Dragon Ball Super, Vol. 4: Last Chance for Hope

ドラゴンボール超 [Dragon Ball Super] #4

by Akira Toriyama, Toyotaro (Illustrator)

Ever since Goku became Earth’s greatest hero and gathered the seven Dragon Balls to defeat the evil Boo, his life on Earth has grown a little dull. But new threats loom overhead, and Goku and his friends will have to defend the planet once again in this continuation of Akira Toriyama’s best-selling series, Dragon Ball!

Goku Black's identity has been revealed as Zamas, the Lord of Lords from Universe 10! But he's not alone - his counterpart from the parallel universe has teamed up with him and thanks to the Super Dragon Balls, they are nearly unstoppable! In the present, Goku trains with Master Roshi to perfect the Mafu-ba to seal Zamas away. Meanwhile, Kaio-Shin takes Lord Gawas, Zamas's mentor to the parallel universe to confront his former pupil!

Genres: Manga, Fiction, Comics, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Action, Shonen

200 pages, Paperback

First published November 2, 2017

About the author

Akira Toriyama (鳥山明) was a Japanese manga artist and character designer. He first achieved mainstream recognition for creating the popular manga series Dr. Slump, before going on to create Dragon Ball (his most famous work) and acting as a character designer for several popular video games such as the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. Toriyama came to be regarded as one of the most important authors in the history of manga with his works highly influential and popular, particularly Dragon Ball, which many manga artists cite as a source of inspiration.
He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen/shōjo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended.
His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold 260 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling manga series of all time and is considered a key work in increasing manga circulation to its peak in the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting anime's popularity in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts.
In October 2024, Toriyama was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.

Reviews

[Khurram · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great Dargon Ball Super book. This is different to the cartoon series, I really like that they try harder to to explain why and how certain things happened even from earlier book.

I especially like the was more technique and tactic are used in the fight it is not just that the character suddenly becomes more powerful, the training to strengthen their bodies to become stronger, but the fight IQ to see weakness in their opponents, and the best use of their powers to overcome these weakness, as well as secrets about certain characters is revealed.

A great addition to the series I can't wait to see what happens next and where the comic go from here.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goku Black and Zamas, the evil Lord of Lords, want to kill everyone and everything because Silly Bad Guy Motivation – Goku and Vegeta gotta team up and stop ‘em!

Yeah… Dragon Ball Super is unfortunately still turrible. Black and Zamas aren’t very compelling protagonists – their aims are too generic, they’re predictably unstoppable (until they’re not), and their powers are meh. Their designs are uninspired too.

The story is no great shakes: Goodies vs Baddies for the fate of the world – very bland. The plotting ranges from formulaic – endless fighting – to contrived – Goku’s running out of senzu beans; luckily Future Trunks suddenly has healing powahs!

Akira Toriyama continues to play to fans’ nostalgia HARD so a number of classic Dragon Ball touchstones are here: the Lord of Lords, Future Trunks, the potara earrings, senzu beans, the mafu-ba, even Vegerot makes an appearance. There’s some sorta-new aspects like Super Saiyan God (red) and Super Saiyan Blue but it’s literally just Super Saiyan with a different colour!? Le sigh.

Some of the fighting isn’t bad – Zamas’ use of portals against Goku was imaginative - Dragon Ball still does fight scenes better than any other comic. And there was an amusing moment with the Turtle Master and the talisman seal. Toyotarou’s art remains excellent too and near-indiscernible from Toriyama’s.

Doesn’t add up to much though, eh? The new stuff is dull, the old stuff is equally so in repetition (unless you’re a mindless fanboy), and the series continues to be shrug-worthy. Dragon Ball Super, Volume 4: Hope is hopelessly boring.

[Urbon Adamsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

EN Although I still love reading this series, I have to admit I miss some innovation. It feels like every new Dragon Ball adventure comes down to yet another enemy stronger than the previous ones, forcing our heroes to face extreme challenges until they inevitably find a way to win.

