With the release of Dragon Ball's newest addition to the franchise, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, on the horizon, Toei Animation has launched its campaign for the feature film with a slew of Goku and Gohan-centric teasers and trailers. As global audiences await the confirmation of an international release date, fans have begun to speculate on the newest addition to the Dragon Ball cast, an oddly-familiar android duo.
In an interview with Nikkei Entertainment, Shueisha executive, Akio Iyoku, commented that Super Hero will feature a more militaristic rendition of Son Goku's long-time nemeses, The Red Ribbon Army. With this, Iyoku all but confirmed that the new mechanical fighters, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, would somehow continue the legacy of the paramilitary group. The Red Ribbon Army is responsible for some of Dragon Ball's most fearsome foes, like the Androids and Cell, so it makes perfect sense that Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation would turn to Goku's longest-standing rivals to create the newest additions to Dragon Ball Super's cast.
Who is The Red Ribbon Army?
Dragon Ball was distributed during the infancy of internationalized anime, meaning that the series' release outside of Japan was sporadic, to say the least. As many members of the international Dragon Ball community are more familiar with the latter Dragon Ball Z portion of the story, the significance of the Red Ribbon Army is often forgotten. Yet, when looking at the entire series of Dragon Ball, including the movies as well as Dragon Ball GT, the Red Ribbon Army has served as the most significant enemy to the Z-fighters since the release of Dragon Ball Volume 5.
Early in Dragon Ball's publication, Toriyama chose to follow his smash-hit "21st World Tournament" saga with the blockbuster-inspired "The Red Ribbon Army" saga. Originally spanning Chapters 55 - 96, this installment saw Goku battle a hodgepodge of murderous commandos in several episodic narratives, including the "Terror of Muscle Tower" arc that served as a smart nod to Bruce Lee's Game of Death. Toriyama would go on to introduce elements that would become franchise staples, e.g. Android 17 & 18's predecessor, Metallitron and Eighter, as well as the classic Schwarzenegger homages.
The extended saga that saw Goku take on the forces of the Napoleonic Commander Red and the masterminding Staff Officer Black also gave audiences the series' first life-or-death battle, featuring its own beam struggle. Goku's epic confrontation with the lethal Mercenary Tao would create the archetype for the spectacular high-stakes battles that would define Dragon Ball for international audiences.
The Red Ribbon's Legacy
Iyoku's confirmation of the Red Ribbon's involvement in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is no surprise to anyone familiar with Toriyama's writing style. This would not be the first (or second) time that the Dragon Quest designer would use the lore established in the original "The Red Ribbon Army" saga as the foundation for sagas that would go on to be known as the best in the Dragon Ball franchise. As Dragon Ball Z progressed, audiences would be treated to the reemergence of the Red Ribbon Army in a major way. As Toriyama rolled out a brand new cast of characters, including fan-favorite Future Trunks, the author began crafting an arc to follow up the debut of the Super Saiyan. From the ashes of his Red Ribbon Army, forgotten for over 200 chapters at the time, Toriyama illustrated Dragon Ball Chapters 330 - 420, known as the "Cell" saga.
The "Cell" saga, often regarded as the best in the series, offered viewers an exciting homage to the Terminator films which revolutionized the franchise. Premiering the dubious Androids 17 & 18 and the iconically imperfect, Cell, this saga used the revival of the Ribbon as a basis for Ribbon survivor, Dr. Gero, and his creations to wreak havoc. The series, along with the entire anime community, would be shaken as the Red Ribbon Androids, namely Cell, managed to kill Shonen's sweetheart, Goku.
Toriyama's associates also saw the potential within the original "The Red Ribbon Army" saga's lore. In terms of Dragon Ball films, the Red Ribbon appears in the alternate story DB: The Path to Power as well as serving as the main antagonist of Dragon Ball Movie 7, Super Android 13, which featured Androids 13, 14, and 15. In Dragon Ball GT, Toei also saw fit to base the "Baby" saga's Dr. Myuu on the Red Ribbon's Dr. Gero, even using both characters to incite Android 17's return in the "Super 17" saga.
The Red Ribbon Army in Super Hero
The Red Ribbon Army has served as Dragon Ball's most consistent source of conflict, offering a slew of unique protagonists, both organic and robotic. This opened the door for Dragon Ball Super's creative team to craft a unique and compelling story surrounding the Ribbon's upcoming appearance in Super Hero.
In the interview, Iyoku shifted the spotlight onto the newcomer androids, Gamma 1 and 2. The executive claimed that the movie's battle scenes will be used to emphasize the Gammas' "inhuman speed and fighting style," indicating that the Ribbon's newest bots have managed to acquire enough power to challenge the godly Z-fighters in combat. This leaves space to explore how such droids could have been created, be it through Gero's old plans or some new Ribbon scheme.
As Toriyama and Co. tease the upcoming CGI feature, many are waiting on the edge of their seats to see how the film will be received by international audiences. With exhilarating trailers that feature samples of the new art style, Red Ribbon fans, and seemingly Gohan fans, will be crossing their fingers as they await the international release date.
Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Super are available to read on VIZ, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero will be released in Japanese theaters on April 22, 2022.