Did 'Dragon Ball Super' Just Nerf Kefla?

The Dragon Ball Super manga has been taking a very different path through the Tournament of Power [...]

By Kofi Outlaw - August 20, 2018 03:22 pm EDT

The Dragon Ball Super manga has been taking a very different path through the Tournament of Power than the anime did, and has been making some big changes that have fans wondering about canon. Kale and Caulifla have been especially interesting in how their respective powers have been portrayed in the manga - and now it seems their fused power as Kefla is being revised, as well!

The latest chapter of the Dragon Ball Super manga had a much-anticipated fight between Gohan and Kefla, and the outcome of that battle has some fans up in arms. See for yourself:

Kefla: "You look awful."
Gohan: "You too."
Goku: "Gohan!"
Gohan: "Sorry, father...the rest is up to you." //t.co/SQe2hO9bbN
— Todd Blankenship (@Herms98) August 17, 2018

As you can see, Gohan powered up and and battled Kefla - a fight which ended in both Saiyan warriors knocking each other out of the ring. While it was a great fight on paper (literally), the fact that it ended in a double ring out has a lot fans feeling some kind of way! For everyone who feels that this is Gohan getting the sort of standout moment he never did in the anime's Tournament of Power, there's another fan wondering what this manga Kefla arc means for the power level rankings of Dragon Ball's Sayain characters.

Gohan's power was thought to have waned greatly in the time span of Dragon Ball Super. In the anime, he's ranked below the final Universe 7 fighters in the ToP, including Freeza, Android 17, Vegeta and Goku. Meanwhile, the anime's debut of Kefla required Goku to step up and manifest Ultra Instinct "Omen" for the second time, in order to beat that fused warrior. Taking both of those staples of the anime into account (Gohan's lowered power, and Kefla's provoking of Goku's Ultra Instinct), it's clear that the Dragon Ball Super manga has nerfed Kefla's power level.

It's an ironic change, given that the manga depicted both Kale and Caulifla as more power than their anime counterparts - especially Kale, with her more direct connections to the Legendary Super Saiyan myth. Scroll below to see what Dragon Ball fans are saying about this pivotal Gohan vs. Kefla fight - and it's canon-shaking outcome!

Popular Opinion

Here's how Dragon Ball fans are feeling about the Gohan vs. Kefla fight:

Fun Poll since y'all tweets are so divisive.
Do you like the outcome of this fight?
— Crt (@taddlelegacy) August 17, 2018

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Homage Easter Egg

Gohan's fight was meant to be an echo of one of Goku's classic manga battles:

Also back at it with the homages. pic.twitter.com/9TzX5LPrhD
— Crt (@taddlelegacy) August 17, 2018

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There's a Storm Brewing

Fans who got an early look at this manga chapter already know what kind bomb this is going to be, when it goes off in fan discussion threads!

Also back at it with the homages. pic.twitter.com/9TzX5LPrhD
— Crt (@taddlelegacy) August 17, 2018

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Does This Even Work?

The biggest debate is, of course, whether Dragon Ball is (once again?) violating its own rules and mythos for the sake of a frivolous powered-up bout.

Manga Kefla is part of a kale that fought golden freeza and mastered blue goku pretty evenly. It still fails as a narrative
— RadChad (@TheRaddestChad) August 17, 2018

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Split Decision

Some fans who love both the manga and anime Kefla battles are having a hard time in this increasingly partisan debate!

I am REALLY mixed on this fight. I like Gohan got a moment, dont get how he beat Kefla. Really liked how Kefla pushed Goku to UI, dont like how all Goku did was dodge to win. Both fights have good aspects, but also heavy flaws when it comes to scaling.
— SSGeneration (@DoubleSSGen) August 17, 2018

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Best of Both Worlds

Other fans are so much split over the manga/anime versions of Kefla as they are happy that both versions exist to balance out their desires.

I would’ve been sad if Gohan lost because he’s my fave but I also would’ve been bothered if kefla lost due to the anime’s power scaling, so i can live with this
— Trezion Belmont (@Hero_Trezion) August 17, 2018

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The Lazy Way Out

For some fans, this Gohan / Kefla double K.O. was just an excuse for the creative team NOT to have to weigh the question of which character is actually the more powerful, and how that would affect the canon power rankings.

I don’t like draws, especially if the fight choreography is just both characters doing the same move to each other. Shit is lazy
— Sun Wu-Bong (@thug_nasty_thug) August 17, 2018

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Kefla Deserved Better

Even though the manga gave Kale and Caulifla a lot more backstory, some fans still think the anime did it better:

I don’t like draws, especially if the fight choreography is just both characters doing the same move to each other. Shit is lazy
— Sun Wu-Bong (@thug_nasty_thug) August 17, 2018

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What Should've Happened

You KNOW Dragon Ball fans always have their own crazy list of demands for how these fights and power-ups should go, so without further ado:

Gohan should have gotten a zenkai boost, reached a level around/in between SSGSS and eventually get knocked out by Dyspo/jiren/Toppo layer after exhausting his power.. then goku would do the same thing later with Mastered UI, but take out Jiren(with help of course)
— AviasTlamunus (@ATlamunus) August 17, 2018

******

How do you feel about this manga version of Kefla's battle with Gohan - and its controversial outcome? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Dragon Ball Super: Broly will hit Japanese theaters in December, and is expected to arrive in the U.S. around mid-January 2019. Dragon Ball Super is currently airing its English dub on Adult Swim during the Toonami programming block Saturday evenings at 9:30 p.m. It is also available to stream on Funimation and Amazon Video. The Japanese language release of the series is complete, and available to stream on Funimation, VRV, and Crunchyroll.

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