Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might

Volluble Essential

ドラゴンボールZ 地球まるごと超決戦

Anime1990Finished

Overview

Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might is a 1990 theatrical movie that stands apart from the main Dragon Ball Z storyline as a self-contained side story. At roughly an hour, it delivers the series' signature mix of martial arts action, science fiction spectacle, and rising-stakes combat without demanding a long viewing commitment.

The film builds its drama around a single vivid idea: an invader from space plants a seed that grows into a colossal tree, sinking its roots into the planet and draining its energy to feed his own power. That premise turns the entire world into the battlefield and gives the Z Warriors both a ticking clock and a coordinated group of opponents to face. It is a compact showcase of what this series looks like when a short runtime is matched with theatrical-scale action.

Because the story is contained and the content level is mild, this movie works as an approachable sample for newcomers curious about Dragon Ball Z, and as an easy standalone rewatch for longtime fans. An English dub is available, and the film can be streamed through Bilibili TV and Crunchyroll.

Synopsis

Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might is a 1990 anime movie that runs about an hour and tells a self-contained story. A Saiyan invader arrives on Earth with a band of alien warriors and plants a mysterious seed. The seed grows into an enormous tree that sinks its roots into the planet and drains its energy and life, feeding the one who planted it with tremendous power. Goku and the Z Warriors quickly understand what the tree will do to their world and set out to stop it.

The heroes face a coordinated enemy force rather than a single opponent. The invaders guard the tree and its planter, so Goku and his allies must fight them while also trying to halt the tree's spread. The invader is confident his plan cannot be undone, and the growing tree reshapes the landscape as the struggle continues. The central conflict is whether Earth can be saved before the tree finishes draining it.

Trailer

Should You Watch It?

Volluble Test Drive Watch the movie About 1 hour 1 minutes

The primary starting work is a movie, so the full film is the natural Volluble Test Drive. This gives you the complete story instead of applying an episodic trial to a feature-length work.

Characters and Voice Actors24 characters

Gokuu Son

Main character
  • Japanese: Masako Nozawa
  • English: Sean Schemmel
  • English: Ian James Corlett
  • English: Peter Kelamis
  • English: David Gasman

Gohan Son

Main character
  • Japanese: Masako Nozawa
  • English: Saffron Henderson
  • English: Stephanie Nadolny
  • English: Jodi Forrest

Turles

Main character
  • English: Chris Patton
  • Japanese: Masako Nozawa
  • English: Ward Perry
  • English: Ed Marcus

Pu’ar

Supporting character
  • English: Cathy Weseluck
  • Japanese: Naoko Watanabe
  • English: Monika Antonelli
  • English: Jodi Forrest

Bulma

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Hiromi Tsuru
  • English: Tiffany Vollmer
  • English: Lalainia Lindbjerg
  • English: Sharon Mann

Piccolo

Supporting character
  • English: Christopher Sabat
  • English: Scott McNeil
  • Japanese: Toshio Furukawa
  • English: Paul Bandey

Chi-Chi

Supporting character
  • English: Cynthia Cranz
  • Japanese: Mayumi Shou
  • English: Sharon Mann
  • English: Laara Sadiq

Oolong

Supporting character
  • English: Scott McNeil
  • English: Bradford Jackson
  • Japanese: Naoki Tatsuta
  • English: Alec Willows
  • English: David Gasman

Chaozu

Supporting character
  • English: Cathy Weseluck
  • Japanese: Hiroko Emori
  • English: Monika Antonelli
  • English: Jodi Forrest

Kuririn

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Mayumi Tanaka
  • English: Sonny Strait
  • English: Terry Klassen
  • English: Sharon Mann

Yamcha

Supporting character
  • English: Christopher Sabat
  • Japanese: Tooru Furuya
  • English: Ted Cole
  • English: Douglas Rand

Kita no Kaiou

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Jouji Yanami
  • English: Don Brown
  • English: Sean Schemmel
  • English: Paul Bandey

Tenshinhan

Supporting character
  • English: John Burgmeier
  • Japanese: Hirotaka Suzuoki
  • English: Matt Smith
  • English: Douglas Rand

Shen Long

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Kenji Utsumi
  • English: Christopher Sabat
  • English: Don Brown
  • English: Ed Marcus

Muten Roushi

Supporting character
  • English: Mike McFarland
  • English: Don Brown
  • English: Ian James Corlett
  • Japanese: Kouhei Miyauchi
  • English: Ed Marcus

Higher Dragon

Supporting character
  • English: Christopher Sabat
  • Japanese: Naoki Tatsuta
  • English: Doug Parker

Daizu

Supporting character
  • English: Scott McNeil
  • Japanese: Yuuji Machi
  • English: Ed Marcus
  • English: Mark Lancaster

Raisin

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Kenji Utsumi
  • English: Scott McNeil
  • English: Robert McCollum
  • English: Don Brown
  • English: Jodi Forrest

Almond

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Banjou Ginga
  • English: Paul Dobson
  • English: J Paul Slavens
  • English: Paul Bandey

