WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, the newest Dragon Ball Super movie, revisits some of Dragon Ball Z’s oldest storylines in a film that places Gohan and Piccolo in the spotlight. Four years after Dragon Ball Super: Broly, the Dragon Ball Super franchise returns to theaters in a similar manner – a movie that fits into the Dragon Ball Super chronology but that works fine as a standalone story. Viewers do not necessarily have to be caught up with Dragon Ball Super to understand the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie, but having an understanding of where the Dragon Ball Super saga is right now sure adds to the experience.
Decades after Cell’s Tournament of Power and Gohan’s legendary Super Saiyan 2 transformation, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero sees Gohan as the main character in a way that hadn’t happened for quite a while. Gohan’s Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero story and the character’s “real world” story are interestingly similar, as Gohan was initially meant to be Goku’s successor as Dragon Ball Z’s main character. Goku’s popularity made it so that Gohan could never fulfill his original Dragon Ball Z purpose, and thus the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero plot of Gohan not achieving his full potential became a recurring theme in the Dragon Ball franchise.
While the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero villains, a new Red Ribbon organization, do not feel too threatening at the beginning, things ramp up towards the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ending. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Cell Max, a new Cell android, made Gohan’s story come full circle, this time posing a much bigger challenge than in Dragon Ball Z. With Goku and Vegeta out of the picture in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, the Dragon Super: Super Hero ending saw the fate of the Earth once again in Gohan’s shoulders. That said, the other Z warriors like Piccolo, Trunks, Goten, 18, and Krillin also had their moment at the spotting in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s final battle. Here’s a breakdown of the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ending.
Is Cell Max Stronger Than Perfect Cell?
Perhaps the biggest Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero reveal is that the Red Ribbon created a new Cell android, Cell Max, with the help of Dr. Gero’s grandson Dr. Hedo. Very much like a videogame final boss, Cell Max appears in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s ending as a giant creature whose only goal is to destroy everything around him. While it seemed like Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s villains would be the Dragon Ball Z-like androids Gamma and Gamma 2, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s real villain was Cell Max. In terms of sheer power, Cell Max is much more powerful than Perfect Cell. While Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama had already revealed that Cell Max is stronger than Perfect Cell, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s final battle makes it even clear. It only took Super Saiyan 2 Gohan to defeat Perfect Cell in Dragon Ball Z, while Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Cell Max was powerful enough to keep up with Gohan, Orange Piccolo, 18, Goten, Trunks, and Krillin. That said, Cell Max lacks the intelligence of Dragon Ball Z‘s Cell, as the former is pretty much a killing machine with no consciousness. Another difference between Cell Max and the original Cell is that Cell Max doesn’t have an absorbing tail.
Does Gamma 2 Die In Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero?
Gamma 2 dies at the end of Dragon Super: Super Hero. After starting as Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s villain, Gamma 2 realized that his creator, Dr. Hedo, was being used by Magenta and the new Red Ribbon. Gamma and Gamma 2 were both androids, and in a way, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s version of characters like 17 and 18. Realizing they have been fighting for the wrong side, Gamma and Gamma 2 decided to help the Z warriors in the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero final fight, similar to how Android 18 was redeemed in Dragon Ball Z. Unfortunately, in order to stop one of Cell Max’s attacks, Gamma 2 had to unleash all of his power. That’s how Gamma 2 dies in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
Why Goku & Vegeta Didn’t Help Fight Cell Max In Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
Early in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, it was established that Goku, Vegeta, and Broly were out training on Beerus’ planet. That’s how Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero connects with Dragon Ball Super: Broly – it shows the lost Saiyan now being friends with Goku and Vegeta. There were no communication devices with Goku and Vegeta on Beerus’ planet, meaning that anyone who wanted to contact them would have to fly there. While Beerus’ planet in Dragon Ball Super belongs in the living world, even someone like Piccolo flying at super high speed would still take some time to reach it. The Z warriors in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero did not have that much time, and therefore Goku and Vegeta were never warned about Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Cell Max. That is why Goku and Vegeta don’t show up in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s final battle.
Piccolo’s New Form “Orange Piccolo” Explained
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero gave Piccolo his very first transformation, Orange Piccolo. In Dragon Ball Z’s second main saga, the Namek Saga, it was established that the Namekian Elder could unlock a warrior’s full potential. Having remembered that, Piccolo asked Dende to do something similar. However, as Dende could not perform such a feat now that Piccolo was already too old, Piccolo had to use the Dragon Balls. Piccolo asked Shen Long to unleash his full power, which Shen Long did, but the dragon also gave Piccolo a “bonus”. The bonus Shen Long gave Piccolo in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero was Piccolo’s new form, “Orange Piccolo”. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Orange Piccolo’s transformation sees Piccolo’s body getting physically bigger and stronger, and Piccolo’s skin color changes from green to orange. Unleashed Power Piccolo was not able to defeat Gamma 2 while Orange Piccolo was able to keep up with Cell Max, a testimony to how strong Orange Piccolo is.
Gohan’s New Form “Gohan Beast” Explained
In addition to Orange Piccolo, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero also gives Gohan a new form, Gohan Beast. Up until Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s ending, Gohan’s most powerful form was Potential Unleashed, in which Gohan did not even have to enter Super Saiyan state. However, Potential Unleashed Gohan was not able to defeat Cell Max, not even with the help of the other Z warriors. In a beautiful callback to Dragon Ball Z’s Cell saga, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s ending sees Gohan channeling his rage after Piccolo’s apparent death into a new transformation – Gohan Beast. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Gohan Beast gives Gohan white, shiny hair that resembles Goku’s Perfected Ultra Instinct. Gohan Beast’s hair is also a callback to boy Gohan’s Super Saiyan 2 hair. Instead of the yellow Super Saiyan aura, Gohan Beast’s aura is white with lighting in pink magenta around it.
Is Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Gohan Beast Stronger Than Goku?
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s main theme was whether Gohan would ever achieve his true potential teased in Dragon Ball Z’s Cell saga. With the Gohan Beast transformation in the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ending, it seems like Gohan finally did it. While Gohan’s Beast form does not get too much screentime in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, it was strong enough to obliterate Cell Max. Piccolo and Gohan later mention in the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ending that they are not sure if Goku and Vegeta would have been able to defeat Cell Max, suggesting that Gohan Beast could be stronger than Goku and Vegeta. That said, it’s still too early to know how Gohan Beast compares to Dragon Ball Super’s most powerful fighters.
Did Goku Let Vegeta Win In Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Post-Credits Scene?
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s post-credits scene sees Vegeta beating Goku for the first time. The Goku vs. Vegeta Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero fight happened mostly offscreen, but Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero had previously established that Goku and Vegeta would fight without using any transformation or special technique. Vegeta beats Goku in the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero post-credits scene, followed by Goku giving curious smile. While some people can interpret Goku’s smile as if he let Vegeta win, that does not seem to be the case. Goku was most likely proud of the fight he and Vegeta had.
