Welcome to the Monthly Dragon Ball Report, a monthly column series where we take a look back at pages that appeared in Weekly Shonen Jump when the Dragon Ball manga was still being serialized.
For the third installment in this series, we'll be taking an exciting retrospective starting with the all-out battle against Great Demon King Piccolo and going all the way up to the events of the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai!
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Great Demon King Piccolo Arc and the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai: Weekly Shonen Jump 1987 No. 38 - 1988 No. 44

After the end of the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai, a mysterious assailant lashes out and murders Krillin! This shocking turn of events then kicks off our heroes' struggle against Great Demon King Piccolo and his forces in Weekly Shonen Jump 1987 No.38!

We see the Demon King in all his terrifying splendor in this arc, during which Weekly Shonen Jump celebrated 4.35 million copies sold. Goku even appeared on the cover of issue No. 37 to celebrate the occasion.

Fans got a double dose of Toriyama goodness in issue No. 38 which featured "Young Master Ken'nosuke" in addition to Dragon Ball!
This charming gag manga tells the tale of Ken'nosuke, a kindergarten-aged samurai who endures intense training to prepare for...a date?!

Later on in issue No.49, the Demon King successfully uses the Dragon Balls to recover his full power and lays siege to King Castle!
Readers were greeted by a cover and colored opening pages that featured the tyrant in all his wicked glory.

This issue also contained a special sports watch giveaway. The cute designs featuring Goku and Kamesennin remain stylish even now!

And before you knew it, Goku was ready to take on the Demon King!

Toriyama's "SONCHOH", the first entry in his "'88 Tori-Chan One-Shot Manga Tournament" series, was also inside this issue.
The title page for this manga formed a pair with the Dragon Ball colored opening page featuring Goku!

Later, Goku manages to defeat Great Demon King Piccolo in the 1988 No. 11 issue! The corner of the last page in this chapter contained the line "Despite many losses, Goku managed to restore peace for the time being."
We would later learn just how short that peace would be three years later at the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai!

The cover of issue No. 19 featured an illustration of all the fighters competing at the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai!

Around this time, a new campaign was held where readers could design a new outfit for Goku. The call for designs went out in issue No. 13, and then later in issue No. 23 the winning design got featured on the Dragon Ball title page. Fans sent in over 30,000 designs for this campaign, so the competition was almost as fierce as it was at the Tenkaichi Budokai!
The winner received a toy racecar featuring a design crafted by Toriyama himself. Just thinking about it makes us green with envy!

Back in the story, the matches progressed until we got a rematch between Goku and the winner of the previous tournament, Tenshinhan.
Goku managed to turn the tide and pull off a decisive win this time around!

One fierce bout after another occurred until at long last we reached the finals. In a shocking turn of events, Goku found himself facing Majunior, the reincarnation of the Demon King who had terrorized the world only years before!

Majunior unleashed one devastating technique after another, even showing off his ability to grow in size with the Gigantification technique. Despite this, Goku's intense training allowed him to stay on top!

Amidst this back-and-forth struggle for the fate of the planet, Weekly Shonen Jump celebrated 4.65 million copies sold in issue No. 38!
The Dragon Ball crew showed up in racing attire to celebrate on this super festive cover!

After all was said and done, Goku's resilience and refusal to give up allowed him to deal the final blow and emerge victorious!

It almost seemed like the story was going to end with Goku and Chichi flying off to begin their new life together.
However, Kamesennin's promise that "No, no, this isn't the end!" was surely a relief for kids at the time!

Next time, a brand-new threat emerges to challenge our heroes!
And just like it felt to wait for the next Weekly Shonen Jump issue, we're sure that you're excited for the next column!
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