The newest Dragon Ball anime, Dragon Ball Super: Beerus, set out to correct some of the franchise's biggest mistakes that nearly ruined one of the anime medium's most anticipated returns. After only two episodes, the latest adaptation has already proved to be more than a colorful remaster with new footage and highly improved visuals that have changed one of Goku's worst fights into something special; something that franchise fans should not miss.
Dragonball Evolution is the infamous live-action movie that was so poorly received that it inspired Akira Toriyama to come out of retirement to help create Dragon Ball Super. The revival began with the introduction of Beerus, the God of Destruction, in the Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods movie. Two years later, Dragon Ball Super became the first new anime for the franchise in nearly 20 years, but Toei Animation unfortunately dropped the ball with the production of the highly anticipated series.
Much like the recent fiasco that was One-Punch Man anime's third season, the first few arcs of the Dragon Ball Super anime suffered greatly from a shocking lack of planning and production time. Fans who had waited years to see more adventures of Goku and Vegeta were faced with episodes filled with horrific pacing and visuals that did not live up to the legendary series' reputation. The new series seeks to right those wrongs, and it's taken little time to prove that it will do just that.
Episode 5 of the original Dragon Ball Super anime was a low point in the franchise because an extreme time crunch left very little time for an even smaller team of animators to do a lot. Why Toei did not prioritize and plan the beginning of the Dragon Ball Super anime's production remains a mystery. The episode features the first sparring match between Goku and Beerus on King Kai's planet, and because the team had so little time to create the episode, its production had no choice but to cut corners with its choreography and animation details.
The anime's version of Goku's first battle against the God of Destruction was not the only instance of poor planning affecting the quality of episodes. The Dragon Ball Super: Beerus project was created to revisit and upgrade the anime’s arcs that have become hard to watch when comparing them to the series' later arcs or other beautiful newer series like Dragon Ball Daima. And I am thrilled to announce that it's only taken two episodes to prove that it's a project well worth the effort.
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Clearly, the new series has done some considerable editing, with the original series content of episode five now taking place in Dragon Ball Super: Beerus episode two. The currently running anime project will condense more than 40 of Dragon Ball Super's first episodes into 19, and episode two has proved that they are doing a lot more than reediting and touching up previously used sequences. Moments of Goku and Beerus's sparring match that were once static shots filled with minimal detail have been replaced with entirely new sequences and revised artwork that looks far more exciting than its original inception.
There are several new moments during the battle on King Kai's planet that give the God of Destruction more cheekiness, which greatly adds to the character's introduction. His refusal to take Goku seriously remains, but added is a considerable sense of curiosity that's paired brilliantly with the hubris of an entity who's gone unchallenged for centuries. Those moments, plus several that help Goku’s Super Saiyan transformations look cooler than they have in the last decade, make Dragon Ball Super: Beerus worth a look.
There was a group of fans (including myself) who felt that remaking Dragon Ball Super's first arcs was a waste of Toei's talents and a project that potentially took energy away from the highly anticipated continuation, Dragon Ball Super: Galactic Patrol arc. But this is an instance that I am happy to admit I was wrong because if the rest of the Dragon Ball Super: Beerus series continues to improve on the franchise’s most lacking anime arcs, it will more than prove it’s worth it; it will become the best way to enjoy this section of Goku’s story.
