Goku VS Superman 2

Goku VS Superman 2 is the 50th episode of Death Battle. It features Goku from the Dragon Ball manga and anime and Superman of DC Comics once again. MasakoX returns to voice Goku and It's JustSomeRandomGuy returns to voice Superman.

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''The rematch of legends begins now. Hold on to your seat.''

Interlude
(*Cues: DBZ: Battle of Gods - The Chosen Warriors*)

Wiz: Goku.

Boomstick: Superman.

Wiz: Titans of power, champions of unimaginable might.

'''Boomstick: Endlessly requested to fight each other...again. He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick...'''

Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win... a Death Battle.

(*Cues: Goku VS Superman 2 - The Synthetic Orchestra*)

Information
(*Cues: Superman Returns - Main Title*)

Wiz: Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Superman entered the world on the cover of Action Comics #1, in 1938. He was the first, and his success paved the way for the superhero genre. The Man of Steel is righteous, courageous, selfless, a perfect boy scout.

(*Cues: Superman: The Animated Series - Clark's First Flight*)

Boomstick: Very inspirational, but man, does it get boring sometimes!

Wiz: Siegel and Shuster were the sons of Jewish-American immigrants, and knew first hand what it was like living in a world where they felt alien. Thus, this became the basis of Superman's story.

(*Cues: Man of Steel - Flight*)

'''Boomstick: You know how it goes, his scientist dad found out his home world, Krypton, was getting a bit too explosive and sent his son off to Earth to save him. On Earth, Superman's Kryptonian cells can absorb solar radiation from the yellow sun, giving him awesome strength, speed, durability, flight, and the power to shoot heat from his eyes, which can be large enough to vaporize a planet, or precise enough to perform lobotomies.'''

Wiz: Superman was so powerful, he could carry entire solar systems on his back, or obliterate them with a sneeze, but over 75 years, Superman has changed quite a bit, including going through two separate reboots, which we'll be focusing on today. These reboots lessened his insane power, not exactly by altering his abilities, but by changing his outlook.

(*Cues: Superman Doomsday - Main Title*)

Wiz: Upon discovering his alien powers, the new Superman rejected them, unintentionally instilling mental barriers on his powers, which he would work to unlock through the rest of his life.

Boomstick: Sorta like when you drink too much and don't remember the night before, so you gotta spend all day figuring out how you got yourself a dozen kangaroos, and married a lamp...don't ask.

Wiz: And then, in 1996, the world changed, Dragonball Z came to America.

(*Cues: Rock The Dragon - Dragon Ball Z: Light of Hope*)

Boomstick: *Singing* Dragon, Dragon, Rock the Dragon, Dragonball Z!

Wiz: Twelve years prior, a Mangaka, or author of Japanese comics, named Akira Toriyama introduced Dragonball, the story of Son Goku and his quest to become the greatest martial artist in the world, nay, the universe.

Boomstick: Like Superman, Goku was also sent to Earth from a doomed planet, and possessed incredible powers, but that's pretty much where their similarities end.

Wiz: Goku was primarily inspired by the monkey king Sun Wukong from the Chinese novel "Journey to the West". If you have any interest in Asian culture, I highly recommend reading it, it's inspired far more than just Dragonball.

'''Boomstick: Throw a stone at a shelf of Anime, and odds are, it hits something inspired by "Journey to the West". '''

(*Cues: Dragon Ball Z - Pikkon Theme*)

'''Boomstick: Anyway, Toriyama was smart and knew that fighting is awesome, so Dragonball took off like a rocket. Sooner then you can say "power levels are bullshit", Dragonball became a hit anime and then came to America.'''

Wiz: Literally making its own journey to the west, (Boomstick chuckles) and forever changing the childhoods of many. Dragonball Z became the gateway anime to many westerners, however, since prior anime had very little success overseas, due to the differences between Japanese and American cultures, the companies responsible for importing DBZ understandably feared Goku's character might seem a bit selfish and heartless to a western audience.

'''Boomstick: Their solution? Turn Goku into Superman.'''

(*Cues: DBZ - The Dragon Theme*)

Wiz: This decision resulted in some strange mistranslations, such as labeling Goku's father as a brilliant scientist.

