Did I mention that really don’t like Moro’s new design. I read someone complaining about him a while back, saying that as he got younger, he got less interesting looking. Well, none of us were expecting him to absorb Seven Three and turn into yet one more major Dragon Ball antagonist who looks like Perfect Cell, but we should all honestly be slapping ourselves on the forehead about that at this point.
The chapter begins with Vegeta rightfully pissed off, maybe even more so than the fanbase that watched him get another victory snatched from right underneath his nose. I knew it was going to happen, but that doesn’t make it any less annoying. The new problem is now Moro know’s the Prince’s game, he’s not going to fall for it a second time. And if Vegeta can’t land hits on the goatman, he’s not going to be able to defeat him the same way he did the first time.
And just to cover their bases, there’s not going to be any time wasting shenanigans up for grabs either, as Moro states that the power is his own. So no Seven Three time limit in his new form. Speaking of Seven Three, Moro grabs Vegeta’s neck and absorbs his power. So that means Fusion is a no-go either, seeing as his fission powers are now Moro’s too. And if Vegeta’s beatdown wasn’t painful enough to watch, he gets a Big Bang attack to the face as destructive finish.
Vegeta used to be a real bastard, so seeing his ego come crashing down around him was always kind of fun, even if it meant the end of the world. These days though, it’s not fun. Moro is not an especially fun villain in terms of his attitude, he’s no Cell. And seeing Vegeta getting blasted here is like seeing a puppy with a widow’s peak getting kicked around. Even Moro disses the Big Bang Attack, “Such a grandiose name for such an ordinary Ki Blast.”
Damn Moro. I mean, he’s not wrong, but going and saying it out loud like that is just an unnecessary dunk on an already defeated Vegeta. Something I’m sure Dragon Ball Youtubers are going to be very upset about.
In a final, desperate assault on Moro we see a triple team attack from GoGoIccolo. Piccolo grabbing Moro by the legs, Gohan using Galactic Donuts to restrain him and Goku using an Instant Transmission Kamehameha at point blank range. It’s a cool looking tactic, but on that proves ultimately fruitless. Moro, at this point, has truly become a DeviantArt OC, having pretty much every power of every other character at this point. Including Piccolo’s regeneration (*coughCelldiditcough*), which he uses to put his entire arm through Goku’s chest.
Honestly this is the most shocking action of the chapter. Both in terms of the violence of the act, and how casually Moro essentially kills Goku. Goku isn’t exactly dead yet, but he’s on death’s door. Super, for the most part, has been pretty kid friendly in its violence throughout the anime. But in this chapter especially, there have been some particularly gruesome visuals that have taken me aback, between this one and Saganbo’s self destruction a few chapters back. Seeing the entire Dragon Team rolled up and tossed aside by Moro is pretty jarring.
And it leaves us in a situation about as dire as I things can get, with the only person left standing to stand up to Moro being Jaco. Using one more of his numerous powers at this point, Moro “hears” Dende’s telepathy and puts a shield up around the battle, both to prevent anyone from escaping and stopping anyone from interfering and helping any of the defeated combatants.
Well, almost anyone.
As all seems lost, a robed figure opens a hole in the shield, allowing Dende inside. While Jaco does the only thing he can do and shoots his laser at Moro. But as Moro goes to laugh the blast off, a second shot hurtles towards him, one he feels the need to actually block. The source of that blast is, of course our Galactic Patrolman/Angel in Training; Agent Meerus.
At this point I’d like to take this opportunity to loudly pronounce: Fuckin’ Called it!
I wish I could be super pleased that I almost beat for beat predicted the course of this arc back in February. But let’s be real, I’m a dumbass, and if the story is so predictable that even I could guess it almost perfectly all that time ago, then it’s not an especially great story in my opinion. There is so much opportunity in this arc for the franchise to majorly change things up, turning Buu back into a Supreme Kai permanently for example, or allowing Vegeta to have a new array of moves all unique to him.
But I get the creeping feeling that after this arc is all done, we’re going to get a return to a form of status quo, with the only real change of consequence being that Goku can kind of activate a form of Ultra Instinct at will now, for all the good it does him. As much as I am an easy Dragon Ball mark, I’m kind of feeling a little deflated with how predictably things are tying up in this arc. I honestly can’t think of anything major that could happen that would work to shock me and get me pumped again.
I’m also undecided on Moro, his no-nonsense approach to getting towards his goals makes him an intimidating and difficult to stop villain. But it also makes him a little uninteresting in terms of personality. I kind of feel like it’s a situation where I wouldn’t be happy with him either way. His power set and initial design was super interesting, but the more traditional Dragon Ball aspects that have overtaken him in these final chapters have made him worse rather than better. I don’t know, I think I might write a more in depth character study of him when the arc is over.
A Richard Wood Text Adventure 