, generally spelled Majin Boo in subtitles of the Japanese
anime
is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...
, and rendered as Djinn-Boo in the
Viz Media
VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...
manga, is the final antagonist in the ''
Dragon Ball'' manga series created by
Akira Toriyama, before the release of ''
Dragon Ball Super
is a Japanese manga series written by Akira Toriyama and illustrated by Toyotarou. A sequel to Toriyama's original Dragon Ball (manga), ''Dragon Ball'' manga, it follows the adventures of Goku and friends during the ten-year timeskip after ...
''. He is introduced in chapter #460 "Majin Buu Appears?!", first published in ''
Weekly Shōnen Jump
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many action scenes and a fair amount of comedy. The chapters of the series that run ...
'' magazine on March 1, 1994. Majin Buu is a
genie
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic myt ...
-like magical life form awoken by the evil
warlock
A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft.
Etymology and terminology
The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver" and was given special applicati ...
Bibidi that terrorized galaxies by destroying entire planets, millions of years before the events of ''Dragon Ball'' take place. He was temporarily sealed away and brought to Earth; however, Bibidi was killed and Buu remained hidden. During the events of ''Dragon Ball Z'', he is revived by Bibidi's son
Babidi
'' Dragon Ball'' is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The franchise features an ensemble cast of characters and takes place in the same fictional universe as Toriyama's other work, ''Dr. Slump''. While many of the c ...
in order to carry on his father's plan to conquer the entire universe.
Creation and design
Manga author Akira Toriyama stated that when creating a villain in ''Dragon Ball'', he would try to make them different from any that had come before. Although it was difficult and he was usually not entirely pleased with the results, he thinks he did achieve this with Majin Buu. The ''Shenlong Times'' issue #2, a bonus pamphlet given to some buyers of the ''
Daizenshuu 2: Story Guide'' guidebook, says that Majin Buu was modeled after Toriyama's editor at the time, Fuyuto Takeda.
Buu, Bibidi and Babidi take their names from the song "
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo
"Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" (also called "The Magic Song") is a novelty song, written in 1948 by Al Hoffman, Mack David, and Jerry Livingston. Introduced in the 1950 film ''Cinderella'', and performed by actress Verna Felton, the song is about the Fairy ...
" in the Walt Disney movie ''
Cinderella
"Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...
''.
Toriyama stated that the fight between Buu and Gotenks was fun to draw because he was able to come up with odd techniques in "the spirit of gag manga".
Majin Buu has several different forms, each with a different appearance and personality; however, all are pink creatures (with the exception of Pure Evil Majin Buu, which is dark grey) with an antenna on their head and several pores on both sides of their heads, arms, chest and vertebrae. They have a rubbery body (again, with the exception of Pure Evil Majin Buu) that can
regenerate instantly from any wound, separate parts of it from themselves and control them independently, and can even completely restore themselves from vapor. Buu can also heal damaged beings, and can absorb other organisms by enveloping them with his body or eating them, the latter done by using his signature attack that turns people into food such as candy.
When first introduced he is overweight and wears gloves, boots, a vest, and a cape. His appearance, magical powers, how he appeared from his ball, longevity, and how he is summoned to Earth by an evil warlock using the life-force of his victims are all somewhat
genie
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic myt ...
-esque, an aspect further implied in the Japanese word "Majin" in his name, which can read as "
Djinn
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic myt ...
", which led to Viz Media rendering his name as Djinn-Boo for the English manga release. His trousers, in all forms he takes, bear the same "M" symbol like many other characters associated with Babidi in this part of the manga; whether this is short for Buu's title of "Majin", Babidi's title of "Madoshi" in the original Japanese or something else is unclear. In a 2007 interview printed in ''Shonen Jump'', Akira Toriyama stated that Buu's design was inspired by adaptations of ''
One Thousand and One Nights'' (''Arabian Nights'') that he watched as a child.
Majin Buu's manner is very naive and childlike, taking joy in fighting and scaring people. Throughout the series, he is always referred to by either Majin Buu or simply Buu, no matter what form he is in. However, each form has been given their own names in guidebooks, video games, or by fans, to distinguish between them. The first fat form seen is referred to as . When Buu expels the evil inside him, it takes on a taller and much skinnier, frail form referred to as .
