A Wish to the Eternal Dragon

The eternal dragon Shenron towers over Pilaf's castle, demanding a wish. Emperor Pilaf, overwhelmed by the dragon's presence, stammers and hesitates. Inside the castle walls, Goku fires another Kamehameha, this time blasting through the barrier. Outside, Oolong and Puar, still in bat form, race toward the scene. Just as Pilaf finally opens his mouth to wish for world domination, Oolong shouts his own wish first: a pair of underwear. Shenron grants it, the Dragon Balls turn to stone and scatter across the globe, and Pilaf's dream disintegrates in an instant.

The enraged emperor orders his forces to attack. Shu releases his dog police, and Goku and Yamcha fight them off together. But Goku has exhausted his energy from the repeated Kamehameha blasts, and the group is captured again. This time, Pilaf locks them in a cell made of three feet of solid steel, planning to let the morning sun cook them alive inside.

As night settles, a full moon rises. Goku casually mentions that a terrible monster appears during the full moon, one that once trampled his Grandpa Gohan. His friends urge him not to look at the moon, but curiosity wins. Goku stares directly at it. His eyes turn red. His body begins to expand. His clothes rip apart. Within moments, a colossal Great Ape stands where the boy used to be. The transformed Goku tears through the steel cell like paper, freeing everyone as the episode ends with the monster rampaging through Pilaf's castle.

Oolong's wish is one of the most absurd and memorable moments in anime history. After twelve episodes of buildup, the first wish granted by Shenron is for a pair of underwear. The look on Pilaf's face as his lifelong ambition crumbles because a pig was slightly faster is priceless.

The Great Ape transformation is a dramatic tonal shift. The episode pivots from comedy to genuine horror as Goku, the hero, becomes an uncontrollable monster that nearly kills his own friends. The implication that this same creature killed his beloved Grandpa Gohan adds a layer of tragedy that redefines everything we know about Goku's backstory.

The Great Ape is the series' first true transformation, predating Super Saiyan by hundreds of episodes. It introduces the concept that Goku's tail is not just a quirky feature but a trigger for something dangerous. The full moon connection and loss of consciousness during transformation become key Saiyan traits explored extensively in Dragon Ball Z. Oolong's underwear wish, trivial as it seems, later spawns the Shadow Dragon Oceanus Shenron in Dragon Ball GT, proving that even joke wishes have consequences in this universe.