Dragon Ball Superwas already a worthy sequel toDragon Ball Z, expanding the series' universe in wild new ways. But even as epic as arcs like the Tournament of Power are, the best thatDragon Ball Superhas to offer has yet to be animated.
Dragon Ball Superwas the long-awaited revival of the franchise for the modern era, bringing back all fans' favorite characters for more adventures. Though it began by adapting the last two films,Battle of GodsandResurrection ‘F’,Superrepresented a new direction for the franchise, thoroughly exploring thenew elements like Beerus and Whisand examining all that their existence brought to the table.
Supergenerally handled its characters well, particularly Vegeta, who saw a lot of character growth from his time inZ. While it was far from perfect, it was a fine return for Goku and friends.
Dragon Ball Super’s Unadapted Arcs Are Its Best
The Manga’s Best Arcs Came After the Anime
What many fans who only watched theDragon Ball Superanime may not realize is that the manga was being created concurrently with the anime series, but when the anime ended, the manga just kept going.As a result, there are 2 major story arcs which have never been animated: the Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga, and the Granolah the Survivor Saga.The former covers 25 chapters of the manga, while the latter lasts for 20 chapters. Both are extremely well received by fans, and dig deep into the lore ofDragon Ballto deliver interesting stories.
The Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga focuses on Moro, a planet-eating being, who escapes from the custody of the Galactic Patrol and begins regaining power and followers before setting his sights on Earth. Goku begins working with the Galactic Patrol and meets an Angel named Merus who has joined them. The arc provides more information surrounding Buu’s past, and how the good part of Buu came to be, and involves some truly crazy new powers on Goku’s part.
The Granolah the Survivor Saga introduces a new character, Granolah, who was the survivor of a Saiyan purge on his homeworld, and now holds a grudge against them.Granolah is a complex characterwho’s clearly not evil, and has valid reasons for feeling the way he does. The arc deals with the Saiyan heritage and features Bardock, the father of Goku, allowing Goku to get to learn about him for the first time. It features new powers, such as the Ultra Ego state for Vegeta, and ends with the dramatic return of Frieza, sporting unimaginable power.
Dragon Ball Super’s Remaining Arcs Are About Character and Lore
These Two Arcs Feature Significant Growth
The Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga does a great job of building up its new characters like Merus, making you care about them while also using them to explore areas of theDragon Balluniverse which have yet to be fully explained, such as the nature of Angels. It also offers growth for characters that fans already know, like Vegeta, who even takes responsibility for Namek and redeems himself of his evilest deed. That’s the kind of moment fans have been waiting to see from Vegeta, so it’s truly a shame it hasn’t been animated yet.
Granolah is also a compelling character, a space mercenary working for a group of planet brokers known as the Heeters. In many ways, he’s similar to how Vegeta once was, although far less cruel than how Vegeta started out. One can’t help but want to root for him, even knowing that his objectives put him at odds with Goku and Vegeta.Bardock, of course, is always a fan favorite, and the story does him justice, portraying him as a complex character of his own, someone who’s respectable if not entirely good.
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TheDragon Ball Supermanga has been on hiatus since Akira Toriyama’s passing in March 2024, but there’s every sign it will continue with Toyotarou at the helm. Given that these two arcs are some of the last manga content Toriyama worked on, it seems like only a matter of time before they’re animated. Given that elements of the story, such as Frieza’s new form, are still unresolved in the manga, it may be that they’re waiting for the manga to conclude before adapting these storylines for animation.
The best arcs ofDragon Ball Superwill surely make for some incredible TV, delivering on both fights and power-ups and character growth and story development. Hopefully,Dragon Ball Superfans won’t have to wait too long for these remaining stories to be animated.
Dragon Ball Super
Cast
Dragon Ball Super is an anime series set after Majin Buu’s defeat. It follows Son Goku, now a radish farmer, as peace prevails until Beerus, the God of Destruction, appears. Seeking to challenge a legendary warrior, the series revisits events from two Dragon Ball Z films before exploring alternate universes.
