The BEST episodes of Dragon Ball season 3

Every episode of Dragon Ball season 3, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Dragon Ball season 3!

Long ago in the mountains, a fighting master known as Gohan discovered a strange boy whom he named Goku. Gohan raised him and trained Goku in martial arts until he died. The young and very strong boy was on his own, but easily managed. Then one day, Goku met a teenage girl named Bulma, whose search for the dragon balls brought her to Goku's home. Together, they set off to find all seven dragon balls in an adventure that would change Goku's life forever. See how Goku met his life long friends Bulma, Yamcha, Krillin, Master Roshi and more. And see his adventures as a boy, all leading up to Dragonball Z and later Dragonball GT.

Last Updated: 3/27/2024Network: Fuji TVStatus: Ended
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Ninja Murasaki is Coming!
star
8.60
262 votes

#1 - Ninja Murasaki is Coming!

Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/5/1986

Goku enters the fourth floor of Muscle Tower and finds himself in the middle of a forest. Ninja Murasaki, who is hiding in the trees, has been sent to kill Goku. After games of hide and seek, racing and shuriken throwing Ninja Murasaki finally decides to fight, and Goku breaks his sword with the power pole. Murasaki throws a boomerang at him which hits and knocks out Goku.

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Confront the Red Ribbon Army
star
8.30
377 votes

#2 - Confront the Red Ribbon Army

Season 3 - Episode 37 - Aired 6/10/1987

Commander Red receives word that Colonel Violet has tracked another dragonball. Her divers successfully procure the ball. As they are attacked by a giant alligator and savages, Violet selfishly leaves her men to die, giving her the chance to escape with the ball. Violet hands the ball to Commander Red receiving a pint-sized reward. Bulma has completed her spy camera to find Goku and launches it. As Goku makes his way to the RR HQ, Commander Red is convinced it is Mercenary Tao. Bulma's spy camera is destroyed when it hovers above the RR base. Bulma, Launch and Roshi realise Goku is making a direct attack on the RR base. Yamcha, Oolong and Puar receive the news and off to take the others to follow Goku.

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Cold Reception
star
8.30
232 votes

#3 - Cold Reception

Season 3 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/22/1986

The girl called Snow, takes Goku back to her house to recover. She and her mother explain that the Red Ribbon Army has taken their village chief hostage and are forcing the men to help them look for the Dragon Ball. The chief is being held in a fortress called Muscle Tower. Two soldiers break in, just as Goku is in the bathroom but Goku beats them. Snow gives Goku warm clothes to wear outside. Goku arrives at Muscle Tower and makes short work of the guards waiting outside. He uses his power pole to vault up onto the first level.

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Pilaf and The Mystery Force
star
8.20
348 votes

#4 - Pilaf and The Mystery Force

Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/17/1986

Goku stops at a lake for a swim. When he gets out, he finds that the dragon radar has been stolen. He picks up on the thief's scent and follows it to its source. The thief tells him that he sold the radar to an antique salesman in a nearby town. Goku locates the shop and finds his dragon radar there. He picks up a signal coming from the shop, so he turns around and sees Emperor Pilaf and Mai holding the four-star ball, having just bought it from this store. They are able to escape on their ship, but Goku follows them on the Nimbus Cloud. Back at the antique store, a mysterious military force has arrived looking for a Dragon Ball. The salesman gives them a four-star ball, but they recognize it as a fake. Pilaf's four-star ball was also a fake, but Goku doesn't yet know. The signal he picked up on was the six-star ball in a nest above the shop. A bird then flies away with the ball in its talons.

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Major Metallitron
star
8.20
174 votes

#5 - Major Metallitron

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 10/29/1986

Goku enters the second floor of Muscle Tower and defeats the guards waiting for him. He heads up to the third floor where he finds a large android named Major Metallitron. Goku and Major start to fight, and after a few hits, Goku knocks him over. Goku is caught off guard when the giant gets up and grabs him. Major launches a missile at him, but he dodges it. Goku counters with a Kamehameha wave and blows Metallitron's head off. Despite being decapitated, the android is still moving. Goku punches a hole through the robot's chest, but even that doesn't stop him. The fight finally ends when Major Metallitron's batteries die.

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The End of Commander Red
star
8.11
291 votes

#6 - The End of Commander Red

Season 3 - Episode 39 - Aired 6/24/1987

The warfare against Goku continues for the RR Army. Then the soldiers flee in terror except for Colonel Violet who is heading for Red's treasure vault. Violet swipes all the money and valuables and makes her leave. Red gets frustrated and angry and leaves Black to face Goku as he retreats to his penthouse. As Goku beats Black, Red activates the ceiling to crush Goku. Having been betrayed and risking his life, Black kills Red. Goku emerges from the wreckage and Black tries to talk his way out, but Goku won't fall for his lies. As a last resort Black uses a mech robot machine to take out Goku. Meanwhile Yamcha and Violet are both trying to evade each other. General Black beats Goku plenty and is preparing to fire a lethal weapon on him.

