Throughout the entirety of Dragon Ball continuity, there has been a running joke that has been made obvious by a number of fan call-outs, but the scariest villain in the series just added to the humor in a way that everyone missed. Moro is an evil sorcerer who made his debut in Dragon Ball Super after he escaped from Galactic Prison. Moro is unique in the Dragon Ball universe as he is a fighter who wields magic, and he uses that magic to consume entire planets, drawing power from the deaths of trillions of life forms. While he is no doubt absolutely terrifying, the situation in which Moro finds himself at the end of his run is undoubtedly funny as it perpetuates Dragon Ball’s longest running joke.
In Dragon Ball Super Chapter 65 by Akira Toriyama and Toyotarou, Moro and Goku are in the middle of their final battle, one that would decide the fate of the Earth and even the entire universe. Goku has a major advantage over Moro at this point, however, as he successfully unlocked Ultra Instinct, a power level that surpasses even Gods of Destruction. While Moro is seemingly about to lose the fight, he is able to copy Ultra Instinct and wield the angelic power as his own. After that, Moro and Goku were evenly matched for a time, with neither able to get a leg up above the other. However, since Moro merely copied the ability, his body wasn’t prepared to handle such cosmic power, so Moro fuses with the entire Earth in order to survive and literally becomes one with the planet itself.
The running joke throughout Dragon Ball is that nearly every character’s name is associated with some type of food. Kakarot for carrot, Vegeta for vegetable, and Piccolo for pickle just to name a few. The most powerful characters, with Goku and Vegeta being the prime examples, are associated with healthy foods which helps one grow big and strong just as the Saiyans do throughout the series, making the theme of ‘you are what you eat’ very apparent. Well, Moro takes this joke one step further as the sorcerer actually becomes a planet after a lifetime of consuming planets, making the saying ‘you are what you eat’ hilariously literal.
The food theme in Dragon Ball doesn’t stop with character names or Moro’s over-the-top literalness but also a number of the character’s interests as well. Goku is a clear example of this as he is obsessed with food as he is shown eating mountains of it in a single sitting, usually to the shock and disgust of other characters nearby. Similarly, the God of Destruction Lord Beerus is even more food-motivated as he destroys entire worlds if he doesn’t like their cuisine.
From the characters’ high levels of interest in food to some of their names being associated with food, this running joke makes Dragon Ball a series that is arguably about a group of foodies who do some fighting on the side. This humorous consistency has been present throughout the entire Dragon Ball saga, but it has finally outdone itself with Moro literally becoming what he eats—an actual planet.
