Following today’s fourth episode premiere, the official Super Dragon Ball Heroes website announced a title and summary for the upcoming fifth episode of the Super Dragon Ball Heroes promotional anime‘s new “Universe Creation Arc” (under the larger umbrella of the game’s current “Big Bang Mission” update series). Similar to episode four’s original announcement, no debut streaming timeframe is listed for the upcoming fifth episode.
Epic Showdown in Hell! A New Janenba!
Son Goku: Xeno and Vegeta: Xeno face off against Janenba, who was reborn by the hand of Dr. W. As they are forced into a tough fight against Janenba, who is saturated with the power of Super Saiyan 4, Goku appears from across dimensions, having been engaged in other activities in pursuit of Fu & co. But when Janenba is blown away by the fists of the two Gokus, two shadows plunge down from the sky accompanied by a gust of wind…!!
The self-described “promotional anime” began its free online streaming in July 2018, with the initial six episodes covering the “Prison Planet” arc, then moving on to the “Universal Conflict” arc. Back in March, the series re-branded again for the new “Universe Creation Arc” alongside the arcade game’s own update to the “Big Bang Mission” series. Though the promotional anime series’ original trailer was available worldwide, the subsequent episode postings themselves have been region-locked to Japan. No home release of the promotional anime has been announced.
Super Dragon Ball Heroes is itself an update and hardware revision to the original Dragon Ball Heroes, a card-based arcade game in which players arrange teammates on a playing field for turn-based battles. Dragon Ball Heroes has seen a variety of multimedia spin-offs and support pieces. Yoshitaka Nagayama’s Super Dragon Ball Heroes: Big Bang Mission!!! manga (a follow-up to the previous Dark Demon Realm Mission! and Universe Mission!! series) currently runs in Shueisha’s bimonthly Saikyō Jump magazine, while Toyotarō’s Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission ran from 2012-2015 in Shueisha’s monthly V-Jump magazine. Three portable game adaptations — Dragon Ball Heroes: Ultimate Mission, Ultimate Mission 2, and Ultimate Mission X — were released on the Nintendo 3DS. A fourth home version, Super Dragon Ball Heroes: World Mission, launched on the Nintendo Switch and PC on 04 April 2019 and internationally (a first for the series) 05 April 2019.
FUNimation has announced that their upcoming online convention, FunimationCon 2020, will feature a pre-recorded interview with Masako Nozawa:
Toei Animation Presents Dragon Ball Super Interview Featuring Voice Actress Masako Nozawa
Toei Animation presents an exclusive English-language interview with Nozawa-san, the Japanese voice actress for Dragon Ball’s protagonist Goku. Don’t miss this special opportunity to hear from her as she answers questions about her career and what it’s like to voice many of the most iconic roles in the world. The discussion is recorded from Japan with English subtitles.
Amidst the current COVID-19 pandemic, FunimationCon 2020 is one of many ongoing attempts to take anime conventions online; the convention runs this weekend from July 3rd to 4th with free registration.
Each month, Toyotarō provides a drawing of a Dragon Ball character — as well as an accompanying comment — on the official Japanese Dragon Ball website. Following up on the wealth of characters already drawn, for his June 2020 entry, Toyotarō has contributed a new image of the Mermaid from early on in Son Goku’s training under the Turtle Hermit:
Mermaid
My editor told me that I should draw a mermaid since they’re popular, but when I drew her as I pleased, she ended up not resembling the original all that much. Let’s just call this one a doodle. Please forgive me.
The mermaid appears just a single time in chapter 25 of the original manga; with his own turtle (“Umigame”) away, the Turtle Hermit (“Kame-sen’nin”) tries to get Son Goku to bring him a “pichi-pichi” girl, and after a bungled first attempt, Goku brings a mermaid back next. Though she appeared just this single time, the official website’s write-up for Toyotarō’s drawing notes how she is still a popular character and continues to receive merchandise.
This drawing and comment set has been added to the respective page in our “Translations” archive.
Shueisha has listed an 04 August 2020 release date for the thirteenth collected volume of Toyotarō’s Dragon Ball Super manga series, which will retail for ¥440 (+ tax) in print. The volume will pick up with the fifty-seventh chapter of the series; the twelfth collected volume saw its release in Japan back in April spanning chapters 53-56 with a two-page bonus chapter.
