Broly, the rough and tough addition to Goku’s team first debuted as a misguided antagonist in the Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie. Akira Toriyama later introduced him in Dragon Ball Super manga, which made him canon, and he is currently a healthy rival to Goku and Vegeta.
Broly is distinguishable due to his muscular physique, which sharply contrasts with Goku and Vegeta’s comparatively slender bodies. But did you know that his character design was perfected only after rounds of trials and tribulations?
Broly was Designed Under Strict Supervision by Akira Toriyama
In an interview, Naohiro Shintani, the animation supervisor for the Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie, revealed the behind-the-scenes of creating Broly. Shintani was asked about the designs for all the new characters that had appeared in the movie.
To this, Shintani replied that he drew Cheelai and Lemo (Frieza Force veterans) pretty much from the designs provided by Akira Toriyama. However, Broly was a different story. The only design he had received for the character was him wearing his armor, and it gave off a completely different impression than before.
Personally, I had a very strong image of Broly based on the previous movies, so I created my own design for him at Full Power from scratch.
The supervisor accepted that the image of Broly in his head was too strong to ignore, which made him want to create the character from scratch. He even admitted that he had the urge to see Broly lose his top to run wild at some point in the series. But Akira Toriyama had some strict instructions in mind:
Toriyama had stated that he didn’t want him to be overly macho, so I aimed to make him look as huge as possible, yet still within the confines of not going overboard with it.
Now, you might wonder how Broly could not be overly macho. He is the ‘macho-est’ character in Dragon Ball. While that is true, the early character designs for Broly made him seem like a Baki character. So the version you see now is pretty toned down.
How is the Past Broly Different Than the Present One?
The Dragon Ball Z Broly is completely different than the Dragon Ball Super Broly. According to the animation supervisor of the Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie:
The past Broly was nothing but a dangerous guy (laughs). But this time, there are scenes that humanize him.
Indeed, the Broky from Dragon Ball Z Broly had green hair and was a quiet but fierce character. His violent and maniacal side took over more often in the previous anime. However, in Dragon Ball Super, Broly is a sensitive guy whose character has been properly fleshed out.
If you read the latest chapters of Dragon Ball Super, you will know that Broly has stabilized his power and is in control of it during battles. He has also become an important part of Goku’s group.
You can read Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Super on Viz Media and watch the anime on Crunchyroll.
