Black

"Well, that may be the case, but at least I wasn't beaten by a girl."
— "Piccolo's Best Bet"

Black (ブラック, Burakku; FUNimation "Staff Officer Black") is an assistant of Red. He is not given much of a role until later in the series. Soft-spoken and quick-witted, Black carries out Red's orders and informs Red of the current situations with the remaining Red Ribbon Army officers.

Biography

Black about to face off against Goku.

When Son Goku is storming the headquarters, Black repeatedly attempts to persuade Red to evacuate the fortress to a much safer and secure location, but Commander Red refuses. Black actually ends up having to fight Goku by himself and he doesn't land a single hit, but sure takes some himself. Goku actually ends up unwittingly saving Black's life, as the final punch Goku delivered made Black crash through a window. When a trap door ceiling fell down on Goku, Black survived because he was hanging onto the windowsill. Overhearing Red's joyful speech about becoming a taller person, Black was appalled, saying that his mad ambition has cost the Army dearly as shown in Goku's invasion, and may eventually lead to its defeat. Commander Red replies it doesn't matter how many soldiers he risks as long as he reaches his goal, and makes it clear that he is just a lackey, and is as the rest of the Red Ribbon Army, expendable. Angered, Black then shot Commander Red in the head with his pistol, killing him instantly.

Black during the Commander Red Saga.

Goku survived the falling ceiling and was offered a position in Black's new army - the Black Ribbon Army – which Goku refused. The two battled again and Goku was predictably too powerful for him. Black then got into a super-powered robotic suit called the Battle Jacket and the tables were turned since Goku was no match for him in the suit. The fight continued outside and Black in the suit threw Goku onto the ground. He attempted to finish him off with a blast, but the boy quickly recovered and proved too nimble and even had Black attack himself. Black then snapped and fired a rocket to destroy Goku, threatening even his soldiers and staff, but Goku kicked the rocket away. After realizing the boy was too powerful, Black tried to escape from Goku and the young warrior sufficed and headbutted straight through the Battle Jacket. It then exploded with Black trapped in it... as the one thing not installed in the Battle Jacket was a parachute.

Black redesigned in The Path to Power.

In the film The Path to Power, Black has a similar role, but his appearance was completely changed and resembled a Native American. Black is still Red's right-hand man. Black kills his boss, renames the organization the Black Ribbon Army, and then got ready for a battle with Goku. He was ultimately killed by Goku.

Blue alongside Black in Dragon Ball GT.

Black has a brief appearance in Dragon Ball GT, after he and several other Red Ribbon Army members are killed by Pan. He is seen speaking to Blue in Hell. Yama is busy stamping villains back into the dimension. The work load is heavily packed as all the villains are on a long line extending out of Yemma's domain. As Yama announces his frustration, Blue and Black are chatting while in line. Black declares that it didn't take long for all of them to be defeated and sent straight back to hell, referring to everyone in line as "losers". Blue responds by reminding him that he's also in line with all those losers. They are all awaiting to meet their fate together.

It is important to note that the Red Ribbon Army members, including Black, who appear in GT are drawn in a style based on their appearance in the original Dragon Ball, and not in the "redesigned" forms that appear in the 10th Anniversary Special.

Black in his Battle Jacket.

Video game appearance

Stage Officer Black (using the Battle Jacket) is both a boss and playable character in Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure.

Voice actors

• Japanese dub: Masaharu Satō
• FUNimation dub: Christopher R. Sabat
• Portuguese dub: Ricardo Spínola

Trivia

• In Dragon Ball Z, during the Great Saiyaman Saga, a man who closely resembles Black is seen working as a producer of some sort in "I'll Fight Too!", along with a director who closely resembles Red.
• In Dragon Ball GT, Black claims he was not killed by Pan when he responded with the phrase "At least I didn't get beaten by a girl". However, he was in fact seen in his Battle Jacket being killed by Pan.