Dragon Ball Theory Pitches Cooler's Canon Comeback

A Dragon Ball Super theory breaks down how Frieza's brother Cooler could make a major return in canon.

A new Dragon Ball theory is breaking down the ways in which Freeza's infamous brother Cooler can make a comeback in some official Dragon Ball canon!

Over on Dragon Ball Reddit, a fan named NitneuDust goes deep into the current canon storyline that's unfolding in the Dragon Ball Super manga. The latest twist development was the debut of Black Frieza, the evil overlord's latest form, which is superior in power to Goku's True Ultra Instinct form, and Vegeta's Ultra Ego powers, combined! 

As the theory lays out, the backstory to Black Frieza is one great opportunity for Dragon Ball to re-introduce Cooler. It was brought up that in the "Resurrection F" story arc, Frieza utilized one of his Frieze Force henchmen, Tagoma, as a sparring partner (read: punching bag), in order to raise his power level and unlock his Golden Frieza form; it is therefore logical that Frieza would need a training partner to unlock his Black Frieza form, even while training in a Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Given the massive power differential between Gold and Black Frieza, it's also not crazy to think that Frieza would need a stronger, more durable partner to push his limits. Cooler could very well be revealed to be that partner. 

The theory goes on to speculate the ways in which Dragon Ball Super could re-introduce Cooler: as Frieza's powered-up partner or ally; as a more anti-heroic figure opposing his overlord brother, or as someone in the middle of those two roles. Cooler was introduced as being somewhat at odds with his little brother, so there's room for interpretation of the character within canon – just like we saw with Broly. 

What would you like to see? 

Who Is Dragon Ball's Cooler? 

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(Photo: Toei Animation)

Cooler is the eldest son of King Cold and therefore Frieza's older brother. Like the character of Broly, Cooler was introduced to Dragon Ball during the era of Dragon Ball Z movies that were released in the 1990s. Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge was released in 1991; Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler followed in 1992. The films made Cooler into a fan-favorite icon of the Dragon Ball franchise alongside Broly, and his legacy continued on in Dragon Ball video games and artwork for decades after his debut. 

More recently, the Dragon Ball franchise gave Cooler a new spotlight via the Super Dragon Ball Heroes promo anime, which has gotten more popular over the last few years, when no other Dragon Ball anime has been available. Cooler got to stand with Goku fighting the Evil Saiyan Cumber, even though he was overwhelmed in the fight.  

Super Dragon Ball Heroes releases new anime episodes online.