English Dub Review: Dragon Ball Super “Bergamo the Crusher vs. Goku! Whose Strength Reaches the Wild Blue Yonder?”

As expected, Goku cannot be crushed.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

For this match, Goku is set to face “Bergamo the Crusher”, the eldest of the brothers brought by
Universe 9 to this exposition match. Before the fight begins, however, Bergamo surprises everyone by
vilifying Goku, blaming him for this tournament they’re all subject to, and making himself out to be the
hero by begging Zeno to remove the universe erasing penalty from the tournament if he wins. Zeno
accepts his proposal, effectively turning all the universes against Goku. This doesn’t bother Goku much though, who’s simply interested in getting into a good fight. The battle begins and the two of them start exchanging blows one after the other. Goku seems to be getting the
advantage until Bergamo demonstrates that he can become more powerful by absorbing the energy
from Goku’s attacks. As Goku continues to pummel Bergamo, Bergamo grows bigger in size, becoming
more and more powerful, until he stands like a giant while Goku flies around him in Super Saiyan form.

It seems like Goku will be overcome by Bergamo’s endless font of power, but without batting an eye,
Goku goes into Super Saiyan Blue and launches an enormous Kamehameha at Bergamo. Despite all his
physical power, Bergamo is overwhelmed by Goku’s attack and defeated. With the fight over, Xeno and his angels explain the rules of the upcoming tournament. But before things can end, a mysterious fight enshrouded in a hood jumps into the ring and reveals himself to be a
warrior named Toppa, who seeks to do battle with Goku and his immense power. The two face off
before the episode comes to its conclusion, saving the proper battle for next week’s episode.

Our Take:

What an absolute smackdown! With Goku taking the main stage in the Tournament of Power Exposition
Match, things have finally gotten serious. Unlike the other two fights, which mostly focused on
technique and resourcefulness, Goku vs. Bergamo is nothing less than a reminder of why Goku is Goku
and why everyone else is, well, not even close. Entertaining and filled with story, this episode both raises
the stakes of the Tournament of Power and also sets up for the battle royale to come.
Before things even begin, Dragonball Super realizes the importance of keeping the audience at the edge
of their seats and fulfills that need by making the price of this battle more important than previously
thought. Goku’s stubborn bull-headedness sets him up not as the hero, but as the villain of this
tournament since Bergamo emphasizes how this whole universe-erasing tournament was his fault in
the first place. Furthermore, if Goku wins, that means the existences of all the universes will hang in the
balance. It’s a unique place for Goku to be, and one that adds a surprising amount of depth to the battle.
It really becomes a conflict about the main theme of Dragon Ball Super as a whole: the quest for more and more power, no matter the obstacle.

The fight itself is nothing less than a treat, as well. Well-animated, flashy, and colorful, Bergamo
presents a unique challenge for Goku; how to defeat an enemy who only gets stronger the more you hit him. While one thinks that this might actually prove to overcome Goku’s power, we are quickly astounded when the inverse happens. Turns out Goku is powerful enough that even an opponent like Bergamo can’t best him in terms of raw energy. This leaves a strong impression on the viewer, who is set to go into the Tournament of Power excited to see the no-doubt engrossing display of martial arts
that is about to take place. This whole exposition match so far has served as something of a mini “Hype arc”, which is supposed to
the get the audience prepped for the Tournament of Power to come. Though it’s not quite over yet, since Goku still has to face Toppa one-on-one, I can say that that this arc has done its job splendidly. It offers just a taste of what’s in store, but that little bit teases the viewer along and gets their shounen itch growing.