On top of that, there are now too many different types of Super Saiyan — Pink, Red, Blue... it’s getting a bit ridiculous. *laughs*

To be fair, the new villains are still interesting and the fight dynamics remain engaging, but this new multiverse context doesn’t help much either. Whenever the story leans on parallel universes, it feels like the authors are stretching ideas rather than coming up with new ones.

Still, it remains a very enjoyable read — I’d just love to see a bit more freshness and originality.

--

PT Apesar de continuar a adorar ler esta série, confesso que sinto falta de alguma inovação. Parece que cada nova aventura de Dragon Ball se resume a mais um inimigo ainda mais poderoso do que os anteriores, obrigando os nossos heróis a superar dificuldades extremas até, inevitavelmente, encontrarem uma forma de o derrotar.

Além disso, já começam a existir demasiadas variações de Super Saiyan — Rosa, Vermelho, Azul... está a tornar-se um pouco absurdo. *risos*

É verdade que os novos vilões continuam a ser interessantes e as dinâmicas dos combates mantêm-se envolventes, mas este novo contexto multiversal também não ajuda. Sempre que a história recorre a universos paralelos, parece que os autores estão a esticar as ideias em vez de as renovar.

Ainda assim, continua a ser uma leitura muito divertida — apenas gostava de ver um pouco mais de frescura e originalidade.

[Molly™☺ · Rating 3 out of 5]

More power ups, more action, less substance. In its simplest form, it's just one long fighting sequence with seemingly zero stakes. However, this is very much expected when it comes to Dragon Ball, and those who've read the rest of the series will get a sense of deja vu.

[Monsour · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so much better than the anime


This follows the same storyline of the show yet much more detailed. Some of the dialogue actually explains alot of things and theirs some scene in the show that they totally fix here. Toyorato also add alot of stuff in this manga that make total scene if you watch the entirety of the show.

-They fix the power scale


-They fix how Trunks survived Zamasu X Zamasu while Goku/Vegita retreat

-Supream Kai is actually useful here


-They fix the Mafuba


-He also add Vegita Red/God(which make sense)



I also really love Toyotaro's art style in this manga. It copies the old Toriyama art with its own twist.

[Lashaan Balasingam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm still having trouble appreciating this new series as it essentially just plays with nostalgia rather than develop new ideas and designs. A lot of its plot twist moments are related to past story elements and it's done so in a predictable fashion.

What's most sad about it all is its new super saiyan forms that essentially just play with colours. There aren't any new artistic designs whatsoever to make them more compelling.

At least the ongoing arc is a bit interesting with its play on time and parallel worlds but it still struggles in fully embracing those concepts alongside all the battle scenes.

Yours truly,

Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/

[Tiag⊗ the Mutant · Rating 3 out of 5]

These new power levels are a total nonsensical mess, other than that, the series continues to be rather entertaining.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

back in the present Goku trains with Master Roshi to learn how to seal Zamas aka Goku Black away.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vegeto returns!!!

Black Goku is pretty much whooping everyone's ass. When Goku and Vegeta return to their time they both undergo different types of training. Then when they return they go to battle once more. Vegeta has learned a few new tricks but so as goku. But as the battle heads up Goku Black does a cheap little move that puts Vegeta and Goku on the fence. It's time for Fusion once more!

This is a lot of fun. I loved watching goku and vegeta power up to new forms and also fusing once more. The battles are big but also pretty damn fun. Not so much ki blast and big attacks but actual fighting. There's also still the signature humor here. Goku's training though was kind of stupid and I wish they made other character's useful besides Goku and Vegeta.

Overall, fun as heck. Dragon Ball Super is just a lot of fun and hope it remains this way. A 4 out of 5.

[Christian Schultheiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alright… here we go, we finally are starting to ramp up to the “super” levels in this manga and I’ve loving it. Getting to experience Zamasu in his ultimate combination form was just awesome to experience again, along with goku and vegeta’s saiyan blue fusion the first time, but unlike the show did, this volume really holds you on a cliff hanger for the next one.

[Mason Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dragon Ball is just so ridiculous but so much fun. Loving the tropes they bring back in this one

[Hazel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Continúa la batalla en el futuro de Trunks. Este tomo 4 es el mejor de lo que llevamos de serie hasta ahora. Tenemos combates muy interesantes y frenéticos, un enemigo al que parece imposible de derrotar y el regreso de técnicas olvidadas como el mafúba.

