Dragon Ball DAIMA Episode 1 Has The Makings Of A Modern ...

Dragon Ballis one of the most popular anime series of all-time, so there are understandably sky-high expectations with Dragon Ball DAIMA. DAIMA is not only the first new canonical Dragon Ball anime in years, it’s the last official piece of Dragon Ball media series creator Akira Toriyama had a hand in before his tragic passing. This is a situation where it could potentially be impossible to satisfy fans and match the level of excitement that they’ve felt since DAIMA’s announcement.

Despite these steep standards, Dragon Ball DAIMA manages to rise to the occasion and functions as the perfect celebration for the franchise’s 40th anniversary. Dragon Ball DAIMA Episode 1, “Conspiracy,” is a sublime mix of old and new that culminates in a special product that truly feels like vintage Dragon Ball. DAIMA begins with a slow, but satisfying start and it’s perhaps only appropriate that a series that involves its heroes being turned into children will make its fans feel like kids again.

Dragon Ball DAIMA Replays The Hits As The Anime Sets Up New Adventures

Everything Old Is New Again

There are plenty of new things to celebrate in Dragon Ball DAIMA's premiere, but this episode delivers a deeply nostalgic dopamine high when it recaps Dragon Ball & DBZ. This might have felt plodding and redundant in any other series, but DAIMA's animation is so polished and gorgeous, it doesn't matter. It's a genuine thrill to see some of the Buu Saga's biggest moments and the franchise's fiercest foes depicted in DAIMA's immaculate art style. A still visual of Cell shouldn't necessarily conjure palpable joy, but it does, which is part of Dragon Ball DAIMA's power. Just like Goku and company get transformed into Mini versions of themselves, Dragon Ball DAIMA transforms past setpieces into fresh masterpieces.

It’s important to have reasonable expectations for this premiere. First episodes are often bogged down with exposition and recaps before they actually get into the real story. In this sense, Dragon Ball DAIMA’s first episode is infinitely more effective than Dragon Ball Super’s premiere – which also just recapped old events, in that case Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, albeit with worse animation. Dragon Ball DAIMA also finds a legitimate reason to revisit the past, rather than this just being a gratuitous clip show that manipulates memories. It’s a simple, yet effective decision to have Degesu and other Demon Realm representatives studying the heroes’ actions during the Buu Saga so that they can better understand their opponents and cultivate the best strategy to guarantee their defeat. It also adds to the villains’ mystique and turns them into more intimidating threats, since they know significantly more about their enemies than the heroes do about them. This isn’t just a case of the characters playing, “Remember When?”

It’s appreciated that Dragon Ball DAIMA’s premiere is at least super-sized and has more time to celebrate this event so that the old material doesn’t feel so cumbersome. At the same time, it might have been a better if Dragon Ball DAIMA kicked off with a two-episode premiere so that audiences got a better sense of what this series is really about. It’s hard to not get excited over every minute of this premiere, and it’s actually an effective entrypoint to the franchise for any curious Dragon Ball newcomers who have never seen any of the series before. It’s also a beautiful way to commemorate Akira Toriyama’s legacy and everything that he’s accomplished with Dragon Ball over the past four decades. That being said, it’ll be interesting to see how often fans revisit this premiere after the honeymoon phase has worn off. If nothing else, there are some excellent new Buu Saga visuals that are bound to flood the fandom.

Dragon Ball DAIMA’s Majin Are The Premiere’s MVPs

DAIMA Gives Its New Villains A Lot Of Love

Dragon Ball DAIMA’s premiere spends the majority of its time in the Demon Realm, an enlightening environment that the franchise has only really scratched the surface of outside non-canon video games and promotional anime like Dragon Ball Heroes and Dragon Ball Xenoverse. Immediately, there’s a lot of personality, depth, and size to the Demon Realm that makes it feel like is can easily sustain endless DAIMA adventures. The Demon Realm is unlike anything else that’s been experienced in the franchise. There’s even a comprehensive living security system that must be navigated in order to exit to the outside world. Demon Realm technology is also unique and creative. It’s easy to picture Toriyama having an absolute ball as he helped design these spaceships and machines.

