One of the craziest moments in Dragon Ball’s history has to be the time Vegeta ran away from a fight with a cat that went Super Saiyan. Of course, to be completely fair to Vegeta, no one ever expects to encounter a Super Saiyan Cat.
Nekomajin is a spin-off parody of Dragon Ball set within the Dragon Ball universe that follows the exploits of a race of magical cats called the Neko Majin. The manga ran from 1999-2005 and included a number of appearances by the cast of Dragon Ball. Akira Toriyama took the reins on his self-parody which found a great deal of success from fans of the Dragon Ball manga. The most well-known iteration of the series released in 2001 in the first issue dedicated to a character called Neko Majin Z, a character who has since appeared in another spin-off manga, Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission, as well as several Dragon Ball video games such as Dragon Ball Heroes, Dragon Ball Online, and the Japanese version of Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors 2.
While there are magical cat-like creatures that appear in the Dragon Ball anime, Puar being an example that comes to mind, Neko Majin do not appear in any of the main series. Being relegated to the manga means that a vast swath of the Dragon Ball fandom has never encountered the only cat who can defeat the powerful prince of all Saiyans.
What Is A Neko Majin?
Akira Toriyama positions Neko Majin as powerful magical beings native to Earth that live such long lives that they are practically immortal, some claiming to have been alive since before humans existed. They derive their magical powers and long lifespans from special orbs that they can vomit out at will, however doing so strips them of their power, turning them into merely strange-looking cats. They take on human characteristics, wear clothes, can talk, and all possess strange personality quirks.
Neko Majin Z stands as the strongest of the Neko Majin, a magical fighting cat. He seeks to protect Earth from various threats and wears clothing similar to Goku. He can seemingly mimic abilities after seeing them performed once, though reproduced abilities possess their own unique, cat-related twists. His most recognizable attack is the Nekohameha, a technique Neko Majin Z learned from watching Goku fight.
In the first chapter of Neko Majin Z, the Saiyan warrior Onio comes to Earth with his wife Honey on a mission to find the perfect planet on which they can build their summer home. While getting the lay of the land, Neko Majin Z, disguised as a koala, winds up fondling Honey as the couple tries to get pictures with the native wildlife. This enrages Onio, who manages to achieve his own Super Saiyan form. However, after observing this transformation, Neko Majin Z is able to mimic the power boost to become a Super Saiyan as well. Of course, it has its own cat-based spin, so Neko Majin Z calls the form Super Neko Majin and makes quick work of the enraged Saiyan.
Vegeta Gets Rocked And Runs
Neko Majin Z and Vegeta come to blows after a convoluted series of events. An earlier chapter of the manga introduced Lord Kuriza, Frieza’s son, to the world of Dragon Ball. Of course, Neko Majin Z demolishes Kuriza and then befriends both Kuriza and Onio. After some time passes, the group plays soccer with one another before Kuriza kicks the ball so hard it goes into orbit. Neko Majin Z flies up in an attempt to kick it back, but mistakes a space pod for the ball, encountering Vegeta in the process. Due to the sudden disappearances of both Onio and Kuriza, Frieza sent the Saiyan prince to find them.
Onio explaining to Vegeta that Neko Majin Z wields ridiculous power is all it takes to goad the prince into combat. After the two exchange blows, Vegeta finds himself on the losing side of the battle. Desperate, Vegeta powers up into his Super Saiyan form despite Onio’s protests. Of course, Neko Majin Z also enters his Super Neko Majin form in all of its glory. Vegeta, deeply disturbed by the amount of power he feels emanating from the strange cat, fakes a phone call from Frieza, claiming he has to be on another planet. He hops into his space pod and leaves, muttering about how he will never again appear in another gag manga.
That’s right: Vegeta, the prideful prince of all Saiyans, once faked a phone call to get out of fighting a cat. Granted, Neko Majin Z possesses an amount of power that wasn’t surpassed until the Cell Saga and the series’ placement in continuity (if it has a place at all) has always been a bit hazy. Neko Majin Z is a fun and not super well-known part of the Dragon Ball universe, even if its position in canon hasn’t been firmly established.
