DragonBall Super is a Japanese manga series written by Akira Toriyama and illustrated by Toyotarou. A sequel to Toriyama’s original DragonBall manga, it follows the adventures of Goku and friends during the ten-year timeskip after the defeat of Majin Buu.

The story picks up shortly after the conclusion of DragonBall Z in which Goku and friends become involved with the larger universe learning about multiple universes and the gods that govern them. It’s great seeing the story expand much like DragonBall setting to DragonBall Z’s setup. If you’ve seen the anime, you’ve pretty much seen the manga (for the exception of the Moro and Granola arcs). I will say that the stories do get more complex. The Moro Arc shows a universal scale story that has stakes and tension and has good pacing. The Granola Arc is more personal but raises the stakes for such an interesting character. I do like that in the Moro we have a subplot where Vegeta attempts to atone for his past sins. It was great character development.

There were some moments where the story felt like it was rushed and that the story just jumps to the next arc without giving us some info on what’s going on. You can actually have a transition without it feeling like unnecessary filler. They could’ve taken the time out to show us what the characters were doing before the next arc. Hell, we have Frieza’s assault on Earth which is talked about in passing and not shown. As of this review, we’re currently nearing the end of the Granola Arc where Granola is fighting Gas and it’s a pretty intense battle. I can only hope that Arc comes to a satisfying conclusion. Despite my frustration, Super does have some good story elements once you peel back the layer of bullshit covering them. (3 out of 5)

It’s not much a stretch to say that the series revolves around Goku and Vegeta, more so Goku, and that’s where the problem starts. There’s no sense of growth for either of the characters and much of the teamwork we’ve seen them develop is nonexistent here. Goku’s maturity throughout Z was questionable at times but competent despite his naivete. Here, he’s completely over-the-top. Either he’s making dumber decisions than normal (somehow I thought people grew wise with age) or he’s obsessing over fighting. It’s okay for Goku to like fighting but he was never that obsessed over it. Even Vegeta seems more reserved with his training, though his stubbornness has returned with a vengeance. Hell, when you watch Naruto and Sasuke battle Kaguya in Shippuden’s climatic battle there’s a sense of growth and chemistry and it continues in Boruto where you see them fighting Momoshiki and Jigen. In Super, it continues the same cycle over and over and over and over, no matter how big the stakes.

I love Beerus and Whis who’re easily some of the best characters in the series. I love their personalities, like their relationship, like what they bring out of the other characters. They bring a good amount of humor without seeming unnecessary. There are some other characters that do get shine, both old and new. Hit, Jiren, Zenos, and Kale were interesting characters that I wanted to see more of. Frieza comes back and it’s good seeing him and how far he’s come both through his abilities and his personality. There are some cool villains, Zamasu, Moro, and Granola to name a few. Buu gets a really cool moment. It was great seeing him come back. So, the characters are great when the story isn’t focusing on Goku and Vegeta. (3 out of 5)

There are some slight differences from Toriyama’s art style, but Toyotarou does a good job of replicating it. The pacing is decent, and the placement of the panels does a decent job of conveying the action. There are moments where the pages are convoluted with unnecessary conversations and reactions. Despite this, the fights are still pretty intense. Some reviewers have pointed out that some characters suffer from anatomically incorrect positions, and I tend to agree. Sometimes characters in a rage in the height of battle and the tension is hurt because they’re flying at an opponent with an arm that looks dislocated or a neck that looks broken. Some of the character details feel more refined, more polished, and it does give the manga a more mature look. And yes, there are some recycled shots. Some scenes are shot for shot from the previous series and I’m not against it (honestly, how many different ways can a guy dodge a punch or take a punch to the face) but if the scene can be tweaked enough to where it’s inspired by but not necessarily a copy it would work better. (3 out of 5)

Super’s biggest problem is the Toyotarou’s writing. It’s easy to see Toriyama’s influence, but it becomes less so in later arcs. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it does bring some fresh ideas to the franchise. However, Toyotarou does a have a problem with his direction which effects the narration. There’s obviously the power scaling issue. A lot of other manga have the ability to balance power scaling and special techniques so that characters wouldn’t be too powerful. DragonBall Z faced a similar problem. In DragonBall the threat scale goes from deadly martial arts to King Piccolo and Piccolo Jr. being able to destroy cities. But when DragonBall Z starts the threat level goes from cities being destroyed to planets being destroyed. Now, with Super it goes from planets being destroyed to universes being destroyed. It’s hard to top that. Another aspect of the power scaling is how characters can compete with God level characters without significant training. You see this mostly in the Survival Arc. An aging Roshi (who’s power level is practically non-existent compared to the other characters) is able to hold his own to a God level Jiren.

Also, there are way too many transformations and how it affects the balance of the Z fighters. It was already a problem where Goku was stronger than the other characters by a significant amount. In nearly every fight aside from Vegeta and possibly Gohan, no one can stand their own ground. Which is weird because in DragonBall there was a bit more of a balance. But when Goku ascends to Super Saiyan the gap increases significantly making the other characters irrelevant. And the gap further increases when the other Super Saiyan transformations occur. But Super introduces several more transformations making the need for everyone outside of Goku and Vegeta unnecessary. And it’s not that the others gain the same access to these divine powers like our main two. I wouldn’t mind the Super Saiyan God, but it’s hardly utilized. What was the point of introducing it? Ain’t it supposed to be the ultimate form of a saiyan? But then it gets dropped for Super Saiyan Blue. Which gets dropped for Ultra Instinct and Ultra Ego. What would’ve worked better would be Goku and Vegeta achieving Super Saiyan God because they’re full blooded saiyans. The human characters Krillin, Yamcha, and Tien achieving Ultra Instinct as their equivalent to Super Saiyan and possibly being a human’s ultimate form. And for the half saiyans (Gohan, Goten, and Trunks) they could’ve had a mix of Super Saiyan God and Ultra Instinct to create Super Saiyan Blue. There. Everyone gets something new, something unique. I watched the Survival Arc and really appreciated seeing the Z fighters actually contribute and have really cool fights, not just Goku and Vegeta. But seeing it in the manga, I was very disappointed to the point I felt that it was a waste of time them being there.

The writing also suffers from a lot of repetitiveness not only from characters but writing decisions, fights, and story elements. It’s like with the dragon balls. They become a significant plot point several times in the manga and it gets repetitive. They get used in the Tournament of Power, then again in the Moro arc, then two times in the Granola arc. Maybe once or twice throughout the manga would’ve been okay but damn. There’s so much more to dive into but at this point I’m beat. (2 out of 5)

The Verdict: DragonBall Super is definitely devisive and for good reason. There’s so much that it does right such as expansion of the DBZ lore, introducing cool new characters and giving some shine to the old, and even give us some cool arcs. But it suffers from some of the worst writing decisions. Almost to the point of DragonBall GT. Still, it’s entertaining and if the anime was too drawn out for you the manga will definitely condense it. DragonBall Super gets 3 out of 5. In some respects, it’s the sequel that series deserves, and one can only know if it will maintain its momentum.

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