Boomstick: ...and Vegeta, the Prince of All Saiyans.
Wiz: The sky shakes when they appear, and the earth trembles when they approach. No world can contain the power of these two gods of war...
Boomstick: ...or their egos!
The fourth episode of Death Battle's ninth season marks the return of these two sons of elite warrior races, whose boastfulness and unchecked egos are about as large as the near immeasurable power they wield. With neither man a stranger to Death Battle's base of bloodshed, this bout will see Asgardian ferociousness take on Saiyan tenacity in a battle of gods; Marvel Comics and Dragon Ball's princes of pride have slain many opponents (worthy or otherwise) to lay their claims as the strongest in their respective universes, but only one of them will have the power, experience and ambition needed to survive in a death battle.
The first of the returning combatants analyzed is Thor, the God of Thunder. While Marvel's Thor may differ greatly from the Norse legend, it makes him no less formidable. The son of Allfather Odin, Thor has spent his millennia long life battling foes from every corner of the Nine Realms. Unfortunately, these victories gave the prince a major ego problem, one that his father chose to rectify by exiling him to Midgard. Fortunately for Thor, his Asgardian heritage wasn't completely stripped away from him with his body maintaining its immense durability, immunity to disease and the ability to heal far faster than any mortal. All of that is without even mentioning Thor's status as the God of Strength, able to perform such improbable feats as lifting the planet-sized Midgard Serpent, incapacitating the Phoenix Force with a throw of his hammer or nearly knocking Earth out of orbit merely by arm-wrestling with the equally strong Hercules. Likewise, his endurance is such that he can move while subjected to billions of times Earth's gravity and even battle an army for over a month without rest.
Of course, Thor isn't complete without his signature hammer, Mjölnir. Containing an almighty sentient storm known as the God Tempest, this Mjölnir has a vast array of powers beyond that of its mythological counterpart. It can control the weather, open portals to other dimensions and absorb vast amounts of energy, in addition to other abilities such as a worthiness enchantment, transmutation, the power to turn Thor invisible and intangible, time travel and even resurrection. Moreover, Thor can fly simply by flinging Mjölnir with such force that he can cross the galaxy in mere seconds. Thor also possesses an axe known as Jarnbjorn, which is sharp enough to cut through Celestial armor and is considered unbreakable. Even when his array of godly weapons and standard abilities aren't enough, he can harness the full might of his Asgardian power by channeling his divine energy into the Godblast, an energy beam strong enough to threaten Galactus himself.
With all of these powers, Thor may seem vastly overqualified even for a team as noteworthy as the Avengers, but all of this was for Odin to ensure that his son would evolve from a mere warrior into a hero. In doing so, Thor would face an even greater variety of threats such as Thanos, the Silver Surfer and the Sentry, the latter of whom can match the Worldbreaker version of the Hulk (who can destroy the Marvel universe at least one-hundred and twenty times over) and move within the span of Planck time, the smallest possible unit of time measurable. He's proven capable of surviving disintegration beams that tear apart targets at the atomic level, beings of Mephisto's caliber trying to devour his soul and temporal rifts that aged normal people into nothingness. And when Thor needs to push his power to the limits, he can enter a berserker state known as Warrior's Madness that boosts his strength tenfold. Even with his victories and personal growth, Thor has struggled to be worthy of the responsibilities given to him but always manages to power through for the greater good. He's saved the entire Multiverse by physically overpowering a machine attempting to control the flow of fate and eventually overcame the ancient gods responsible for causing Ragnarök in the first place. From a glory seeking warrior prince to a hero of the Multiverse, there's no threat in all of the Nine Realms that Thor won't overcome.
- Wiz: So perhaps now when you look up at the thundering sky, you won't fear the Gods' capricious wrath.Boomstick: Because you'll know it's just Thor, the God of Thunder, kickin' ass and savin' the day.
With Thor's analysis finished, the hosts move on to the second returner, the heir to the brutal warrior race known as the Saiyans of Planet Vegeta. Once a proud, thriving race in the employ of King Cold, the majority of Saiyans were killed when Cold's heir, Frieza, decided to annihilate their planet. Among the few survivors was the son of the previous King Vegeta: Prince Vegeta IV. With his ancestral pride wounded, the prince prepared ruthlessly in order to exact his revenge. Having been both Saiyan royalty and one of Frieza's top soldiers, Vegeta has trained from birth to be the best warrior in the universe, aided by his naturally superior Saiyan physiology stemming from his home world's stronger gravity compared to Earth. Saiyans of Vegeta's caliber are so strong, they can shake planets simply as a side effect of battle. These feats are aided by the Saiyans' natural proficiency at manipulating their Ki, enhancing their physicality greatly and of course, allowing them to use a wide array of energy-based attacks. With his Ki, Vegeta can fly faster than light, form an energy blade or bind his opponents with energy rings though it's clear his preference is to simply annihilate his opponents outright with different variations of Ki blasts.
