Dragon Ball Daima Review: A Magical Adventure

Out now on streaming services across the world comes Dragon Ball Daima. The latest series in the long-running and much-loved Dragon Ball anime and manga series. After Goku and his friends are turned into children by the evil King Gomah he must travel with the Supreme Kai to the Demon Realm to save Dende and turn them all back to normal. However, Gomah has darker plans of his own. And so do others in his court. In a series that is filled with thrills, spills, and epic twists to the lore.

Dragon Ball Daima is a series I wanted to review from the moment it was released. It is the final project that the series’s creator Akira Toriyama worked on before his death last year. With this being the most involved with the writing of a Dragon Ball series he has been likely since Z. Yes I know he did some stuff for Super but that is beside the point. And the series is rich with his style of writing and humour. And whilst this can at times give us a fantastic story, sadly his weaknesses are also present. With that said however let’s get to the review.

Story – Get Those Dragon Balls!

So to kick off this review by dismissing a lingering point of misinformation, Dragon Ball Daima takes place a couple of years before the events of Dragon Ball Super. It doesn’t take place after or in place of it. At this particular point in the timeline, Gomah learns that Goku and his friends not only defeated King Daboura but also took down Majin Buu. Which from their point of view, is a bit of a bummer. Fearing that Goku and his friends might be heading to them next they enact a plan to keep them at bay for as long as possible. The kick-off for this is one great big misunderstanding, which leads to one big adventure.

Gomah is a fun villain, for what little we see of him in Dragon Ball Daima.

On the face of it, Dragon Ball Daima is just a tribute to the classic series. An effort to recapture the adventurous tone and spirit of it. Which it does to a point. Personally, I feel that they abandon that tone too much too soon for my liking. And whilst there is an affable silliness to some moments, there are also these fantastic moments of world-building. With moments that radically change the lore of the entire setting. But in a way that expands and develops the wider setting that this series takes place in. As opposed to undoing or re-contextualising future/past events in a way that could otherwise be problematic for some audiences.

Little Big Adventure

Whilst Dragon Ball Daima is a smaller-scale story (we aren’t dealing with universal/multiversal threats as in Super) I have to say that given just how well thought through all of this is, it makes it feel far larger. Whilst this series ultimately only takes a small look at each layer of the Demon Realm what we see feels deeper and more expansive than anything we saw in Super. There is a tangible history to this place. It has its own culture. Traditions. And whilst some are done for the sake of humour we still have a rich place. Rich in personality and possibility.

A lot of our side characters are fun, even if some are more of a punchline.

Something that has been sorely missing from the entire series for quite some time. Whilst I am in an apparent minority of people who liked the more adventure-focused episodes of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. What is here, is still fantastic, what little there is. But before too long the deeper machinations and conspiracies that some of our villains are plotting start to take centre stage. And whilst that material is done brilliantly and has a darker feel to it that is well balanced with everything else. I can’t help but feel at times that it kills off the adventure of the series rather quickly. Which wouldn’t be as bad, if it weren’t for all the sudden heel turns and twists towards the end.

Fir Auld Lang Syne

But ultimately Dragon Ball Daima feels like a tribute to Dragon Ball as a series. And takes elements from each series that has come from it, from the anime, manga, and even some of the games get some kind of a nod here in some form or another. In some places, it is just in tone. In others, it is in the action. And in some cases, it is a visual reference or character design. But all done in a way that doesn’t feel fan service-focused. Even if there are a fair few moments of that here and there. Yes, if you were expecting Super 2 or something in the shape of Z then you are going to be disappointed.

Dragon Ball Daima features recreations of moments from the Buu Saga.

Dragon Ball Daima was always going to be a hard one for me to review. The passing of Akira Toriyama does recontextualise certain elements of it. And adds an emotive weight to some moments that may otherwise have not been there. But even then, as its own series. As its own entity. It is great. It is a little rough around the edges narrativly. I think it sags in the middle. And for the sake of a couple of extra episodes, this could have been stronger. But watched as its own thing there is a warmth and love for the entire series. And in an age where writers and showrunners seem to be at war with the legacy of the series they are writing for having a series that says “Thanks for the memories and here’s to many more” I feel is wonderful.

Characters & Performances – We Got Power!