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ sixty-first chapter coming earlier this week in the magazine’s August 2020 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, entering its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” arc. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017. The tenth collected volume is due out this September.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set back in January.
While Dragon Ball Super‘s manga-exclusive “Galactic Patrol Prisoner Arc” is still ongoing (beginning back in chapter 42 in the January 2019 issue of Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, and continuing today in chapter 61), the fight has been brought to Earth, and the Galactic Patrol — beyond just Jaco himself, now — has seen a great deal of what Earthlings are capable of.
The Galactic Patrol has seemingly had several reports on Earth throughout the years, but did you know that this pre-dates Dragon Ball Super, and even Jaco the Galactic Patrolman? Let’s go all the way back to the beginning!
Sachie-chan GOOD!!
Sachie-chan GOOD!!, originally published in the May 2008 issue of Shueisha’s Jump SQ magazine, is a one-shot manga that serves as the proper debut work in the Galactic Patrol series by Akira Toriyama and Masakazu Katsura. In the brief story, a young girl with a poop-shaped birthmark is visited by aliens who have come looking for strong martial artists; they hope to use these champions to drive away invaders, as the Galactic Patrol has not yet arrived to save them. By the end of the one-shot, the Galactic Patrol does ultimately arrive… to find that the Earthlings Sachie and Zalid have already taken out the evil Mil Gang on Planet Octo. The two humans are subsequently awarded with Galactic Patrol medals, with the added note that this is the first time Earthlings have received such an honor.
For the start of the Galactic Patrol saga, there is actually quite little mention of the Galactic Patrol themselves. The Patrol apparently knows enough about Earth to cite that none of its inhabitants have received medals before, which is at least something!
Jiya
Jiya, once again produced by Toriyama and Katsura, is the second entry in the Galactic Patrol series, originally running in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump magazine between late-2009 and early-2010. In the three-chapter series, Galactic Patrolman Jiya arrives on Earth in search of his missing colleague Stece and with a burning desire to get to the bottom of an apparent cover-up… but quickly finds himself fighting against alien interloper Vampa and his army of giant fleas.
A significantly larger amount of Galactic Patrol lore is dropped here in Jiya, including the existence of the Galactic King, as well as our main subject of discussion: a formal Galactic Patrol report on Earth.
A giant asteroid is currently en route to the Planet Earth, and will impact in one year’s time. One hundred days ago, Galactic Patrolman Stece was sent to investigate, but his report back to the Galactic Patrol stated that everything from the environment to humanity themselves were not worth saving; Stece’s communication cut off after that point.
Determined to learn the truth for himself, the titular Jiya arrives on Earth and is surprised to see beautiful, flowing water and other natural resources, which runs contrary to Stece’s report. Furthermore, what Jiya observes is actually in line with “old documents” that he has been privy to. (Said documents also happen to state that Earthlings are split into “male” and “female”, and that the breasts of the “females” expand as they age…)
Following the defeat of Stece, Jiya vows to properly report back to the Galactic King that the Earth and its inhabitants are, in fact, worth saving.
Jaco the Galactic Patrolman
Akira Toriyama himself redefined the Galactic Patrol in 2013 with Jaco the Galactic Patrolman, running that year in Weekly Shōnen Jump as a prequel series to Dragon Ball.
(Quick note: some of this information will be a little bit “out of order” from its original serialization, as the “Dragon Ball Minus” bonus chapter from 2014’s collected edition of the series actually takes place before the standard chapters.)
A projectile from Planet Vegeta has launched in the direction of Planet Earth, so the Galactic King calls for Galactic Patrolman Jaco Tilimentempibosshi to head there and intervene, as it is a planet ruled by a weak and immature race. They believe the Saiyans have sent a child, which should be enough for a klutz highly-skilled member of the Galactic Patrol such as Jaco to handle. Jaco has also checked the data on Earth himself, which says it is home to sinister people. The Galactic King grants Jaco permission to exterminate them with an extinction bomb pending his own official investigation (after all, it would be better to save the planet’s environment and resources by destroying the human race, rather than having it all be wiped out in a battle between Earthlings and the alien threat).
When Jaco arrives on Earth, he encounters a bitter old man named Ōmori Tokunoshin, and initially determines that humans are indeed worthless creatures not worth saving.
