Dragon Ball Z‘s spectacular rise to becoming one of the most popular anime series in Western culture didn’t happen by mistake. Majestic battles between larger-than-life personalities, character development that saw villains turn into beloved heroes, and life-long lessons taught through the art of training aided Akira Toriyama’s masterpiece evolve from paper to the big screen.
Above all, each character’s evolution from learning their weaknesses to perfecting their craft has helped shape many grand battles throughout the 1990s and onward. Hybrid Saiyan Trunks is no different, as he literally had to travel from the future to correct problems that once destroyed his world. He’s had plenty of battles in different timelines, and some of them tend to stand out more than others.
This ranking will go over the ten best fights Trunks was involved in, identifying which ones stand out more than others by measuring the impact they had on the story and character, and what transpired after the dust had settled.
10 Trunks Versus Broly
The Legendary Super Saiyan's Incredible Power
The Legendary Super Saiyan Broly was an unstoppable force, combining lightning-fast speed with immeasurable strength. As part of the group of Saiyans taking him on, Trunks did everything in his power to keep up with Broly, but couldn’t get a lick of offense in during the battle. His time fighting was mostly spent struggling and trying to stay alive as Broly plowed through him and the others.
Realizing the differential in power, Trunks switched to a more supportive role in battle and distracted Broly with quick attacks and small talk. Along with Gohan, Piccolo, and Vegeta, this was more than enough to allow Goku the time he needed to build up an attack and land it, ending the fight with Broly.
9 Trunks Versus Future Dabura
A Familiar Foe Returns Once More
This fight also serves as a warning of the dangers of multiverse theory, and the impact it can have when someone tries to correct a problem from their own timeline. In this case, Trunks was seeking a timeline that wasn’t destroyed by the Androids, but in doing so, he encountered Dabura and Babidi. Their arrival had been delayed due to the lack of energy in the world for them to steal.
Due to this fight not lasting very long, with Trunks making quick work of Dabura thanks to the heavy imbalance in power, it’s difficult to place it lower on the list. As short and sweet as it was, seeing Trunks embarrass a once-feared opponent was thrilling.
8 Trunks Versus Kogu
A Dual With The Galaxy Soldier
Trunks’ head-to-head opponent was Kogu, and the battle paired eerily similar styles of combat. Both Trunks and Kogu wielded swords, which was a guarantee that would come into play as they exchanged fists. Despite having an array of different attacks and the power to punch through a brick wall, Trunks was a masterful swordsman and had a history of dicing up his opponents.
What makes this fight so special is Trunks’ deflection of Kogu’s sword with his own arm, followed by a straight gut punch that not only pierced skin, but punched a hole through Kogu’s body. Despite showing an equal amount of strength during the early stages of battle, Kogu was no match for a Super Saiyan.
7 Trunks Versus Android 14
Are There Even More Androids?
The one thing synonymous with Trunks and his mission to go back to the past is the danger of the androids. After all, they were responsible for the destruction of his timeline and the murder of his best friend and mentor, Gohan. What he didn’t expect was the aftermath of his time-travelling tactics, which eventually brought out more androids than he originally planned for. There weren’t just two, but six, and the second trio the Saiyans took on appeared to be far more destructive than their predecessors.
Upon first engaging Android 14, Trunks struggled and appeared to be at a severe disadvantage, but it was nothing a Super Saiyan transformation couldn’t fix. Switching to his powered-up form, Trunks was not only able to win the fight, but slice through Android 14 with one swing. The closing moments before Android 14 exploded into pieces felt like a cheesy Western, but it was a fantastic conclusion.
6 Trunks Versus Goku Black
The Timeline Villain That Resembles Goku
In Dragon Ball Super, Trunks’ main target is someone that looks exactly like Goku. As a matter of fact, it is Goku’s body, but it’s inhabited by Zamasu. Similar to the Androids invading his timeline, Trunks is forced to travel through time to seek assistance to stop the threat of his world becoming a complete wasteland.
Upon his return to the timeline, Trunks takes on Goku Black with fury and passion and puts up a great fight, despite the large difference in their power. Trunks lands blow after blow, and pours his heart out, but at the end of the day, he’s overwhelmed by Goku Black. Due to his outburst of emotions and his ability to land a few shots, this fight feels more impactful than the previous few that saw him win.