I’ll be honest with you dear reader, Dragon Ball Daima is the first time watching the series (and reviewing it) where I have watched it subtitled rather than dubbed. I know that going dub over sub may be taboo for some. But I was never a fan of the original voice work. But here I can at least say that the cast does a fine job with the material they have. It never feels as though anyone has been miscast. Or that anyone is leaving anything in the tank. Each main cast member gets more than a few moments to give them something to play with. Given that our cast is now kids, Masako Nozawa’s voice acting at least feels appropriate for Goku. Jokes aside, she does a fantastic job throughout. And her skill here is still honestly rather inspiring.

Panzie and Glorio sadly don’t contribute much to the series.

Regrettably, the weaker point within this review category is the new characters that Dragon Ball Daima adds. Whilst Arensu, Gomah, and a couple of others (who can’t be named for spoilers) are largely well realised and decently developed. Panzie and Glorio are desperately lacking character development. This would have been less of an issue had they not been such key characters earlier on. It isn’t too far into the story where they go from being important allies and comrades of Goku and Shin and just becoming bystanders. And they become like too many cast members in this series, just cheerleaders for Goku and the others.

Pacing & Cinematography – Bit By Bit

I won’t beat about the bush here dear reader, I think that Dragon Ball Daima is the best-looking and best-animated Dragon Ball series ever. Whilst it lacks the flare and scale of the battles seen in Super, the action sequences we get are no less thrilling and are often better choreographed and presented than what we got there. And I dare say we have some of the best action that we have seen since the end of the Cell Saga in Dragon Ball Z. Even the more modestly scaled bar fights we see here have a level of physicality and weight to them that has been desperately missing from the entire series for decades now. And by the end, we get action and fight sequences that MUST become the standard for any future series.

The action sequences in Dragon Ball Daima start strong and only get stronger!

And it isn’t just the action that is top-notch here. The animation throughout has a level of personality and character that makes so many scenes come to life. And grants it a level of energy that makes almost every scene a thrill to see. Regardless of if it is for exposition, world-building, or even just for the sake of comedy. It is hard to put into words just how much I love how Dragon Ball Daima looks, which I grant isn’t great for a review. But there should be no doubt, that everything looks fantastic and outweighs the majority of what has come before it. It is just a shame that the pacing at play isn’t the best.

Slow Fast Pace

Much has been made of the pacing of Dragon Ball Daima, with many feeling that it has been far too slow. I have mixed feelings about such an assessment. I feel that such feelings are born of an audience that has been brought up on Dragon Ball series that are far more focused on action and spectacle, rather than trying to build a narrative and create a world. Dragon Ball Daima unlike the latter half of Z, GT, and Super is far more focused on telling a story, rather than telling context for fights; it is more concerned with creating a world for our cast to explore, rather than creating a backdrop for our cast to fight within. I feel that each episode is paced fantastically well. Doing everything that they need to do. And oftentimes with time left over for fun moments of action and comedy.

Though some moments can go on a tad too long.

However, while I do feel the pacing criticisms aren’t all fair (and some feel like an excuse by certain online broadcasters to find a more ‘professional’ reason to hate the series), they aren’t without merit. The pacing problem isn’t due to the episodes individually but the series as a whole entity. Had this been a thirty or forty-episode series then the pacing, whilst it might have annoyed certain viewers, would have been more than enough to allow for the kind of exploration that is set up in the first third of the series. As well as give us time for a satisfying final third. However the middle portion and final third as good as they are in terms of story and animation feel rushed. With some characters and plot threads feeling abandoned far too soon.

Editing & Sound – Rock The Dragon

Without getting too lost cheering about the animation of Dragon Ball Daima for this review. I have to say that this series is the most visually consistent that I have seen from Dragon Ball since GT at the very least. Whilst there are moments when CGI isn’t as well integrated as it should be, those moments come in so far into the series and are so rare it is acceptable. However, one element that isn’t rare is these strange scene transitions that appear from time to time. There is a good three to four-episode run where, for no good reason, we get a strange fade to black and then to whatever the next scene is. There is no good stylistic reason for this.

And it looks like those moments where you are watching the TV edit of certain movies where they fade to black for an ad’ break, to cover violence, or edit something out for time. And of those three it feels like an edit for time. But the amount of time it seems to be saving by doing this is a matter of seconds. When most episodes take a good four to five minutes to start once the intro on who Goku is, and what the Dragon Balls are, and the intro is done. Just doing the intro and not the other two would net them an extra two minutes at least! Music wise I love the theme that the series has. Whilst it isn’t my favourite of the original Japanese intros it has an adventurous flare that reflects the spirit of classic Dragon Ball purely and delightfully.