Why Vegeta Should Be the One to Kill Frieza, Plus My Take on Rewriting Dragon Ball Super

If I could decide how Frieza's story ends, Vegeta would be the one to kill him. That was one of many fan questions I answered, covering what I'd change if I were writing Dragon Ball Super, whether Vegeta has earned more than Goku, which Dragon Ball game I want next, and even my favorite Joker.

Dragon Ball has shaped my friendships and my career

The first question came from George Brooks, who I met at my meet and greet at Command Con 3. He's a nice guy, and at the time I was planning to work with him in the future on his mental health organization, which I was excited about. He wrote that being a Dragon Ball fan for more than 20 years has brought him joy and helped with his struggle with mental health, and he asked how being a fan has affected me positively.

Being a Dragon Ball fan has changed my life completely. Some of the best friends I've ever had in my entire life, I met through our love of Dragon Ball. Some of the women I've dated, I met the same way, and with those who weren't fans, I got to show them the show for the first time. That was always a fun and happy time.

I have so many memories of Dragon Ball bringing me together with great people, including many fans I've met over the years, corresponded with by email and social media, or met in person. On top of that, I get to talk about Dragon Ball for a living. It has helped my career, helped my life and given me a new career, so I will always thank Toriyama for that.

Without Dragon Ball Super, I'd probably still cover Dragon Ball, maybe less often

Another fan asked what I'd be doing if Dragon Ball Super never happened. I started covering Dragon Ball before Super began, back when we were covering Resurrection F and other things. I'd probably still be doing Dragon Ball content or material about the past, maybe not as frequently, and I'd probably still be covering Star Wars and Marvel, along with things like video games.

The catch is money. If it wasn't profitable enough to justify my time, I probably wouldn't put out as much. If I can't get paid to do this, I have to get a real job, and that takes time away from making content. It's difficult to make as much when you have a regular job, which is why some people starting out begin slowly. That's okay, because that's just how it is.

If I were writing Super, I'd explore the universes and the side characters

A fan since the mid 90s asked what I would do differently if I were writing the manga. For Dragon Ball Super, I would do things totally differently. I would do more universe exploration, I'd go past the end of Z, and I would do more with the side characters.

The original series is pretty good the way it is. Maybe I would change some things in the Buu saga to make it easier to finish out, probably with a better ending. That's not to say the ending is bad, but instead of having all the Gotenks, Gohan and Vegito material, I probably would shorten it or figure out the ending ahead of time. The more I think about it, though, that's minor, and the series works overall.

The other thing I'd probably do is explore more romance. Toriyama's not a romance writer, but I would like to see more of Gohan and Videl's relationship, how 18 and Krillin's relationship blossomed, and maybe even Goku and Chi-Chi's. Part of me is a bit of a sap when it comes to romance, and we don't get any of it in Dragon Ball. So maybe put that in there, for the ladies and for the saps like me.

The next Dragon Ball game I want is Legacy of Goku with the Super storyline

Asked what the next Dragon Ball game should be, I said I want another adventure game like Dragon Ball Advanced Adventure. What I really want, though, is a new Legacy of Goku, but with the Super storyline, plus side quests.

I miss those old school RPGs. Since we've already got fighting games covered with games like Xenoverse, why not do that? That's what I would do.

I want specials that flesh out characters beyond Universe 7

One fan asked whether Toei Animation and Toriyama would ever produce Dragon Ball Super side stories or specials, or keep doing their usual fan service of bringing back old characters. It seems they're going to keep doing that shtick.

I would love to see side stories and specials. I would love backstory on other characters, like the Universe 11 and Universe 6 characters. With Universe 7, it's always Goku and Vegeta. I want more characters, and these new characters, to get fleshed out way more, and that's what they need to do. It's irritating that they don't. But I don't think they're going to do that, and I wish they would.

In an equal power tournament, I think it comes down to Goku and maybe Master Roshi

A fan asked whether I'd like to see a tournament of skill with everyone at the same power level, so every character gets a chance to shine. I would, and I wonder who would win. It would probably come down to Goku and maybe even Master Roshi, because Roshi has a lot of experience.

If it's just equal power, Vegeta might hang in there. He might. Beyond that, I don't know, but I would like to see it.