El dibujo de Toyotaro ha mejorado claramente, aunque se nota todavía que faltan cosas por pulir. En cuanto a historia, el manga en este arco supera claramente al anime. Por lo menos nos explican alguna cosilla más, y eso se agradece.

Un plus por la entrevista al final al dúo Toriyama/Toyotaro.

El próximo tomo, el desenlace :p.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goku always pushes his limits. We already know, thanks to the last part of the last time in BDZ, that he’s going to be okay, but there has to be some limit over how strong he can get, right?
In this volume, we also see more of Vegeta’s development. I think he’s more strategic than Goku.

[Sion Valdes · Rating 4 out of 5]

No puedo decir que es mi tomo favorito pues tiene muchos detalles que contradicen lo antes visto, como el hecho de que digan que Zamas no es un supremo Kaio a pesar de que antes lo vimos usar el anillo del tiempo (elemento que solo puede usar un supremo Kaio, dicho en un tomo anterior) o el hecho de que Vegeta tenga el SSJG, teniendo en cuenta que se necesitaba de un ritual para hacerlo (y nunca se dice si lo hizo o no) Aún asi hay muchas cosas que puedo decir que me gustaron, si bien no mencione el SSJG de Vegeta como algo positivo, me gusta la dinámica que hacen de intercalar el SSJG y SSJ Blue para poder evitar el desgaste de energía, y el perfeccionamiento del SSJ Blue por parte de Goku (En mi opinión lo mejor del tomo) también debo decir que Toyotaro se lució con los dibujos, tienen detalles increíbles y un sombreado que no se ve normalmente en un manga de Dragon Ball. Mi veredicto final es 4/5 estrellas

[Omargg7785 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un enemigo poderoso, Goku y Vegeta dándolo todo con nuevas transformaciones, fusiones, viaje al futuro.... Más de lo mismo, sí, pero nos encanta esta mierda.

[Marvin benitez · Rating 5 out of 5]

zamas and black goku fused to create god zamas vegeta and yes more that half the book is fighting. this book is interesting if you like reading Naruto are demon slayer the fight ends in book 5 but book 4 is my favorite so far.

[James Rossetti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great introduction to fused zamasu

[the_deepest_black]

Don't make sense anymore...

[Matty F · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mega

[Nikhil Math]

Pretty good ending for a great arc

[Ben Nealis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than volume three. For being my least favorite arc in the franchise this volume really improved how I feel about the story. I'm enjoying it much more than I did watching the anime. I feel like even though there are some things pulled from thin air that the audience had no idea of knowing at times it's much better done and even explained at times in the manga. A great scene between Vegeta and Future Trunks is always appreciated and Goku proving that he's still a (literal) God teir martial artist is and not just full of overwhelming ki attacks is nice to see in super. Overall a good volume.

[Ola G · Rating 2 out of 5]

4/10 stars

Nothing good here except for some fight scenes. Goku Black is just sooo boringly bland. I wasn't a fan of Cell storyline in the original DB, but at least the Cell stuff had a modicum of originality - here it's just old ideas, regurgitated and clad in new (and worse) clothing of Toyotaro's art.
Honestly, it increasingly looks like a cash-grab: lots of nostalgia-fueled nods to old fans and a storyline that seems new only when read with closed eyes. The baffling proliferation of gods on all levels doesn't help, either.

Dragon Ball has sure expanded, but seems to have lost its soul in the process.

[Jakyro · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume continues the Goku Black storyline. After Goku and Vegeta take on Goku Black and Zamas it seems their opponents are tougher then they thought. They have to make a run for it and use the time machine to return back in time, leaving Trunks and Mai behind. Both Trunks and Mai also succeed in escaping thanks to Gowas and Kaio Shin. While this has been happening, Goku has been working on a way to destroy their opponents. He returns in the end with Vegeta to try again and finally finish off Goku Black / Zamas.

Again a good continuation of the story with a lot of big fights, and multiple twists and turns. We have the returning of fusion as well with Vegeto, but also this isn't good enough to end Goku Black / Zamas. You could ask yourself the question how they will ever put an end to these two.

