Dragon Ball has had some incredible, emotional moments throughout its run, and one of the most iconic is the death of Bee, the dog found by Mr. Satan and Innocent Buu. While Bee was thankfully revived, that very nearly didn't happen in the original version of the scene.

The death of Bee at the hands of the human sniper Van Zant is one of Dragon Ball Z's most shocking moments, if only because it's an innocent dog. It showed a dark side of humanity that was often absent from Dragon Ball, but more than that, it was an incredible character moment for Buu. It made it clear that Buu wasn't some kind of monster like Frieza or Cell; there was a caring heart hidden in there somewhere, and that meant that Buu could potentially be reasoned with. Killing Bee sends Buu into a blind rage, splitting him into good and evil halves, with the Evil Buu ultimately winning out.

Buu's Big Scene Nearly Went in a Different Direction

Buu's Reaction to Bee's Death Was Originally Cold

In an interview on the Japanese podcast KosoKoso, as translated to English by X (Formerly Twitter) @Venixys, one of Akira Toriyama's former editors spoke about the original version of the Bee death scene. Fuyuto Takeda, Toriyama's third editor, says that he often tried not to make changes to Toriyama's work, but with the death of Bee, he had to step in. Originally, Buu's reaction to Bee's death was a cold detachment, simply commenting, "What a stupid human..." This was a trend in Toriyama's writing, as he often preferred to skip over highly dramatic moments in favor of the aftermath.

Takeda insisted that Buu's reaction was not realistic, leading to a new version of the scene being written where Buu cradled the fallen pup and grew angry, splitting into two. This ultimately became one of the most important scenes in the Buu saga, establishing that Buu was struggling internally with his own nature.

Buu's Character Development Might've Been Completely Changed

This Scene Was Critical to Buu's Eventual Redemption

The Bee death scene was so critical to establishing Buu's true character moving forward that it's hard to imagine what the Buu saga may have looked like without it. It's truly a pivotal moment within the story arc, where Buu's inner struggle is finally externalized, and, tragically, the Evil Buu wins out, ultimately consuming his good counterpart. If Buu's reaction really had been the cold and dismissive way that Toriyama originally depicted it, fans may not have the Good Buu that Goku ultimately befriended.

This incident goes to show the value that a quality editor brings to the table; they're able to see where added drama and emotion can come from, and know how to guide the writer towards what's ultimately best for the story. Toriyama may have been the one doing the writing, but his editors had a significant impact on how the specifics of the story played out. Without Takeda, one of Dragon Ball Z's most shocking and iconic moments may never have happened, and that would be a real loss.