Dragon Ball's Goku is one of the most iconic anime characters ever created. Across the various Dragon Ball series and movies, he has been involved in many epic battles against mighty warriors like Vegeta, Cell, and Majin Buu. But Goku's battle with Hearts in Super Dragon Ball Heroes is often overlooked despite being a great fight that captures the action and atmosphere of the best fights from Dragon Ball Z.
One big reason for Hearts' relative obscurity is that he comes from Super Dragon Ball Heroes, an ONA series that promotes the card-based arcade game of the same name. Hearts would debut in the sixth episode of the series, titled "I'll Settle This!! Into Operation! Ultra Instinct!" This episode was part of the ONA's Prison Planet Saga, but fans would have to wait until the next saga, dubbed the Universal Conflict Saga, to see Hearts' true power.
A Lot Happens When Hearts And Goku Clash
In this saga, Hearts is revealed to be the leader of the Core Area Warriors, a group consisting of himself, Fused Zamasu, Cumber, Oren, Kamin, and Lagss. Fu had invited this group to participate in his Prison Planet experiment, but they escaped when the planet exploded. At the start of the Universal Conflict Saga, the group makes an impact by sending Oren and Kamin to invade Universe 6. Vegeta and Future Trunks go to fight them, but after a hard battle, Hearts and Fused Zamasu arrive. Hearts pins the Saiyans down with his gravity powers before explaining his plan to the helpless heroes.
Hearts reveals that he has a Universe Seed, a powerful item that can create a new universe or give the user a massive power boost. Hearts plans to use the power of the Universe Seed to kill Zeno and Future Zeno. Hearts believes that once the gods are dead, mortals will be free, as they won't need to fear the gods destroying their world on a whim. Once he has made this declaration, Hearts reads Hit's mind and learns that Universe 11's Jiren is the most powerful warrior in the universe, so he heads there to further power up the seed by defeating Jiren.
As the battle in Universe 11 rages on, a beam of light heralds Goku's arrival. Goku tries to fight Hearts, but Oren and Kamin get in the way, stopping him from clashing with their leader. While Goku deals with Oren and Kamin quickly, he can't get his hands on Hearts as Lagss arrives enveloped in a barrier made of glass shards. Hearts changes gravity to move this barrier towards Goku, who has to use all his energy to break it. However, when he does, Lagss attacks Goku with the shards, badly injuring him. Despite his wounds, Goku tries to fight Hearts again, only to get gravity pinned, forcing Goku to Instant Transmission away to recover. Eventually, Hearts and his gang decide to attack Universe 7.
Knowing this is their last chance to stop them, Goku and his friends prepare for battle, each flying off to fight one of the Core Area Warriors. Goku goes Super Saiyan and attempts to attack Hearts, but Hearts slams Goku into the floor by changing gravity. Even worse, the Universe Seed starts to glow, powering Hearts up. Now free from the gravity well, Goku flies up into the air and confronts Hearts, marking the start of their epic battle. Hearts charges forward, unleashing a massive flurry of punches. While Goku blocks these blows, the force of Hearts' attacks slowly pushes him back. Realizing he's on the back foot, Goku unleashes a wave of energy and transforms into Super Saiyan Blue before rushing forward and taking the battle to Hearts. The pair exchange flurries of strikes before Hearts informs Goku that he's read his mind and knows Goku is always searching for strong opponents.
This is enough to throw Goku off, and Hearts capitalizes by throwing Goku down, causing him to smash through a building. Goku tries to respond with a shower of energy blasts, but Hearts stops them in midair and fires them right back at Goku. Thankfully, Goku starts flying again, smacking away several blasts before landing a punch that sends Hearts soaring backward. Goku tries to capitalize on this opening, and the pair exchange another series of attacks. This flurry ends when Hearts breaks Goku's block, allowing him to hit Goku with a point-blank energy blast. Hearts then launches energy cubes at Goku, but he dodges out of the way and destroys most of them.
Hearts then fires more energy beams, but Goku catches them and fires them back. This hits Hearts, allowing Goku to land some attacks before firing an energy blast that drives Hearts into the floor. Hearts soon emerges from the rubble and pulls Goku close with his gravity powers before pinning him to the floor again. Goku escapes, but Hearts powers up, surrounding himself with energy cubes before unleashing a massive punch that rams Goku into the dirt and knocks him out of Super Saiyan Blue, ending the fight. Goku would return to the battle later, but he would battle Kamioren rather than Hearts. Then, when Hearts transforms into his Ultimate Godslayer form, Goku fuses with Vegeta and fights as Gogeta.
What Makes Goku vs Hearts So Good?
It's easy to see why fans love the battle between Goku and Hearts, as it does so many things right. One of the best things about the fight is Hearts himself, as he's one of modern Dragon Ball's most fascinating and memorable characters. His desire to wipe out the gods to protect mortals from their often irrational moods and tyrannical personalities makes sense, as viewers have frequently been shown that the gods are childish and have no checks on their power. This logical motivation makes Hearts stand out from Super Dragon Ball Heroes villains who are evil just for the thrill of being wicked. These distinctive motivations are enhanced by his unique approach to battle. While dimension-hopping characters are not unusual in Super Dragon Ball Heroes, Hearts takes the concept to the next level by organizing a massive cross-dimensional war. Something that only the most mighty warriors would dare attempt.
