In last week's episode of Legends of Tomorrow, eagle-eyed fans spotted a Dragon Ball Easter egg. The popular Japanese anime was referenced with the inclusion of two balls patterned after the iconic Dragon Balls.
At the beginning of season 3, the Legends were broken up by the arrival of Rip Hunter's newly-formed Time Bureau, but were reunited by Mick Rory to deal with the sudden appearance of Julius Caesar in modern-day Aruba. When the anachronism was dealt with, Rip allowed the Legends to keep the Waverider. In the second episode, titled "Freakshow", the Legends traveled back to 1870 to find a saber-toothed tiger in a circus run by P.T. Barnum, founder of Barnum & Bailey Circus. When Barnum realized that the Legends had super powers, he tried to capture them for the benefit of the show. After convincing Amaya to temporarily rejoin them, the Legends were able to fix the anachronism.
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Carefully hidden in the background of one scene were two circus balls designed to resembles the yellowish orange balls with red stars from Dragon Ball (see below). The balls shown were the 1-star and 4-star Dragon Balls.
The two balls are part of a set of seven on the anime. In the series and in the manga, all seven Dragon Balls must be gathered to summon the legendary dragon known as Shenron, who can grant wishes to the one who summoned him. The Dragon Balls serve as an important plot device in the show, as Shenron's wishes are frequently used to revive dead characters. The Dragon Balls are often sought after by villains like Frieza who seek to use them to gain eternal life.
The Dragon Ball reference wasn't the only Easter egg found in the episode. At one point in the show, Stein (Victor Garber) declares that he refuses to step foot on the Titanic and that "whoever built that ship should be shot." In the 1997 film Titanic, the ship's designer, Thomas Andrews, was played by Garber.
Ever since Legends of Tomorrow premiered, the TV series has never shied away from pop culture references. The show has dropped numerous references to Stars Wars and other works by George Lucas, and even did an episode titled "Fellowship of the Spear", which was packed full of Lord of the Rings Easter eggs.
NEXT: Zari’s Powers on Legends of Tomorrow Explained
Legends of Tomorrow continues with ‘Zari’ on Tuesday, October 24 @9pm on The CW.
Source: The CW [via Comic Book]