Dragon Ball Superhas become quite popular in the years since its debut, despite the anime being all but finished since the conclusion of the Tournament of Power. Aside from two theatrical movies, which were released in 2018 and 2022 respectively, and the ongoing mangawhich has been on hiatus for well over a year, the series has been dormant.
Nevertheless, fans have come to adore what modernDragon Ballhas given them, warts and all—but it wasn’t always that way. Early on, long-time fans weren’t happy with the franchise’s first anime series in nearly 20 years, while newcomers were left scratching their heads wondering just what was going on.
The issue wasn’t with the story, or its new direction into divine power, but with the overall quality of the production. In fact, even the legendary creator ofDragon Ball, the late Akira Toriyama, wasn’t pleased in the slightest.
The Franchise’s Return Got Off on the Wrong Foot
Dragon Ball Superpremiered in 2015 to a lukewarm reception when fans learned that its first two arcs would be retellings of previously released movies. The first,Battle of Gods, was released in 2013, whileResurrection ‘F’was released earlier in 2015. Covering the events of movies isn’t rare in anime, asDemon Slayerdid the same withMugen Trainafter it shattered box office records.
However, dedicating nearly 30 episodes to events fans had already seen was a bit much,and was made only worse by the subpar visual quality ofDragon Ball Super’s early sections. Production on the series was famously rocky, with time crunches forcing the staff at Toei to take shortcuts with their animation work, and it showed.
Neither of the series’ first two arcs came even close to matching the quality of their film versions, and it wasn’t until much later thatDragon Ball Super’s visuals reached an acceptable, consistent level.
Fortunately,the Tournament of Powerwas given much more care than what came before it, while 2018’sDragon Ball Super: Brolyfeatured arguably the best animation work the franchise has ever seen. The subpar quality of the anime’s earlier arcs cannot be denied, however, and even Akira Toriyama wasn’t a fan of what he was seeing.
Akira Toriyama Complained to Toei About Dragon Ball Super
The Series' Creator Wasn’t Happy With How His Story Was Adapted
There’s a sort of culture of humbleness among manga artists. Very few will ever make negative comments about the harsh working conditions they’re made to endure,and next to none will ever be critical of adaptations of their work.
Toriyama himself often commented on just how hard the anime staff worked on both the originalDragon BallandDragon Ball Z, claiming to not envy them. Which makes the artist’s later comments somewhat surprising, and goes to show just how unhappy he was withDragon Ball Super.In a 2016 messagecelebrating the franchise’s 30th anniversary, Toriyama said:
“I had put Dragon Ball behind me, but seeing how much that live-action film ticked me off, and how I revised that script for the anime movie and complained about the quality of the TV anime, I suppose somewhere along the line it’s become a series I like too much to ever leave alone.”
The series' creator admitting to actually liking his work was rare enough, but his reveal that he voiced his criticisms ofDragon Ball Superis the truly surprising bit. In the past, he was open aboutallowing the anime team freedomto operate how they pleased, but it seems the quality ofDragon Ball Super’s early sections was too poor to ignore.
Dragon Ball Super Improved Drastically As Time Passed
Following Its Rough Start, Dragon Ball Super Was Able to Rebound In a Major Way
Following the completion of theResurrection ‘F’portion of the series,Dragon Ball Superintroduced its first new arc with the Universe 6 vs. Universe 7 Tournament, which still struggled to keep up quality, but had some flashy moments. The following Goku Black arc also failed to consistently deliver on its visuals, though the story and action were able to do some heavy lifting.
The final Universe Survival Saga, on the other hand, hit new highs in many of its episodes, and its climactic showdown featuring Goku, Frieza, Android #17, and Jiren is still incredibly impressive today. Akira Toriyama became more involved with the anime’s production during its follow-up films. The first of which,Dragon Ball Super: Broly,might just be the prettiestDragon Ballhas ever been.
Akira Toriyama passed away in March 2024, and though he will no longer be around to complain about the quality of anime adaptations, the recentDragon Ball Daimaproves the series is in good hands.
The more recentDragon Ball Super: Super Heromade use of 3DCGI animation, which has historically been hit or miss in anime, but worked to great effect in the 2022 movie. Akira Toriyama passed away in March 2024, and though he will no longer be around to complain about the quality of anime adaptations, the recentDragon Ball Daimaproves the series is in good hands.
The future ofDragon Ballis uncertain without its creator overseeing the franchise, but there will always be a demand for more of Goku and company, and as long as the series is profitable, it isn’t likely to go anywhere.
Dragon Ball Super
Cast
Dragon Ball Super is an anime series set after Majin Buu’s defeat. It follows Son Goku, now a radish farmer, as peace prevails until Beerus, the God of Destruction, appears. Seeking to challenge a legendary warrior, the series revisits events from two Dragon Ball Z films before exploring alternate universes.
