5 Best Dragon Ball Sagas

If you’re new to the Dragon Ball franchise, then know that it’s easy to get overwhelmed. The iconic anime spans several shows, dozens of films, and countless storylines. Even vetted Dragon Ball fans get confused about continuity and timelines, but there are some sagas which viewers can never forget.

Since Dragon Ball debuted, the franchise has hosted more than 30 sagas which all vary in scope, character focus, and power levels. Some of these fan-favorite sagas might be the perfect place for newcomers to experience the action-packed tale that is Dragon Ball, and longtime fans always love to revisit the episodes.

Here at ComicBook.com, we’ve narrowed down five of the best sagas of the Dragon Ball franchise. So, sit down, recenter your ki, and get ready for one wild ride through Dragon Ball history.

Red Ribbon Army Saga

In the original Dragon Ball anime, fans meets a more relaxed and far underpowered version of Son Goku. The lovable character is known better for his humor than his heroism, but that reputations begins to shift with the Red Ribbon Army Saga.

From episode 29-45, Dragon Ball takes fans on a more serious journey which pits Goku against a mysterious organized called the Red Ribbon Army. The group is following in the footsteps of Goku and the petulant baddie Emperor Pilaf as they try to collect Dragon Balls. But, in true villain style, the army plans to use the mystical objects for world domination rather than peace.

The Red Ribbon Army Saga may be infinitely more tame than those which follow it, but it gave the series a launching pad for action. The thriller saga introduced terrifying characters like Colonel Silver and General White – and it even features a rather pacifistic android going AWOL after one of them men hurts Goku.

King Piccolo Saga

While the Red Ribbon Army Saga showed Goku fighting against a legion of dangerous treasure seekers, the King Piccolo Saga follows the boy through a more difficult ordeal. In this heart-wrenching saga, Goku is shown how fragile life is and how finite death can be when a villain known as King Piccolo challenges Goku’s pride.

The saga begins with a death: Goku discovers that his closest friend Killin has been murdered by a creature called Tambourine, a son of King Piccolo. The monster stole one of Goku’s Dragon Balls from Krillin, and the latter cannot forgive his friend’s death.

What follows is a prolonged lesson in mortality and morality. Goku learns just what it takes to kill a person and fight to the death, and the rage he exhibits is only matched during his adult life. When Goku punches a hole straight through King Piccolo’s chest at the saga’s end, fans watch as the hero sobs in victory knowing that he can never return from such a violent act.

Trunks Saga

When it comes to Dragon Ball Z, the series is known for its drawn-out sagas. Fights seem to go on for countless episodes, but there is one saga which packs as much of a punch without all the wait time – and it introduces fans to one of the franchise’s best characters. Episodes 118-1125 of Dragon Ball Z tells the Trunks Saga, and it is a must-see for Super Saiyan fans.

The saga takes place after Frieza and Goku destroyed Namek during their last battle. The latter has been off training, leaving his family and fellow Z Fighters to do the same at home. Heroes like Krillin, Piccolo, Tien Shinhan, and more are stuck doing menial jobs, but that all changes when their planet is infiltrated by King Cold and a revived, mechanized Frieza.

The two think the Z Fighters will be easy to take down without Goku present, but they were not anticipating the arrival of Trunks. The teenage warrior appears before Frieza and lays him out, shocking the Z Fighters with his strength. The mysterious character easily kills the enemies and leaves his audiences – even Vegeta – stunned until Goku returns to Earth. It is only then that Trunks reveals he is from the future and has come to warn the fighters of an imminent apocalypse.

Frieza Saga

There are few villains in Dragon Ball who come close to Frieza’s level of insanity. The maniacal ruler oversees the galaxy with a bloody hand, and he doesn’t hesitate to cull planets which so much as dare bother him. Goku and the Z Fighters experience the alien overlord’s wrath for themselves when they go fist-to-fist in Dragon Ball Z. And, today, fans still look back on the Frieza Saga with absolutely awe.

The saga is one of the longer Dragon Ball events as it ranges from episodes 75-107. The ordeal finds heroes like Goku, Krillin, Piccolo, and even anti-heroes like Vegeta fighting Frieza. The thrilling, emotional journey sees Piccolo assume a new power level and a dying Vegeta confess that Frieza is who destroyed the Saiyan races. However, the true climax of the fight comes when Frieza mercilessly kills Goku’s friend Krillin for sport, and the horrifying act pushes Goku into the Super Saiyan state for the first time.

Vegeta Saga

If you are looking for a quintessential Dragon Ball saga, then you have to check out the Vegeta Saga. The sci-fi sequence aimed to separate Dragon Ball Z from its previous series, and this saga accomplished its goal in spades. The violent, suspenseful episodes introduced fans to two new Saiyans and culminated in one of the greatest Dragon Ball fights ever.

The saga follows two characters named Vegeta and Nappa. The mysterious, over-powered villains have come to test Goku’s strength, and the latter is all too eager to prove his worth. His show of power threatens Vegeta’s pride, and the two spend episodes locked in battle. Each of the Z Fighters had a moment to kick extraterrestrial butt in this beloved saga, and it set the foundations of Goku’s ever-changing relationship with Vegeta.

And, most importantly, spirit bombs. Who can forget the massive, otherworldly explosives Goku slung at Vegeta? The princely fighter never stood a chance once Goku went all kamehameha on him.