English Dub Review: Dragon Ball Super “Staring Down the Wall to be Overcome! Goku vs. Gohan”

Nothing like a good fight to the death for a father and son to bond over.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

The team is all assembled, and the warriors from Earth are prepared to enter the Tournament of Power and decide the fate of their universe. Before that can happen, though, Gohan has something he must do. After the intense training he went through with Piccolo, there is one man the young Saiyan wants to fight: his father. Gohan demands that his dad take him on before the tournament to see what he’s made of and put what’s he learned to good use. Goku gladly accepts the challenge, and the two square up in a 2 v 2 format along with Piccolo, who fights with Gohan, and Tien, who fights with Goku.

The fight begins and the two go at it with the full power of their Saiyan strength. They go blow for blow while Piccolo and Tien provide support, but it soon becomes clear that Gohan and Goku are on a completely different level. Eventually, as the result of their intense battle, the ring they had made gets destroyed, and Tien breaks up the fight between them so they don’t go too far.

Meanwhile, in Universe 10, Rumshin presents the final selection of the Universe 10 warriors. They’re all extremely muscular types, and Rumshin is confident that their brawn will be the key to victory in the tournament.

Back in Universe 7, Goku and Gohan set themselves up for another match, this time going all out on each other. The two go neck and neck as they deliver blow after blow to each other while slowly powering up more and more, putting as much strength as they can into each strike, While they fight, Gohan insists that his dad go full power against him, which he agrees to in his Super Saiyan Blue form. The two fight until it becomes clear that they’ll destroy each other at this rate and the fight is once again broken up, But, after all, is said and done, Goku and Gohan share a deep respect for each other’s fighting spirit.

Our Take:

This episode delivers on the promise of Dragon Ball Super like none before it, bringing us a powerful, intense story action-packed fighting set against the backdrop of the bond between father and son. Goku and Gohan find themselves at odds with each other while they fight their hardest, each of them battling for supremacy as if the entire universe is at stake. Which of course, it is.

The reason to watch this episode emerges front-and-center within the first five minutes: the fighting. This episode is a visual treat, brimming with colorful, smooth animation that pulls you in and keeps your attention focused exactly where it needs to be. If you’re like me and you watched this show as a kid, in awe at the god-like displays of power broadcasted to you every Saturday morning, then you’re sure to enjoy the spectacle of this episode. It also seems to have learned from the mistakes of its past, not wasting our time with elongated filler and minutes of men screaming at the top of their lungs. It’s quite the thing to see, where the beautiful combination of sound and color are sure to delight and amuse.ualit

But don’t go into this thinking that the only good quality about this episode is the visuals. It’s also a powerful ending to the prelude to the Tournament of Power Arc that has done this season so well. Each of these characters has had their individual episodes to let us know who they are, so we already know where the stand when they arrive to make their mark. The real joy here, however, is seeing this battle emerge between Gohan vs. Goku, which is long overdue for a bit of exposure and development. As Goku and Gohan fight, it becomes clear that there is a divide between them, both in terms of power and respect for each other. Yet, it’s not Goku who is the one to lead them out into the light this time, its Gohan. One gets the satisfaction of seeing Gohan finally reap the benefits of his labors. Though some could argue that Gohan has been training for too short of a time to justify this spike in power level, but it makes for great storytelling nonetheless.

This is a really strong episode, one that stands out from the others, which weren’t even bad themselves. It feels like one of the first “real” DBS episodes that have been released, something that involves fighters of the high power levels this show is prone to follow. Not to mention, the hype being built up for the Tournament of Power is beyond extraordinary. IT looks like Dragon ball Super plans to bring this one home.