After steadily building Majin Buu up as a villain capable of wiping out the entire universe, Dragon Ball Z's final overarching storyline finally came to a head with the aptly named Majin Buu Saga. Picking up where the Babidi Saga left off as the evil wizard's plot to free Buu from his magical prison succeeded, the stakes grew higher than ever as everyone who challenged the pink villain was swiftly defeated. With his time on Earth quickly running out, Goku revealed he still had some surprises and tricks up his sleeve to save the day before returning to the afterlife.
Here are all the biggest and most important plot twists from the Majin Buu Saga, the storyline that effectively set the stage for the final major conflict in DBZ and changed the Z Fighters' lives forever.
Vegeta's Failed Sacrifice Against Buu
After sensing that Gohan and the Supreme Kai were both easily defeated by Majin Buu, Goku and Majin Vegeta decided to put a pause on their private duel to face the reawakened villain together. However, in a shocking move, Vegeta cruelly knocked out Goku when his rival lowered his guard to share his Senzu beans and restore both fighters to full power.
While Vegeta was ultimately overpowered and savagely beaten by Buu, the more heartbreaking twist came when Piccolo revealed that because of Vegeta's lifetime of evil, selfish acts, even sacrificing his life in an effort to stop Buu would not lead to the Saiyan Prince being absolved in the afterlife. This sacrifice would prove futile at any rate, with Piccolo watching horrified as Buu reformed in a matter of seconds after Vegeta's death.
Goku Stuns Everyone By Revealing Super Saiyan 3
With Gohan presumed dead and Vegeta lost, all hope seemed fleeting as Majin Buu and Babidi carried out a devastating rampage around the world, destroying any city in their path. Next in their sights was West City, Bulma's hometown -- and the location of the Dragon Radar needed to eventually find the Dragon Balls and undo the damage that was being done.
To buy Trunks time to recover the Dragon Radar before Buu reached West City, Goku faced the monster alone, revealing he had learned how to transform into a Super Saiyan 3 in the afterlife. This transformation caused ripples around the globe as the Z Fighters were shocked that Goku had this trick up his sleeve ever since returning to Earth, and gave Buu more than a run for his money.
The Fusion Dance Sees Goten & Trunks Take Charge
While Goku was successful in stalling Buu long enough for Trunks to recover the Dragon Radar, the villain remained very much on the loose and more dangerous than ever. Even more troubling, the sheer energy consumption required to transform into and maintain Super Saiyan 3 severely cut into Goku's remaining time on Earth, leading him to unveil his surprise strategy to defeat Buu: The Fusion Dance.
Another technique Goku learned in the afterlife, the Fusion Dance has two individuals of nearly the same size and strength combine into a single composite warrior that is exponentially stronger than the two individuals. Introducing a fusion technique far different than the Namekian technique seen previously in Dragon Ball Z, the Fusion Dance set the stage for additional composite fighters, with Gotenks -- the fusion of Goten and Trunks -- leading the charge.
Hercule's Surprising Heroism: A Friendship With Buu
For years, Hercule had taken credit for Gohan destroying Cell at the end of the epic Cell Games Saga, leading him to become one of the richest, most respected men in the world. As humanity was on the brink of extinction by Buu, Hercule decided to live up to his own reputation and find a way to save the day by befriending Buu. It was a shockingly selfless move for someone often depicted as a bit of a coward.
This decision would eventually save the day and help redeem Majin Buu, with the help of an adopted puppy named Bee; though in a tragic twist, both Hercule and Bee were temporarily killed by gunmen seeking to collect a bounty on Buu. Though the reforming villain was able to resurrect his fallen friends, this development would lead to the ultimate evil being born.
An Even More Sinister Buu Is Born
The rage and raw emotion of seeing his newfound friends murdered drove Buu into an uncontrollable fit, purging the dark emotions from himself and forming a killing machine dubbed Evil Buu. Emaciated and unbridled in his evil, this Buu proved much stronger than his more innocent counterpart, easily defeating him and consuming him to transform into the even more powerful Super Buu.
After dealing with the gunmen who attacked Hercule and Bee, Super Buu set his sights on the Z Fighters, having gained the ability to sense energy signatures. This effectively set the stage for the climactic fights of Dragon Ball Z that featured plenty of plot twists of their own.
