Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 9, 2014

It’s been a pretty long dry spell for Dragon Ball Z fans wanting to catch a glimpse of their favorite Super Saiyans on a big screen, and potentially making matters worse has been the fact that in the meantime diehard fans have reacted mostly in horror to the “revised” versions of the original television series released on Blu-ray by FUNimation Entertainment (Dragon Ball Z: Season 1). Over a decade and a half has elapsed since the last Dragon Ball Z feature film was screened theatrically, and if there hasn’t exactly been an “absence” due to frequent (if sometimes botched) home video releases of both the original series and its redaction Dragon Ball Z Kai, the hearts of longtime aficionados may indeed have grown fonder in the meantime, and a potent wave of nostalgia infuses this brisk and enjoyable outing.

A nasty quasi-feline villain named Beerus is the central nemesis in Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, one who decides that Freeza’s defeat cannot go unpunished. That sets the film’s central showdown into motion, with Goku initially entering the fray but discovering that Super Saiyan powers evidently only go so far. Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods trods a fairly well worn Dragon Ball Z path by having the bad guy repeatedly vanquish the good guys (which ultimately includes Vegeta), but with no real question about the ultimate outcome of events. Nicely balanced between the original series’ goofy (and at times downright wacky) humor and nicely staged battle sequences, Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods is a charming and enjoyable throwback that may not do a lot to advance the Dragon Ball Z canon, but will still provide a nice refresher course to both fans and newcomers on a lot of what made the original series such a phenomenon.

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. Without engaging in too much snark, at least this release is supposed to be in 1.78:1 (or something close to it, anyway). The animation style is a clear homage to the original look of the series, with a slightly more modern feeling at times. Line detail remains crisp, strong and stable, and colors are bright and vivid. Things are just slightly soft looking at times, and there are some very minor issues with banding in the lighter gradients, but otherwise this is a problem free high definition presentation which should please this franchise's many fans.

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods features Dolby TrueHD 5.1 tracks in both Japanese and English for the Theatrical Version, and an English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 track for the Uncut Version. You can't really go wrong with either of the surround options here. Both feature great voice work (whatever one's qualms about FUNimation's handling of this franchise's video component, the dubbing has typically been first rate) and nicely placed foley effects in the many rambunctious action sequences. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range is extremely wide.

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Theatrical Version (1080p; 1:25:18) and Uncut Version (1080p; 1:45:12) of the film


• Behind the Scenes: Battle of Voice Actors (1080p; 9:55)


• The Voices of Dragon Ball Z Unveiled (1080p; 19:23)


• Textless Closing Song (1080p; 3:31)


• U.S. Trailer (1080p; 1:48)


• Trailers for other FUNimation Entertainment Releases

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods is a generally very enjoyable romp back with much loved characters who have been too long absent on the new adventures front. While this film will probably appeal most to diehard fans, even those without much interest in Dragon Ball Z in its many iterations might well get a kick (and punch) out of this entry. Recommended.