The “Dragon Ball” anime finally returns after six long years and graces the fans with astounding animations and shocking revelations.
Released last Friday, “Dragon Ball DAIMA” is the newest addition to the “Dragon Ball” series and the last work of its original creator, Akira Toriyama, before his passing earlier this year.
“DAIMA” seems to take place in a different timeline from “Dragon Ball: Super” and the older series “Dragon Ball: GT.”
The story picks up after the final saga of “Dragon Ball Z,” known as the “Buu saga,” with the same cast of characters from the previous series.
After a brief recap of the “Dragon Ball” series through “Dragon Ball Z,” the audience is treated to iconic parts of the “Buu” saga animated in an astoundingly beautiful, new style reminiscent of the Shintani animation style used in the “Dragon Ball Super: Broly” movie.
Later in the episode, the main antagonists of the series are introduced as well as some critical pieces of lore that provide interesting insight into one of the most well-known species in the “Dragon Ball” series.
The new characters are Gomah, the demon king of the demon realm, Degesu and Dr. Arinsu, the older brother and sister of Shin who is the guardian of universe seven, and Glorio, a demon who will accompany Son Goku throughout the series.
Further into the episode, we learn that the demon realm has its own set of Dragon Balls and, shockingly, Namekians are originally from the Demon Realm.
Namekians were originally thought to be an alien species from planet Namek, however, the first episode of DAIMA confirmed they were originally demons by the existence of Neva, a Namekian that still resides in the demon realm after thousands of years.
Neva also seems to have the ability to override the cooldown time set on the Dragon Balls which is a safeguard to prevent their overuse.
The dragon balls are seven mystical orbs that have the ability, at this point in time, to grant three wishes, however, they scatter to the furthest parts of the planet after being used.
The series has only begun and it presents many more questions about the “Dragon Ball” universe than ever before. As the episodes continue to release, it will be intriguing to watch the story unfold.
“Dragon Ball: DAIMA” can be watched on Crunchyroll, Hulu and Netflix and will be available globally on Oct. 18. Currently, the show can only be watched with Japanese audio, and English audio will be available in theaters Nov. 10 through Nov. 12.
