Shorty is a fictional character in the Dragon Ball franchise. He makes his debut (and ultimately, his only appearance) in "Pendulum Room Peril", the 17th episode of Dragon Ball Z, which premiered on August 30, 1989. Shorty's name derives from a credit roll in the Funimation dub of Dragon Ball Z; otherwise, he is regarded as a nameless character.
Biography
Shorty is a Saiyan soldier who works alongside his partner, Scarface, tormenting anything other than their own kind. While training for their battle against the forthcoming Saiyans Vegeta and Nappa, Tien Shinhan, Yamcha, Krillin and Chiaotzu use the Pendulum Room at Kami's Lookout to travel backwards in time by 100 years (although in the Japanese dub, Kami does not express how far in time the Z Fighters will be traveling). The group materializes in a ravaged city presumably on Planet Vegeta, littered with the corpses of Saiyans. It is here that they encounter Shorty and Scarface.
Shorty is the first to appear. While Chiatozu observes a head in the window display of what might have once been a shop, the head liquefies, revealing Shorty's face beneath it. Chiatozu attempts to flee and catch up to Tien and the others, however he is grabbed by Shorty and is drained of his lifeforce. Tien's attempts to defend his friend with a Tri-Beam prove inferior when he is counterattacked by Scarface. In a fit of rage, Tien attacks Shorty using his martial arts, but Shorty proves to be fast enough to evade each move. Yamcha's Spirit Ball is successful in hitting the two Saiyans, but fails to have any effect on them.
He and Scarface are also unfazed by a simultaneous barrage of the Tri-Beam, Spirit Ball and Kamehameha techniques. While Shorty takes flight against Tien, Scarface drags Krillin through a decimated floor, to his temporary doom. The two remaining Z Fighters Tien and Yamcha hold their own against the Shorty and Scarface for only a short time, before Scarface's energy wave kills the martial artists. The original group is soon transferred back to the Pendulum Room where they are astonished to find themselves alive, but find themselves uneasy having experienced the power of Saiyans first-hand.
Because Shorty and Scarface exist 100 years prior to the beginning of Dragon Ball Z, they are the only Saiyans seen in the series who are not under the service of Frieza. Saiyans free from Frieza's control during his time in power have been known to appear in several Dragon Ball films, but the canonicity of each is debatable. According to the Dragon Ball timeline, Frieza began his period of control in 731 AD, while the Z Fighters use the Pendulum Room, where they encounter Shorty and Scarface, in May 762 AD. This means that at the point in history where the group visits, Planet Vegeta would enjoy 69 more years of freedom before Frieza's rise to power.
Other appearances
Shorty appears as an Illusion Saiyan and a common foe in the Dragon Ball video game spin-off Kyôshū! Saiyan.
Special abilities
Voice actors
- Japanese dub: Daisuke Gori
- Ocean Group dub: David Kaye
- Funimation dub: Phil Parsons