For the past few months, Captain Marvel has been compared to Dragon Ball. Now that the film is out, those comparisons keep on coming.
Since the trailers hit, there have not only been comparisons between Captain Marvel and Goku, but also between the Skrulls and the Piccolo in the live-action adaptation Dragon Ball Evolution.
But the Skrulls look even more like the Namekians in the Dragon Ball Z anime than in the Hollywood adaptation.
The comparison can be spun out to include Thanos, too.
For those who have seen and enjoyed Captain Marvel, the movie seems to show that a live-action Dragon Ball is possible, with calls for Marvel Studios to make it. Actually, that makes sense. Marvel Studios has proven it can take comic source material and turn it into successful cinema.
However, doing a live-action version of a manga presents an array of challenges, both cultural and stylistic that open the film and its filmmakers up to criticism that might not exist for Marvel’s own comic adaptations.