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Korin Tower
star
8.00
261 votes

#7 - Korin Tower

Season 3 - Episode 33 - Aired 5/6/1987

Goku reaches the summit of Korin's tower. He sees visions of the past, present and future. Goku goes upstairs to meet Korin (who is nothing more than a blind cat). Korin is not about to hand the sacred water to Goku. An assassin fails to kill Mercenary Tao as he heads to his usual luxurious hotel to take a boiling hot bath. Korin seems to be deceitful not letting Goku take the bottle of sacred water. After a long hard attempt trying to get the sacred water, Korin reveals that Master Roshi was the first to climb the tower and it took him three years to get the water.

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Bulma's Bad Day
star
8.00
232 votes

#8 - Bulma's Bad Day

Season 3 - Episode 18 - Aired 1/14/1987

Goku and Bulma head to an island to look for a dragonball. The island however is under the control of General Blue of the RR Army. Goku lands on the island and Bulma finds only one dyno cap in her dad's case, but all there is are several nudie mags. Bulma snatches the lot and gets frustrated and furious that her dad is into this and shreds them up. Goku dives into the ocean but cannot dive deep enough to find the dragonball. Meanwhile a couple of RR pilots are shooting at Bulma. As the pilots harass Bulma, Goku comes and blows them from the sky. Goku decides to go to Master Roshi's much to Bulma's dismay.

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The Fall of Muscle Tower
star
8.00
261 votes

#9 - The Fall of Muscle Tower

Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 12/3/1986

Goku fights General White who is not very fit. Eighter is too pacifistic to join in the fight as General White grabs Goku by the tail. After giving General White a severe bashing, the latter pretends to surrender and releases the village chief. When the chief's back is turned, General White threatens Goku and Eighter to shoot the chief. The chief is hesistant whether he wants to live or die. Then the General blackmails Eighter into beating Goku. Hearing this, an enraged Goku demands that White deal with him, and White promptly shoots Goku. Eighter loses his temper and punches General White out of the tower. Finally all three leave the tower and Eighter destroys it. They all receive a warm welcome back at Snow's house.

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A Trip to the City
star
8.00
261 votes

#10 - A Trip to the City

Season 3 - Episode 15 - Aired 12/17/1986

After spending a night in Snow's house one of the villagers helps Goku summon his Nimbus next morning. Goku reaches West City, but has no idea where to find Bulma. Nobody he meets has a clue. Goku hasn't got any money, but manages to win a lot in a street fighting competition. Along the way, Goku is abducted by a couple of thieving rogues, but they are far from a problem for him. Goku finds a policeman to direct him to Bulma's house which is the Capsule Corp where dyno caps were first invented.

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The Last Dragon Ball
star
8.00
261 votes

#11 - The Last Dragon Ball

Season 3 - Episode 40 - Aired 7/1/1987

As Yamcha nears the RR base, Goku evades Black's laser cannon. Annoyed at Goku's survival, Black uses all he's got against him and Goku destroys the robot mech suit along with Black. Goku now has six dragonballs but cannot track the last one. By the time Yamcha and the others arrive, the war is over and Goku reunites with the lot. Goku's success crippling the RR Army amazes everyone. Puar scouts around but finds no one and Launch turns back into sweet Launch. Even Goku's climbing to the peak of Korin's Tower surprises Roshi. Bulma promises to fix the dragon radar and Goku promises to have Bora resurrected.

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Kame House - Found!
star
7.90
232 votes

#12 - Kame House - Found!

Season 3 - Episode 19 - Aired 1/21/1987

As General Blue's men recover the scouts, Goku makes it to Roshi's island. Roshi offers the submarine (which Krillin and Launch are using) in exchange for Bulma's microband. Meanwhile Commander Red orders General Blue to take action. Roshi attempts to use the microband for some indecent mischief and Launch and Krillin return. While planning to find the dragonball Krillin mentions something about Pirates' Treasure and Master Roshi tells the tale of it. After Goku, Bulma and Krillin leave, a RR scout spies the island.

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Master Thief, Haski
star
7.90
261 votes

#13 - Master Thief, Haski

Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 12/24/1986

Bulma is currently out. Bulma shortly returns skipping school hours. Bulma leads Goku and the policeman to the garden where Bulma's Dad is. While Bulma fixes the radar, her dad fixes the policeman's motorcycle. Bulma finds Goku has procured 2 dragonballs. To come with Goku, Bulma demonstrates her Microband invention. Meanwhile the RR Army are plotting against Goku. General Black has hired a master thief to get the balls from him, Haski. The thieving rogues team up with her. Goku and Bulma meet up with Yamcha, Puar and Oolong. They all decide to go to the new Dreamland amusement park. Haski is ready to make her move.

