The Surprising Drug Found In 'Dragon Ball Z' - And How It Turns People Into 'Beast-Men'

By Hernán Panessi and Santiago Alonso via El Planteo.

It seems unbelievable, but it's real: at some point, a drug circulates in "Dragon Ball Z," one of the most important Japanese anime in history.

It's not the Hermit's Seeds, which quenched hunger and restored energy, nor the Water of Life, which gave Roshi the chance to avoid death by natural causes, nor the Fruit of the Sacred Essence Tree, which gave Turles a massive increase in strength.

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It is Animorphalin, a substance that turns people into "beast-men". But... what is Animorphalin and what is it about? And... at what point in the series do they use it?

'Dragon Ball Z,' The Global Success

Akira Toriyama established himself as one of the most important mangakas of all time and he did it in Latin America with "Dragon Ball" as a gateway.

Through this series, Toriyama invented a universe with its own code, with aliens, dragons, characters with powers capable of destroying entire planets, and anthropomorphic beings with a life of their own.

Throughout the 153 episodes of "Dragon Ball," 291 of "Dragon Ball Z," 64 of "Dragon Ball GT," and 131 of "Dragon Ball Super", we learn the story of Goku, a fighter from the planet Vegeta whose goal is to collect the seven Dragon Spheres and make wishes.

The story is known worldwide and thousands of articles have been written about this author's most important work.

'Dragon Ball Z' And Drugs

However, there are few references to a substance that justifies the existence of talking dogs and piggies like Ulong, with human speech and movements.

In the "Dragon Ball Z" Kakarot videogame (available for PlayStation 4, 5 and PC), there is a mission that Goku must carry out: "Animorphaline Accident", mission number 13.

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The mission is located in the stage prior to the Cell Tournament and the objective is for our protagonist to gather "a series of mushrooms" to create, together with Bulma, an antidote that will allow a group of " beast men" - in the form of bears and tigers - to return to their natural state and regain their human form.

In the words of the Capsule Corp referent, Animorphalin is "a serum from Magic Pharmaceuticals." "If you take it, you will be a man-beast," adds the creator of Dragon Radar. But, will this drug have recreational purposes or will it be medicinal?

This substance was ingested by the King of Nations, an important politician who appears in different parts of the series and who became a small wolf without losing his abilities.

Who Is Behind Animorphalin?

Behind this product is none other than the Red Patrol, a paramilitary group that Goku defeated in the first season of the series and whose activities did not cease, to the point of creating Androids 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20, among others.

The recent film "Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero" delves into the background of the minds behind the organization.

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It was they who trafficked the substance for mere financial gain. Through this mission, Goku manages to gather the spheres and the elements to prepare the antidote and, thus, give it to the two "beast men" so that they can return to their normal lives.

In this way, the video game "Dragon Ball Z Kakarot" is the one that flirts with the idea of "drugs." And while it is not canonical within the backstory of the series, it has all of our favorite heroes present.

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Via El Planteo, translated by Benzinga.