It stays a fun read so I'll definitely continue

[Chelsea · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Goku Black arc continues. Zamas and other Zamas continue eradicating all mortal life on Earth. Vegeta and Goku switch between Saiyan God form and Super Saiyan Blue but because the manga is in black and white it's really hard to follow. Weird rule changes to the Potara earrings were introduced and then immediately changed again only a few panels later for the convenience of plot. The timeline and time travel junk got even more convoluted. Trunks also had some weird new healing properties that came out of nowhere. The Vegeta reminiscing about Bulma was sweet and literally the only piece of character work this four volume series has introduced yet.

So, the series continues to disappoint.

[Logan Harrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

9/10:
Focusing on the fight against Zamas was a smart move, as this volume adds a lot of lore to the Saiyans and practices of fusion that don’t feel overly complicated. It’s so interesting to see Vegeta turn towards Goku as a brother in combat and even risking his own life for Goku’s sake. Excited to see how this conflict ends!

[Terra Epsilon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Z jednej strony Zamasu - jeden z ciekawszych antagonistów w Dragon Ballu. Ktoś, kogo nie można nazwać złym z samego faktu bycia złym, ale popadania w coraz większą obsesję. Ten tom to dosłownie peak jego szaleństwa i obserwowanie jak z chwili na chwilę coraz bardziej w nim się zatraca, aż do momentu, gdy zyskuje ogromną siłę… i jakiekolwiek hamulce, które mógł mieć do tej pory pękają. On nie był potworem, on się nim dopiero stał i mogliśmy cały czas oglądać tę drogę.

Z drugiej jednak strony… im bardziej zaczęłam się zastanawiać CO dokładnie się dzieje, tym bardziej miałam ochotę dać komuś w łeb. Ja wiem, że logika w świecie DB jest czasem traktowana jak szmata do podłogi, jednak tym razem zbliżyło się to do granicy mojej cierpliwości. W czym problem? Choćby w Mafubie. Jak cieszę się, że w końcu przypomniano sobie, że bohaterowie mają takiego asa w rękawie… tak byłoby za prosto, no nie? To zdecydowanie technika zbyt OP i użycie jej pozamiatałoby. Tylko szkoda było kończyć historię w takim momencie. Więc sprawę Mafuby trzeba było jakoś załatwić - tylko czemu w tak idiotyczny sposób!
Ale przede wszystkim - GDZIE, DO CHOLERY, JEST ZENO? Serio nie zauważył, że wszyscy bogowie nie żyją i zrobił się jakiś taki, no nie wiem, pierdolnik?

Tylko że koniec końców, nieważne jak zła bym była na głupotę scenariusza… Zamasu i walka z nim znów mnie udobruchały. Bo głupoty głupotami, ale cała ta walka była po prostu świetna! Vegeta, który może i użył wcześniejszego pomysłu Goku, ale był w stanie go udoskonalić. I znów - pomimo całej swojej dumy - wiedział, kiedy przestać i cofnąć się o krok dając pole Goku. Najpierw w sprawie fuzji, później przyznając, że tylko on ma szanse wygrać. Można to nazwać powtórką z sagi Buu, ale ja patrzę na to jak na dowód, że Vegeta odrobił tamtą lekcję i naprawdę jest innym człowiekiem. Nadal dumnym i upartym, ale przyznającym, że są rzeczy ważniejsze od jego dumy.

[Hafeez · Rating 5 out of 5]

