The Dragon Ball Super manga began serialization in June 2015, starting off by adapting the Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods movie before moving on to some original storylines. Over a hundred chapters later, the manga has now covered several story arcs and introduced dozens of now classic characters, along with some incredible new power-ups for Goku and friends.
Of course, not every story arc of Dragon Ball Super is created equal, and some are much more well-regarded by fans than others. There are many reasons why that’s the case; sometimes a story arc introduced a popular new character, or featured some incredible fights, while other arcs may have had an overly convoluted plot or an unsatisfying resolution. With all these things taken into account, here are the top arcs in Dragon Ball Super‘s manga.
7 God of Destruction Beerus Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 1 – 4
The Beerus Saga is the first arc in Dragon Ball Super, and also its shortest. It’s an adaptation of the events of the Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods film, which see the arrival and introduction of the Dragon Ball Universe’s God of Destruction, Beerus, who happens to be the counterpart to the Supreme Kai. While this story arc introduces many important concepts that form the core of Dragon Ball Super‘s story, such as the Super Saiyan God form, the arc is simply too stripped down compared to the movie or the anime adaptation of the same story.
6 Super Hero Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 88 – 101
The Super Hero Saga, on the other hand, is the newest story arc, and similarly adapts a movie–in this case, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. The Super Hero manga adaptation expands on the story somewhat, including a small prequel arc revolving around Goten and Trunks and their own stint as superheroes Saiyaman X-1 and X-2. Several characters are shown to have grown, including Goten and Trunks, who are now teens, and Pan, who is now old enough to attend school. The arc introduces Gohan’s new Beast transformation, as well as the characters of Dr. Hedo and the android Gamma 1, who will seemingly be sticking around.
5 Universe 6 Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 5 – 13
The Universe 6 Saga is a major arc for Super, introducing the multiverse concept to Dragon Ball for the first time. The tournament between Universes 6 and 7 finally allows the manga to introduce a new Saiyan character unrelated to Goku or Vegeta for the first time in ages, Cabba, who would go on to be a significant player in future arcs. This arc is where the Super Saiyan Blue transformation makes its first appearance, a form that would go on to become Goku and Vegeta’s go-to transformation for much of Super. The arc is a bit compressed compared to the anime’s version, but it’s still a very enjoyable read with some interesting fights.
4 Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 42 – 67
This Saga is the first manga-original storyline that doesn’t appear in the Dragon Ball Super anime in any form. It follows Goku as he works with the Galactic Patrol to track down an escaped prisoner, the dark wizard Moro. The arc is noteworthy for featuring a different kind of enemy in Moro, who specializes in magical abilities rather than martial arts, and sees Goku manifest a never-before-seen power known as Susanoo for the first time. It even gives Vegeta a chance to redeem himself for his crimes against the Namekians, lending more weight to the story.
3 “Future” Trunks Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 14 – 26
The long-awaited return of Future Trunks, an incredibly popular character from Dragon Ball Z, finally occurs in this Saga, with Trunks desperately escaping to the present day in hopes of finding help against a powerful new adversary who looks exactly like Goku. Goku Black, as he’s known, is a terrifying enemy with divine power at his disposal, and his secret identity creates an interesting mystery as the team try to figure out why he looks like Goku. The arc is brought down a bit by its “deus ex machina” ending, where the god of the multiverse literally intervenes on the heroes’ behalf.
2 Granolah the Survivor Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 67 – 87
The Granolah the Survivor Saga is another manga-original storyline that has not been animated (to date). It follows the new character of Granolah, the last surviving Cerealian, as he works for the Heeters, a group of planet brokers who once worked with Frieza. Granolah has an interesting past which is entwined with that of Goku’s father Bardock, offering some canonical backstory for the ever-popular Saiyan. The arc features some incredible new abilities, such as Vegeta’s Ultra Ego, which makes use of the powers of a destroyer god, and set up a new conflict with Frieza which left fans on edge.
1 Universal Survival Saga
Dragon Ball Super chapters 27 – 42
When fans think of Dragon Ball Super, the first thing that almost always comes to mind is the Tournament of Power. Forming the climax of the anime adaptation, the Tournament of Power is an incredible battle royale between competitors from across the multiverse to see whose universe will survive, so everything is on the line.
It sees the introduction of Jiren, one of the most powerful fighters in the history of the series, as well as Universe 6’s female Saiyans Kale and Caulifla, two incredibly popular characters. It also sees Frieza forced into a temporary alliance with Goku, an interesting turn of events to be sure, and allows other characters like Android 17 to shine in ways they rarely get to. The Tournament of Power is the pinnacle of Dragon Ball Super, loaded with amazing fights, the introduction of Goku’s Ultra Instinct journey, and memorable characters and team-ups that fans will be talking about for years to come.
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Dragon Ball Super
Dragon Ball Super is a sequel to the original Dragon Ball series as well as the fan-favorite Dragon Ball Z anime. Dragon Ball Super takes place ten years after Majin Buu is defeated and follows Goku and his friends on all-new adventures. Much like its predecessors, Dragon Ball Super was praised throughout its 131 episodes.
- Release Date
- July 5, 2015
- Cast
- Sean Schemmel , Jason Douglas , Christopher Sabat
- Seasons
- 1
- Story By
- tatsuya nagamine
- Writers
- Tatsuya Nagamine
- Streaming Service(s)
- Hulu
- Franchise(s)
- Dragon Ball
- Directors
- Tatsuya Nagamine
- Showrunner
- Tatsuya Nagamine
