Dragon Ball Super: Part 3 (Box Set Review)
By: RogueSymbiote
Warning! Spoilers Ahead!
Dragon Ball Super returns and Vegeta is ready for some sweet revenge against the monster who destroyed his home planet. Vegeta intervenes just in time to save Goku's life. Frieza begins to mock the Saiyan Prince, but little does he know that Vegeta's power has grown exponentially since their previous encounter.
Story Arc
Vegeta shocks Frieza by turning Super Saiyan Blue. It is revealed by Goku that Vegeta was able to obtain this new form without the help of anyone else. The Saiyan Prince beats Frieza in spectacular fashion. As a last resort, Frieza attacks the Earth causing it to explode. Whis is able to protect the Z-fighters and informs Goku that he is going to turn back time so that the Earth may be saved. The "do over" is successful and Goku obliterates Frieza with an astounding blast. Vegeta is livid that his glorious moment of redemption has been stolen from him. His fury is calmed after hearing what truely transpired.Piccolo is resurrected with the dragon balls and is asked by Gohan to continue his training. Gohan realizes how weak he has become and knows he must train in order to protect his family. Goku and Vegeta return to Beerus' planet to train. Champa, Beerus' brother, and Vados, Whis' sister, arrive on the planet and a food competition commences. Champa is blown away by instant ramen and requests that Vados locate his universes' version of Earth. Their Earth has been destroyed and Champa proposes a tournament with a wager. If Champa's universe wins, the pair of destruction gods must switch Earth's, but if Beerus' team wins then he will receive the super dragon balls. Whis explains to Goku and Vegeta that there are 12 universes in existence and that those who add up to 13 are counterparts to one another.While Bulma works on a way to locate the final super dragon ball, Goku and Vegeta decide that Majin Buu and Piccolo will be a part of their Universe 7 team. Beerus explains that he has already decided on Monaka as the fifth member of the team and states he is the strongest warrior he has ever faced which excites Goku. Now that all has been arranged, the family and friends of the Universe 7 warriors enter Whis' hexahedron ship and head off to the tournament. Majin Buu fails the written exam and is disqualified from the tournament.
Goku's first opponent in the tournament is a giant being who is able to disperse attacks throughout his body. Goku thinks quickly and throws Botamo out of the ring. Frost steps up as the next challenger from Universe 6. This fighter bears a striking resemblance to Frieza. Goku bluntly compels Frost to skip to his final form which catches Frost off guard. Unlike Frieza, Frost has a good reputation and appears to be honorable. Goku gains the upper hand and is about to win the match when a quick jab from Frost disorients the saiyan long enough to be defeated.Frost begins his match against Piccolo and a similar method of victory is achieved. Jaco accuses Frost of cheating and the referee locates a weapon hidden in his arms. The cheater is outed as a villain who has committed horrible atrocities throughout the universe. Frost is disqualified and both Piccolo and Goku are reinstated into the tournament. Vegeta requests that Frost not be disqualified so that he can face the him. As it is still technically Piccolo's turn, Vegeta suggest that the Namekian forfeit. Piccolo obliges to Vegeta's request and the Saiyan Prince proceeds to humiliate Frost in a brutal display of power. Vegeta then faces the metal man Magetta who uses heat to limit his opponent's ability to breathe. Vegeta ultimately defeats Magetta with the mix of a powerful attack and hurtful words.The next challenger is a saiyan named Cabba. The young warrior is throughly impressed by Vegeta and requests the knowledge on how to become a super saiyan. Vegeta seems to grow angry at this request and proceeds to pound on Cabba. Cabba is about to forfeit when Vegeta warns him that quitting will result in the destruction of his home world. Upon hearing these threats, Cabba unleashes his hidden potential and transforms into a super saiyan. The surge of power allows Cabba to push back. After taking a barrage of attacks, Vegeta reveals that he lied to his fellow saiyan as a means to help him attain this new power. Vegeta then turns super saiyan blue and informs Cabba that there is so much more to strive for before defeating the young saiyan with a single punch.Hit remains as the lone fighter from Universe 6. Vegeta quickly realizes that Hit possesses incredible power and is unable to even land a punch on this mysterious warrior. Hit is revealed to utilize the time-skipping technique which essentially allows him to disappear for a microscopic moment. Vegeta is defeated and can offer no advice to Goku. Goku quickly adapts to the technique which forces Hit to increase his strength and abilities. Witnessing Hit's growing power, Goku unveils his kaioken technique while in super saiyan blue form. Goku's already astounding power compounded with kaioken x10 results in the nullification of Hit's time-skipping ability. Knowing that he will not be able to hold this form for very long, Goku unleashes the ultimate kamehameha. The results of the battle will be included in Dragon Ball Super: Part 4!
Episode Arc Review
There is a lot to love about these episodes. The finale of the Golden Frieza Arc is fantastic, but I hate the fact that Vegeta is robbed of his redemption moment against the being who killed his people and enslaved him. I just want Vegeta to finally get his moment! At least he got to pound on Frieza, that's at least something. The music during their battle however did not match the tone of the moment at all. The humor is definitely more on display in Dragon Ball Super. I loved the line from Trunks about wishing he could've faced Frieza so he could "slice him up." The Z-fighters around stare at him in shock as they recall when Future Trunks did in fact slice Frieza in half... and then into more halves... Good times!I'm not a fan of how nerfed Shenron has become. Not only is he so terrified of Beerus that he talks like a preteen trying to ask a girl out for the first time, but his supreme power seem pretty non existent at this point. Another solid reference in this arc comes from Goku explaining that Evil/Kid Buu has been resurrected. I want Uub to show up in Dragon Ball Super so badly! Sadly he is still a toddler during this time and won't be showing up unless a time jump occurs following the tournament of power arc. Is it too much to ask that Goku and Vegeta become the new gods so Gohan can finally become a main protagonist, train Uub, and stop losing all his strength by studying all the time? Seriously though, Gohan needs to stop having his character held back all the time.
The relationship between Vegeta and Cabba is one of my favorite things to come out of DBS so far. It is refreshing to see Vegeta take on the role of mentor. I hope this is something they expound on later. The battles are fantastic in this arc. Goku bringing back the kaioken technique was so nostalgic and exhilarating. I am impressed by how many well-rounded new characters have been introduced. Hit, Frost and Cabba are all fully realized characters. My major issue with this series is the inconsistency in animation. Some episodes fluctuate between high quality and subpar work. It takes me completely out of the moment when Vegeta starts looking like a character from Bob's Burgers. My other major complaint is that the box set, once again, ends just one episode before the completion of the arc! I totally understand wanting to leave things on a cliffhanger, but it's part 3... I'm hooked already. I just want arcs wrapped up in a nice bow at this point. That being said, I love this arc. It provides so many key moments from DBS that it is a must buy.
Box Set Review
Dragon Ball Super: Part 3 box art is absolutely beautiful. I'm biased because Vegeta happens to be my favorite character, but I don't care... It looks glorious! Episodes 27-39 come one 2 Blu-ray discs. They can be enjoyed in both English and Japanese. Extras include textless songs, trailers and an interview with Sean Schemmel (voice of Goku) and Jason Douglas (Voice of Beerus). The interview was filmed during the 2017 Anime Expo and provides an in depth look at characters and the world of voice acting. If you would like to pick up a copy of Dragon Ball Super: Part 3, you can do so right here! Now I just have to wait till part 4 comes out... Are we there yet???Thanks as always to Funimation for the review copy, and the extra goodies this time!
