Yo, it’s time for more Rising Sun. For this installment, the topic is a anime film that was actually shown in American theaters last year.

I’m sure many South graduates remember turning on Cartoon Network during 1999 and hearing a metal tune blaring from the TV. “Dragon, dragon, rock the dragon, come a-come get me!” That was many fans’ first exposure to Dragon Ball Z, a show that would eventually become the network’s hottest show. After the end of the Toonami block, many fans thought that would be the end of DBZ’s influence on America. But then Funimation announced DBZ Kai would air on Nicktoons in 2010, and then in 2014, they teamed up with 20th Century Fox to release a new film called Battle of Gods in theaters, the first Dragon Ball film since Path to Power, and the first to be part of Akira Toriyama’s canon.

In the film, Goku learns of the God of Destruction Beerus, who will destroy the Earth if the Super Saiyan God doesn’t appear to give him the fight of his life. And even worse, it’s Bulma’s 38th birthday!

The film focuses on the more humorous side of Dragon Ball, with amazing success. Goku enters a panic when he realizes he forgot about Bulma’s party, Beerus starts a fight over a pudding cup, and Oolong the pig blows his chance to be the hero. It’s a nicely written plot, and it’s topped off by one of the biggest fight scenes in Dragon Ball history, which itself is accompanied by some pretty amazing 2D animation backed up by CGI animation. And Funimation’s voice actors have truly improved their parts since they took over the show’s dubbing in late 1999. My one problem is during the recap of the shows, they used Linda Young’s Freeza in the place of Chris Ayres, who’s the superior actor performing the character in Resurrection ‘F’, which Battle of Gods‘ dialogue and success guaranteed.

It’s not available on Netflix or Hulu, but you can find it on Blu-Ray and DVD, so Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods is worth watching if you are a fan of Dragon Ball, or if you like martial arts comedies.