Dragon Ball Super’s Next Saga Needs to Make Broly the Star
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Dragon Ball Super continues to make waves as a satisfying successor to both Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z through its fearlessness when it comes to pushing the franchise to unprecedented heights. Dragon Ball Super has found success through a clever combination of original ideas and comforting nostalgia that takes past highlights and recontextualizes them in exciting ways. Broly, the Legendary Super Saiyan, is a fan-favorite character who left such an impression on audiences in his first Dragon Ball Z movie that he received two sequels and countless appearances in expanded universe video games. Dragon Ball fans were ecstatic to learn that the conclusion of Dragon Ball Super’s anime would be followed by a feature film, but this excitement reached a true fever pitch when it was announced that it would also canonically bring Broly into the mix.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly is largely a retelling of Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan, but it takes great strides to improve upon Broly’s backstory and make him a more sympathetic and tragic figure, rather than a brutish villain whose sole purpose is to destroy. Dragon Ball Super: Broly improves upon its Dragon Ball Z counterpart in many ways, but one of the film’s smartest decisions is that it lets Broly survive the experience and gradually align himself with the heroes. Passing Broly appearances have been deeply satisfying, but it’s finally time for this iconic Saiyan to step into the spotlight and lead the way in
Dragon Ball Super: Broly cathartically concludes with Goku and Vegeta having a peaceful exchange with Broly where they promise to help him reckon with his past. Their success as heroes is living proof that Saiyans can channel their power for altruistic purposes and that such strength doesn’t have to equate to rage and destruction. Broly has a very brief appearance in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, but fans were excited to see that he’s taken up residence on Beerus’ Planet and focused on training alongside his two Saiyan peers. Dragon Ball Super’s manga expands upon this revelation and provides greater context for Broly’s progress and how he’s helped shed his past and begin anew. It’d be a wasted opportunity for Dragon Ball Super to keep Broly around, but only as a supporting player who exists in the background whenever Goku and Vegeta train. These effective glimpses of the Legendary Super Saiyan’s progress and accomplishments seem to be setting him up for his own adventure.
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