Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball series has never gone out of fashion, even when it's not actively turning out new content, but the addition of Dragon Ball Super to the canon has increased the shonen series’ reputation in tremendous ways. Dragon Ball Super has successfully extended the franchise through an anime series, but that adventure continues in both the series’ manga as well as feature films.
Dragon Ball Super’s first movie, Broly, proved to be a major success. Now finally some considerable details available about the next film in the series, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, thanks to its first trailer.
9 There’s A Strong, Modern Story As Far As Dragon Ball Movies Are Concerned
Dragon Ball movies can often come across as big spectacles, but the reason that their place in canon is typically debated is that they’re ultimately disposable. The majority of the movies focus on a new villain who comes out of nowhere and an arc’s worth of content gets boiled down to under two hours. The exact storyline for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero hasn’t been detailed, but it appears that it involves using the DNA of Earth’s strongest to build a genetically superior superhero, or perhaps a target for their own hero to conquer. Super Hero looks like it will remix old ideas in a new, relevant way.
8 More Supporting Characters Get A Chance To Shine
A major issue with Dragon Ball as a whole is that it very rarely allows anyone other than Goku to be the big hero and the one who takes out the new villain. This habit is even more egregious in the Dragon Ball movies, which can strip the series of its supporting characters in favor of Goku and Vegeta. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero will take a unique approach where more neglected characters like Piccolo and Pan, and perhaps possibly Gohan, will get to be in the spotlight while Goku plays more of a supporting presence.
7 Goku Trains With Broly On Beerus’ Planet
The previous Dragon Ball Super movie, Broly, officially brings the Legendary Super Saiyan character into the canon. Some of the changes that Super makes to Broly’s character are benign, but the biggest difference is that the movie ends with Goku and Broly on good terms.
This led many to speculate that Broly might return in a supporting capacity and that Goku might even attempt to train him and help him better refine his power. The briefest of glimpses of this is provided, but the trailer for Super Hero does show Goku and Broly engaged in combat on Beerus’ planet. This opens itself up to some very exciting ideas.
6 The Red Ribbon Army Returns With A Vengeance
An evolving roster of antagonists has entered the Dragon Ball universe throughout the years, but one of the earliest dangerous forces in the franchise is the Red Ribbon Army. Goku helped dismantle this misguided operation in his childhood, but remnants of Red Ribbon have continued to re-surface, like with the Androids. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero has the militaristic force and is presumably ready for vengeance. There’d also be some really sweet symmetry if Pan could follow in her grandfather’s footsteps and be the one to take them out this time.
5 The Debut Of The Duo, Gamma 1 And Gamma 2
The Dragon Ball movies are known to introduce new characters, the majority of which function as that adventure’s villain. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero has teased two new figures, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, who function as a team. It’s safe to presume that they might be antagonists in the film, especially since they have Red Ribbon markings on their clothes, but their situation may be more complex than that. They might mark a new evolved form of Android, or even Red Ribbon’s attempt to “manufacture” superheroes. Regardless, their role in the movie will be substantial.
4 Piccolo Begins To Train Pan
It’s been really sweet to see characters in Dragon Ball grow older and start families, but the franchise has been afraid to move beyond the portion of time that’s teased at the end of Dragon Ball Z, and a level of stasis has set in with some of the younger characters as a result.
Pan holds a ton of potential, so it’s extremely exciting that Super Hero has Piccolo realize this and apply his rigorous training methods to the young Saiyan. Building a relationship between these two should be incredibly sweet, and it will hopefully culminate in her turning Super Saiyan.
3 The New Character Designs By Akira Toriyama
Akira Toriyama has shown a lot of excitement for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, and he seems to have more involvement in this movie than the previous Dragon Ball movies. Toriyama is responsible for the character designs in Super Hero, which results in some brand new characters, like Gamma 1 and 2, as well as some slightly revised models for existing characters. Pan and Bulma, for instance, have changed looks to reflect the passage of time, as well as more subtle changes to characters like Piccolo (who has his original yellow colorization for his arm details)
2 The Return Of Vegeta’s BADMAN Shirt And A Sense Of Humor
Characters in Dragon Ball are certainly guilty of falling into patterns, but it’s always exciting when a new look is turned to, whether it sticks around for an extended period of time or is merely temporary. One of Vegeta’s more popular outfits is one that he only wears briefly following the defeat of Frieza and before the invasion of the Androids. Vegeta’s pink “BADMAN” shirt appears to be back in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, which might not seem like a big deal, but it already has fans excited. If nothing else it shows that the movie at least has a sense of humor with itself.
1 It’s Set After The Events Of Dragon Ball Super: Broly
The Dragon Ball Z movies exist in nebulous territory where they’re not considered to be canon, but a contrasting approach was taken with Dragon Ball Super’s first film, which officially extends the anime’s story. It’s possible that the next Dragon Ball Super could have returned to a non-canon approach or been set in the past, but it’s now been confirmed that the movie takes place after the events of Dragon Ball Super: Broly. However, Super Hero still takes place before the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament, which means that the end of Dragon Ball Z is still canonically set afterward.