Five Murasakis
star
7.90
232 votes

#14 - Five Murasakis

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/12/1986

Goku recovers from his injury and begins to chase Murasaki. The ninja then and Goku cross a pirahna infested lake. Murasaki decides to use his ultimate technique and seemingly splits into five. The five Murasakis nearly overwhelm Goku. They reveal that they are actually quindruplet brothers, not five parts of one person. Goku takes them out one by one. He chases the last Murasaki brother up to a cage. The ninja releases the monster within, Android 8.

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Deep Blue Sea
star
7.90
261 votes

#15 - Deep Blue Sea

Season 3 - Episode 20 - Aired 1/28/1987

Krillin manages to manuever the air/sub ship to the location where the dragonball is. General Blue plans to tail Goku, while another squad heads to Roshi's Island. Despite their searching, Bulma, Krillin and Goku don't find the dragonball on the ocean bed. Meanwhile General Blue prepares and launches all his forces. As Krillin drives the sub into a cave, General Blue's submarines tail and attack them. Krillin makes it to narrower caves, but General Blue sends his minisubs to pursue them.

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The Last of Mercenary Tao
star
7.80
348 votes

#16 - The Last of Mercenary Tao

Season 3 - Episode 36 - Aired 5/27/1987

While Mercenary Tao tires himself climbing the tower, Goku enjoys his moments with Upa who is amazed at Goku's confidence. Meanwhile Bulma's dragon radar is malfunctioning due to some radar jamming situation which is also affecting Commander Red. Tao reaches the tower summit and meets Korin. Arrogant Tao drinks the sacred water and Korin tricks him into thinking his strength is boosted. In addition Korin gives Tao a dark cloud to ride. Korin then causes Tao to plummet to the ground. Tao beats Goku, but Goku was just taking blows to read his moves. Tao acts a surrender and throws a napalm grenade at Goku, but Goku kicks it back. The bomb explodes right in Tao's front killing him. Meanwhile Bulma has finishing engineering her radar against the radar jammer which also boosts Goku's. Goku is off to defeat the RR at their HQ.

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Roshi Surprise
star
7.70
290 votes

#17 - Roshi Surprise

Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 2/4/1987

General Blue continues to chase Bulma, Goku and Krillin in their submarine. He resorts to ramming them into the cave walls. Meanwhile Master Roshi is having a bit of trouble with aggressive Launch. As Launch turns back into her gentle self, Captain Dock's flying circus approaches and lands on the island. Roshi mocks the Captain and does a surprise attack on the men, aggressive Launch finishing it off. Goku, Bulma and Krillin narrowly escape Blue's subs and surface into a long dark tunnel. Goku finds a button and lights up the tunnel. At the sight of a skeleton, Krillin confirms the place is the Pirates' hideout. Hearing that the legend is true, General Blue has new ideas.

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Beware of Robot
star
7.70
290 votes

#18 - Beware of Robot

Season 3 - Episode 23 - Aired 2/18/1987

Goku and Krillin fight the Pirate robot in between evading its heavy machine gun and sword. Krillin manages to disarm the sword from it. General Blue stays in hiding watching the fight. Bulma fires a gun cannon on the robot as it skis across a pool. As Goku fights the robot with his power pole, Bulma rams a truck on it. Next the robot drags Goku into an underwater battle, Goku narrowly escaping. The robot chases Bulma and Krillin through the hideout where all the pirates are dead. Goku recovers and rescues the other two. Goku performs an aerial attack smashing the robot. As everyone makes their way through the inner halls, the place begins to collapse. Goku takes a different route from the others. Bulma, Krillin and General Blue are forced to dive into a well.

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The Flying Fortress – Vanished!
star
7.70
261 votes

#19 - The Flying Fortress – Vanished!

Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/1/1986

Goku and Chi Chi arrive at the village in time to rescue the Ox King. After a quick meal, Goku follows the signal on the dragon radar again. Emperor Pilaf's flying fortress shoots down the jets of the Red Ribbon Army and escapes. Both the Red Ribbon Army and Goku follow their signals to a remote point in the middle of the desert. Goku, searching on foot, is suddenly attacked by automatic guns rising from the sand. Colonel Silver notices this and realizes Pilaf is hiding in an underground base. Pilaf, Mai, and Shu all try to escape on the flying fortress. Goku follows them and clings to the wall of the ship. The Red Ribbon Army is waiting for them, and they destroy the fortress. Pilaf, Mai, and Shu parachute down and are forced to hand over the six-star ball.

