Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is the 2022 film that benches Goku and Vegeta and hands the spotlight to Gohan and Piccolo. The Red Ribbon Army, wiped out by a young Goku decades earlier, rises again under a new commander, backed by two androids who think they're superheroes. It's the first Dragon Ball film made largely in computer animation, and the last one supervised by Akira Toriyama, who died in March 2024.
Full plot (spoilers)
Magenta, son of Commander Red and head of a pharmaceutical company, wants to rebuild the Red Ribbon Army. With his aide Carmine he recruits Dr. Hedo, Dr. Gero's brilliant, superhero-obsessed grandson, by convincing him that Bulma's Capsule Corporation is an evil organization. Hedo builds two powerful androids, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, and reluctantly works on an upgraded version of Cell.
Goku, Vegeta and Broly are training with Whis on Beerus's planet, out of reach. Piccolo, who has been nagging Gohan for neglecting his training in favor of research, is attacked by Gamma 2, follows him back to the enemy base and uncovers the plan. He asks Shenron to unlock his hidden potential, and when the Red Ribbon decides to kidnap little Pan to lure Gohan out, Piccolo volunteers to carry out the abduction himself, with Pan in on the act.
The ruse works. A furious Gohan storms the base and fights Gamma 1 until he reaches his Ultimate form, while Piccolo unveils a new transformation, Orange Piccolo. Once they realize they've been lied to, the Gammas switch sides. Then Cell Max is activated, a giant that no one can control. Goten, Trunks, Android 18 and Krillin arrive as backup, and Gamma 2 sacrifices himself trying to stop it. Seeing Piccolo beaten down, Gohan taps into a power never seen before, Gohan Beast, and destroys Cell Max with a Special Beam Cannon. In a post-credits scene on Beerus's planet, Vegeta edges out Goku in a long sparring match with the final blow.
What it introduces
- Gohan Beast, Gohan's new form, which Toriyama linked to the bursts of rage Gohan showed as a child.
- Orange Piccolo, a huge, muscular form that Toriyama considers Piccolo's first true transformation.
- Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, good-hearted androids with comic-book hero poses.
- Dr. Hedo, Magenta and Carmine, the faces of the new Red Ribbon Army.
- Cell Max, a giant, unfinished version of Cell.
Production
Director Tetsurō Kodama chose to make the film almost entirely in 3D computer animation, a first for Dragon Ball and a technique he was experienced with. Akira Toriyama wrote the story and screenplay and personally designed the characters, even the Red Ribbon Army's vehicles. He wanted the plot to center on the bond between Gohan and Piccolo, the mentor who has always pushed Gohan to fight even more than his own father. The score is by Naoki Satō.
The Japanese release, set for April 22, 2022, was pushed back to June 11 after a ransomware attack hit Toei Animation. Outside Japan, Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures handled distribution, with the film opening in the US and UK on August 19, 2022.
Did you know? Super Hero was the first Dragon Ball film released in Japan by Toei alone since 1996: the films from 2013 to 2018 had been co-distributed by 20th Century Fox's Japanese branch.
Reception
The film opened at number one in Japan and topped the North American box office on its opening weekend with about $21 million, going on to earn around $38 million in the US and Canada. Worldwide it took roughly ¥13.8 billion, just over $100 million, second only to Broly in franchise history.
Critics enjoyed the humor, the nostalgia and the overdue spotlight on Piccolo; the most debated points were a forgettable final villain and the CG look, which split audiences.
Where it fits in the timeline
The story takes place after Dragon Ball Super: Broly: Broly, now on good terms with the Saiyans, trains with Goku and Vegeta. Pan is still a little girl, so we're before the time skip that closes Dragon Ball Z. For the full order of series and films, see our watch order guide.
Our take
Super Hero is the warmest film of the modern era. It doesn't bet everything on raw power, but on relationships: Piccolo as grandfather, babysitter and disappointed mentor, Gohan torn between the lab and his family, Pan learning to fly. The CG takes some getting used to, especially in dialogue scenes, but in the fights it shows what it can do. The Cell Max finale is the weakest stretch, a brawl with a giant monster that feels more kaiju movie than Dragon Ball. Knowing it was Toriyama's final film, though, it's hard not to see it as a gift to the characters he loved most. For the other films, go back to our movie guide.