Dragon Ball has wished itself back on top of the anime industry in the past decade. Revitalizing itself through the release of the film Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, the franchise is gearing up for another cinematic rumble this year. Titled Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, this is apparently one of several upcoming movies planned for the series. However, although this is sure to excite fans, it also begs the question of how much is too much.
Toei Animation supposedly plans to make Dragon Ball Super movies a constant presence at the box office, and this might end up making them lesser spectacles than they currently are. Of course, their box office performance is only increasing, and it's thanks to their equally increasing quality that fans are still on board. With more on the way, however, can Dragon Ball films maintain their quality?
Dragon Ball Movies Revived the Franchise
Back in 2013, Dragon Ball returned to prominence with the release of Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods. The 18th movie in the series, it was the first one to hit theaters in nearly two decades. Said theatrical release wasn't just in Japan either but all around the world. A big-time hit at the box office, it was followed by Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection 'F,' Dragon Ball Super: Broly and now, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
A recent leak revealed that Toei, the company behind the Dragon Ball anime, seemingly has plans for even more of the franchise in the coming years. Not only is Dragon Ball Super coming back to television some time next year, but Toei also intends to have a new movie come out every two to three years. The return of Dragon Ball Super, while still not officially confirmed, is huge news, but it's the rest of the information that may sound alarming from another angle.
Are There Too Many Movies In the Dragon Ball Series?
Having a concrete schedule of a Dragon Ball Super movie once every two or so years sounds exciting at first, but that's mainly because the idea is still a novelty. After a while, it might be hard for the series to remain fresh and maintain its spectacle, especially since a lot of that hype was built almost 10 years ago when the franchise came back from hiatus. To be fair, Battle of Gods and the ensuing movies were of much higher quality than many of the other Dragon Ball movies, but oversaturation could definitely become a thing. If that happens, fans will start seeing the movies as being just as inconsequential as those from the '90s were.
Still, there'd have to be a dramatic and noticeable decrease in quality in order for Japan to finally stop caring about the franchise. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero has performed very well at the box office, suggesting that fans still can't get enough of Saiyans, Nameks and Dragon Balls. Another source to look at for the franchise's future is whether these movies perform well internationally, especially in North America. If they're as successful as Super Hero will likely be, Dragon Ball is here to stay for the long haul, and it's doubtful that fans will get tired of it any time soon.