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Horrifying Buyon
star
7.70
290 votes

#20 - Horrifying Buyon

Season 3 - Episode 12 - Aired 11/26/1986

Goku and Eighter land on 5th floor. General White releases a monster to destroy the both of them. Meanwhile Snow has found some sweet furry rodents. Eighter cowers at the other side of the room while Goku fights the monster Buyon. Goku can't even hurt Buyon. Buyon eats Goku, but he struggles out. Even a Kamehameha Wave doesn't affect Buyon. Goku saves Eighter from being eaten. Recalling an earlier exchange with Snow, Goku punches a hole in the wall letting in cold air and freezing Buyon solid. Goku smashes Buyon and ascends with Eighter back to the command room.

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The Land of Korin
star
7.60
261 votes

#21 - The Land of Korin

Season 3 - Episode 30 - Aired 4/15/1987

In the Land of Korin, Captain Yellow is looking for another dragonball. They find the ball in the crater of a volcano. Near a massive tower that reaches the sky Bora and his son Upa are fishing. As Captain Yellow's men retrieve the dragonball, the volcano erupts. Bora gets hold of the dragonball. As Yellow and his men land, Bora demands they leave. When they see him carrying the dragonball they attack him but Bora resists. Bora kills a grenadier who comes from behind him and beats down Yellow's men. Yellow kidnaps Upa to blackmail Bora. Goku arrives in time to defeat Yellow and save Upa (who is able to ride the Nimbus). The dragonball Bora has is the very one Goku was looking for. Meanwhile the guards of the RR base hardly recognize General Blue on his arrival. Commander Red has summoned the infamous Mercenary Tao.

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Cruel General Red
star
7.60
261 votes

#22 - Cruel General Red

Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/15/1986

While the Red Ribbon Army is searching the river for the five-star ball, Goku follows the dragon radar downstream and finds it. Before he can escape, Colonel Silver destroys the flying Nimbus. Angry, Goku easily defeats him. He finds some dyno caps in a nearby building and throws them. One is a robot, and the other is a plane. The robot flies the plane for Goku as he follows the nearest signal on the dragon radar. Goku instructs the robot to land the plane, but the robot's circuits freeze up in the extreme cold, so the plane crashes. Goku, frozen solid, is dragged away by a mysterious young girl.

Escape From Pirate Cave
star
7.60
261 votes

#23 - Escape From Pirate Cave

Season 3 - Episode 26 - Aired 3/11/1987

Goku makes it to the getaway submarine in the nick of time still carrying the mouse in his mouth. As the trio escape, rocks collapse and hit the sub and it soon runs out of fuel. Goku manages to launch the sub to the surface with a Kamehameha Wave. Bulma has managed to take one diamond with her. General Blue also reaches the surface. In the Blue Sector HQ Goku fiddles with the radio. As the trio make their way to Master Roshi's, General Blue follows. As Roshi gets the diamond, he is forced to hand it to aggressive Launch who makes off with it. General Blue lands on the island preparing for revenge.

Sacred Water
star
7.60
261 votes

#24 - Sacred Water

Season 3 - Episode 34 - Aired 5/13/1987

Goku attempts to snatch the sacred water from Korin with his After Image technique which is no surprise to Korin. The next day Korin gives Goku a Sensu Bean to last Goku's apetite and energy for ten days. Korin throws Goku's dragonball out of the tower forcing Goku to run down and up the tower again. Goku attempts to take the sacred water in Korin's sleep, but thinks better of it. Goku tries long and hard for the next two days to get the sacred water. Mercenary Tao realises how he wasn't able to kill Goku. Goku attempts to read Korin by mimicking his every move. The very next day, Goku finally manages to get the sacred water. To his disappointment it doesn't strengthen him, but all that exercise did him good. Tao kills the tailor who made his outfit before leaving. Goku also makes his leave.

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Tao Attacks!
star
7.60
232 votes

#25 - Tao Attacks!

Season 3 - Episode 32 - Aired 4/29/1987

Goku fights Tao. Despite his best attacks, Goku takes a severe beating from Tao. A Kamehameha Wave has no effect on Tao, but it sears his outfit. Angered, Tao fires a lethal beam (Dodon Wave) from his finger on Goku. Tao takes the dragonballs and taunts Upa before making his leave. Tao heads to a town to get a new outfit,while Red tells him that he is one dragonball short. Upa has buried his father and is about to bury Goku when an RR pilot lands. As the pilot tries to take the dragonball Goku kept, Goku beats him and blasts his jet. Apparently Goku's grandfather's dragonball blocked the Dodon Wave. Not knowing what to do next, Upa suggests that Goku tries to climb the Korin Tower. Goku makes a good start, while Tao waits for his outfit to be tailored to Red's frustration. The tower is indeed a lot higher than Goku thought and he nearly falls off but continues his long journey without giving up.

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