This unique methodology leads to plenty of suspense as it's hard to predict the next part of his plan, setting this arc apart from other modern Dragon Ball stories, which can sometimes feel overly predictable due to them following the format the franchise has used for many years. Heart's personality also helps make the fight unusually engrossing. Hearts' casual sadism and immense arrogance make him easy to hate. Because of this, fans get sucked into the show since they don't want to miss the moment when Goku finally gives Hearts what he deserves, which enhances the overall experience of the arc as fans become more emotionally invested in the world and the characters due to their desire to see Hearts get his comeuppance.
Hearts also has a threatening aura, mostly due to how he was introduced. While he was teased at the end of the Prison Planet Saga, fans would need to wait a while before they got to see him in action, as Hearts mostly let the other Core Area Warriors do the dirty work, giving him an air of mystery for the first part of the arc. Plus, putting Hearts in charge of the Core Area Warriors further enhances his threatening aura. Fans of Dragon Ball Super would already know of Fused Zamasu's power and his single-minded dedication to his goals. Having Fused Zamasu return as an underling of another character instantly tells viewers that the character must be a massive threat, as they must be able to take down Fused Zamasu in a one-on-one fight, which is far from easy.
This threatening air only gets more intense when Hearts makes his battlefield debut, as the writers quickly establish that he's a powerful fighter that will take a lot of work to bring down due to his extraordinary powerset. His unique gravity powers are the best example of this. Having him pin down Goku, Trunks, and Vegeta instantly makes it clear that his powers are way beyond what viewers have seen before. This is a power the Z Fighters don't have a counter to, making it feel like they could lose the fight at any moment. This makes Hearts feel like an actual threat, something that's hard to pull off in a show like Super Dragon Ball Heroes, as it rejoices in featuring the franchises' most overpowered characters and forms.
Perhaps most importantly, this fight does a great job of making Goku feel like an underdog. Rather than having Hearts turn up and instantly defeat Goku, the writers frequently have Goku mount a comeback, overwhelming Hearts for a few brief seconds, only for Hearts to retake control and knock Goku back down. This leads to a thrilling fight that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats as it feels like Goku may be in actual danger throughout. Another major reason for this fight's popularity is its pacing. Dragon Ball, especially Dragon Ball Z, is often derided for its overlong fight scenes that outstay their welcome due to their copious padding.
Thankfully, Super Dragon Ball Heroes avoids this as the fight between Goku and Hearts is fast-paced, fitting in many big moments despite its short runtime. At the same time, the fight scene isn't overwhelming, nor does it feel rushed, as it has plenty of ebbs and flows, giving viewers time to catch their breath after big moves. This is enhanced by how varied the fight is. During the battle, there are several surprising and attention-grabbing scenes. Including Hearts punching Goku's energy blasts back at him, a point-blank range energy blast, and Hearts using his gravity powers to throw Goku off-balance. Because of this, the fight is pulse-pounding, as even long-time Dragon Ball super fans won't be able to guess what will happen next.
On top of this, the fight between Goku and Hearts has an intensity and impact that is often missing from modern shōnen fights. Credit must be given to the sound team as they made each attack, be it a punch or energy beam, sound like it had a lot of power behind it. Plus, during the fight, the surrounding area gets utterly destroyed. Goku gets thrown through several buildings, and several attacks crater the ground when the fighter unleashes them. While this damage may seem like a tiny detail, it grounds the combat and contextualizes the power of the attacks, making the overall battle feel infinitely weightier and much more intense.
Another unique thing about this fight is the Universe Seed. It hangs in the sky mysteriously for most of the battle, acting as a constant point of focus. The writers did a great job of telling viewers just enough about it, so they know it's a threat without giving away all the details, meaning that fans are never quite sure when it's going to come into play if it ever will at all. This adds a lot to the battle between Goku and Hearts, as it adds an extra layer of mystery to proceedings while doubling as a soft timer, showing why Goku needs to take down Hearts as soon as possible. Because if he doesn't defeat him quickly enough, the Universe Seed could doom the entire world.
Goku versus Hearts is by far the best fight in Super Dragon Ball Heroes and one of the best fights in modern Dragon Ball. A big reason for this is that Hearts is a memorable villain, with him often feeling like an updated take on classic Dragon Ball Z villains like Cell and Vegeta. Combine this memorable presence with a well-paced fight scene packed full of original choreography and impactful sequences, and it's clear that the team behind Super Dragon Ball Heroes has worked out the recipe for success. Hopefully, Hearts makes his way into the core franchise, so more people can enjoy this unique new Dragon Ball villain and so fans can see him take part in a longer arc that isn't held back by Super Dragon Ball Heroes' ten-minute episode ONA format. Until then, Hearts versus Goku acts as a monument to the fact that the Dragon Ball franchise can still produce amazing, genre-defining fight scenes.