After getting to know Ōmori and befriending a young lady named Tights, Jaco comes around on humanity, decides not to use his extinction bomb, and instead decides save them from the invading Saiyan child; even if it is an immature race, there are some good Earthlings, too!
Due to a distraction with Tights, Jaco misses the space pod’s arrival… ironically enough saving the planet by not taking out the invader, a young Saiyan child named “Kakarrot”.
Dragon Ball Super
In Dragon Ball Super chapter 52, the Macareni Gang make their way to Earth in search of more blue aurum. After initially escaping Piccolo with some sweet-talking, the gang send word back to Moro and his forces about Planet Earth. Though they are captured once more, the secret is out, and a battle is inevitable. Moro demands that stronger henchmen are sent to investigate, and he may just come devour the planet himself.
The following chapter sees the henchmen group of Seven-Three, Yunba, and Shimorekka receive the mission to investigate Earth. Seven-Three identifies it as “Planet-4032 Green-877”, the third planet from its star in the outskirts of the northern galaxy; incidentally, this is the same descriptor given to the planet by Whis when discovered the few remaining Saiyans on Earth in the 2013 theatrical film Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods). According to the data Seven-Three has, which is admittedly old and from before they were captured by the Galactic Patrol, it is a planet still in the developmental stage and of little value.
As of Dragon Ball Super chapter 56, a large-scale Galactic Patrol force is on Earth and engaged with Moro’s forces alongside Earth’s own heroes; there should be little confusion on the state of Planet Earth, at this point!
Reconciling the Report(s)
Prior to the reveal of Merusu’s true identity in Dragon Ball Super chapter 55, many fans wondered why it is that Merusu has never shown up to protect Earth from its various villains and invasions. It is simply the case that Earth is in one of three sectors under Jaco’s jurisdiction, not Merusu’s; as the number-one super-elite at the Galactic Patrol, he is responsible for and busy with 104 of his own sectors! Furthermore, according to everything the Galactic Patrol seemingly has on file, Earth is not a particularly important planet worthy of any special attention.
(Indeed, Merusu did come to Earth to help under the guise of a Galactic Patrolman… when it finally affected the universe as a whole! As of this article’s publication, it also remains to be seen that Merusu may do in the near future…)
In many ways, Stece’s falsified report on Earth lines up exactly with what the Galactic King says to Jaco in “Dragon Ball Minus”: humans are probably not worth saving, but go ahead and investigate for yourself. Furthermore, this also lines up with what Seven-Three knows about Earth in Dragon Ball Super, even going so far as to specifically note that it is an older report from before they were arrested by the Galactic Patrol, and may be out of date. Seven-Three’s intel may literally be Stece’s falsified report back to the Galactic Patrol.
While Stece’s report itself can line up with the later admittedly-“wrong” information, two key points get in the way of everything fitting together:
Perhaps Jiya simply did not arrive back at Galactic Patrol headquarters to inform the Galactic King of the truth on Earth before Jaco is sent to investigate. Jaco states that his spaceship can make two round-trips between Earth and headquarters on a full charge; independent of the length of the trip back, perhaps Jiya’s ship is also low and needs to refuel somewhere. Perhaps Jiya never made it back. There have indeed been openings in the Galactic Patrol force; when Jaco applied, the Galactic Patrol was recruiting five new members, and nine applied in total. Was one of these openings a replacement for Jiya, in addition to Stece?
That said, one would naturally assume that the Galactic Patrol report on Earth would be significantly updated following at least the events of Jaco the Galactic Patrolman (if not also the Resurrection ‘F’ arc and Universe 6 vs. 7 Tournament, the latter-most of which even the Galactic King himself attended!). And yet, if Jaco’s reaction to the Namekian race being saved is even remotely representative of other Galactic Patrol intel, it seems that it does indeed take years upon years for their formal documentation to catch up with reality!
The “asteroid” versus “space pod” distinction is another difference that can not be truly reconciled, however; it seems strange that the Galactic Patrol’s advanced technology would not be able to tell the difference between a giant asteroid and a small space pod holding a single baby.
