Dragon Ball Daima Is Ready to Remake Buu, But Is That For the Best?

Warning: Contains spoilers for Dragon Ball Daima Episode #8Dragon Ball Daimaspent the large majority of its opening episodes building up the awe-inspiring Demon Realm and establishing the franchise’s ever-expanding cast.The series' all-new setting has captured the sense of wonder that definedDragon Ballin its earliest sections, offering countless imaginative additions to the series, like Demon Dragon Balls, senzu-bugs, fearsome Tamigamis, and thebest new character the series has seen in years. And the most recent Episode #8, titled, “Tamigami”, is no exception, being packed to the brim with more exciting action and developments.

The most notable, in terms of advancingDaima’s story, is the revelation thatDr. Arinsu is attempting to recreate her own version of Majin Buu, in order to overthrow the evil King Gomah. Expanding on Buu was always a likely possibility for the series, given that the natives of the Demon Realm practice the same sort of magic that Babidi used to awaken the big pink agent of chaos.

Moro grinning in Dragon Ball Super manga.

Buu’s unpredictability and skillset make him an interesting fighter, and all the more dangerous for having little motive outside of destruction. While the Majin Buu Saga is proof enough that he certainly wouldn’t make for a bad enemy, recycling him is indicative of a bigger problem that has plagued modernDragon Ball;an inability to incorporate new, interesting villains. A new Buu could work as a final boss, but rehashing yet another enemy would be to waste such a fresh and interesting world as the Demon Realm.

Modern Dragon Ball Has a Villain Problem

The Series Seems Intent On Recycling Its Villains

Exploration of the Demon Realm has made for the most fascinating moments ofDragon Ball Daimathus far, and its native characters like Panzy and Glorio have been fantastic additions to the cast. So much of the anime’s early focus has been on the world itself, and it seems that Akira Toriyama and other series creators intentionally took extra screen time to build upon it. To then have the Demon Realm’s main antagonist be just another version of Buu would be underwhelming unless done extraordinarily well.

SinceDragon Ball’s return in the early 2010s,recycling villains has been a trend for the franchise. In fact, of all the villains introduced inDragon Ball Super, only three are entirely new creations: Beerus, Hit, and Jiren. Goku Black could be considered original, given no previous character has been exactly alike, though he shares many similarities withDragon Ball GT’s Baby.

Majin Buu in a flashback

10 Most Disappointing Dragon Ball Villains

Dragon Ball has some highly praised and well-executed villains. However, even this long-running shonen series has its fair share of disappointments.

Frieza, Broly, and Cell were all rewritten or reincorporated intoDragon Ball Super, and acted as main antagonists of major arcs or films. While recycling older villains isn’t an entirely negative writing tactic, restricting the story to fit around already utilized character molds doesimpedeDragon Ball’s ability to expand into new, unexplored narratives. And now that Buu seems set to return to the role of villain, all ofDragon Ball Z’s major enemies will have been rehashed in some way.

At the end of the movie when Goku holds his hand up in greeting to Broly who looks a bit shocked by Goku’s appearance

Other Villains Prove That Buu Can Be Redone Well

Dragon Ball Has Been Getting the Most Out of Their Reused Villains

While modernDragon Ballhas made a habit of recycling villains,the franchise has done so effectively, and even improved on some.Frieza is one of the more iconic antagonistsin all of anime and manga, and yet his return to the series has expanded on his character, ultimately giving way to one ofDragon Ball’s absolute best moments, in which he fought side by side with Goku to defeat Jiren in the Tournament of Power.

Broly was reworked from the ground up forDragon Ball Super: Broly, and benefited greatly from it. His rewritten backstory and motivation for fighting Goku and Vegetaended up adding several dimensions to the Saiyanthat his previous iteration did not have. Unfortunately, Cell’s return was a more forward rehashing of an iconic villain that really added nothing of substance to his character, and rather helped to build up Gohan more than anyone else. Nevertheless, his inclusion inSuper Herowas an entertaining nostalgia trip, if nothing else.

IfDragon Ball Daimais able to rewrite Buu in a way that is fresh and exciting for the fanbase to experience, he wouldn’t be all that bad of a choice for the main villain. All the gears have begun to turn in the series, and future episodes will let the audience know whetherMajin Buuwill be improved upon, or ifDaimaplans on robbing the Demon Realm of presenting its own unique villain.