Akira Toriyama and his work are part of the childhood of thousands, and his legacy in anime and manga history is unquestionable…but all that glitters isn’t gold. The first episodes of “Dragon Ball Super” they agreed with everyone who advocated absolute disaster, and the shoddy animation quality left memories of some of the most embarrassing moments in animation history.
Toei-Animation however, he listened to the audience and corrected mistakes slowly but firmly. This is how a recovery was consolidated throughout 2016 with the already famous black goku saga, and ended up being ranked as one of the most important series of each season. That’s why today I want to review The 5 best episodes that the series left us in 2017 in a ranking tribute to Toriyama’s legacy and the current work of Toyotaro and all the animators involved.
To make this list, I am delineating episodes from issue #73, released January 8, to #121, released December 24, 2017. It should also be noted that what is featured below contains major Dragon Ball Super spoilers, and that it is nothing. I will do a summary of the episodes, but a more subjective and personal approach..
5 – GOKU VS FREEZER (EPISODE 95)
Although the series managed to regain the honor thanks to the Tournament of Power arc, the truth is that the original fans who have followed these new adventures from the beginning know how difficult it was to get there. After a forgettable debut with two movie adaptations, the series scored one of its best histories with the black goku saga, and then nothing. The promise of a major competition never seen remained like a promise which would take several months to arrive, and which would play the card of hidden padding with the recruitment of warriors for the event. This period, however, left several remarkable moments, among which the always awaited confrontation between Goku and Frieza.
After a fairly strenuous effort from Goku to sign all 10 team members, Buu would unleash panic at the last minute forcing them to seek an urgent solution. It is then that Goku himself decides to take over Frieza’s interested services in exchange for which if they later win, they will revive him with the Super Dragon Balls. It ends with the two meeting after temporary resuscitation thanks to Baba, and a trap set by remove it of the Universe 4 years Cider of Universe 9. The latter would send assassins who would fall brutally annihilated by Freezer and Golden formatwho will later try to reverse the situation by betraying Goku in one of the episodes the most exciting and complex of the series. Fortunately, Beerus and Whis show up at the last moment to save the day.
4 – HIT AGAINST JIREN (EPISODE 111)
The only two rivals who managed to defeat Goku in “Dragon Ball Super” They were finally in the Tournament of Power after one of the series’ most shocking moments. One with the arrogance of believing himself to be the strongest, and the other with the self-esteem of knowing that he is the defender of justice, collide in high speed showdown which show the most famous murderer for the first time in a complicated moment. To hit I had seen what he was capable of Jiren After his fight with Goku, and sticking to his cunning and his analysis of the situation, he decides to take advantage of what seemed like a moment of oblivion to surprise the member of the Pride Troops. From there Hit unknowingly signs his death warrant.
Meanwhile, Frieza surprised re-energize Goku After their fight, the Universe 6 Namekians revealed themselves against Piccolo and Gohan, and Vegeta devoted himself to moving around the battlefield dodging and punching the beloved Ribrianne and company. However, all attention was on To hitwho without wasting a second started attacking Jiren with his Jump in time. The latter, however, knew what he was up against and learned accelerated speed to read his movements. After some spectacular back-and-forth blows and awesome animation, Hit used his last card to lock Jiren in a temporary prison. However, even that was not enough to stop him, and the mighty warrior erased the murderer from the map to start meditating again.
3- GOKU VS BERGAMO (EPISODE 81)
Although the Tournament of Power has attracted attention in recent months, the truth is that to get to this moment, it was necessary to achieve a previous show of power. Goku’s Proposal realizing a large-scale competition between all the universes had convinced the Zeno Sama, but they wanted to see a glimpse of what the warriors were capable of first. This is how the start of a small tournament between three warriors from universe 7 and three warriors from universe 9. The latter, moreover, would come to play a more important role during these episodes than during the official competition, where they would be eliminated at the first opportunity.
In these matches, we got to see Gohan fight seriously for the first time in “Dragon Ball Super”Vegeta to meet who would be his future apprentice, and Buu to show regaining notoriety he hadn’t had since the end of the Z Saga. However, what received the most praise was the spectacular fight between Goku and Bergamo, one of the members of the Danger Trio. In an unexpected situation, the warrior of Universe 9 requests that if he wins, the rule of the sublimation of universes be removed by losing in the Tournament of Power. In this way Goku becomes the villain responsible for what will be the mass death of entire galaxies.
2- GOKU VS KEFLA (EPISODIO 116)
How many would have thrown their hands in their heads years ago if someone had told them that “Dragon Ball” there would be Super Saiyan women and they would be much more powerful than many warriors. The introduction of Kale and Choufla was one of the major successes of “Dragon Ball Super”, and the writers were able to take advantage of it in a remarkable way. And it is that in an unexpected turn of events, the two fighters after gradually increasing their power in the face of a still recovering Goku, they merged giving birth to the almighty Kefla.
This fight stands out as much for the quality of the animation, as for the suspense and the rhythm. The series can boast of having known great moments in the past, but the fight between Kefla and Goku It’s one of the most tense in memory because of what was at stake. So much so that the universe 7 warrior didn’t let the audience breathe and transformed again for the second time in Ultra Instinct. On this occasion, the handling of the formidable power is more precise, and this allows us to feast on some spectacular movements and a breathtaking finish that has been reproduced hundreds of times on the networks. He Kamehameha Goku’s antenna in Ultra Instinct a memorable shot for an unbeatable episode.
1- GOKU AGAINST JIREN (EPISODIO 110)
Like football finals, carillons or Christmas speeches, “Dragon Ball Super” It brought together thousands of people around the world with its long-awaited showdown between Goku and Jiren. The Tournament of Power sold out with this fight dominating both the opening, like all the conversations between the most followers of the series. We knew we were going to see something magical, but not that those responsible had it up their sleeve which is definitely the most epic transformation in the entire Toriyama franchise. Much has been written about the Migatte not Gokuioh Ultra Instinctand there are still more mysteries than certainties around him, but there is no doubting the feeling he generates when he appears on screen.
Goku lost control after exhausting his energy with the Genki Damaand began a sight and sound spectacle that is above most episodes of “Dragon Ball Z”. Although the climax was brief, its intensity brought it alongside the mythical fight between Goku and Frieza on Namek. Also, this time around, the quality of the animation far exceeded anything seen before thanks to a team of star-studded artists.
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