Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Review: A nostalgic throwback to the classic anime

This review by Dragon Ball Super: Superhero originally ran in conjunction with the film’s release in Japan. It was updated and re-released for North American theatrical release.

The second was originally scheduled to appear in Japan in April Dragon Ball great movie, subtitled Superhero, was pushed back to June 11 after Toei Animation became a target of a ransomware attack. But if there’s a silver lining to what must have been a nightmare for the production company, it’s the fact that the new release date has put the film right around the corner fathers day. That made superhero Feel a little more special as the film celebrates one of the most beloved father figures not just in the Dragon Ball verse but in the entire anime: the alien snail warrior Piccolo.

That’s actually surprising superheroThe release of wasn’t planned for Father’s Day all along, as the film not only focuses on fatherhood, but seems to be made specifically for parents who have been too busy to keep up with Dragon Ball past the 1990s GT Series. That’s the great thing about it Dragonball Super: Superhero — It needs zero Knowledge of the 2015 revival series Great. It’s a 99-minute nostalgic throwback to the original dragon ball and Dragon Ball Z anime Even people who have never watched a Dragon Ball show only need to know this to enjoy the movie: There are alien warriors who are sometimes in search of magic orbs that grant wishes. They scream a lot when they fight. They sometimes change color as they get stronger. That’s basically it.

Directed by Tetsuro Kodama (who also worked on the first one Dragon Ball great Movie, Broly), the new film takes place sometime after Cereal Saga in which great Series manga. superhero takes note of the events of Dragon Ball great about a few scenes with Goku, Vegeta, Beerus, Whis and Broly. But their appearances are little more than obligatory guest appearances. They bear absolutely no relation to the main plot, which focuses on Piccolo and his (effectively) adopted son Gohan taking on a giant blast from the past: the Red Ribbon Army.

Allegedly defeated by Gohan’s biological father, Goku, in the 1980s, the evil organization made a comeback DBZ, when escaped Red Ribbon Army scientist Dr. Gero unleashed a series of Android creations into the world. in the Superhero, the RRA has risen from the ashes and recruited Gero’s brilliant grandson Hedo (btw both names mean “vomit”) to help them conquer the world.

There’s more to the storyline, including the surprise return of a familiar villain in an unknown form, plus a whole new chapter in Piccolo’s characterization that we hope will continue into the sequel Dragon Ball great

Series and future films. But on the whole, the stakes feel here unbelievable low compared to DBS, the gods of destruction, characters merged with the earth, and entire universes wiped from existence. On the other hand in Superhero, dr Hedo is shocked by the mere fact that aliens exist. His concern seems so odd. But this reduced scope is actually one of the film’s greatest strengths.

think of Dragon Ball Super: Superhero as a breath film. It’s a break from massive storylines with all of reality at stake and a chance to sit back, relax and enjoy some Dragon Ball nostalgia. The only disruption in this dynamic is superhero‘s Use of 3D animation, a first for a dragon ball Movie. The style gives the film an unusual look reminiscent of a Nintendo Switch game. But it’s a small price to pay for the story that gets audiences back.

superherois the undisputed star is Piccolo, long hailed by Dragon Ball fans as one of the best anime dads of all time. He is the one who sacrificed his life to protect Gohan in the past. (He got better.) He was the one who worried the most about Gohan’s safety during the Cell Games saga. And he’s the one who worked with Gohan during the Universe Survival Saga while Goku was doing his own thing.

Yes, Piccolo’s love for Gohan was often of the “hard” kind, especially when they first started training together. But in a world full of beings who can blow up entire planets, Piccolo did his best to prepare the boy for life’s challenges, which is more than the absent Goku ever did. These themes continue in Dragon Ball Super: Superhero, where Piccolo still cares for the adult Gohan and even acts as a mentor to Gohan’s daughter Pan. The piccolo and pan scenes are incredibly cute, but the Gohan-Piccolo relationship is still the true heart of the film.

Two scenes in it superhero perfectly illustrate their relationship. In the first, Piccolo devises a simple strategy to increase Gohan’s power level and demonstrates a keen understanding of how his stepchild’s mind works. The second comes near the end when Gohan must make a choice that could honor either Goku or Piccolo. Of course, he chooses the latter because he’s smart enough to know the difference between a dad and a father, which is what Piccolo is at its core. For that reason, Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama does the smart thing with the script here, showing Piccolo’s non-warrior side as he lives and interacts with his found family on his days off.

But this is still a Dragon Ball story, so it’s not just nostalgic throwbacks and lessons in superhero parenting. The film has no shortage of humor, mid-air combat and bursts of energy against a backdrop of sprawling locations. On paper, the settings and combat here shouldn’t compare to the galaxy-sized canvas of Dragon Ball great. But Kodama uses every animation trick in the book to make a building, for example, seem like one of the greatest things in the whole Dragon Ball franchise. Appropriately for a film with a double use of “super” in the title, everything looks and feels in this DB film feels oversized. It’s incredibly fun to watch on the big screen.

Dragon Ball Super: Superhero is now rolling out in cinemas worldwide and will open in United States on 19.8.