It admittedly took some time for Dragon Ball Super to get going. Battle of Gods May have gotten modern Dragon Ball off to a great start, but Resurrection F immediately dropped the ball and Dragon Ball Super’s first two arcs almost killed the sequel before it even began. While many fans consider the Goku Black arc to be when Dragon Ball Super started to get good, the Universe 6 Tournament has a certain charm missing from every other arc in Dragon Ball Super.
The Universe 6 Tournament was our first real look at Dragon Ball Super’s mythos, deliberately calling back to OG Dragon Ball in the process. Like Uranai Baba’s 5 on 5 exhibition, the Universe 6 Tournament saw the best fighters of Universes 7 and 6 going at it for the Super Dragon Balls. Although Universe 7 ultimately came out victorious, Goku and company came face to face with some of the oddest fights in the franchise.
9 Son Goku Vs Botamo
The Universe 6 Tournament arc straddles a line between early Dragon Ball’s tone and the action of the Z-era. It’s debatable how well this balance works narratively and thematically, but it does lead to a comfortable atmosphere. Goku’s first fight against Botamo isn’t too exciting, but it plays out like a proper OG Dragon Ball match.
The manga does an especially good job at capturing the tone of the early tournaments. Botamo is a gag villain through and through, but Goku strategizing around this fact is charming. Goku earning his victory by ring-out is a reminder that he knows how to handle a tournament setting.
8 Son Goku Vs Frost
The fact that Goku is fighting first should be a sign that not all is as it seems in the Universe 6 Tournament. Realistically, there’s just no way Dragon Ball Super’s first proper arc will let Goku either hog every match or bow out early. The fight against Frost tries to suggest the latter with Goku suddenly falling unconscious, but it’s clear something is amiss.
When it’s revealed that Frost is fighting with poison, Goku is allowed to jump back into the fight. Instead of taking his former slot, however, Goku chooses to come after Vegeta– giving him an opportunity to study Hit when the time comes. As for Goku and Frost’s fight, it’s a big step up from Botamo, but the ending is anticlimactic.
7 Piccolo Vs Frost
With Goku defeated by Frost, Piccolo steps into the arena to fight on behalf of Universe 7. Unfortunately, Dragon Ball Super makes it a point to mention how utterly outclassed Piccolo is. At best, he can do some damage on Frost, but he won’t be winning. It’s a detail that frankly holds the fight back. Piccolo can lose, but there’s no reason to spell it out.
Worse is that Piccolo loses, but gets the chance to stay in the tournament. Instead of taking his rightful place in the arena, Piccolo forfeits so Vegeta can knock his way through four of Universe 6’s five fighters.
6 Vegeta Vs Frost
Vegeta’s fight against Frost is really nothing special and just highlights how poor of an introduction to the Universe 6 Tournament arc Frost is. Botamo was unexciting, but his match at least brought some early Dragon Ball atmosphere. The fight against Frost just feels like a way of rearranging Universe 7’s playing field.
Vegeta knocks out Frost with a single punch, moving onto the next match. There’s no reason Piccolo couldn’t have beaten Frost and then lost to Magetta. That would have at least prevented the tournament from dedicating nearly half of its fights to Vegeta.
5 Vegeta Vs Magetta
With Frost out of the way, however, the Universe 6 Tournament starts to really pick up. The fight against Magetta is one of the better matches in the arc, essentially an early Dragon Ball gag battle with the ridiculously powerful Vegeta as the leading man. It’s a genuinely exciting fight that forces Vegeta to strategize around his opponent.
When push comes to shove, though, Vegeta ends up winning the match by insulting the ultra sensitive Magetta. It’s a turn that feels appropriately Dragon Ball and ends up leading into what is arguably Vegeta’s best bit of character development in Dragon Ball Super.
4 Vegeta Vs Cabba
Cabba is the best thing to happen to Vegeta since Future Trunks’ death. The amount of fresh characterization Vegeta shows when confronting Cabba is outstanding. When face to face with what the Saiyan race became without a Frieza enslaving them, Vegeta sees fit to bring out the full potential he knows is lurking inside of Cabba.
Vegeta does this the only way he knows how– by being a callous monster– but it’s enough to trigger Super Saiyan in Cabba, along with a chain reaction that has Cabba teaching other U6 Saiyans the technique. Vegeta shows Cabba a flash of Super Saiyan Blue before taking him out, urging Cabba to keep training & showing an important new side to the prince of all Saiyans.
3 Vegeta Vs Hit
Vegeta’s defeat at the hands of Hit is a bit different between the anime and manga. In the anime, Vegeta’s overwhelmed by Hit’s time skip, unable to fight back even in Super Saiyan Blue. In the manga, Vegeta triggering Super Saiyan Blue while fighting Cabba drains so much of his energy that even God Ki can’t defend him from Hit.
Hit clobbers Vegeta into submission in both adaptations, ruining the prince’s winning streak right at the finale. While Vegeta leaves the arena confused over how he lost, Goku’s seen enough to start devising a plan around Hit’s mysterious abilities.
2 Son Goku Vs Hit
Goku’s fight against Hit is also different between mediums, but far more significantly than Vegeta’s. In the anime, Hit gradually becomes more powerful as Goku tries to outmaneuver his time skip. Goku is forced to combine Kaioken with Super Saiyan Blue to fight back. He’s able to fight evenly with Hit, but he’s forced to turn off Kaioken, prematurely end the fight, and forfeit on his own terms.
In the manga, Goku goes through every stage of Super Saiyan while fighting off Hit’s time skip. Hit never becomes more powerful and Goku is able to gain the upper hand by overwhelming the assassin with Super Saiyan Blue. Although he would have won, Goku forfeits the match regardless as he realizes Hit wasn’t fighting at full power with the intent to kill.
1 Monaka Vs Hit
With every member of Universe 7 down for the count (Buu is disqualified as the fifth fighter in both adaptations,) Monaka is left to fight Hit. Monaka was always supposed to be a tool Beerus hyped up to motivate Goku and Vegeta. The intent was never for him to fight. In truth, Monaka is pitifully weak. Hit immediately recognizes this but chooses to play along.
Out of respect for Goku, Hit allows Monaka’s pitiful punch to land. Instead of tanking it, Hit launches himself backwards and out of the arena, handing victory over to Universe 7. It’s a satisfying, smart end to the tournament that highlights the profound effect Goku has on others.