In the Dragon Ball franchise, there are several fan-favorite characters involved in the series' numerous battles. Some of these are valiant heroes, such as the Z Fighters/Dragon Warriors, though others are brutal villains who will stop at nothing to enforce their will. In the last decade, one of the latter has somewhat become the former, with the vicious Broly now a seeming ally of Goku and the others.
Goku and Broly have had numerous iconic brawls, both in the realms of non-canon movies and the official manga/anime timeline. This has created a lot of hype surrounding Broly, especially given how immensely powerful he's been portrayed as. Despite this, the best animated take on the character isn't even in an official Dragon Ball project, though it does showcase the true strength of the Saiyan's modern interpretation.
The First Broly Was a Mighty Yet Non-Canon Dragon Ball Z Character
Broly First Appears in the Anime Movie Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan
Broly debuted in the anime movie Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan, and he quickly became a beloved favorite within the franchise's fandom. He wasn't based on a character from the series' manga, and unlike other major Saiyans, he was created by someone other than franchise creator Akira Toriyama. Instead, he was designed by Takao Koyama for the aforementioned movie, with his aesthetic being unique among others of his race.
Effecting a green aura, his Super Saiyan form was almost bulkier and more brutish than the transformations of other Saiyans. This more barbaric appearance was matched by an equally angry personality. Broly was born with an incredibly high power level, to the point where King Vegeta ordered him to be executed for fear that he'd rival him and his son's power. This actually saved his life, with him and his father Paragus (whose names are puns on broccoli and asparagus) escaping the destruction of Planet Vegeta.
He was also born on the same day as Goku, and the weaker Saiyan baby's loud cries ingrained a deep hatred for him. In the present, Paragus was somewhat controlled by his father through a device, though this proved useless after they encountered Goku, Vegeta and the other Z Fighters. His power level destroyed this device, allowing Broly to both kill his father and attain his "Legendary" Super Saiyan form.
Seemingly killed at the movie's end, Broly returned in Dragon Ball Z: Broly - Second Coming, where he landed on Earth and was repelled by Goten, Gohan and Trunks. The final entry in the classic Broly trilogy was Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly, where the genetic remains of the true Broly was mixed with experimental liquid to become a mutagenic nightmare. In all of these films, Broly displayed incredible power beyond even that of Goku and Vegeta, forcing multiple heroes to work together to defeat him.
The main drawbacks to the character, however, were derived from his portrayal and origins. Beyond pure brute force, there wasn't much to Broly, who was essentially just an overpowered, borderline monster. That was especially the case in the final entry in the villain's trilogy. Likewise, because he debuted in the movies instead of the manga, he was ultimately not canon to the actual story of the franchise. This finally changed several years later, however, giving fans a new take on Broly.
Dragon Ball Super Introduced a Canon Broly
Canon Broly is a Compassionate & Peaceful Person
A new version of Broly appeared in Dragon Ball Super: Broly, which was in fact canon with the sequel series to Dragon Ball Z. Much of Broly's backstory was maintained, but there were also major changes to the original version of the character. Once again, he was a Saiyan who was the son of Paragus, and as a boy, he was banished from Planet Vegeta due to his incredible power. In a wild divergence from classic Broly, this new canon version of him was actually a compassionate and peaceful person, though fits of rage activated his hard-to-control powers.
He was controlled by his father and sent to attack Goku and Vegeta as adults, with Frieza using this paternal connection to his advantage when he killed Paragus and blamed the other Saiyans on it. Broly's Wrathful Super Saiyan form is tough enough to easily take on Super Saiyan Blue Goku and Vegeta, not to mention Golden Frieza. It's only when the other Saiyans fuse into Gogeta that their rival is able to be taken down.
Afterward, Goku actually befriends Broly, with the two going on to train together in order to get Broly's powers under control. This training regime is briefly seen in the movie Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. These animated movies gave new life to Broly, but they weren't the best thing to come out of him in animated form.
A Fan Animation Featured the Best Goku vs. Broly Fight
Dragon Ball fan Eduardo Quintana and Sola Digital Arts created a fan-made animated video depicting a battle between Goku and the canon version of Broly. Under 2 minutes and taking over a year to produce, the piece (titled Dragon Ball Saisen) has all the hallmarks of the series and looks practically indistinguishable from an official work by Toei Animation or the late great Akira Toriyama. The video has Goku and Broly battling it out in what appears to be a training session, with the fight animated in a "motion comic" style.
There's an incredible weight and force to the action, which has the look of both an anime and a manga. In this way, it represents the best of both worlds by bringing the fight to life in the style of the two biggest versions of the Dragon Ball franchise. Throughout the battle, music from the Dragon Ball anime is heard, including the song "We Gotta Power" from Dragon Ball Z and a version of "Dan Dan Kokoro Hikareteku" from the non-canon Dragon Ball GT. These are used to highlight the emotional beats of the video, which go beyond merely throwing hands.
Obviously, the initial song is used to hype up the fight, making the battle between Goku and Broly feel fittingly epic. At one point, Broly becomes hellbent on overtaking Goku and starts turning into his uncontrollable Wrathful Super Saiyan form. Just as his rationality seems to falter, he thinks back to the friendship and kindness that Goku has shown him. This allows him to calm down and transform back into a more controllable Super Saiyan form.
This is better than any Goku vs. Broly fight seen in the movies due to the heart present in the short video. There's the obvious intensity that fans expect from a Dragon Ball project, especially one involving Broly. Beyond this, however, there's the brief bit of character development seen as Broly realizes that his friendship with Goku can allow him to control himself and his powers. This is a sharp contrast to the mindless monster of the old Broly movies, and it also speaks to the heart of the franchise.
Dragon Ball isn't a story about fighting: it's an epic fight with a story, with various points of character development and backstory revelations happening during battles. This includes characters pondering their allegiances and changing for the better, and there's no better example of this than a short video involving the true Broly. In a matter of minutes, the fan-made animation gave Broly more depth than his entire classic trilogy, making it as legendary as the Super Saiyan in question.