However, his most formidable power is one inherent to the Saiyan biology: the ability to grow stronger every time they survive a near-death struggle. It is this ability that drove Frieza to attempt genocide on the Saiyans in the first place. Eventually, Vegeta would overcome the alien warlord with begrudging aid from his future rival, Son Goku. His rivalry with the Earthbound Saiyan would drive Vegeta to achieve even greater levels of power, including the iconic golden form of Super Saiyan and its subsequent variations which all increase his power substantially. Yet, Vegeta struggled to keep up with his rival due in no small part to his massive ego which has led him to make numerous errors in judgement with often devastating results. Nonetheless, Vegeta's persistence continued, leading him to achieve the form of Super Saiyan God as well as gain new abilities such as Spirit Fission, which allows him to absorb his opponent's Ki with every strike he lands, Goku's Instant Transmission and even forms superior to that of his original God transformation: Super Saiyan Blue and Super Saiyan Blue Evolved.
Vegeta's power grew to such an extent that he could destroy dimensions by powering up and his rival was even able contend with the God of Destruction, Beerus, in a battle that nearly destroyed the whole universe, which is larger than even our own. Vegeta's training under Beerus eventually allowed him to channel Destruction Energy itself, granting him the ability to use the god's signature Hakai, which destroys its target on physical, spiritual and temporal level. Beyond that, Vegeta's proficiency with Destruction unlocked another new form more akin to the Gods of Destruction than a Saiyan: Ultra Ego. With this form, Vegeta harnesses his love for battle to absorb the power of the blows his opponent deals him and increases his own strength accordingly. All of this was ironically achieved because of his loss to Goku, leading him to seek a purpose beyond being a simple warrior, becoming a husband and a father as well who would sacrifice everything to protect those important to him. Even still, underestimate Vegeta at your own peril because at the end of the day, he's still the Prince of All Saiyans and is more than happy to prove why.
- Boomstick: He may not always win, but he'll never be put down for long. So be sure to practice your groveling, because this is one prince ya don't wanna piss off.
The princes of pride have been analyzed and the Better Help ad is complete. Now it's time for a death battle!
Thor is seen walking through a forest with a large tree on his left shoulder. Suddenly, a shockwave blows the tree away and it doesn't take Thor long to find out the cause: Vegeta training his Ki. Mjölnir then flies past the Saiyan Prince's head into the grave behind him. Thor greets Vegeta and asks him why he is on Earth, but Vegeta is annoyed that Thor just threw his hammer at him, threatening to polish his gloves on Thor's face. Amused, Thor calls Mjölnir back to his hand, with Vegeta narrowly dodging it. Thor laughs and asks the Saiyan if what just happened counted as the hammer being thrown at him.
FIGHT!
Annoyed, Vegeta charges at Thor and punches him in the stomach, pushing him backwards. Thor retaliates by swinging his hammer, but Vegeta avoids the swings and then unleashes a barrage of Ki blasts from the air. Despite being hit by a few of the blasts, Thor uses Mjölnir to deflect most of them before demanding that Vegeta yields.
Thor shoots a bolt of lightning at Vegeta, bringing him down to the ground. The Prince of Asgard compliments Vegeta's fighting skills, but then reminds him that he faces a God. The Celestial-slaying axe, Jarnbjorn is summoned and used by Thor to try and kill Vegeta, but Vegeta dodges both the hammer and the axe. Thor trie to use a powerful downwards strike with his axe, but Vegeta catches the blade as the forest around them explodes. As the smoke clears, we can see that Vegeta has reached his Super Saiyan Blue Evolved state and destroys the axe using Hakai, sending Thor flying into a rock formation.
Vegeta boasts that he has evolved beyond Gods and kicks Thor, sending him flying across the fjord. He then catches up and attacks him some more, screaming out that he is the Prince of all Saiyans and that Thor can burn in hell. Vegeta unleashes his Big Bang attack towards Thor, but the Asgardian Prince uses Mjölnir to absorb it. Vegeta descends to confront Thor, but the Avenger throws his hammer at the Saiyan again. Vegeta dodges it, but it comes back to him. This time, Vegeta catches it with his hand and laughs, only for the hammer's weight to send him plummeting into the lake below.
Calling Vegeta unworthy, Thor follows his opponent into the water, with the impact causing the lake to explode. On the lake bed, both fighters are locked in an intense grapple with Vegeta emitting the purple glow of Ki energy, signifying that he is now in his Ultra Ego form. Thor tries to headbutt him, but Vegeta just laughs it off before hitting him with an even more powerful headbutt. Thor summons Mjölnir once more and hits Vegeta three more times, with the third strike being charged by lightning, but this does nothing.
