What’s the first thing you think of when you think of Dragonball? Whether it’s the iconic golden hair of the Super Saiyans or a “This isn’t even my final form!” meme, you’re probably thinking about one of the franchise’s myriad transformations — for better or for worse, they’ve come to define the series in the minds of the public.
So, want to respond to some of these with my own thoughts.
1. I really like Super Saiyan Blue. For me, it simply became the new standard saiyan transformation and a kind of substitute for Classic Super Saiyan, its color and design designating the new time period and the new 'God level' of power that the Saiyans were now able to achieve. I like how, in concept at least, it is a form that allows for the combination of different forms. Thus, Goku first accesses it by combining God with Super Saiyan and then takes it even further by combining it with Kaio-Ken, a technique that seemed long forgotten but now became way more important. And this to me is illustrative of how Super really liked to reach into the past and bring back stuff that DB seemed never intent to revisit. I kinda wish this was SS God, so there wouldn't be any redundancy.
2. Vegeta's 'Royal Blue' or whatever it's called is another form I really like. Sure, it's basically the SS Blue equivalent of Super Vegeta or SS2 Vegeta, and this form allows him to be on par with Goku's SS Blue Kaioken combo. But story-wise, I love how he achieves it after essentially choosing to let go of his desire for Goku's UI power and find his own identity. Also, this is the form he uses to take out Toppo, proving that he could indeed battle a God of Destruction and doesn't need to turn his back on his ideals.
3. Legendary SS, at least in the Super continuity, is basically the equivalent of SS4. Recall that Broly has the 'Wrath State,' wherein he takes on the powers of the Oozaru without transforming into an Ape, and when he goes Super Saiyan, the form's power and ability is amplified greatly by the Wrath State. So, basically, Broly goes SS4.
Interestingly, I remember that initially when Kale achieved this, the transformation was called 'Super Saiyan Berserker' and was referred to in the anime as the 'true form of the Saiyan.'
I appreciate you calling out how Vegeta achieved his SSB Evolved, because I think I mis-remembered that and thought it was just another "Vegeta needs more power so he yells until he gets mad enough to get it", which is more the case with Rage and Beast and even in Battle of the Gods when Beerus hits Bulma and it gives Vegeta's SSJ2 a huge power boost -- it's something Super likes to do a lot and it annoys me because I feel like it really devalues the anger behind the original Super Saiyan (and 2) transformations.
As for Blue, there IS a lot I like about it despite my mixed-to-negative write-up, including its ability to mix-up with Kaio Ken and other kinds of abilities. It has a lot of unique traits, which I like, I just think Super's animation and the ways they use the form tend to make it look weaker and less impressive than it actually is, and when that's the case, I get tired of seeing it all the time.
I wish Goku and Vegeta had been able to use just Super Saiyan God for a few arcs before busting out Super Saiyan Blue against, say, Goku Black or something, I think it would have benefitted both forms. But I understand why Blue debuts when it does (God and Blue were debuted in Battle of the Gods and Return of Frieza respectively, because they wanted each movie to have its own new transformation. They weren't designed with an ongoing anime series in mind. I do think that hurts both forms)
I hadn't thought about your explanation of Broly's abilities, but I like it. To my point, it does emphasize how Broly and Kale's abilities don't fully jive even though they're ostensibly the same transformation.
So, want to respond to some of these with my own thoughts.
1. I really like Super Saiyan Blue. For me, it simply became the new standard saiyan transformation and a kind of substitute for Classic Super Saiyan, its color and design designating the new time period and the new 'God level' of power that the Saiyans were now able to achieve. I like how, in concept at least, it is a form that allows for the combination of different forms. Thus, Goku first accesses it by combining God with Super Saiyan and then takes it even further by combining it with Kaio-Ken, a technique that seemed long forgotten but now became way more important. And this to me is illustrative of how Super really liked to reach into the past and bring back stuff that DB seemed never intent to revisit. I kinda wish this was SS God, so there wouldn't be any redundancy.
2. Vegeta's 'Royal Blue' or whatever it's called is another form I really like. Sure, it's basically the SS Blue equivalent of Super Vegeta or SS2 Vegeta, and this form allows him to be on par with Goku's SS Blue Kaioken combo. But story-wise, I love how he achieves it after essentially choosing to let go of his desire for Goku's UI power and find his own identity. Also, this is the form he uses to take out Toppo, proving that he could indeed battle a God of Destruction and doesn't need to turn his back on his ideals.
3. Legendary SS, at least in the Super continuity, is basically the equivalent of SS4. Recall that Broly has the 'Wrath State,' wherein he takes on the powers of the Oozaru without transforming into an Ape, and when he goes Super Saiyan, the form's power and ability is amplified greatly by the Wrath State. So, basically, Broly goes SS4.
Interestingly, I remember that initially when Kale achieved this, the transformation was called 'Super Saiyan Berserker' and was referred to in the anime as the 'true form of the Saiyan.'
I appreciate you calling out how Vegeta achieved his SSB Evolved, because I think I mis-remembered that and thought it was just another "Vegeta needs more power so he yells until he gets mad enough to get it", which is more the case with Rage and Beast and even in Battle of the Gods when Beerus hits Bulma and it gives Vegeta's SSJ2 a huge power boost -- it's something Super likes to do a lot and it annoys me because I feel like it really devalues the anger behind the original Super Saiyan (and 2) transformations.
As for Blue, there IS a lot I like about it despite my mixed-to-negative write-up, including its ability to mix-up with Kaio Ken and other kinds of abilities. It has a lot of unique traits, which I like, I just think Super's animation and the ways they use the form tend to make it look weaker and less impressive than it actually is, and when that's the case, I get tired of seeing it all the time.
I wish Goku and Vegeta had been able to use just Super Saiyan God for a few arcs before busting out Super Saiyan Blue against, say, Goku Black or something, I think it would have benefitted both forms. But I understand why Blue debuts when it does (God and Blue were debuted in Battle of the Gods and Return of Frieza respectively, because they wanted each movie to have its own new transformation. They weren't designed with an ongoing anime series in mind. I do think that hurts both forms)
I hadn't thought about your explanation of Broly's abilities, but I like it. To my point, it does emphasize how Broly and Kale's abilities don't fully jive even though they're ostensibly the same transformation.