When this Buu absorbs the fat one, he transforms into a muscular version of himself, referred to as , with English media referring to him as "Super Buu".
Personality-wise, Super Buu is more intelligent than Innocent Buu and is described as "pure rage".
This intelligence allows him to plan for the opportunity to absorb Gotenks and
Piccolo, and later
Gohan
is a fictional character in the ''Dragon Ball'' manga series, created by Akira Toriyama. Gohan is introduced as the first son of the protagonist Goku, and his wife Chi-Chi, in chapter #196 "Kakarrot", published in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magaz ...
. After absorbing the first two, his antennae lengthen forming five full-fingers, Evil Buu gains Piccolo's intellect and momentarily wore Gotenks's vest and strength before his latter victim's fusion wore off. He then absorbed Gohan, gaining his power while wearing his
dōgi top and undershirt. The last form shown, referred to as
Kid Buu or ,
is actually Buu's original form. Super Buu was forced into that state after the fat Buu was completely removed from his body along with Gohan, Goten, Trunks, and Piccolo. While a child-like version of Evil Buu, Kid Buu is completely feral and animalistic, living only to destroy and is called "evil incarnate". ''Daizenshuu 2: Story Guide'' refers to him as the "strongest enemy in the universe".
Even after Kid Buu is killed, the
fat Majin Buu lives on Earth as the completely kindhearted . In the anime, Buu's "Evil" and "Pure" forms' designs differ from the manga in that they both always have five fingers. Goku wishes for Buu to be reincarnated as a good person on Earth, so he's reborn as a boy named , who meets Goku during a tournament at the end of ''Dragon Ball Z''.
Voice actors
In the original Japanese, Buu and all his forms are voiced by
Kōzō Shioya
is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Kagoshima Prefecture. He is represented by Aoni Production. His younger brother Yoku Shioya is also an actor and voice actor.
Biography
Filmography Television animation
;1980s
*''Mobile Suit ...
in all media.
He said he looked at the character as a self-centered three-year-old. Even through all the different forms of the character, Shioya explained that he tried not to deviate too far from the personality of the original while subtlety showing that he changed form.
In the Funimation dub, Josh Martin voices Fat and Kid Buu, while
Justin Cook voices Evil and Super Buu. Meanwhile, in the Ocean Group dubs, Fat Buu is voiced by Scott McNeil, while Evil, Super, and Kid Buu are voiced by Brian Dobson.
Powers and abilities
Being the final villain faced by the protagonists in the original ''Dragon Ball'' series, and the franchise at the time, Buu is the most powerful of them all, possessing vast
superhuman strength
Superhuman strength is a superpower commonly invoked in fiction and other literary works such as mythology. A fictionalized representation of the phenomenon of hysterical strength, it is the power to exert force and lift weights beyond what is ph ...
, speed and reflexes beyond comprehension. He is able to channel his inner ''
ki'' energy for devastating offensive techniques capable of destroying planets or star system.
Buu also holds the unique ability of being able to transform objects or living things into chocolate or other sweet foods which he then consumes to satiate himself, using the antenna on his head, and he is shown to be capable of magically altering an object's appearance.
Buu is also able to instantly recover and regenerate from severe trauma, dismemberment and even combustion at a sub-molecular level, and heal wounds from other people. His body is soft but flexible, able to stretch his limbs and any part of his body on indefinite lengths, as well as changing shape into whatever he desires.
He is also capable of detaching a large part of his body for various purposes, like ensnaring his targets like a lasso rope, and making clones of himself. This also allows him to absorb other people to obtain their power. Buu can instantly emulate techniques used on him, launching Goku's signature ''Kamehameha'' many times, and capable of using ''Instant Transmission'', in his original form. Buu is also revealed to possess godly ''ki'' after absorbing the two Supreme Kai, granting him a tremendous surge in power, retaining it after reverting to his pure state.
Appearances
In ''Dragon Ball Z''
Before the events of ''Dragon Ball'', the evil warlock Bibidi resurrected Majin Buu; a being that existed "solely to slaughter and destroy" and within a few years they destroyed hundreds of planets.