Boomstick: Yeah, I don't see it.

Wiz: As well as perhaps Goku's most famous line, which many argue actually conflicts with his true character.

''Goku: I am the hope of the universe, I am protector of the innocent, I am the light in the darkness, I am truth! Ally to good! Nightmare to you!''

(*Cues: Unknown Theme*)

Boomstick: And this is where it all began, the nerd debates, the internet wars, East vs West, which hometown hero would triumph in a brutal fight to the end?

Wiz: In 2002, Wizard Magazine delivered an answer. They deduced Goku would win, stating that Superman would die to a fall from the moon to the Earth.

'''Boomstick: A decade later, the website Outskirts Battledome launched, dedicated to answering versus matches, this time, Superman claimed victory. However, the chaotic debate careened out of control and eventually became banned forever.'''

Wiz: The arguments only grew, the internet needed a solid answer.

Boomstick: That's where we came in.

Cues ending of Goku VS Superman battle when Earth explodes

(*Cues: Unknown Theme*)

Wiz: However, since January 2012, Goku and Superman have continued their adventures. Superman gained an all-new ability called the Super Flare, which jettisons all the solar energy stored in his body, essentially turning him into a solar bomb. However, it leaves him completely drained of his powers for the next 24 hours, as such, he will only use the Super Flare as an ultimate last resort.

'''Boomstick: Goku attained a new legendary form called Super Saiyan God. '''

(*Cues: Dragon Ball Xenoverse - Track 22*)

'''Boomstick: Despite being a temporary boost, Goku's body absorbed the godly power, essentially making it his new base form. Then, after mixing its power with his Super Saiyan ability, he became a Super Sayian God Super Sayian....oh come on! There had to have been a better name! Ultra Saiyan, Master Saiyan, Super Ultra Combo with Fries Saiyan, anything but that mouthful! '''

Wiz: These new powers have naturally rekindled the ultimate debate.

(*Cues: Superman Returns - Genesis Project*)

'''Boomstick: Is this godly Goku powerful enough to defeat Superman? Or will this just be a repeat of the past?'''

Wiz: Well, lets end this debate once and for all. It's time for the rematch of legends.

Boomstick: It's time for a DEATH BATTLE!

Death Battle
(*Cues: Unknown Theme*)

In space, Superman has gathered the seven Dragon Balls and has summoned the all-powerful Shenron. He wishes for the Earth and anyone who died in his fight with Goku to be resurrected. He arrives back in the Arctic near his Fortress of Solitude and hears the ground shaking.

(*Cues: Bayonetta 2 - Glamor In Charm and Allure*)

Goku flies from the snow in the ground.

Goku: Hey Superman.

Superman: Son Goku, I've been expecting you.

Goku transforms into his Super Saiyan God form and amplifies his ki to godly ki.

Goku: Ready for a rematch?

FIGHT!

The two clash and get each other in an armlock, Superman fires his heat vision which Goku blocks. Goku uses Instant Transmission to teleport behind Superman and knee him in the stomach and kick him towards a mountain, which explodes. He uses the technique more to inflict more damage on the Man of Steel before firing down a ki beam at him.

Goku: Eat this!

Superman recovers and Goku prepares his signature attack.

Goku: Kamehameha!

He fires the large beam which Superman blocks. Superman is knocked into the fortress with Goku following. Superman then starts laying a beat down on his enemy.

Superman: This stops here!

He knocks Goku towards the ceiling and then to the wall.

''Superman: I'm impressed. I actually felt that.''

Goku: You haven't seen anything yet!

Superman fires his heat vision which Goku blocks, but Superman charges forward and knocks him out of the fortress.

Superman: Neither have you.

Superman punches Goku across the ocean (with an angle reminiscent of his fight with Zod in Man of Steel).

''Superman: With every step, an earthquake! With every breath, I could create a hurricane!''

He punches Goku into a nearby canyon.

''Superman: This is my burden. Be thankful it is not yours.''

Goku: Don't get ahead of yourself buddy, you're not the only one with that kind of power.

(*Cues: Alive - Brandon Yates*)

Goku then transforms into his blue-haired Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan form.

''Superman: Blue hair? Meh, I've seen worse.''