The simple truth of the matter is that Jaco the Galactic Patrolman effectively serves as a soft reboot for the entire Galactic Patrol saga, and the previous story bits just do not happen in the same way in Dragon Ball‘s continuity as they did in their original works, if at all. That being said, Seven-Three’s old intel is a clear nod to at least the information on Earth seen in “Dragon Ball Minus”, if not also stretching back to Jiya itself. While it is currently impossible to know which specific story beats and minor character chatter come directly from Toyotarō or Toriyama, sprinkling little lore touches like these are one of Toyotarō’s defining traits, and are reminiscent of his penchant for dropping various cameo appearances all throughout Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission (which literally kicks off its debut chapter with a Dub & Peter 1 cameo).
Need More Galactic Patrol?!
Continuing onward from previous chapters, Shueisha and Viz have added the official English translation of the Dragon Ball Super manga’s sixty-first chapter to their respective Manga Plus and Shonen Jump services, moving further into the original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner arc”. Alongside other initiatives including free chapters and a larger archive for paid subscribers, this release continues the companies’ schedule of not simply simultaneously publishing the series’ chapter alongside its Japanese debut to the release date, but to its local time in Japan in today’s August 2020 issue of Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine in Japan.
Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine is traditionally released on the 21st of each month, barring a Sunday or holiday, in which case its release is moved up to the next appropriate day. With Sunday being the 21st and Saturday being …
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ sixty-first chapter coming today in the magazine’s August 2020 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, entering its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” arc. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017. The tenth collected volume is due out this September.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set back in January.
The latest addition to our “Press Archive” is a fun blast-from-the-past: a TV Guide article from October 1996 previewing the syndication broadcast debut of the Dragon Ball Z English dub from FUNimation. While the article itself is not particularly notable in and of itself, it was subject to a pretty fun (in retrospect, anyway!) discussion thread on the alt.fan.dragonball newsgroup, and was later also archived on the website DBZ Uncensored in what was very much a precursor to our own full “Press Archive”.
Special thanks to Joe for this entry!
Viz’s tenth collected volume of the Dragon Ball Super manga will be released 01 September 2020, covering chapters 41-44 a la its Japanese counterpart:
The Tournament of Power is over and Goku and Vegeta have embarked on a new adventure…in space! The Galactic Patrol experiences its worst prison break ever, and the evil Moro—a planet-eating monster—escapes! Moro’s goal is attaining the Dragon Balls of New Namek, and it’s up to Goku, Vegeta and the Galactic Patrol to stop him! But what can they do when Moro can drain them of their energy just by being near them?
The eleventh collected volume will follow later this year on 01 December 2020, covering chapters 45-48 a la its Japanese counterpart:
Moro’s final wish with the Namekian Dragon Balls causes a mass prison break at the Galactic Prison! Goku, Vegeta and the Galactic Patrol are forced to retreat, and in the face of their defeat, both Saiyans realize they need to become much stronger if they are ever going to take down Moro and his cronies. Goku and Vegeta go their separate ways for training while Moro’s goons set their sights on planet Earth!
Print editions retail for $9.99 MSRP. Digital editions of each will also be available at various retailers, including Amazon, Comixology, and direct from Viz.
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ sixtieth chapter coming this month in the magazine’s July 2020 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, entering its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” arc. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set back in January.
Each month, Toyotarō provides a drawing of a Dragon Ball character — as well as an accompanying comment — on the official Japanese Dragon Ball website. Following up on the wealth of characters already drawn, for his May 2020 entry, Toyotarō has contributed a new image of Ikose and Idasa:
Ikose & Idasa
The brothers who fought against Trunks and Goten at the 25th Tenka’ichi Budōkai. At any rate, I like their names.
Trunks (age 8) takes on Idasa (age 15), while Son Goten (age 7) takes on Ikose (age 14), in the Youth Division of the 25th Tenka’ichi Budōkai, each handily beating their significantly-older and brattier opponents. Idasa takes his name from dasai, meaning unfashionable or unhip, while Ikose takes his name from sekoi, meaning petty or mean-spirited.
This drawing and comment set has been added to the respective page in our “Translations” archive.
The word “lost” gets thrown around more often than it probably should, but when a VHS tape sells for over $500, something special is going on.
In 1994, the same year that they became a company, FUNimation produced an English dub of the first Dragon Ball theatrical film, titled “Curse of the Blood Rubies”. Perhaps you have seen their 2011 re-release with the Texas voice cast. Perhaps you have seen their 1995 release with the Canadian voice cast.
It is unlikely that you have seen the original 1994 version.