Buu even killed two of the five
Supreme Kais who govern the universe and absorbed another two including their leader the Grand Supreme Kai, which dulled his destructive nature and turned him into his current form. But Buu was still too ferocious even for Bibidi to control, resulting with the Majin temporarily sealed and moved to their next target, Earth.
But the last surviving Supreme Kai took advantage of this to kill Bibidi with Buu sealed away on Earth.
In the present day, Bibidi's son Babidi makes it his goal to revive Buu, which the surviving Supreme Kai plans to prevent by killing him. He underestimates the power of Goku and Vegeta, and their spent energy results in Majin Buu's quick revival. When Babidi threatens to re-seal him, Buu begins to obey his orders and destroys and kills everything and everyone in sight in order to get Piccolo, Trunks and Goten to come out of hiding. That is until Goku asks him why he lets Babidi boss him around, leading to Buu killing him, however he continues his mischief and destruction, unaware that what he is doing is wrong.
Majin Buu attacks humans, destroying nearly all of the world's population, then builds a house by converting people into clay. He is resting in his house when
Mr. Satan befriends him while waiting for an opening to kill him. The friendship coupled with the affection from a dog he healed, has Buu resolve not to kill anymore when two civilians shoot the dog and then Mr. Satan.
Buu heals them, but the evil aspect of his personality takes advantage of Buu's rage to manifest out of his body, transforming into a taller and much skinnier Buu, who attacks the now weaker fat Buu.
The evil Buu reflects fat Buu's attack, turning his benign counterpart into chocolate and eating him to become whole and transform into a more dangerous Majin Buu, known as Super Buu.
Super Buu quickly senses Piccolo, Trunks, and Goten and goes to them, demanding Gotenks fight him.
Gohan then arrives and clearly has the upper-hand over Buu, but Buu absorbs Gotenks and later Piccolo. Now stronger than Gohan, Buu, knowing that there is a time limit on Gotenks's fusion, planned ahead and is able to absorb Gohan as well.
However,
Goku
Son Goku is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the ''Dragon Ball'' manga series created by Akira Toriyama. He is based on Sun Wukong (known as Son Goku in Japan and Monkey King in the West), a main character of the classic Chin ...
and
Vegeta
( ), also referred as is a fictional character in the ''Dragon Ball'' franchise created by Akira Toriyama. Vegeta first appears in chapter #204 "Sayonara, Son Goku", published in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magazine on November 7, 1988, seeking t ...
fuse together into Vegito, but, despite being powerful enough to defeat him, they purposefully get absorbed by Buu in order to enter his body.
Though the Potara Fusion ran its course, Goku and Vegeta manage to retrieve Gohan, Piccolo, Goten, and Trunks before they completely separate the absorbed fat Buu from Super Buu.
The removal of fat Buu causes Super Buu to revert to his original form, known as Kid Buu, no longer deluded by his benign counterpart as he immediately destroys the Earth.
Kid Buu then follows Goku and Vegeta to the Kai's planet, where, after a battle with Goku, he is stalled by Vegeta and fat Buu, so that Goku can finish him off with a giant ''Spirit Bomb'' made with energy from the people on the newly resurrected Earth.
The good fat Majin Buu goes on to live with Mr. Satan on Earth as
Mr. Buu, after the Dragon Balls erase the people of Earth's memories about him.
As wished by Goku, Kid Buu is reincarnated as a child named Uub, whom, ten years later, Goku meets at the world martial arts tournament and leaves with to train as his successor.
In ''Dragon Ball Super''
Buu encounters
Beerus
is a fictional character in the '' Dragon Ball'' franchise created by Akira Toriyama. Beerus made his first appearance in the 2013 feature film '' Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods'' as the main antagonist and returned as a supporting character in ' ...
during
Bulma
is a fictional character featured in the ''Dragon Ball'' franchise, first appearing in the manga series created by Akira Toriyama. She debuted in the first chapter "Bulma and Son Goku", published in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' magazine on June 19, 1 ...