Goku charges forward and uses Instant Transmission to get some hits and knock Superman into a canyon. Superman charges back and the two trade back blows until Goku ki blasts Superman into the canyon. The two then get into a large clash ending in an explosion. They then start exchanging blows with Goku getting the upper hand.

Superman: Outta my way!

Superman then charges forward and starts landing some punches.

Superman: Take this!

Goku blocks Superman's punches until they end up all the way in Frisco, Texas.

''Superman: You can take it can't you? You're too strong for your own good!''

He knocks Goku into a nearby building and then pushes him through multiple buildings, including the one where SGC is being held.

(Note: In the SGC livestream, they had Goku and Superman cosplayers act out some of the fight in front of the live audience before Superman pushed Goku out again).

Goku then starts to fight back.

Goku: Get off my planet!

Superman then starts to counter back.

Superman: This stops here!

He knocks Goku on top of one of the skyscrapers and follows him.

''Superman: All right, have you had your fun? I would prefer we don't accidentally destroy the Earth a second time!''

Goku: No, I will never back down from a fight!

(*Cues: Attack on Titan - Eren's Berserk Theme*)

Goku: KA...ME...HA...ME...HAAAAAA!

Goku unleashes his most powerful attack, but Superman isn't fazed from the hit and starts walking forward.

Goku: I will beat you!

Superman continues walking forward with no hesitation. He then grabs Goku's hand to stop the attack.

''Superman: Stop it! This is over!''

He punches Goku in the stomach and then grabs him by the throat and flies up.

Superman: I'm sorry...

Superman then fires his heat vision into Goku's eyes and disintegrates Goku's brain, killing him. He then flies down to catch the fallen Saiyan.

King Kai: I believe this is the part where I say I told you so...

Goku: But King Kai I don't understand...

(*Cues: DBZ - Kieru Namek/Sei To Kibou*)

The deceased Goku is seen with King Kai standing on Snake Way

King Kai: You can't beat him.

''Goku: Sure I can! I'll just train harder than ever!''

''King Kai: No Goku! You can overcome any limit put in front of you, but his power has no limit! Even if you somehow found the power to surpass him, you wouldn't have anything left to aspire to. Do you truly want that?''

''Goku: Nah, sounds boring. (Stomach rumbles) Oops! Heh heh! Uh, King Kai, do you have anything to eat? ''

King Kai: Goku, I'm trying to be serious here!

''Goku: What? My stomach has limits too you know! Hahahahaha....''

KO!

Results
(*Cues: Superman vs. The Elite - Main Title*)

'''Boomstick: Wooah! Torches and pitchforks down! Before you start raging, please hear us out on this one, all right?'''

Wiz: Goku is incredibly powerful, a skilled warrior, and a great character. But Superman is on a completely different level. One which really doesn't belong in versus matches like these. Sure due to the writing style of Dragon Ball, Super Saiyan God Goku's exact limits are difficult to pinpoint. Also Goku will likely achieve a new form in the future, it's just how Dragon Ball works nowadays. However, none of that is really a factor. Goku will always have limits while Superman's maximum potential is limitless.

'''Boomstick: Don't believe us? Well strap in boys and girls, let's look at how Superman breaks reality! '''

(*Cues: Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods - Bad Presentment*)

Boomstick: One day Superman was hanging out near Vega, the brightest star in the Lyra constellation.

Wiz: For the record, that's 25 light years from Earth, or 147 trillion miles.

'''Boomstick: Naturally a crisis occurred on Earth, so Superman's photographer buddy Jimmy activated his signal watch, calling for Superman's aid. And Superman arrived in a matter of minutes!'''

(*Cues:  Man of Steel - Flight *)

Wiz: Being a comic book, the time Superman took getting to Earth is unspecified. However, the comic never mentioned or implied any large time lapse and he arrived as the battle was ending. Even if we seriously low ball this feat to taking ten minutes, Superman would be traveling over 800 trillion miles per hour, over a million times the speed of light.

(*Cues: Man of Steel - If You Love These People*)

But more impressively, Jimmy's signal watch operates by emitting a high frequency sound only Superman can hear. Which means Superman heard the signal in the vacuum of space 25 light years away. That is physically impossible, except for Superman.

