On March 25th 2018, Dragon Ball Super aired the final episode of the Universe Survival Saga, in which Goku and the rest of Universe 7’s chosen warriors managed to be the last warriors standing, securing not just their survival, but the continued existence of every other universe. Since then, Dragon Ball has had little in terms of animated production, with the spin-off series, Super Dragon Ball Heroes, currently ongoing and the animated movie Dragon Ball Super: Broly being released in 2018 to great success. With the anime currently on hiatus and with no news of its return anywhere, one has to wonder where it would be going next?
Firstly, we can look at Super’s manga counterpart. Still ongoing, the manga has passed by the anime into the Galactic Patrol arc. In this arc, Goku and friends face off against Moro, a powerful wizard who once threatened Universe 7 almost ten million years ago. Once imprisoned by the galactic patrol, his release marks a new threat to the universe that Goku must combat. The storyline features the titular Galactic Patrol, more about the gods and angels of Dragon Ball and, without spoiling it, call-backs to an older saga.
At present, this arc appears to be rounding up with Moro’s defeat and we currently have hint of the manga’s next course, save the fact that it is definitely continuing. This seems the most likely next step for the anime, and if that is the case then it can explain why Toei Animation is holding off on their continuation of the anime, so as to give the manga time to progress and provide the content the anime needs to continue.
Tie It Up,Tie It In
Less likely is a canonical tie-in with Super Dragon Ball Heroes. As mentioned previously, Dragon Ball Heroes is a spin-off promotional series based on a popular card and video games of the same name. In a similar vein to Dragon Ball GT, this series was made by Toei Animation, as opposed to the series creator, Akira Toriyama.
Further in the future, beyond the events of Dragon Ball Super and Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Goku and Vegeta are pulled into a conflict which spans various timelines and realms, featuring characters from the Demon Realm and characters long thought dead, allowing for many fan-favourite movie and GT characters to cross over with the main series, all without breaking the canon of the main series. While the games are popular in Japan, the anime received a mixed reception from fans. With this reception and its non-canon nature, this makes a main series crossover very unlikely.
For almost 40 years, Dragon Ball has been a mainstay of the anime and manga industry. It’s taken its fans on exhilarating and jaw-dropping adventures, becoming one of the most iconic series of pop culture. For now, the future of the franchise is unknown but if Goku and friends exploits have taught us anything, it’s to never count them out, no matter how dire or helpless the situation may be.