Dragon Ball DAIMA quickly finds a rhythm between Degesu, Gomah, and Dr. Arinsu, its three central Majin figures. They are easily the episode’s highlight and there’s excellent chemistry between them that’s simultaneously sinister and silly. Their energy is somewhat reminiscent of the Pilaf Gang during the original Dragon Ball, especially when it comes to Gomah – his delusions of grandeur, and how he throws his weight around. It’s also quite entertaining to see Degesu and Gomah provide humorous color commentary on their Buu Saga rewatch (and even they can’t help but fast-forward through that laborious stretch of episodes). These Majin all work well amongst each other, but it will be exciting to see how their demeanors develop once they mingle with Shin – who is revealed to be Degesu’s older brother and Dr. Arinsu’s sibling – and Glorio, who just gets to lurk in the shadows of this premiere.

One of the most fascinating revelations to come out of this premiere and its Demon Realm machinations is that Dragon Ball DAIMA confirms that Namekians are evidently from the Demon Realm. They even have their own Dragon Balls. This is something that was heavily implied during Dragon Ball Super’s Granolah the Survivor Saga and, of course, presumed with Dragon Ball’s Demon King Piccolo. However, it’s still nice to get confirmation on this front and a reminder that Piccolo’s rehabilitation into a hero is truly impressive. Gomah and Degesu launch a resilient plan that involves turning Dragon Ball’s heroes into harmless children, but “Conspiracy” also teases some even more wicked matters to come.

The de-aging wish, as debilitating as it is, only represents a fraction of their three-pronged plan. Dragon Ball DAIMA plants the seeds for a powerful relic, the Evil Third Eye and Tertian Oculus, which has been lost since the era of Dabura’s father, Supreme Demon King Abura. The Tertian Oculus is a Majin heirloom that gives an individual incredible power when it’s placed on their head. This will surely play a major role in what’s to come and could even lead to Mechikabura’s canonical debut. Dragon Ball DAIMA also sets up the Demon Realm’s own Dragon Balls, which are protected by the three powerful Tamagamis, who are likely to become Goku’s targets once he storms the Demon Realm for a solution to their first-grade fiasco.

The Majin Launch A Surprise Attack

Dende Is Helpless Against The Demon Realm Deviants

Dragon Ball DAIMA gives its villains a proper showcase before it finally catches up with its heroes, who are happily celebrating Trunks’ ninth birthday. There are some entertaining and innocuous developments among the core cast that are fun to get lost in. It’s also pretty funny to see how “Conspiracy” attempts to clean up some of Dragon Ball’s sloppier past storytelling, like how Shin and Kibito’s de-fusion is ret-conned into a side effect of Buu’s absorption, like it was with Vegito. These carefree moments are quite entertaining and it’s really just delightful to spend more time with these characters.

Unfortunately, Trunks’ birthday festivities get cut short when Degesu, Gomah, and Neva invade the Lookout and throw their weight around Dende. Dende doesn’t always get the most attention in Dragon Ball, but it’s kind of beautiful to see how naive and helpless he and Mr. Popo are when Gomah starts making demands. Neva also showcases some curious new Namekian powers that seriously change the status quo when it comes to their extended periods of inactivity. These theatrics are mostly an excuse to jump into the action here, but it will be interesting to see if Dende ever utilizes the same tactics in future Dragon Ball Super story arcs when a wish is needed on the fly.

Dragon Ball DAIMA’s first episode ends on a major cliffhanger – albeit one that’s pretty expected by anyone who’s been closely keeping up with the series’ marketing materials. It’s exciting to know that the next episode, “Glorio,” has the legwork and table-setting out of the way and it can really get moving. It’s unlikely that every Dragon Ball DAIMA episode will feature comparable pacing to “Conspiracy.” However, it should be interesting to see how quickly the rest of DAIMA movies, especially if the series really is only 20 episodes. Dragon Ball DAIMA Episode 1, “Conspiracy,” is the perfect appetizer that gets the audience hungry for more action. It’s entirely possible this will be the best Dragon Ball fans have eaten in years.

'Dragon Ball DAIMA' is now streaming on Crunchyrolll