'''Boomstick: Hohoho, you want impossible? How about the time he lifted Spectre off the ground? A guy literally made up of eternity! No, not insane enough for you? Well then how about the time Superman lifted up a book of infinite pages? That's right! Superman lifted both Eternity and Infinity!'''

Wiz: Though he did have some help from Wonder Woman and Shazam.

'''Boomstick: Hey Wiz, what's half of infinity? In-f***ing-finity!'''

Wiz: Regardless, they have limits in their own strength, so while they were lifting a specific set part for each load, Superman was lifting everything else, which literally means everything else. Really Wonder Woman and Shazam didn't even need to be there.

'''Boomstick: Superman's held a black hole, survived an explosion equal to 50 supernovas, flew through the center of a red sun, which is like tanking millions of nukes rapid fire, and once easily absorbed enough solar energy to vaporize half a galaxy. And to put an end to the Wizard Magazine's argument, here he is getting thrown from orbit into Earth with enough force to devastate the planet and cause nuclear winter. Oh look! He stood up moments later more pissed off than hurt! Oh and by the way, none of this was Pre-Crisis.'''

Wiz: Believe us, we know none of this makes any logical sense.

'''Boomstick: And hey it's not our fault, these writers just keep making Superman the most impossibly OP guy ever. That's kind of what he's all about.'''

(*Cues: Goku VS Superman - The Synthetic Orchestra*)

Wiz: Exactly, Superman isn't just a sketch on paper. He's an ideal. Superman and Goku are more than just characters, they inspire. They show us the best of what we can become. This is why people get so passionate about this debate.

'''Boomstick: Goku's the epitome of a self-made man in spirit and personal goals. He inspires people to work hard to achieve dreams. To many, Goku is proof that there is no struggle that cannot be overcome.'''

Wiz: And the world of Dragon Ball fits this mold. Every obstacle Goku faces in Dragon Ball has a limit he can overtake. Even those called gods in his universe can be defeated and surpassed.

'''Boomstick: And that is where Superman breaks this matchup. His world just doesn't fit the same mold.'''

Wiz: Superman is an all powerful being who is only weak to alien radiation and supernatural magic. He is not meant to be relatable. He is not meant to lose. While Goku's story is one of a man trying to be the best warrior he can be, Superman's is the story of a god trying to live amongst men. It's not about if he loses a fight, but whether about he's doing the right thing. That's why he stands for truth, justice, and freedom. That's why he doesn't wear a mask. That's why he's called the Superman.

(*Cues: Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods - Life to be Protected*)

Boomstick: But hey, we know some of you out there have some questions, so let's knock them out of the park right now.

Wiz: Technically if Goku could find a way to draw energy across multiverses, his spirit bomb could possibly achieve the kind of limitless power to match Superman. But, not only would that take way too long to charge providing Superman with plenty of time to kill him thousands of times over, the spirit bomb does not hurt anyone pure of heart, like Superman.

''Goku: (talking telepathically to Gohan) Gohan, you have to bounce it back! If you don't have any evil in you, you'll be ok.''

'''Boomstick: Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan was about on par with Golden Frieza. When asked about Golden Frieza's power level at a panel, Frieza's voice actor said since Frieza is a "nice guy", it's probably 100 quintillion. Which is a pun, because power levels are nothing more than a big joke.'''

Wiz: Superman has been beaten in battle before when he was still learning. Saying Superman should lose because he lost to Doomsday is the equivalent of saying Goku should lose because he was one shot by Raditz. We are looking at these characters at their maximum potential, not from some random point in their timelines.

'''Boomstick: Goku may have divine ki now, but it's still ki. Not magic.'''

Wiz: Ki may be spiritual in nature, but it's still a natural source of living energy even Superman possesses. In fact, Dragon Ball emphasizes a clear difference between ki and magic.

'''Boomstick: And if Goku did destroy the sun or the planet, he can't survive in the vacuum of space. Superman can and could always just fly to another yellow sun, or even a blue one which boosts his powers even faster.'''

