I've been watching a lot of Baki recently (done in reverse thanks to watching the Netflix shows first and now on the OG stuff).
It got me thinking of how Beerus has been unlike any other DB character who had been established by that point in that he was always a benchmark that couldn't be overcome and constantly being able to finger flick any foe that has appeared/ Goku and Vegeta even after all their numerous power ups and arcs of growth.
This is very much like Yujiro as a benchmark for the characters in Baki, he is established as the greatest in a complete class of his own, continuously just wrecks any threat and challenge to him, Baki can't really seem to compare to him after so many different bouts of training and growth. We get characters who other people speculate are in his class - like oh there's only two people I can't beat x and Yujiro. Then when inevitably x is beaten Yujiro is just kinda like lol.
heck even their personalities can be seen to be similar, can be non chalant off doing their own thing, momentary moment of expressing their rage and power to one shot someone.
Is it possible that he could've been somewhat of an influence or thought when coming up with Beerus? or with handling Beerus' role in the story?
Is Beerus just Yujiro Hanma?
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Magnificent Ponta
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Re: Is Beerus just Yujiro Hanma?
Coincidentally, I've been reading a lot of Grappler Baki lately (near the end of Baki: Son of Ogre at the moment), to assess what influence it may (or may not) have had on Dragon Ball Super. To me, Yujiro Hanma doesn't at all give the same 'vibe' as Beerus, and their role function, while having some overlap, doesn't seem to work in a very similar way.
Beerus is an undeniably powerful benchmark, and he's dangerous and fearsome enough when riled, but he's basically a benign presence from the point of view of the heroes; even when his potential danger is in play, he's as much a figure of fun as anything, which softens his edge (and also makes him a typical Toriyama character, to that extent). I like his cartoonish light and shade; it's integral to his character and his appeal, in my opinion.
Yujiro Hanma isn't like that at all - his menace is always at the forefront; he chews every scene he's in. His power is gaudy and every effort is made to highlight his extreme threat - dozens of issues are spent just talking about how all-consuming (in more than one sense) his power is, and almost every time he's seen, he does something ridiculous to newly underscore his power. He's a totally unbalanced presence, dialled up to 11 in literally everything he does. That's his appeal too, and it's extremely memorable, but it's not like Beerus.
As for their story function, the overlap seems quite general and basic; less marked than the divergence, I think. I guess the main way in which Yujiro and Beerus are similar here is that they both 'help' in the main character's development for the promise of an enjoyable fight later, but I don't know that the overlap is strong enough to suggest influence. They're both benchmarks for the main character(s), yes, but Beerus as a goal seems kind of theoretical by comparison with Yujiro Hanma - Beerus's benchmark status is (real, but) almost irrelevant to the story or Goku's goals, at this point. Goku may not have surpassed Beerus yet, but his sights aren't set on him specifically. By contrast, as befits his all-consuming nature, Yujiro's also the all-consuming focus in his benchmark role. It's the whole point of vast swathes of the work; Baki is only what he is because of the drive to simply beat his dad. You could argue that the Baki series are as much about Yujiro as they are about Baki; I don't know you could make the same claim for Beerus and Dragon Ball Super.
Beerus is an undeniably powerful benchmark, and he's dangerous and fearsome enough when riled, but he's basically a benign presence from the point of view of the heroes; even when his potential danger is in play, he's as much a figure of fun as anything, which softens his edge (and also makes him a typical Toriyama character, to that extent). I like his cartoonish light and shade; it's integral to his character and his appeal, in my opinion.
Yujiro Hanma isn't like that at all - his menace is always at the forefront; he chews every scene he's in. His power is gaudy and every effort is made to highlight his extreme threat - dozens of issues are spent just talking about how all-consuming (in more than one sense) his power is, and almost every time he's seen, he does something ridiculous to newly underscore his power. He's a totally unbalanced presence, dialled up to 11 in literally everything he does. That's his appeal too, and it's extremely memorable, but it's not like Beerus.
As for their story function, the overlap seems quite general and basic; less marked than the divergence, I think. I guess the main way in which Yujiro and Beerus are similar here is that they both 'help' in the main character's development for the promise of an enjoyable fight later, but I don't know that the overlap is strong enough to suggest influence. They're both benchmarks for the main character(s), yes, but Beerus as a goal seems kind of theoretical by comparison with Yujiro Hanma - Beerus's benchmark status is (real, but) almost irrelevant to the story or Goku's goals, at this point. Goku may not have surpassed Beerus yet, but his sights aren't set on him specifically. By contrast, as befits his all-consuming nature, Yujiro's also the all-consuming focus in his benchmark role. It's the whole point of vast swathes of the work; Baki is only what he is because of the drive to simply beat his dad. You could argue that the Baki series are as much about Yujiro as they are about Baki; I don't know you could make the same claim for Beerus and Dragon Ball Super.
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WittyUsername
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Re: Is Beerus just Yujiro Hanma?
I guess if we’re using this comparison, another thing to point out is that when Yujiro Hanma was introduced, Doppo Orochi was able to put up a decent fight against him, but the series would later suggest that Yujiro is completely out of Doppo’s league, even without using his demon back. Meanwhile, it was stated that Beerus had to use 70% of his power to defeat Goku in BoG, but that’s apparently been quietly ignored since then.