Vegeta asks Thor if a god feels fear and then charges at him rapidly, hitting him upwards with an uppercut, then he kicks Thor into a mountain. Thor is shocked as Vegeta teleports in front of him, ready to blast him with more ki that annihilates the mountain but Thor is still in one piece. The Saiyan traps him with energy rings and continues assaulting him. During the assault, Thor manages to answer Vegeta's question about feeling fear by saying that he feels no fear, but thunder instead.
Tapping into his Warrior's Madness, Thor escapes from his bindings and then charges towards the Saiyan Prince. Both of them continue to battle, causing the lake to erupt in geysers until Thor manages to catch Vegeta's arm and call on a bolt of lightning to electrocute the Saiyan Prince. After being smashed into the cliff, Vegeta tells Thor that he will feel nothing but oblivion before escaping from Thor's clutches and charging an orb of ki and an orb of destruction energy so that he can prepare his Final Flash.
As Vegeta does this, Thor prepares to use his God Blast by spinning his hammer rapidly. The Asgardian Prince releases his attack at Vegeta, only for Vegeta to use his instant transmission technique to avoid the attack and appear behind Thor so that he can unleash his Final Flash that is fired through the atmosphere, making it visible from space.
Exhausted, Vegeta smirks thinking that he has triumphed over his opponent, but then Thor's hand emerges from the smoke and grabs his mouth. The smoke clears to reveal Thor panting but still alive. Vegeta tries to tap into more Hakai energy whilst grabbing Thor's arm, but this does nothing to Thor, who gives him a piece of advice: To always aim for the opponent's head.
Mjölnir emerges from the lake and flies up towards Thor's hand while Vegeta is still in its grasp. Vegeta tries to throw Thor over his head, but Thor overpowers the Saiyan and slams him downwards. As Vegeta struggles to break free, he manages to notice Thor's hammer flying towards his head before his skull is crushed between it and Thor's hand, causing the Hakai energy to dissipate. Thor drops Vegeta's headless corpse, then lifts Mjölnir above his head with a triumphant yell as a storm begins to form.
KO!
While the Prince of All Saiyans proved his mettle in battle enough to show he would never go down easy, his godlike power and abilities were outclassed by an opponent who was born with such divine might to begin with. In terms of raw strength, both warriors could output more than enough to destroy many universes several times over. On Vegeta's end, the hosts determine his potential power to hover around his Saiyan transformation multipliers and apply it to the size of Universe 7. Vegeta does scale to Super Saiyan God Goku and Beerus' clash which had threatened the entirety of Universe 7, and his power is multiplied 50 times with Super Saiyan God Blue. While the multipliers for his Blue Evolved and Ultra Ego transformations are unknown, there are ways to determine their numbers; Blue Evolved Vegeta kept pace with SSGSS Goku amplified by a 20x boost via Kaioken when both fought Hit during the Tournament of Power, implying its increase in power to be in that ballpark. Blue Evolved also proved to be enough for Vegeta to survive fighting Top's God of Destruction form, which harnesses similar destructive thematic elements to Ultra Ego and thus would likely apply a separate 20x boost as well. As such, applying these multipliers puts Vegeta as capable of destroying 265,000 universes - an insane amount to be sure, but nowhere close to Thor's.
The God of Thunder has proven himself a rival to the Hulk, who has managed to survive the destruction of two Marvel universes - each of which were almost 10000 times larger than our own, and even his World Breaker form, which can destroy the 616 Marvel universe 120 times over. This put Thor's own output at 2,386,800 universes, nearly 10 times greater than Vegeta's. Granted, Vegeta's Saiyan physiology and Ultra Ego's damage absorption could allow him to close this very notable gap in power, but it wasn't enough to answer the multitude of other advantages Thor brought to the table. While Vegeta was trained since birth to give him nearly 60+ years' worth of martial arts experience, Thor's millennia-long lifespan and wider variety of defeated foes has granted him more than enough experience to adapt against Vegeta's tactics easily, not to mention that this also tied into the speed advantage between the two. Applying Vegeta's multipliers and once again scaling him to Goku and Beerus' fight puts him at 300 quintillion times light speed, while Thor scaling to Ares fighting X-Man within Planck time puts him at 70 quadrillion times faster than Vegeta. This not only negated Vegeta's usage of ki attacks by simply dodging them, but also put Thor in the position of being able to absorb them for himself via Mjölnir and thus negate the Saiyan's ranged game entirely. Thor's speed also meant that Vegeta would not be able to trigger Spirit Fission, since it relies on Vegeta actually landing physical blows to begin with, and even if he did, Thor could simply take any stolen energy back from him again with Mjölnir and even more beyond that.