Cacao

Supporting character
  • Japanese: Shinobu Satouchi
  • English: Jeff Johnson
  • English: Alvin Sanders
  • English: Paul Bandey

Rakasei

Supporting character
  • English: Robert McCollum
  • English: Don Brown
  • Japanese: Masaharu Satou
  • English: Alec Willows
  • English: Sharon Mann

Gregory

Background character

Bubbles

Background character

Narrator

Background character
  • English: Kyle Hebert
  • Japanese: Jouji Yanami
  • English: Doc Harris
  • English: Ed Marcus
Production and Staff26 credits
Animation StudioToei Animation
Original CreatorAkira Toriyama
DirectorDaisuke Nishio
Character DesignMinoru Maeda
Art DirectorYuuji Ikeda
Theme Song PerformanceHironobu Kageyama
Theme Song Performance (Hebrew)Ami Mendelman
ADR Script (English; Funimation)Eric Vale
ScriptTakao Koyama
ADR Script (English)Ward Perry
StoryboardMitsuo Hashimoto
Animation DirectorMinoru Maeda
View all 14 additional credits
Key AnimationKazuya Hisada
Key AnimationMasahiro Shimanuki
Key AnimationMasami Suda
In-Between AnimationNaoki Tate
Executive Producer (English; Funimation)Gen Fukunaga
Producer (English; Funimation)Justin Cook
ADR Director (English)Karl Willems
ADR Director (English; Funimation)Justin Pate
ADR Director (English; Funimation)Chris Cason
ADR Director (Brazilian Portuguese; 2nd dub)Wendel Bezerra
ADR Director (German)Ulrike Lau
Executive Producer (English; Pioneer)Hideki Gotou
ADR Director (Brazilian Portuguese; 1st dub)Lucia Helena
Assistant Animation DirectorKatsuyoshi Nakatsuru

Production Background

Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might reached Japanese audiences on July 7, 1990, arriving in the summer 1990 season as a theatrical feature. The film's Japanese title is ドラゴンボールZ 地球まるごと超決戦, and it is cataloged as a movie with a single installment rather than a series run or a collected manga volume. Its finished runtime of 61 minutes places it squarely in the short-form theatrical tradition, a length that keeps the story moving from arrival to confrontation without an intermission-style break.

The work is adapted from manga source material and originated in Japan, and the catalog lists its source as manga rather than an original screenplay. Its release status is finished, and the content level is recorded as mild. Classified within the record as an individual movie entry, it carries the movie relationship tag, which distinguishes it from the numbered episodes of a broadcast series and from print volumes tied to the same property.

For audiences outside Japan, an English dub is available, and streaming access is listed through Bilibili TV and Crunchyroll. The listing groups the film under the Action, Adventure, and Science Fiction genres, with themes covering Aliens, Dragons, Male Protagonist, Martial Arts, Shounen, and Superpowers. Those tags describe the movie on its own terms, framing a self-contained theatrical adventure rather than a chapter of an ongoing serialized storyline.

Franchise Context

Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might sits inside the Dragon Ball Z franchise as one of its theatrical movies rather than as an episode of the main series or a volume of the manga. The record dates it to 1990 and traces its source material to manga, placing it in the same era as the ongoing Dragon Ball Z anime. It is an individual work with a single installment, so this page describes this film alone and not the franchise as a whole.

Within the franchise, the movie functions as a self-contained side story rather than a continuation. It branches away from the main continuity instead of advancing it, so it does not carry the parent series' ongoing plot forward and does not set up a required later installment. The story assumes viewers already know Goku, the Z Warriors, and the broader Saiyan backstory, which makes it a companion piece to the main Dragon Ball Z run rather than an entry point for the saga itself.

Because it is a stand-alone theatrical adventure adapted from manga material, it can be watched at nearly any point once the core cast is familiar, and it can be skipped without losing the thread of the main series. It offers an alternate, single-sitting version of the Dragon Ball Z experience that stands apart from the serialized story covered by the wider franchise hub.

Where This Fits in Dragon Ball

A spoiler-light guide to where this exact work fits within the broader Dragon Ball franchise.

  1. Step 1
    Get grounded in the parent Dragon Ball Z series first, so Goku, the Z Warriors, and the core Saiyan backstory are already familiar before you press play on this film.
  2. Step 2
    Treat this movie as a self-contained theatrical side story that branches away from the main continuity rather than advancing it, which means no specific earlier episode or film is strictly required beyond that general series grounding.
  3. Step 3
    Slot it in as optional viewing during a Dragon Ball Z run once the central cast is established, or skip it entirely without losing the thread of the parent series.
  4. Step 4
    Move on afterward to the parent series or to other Dragon Ball Z movies, since nothing in this single-film side story sets up a required later installment.

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Sources6 sources
  1. AniList - Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might
  2. AniList - Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might
  3. AniList - Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might
  4. Wikipedia: Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might
  5. Wikipedia: Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might
  6. Wikipedia: Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might

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