This Dragon Ball Vs One Punch Man Animated Movie Is Too Good To Be True
Fan films are an excellent way for budding filmmakers to take well-known properties and tell a story Hollywood would never put into production. It gets the director some notoriety, and in many cases, the fan film may be the best adaptation of a property. Now, the YouTube channel Etoilec1 Animations has put together a stellar movie showing what would happen if Goku from "Dragon Ball Z" and Saitama from "One-Punch Man" were to duke it out.
The animation is solid, looking like it came from a legit anime studio. It begins with Goku making a wish after collecting all the Dragon Balls. He's grown bored and wants to fight the strongest human on the planet, which naturally turns out to be Saitama. Goku simply wants someone to pass the time, and even though Saitama has his usual laid-back attitude, he realizes that if he defeats Goku, he may get upgraded to S rank. What follows is a battle for the ages as the two don't hold back when it comes to their brawl. You'll have to watch the movie for yourself to see how it all plays out.
It's a fun mash-up that's already garnered millions of views. Fans have flooded the comments praising the film, with one user writing, "That was so badass and extremely well executed. Felt like I was watching a real collab between the two animation studios the entire time. Can't wait for the next episode." In the battle between the man with numerous hairstyles and the guy with none, the real winner in the end turns out to be the fans.
Who would win in a real mash-up between Goku and Saitama?
Pairing Goku with Saitama is interesting. Goku is pretty much the first character people think of when the topic of anime protagonists comes up. He's the embodiment of more action-based anime. Meanwhile, Saitama and "One-Punch Man" as a whole function as a parody of that genre. Saitama is purposefully overpowered, able to defeat most opponents with a single punch, leading to a ton of existential dread and boredom. Comparing the power levels of anime characters is commonplace in certain circles, so it begs the question of which combatant would win in a fight.
The answer may be a bit anticlimactic. The whole joke of Saitama is that he's overpowered beyond ideas of common sense. He can defeat anyone with minimal effort, and one would assume that would apply to Goku. He doesn't have much in the way of upgrades, but Goku comes with numerous powers. He flies, uses energy blasts, and enhances his strength with Super Saiyan forms. He may give Saitama a run for his money, but there's no telling if Saitama could do what Goku does if he applied himself beyond 100 sit-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 squats, and going on a 10 km run.
The real question is whether Saitama would even want to fight Goku in the first place. The fan film plays it up as a friendly bout between the two. More than anything, the two would probably enjoy ramen together before wanting to fight each other.