Even without his attacks being absorbed, Vegeta's ki pool is finite, and he has had it tap out on him before. Fighting in the Tournament of Power, which lasted for all of an hour, caused Vegeta to tire out, whereas Thor is capable of fighting for an entire month straight with no rest. Hakai would likely be an option Vegeta could use to instantly kill his Asgardian foe, were it not for the fact that Thor has survived attacks that have attempted to erase him from existence on a physical, ethereal and temporal basis - exactly like Hakai would. Lastly, Vegeta had no way of surviving Thor's ace in the hole: the Godblast. This mighty attack is so strong, even Galactus fears it would kill him in one strike and considering the Devourer of Worlds can destroy the entire Marvel multiverse on his own, this means that it simply exists on a scale nobody in Dragon Ball - let alone Vegeta himself - can compare to.
All in all, Vegeta's stubborn tenaciousness and might were truly out of this world, but when compared to Thor's strength, speed and versatility, all that tenacity could only be used to simply delay the inevitable.
Wiz: You might say that pun was Haka-ind of terrible! Eh?
Boomstick: You don't do puns! We talked about this!
Wiz: Aw.
Boomstick: My thing!
Wiz: Well, the winner is Thor.
This Death Battle includes the following tropes:
- Actor Allusion: Right before charging his Final Flash, Vegeta yells to Thor "All you'll be feeling is oblivion!". In Dragon Ball Z Abridged, Vegeta, who's voiced by Nick Landis, who reprises him in this episode's animation, yells the same thing at Perfect Cell while charging his Final Flash.
- Always Someone Better: Despite Vegeta being a Proud Warrior Race Guy who's trained since birth and made it his life's goal to match and/or defeat Goku, Universe 7's strongest fighter, Thor outmatched him by a wide margin. Thor has the advantage of having spent a millennia fighting a wide variety of foes, giving him a plethora of combat experience. Mjölnir also absorbs energy-based attacks, which wiped out almost the entirety of Vegeta's offensive capability. Thor's also faced opponents or attacks that can erase one's existence and survive the experience, nullifying Vegeta's trump card in the process. This isn't even going into the fact that Thor didn't use the Odinforce whatsoever during the fight, which according to post-battle analysis would have widened the already huge gap between them even more.
- Book Ends: The fight starts with Thor making his presence known to Vegeta by throwing Mjölnir at him, just barely missing the Saiyan prince. Thor later finishes the fight by successfully hitting Vegeta's head with his hammer.
- Broken Win/Loss Streak: With this, Thor is the first Marvel character to defeat a Dragon Ball character, with Captain Marvel and Hulk respectively losing to Android 18 and Broly prior.
- The Bus Came Back: Both fighters returned to DEATH BATTLE after at least several years in between their last battles on the main show, though they had fought in DBX about two years prior. Thor returns after losing to Wonder Woman back in Season 4note . Meanwhile, Vegeta returns for the first time since defeating Shadow the Hedgehog in Season 1, exactly eleven years in between appearancesnote .
- Call-Back: Two times by Thor.
- During the battle, Vegeta catches Mjölnir only to be dragged down because he isn't worthy of it. Thor takes notice and mocks him, shouting "Thou art unworthy!" - a reverse of Wonder Woman's Bond One-Liner against him from their Death Battle.
- While charging up the Godblast, Thor calls it out by exclaiming "Feel heaven's wrath!", not only another line he used in both of his previous fights, but also the one he uses for his Mighty Punishment Hyper Combo from Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
- Vegeta tries to end the fight with the same move as with Shadow, the Final Flash. He even charges it on the same side of the screen. It doesn't work here.
- Much like his orange-dressed rival's fate, Vegeta ends up meeting a similar fate to him way back in "Goku VS Superman 2" in which he fires a powerful attack that his opponent powers through and grabs him by the face/neck, leading to a very swift finisher on the Saiyan's behalf... save for the fact that Vegeta's end here is a lot more violent.
- After the end of episode pun from Boomstick, Wiz tries to make a pun himself only to make Boomstick angry, calling back to "DIO VS Alucard".
- Head Crushing: Vegeta meets his end this way when Thor grabs him by the face and flies downwards while calling Mjölnir to him, causing Vegeta's skull to be crushed into paste between the hammer and Thor's hand.
- LOL, 69: Alluded to. Vegeta's age is listed as "68 (so close!)".
- Mythology Gag: Remember in Avengers: Infinity War when Thanos tells Thor he should have "aimed for the head", before he snapped half of the universe out of existence? Thor isn't going to make that mistake when finishing off Vegeta.Thor: Always aim for the head!
- Rule of Three: Thor returns Mjölnir to his hand three times in the fight. The first to irritate Vegeta, the second to fight him and the third to end him.
- Smug Super: Both Thor and Vegeta are quite prideful and are powerful enough to back up their egos, serving as one of the main connections between the two.