's birthday party, and quickly provoked the deity into a rampage after he childishly refused to share some pudding dessert. Buu is later selected to participate in the Universe 7 team's tournament with Universe 6. He is disqualified before the tournament begins by falling asleep during the exam. Buu agrees to fight with Goku and Gohan in the Universe Survival tournament, being matched against Universe 9's Basil. Buu is initially overwhelmed, though becomes enraged over seeing Mr. Satan injured by the battle collaterally and quickly overpowers Basil. After consuming a drug that increases his power, Basil seems to gain the upper hand on Buu with a buffer form coinciding with his attacks, however, Buu is unaffected by the attacks and defeats Basil with a Kamehameha wave. Buu then heals Mr. Satan. After the mini-tournament, Buu begins to train on Earth for the Tournament of Power. Due to the intensity of his training, Buu gains a slimmer and toned body and spars against Goku, beating him. Alas, also due to the intensity of his training, Buu falls asleep and will not wake for 3 months, forcing him to miss the Tournament of Power.
Frieza
, also known and spelled as Freeza in Funimation's English subtitles and Viz Media's release of the manga, is a fictional character in the ''Dragon Ball'' manga series created by Akira Toriyama. He makes his debut in Chapter #247: "Dark Clouds ...
is temporarily resurrected to fight in Buu's place.
Shortly after the events of the Tournament of Power and ''
Dragon Ball Super: Broly'', Buu is kidnapped by the Galactic Patrol and taken to their headquarters. Goku and Vegeta are taken as well and find out their kidnapper is Merus, the Galactic Patrol's #1 elite patrolman. Merus explains that an evil criminal named Moro has escaped from galactic prison, and in order to recapture this criminal they need the Grand Supreme Kai, who remains inside of Buu after his absorption. The Galactic Patrol reveals that the Grand Supreme Kai locked away the ancient warlock, Moro, before Buu had absorbed him. While waiting for Buu to wake, Goku and Vegeta travel to New Namek to battle Moro, who is searching for the Dragon Balls, but are unsuccessful and have their power taken from them. Buu eventually awakens and is taken to New Namek to confront Moro. During the fight, the Grand Supreme Kai takes control of Buu's body and it's revealed that Buu once had god ''ki'', but it was destroyed when the pure Majin Buu was killed by Goku. No longer having god ''ki'', the Grand Supreme Kai is unable lock away Moro and fails to stop him. After Moro wishes for all the Galactic Patrol's prisoners to escape and come to Namek; Buu, Goku, Merus and Jaco are forced to retreat back to the Galactic Patrol HQ. Throughout the whole story arc, Grand Supreme Kai remained dominant over Buu's body. At the climax of the fight he was seen collecting god ''ki'' from the oblivious Uub. He sent it to Vegeta, who then later transferred it to Goku. Absorbing that divine energy, Goku reactivated complete Ultra Instinct and killed Moro for good. The Grand Supreme Kai then reverts to the pudgy Majin Buu once more, hungry and oblivious to all that transpired.
In other media
In ''
Dragon Ball GT
is a 1996–1997 Japanese anime television series based on Akira Toriyama's ''Dragon Ball'' manga. Produced by Toei Animation, the series premiered in Japan on Fuji TV and ran for 64 episodes from February 1996 to November 1997. Unlike th ...
'', an anime-only sequel to the series, both Mr. Buu and Uub participate in battles against foes such as
Baby
An infant or baby is the very young offspring of human beings. ''Infant'' (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'unable to speak' or 'speechless') is a formal or specialised synonym for the common term ''baby''. The terms may also be used to ...
,
Super Android #17 and
Super One-Star Dragon. They also fuse together, creating a character referred to as
"Majuub" or , essentially recreating Majin Buu once more. Buu is also seen in the 2008 short film ''
Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!!'' and plays a small role in the 2013 theatrical ''Dragon Ball Z'' film, ''
Battle of Gods''.
Majin Buu briefly appears in an episode of the 1997 anime remake of Toriyama's ''
Dr. Slump
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama. It was serialized in Shueisha's anthology magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1980 to 1984, with the chapters collected into 18 ''tankōbon'' volumes. The series fol ...
