Righting the Ship

After a series-worst with last time’s “Episode 9 – Thief”, I am happy to report that this is a much stronger episode.

Not a riveting one – the fight scene on offer is a bit dull and the rest of it is mostly exposition – but it meaningfully adds to our understanding of the world and moves the plot forward. That is more than I can say about the last episode.

Majin Kuu faces off against Tamagami Number One, in a match that is adequate but not up to series par. Meanwhile, the Dragon Ball universal lore is continually expanded, as we learn about the creation of the Majin, the grim fate of the Glind, and the original homeland of the Namekians. The runtime rolls on a reunion that really pushes the story forward, and resolves one of my long-running gripes with DAIMA.

We are then left with an episode that is interesting and very watchable. It isn’t a show-stealer, and perhaps my appreciation for it is inflated by my distaste for the previous episode. But nonetheless “Episode 10 – Ocean” is an easy watch, and a successful recovery after the poor quality of the prior episode.

The following review contains spoilers for Ocean, Episode 10, of Dragon Ball DAIMA.

Plot Summary

The episode opens with Majin Kuu and Dr. Arinsu facing down Tamagami Number One.

Majin Kuu swaggers up to the Tamagami and they engage in battle. Kuu showcases formidable power, but he quickly becomes overwhelmed by the slim and mobile Tamagami. After trying everything in his arsenal and finding Tamagami Number One no worse for wear, Majin Kuu does the unexpected thing and forfeits the battle. A flabbergasted Dr. Arinsu retreats with him, and fires him from henchman duties. The future of this silly Majin is unknown.

Meanwhile Goku and his crew reach Warp-Sama and finally make it to the Second Demon Realm. This realm is an ocean as far as the eye can see, a stark change from the realm they left behind. The three of them hardly have time to reflect on their visit to the home realm of Supreme Kai though, as they are swarmed by the Gendarmerie.

After narrowly escaping in one piece, they are further beset upon by a fierce sea beast. Though Goku is able to save them from both perils, their ship is destroyed and swallowed by the kraken. They save the Dragon Ball due to some heroics from Panzy, but are left shipless, and the party seeks out Bulma’s ship with their tail between their legs.

While Goku battles with King Gomah’s goons and narrowly avoids becoming a kraken’s lunch, Vegeta and the B crew are hot on their trail. Vegeta aggressively turns down a proposition from Hybis to form a polycule with Bulma, while she deliberates remaining in her child form forever due to her soft skin. 

Goku meets Vegeta’s crew on an abandoned planet, which actually served as the original home of the Nameks. The two crews (finally!) reintegrate into one. Piccolo feels a sense of peace upon his ancestral planet despite being born on earth.

Time for “Exposition Time with Supreme Kai!” He explains that the Namekians were originally treated as slaves by the Demon Realm. Additionally, Glinds are destined to die out as all the Glind Trees have been lost. He touches on the creation of the Demon Realm, and the brutal rule of King Abura who was the predecessor to Dabura. During his rule, the Namekians and other Majin fled the realm.

With class out of session, the episode finishes as the group heads towards the location of Tamagami Number Two.

Analysis

On offer this episode is a brief encounter between Majin Kuu and Tamagami Number One. Choreographically, the fight leaves a bit to be desired for as it is a little sloppy and uninspired. Definitely not up to the extremely high standards set by DAIMA thus far. It isn’t a bad fight, just a little dull.

The match committed some Dragon Ball sins that DAIMA had thus far avoided, such as repeated animations. But seeing Kuu’s unique attacks, getting a sense of how he is as a character, was fun. There were a couple great shots too, such as Tamagami Number One slicing through Kuu’s beam attack. It was a fine fight, just not up to par with what we’ve gotten so far.

While visually lacking, the fight served excellent narrative purpose. It was a perfect showcase of Kuu’s “all bark and only a little bite” personality, as well as establishing Tamagami Number One as a real threat. Nice to see somebody other than Vegeta serve as fodder to establish another character’s strength.

Majin Kuu is an entertaining guy. He swaggers up to Tamagami Number One with all the confidence in the world and confidently challenges him. Is this new demon going to demolish the hapless Tamagami. In reality Kuu is barely a match for the guardian, and forfeits. But even in forfeiture, he is confident and a little arrogant. He is boldfaced when he declares that Dr. Arinsu should keep him because he tried his best and he’s excellent at singing and running errands.

His personality even shines through in the choreography if his fight, as he jumps around with fight moves closer to capoeira-style dance fighting than the traditional martial arts the series tends to adhere to. He yells his name like a Pokémon, jumps around, and has the same lackadaisical attitude towards fighting that his donor Majin Buu had. He’s an enjoyable character, though clearly not the primary villain.

The exposition in this episode is a bit somber. We learn more about the Glind, including their sad fate, Particularly interesting was the reveal that the Glind are fated to go extinct, as they are born from Glind trees, and there are none left alive. The current Kai, as well as Dr. Arinsu and Degesu, are the last of their species. (Although Goku was the last of his species too, and look at how many Saiyans they’ve found since.)

Additionally we learn more about the origin of the Namekians, including visiting their original planet, which looks very close to the Namek we know from the Frieza saga. They took trees from their home planet with them to Namek, to make it habitable. The Namekians were apparently treated as slaves by the demon realm, and it is sad to think that their fate at the hands of Frieza was hardly much better after fleeing to Goku’s universe. Piccolo’s silent reflection upon visiting his homeland is a nice touch. 

The explanation of the construction of the cosmos was interesting, but a bit hard for me to wrap my head around, I’ll need to watch it a few more times.

Reliable readers will know that my biggest criticism of DAIMA is its refusal to combine Goku and Vegeta’s separate parties, and doing everything possible to keep them apart. I am so relieved they are finally joined. No more different ships, no more “comedic” issues causing delays and further separation. Vegeta, Piccolo, Bulma, Goku and Supreme Kai are together at last. I can only hope the show doesn’t immediately separate them again.

I enjoyed watching Goku eat humble pie having to ask to board their ship after denying them a ride, even if Goku himself probably didn’t feel any shame. I can’t wait to see the dynamics between certain characters continue to develop, such as Glorio and Vegeta, or Panzy and Bulma. The gang is finally back together.

Final Score (3.5 out of 5)

This remained a solid episode despite Kuu’s underwhelming debut fight, in large part because of his magneticism as a character. I am keen to see Kuu’s future, and I hope he sticks around for a few more episodes before he is inevitably absorbed or destroyed.

As usual DAIMA deftly handles the introduction of new lore, and I am forever impressed with how it delivers massive exposition dumps without ever feeling boring. The new information surrounding the Namekians is fascinating, and the grim fate of the Glind was suitably somber. 

This was a great set-up episode, and of course any episode that ends with the two crews finally properly joining will be a good one in my books. I am excited to see more of the Second Demon Realm, and for the secondary crew finally get some main screen action. 

Featured Image: Toei Animation

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