Cyclopian Guard  Gohan on New Namek  Piccolo on New Namek  Goku on New Namek  Meta-Cooler on New Namek  Meta-Cooler smirking  Meta-Cooler battles with Goku on New Namek  Goku uses a Dragonthrow on Meta-Cooler  Yajirobe and Oolong on New Namek  Roshi and Yajirobe  Roshi prepares an attack  Roshi punches a Cyclopian Guard  Roshi hurt after he punched a Cyclopian Guard  Oolong, Roshi and Yajirobe captured by Cyclopian Guard  Piccolo and a Cyclopian Guard extend their arms  Meta-Cooler prepares a Supernova  Meta-Cooler charges the Supernova  Goku is hit by Meta-Cooler's Supernova  Goku appears behind Meta-Cooler Meta-Cooler using Instant Transmission  Meta-Cooler grabs and smashes Goku  Goku transforms to Super Saiyan  Goku transforms to Super Saiyan  Piccolo  Piccolo  Gohan and Krillin  An angry Gohan  Piccolo's punch penetrates a Cyclopian Guard  Piccolo destroys a Cyclopian Guard  Gohan's punch penetrates a Cyclopian Guard  Krillin charges a Cyclopian Guard  Krillin destroys a Cyclopian Guard  Gohan traverses a Cyclopian Guard  Piccolo getting attacked  Cyclopian Guards attack Piccolo  Piccolo  Piccolo prepares an attack  An explosion caused by Piccolo  Cyclopian Guards destroyed by Piccolo  Piccolo after the battle  Gohan is caught  Gohan captured  Super Saiyan Goku vs. Meta-Cooler .png "GokuVsMCooler(YASTIE).png (1.37 MB)") Super Saiyan Goku vs. Meta-Cooler  Meta-Cooler fires a Kiai  Super Saiyan Goku attacks Meta-Cooler  Goku rips off one of Meta-Cooler's arms  Super Saiyan Goku  Meta-Cooler regenerates his lost arm  Meta-Cooler's arm regenerates up progressively  Meta-Cooler punches Goku in the stomach  Meta-Cooler knee strikes Goku in the back  Meta-Cooler uses his grapple throw on Goku  Goku fires a yellow Super Kamehameha at Meta-Cooler  Goku's Super Kamehameha hits Meta-Cooler  Meta-Cooler fires the Finger Blitz Barrage at Goku  Goku deflects Meta-Cooler's Finger Blitz Barrage  Goku counters Meta-Cooler's Finger Blitz Barrage  Meta-Cooler chokes Super Saiyan Goku  Vegeta kicks Meta-Cooler  Vegeta faces Meta-Cooler  Meta-Cooler looking down at Vegeta  Meta-Cooler charges a Ki Blast in Vegeta's face  Goku kicks Meta-Cooler, causing him to fire his Ki Blast away from Vegeta  Vegeta about to blast Meta-Cooler with no regard for Goku  Meta-Cooler knee strikes Vegeta  Meta-Cooler charges the Lock-On Buster  Goku catches Vegeta  The Lock-On Buster fired at Goku and Vegeta  Explosion caused by the Lock-On Buster  Goku and Vegeta attack Meta-Cooler  Goku and Vegeta combine their ki while ramming towards a Meta-Cooler  Goku and Vegeta fire a Combined Energy Wave at Meta-Cooler  Vegeta pointing his index finger to a Meta-Cooler  Vegeta shooting Finger Blasts at Meta-Cooler  Vegeta's Finger Beams destroy the Meta-Cooler Another of Cooler's clones appears  The Meta-Cooler on a cliff  Cooler's clones  Cooler's clones  Goku and Vegeta use a Super Explosive Wave  One of the Meta-Coolers being created  Big Gete Star robot captures Yajirobe and his friends  Z Fighters and Namekians  Vegeta grabs wires to fill with energy  Goku forces the Big Gete Star to take in more energy  The Big Gete Star starts exploding from the overload  Cooler's surviving organic body  The remains of Cooler  Goku powers up to Super Saiyan .jpg "Goku vs Mecha Cooler (Return of Cooler).jpg (365 KB)") The massive size difference between Goku and the new Cooler .jpg "Goku's Death Blast (Return of Cooler).jpg (340 KB)") Goku prepares a technique to destroy Cooler  Cooler ensnares Goku, stopping his attack  Goku hurt by Cooler  Vegeta's Destructo Disc, right before severing Cooler's arm  Goku powers up, destroying his now-weakened restraints .jpg "Goku's Death Blast 2 (Return of Cooler).jpg (319 KB)") The technique used by Goku to destroy Cooler  Meta-Cooler before being destroyed .jpg "Metal Cooler Exploding (Return of Cooler).jpg (267 KB)") Cooler exploding  The last remaining part of Cooler after the battle on Earth .jpg "Big Gete Star Explosion (Return of Cooler).jpg (224 KB)") Big Gete Star exploding  Gohan  Piccolo and Gohan  The Z Fighters        |
References
- ↑ http://worldofkj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=55322&sid=6362a4092ea8c6562491437817e3722f&start=3500
- ↑ http://www.toei-animation-usa.com/dragon-ball.html
- ↑ Daizenshuu 6, 1995
- ↑ Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, 2016
- ↑ "Dragon Ball Z - The Return of Cooler (Uncut Feature)", amazon.com
- ↑ "Dragon Ball Z - Movies 4-5-6 (Lord Slug/Cooler's Revenge/The Return of Cooler) (1996)", amazon.com
- ↑ "DragonBall Z: Lord Slug/Cooler's Revenge/The Return of Cooler", amazon.com
- ↑ "Dragon Ball Z: Coolers Revenge / The Return of Cooler (Double Feature) (Steelbook Packaging)", amazon.com
- ↑ http://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15614
- ↑ http://worldofkj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=55322&sid=6362a4092ea8c6562491437817e3722f&start=3500