What stories still need to be resolved after Dragon Ball Super: Broly? Following a period in the wilderness, Dragon Ball was revived in 2013 with the well-received Battle of Gods movie, soon followed by a sequel in Resurrection F and the anime TV series Dragon Ball Super. Goku's latest big screen outing came in 2018 with Dragon Ball Super: Broly, turning the titular Legendary Super Saiyan from an unofficial fan-favorite into proper canon. Dragon Ball Super: Broly was a huge success, especially in international markets, as Goku and Vegeta went toe-to-toe with the hulking blond rage monster in a battle that more or less comprised half of the film's runtime.
Despite Dragon Ball Super: Broly becoming the most lucrative outing yet for the franchise, news of a follow-up has been surprisingly limited. Reports emerged shortly after Dragon Ball Super: Broly's release suggesting that a sequel was in production, but there have been no major developments since. Meanwhile, the Dragon Ball Super TV series remains on hiatus following the Tournament of Power arc, with fans still patiently hoping for a return. Only the Dragon Ball Super manga is currently continuing Goku's story, picking up in the wake of the Broly movie and telling a completely new saga with Moro as the main villain.
Given how successful Dragon Ball Super: Broly proved to be, it's almost inevitable that a sequel will hit the big screen at some point, although the demands of the animation industry, other Dragon Ball projects and the current pandemic mean a follow-up isn't necessarily going to arrive soon. Rather than simply adapting the manga's Moro material, the next Dragon Ball Super film will likely move on to a new story, and fortunately, there are plenty of unresolved plot points left to develop.
Frieza's Next Form
He's been saying it for years through memes, but it seems fans really haven't seen Frieza's final form yet. Dragon Ball Z's most famous villain cycled through a series of transformations during his original run, hitting a ceiling with the iconic, sleek, white and purple design. Determined to grow stronger than Goku and Vegeta, Resurrection F marked the moment where Frieza decided to stop relying on his genetic superiority and actually train for once. This extra effort resulted in the Golden Frieza form, which pushed the Saiyans to their limits in Resurrection F and almost destroyed the Earth. Despite his training, however, Frieza's golden form proved no match for Super Saiyan Blue and the alien was duly defeated yet again.
Golden Frieza returns in Dragon Ball Super: Broly, but the film also hints at deeper levels to the villain's power. Near the beginning of the story, Vegeta is chastising Goku for resurrecting Frieza following the Tournament of Power. When Goku casually replies that they can just beat Frieza up should he stray out of line, Vegeta argues that it's only a matter of time before Frieza ascends his Golden transformation and discovers a brand new form, becoming even stronger. It's an unwritten rule of Dragon Ball that whenever the possibility of a character ascending power levels is referenced, it's only a matter of time before that prediction becomes a reality. This didn't happen in Dragon Ball Super: Broly, setting up a new version of Frieza for a later film. Platinum Frieza, perhaps?
Goku & Broly's Training
Despite his terrible strength, Broly wasn't really a villain in his eponymous Dragon Ball movie; he was simply being controlled by sinister, manipulative forces. As a result, Dragon Ball Super: Broly ends with the Legendary Super Saiyan transporting to a quiet planet where he can live in peace with his friends. The day ended happily, but Goku couldn't simply forget such a mighty opponent, especially a Saiyan like himself. He brings Broly, Cheelai and Lemo heaps of food and supplies in exchange for visiting Broly once in a while for a friendly battle. Despite Goku's promise to return, Broly hasn't appeared in Dragon Ball Super since, even in the manga series, meaning fans haven't witnessed any of these teased Saiyan training bouts.
Broly's absence begs the question of whether Goku ever did find time to train with his kinsman. And if Goku and Broly did spar together, how much stronger would the two of them become? It could even be argued that with Goku beginning to master the fabled Ultra Instinct technique, Broly is no longer a match for him. As for Broly's development, will fighting alongside Goku give him more battle nous (not quite intelligence, unfortunately, this is Goku after all) and hone the raw power surging from Broly's body so that he doesn't lose himself after transforming?
What Becomes Of Broly & His Friends?
