THE Dragon Ball Super the anime is made up of six major sagas and two films, with its manga adding the Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga, Granolah the Survivor Saga, and High School Saga into the mix. In virtually each of these sagas, the series introduces revelatory changes, totemic transformations and fundamental new characters.
That being said, not everyone Dragon Ball SuperThe sagas are popular with fans. Dragon Ball Super is full of gripping fights and entertaining antagonists. Unfortunately, a highly anticipated storyline – the “future” Trunks saga – is a disappointing development that continues to drag on. Dragon Ball Super down, almost a decade later.
Dragon Ball Z’s Future Trunks Happy Ending and Character Development Are Erased
In the wake of the Universe 6 and Copy-Vegeta sagas, Dragon Ball Super Episodes 47-76 mark a bold step forward that reunites the Z-Fighters with one of the Dragon Ball Zthe most popular characters in The prospect of Future Trunks’ return is something fans have wanted to see for years, and that’s part of the reason why the few films he stars in also have such an impact.
The “Future” Trunks saga brings back the intrepid time-traveling Super Saiyan, but it becomes a bit of a “monkey’s paw” scenario in which his near-perfect ending is erased in the process. Part of the reason Future Trunks’ storyline in Dragon Ball Z has been so acclaimed because it feels a simple, satisfying sense of closure when it finally achieves its goal.
Future Trunks’ journey isn’t easy, and he even dies for a brief period, but he is able to return to his timeline – stronger and more enlightened – by eliminating the androids that caused him so much pain. It’s a perfect place to end Future Trunks’ story, and it makes all of his pain and suffering more tolerable.
Any excitement that Dragon Ball fans felt the return of Future Trunks Dragon Ball Super was quickly undermined by its tragic omission and its timeline is now in an even more difficult state. To make matters worse, the “Future” Trunks saga ends with the character’s home erased as he is forced to live in a duplicate timeline. Future Trunks and Future Mai seem to fit this solution, despite the existence of alternate versions in this timeline. It’s a bizarre decision that makes his achievements in Dragon Ball Z even more irrelevant.
There’s nothing wrong with pushing Future Trunks out of his comfort zone, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of his happy ending and worthy sacrifices, which now seem unnecessary. Dragon Ball Super once again puts Future Trunks in a place of frightened fragility, causing him to regress rather than evolve.
He must rely on others to solve his problem and Future Trunks would be hopeless without the cooperation of Goku and Vegeta. There are even plenty Dragon Ball fans who attempt to reconcile Future Trunks’ many differences by insisting that he is actually an alternate version of the character. There’s nothing to support this, but the persistent theory speaks to the fandom’s disappointment with Future Trunks’ return.
Oddly enough, it wouldn’t have been that difficult to present many of the same plot points, while giving Future Trunks more agency and making him more autonomous in the process. Dragon Ball Super Goku Black’s first attack could have happened in the main timeline, with Goku and Vegeta heading to Future Trunks for help and reversing the dynamic of the saga. Dragon Ball SuperThe manga is a bit more generous towards Future Trunks and highlights his training under Future Shin and Future Kibito, earning him Super Saiyan 2 strength. Dragon Ball SuperThe anime could have treated this information as the reason the Z-Fighters are looking for Future Trunks in the first place. As things currently stand, Dragon Ball Super makes Future Trunks look even further behind where he was Dragon Ball Z.
Dragon Ball Super Support Players Are Being Ignored By A Generic Team
Goku has always been Dragon Ballthe main character of. That being said, he met so many incredible people during his heroic adventures that became just as important throughout the franchise. It’s rare that Goku and Vegeta aren’t Dragon BallThe strongest characters in , but the series often finds ways to celebrate other secondary heroes in order to demonstrate that power involves more than strength alone. Goku and Vegeta are often at the forefront on the battlefield. Dragon Ball Super. The “Future” Trunks saga is the most egregious version of this.