The work I'm proudest of covers Toonami, transformations and techniques

Asked for the highlight of my Dragon Ball content, I pointed to the collection of what I think is my best work. Some people don't agree and like other pieces, and that's fine. I enjoyed the piece I did about Toonami, and I love the transformation guides, the technique guides, the mystery series and the Dragon Ball In Depth pieces. I'm very proud of those, and I said at the time I had way more coming.

In the Dragon Ball universe, I'd be Zeno, the Grand Priest or maybe an angel

One fan asked what race I'd be in the Dragon Ball universe, whether I'd side with good or evil, and what impact I'd have. I don't know. Obviously I would probably want to be Zeno or the Grand Priest, since the Grand Priest has a lot of kids.

I probably wouldn't be evil, because I don't think I'm evil in real life. So maybe I would be an angel or a God of Destruction.

I respect fan stop motion, animation and manga

Asked about the Dragon Ball stop motion projects in the fan community, I admitted I haven't seen many, but the ones I've seen are great. I respect stop motion, art, fan animation and fan manga. I don't cover it as much as maybe I should, but people's love for the series is always something I appreciate, and I like creativity.

See the entire series subbed, not just Kai

A fan who had only seen the franchise dubbed asked whether regular Dragon Ball Z or Dragon Ball Z Kai is the better option for a subbed viewing. You're hurting me. Kai is a good dub, so I don't know that seeing it subbed would be worth it compared with regular Z.

My answer is no: see the entire series subbed. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, and then Super if you want, unless you've already seen it subbed. See it the way it was originally meant to come out. "If you've only seen it dubbed you have not seen the real dragon ball and i'm telling you that confidently."

When voice actors are lost, I think they'll be replaced

One fan asked how Dragon Ball should proceed if something happened to one of the main voice actors. It already happened with Hiromi Tsuru. She passed away and they replaced her. They also replaced the actor who voiced the narrator and King Kai for Super.

So I think they're going to replace them if possible. I don't know if there's anybody out there who can sound like Nozawa. It also depends on whether they're in the middle of a project, but replacing them seems the most likely.

For the new Super release, I'd see whichever language came first

Asked whether I planned to see the new Dragon Ball Super in English or Japanese first, I said it depended entirely on which one was available to me first. The language doesn't matter to me as long as I get to see it.

When Resurrection F leaked on the internet, I saw it in Portuguese, which I don't speak, and in Spanish, which I do, before I saw it in English or Japanese. It could be Sanskrit and I'd still see it.

Vegeta needs to be the one who finally kills Frieza

Asked how I would alter the end of Frieza's story, I said I think he should be killed by Vegeta. Even though Frieza is back by the end of Dragon Ball Super, at some point Vegeta should be the one to kill him.

Goku got to kill him. Trunks got to kill him. Vegeta never got the chance. They have that long history, and it needs to be Vegeta who puts an end to this guy.

Goku, not Vegeta, has always been the harder worker

Another fan suggested Vegeta has more hard earned accomplishments than Goku, since he had to find a way to tap into Super Saiyan and god ki without a ritual. I see where that's coming from, but it's not the case.

The whole story behind Vegeta and Goku is that Vegeta thought he deserved to be the strongest because of his birthright as the son of the king. It was Goku who taught him that you have to work hard to get there. Goku has always worked harder than Vegeta.

It's only in more recent times, whether in Super or even in the Cell and Buu sagas, that Vegeta has learned this. Goku has always been one step ahead of him. Now in Super, Vegeta seems to be going in his own direction and becoming his own man, so I see why someone would think that now. But remember, Goku was always the hard worker.

Mark Hamill is my favorite Joker, and Jack Nicholson tops live action

Finally, a fan asked which Batman and Joker are my favorites. Mark Hamill is probably my favorite Joker, and the animated series Batman for sure. Anything with Bruce Timm is great.

Live action is tough. I love Heath Ledger and I love Jack Nicholson. Joaquin Phoenix nailed it, but that was a different kind of movie than a Batman movie, and it's not fair because it was his movie. Heath Ledger was probably the scariest and the most accurate to what the Joker represents. But Jack Nicholson is probably my favorite in live action, because he's the funniest and the one who made me laugh the most. Cesar Romero deserves a lot of respect too, because he's the one who started how the Joker behaved.