VOLUME 4: CHAPTER 21-24
Arc 3: "Future" Trunks Saga

Gowasu and Shin from the present timeline save Trunks and Mai, then they retreat to the realm of the Lord of Lords. Gowasu coming back to Earth to try persuade Goku Black. With no hesitation, Goku Black stabs Gowasu. Goku and Vegeta arrived and help heals Gowasu and Shin. Vegeta fights Goku Black by switching Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan Blue over and over again. Goku faced Zamasu and used the Mafuba on Zamasu. But, Goku forgot the seal and Zamasu managed to escape from being seal. Zamasu and Goku Black fused using the Potara earring and become one entity, God Zamasu. According to Gowasu, the fusion between Lord of Lords will stay permanent. But, the fusion between mortal only last for 1 hour. Goku and Vegeta fused using the Potara earring and become Vegito. Vegito fights God Zamasu with Super Saiyan Blue but suddenly they were splitted. Super Saiyan Blue is too strong and make the fusion unstable. Vegeta trying to hold God Zamasu. Trunks was adopted as apprentice to the Lord of Lords and he possessed the healing ability. He heals Goku and Goku rejoin the battle. He turned to Super Saiyan Blue and managed to seal the overflowing energy of the Super Saiyan Blue. He fights God Zamasu with the complete Super Saiyan Blue.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

The battle: Zamas and Goku Black (who is really Zamas from the future) vs. Goku and Vegeta continues!
After spending a long time learning a technique called Mafu-Ba (which will allow an immortal being to be trapped inside a sealed jar), Goku and Vegeta (who spent his time training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber) head back to Future Trunks timeline. The battle continues, but really doesn't heat up until Zamas and Goku Black perform a Potara Earring Fusion, making Fused Zamas! With the arrival of Lord of Lords (or what they call Supreme Kai in the anime), they find out that a Potara Fusion isn't permanent if you aren't a Lord of Lords, so they should be able to fuse for an hour. Bring on Vegerot (Vegeto in the anime)!
The power of their fusion only lasts for a few minutes, having burned through the energy with Super Saiyan Blue, but the fight isn't over. That fusion pushed Goku's knowledge over the edge and allows him to use Super Saiyan Blue without overstraining his body, perfecting the technique.
The battle continues on!

Looking forward to the next Volume, but I am ahead of this in the anime. Want to see where it goes... Recommend.

[Markus Broyles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I look down on existence from a much higher perspective than you do. I witness this world, this universe and the truth of all things. That yields deeper understanding. Wisdom. The realization that all mortals should be destroyed. The one and only mistake among all divine creations. That is what mortals are. And this mistake is egregious. To shape existence into the beautiful utopia it was always meant to be, the mistake must be corrected. I will purge all mortals from existence in place of the gods WHO REFUSE TO ADMIT FAILURE!!". Goku Black (ゴクウブラック Gokū Burakku), usually referred to as Black, is the main antagonist of the "Future" Trunks Saga of Dragon Ball Super. His true identity is the original present Zamasu (ザマス Zamasu), a former North Kai and Supreme Kai apprentice serving the Supreme Kai of Universe 10, Gowasu, from the unaltered main timeline, in which he stole the body of the original present Goku with the Super Dragon Balls and sought to destroy all mortals alongside Future Zamasu.[3] He was then given the name "Goku Black" by Future Bulma when he initially referred to himself as Goku

[CharlyyGentlePhoenix · Rating 4 out of 5]

DB Super s'essouffle-il ?
Pfiou c'est compliqué ! Zamasu, qui est à la fois Black Goku et Kaio Shin se bat contre Goku, pendant que Végéta se castagne Black Goku « devenu Rosé »... (Me demandez pas ce que ça veut dire...).
La première partie est sans pitié, trop peu d'évolution par rapport au tome 3...
Quant aux combats, ils sont ce qui compte et très inégaux en début de tome, ça se rattrape après mais c'est trop tard, on a perdu quelque chose.
Page 64 l'idée de revoir Vegetto est aguichante... Ça « démarre » enfin.
L'humour est aussi présent, ce qui est un plus. Les potalas se voient « simplifiés » ; )...
Page 108 Zamasu semble utiliser « La Force » aussi bien que Dark Vador lui-même.
Le méchant est très très méchant (lol!) comme on en voit qu'au cinéma !! « Que tout le monde disparaisse à part moi ! » …
Page 115 Vegetto apparaît enfin, ce Sayen mythique né de l'union entre Son Goku et Végéta. Il domine complétement son adversaire, qui lui aussi a utilisé les potalas. Vegetto est presque au même niveau que Beerus.
Je met 4/5 car il a été très dur à démarrer avec des petits combats sans enjeux. Les affrontements de la fin, eux, sont glorieux.