Dragon Ball Super: Part Three [DVD]

Dragon Ball Super's first two home video parts consisted of the Battle of Gods and Resurrection F movies remade as TV broadcast episodes. They had animation shortcomings, and because the movies were already out for a while by the time those episodes first aired, they felt a lot like a "been there, done that" storytelling situation. Dragon Ball Super proper begins with Part 3, and it's a fun ride and a worthwhile Blu Ray purchase.EPISODESPart 3 of Dragon Ball Super picks up where Part 2 left off, which was right at the tail end of the battle with Golden Frieza. Fans have expressed frustration about the sets not including full "sagas," a situation that could have been remedied by any one of the first three volumes having 14 episodes instead of 13. Regardless, Frieza is quickly defeated in the first episode, and that leads into the new material for Super.Champa and Vados, the counterparts to Beerus and Whis, are properly introduced in this volume, after having been hinted at several episodes prior. Champa and Vados hail from "Universe 6," a twin or parallel universe to our Universe 7, and one of the 12 Universes in the newly expanded world of Dragon Ball. There are a few introductory episodes (including one that has a lot of recycled animation serving as flashbacks) before we move into the main structure of this story. Once we get past that, Super's new content starts with a classic shonen staple: a tournament arc.The benefit of a tournament arc in anime and manga is that it allows for the relatively quick introduction of numerous characters, with some background on all of them, and it streamlines character development. In Dragon Ball Super's "Universe 6 vs. Universe 7 Tournament," we meet fighters from Universe 6 who offer striking parallels to characters with whom we are already familiar. This concept will be expanded upon during another major arc later in the series' run, but for now, the character interactions are all interesting, and there is a fun subversion of expected character archetypes based on what we know about Universe 7's characters from experience with Dragon Ball and DBZ.After gathering their fighters, the tournament commences, but it does not conclude in this volume. Like Parts 1 and 2, the final episode of the last battle of the tournament, episode 40, is cut off. In reviews of the prior two Part releases, I noted that 13 episode home releases are common practice for anime. It is unfortunate that Super happens to not fit within that box, and it is further unfortunate that Funimation did not correct the issue at the outset by making the first volume 14 episodes. Super, as of the date of this review, is slated to end with episode 131, which means that Part 10 will consist of 14 episodes. That was not known at the time the releases began, so using 13 was not an arbitrary approach, but it makes this the third consecutive volume to cut off the ending. It is a temporary issue, of course--once the whole series is available, there will not be 4-5 month gaps between episodes as there currently is between releases.SUB/DUB and AUDIO QUALITYAs with all things Dragon Ball, the original Japanese version is quite good. The voice actors all perform very well and remain consistent. The dub is also really good. In my reviews of Parts 1 and 2, I praised the dub as a high point, and that praise remains true here. Super is, in a lot of ways, The Goku and Vegeta Show. Thankfully, Sean Schemmel and Chris Sabat, who voice Goku and Vegeta, respectively, deliver top-notch performances in Super's dub. The other actors do a wonderful job here as well, and the script is generally well-written and very close to the Japanese script. The dub is often legitimately funny--arguably too comedic at times, but it's personal preference more than anything. Both the subtitled version and the dub are well-performed and fans of both will be satisfied.The overall audio quality is good. I watched the episodes mostly dubbed, spot checking the sub here and there. The dub's 5.1 surround track is wonderful. Norihito Sumitomo's score is mostly concentrated in the front left and right speakers, with a little reverb in the rear, and the sound effects are panned well to create an immersive experience. Most of the dialogue is in the center channel except for loud screams and some occasional panning to reflect character position on the screen. It's all very well-done.The score is good for what it is. It's not my personal favorite of the various Dragon Ball scores (I have a soft spot for a lot of the Faulconer Productions team's work, as well as the Kai score that was later replaced due to plagiarism concerns), but there's nothing inherently wrong with it. There are some memorable tracks, and the music is always appropriate and fitting.VIDEO QUALITYDragon Ball Super's animation takes a noticeable step forward in this volume. The distinction between episodes 27 and 39 is apparent. From this arc onward, the animation really begins to improve over time (with peaks and valleys throughout). Toward the end of the next major story arc after this one, it is drastically better, but this is the beginning step toward higher quality production values, and it shows.On the Blu Ray, the colors are bright and crisp, especially the Super Saiyan Blue transformations. Everything looks clean, periodic animation quality dips aside.PACKAGINGRemaining consistent with the prior two Part releases, this set is really nice, if a bit simple. As is obvious from the product image, Vegeta adorns the cover, and the slipcase has a nice metallic reflection to it. Inside are two Blu Ray discs with the episode list printed on the back of the sleeve. It suffers a similar issue as some other Dragon Ball releases--the episode titles can be a tiny bit harder to read. It is not a major concern, just something worth pointing out. Otherwise, everything is clean and consistent, so it lines up well on the shelf with the other releases.EXTRASBesides trailers and the textless opening and closing videos, there's one extra of note, which is an interview with Sean Schemmel and Jason Douglas (Beerus) from Anime Expo 2017. It doesn't reveal too many otherwise unknown secrets about production, but it's a fun watch, and it's nice to have an actual extra on the disc.SUMMARYIf you have purchased Parts 1 and 2 and were waiting for Super to "get good," this is where that point begins. The Universe 6 vs. Universe 7 Tournament reminds me a lot of the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai (World Martial Arts Tournament in the dub) from the very beginning of Dragon Ball. It introduces several interesting characters with unique back stories, and a lot of the fighting does not devolve into "flurry of punches" territory as Dragon Ball Z/Super fights often do. It's a fun arc overall. While the lack of episode 40 on this set is frustrating, I won't knock off any points for it mostly because when buying these sets, most people will eventually seek to own the whole series, so it becomes a question of just inserting the next disc after later parts are released.Dragon Ball Super is just getting started here, and there's a lot to look forward to in the next 7 releases. This is where a lot of that quality starts to shine through, and if you've gotten past the first two volumes, it's a good set of episodes to sit back and enjoy.

