Dragon Ball Super‘s first movie, Dragon Ball Super: Broly, is going to be making some big twist changes to Dragon Ball’s core mythos, but that doesn’t mean that there ‘s not also going to be time to introduce some new characters into Dragon Ball lore!
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Two of the most conspicuous new character’s being introduced in Dragon Ball Super: Broly are no doubt “Chelye” and “Lemo,” who will be voiced in the film by actors Nana Mizuki and Tomokazu Sugita (respectively), two experienced anime performers (Naruto, Fullmetal Alchemist, One Piece) that will be newcomers to the Dragon Ball franchise. In some recent interviews, both actors opened up to reveal more about what their characters will be bringing to the table. Check out what they had to say, below!
Chelye: “Chelye is a member of Freeza’s army. She stole a Galactic Patrol spaceship, and once this was discovered she joined Freeza’s army to escape her pursuers. She’s only heard of Freeza from rumors. (@Herms98)“
According to Mizuki: “Toriyama-sensei draws what you might call incredibly expressive characters. In a series that features constant serious battles, my character Chelye handles the more laid-back, slice-of-life parts. She’s a bit of a hoodlum, but also very cute (laughs).
Lemo: “Lemo is an old veteran of the rear guard, and he has served since Freeza’s father King Cold led the army. Since he’s not a combatant, he’s only ever glimpsed Freeza at their space station and has never met him face-to-face. (@Herms98)“
According to Sugita: “For my performance as Lemo, I focused on not making him sound like a bad guy, even if he said coldhearted or abusive things. Lemo is a kind person underneath it all. He’s a sly yet warm-hearted character, so I was highly focused on that part of the performance.”
The interview also turned up some interesting details about how the two new characters will relate to one another – and more importantly, what their connection to Broly is!
As Mizuki reveals about Chelye:
“Her relationship with Lemo is such that she doesn’t start off calling him “Lemo-san” or anything polite like that. Rather, they talk in the style of the hoodlum world’s hierarchy, calling each other “sis” and “bro” (laughs). Then after overcoming hardships together, their relationship develops to the point where they refer to one another without any honorifics. Also, it is precisely because Lemo is a grown-up that he lets Chelye’s youthful statements slide. He’s like an amazing father, or a tender life instructor (laughs).”
And Sugita adds:
“I initially figured my character Lemo would resort to cowardly tactics and then get defeated by Broly, but I was pleasantly surprised to find he’s portrayed as someone with a different viewpoint which supplements Broly’s irregular power. Despite being a depiction of strength, you can’t show Broly only from the perspective of other strong people; frankly I think you also need a weak person’s point of view. The weak Lemo kind-heartedly accepts Broly, while Chelye faces Broly’s power head-on. So it’s like Lemo and Chelye balance each other out.”
It sounds as though Lemo and Chelye will somehow come up against Broly during the film – whether it’s because they are assigned to the job by Freeza, or stumble across the Saiyan warrior and realize the powerful weapon that he could be. Dragon Ball has several sets of henchman characters used for comedic effect (see: the Pilaf Gang), so Chelye and Lemo could be simply carrying on that tradition. We’ll know for sure either when the movie comes out, or when the next trailer reveals more.
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. ET. 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.