Not only do the Saiyan duo dominate the narrative, but they don’t even really grow as characters. Vegeta demonstrates maturity with his Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan God-to-Blue switching strategies in the manga’s version of events. That still doesn’t change the fact that they are largely used simply as powerful tools of destruction. Even Vegito’s return, and with the strength of Super Saiyan Blue, seems gratuitous and superficial in retrospect. It’s yet another fight scene that takes the focus away from Future Trunks. This was supposed to be his time to shine and yet Vegito Blue was dominating fan discussions at the time.
The “Future” Trunks saga is particularly frustrating when it comes to Dragon Ball SuperThe support from players and the lack of attention they receive. It wouldn’t have been difficult to bring Gohan or Piccolo for this fight. Gotenks could even have been advantageous here. Dragon Ball SuperThe God of Destruction Beerus and Golden Frieza sagas, for example, show a lot of love for Dragon Ball‘s supports the players.
They may not be fundamental or influence the fight in the heroes’ favor, but they are at least present and given their due. The Tournament of Power is even more generous by celebrating Dragon Ball SuperThey are unsung heroes. The Copy-Vegeta Saga, despite being anime-exclusive filler, still gives Goten, Trunks, and Gotenks some of their most rewarding elements in Dragon Ball SuperIt’s an anime.
The “Future” Trunks saga is far too insular and claustrophobic in its storytelling. It’s easy to forget that so many of these characters exist, and it’s just foolish to keep them apart. The “Future” Trunks Saga completely fails when it comes to showcasing the versatility of Dragon Ball Super‘s cast. This becomes “The Goku and Vegeta Show” more than any other saga.
The “Future” Trunks Saga Ends in a Very Lazy and Convenient Way
A lot can be forgiven in a lackluster saga when there’s at least one strong, surprising ending. Dragon Ball is certainly guilty of falling into stereotypical patterns, and so it’s always appreciated when the series breaks free from its standard norms. There are other disappointing endings within Dragon Ball Superlike Beerus who falls asleep at the end of his fight with Goku, Whis’ Temporal Do-Over, or the simulation of Monaka in the Tournament of Destroyers. The “Future” Trunks saga is the most haphazard and reckless of the bunch, as it seems to just make up new rules as it goes along, content for the audience to believe it’s a satisfying conclusion if it screams it loud enough at them.
Future Trunks’ Super Saiyan Rage transformation and the Sword of Hope technique he simultaneously unleashes are an inspiring execution of the Saiyan’s strength and determination. The problem is that these skills come out of nowhere and are never seen again. It’s like they only exist to push Future Trunks over the edge and win this fight. The same spectacle might have seemed bigger and louder if Future Trunks had reached Super Saiyan 3 or Super Saiyan God status.
To make matters worse, Future Trunks’ Super Saiyan Rage and Sword of Hope glasses don’t actually save the day. The fused Zamasu is cut, but this simply results in the creation of Infinite Zamasu. Infinite Zamasu poses such an extreme threat that Future Zeno steps in and erases the entire timeline. This is about as awkward as a deus ex machina situation can get.
The God of the Omniverse literally appears, saves the day, and then moves on. This development highlights Dragon Ball SuperThe increasing dependence on gods and outside figures to solve problems. It’s hard to believe there’s any stake in these stories if higher powers can just make things right if things stray too far from course. This rewind time to save the day against Golden Frieza was controversial, but Future Zeno’s intervention only doubles down on this botched idea.
Dragon Ball SuperOther storylines – including the Golden Frieza Saga – have their share of give-and-take. They feature at least one hero who defeats the villain. It would be like killing a villain thanks to a wish on the Dragon Balls, which is specifically a rule that Dragon Ball ensures that this cannot happen. Future Zeno’s role as an ally isn’t exactly the same, but he addresses the same issues under control. This flagrant abuse of power, the lack of respect of the saga towards its secondary actors and a condescending scenario towards one of the Dragon Ball Z‘s best characters are the reason the “Future” Trunks saga continues to draw ire nearly a decade later.