"Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks" turns 30

[Neo-Makaiōshin]

Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks, known in Japan as Dragon Ball Z: Defiance in the Face of Despair!! The Remaining Super-Warriors: Gohan and Trunks has turned 30 years old!!. Originally airing in Japan on February 24, 1993, between episodes 175 and 176, the special was based on an extra chapter of the manga series. It depicted the original post-apocalyptic future in which Goku died from the heart virus, the eventual rampage of Androids 17 and 18 over the Earth, and the struggles of an adult Gohan and teenage Trunks as the planet only defenders.

There's a lot I would like to say about The History of Trunks but all of them are just a variation of "It is a damn good piece of Dragon Ball" because, it is just damn good , simple as that.

So Kanzenshuu, what is your history with History of Trunks?

[Hellspawn28]

A rare time when the anime does it better than the manga. I think having Trunks going SSj after Gohan does have a lot of emotional to the story.

[VegettoEX]

The Trunks TV special is kinda baked into my fandom DNA!

My first order from a real fansub distro (I did a tape trade with some rando in a chat room before that!) was in June 1998, and I got three tapes:

• Bardock and Trunks TV Specials
• DBZ Movies 11 and 12
• DBGT episodes 59, 61-64 (raw)

That was an absolute WILD collection of stuff to get in! At that point, I had a good batch of late-Freeza-arc fansub tapes from the aforementioned trade, but my only experience was otherwise short clips I downloaded online. I can't quite remember if I had any of the Pioneer DBZ movie releases subtitled yet; I do know for a fact I tried to get DBZ movie 1 right at release, but the store ONLY had the dubbed version, so that's all I had for a while.

But I really, really, really love both those DBZ TV specials. I think most people around these parts recognize them for what they are: very different in tone from what Toriyama was writing, yet somehow completely at home with everything else at the same time. Just absolute bangers of complementary material!

I've been able to revisit the TV special a million different ways since then (things like the short story adaptation and more recently the Kakarot DLC), but that TV special itself is really... "something special" is the only way I can keep describing it.

I'm kinda furious we haven't gotten a real Blu-ray release of those recent Japanese remasters!

[WittyUsername]

It’s a very strong adaptation that stands right alongside the Bardock special for being the most mature and complex Dragon Ball has ever gotten. It also improves on the manga chapter it’s based on in every conceivable way.

[Civic]

A rare time when the anime does it better than the manga. I think having Trunks going SSj after Gohan does have a lot of emotional to the story.

Absolutely. I read the manga version for the first time recently and went 'really? That was it?' The TV special definitely takes the core of that good idea and makes it special.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Hands down one of the greatest pieces of Dragon Ball content ever produced.

For such a positive, uplifting franchise History of Trunks really turned everything on its head depicting a bleak, apocalyptic future where Earth's population is at the mercy of the artificial humans.

And who can forget this iconic image of Trunks crying.

I remember History of Trunks aired on Toonami UK in 2005, and was the last of the movies and specials to be broadcast on the channel, but I have no recollection of seeing it. It aired on my mother's birthday though, and it was the Big Green dub anyway. I of course got to see it years later, and still enjoy it just as much every time I pop that disc in.

[Jord]

Is there a reason why we only got 2 TV specials and those being released so shortly after each other?
From what I know, both were received pretty well.

[Wrigglything]

Personally I'm more miffed by this special not being included in Kai despite being manga canon, though I kind of understand why not if it is just the whole special beat for beat. Still, the beginning kept the end of the Bardock special so it's a shame Trunks isn't in there too.

[Lord Beerus]

The Future Trunks TV special is essential viewing if you're a fan of the series as far as I'm concerned. It's some of the best material to ever come out of the franchise. It's a phenomenal story that takes a barebone outline and fleshes it out into something meaningful. That TV special was Toei at their best when adapting Toriyama's work.

[NitroEX]

I've always enjoyed this film. The portrayal of Future Gohan is what makes it special to me.

The dub isn't very good but the work Dale Kelly did for the replacement soundtrack stands out the most in that version.

In terms of plot, I think it's good overall but the final act with Trunks losing the fight yet still somehow surviving always came off as a strange bit of writing, it's the only aspect of the film that doesn't work in my view and ultimately feels disjointed.

[ABED]

I've always enjoyed this film. The portrayal of Future Gohan is what makes it special to me.

The dub isn't very good but the work Dale Kelly did for the replacement soundtrack stands out the most in that version.

In terms of plot, I think it's good overall but the final act with Trunks losing the fight yet still somehow surviving always came off as a strange bit of writing, it's the only aspect of the film that doesn't work in my view and ultimately feels disjointed.

Why do you find it strange that he lost? Is it because a more conventional narrative would've had him win?

[NitroEX]

Why do you find it strange that he lost? Is it because a more conventional narrative would've had him win?

I said it was strange that he still somehow survived. In this case, it didn't make sense for him to be spared death.