Contains key plot events from Dragon Ball Super: Broly
Dragon Ball Super: Broly isn’t your typicalDragon Ballstory. As much as I love the Dragon Ball franchise, many storylines can be summed up pretty simply: Earth’s protectors are minding their own business, a bad guy shows up, the bad guy is too strong, the heroes get stronger, the bad guy gets killed, and we all clap as the credits roll. I love it, and I often feel like it’s more about the journey than the end result.
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What makes Dragon Ball Super: Broly so special is that it’s aboutboththe journey and the destination. This movie has everything you could want from a piece of Dragon Ball media. The audience is treated to magnificent action sequences, wonderful humor, an escalation of power from the heroes, and even the return of the fusion technique.
The movie begins by showing the origin of our three main Saiyans. Bardock, sensing Frieza is about to betray the Saiyans, sends Goku to Earth. Broly is sent to a savage planet as a baby because King Vegeta is jealous that the boy seems to have more latent power than Prince Vegeta. And finally, we see Vegeta off-planet when Frieza finally destroys the Saiyan home planet. Broly’s father, Paragus, finds his son and swears vengeance on King Vegeta and the prince. This all sets in motion the events of the story.
In this movie, the dragon balls are used as a reason for the villains and heroes to clash. In a bit of a twist, the dragon balls aren’t planned for anything sinister this time. Frieza simply wants to be five centimeters taller, while Bulma reveals that she was looking for the dragon balls to appear five years younger. The reasons here are perfect because they show how trivial the dragon balls have become within the scope of the show and movies.
In contrast to the original Broly movies, this version of Broly is a gentle giant raised by a cruel father. The original Broly films portrayed Broly as a monster always on the verge of fitful rage. He delights in the suffering of those around him, and isn’t out of his mind as he fights the heroes of the story. In this telling of the story, Broly is raised by a cruel father seeking revenge. Paragus even keeps a shock collar around Broly’s neck to keep the young Saiyan under his control.
When Broly makes a couple of friends on the Frieza Force, he shares a story from his youth with them. It’s a tragic story about how he knew a creature who was his only friend. Paragus wanted Broly to train, not play, so Paragus attacked the creature and removed its ear.
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From that point forward, the creature wouldn’t have anything to do with Broly. He was left to grow up friendless and under the thumb of an abusive father. Adding this kind of depth to the character keeps Broly from being a monstrous villain. Even as he loses control and begins to attack anyone around him, it’s easy to see that it’s a result of the constant pain from a difficult life.
The fights in this movie are outstanding. When Frieza, Paragus, and Broly arrive on Earth, Paragus sends his son after the Saiyan prince. Vegeta kicks off his fight with Broly by going Super Saiyan and then ascends to Super Saiyan God, a form we haven’t seen him take before. He looks absolutely striking with the red recoloring. When Goku steps in, we see a similar thing, except Goku eventually jumps up to Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan. No matter how hard Goku and Vegeta fight, Broly is able to dig deeper within his power to match them, even when they team up.
Frieza, in an effort to send Broly over the brink, kills Paragus and shows Broly his dead father. This drives Broly to ascend to his own version of Super Saiyan. Overpowered and outmatched, Goku and Vegeta retreat to Piccolo for a break. Broly, still out of control, attacks Frieza because he’s the only person around. It’s a fantastic moment that shows just how out of control Broly is. Frieza barely survives his fight with Broly.
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This is another moment where the creator takes a moment to add some levity to the story. Goku and Vegeta must perform the fusion dance to combine their strength. The two go back and forth about the silly dance, screw it up multiple times, and the whole time Frieza is getting demolished by Broly. When Goku and Vegeta finally perform the dance correctly, the new fighter introduces himself as Gogeta and things get serious once again.
When it comes time to end the movie, it looks as if things are going to go the way they usually go: Gogeta finally has Broly on the ropes and seems to be working toward the final blow. It’s a bittersweet moment for the audience, because Broly is out of control, but in his normal state, he’s a calm and gentle soul.
This is where the Dragon Balls stop being a joke and become genuinely useful. Broly’s new friends, recognizing that he’s about to be killed, wish for Broly to be sent back to his home planet. The wish is granted before Gogeta can kill Broly. Keeping Broly alive is a huge shift in the usual sequence of events, and it’s clear they want to use Broly in the future.
Broly’s friends eventually join him on his own planet, but that’s not all. Goku uses his Instant Transmission to teleport to the planet. He gives Broly a bunch of supplies and asks if Broly would be willing to train with him from time to time. Goku recognizes that he can have a friend in Broly instead of an enemy.
Goku doesn’t even blame Broly for what happened on Earth, presumably knowing that Broly was just a pawn for others to abuse. As Goku is about to leave, he tells the group his name, but say Broly can call himKakarot. It’s a small but incredible moment. We don’t often see Goku embrace his Saiyan heritage, but he does so here and it works perfectly.
This is a special movie, and it’s easily the best of all the Dragon Ball films. The mix of humor and action is perfect. Having Broly be a fully formed character instead of a two-dimensional villain works extremely well. Instead of a clear-cut victory, the story ends on a hopeful note for all parties involved. It’s a great piece of Dragon Ball media, and a fantastic film in its own right.