'', and makes a brief cameo appearance in Toriyama's manga series ''
Neko Majin Z
is a Japanese One-shot (comics), one-shot manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama. Spanning eight total installments published irregularly between 1999 and 2005 in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' and ''Monthly Shōnen Jump'', they were ...
''. He also appears in chapter four of the ''
Saikyō Jump
is a Japanese monthly ''shōnen'' manga magazine published by Shueisha. The magazine was started on December 3, 2010 with three completely original titles and seven spin-off manga from series in '' Weekly Shōnen Jump'' and ''V Jump
is a Jap ...
'' manga ''Dragon Ball SD'', a
super deformed
Chibi, also known as super deformation, or S.D. is a style of caricature originating in Japan, and common in anime and manga where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way, typically small and chubby with stubby limbs, oversized heads, and m ...
spin-off of ''Dragon Ball'' written by Naho Ōishi, which depicts a comedic alternate retelling of him being released. Ōishi drew a special chapter focusing on Buu for the July 2014 issue, titled it also features Toriyama's ''
Neko Majin
is a Japanese one-shot manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama. Spanning eight total installments published irregularly between 1999 and 2005 in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' and '' Monthly Shōnen Jump'', they were collected into ...
''.
He is a
playable character
A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not contr ...
in the franchise's
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
s, the first being ''Dragon Ball Z: Super Butōden 3'' in 1994, but also in most of the more recent games such as the ''
Dragon Ball Z: Sparking!'' series. In the 2005 game ''Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors 2'', Evil Buu creates a dimensional hole that extends to the afterlife, traveling there and encountering Vegeta and Dabura, who team up against him under the conviction that their combined strength can prevail. After the fight, Evil Buu commands Dabura take him to find strong opponents, and meets
Cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
, pledging to smash him. Evil Buu and Dabura defeat Cell with a combined attack. He is also playable in the ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' crossover games ''
Battle Stadium D.O.N,'' ''
Jump Ultimate Stars
Jumping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory.
Jump or Jumping also may refer to:
Places
* Jump, Kentucky or Jump S ...
and
Jump Force''
He is also referenced in the song "Pink Matter" by
Frank Ocean
Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
featuring
André 3000
André Lauren Benjamin (born May 27, 1975), better known as André 3000, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is best known for being a part of southern hip hop duo Outkast alongside fellow rapper Big Boi.
...
in the lyrics "That soft pink matter, Cotton candy Majin Buu". American rapper
Denzel Curry
Denzel Rae Don Curry (born February 16, 1995) is an American rapper and singer. Born and raised in Carol City, Florida, Curry started rapping while in the sixth grade and began working on his first mixtape in 2011. Influenced by underground Flo ...
also refers to Buu in the song "
Zuu
''Zuu'' (stylized in all caps) is the fourth studio album by American rapper Denzel Curry, released through PH Recordings and distributed by Loma Vista Recordings on May 31, 2019. The title is a nickname for his home city, Carol City, Miami, Fl ...
" with the lyrics "M's all on my belt, I'm feelin' like I'm Majin Buu".
Reception
Majin Buu is a popular character in the ''Dragon Ball'' series, in 2004 Japanese fans voted him the eighth most popular character. He was rated by ''
Wizard'' magazine as the 40th-greatest
villain
A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...
of all time, the only
anime
is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...
or
manga character from Japan to make the list.
IGN's David F. Smith states that although he is tough, Majin Buu's pink complexion prevents anybody from taking him as a serious threat. Theron Martin of
Anime News Network claims Buu's "childlike demeanor actually gives his malicious smiles and mad faces a surprisingly chilling effect", claiming it sets him apart from the "hyper-evil badasses" of the series.
He called Josh Martin's English vocal performance far more childish than Kōzō Shioya's, but also felt that Shioya's voice does not fit Buu's behavior.
According to Dennis Amith of J!-ENT, seeing him "kill people for the sake of hunger or for enjoyment to hear things go 'boom makes Buu the deadliest villain of the series.
References
{{Dragon Ball
Anime and manga characters who can move at superhuman speeds
Anime and manga characters who use magic
Anime and manga characters with accelerated healing
Anime and manga characters with superhuman strength
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Dragon Ball characters
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