Anime
‘Dragon Ball Z’: Frieza’s first mentions were not inside the official canon
The original Dragon Ball Z anime based on Akira Toriyama’s manga had a good amount of filler episodes, and it was in these that Frieza first made himself known.
Frieza is one of the most iconic villains of ‘Dragon Ball Z’, the famous anime and manga created by Akira Toriyama, and also a recurring character in the following series. Although the character made his official debut in Namek, he was mentioned by Vegeta after leaving the medical capsule in which he healed his wounds from the brutal battle with Goku on Earth. Or so it was in official manga canon, since in the anime, the first mention of the fearsome villain took place in a filler episode as part of a plot that extended Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan’s trip to Namek.
The first mention of Frieza in ‘Dragon Ball Z’
In episodes 39 and 40 of ‘Dragon Ball Z’ -belonging to the Frieza saga- there is the first mention of the fearsome villain by some orphaned children traveling aboard a curious spaceship covered in mirrors, making it practically invisible in space. “Will they be friends or enemies? The children of that mysterious spaceship” is the title of this episode in which Frieza is named for the first time. And as ‘Dragon Ball’ fans will know, this episode is part of the small six-chapter filler arc from the Frieza saga -some mixed, since among them intersperse the healing of Vegeta which does appear in the manga - in which Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan suffer a small setback on their trip to Namek.
They are intercepted by the huge invisible ship inside which live the children and young survivors of a planet invaded by Frieza’s mercenary army, from which they managed to escape at the last moment. The frightened children take Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan hostage, believing them to be part of Frieza’s army. It is here that one of the young men in charge accuses our three protagonists of being part of the evil forces of Frieza, something Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan had never heard of.
Shortly after, Vegeta leaves the healing pod asking about Frieza in a mention that should be the first in the canon, but the second in the anime after the first mention of the villain by the kids on the spaceship, in this case, outside the official canon.
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