Dragon Ball Super: Broly concludes with Broly, Cheelai and Lemo escaping Frieza's control and heading back to the planet Vampa where they first met, however, it's implied that the trio don't necessarily plan on staying there. When Goku asks if he can come back to Vampa to train with Broly, Lemo reveals that they might not be on the planet when Goku next drops by. This isn't a problem thanks to Goku's Instant Transmission technique, but the line suggests Broly and his friends will eventually travel out into the great, wide universe. Cheelai saw the good in Broly and wanted to nurture those softer instincts, so it makes sense that she might take him to experience life among other civilizations, perhaps even using his strength to help people, rather than settle old scores for others. It'd be fascinating to see Broly become an intergalactic vigilante of sorts in future films.
The next Dragon Ball movie must also answer where Broly was located during the events of the Moro saga. The goat-faced villain's aim is to absorb as much energy as possible from those with large ki reserves, or from densely-populated planets. Broly certainly seems like a character Moro would be interested in, so did the pair already come to blows in an unseen battle, or was Broly too fearsome even for Moro to take on? Given that Vampa only has three inhabitants, it's possible that Moro simply overlooked Broly's planet, especially as the Saiyan's power level doesn't read as strongly when he's in his calm base form. Moro might've deemed Vampa not worth his time, not knowing there was a Saiyan to rival Goku and Vegeta in strength living there.
Frieza Still Has Plans For Broly
In Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Frieza takes advantage of the rampaging title character to try and exact revenge on Goku and Vegeta - the Saiyan banes of his existence. Frieza hoped that Broly would kill Vegeta, rough Goku up a bit, and leave the satisfying finishing blow for Frieza himself to deliver. Unfortunately, the short of stature villain completely underestimated Broly's strength and misjudged his own ability to control the Legendary Super Saiyan. As a result, Frieza took a beating from Broly for over an hour while Goku and Vegeta learned the Fusion Dance from Piccolo, but the experience hasn't deterred Frieza from pursuing Broly further.
During the closing moments of Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Frieza reveals his new plan - let Cheelai and Lemo domesticate Broly and get his unbridled rage under control, then when the Saiyan can release his power without losing all rationality, Frieza will return for him. Exactly what Frieza has planned for Broly is somewhat ambiguous, as his dialogue changes between the subbed and dubbed versions of the film. In the home release's English subtitles, Frieza says he wants to add Broly to his list of opponents alongside Goku and Vegeta, but in the dub, he says he'll wait until Broly is under control and then try to recruit him. The latter certainly makes more sense, and sets up Frieza attempting to sign Broly to his army in future films.
Meeting Goku's Mother
Dragon Ball Super: Broly made sweeping changes to Goku's origin story and the franchise's established Saiyan history. In the classic series, Goku was sent to Earth to clear the planet of humans ready for sale, as all Saiyans do under the employ of Frieza, but a bump to the head caused him to forget that mission and become a peaceful, compassionate refugee. The main series never revealed Goku's biological parents, but when his father Bardock finally appeared in a special episode, he was a typical Saiyan - brutal and largely uncaring.
That was altered significantly in Dragon Ball Super: Broly. Taking its cues from the Dragon Ball Minus manga, Goku's origin story was rewritten to mirror Superman's. This time, Bardock was more fatherly, and Goku's mother Gine was introduced - a warm and kind woman who loved her two sons deeply. Bardock decides to send Goku to Earth so he can escape the impending destruction of their home planet, and this leads to a tearful farewell where Gine implores the departing Goku "don't forget about us." Goku is also a young child during this scene (he was a baby before) and is visibly upset at leaving his mother and father behind, touching Bardock's hand on the glass of his pod.
Previously in Dragon Ball, it never mattered that Goku didn't remember his parents. He departed his home planet as a baby, so would have no recollection of them anyway, and Saiyan culture tends to eschew emotion and attachments. But showing Goku, Gine and Bardock all devastated by the splitting of their family changes Goku's story significantly. Now it feels like there's an important chapter of Goku's life that he can't remember - people that he loved and who loved him, but who he has no recollection of. This paves the way for Goku to discover more about his Saiyan past in a future film, perhaps even meeting his parents via some time-bending shenanigans, otherwise the story feels incomplete and tragic. Superman's arc enjoyed similar resolution when he founded the Fortress of Solitude and conversed with his father, Jor-El. Now Goku needs something similar.