LogFAQs > #961606088

I wouldn't want to rewrite the whole thing. Nappa should have definitely triumphed over all of them, but he should have at least had some points in the fight where he was hurt, or at least had some possibility of losing. (krillin's destructo disk doesn't count)

I was okay with the way Yamcha died. He succumbed to his own hubris. It was a direct statement that the Z fighters cannot make one slip up against the Saiyans.

With Tien however. Tien should have had a better send off. Dude couldn't even land a single blow on Nappa and then gets his arm punched right off. Toriyama should have let him land at least one blow. Tien was one of the greatest martial artists on Earth. The difference in styles alone should have allowed Tien to land something on Nappa. I understand Nappa outclasses him in every way, but Tien's traditional martial arts style could have been his initial edge that Nappa adapts to.

Like Toriyama could have allowed this punch right here to land, and actually showed visible pain on Nappa indicating damage. At least he could have done that.
https://64.media.tumblr.com/2b171e339909fbbf0d85c58694b7f1f8/tumblr_inline_poaeswVdq71r15usg_1280.jpg

This is such a good scene here. Tien after having been battered by Nappa, and watching his best friend sacrifice himself for nothing erupts into rage; straight up ignoring Gohan's presence. He could have at least posed somewhat of a threat to Nappa with his blast. I understand that it could have killed Nappa had it not he blocked, but he did, and Tien's sacrifice ends with "I failed again". It should have been something.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa8kHo97teo

I understand why Toriyama did it. As a kid, I was devastated watching them all get wrecked. I hadn't seen Dragon Ball, but I saw how hard all of these characters trained (and in the anime it's a shit ton of filler), and to see them all get completely outclassed, it was pretty heart-breaking. It made Goku's entrance that much grander when he finally did arrive, but Goku made that same entrance 3 more times in the show. They could have toned it back just a little, and let some of the Z fighters contribute somewhat against Nappa.