English Dub Review: Dragon Ball Super “Bloodcurdling! The Explosive Birth of a New Super Warrior!”

Here comes a new challenger!

Overview (Spoilers Below)

Kale has ascended to a new level of power that leaves her totally freakin’ jacked. With the strength of her passion, her and Caulifla’s chances of saving their universe have never been higher. In a moment of tenderness between the two, Caulifla tells Kale how much she cares about her, which lets her go even further by bringing Kale to her senses while still remaining at her current power level. With Kale’s new level of power and the incredible teamwork synergy between both Kale and Caulifla, the two make for a powerful force against Goku. After Goku blinds Caulifla with a solar flare, Kale rushes him and pins him against a rock.

This causes Goku and Kale to stumble upon a fight Frieza is having with a fighter from Universe 3. Seeing as how he’s been so rudely interrupted, Frieza decides to make himself a part of this fight. Goku stops him before Frieza can interfere, however, it’s clear Frieza is looking for any attempt to stab Goku in the back. After this speed bump, Goku, Kale, and Caulifla get right back to it, charging up their power and striking each other once more.

In a cunning maneuver, Kale is able to lock Goku down while Caulifla works his body with a flurry of blows. Goku responds with the instant transmission, but Caulifla predicts where he’ll appear. Goku decides to take things up a notch by going Super Saiyan God even though he’s not fully recovered from his fight with Jiren. This gives him an incredible advantage, and he’s able to finally lay the smackdown on Caulifla.

Goku tries to end it by using a Kamehameha wave to knock his two opponents out of the ring, but at the last moment, Kale and Caulifla reveal their trump card. Champa had his kai give the two of them the Potara earrings, and both have now fused to become new warrior, Kefla. Without hesitation, Kefla revels in her newfound power and nails Goku with a punch to the face.

Our Take:

Kale and Kaulifla have had quite the journey through the tournament of power. The last two holdouts of their universe, they’ve gone from nobodies to snappy underdogs, to a tag team powerhouse and now, at long last, actual competitors in the greatest battle of all time. When we follow a pair of characters like this form such humble beginnings, then when we do get to see them succeed we’re all the more satisfied as an audience for it. I’m happy to say that after seeing them do so well in this latest episode, the two have certainly elevated themselves to characters who act in the same caliber as “DBZ” mainstays. This is their swan song of an episode, and it’s quite the thrill to watch.

Much like a double barrel shotgun, this episode has two big explosions it knocks out that really give it a lot of punch. The first, oddly enough, comes at the very beginning, the heartfelt “Power of friendship” moment that Caulifla and Kale have which revives their power and sends Kale to new heights of power. Dragon Ball Super has always done well with its soap opera emotional levels, but sincere moments like this are the ones that you really remember. Kale and Caulifla’s relationship is well cemented here, and it feels like they’re at the end of a long journey together, which makes their fight against Goku all the more palpable. You really want both Goku and the two of them to win, though in the back of your head you know it can only be done. I do think the episode could have potentially done more with this discord in the audience, but it’s good enough as it is.

The next big moment is the reveal of Kefla, which I have to admit I didn’t see coming. Though we didn’t get to see too much of what Kefla can actually do. (And I’m not sure what her name is supposed to be a pun for yet) Her entrance was a welcome surprise, to be sure. However, this could have been handled a little more dramatically, perhaps with a better entrance or use of music to make Kefla feel like the badass she is.

Though I did think the fighting in this episode dragged on for a bit too long since we knew Goku was going to be victorious once he went into his God form, I was overall happy with how things turned out in this installment of Dragon Ball Super.  It’s hard to say how things will turn out with Kefla, but this episode certainly sets up the next one for an explosive finish between Goku and this new opponent.