Good

It works well

I was very excited to see that an official version of Dragonball Super was finally available through Funimation, including the original Japanese soundtrack with English subtitles. This being volume 3 was the first volume that wasn't an extended version of the 2 recent movies that had come out the last several years, both were watching by the way, for die-hard fans.I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but these DVD's exceeded my expectations. The characters I've loved for so long were back, and like previous incarnations of the show, even the supporting characters are subtly shown to have grown in the time since we last saw them. This could be called a return to the cartoon I originally loved, and the new story has the air of the previous ones. I found my self laughing out loud, tense at moments when what you expect is turned on it's ear, and once again caught up in what used to bring me so much enjoyment. If you buy this dvd set, with 12 episodes included, you will not be disappointed.The dvd's arrived on the day specified, were packaged well and exactly as described. I was very pleased, and will be the first to pre-order volume 4 when available.For those who like extras, each DVD had a bunch of trailersfor other anime shows available through Funimation, plus bot English and Japanese versions of all 12 Dragonball Super episodes, and a marathon play selection, should you wish to skip the opening and closing credits each episode. I'm assuming on that part as I haven't tried that yet.Overall a wonderful collection of the new adventures of old friends.

We had no issues purchasing this season and the kids love the series.

This is where Dragon Ball Super finally starts covering new ground. Unlike the first two sets, this is not retelling the events of a movie, this is the start of a new arc (as well as the end of the Resurrection 'F' arc). The animation, character designs, action, and new ideas introduced are all great and welcome additions to the universe (multiverse). If you are a fan this is a great continuation of the series, however, this isn't the best point of entry for the uninitiated. To be fair though, none of Super is a good introduction to the franchise since the first couple arcs were based on movies which were heavy in fan service.

Absolutely LOVE the cover, you can angle it to make it look like Vegeta is Ssjg (not just Ssjb)! But besides that, this is the first official "New" content of DBS seeing as it follows up after the RoF saga that we got as a movie. Some would consider this the True start to Dragon Ball Super, and I can't disagree! The Universe 6 Tournament Arc as I like to call it is full of action, comedy, great character development and excellent world building. Definitely a must have for Any DB fan!!

I am a huge db and dbz fan. I was a little skeptic of this series when I first hear they were coming back, because I was not a fan of GT. However, I skipped part 1 and 2 because I have battle of the gods and resurrection F, and this starts right at the end of resurrection F. This part was actually well executed and has me excited for what this series brings. If you are a db or dbz fan, definitely get it!

In perfect condition 👍

This is where the true Dragon Ball Super starts and it does so in a very good way. All the new introduced characters are unique and amazing in their own ways and contribute to each episode great. As per usual, there are 13 episodes but sadly this tournament saga gets cut off about two episodes short which forces you to buy part 4 to finish the saga off. It's not a problem if you plan on buying all the parts like I am, but can be a bit frustrating for others that just want a particular saga to binge watch.The audio and picture quality are still very well done and didn't experience any issues whatsoever. A+

Das Product ist wie erwartet pünktlich angekommen und gut verpackt.Für die Kollektion ein einfaches muss! nostalgie pur.Die Movies sind auf englisch un Japanisch mit englischen untertitel.also einfach mega!

This is my favourite of the Dragon Ball Super seasons so far. As we finally move away from the movie story arcs (Battle of Gods and Resurrection of F), a tournament, unlike any seen before in Dragon Ball, gets underway and things certainly get a lot more interesting as a result. I have just ordered Part 4 and cannot wait for it to arrive!

日本正規品が値段が高いから、こちらを購入。気になるのはOPやED、各話タイトル文字が英語表示だってくらいで鑑賞には全然問題ありません。もちろん日本製のブルーレイプレイヤーで鑑賞できるんでこちらを買って大正解でした。おまけ程度に、劇中の音声に日本語のほかに英語音声があるのですが、英語音声にするとOPとEDの歌詞が英語バージョンになっているのがちょっと新鮮です。特にOPはちゃんと吉井和哉さんが英語で歌ってるんですから、ちょっとだけお得な感じ。僕はこっちのシリーズを集めます。