5 Trunks Versus Perfect Cell
A Less Than Ideal Transformation
After watching Cell transform into his perfect form, Trunks brought out his own secret weapon — a buffed version of his Super Saiyan form. This transformation drastically increased his strength and gave him a more intimidating appearance, but there was one flaw in the new design. Trunks would only find this out after pummeling Perfect Cell, when it was revealed Cell had been toying with him.
What Trunks had gained in strength, he gave up in speed, making it impossible to land any attack on Perfect Cell. It was a tough lesson to learn, made even more difficult by the fact that Perfect Cell pitied Trunks enough to not kill him. Thankfully, this form became a part of history that was seldomly thought of again.
4 Trunks Versus Fused Zamasu
The Ultimate Battle For The Timeline
If the battle with Goku Black wasn’t enough, what happens when a Zamasu from one timeline and another Zamasu, fused with Goku’s body, join in an unholy fusion? You get Fused Zamasu, a part immortal-part God entity that is hell-bent on shaping his universe into his perfect image. The only thing that could stop him is a miracle, which Trunks manages to pull out of his back pocket.
Similar to the Spirit Bomb, Trunks fuses the hopes and prayers of those on Earth to create the Spirit Sword. Wielding his new weapon, Trunks sliced through Fused Zamasu, cutting his enemy right down the middle, effectively separating the two beings and destroying them. Nothing happened after that. The world was saved, and you don’t need to look any further into it.
3 Trunks Versus Mecha Frieza
A Magnificent Introduction
In one of the coldest introductions to an anime series, Trunks arrives from the future to find his father, Vegeta, and the rest of the fighting group to seek help against the androids. What he found instead was Frieza and his father, King Cold, in the midst of setting up shop on Earth. Unbothered by the young man, Frieza fired off a warning towards Trunks before a transformation struck the fear of God in him.
Not only did Trunks propel a giant energy ball like it was a basketball, he then leaped up into the air and sliced Frieza up into several pieces. Mind you, Frieza had terrified everyone not named Goku, and even Goku wasn’t able to fully kill Frieza. To watch him and his father get taken out like yesterday’s trash has earned Trunks a huge fan base, just from this act alone.
2 Trunks Versus Future Cell
Righting His Wrong In The Future
Everyone loves a retribution story, but when Trunks battled and killed Cell in his future timeline, there was more emotion behind his actions. In an alternate timeline, Cell had killed Trunks and stolen his time capsule, so when Trunks encountered him again, justice was served. Trunks wasn’t only stronger, but wiser too, and he made sure Cell suffered every second the beating was handed to him.
The history behind Trunks’s whole story and the reason for his traveling through time made this fight feel more significant than the previous fights on this list. Not only did Trunks get his retribution, but he also vanquished one of the biggest threats of his timeline. To do it so swiftly felt satisfying for the viewer.
1 Trunks Versus Androids 17 & 18
The Future Is Now Saved
Before traveling from the future to the present timeline of Dragon Ball Z, Trunks had reached his limit against Androids 17 and 18. Not only did he find Gohan’s lifeless body after a battle, but his subsequent transformation to Super Saiyan was still not enough to give him the upper hand. His last battle left him on the brink of death, but his adventure into the present timeline gave him hope.
While his original plan of destroying the androids in the present was foiled, Trunks became exponentially stronger during his battles with Perfect Cell. His move back to the future not only gave him the strength he needed to defeat the twin androids, but he mopped the floor with them, embarrassing both Android 17 and 18, and bringing justice to his fallen mentor.
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Dragon Ball Z
TV-PGAction Adventure Sci-FiComedySuper PowerFantasy Martial ArtsShounen Release Date 1989 — 1995 Directors Daisuke Nishio Writers Akira Toriyama, Takao Koyama
Dragon Ball Z is an iconic anime from Toei Animation that continues the story established in the original Dragon Ball, taking the series and characters to new heights as they explore further out into the galaxy, encountering greater foes that challenge existence itself.
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