(*Cues: Man Of Steel - Look to the Stars*)

Wiz: Ultimately, Goku vs Superman comes down to a difference of limits and purpose. What happens when you pit a man with the power to break any limits against a being with no limits in the first place? Well, only one has limits to give at all. But that's exactly what makes him such a memorable character.

Boomstick: Think about it, if you had a Goku that was as powerful as Superman, would you even want him?

Wiz: The winner is Superman.

Boomstick: Fucking Superman!

Trivia

 * This is the second Death Battle to be redone. The first being Boba Fett VS Samus Aran. However, it is the first Death Battle to be a true rematch rather than just an old episode with better graphics.
 * This is the third Death Battle to be shown live at SGC the first two being Shao Kahn VS M. Bison and Godzilla VS Gamera.
 * During the battle, Goku and Superman crash through the SGC convention center. In the original live showing, the fight was paused at this moment and a Goku cosplayer and Superman cosplayer briefly fought on stage.
 * This is the first Death Battle to show a map of where the fighters are currently fighting. The next one was Flash VS Quicksilver.
 * Superman's 3D model this time around is his "New 52" model from the game Injustice: Gods Among Us and Goku's 3D models including his regular, Super Saiyan God, and Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan forms from the game Dragon Ball Xenoverse.
 * This episode featured a full rematch fight for the first time.
 * Being that it was a rematch, there were a few notable differences between this and regular episodes. Rather than featuring separate character profiles (as the audience was likely familiar with them from the original video), it went over the creation history of the combatants, their impact on the world, and how the debate has evolved over the years with the characters' new abilities. Noticeably, this is also the only DB match to not have a Boomstick pun post-fight, as he instead asks the audience if they would truly like Goku if he was as powerful as Superman. The rematch took into account Goku's two new Super Saiyan God forms from the recent Dragon Ball movies and Superman's Super Flare attack (though Superman never resorted to using this during the fight likely because he didn't need it).
 * As this is a rematch, it also breaks one of the cardinal rules of Death Battle, in which the combatants would have no prior knowledge of each other. This is confirmed as Superman stated that he didn't want the Earth destroyed by accident again.
 * This is because it is a sequel to the original Goku vs. Superman.
 * Easter Eggs present in the episode:
 * Dragon Ball Z character Shenron made an appearance at the beginning of the animation, where Superman uses the Dragon Balls to make Shenron bring the Earth back after the destruction from before.
 * The first third of the fight takes place near Superman's Fortress of Solitude.
 * Superman punching Goku across the ocean was done in a camera angle reminiscent of Superman's fight with Zod at the climax of Man of Steel.
 * Superman pushes Goku through the SGC building at Frisco, Texas near the end.
 * TeamFourStar's KaiserNeko makes a guest appearance as King Kai in the ending.
 * Wiz mistakenly stated that the first match up of Goku and Superman took place in January of 2012, instead of 2013.
 * This is the first time in Death Battle where a fighter is shown feeling remorse for killing their opponent, reflecting Superman's no-kill policy from the comics and only choosing to do so to avoid killing everyone on the planet again.
 * In the Superman/Goku rematch, Boomstick claims that Goku cannot survive in the vacuum of space despite acknowledging that he can survive in a vacuum in the original episode. However Boomstick also mentioned that Goku cannot breath in space and the battle against Beerus was in the upper atmosphere or at least at the border of it, not deep space. So while Goku can survive in a vacuum, he can't survive in space because he can't breathe.
 * The fight was foreshadowed in Boba Fett VS Samus Aran Remastered, Chuck Norris VS Segata Sanshiro, and Solid Snake VS Sam Fisher.
 * Goku vs Superman 2 rivals the original in the like/dislike ratio, meaning it's in the top two disliked Death Battle episodes. From the reaction and review videos, the most controversial moment appears to be when Superman is seen walking through Goku's final Kamehameha while taking no damage, then vaporizing Goku's brain.
 * Despite this, Dragon Ball villains, Broly and Cooler, have achieved a similar feat of standing in a Kamehameha without taking damage.
 * This is the second battle to be done live, with the first being Boba Fett VS Samus Aran Remastered and soon being followed by Wolverine VS Raiden, Yang VS Tifa and Pokémon VS Digimon
 * Much of what was cut from the original 50 minute long script for the prequel was revisited in this episode.