Oblivion Battery, the latest project of MAPPA Studios, recently released its third episode, and the series has added an interesting element to it. The episode features a scene where the protagonist of the series, Kei Kaname, turns into Goku’s Super Saiyan form, paying homage to the iconic Dragon Ball series by Akira Toriyama.
Oblivion Battery follows the story of a famous baseball battery consisting of genius pitcher Haruka Kiyomine and skilled catcher Kei Kaname, who were some of the best in their fields. However, Kaname lost his memory, and the two entered a no-name public high school. In the same school, they meet several talented players who had quit baseball and together they try to play baseball once again.
As the third episode of Oblivion Battery was released, fans were soon to pick up the cameo of Goku in the series. They went on to X(Formerly Twitter) to share their opinions about the unique way MAPPA paid homage to Goku and Dragon Ball.
Goku’s Cameo in MAPPA’s Oblivion Battery Season 1 Episode 3
Oblivion Battery is based on the manga series by Eko Mikawa. MAPPA started airing the anime series on April 10, 2024. The third episode deals with the newly introduced characters Aoi Todo and Shunpei Chihaya as they reach Kei Kaname’s house to discuss the new practice match that is scheduled against a prominent high school club.
As the episode goes on, it suddenly takes a big turn when Kei’s mother insults his friends, and it enrages Kei so much that he turns into Goku and goes full-on Super Saiyan mode. The powerful aura wraps around him as he tears the sky with his anger. The scene then cuts to all four boys sitting in Kei’s room and discussing what happened to them.
MAPPA surely surprised fans with this tribute to Akira Toriyama and Dragon Ball. However, the animation was a little different, and it even used different sound effects than the ones that TOEI uses to introduce Goku’s Super Saiyan in Dragon Ball. The cameo was unexpected as Dragon Ball is animated by TOEI Animation.
Fans Were Shocked to See MAPPA’s Tribute to Dragon Ball and Goku
As soon as the episode was released, fans were quick to point out the cameo of the strongest Saiyan in the Dragon Ball universe. They instantly went on X and shared their opinion about Goku making a return to the anime world after so long.
While some fans were annoyed with MAPPA introducing Goku in their anime series, others were happy to see MAPPA showing their own rendition of the iconic character from Toriyama’s magnum opus.
Many even pointed out that MAPPA’s animation for Goku might be even better than what TOEI did in Dragon Ball Super’s season 1.
Super Saiyan Goku Easter egg in Oblivion Battery Episode 3 by MAPPA.pic.twitter.com/yGJHIz30Fa
— SUPER クロニクルス (@SupaChronicles) April 23, 2024
This looks better than the official DBS Season 1 Toei Animation 😅
— Lord Aizen (@LordAizenBankai) April 23, 2024
THIS IS THE BEST THINGEST EVWR IM GONNA DIE OH MY GOSH THAT S LITERALLY JUST GOKU STRAIGHT FROM COLORED MANGA BY TORIYAMA OH MY GOSH AAAAAAAAAAH https://t.co/XoYfbZWfCt pic.twitter.com/ZQQFAiJ2GS
— Jane/Jade🏳️⚧️🇵🇸 (@JadeOpal16) April 23, 2024
THIS IS LITERALLY TORI'S OLD STYLE ANIMATED ITS SO GOOD 🥺 https://t.co/fbCWTSyy2o
— Mew_👺 Comms Open (@Mew_CilonArt) April 23, 2024
mappa doing dbs… https://t.co/U1rE6nqSAv pic.twitter.com/HAD9PBgB0k
— 𝕏-𝙎𝙊𝙇𝘿𝙄𝙀𝙍 𝐤𝐚𝐦𝐢 (@afrokami) April 23, 2024
they understand the hair color better than toei https://t.co/08JlJv16bK
— Eiichiro Takeba (@adachifortnite) April 23, 2024
Although this was a delightful surprise for Dragon Ball and Goku’s fans, this is not the first time Goku or Dragon Ball in general has made a cameo in another anime or manga series. References from iconic series have been introduced in series like Jujutsu Kaisen, Solo Leveling, Dr. Stone, etc.
You can watch Oblivion Battery on Crunchyroll.
