REVIEW: ‘Dragon Ball Super: Beerus’ Episode 5 — “The God Of Destruction And Son Goku”

Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5, “The God of Destruction and Son Goku,” sees the clash between the newly minted Super Saiyan God, Goku (Masako Nozawa, Dragon Ball Daima), and Beerus (Koichi Yamadera, Arknights: Rise from Embers) unfold. The pair exchange blows high above Earth, testing whether Goku’s newest transformation can truly make him worthy to battle a god or if he will still be found wanting.

Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 focuses exclusively on Goku and Beerus’s confrontation. Despite it only being one battle, there is a multipart structure to the conflict, as the proceedings are broken into several different phases as Goku gets comfortable with his newfound powers. This allows the battle to evolve to an extent, keeping some fresh elements coming to help the episode keep from dragging on.

The presentation of the fight is generally solid. The grand scope of the duel is captured well as the size of the energy attacks grows over the course of the episode. The energy effects themselves are also delivered with plenty of spice, as extra care is put into making them look like pulsating energy beams, not just the flat colored beams frequently used in the franchise. The auras of both Beerus and Goku get similar treatment, as they often look like fire and have an almost 3D quality. 

The battle is the central focus, containing multiple parts to keep the excitement flowing.

While much of Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 shines with the action the franchise is well known for, there are a couple of stumbles. A few choppy moments undercut the attempt to build up the fight’s energy. And the most notable happens at the worst possible time.

As the fight shifts to space, Beerus prepares a multitude of small energy attacks to launch at Earth, in an attempt to force Goku to full power. Unable to stop each individually, the Super Saiyan God begins channeling his trademark Kamehameha Wave attack to take them all down at once. 

This moment lacks the punch that this iconic act deserves. The camera angles do little to build up the energy, the voice work feels a little flat as the familiar chant is delivered, and the choice to multi-cut the final “Ha!” several times leaves the sequence feeling jarring instead of culminating in a sense of incredible power and determination being unleashed. 

Beerus comes into full focus in Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5.

Despite Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 having no narrative movement, we still see Beerus’ full personality come into focus. As he clashes with Goku, we see him fully engaged for the first time, now that there is a rival that can at least challenge him to a true fight. His banter with Goku brings out a more forceful personality than he’s shown before. He even seems to appreciate the Saiyan’s silliness a bit more now that he is getting the rush of battle he’s been searching for since waking up.

As Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 draws to a close, we see Goku revert to standard Super Saiyan as he exhausts his godlike energy. This ending moment quietly highlights how much Beerus has changed throughout the preceding fight. Previously, one would assume Beerus would declare an intent to destroy the world now that his fun has been extinguished. However, after seeing him revel in a clash of strength with his new opponent, that choice feels like a drastic left turn for the character now.

Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 largely delivers just what fans would expect: action. As a bonus, we also get to see its newest character grow as he shifts from an antagonist to simply being a challenge for Goku to overcome.

Dragon Ball Super: Beerus Episode 5 is streaming on Crunchyroll.

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