I really did feel like this story arc was coming to an end with the second battle between the Saiyans and Moro, but low and behold I was wrong and it seems like we’re getting the universe 7 road trip that I was hoping for from the very start. Goku and Vegeta prepare for their next confrontation with the goat man and Earth finally becomes a target.
This episode deals with everyone’s work to become stronger all through very different means. Which all feels indicative of their characters. Moro continues to consume planets, while his new prisoner army loots the planets for all their worth. Vegeta is on his way to planet Yardrat to learn some trickier fighting techniques, an act he finds distasteful but necessary in order to fight an opponent like Moro.
And Goku doing what Goku does best and trans to get better at punching things, with his newly training partner of Meerus. Now this is the part of the article were I become derailed and start talking about what I really wanted to talk about; the inherent problem with building on a franchise as old and as storied as Dragon Ball is.
As stakes increase along with the scale of the threat, I can’t help but question the logical plot holes that come to light as a result of it. It’s no real fault of Toriyama or Toyotaro, they want to tell a story and doing so within the restraints of the world they’ve already created can become a detriment if you strongly adhere to the lore bible you have already established.
Now, I have no problem with Meerus. He’s a necessary character that exists to help Goku get stronger, but seeing him spar with Goku, and still seem to toy with him at Super Saiyan 3, I can’t help but wonder: Where the hell was this guy when King Cold and Freeza were subjugating the universe.
Most people ask what he was doing during the Buu saga, but let’s be real, that arc took place within the space of a couple of days, and mostly on a backwater planet. It’s the kind of thing a throw-away line could solve really. Goku could comment about the Freeza arc and Jaco could make a joking line about diplomatic immunity. Boom, you get your joke and a justification for the galactic patrol not doing anything about the Cold/Freeza force.
The second big logical plot hole is: where the hell is Beerus. When this was just on Namek, it could be argued that Beerus didn’t care enough to intervene, especially considering Goku and Vegeta were already there dealing with it. Now though, Moro is roaming the universe, unrestrained, draining planet after planet. There is no way Whis would not notice this and Beerus would not take exception to it. He’s not that lazy.
The only explanation I can think of for this one is that the Omni-Kings and Grand Priest summoned the destroyers and angels to their realm and left them indisposed for some period of time, so they’re blissfully unaware of the chaos running rampant within their universe.
I’m not going to get mad about any of this. Firstly because there is still time for these plot holes to be explained in upcoming chapters. And I feel Toyotaro is much better at keeping things together and logical than Toriyama ever was, given his handling of the Goku Black and Tornament of Power arcs in the manga.
Also, like I mentioned before. Telling a story in a world with so many crossed threads and previous storylines, it’s almost like tieing your hands behind your back at the same time. If some logical leaps of faith need to be made in order for them to tell the story they need to tell, I’m okay with it. Dragon Ball is an inherently goofy enough series that I can’t take it too seriously anyway.
When this arc is all done and wrapped up through, I probably will still be disappointed that if they don’t explain away these problems with a single one liner from the characters concerned.
A Richard Wood Text Adventure 