The Galactic Patrol Prisoner arc has finally closed out as the single longest storyline in the Dragon Ball Super manga. Better known by most fans as the Moro arc, the saga brought back a level of tension comparable to the original manga. The Moro arc has expanded Dragon Ball’s lore considerably while also pushing Goku & Vegeta further in their careers as martial artists.
Moro himself is arguably Dragon Ball Super’s best villain – an amalgamation of previous antagonists who morphs into his own grotesquerie by arc’s end. Moro pushes Goku, Vegeta, and the rest of the main cast to their very limits, nearing consuming the Earth in the process.
12 Moro Vs Vegeta
The Moro arc has notably been a catalyst for Vegeta to assert his character development since the end of the original series. Where Dragon Ball Super’s earliest story arcs had Vegeta circling his growth from the Buu arc, not quite having resolved his rivalry with Goku or put his ego away, that all changes in the Moro arc.
When the Saiyans arrive on Namek to confront the wizard, Vegeta is the first to step up & battle. Recognizing how he tortured Namek back during Dragon Ball Z, Vegeta fights on behalf of the people he hurt – resolute to make up for his past sins. This is a thread that drives Vegeta’s arc during the Moro arc, and kicks off the first major fight.
11 Moro Vs Goku & Vegeta
While warming up in his fight against Moro, Vegeta comes to the terrifying conclusion that he’s been drained of his energy and can no longer transform. While Vegeta was fighting Moro, the wizard was covertly draining both Goku and Vegeta’s eneries, locking their ability to turn Super Saiyan for the time being.
The two Saiyans rush Moro in their base form, but they’re unable to hold their own against the wizard. Moro’s drained so much energy where he’s able to effortlessly knock Goku and Vegeta unconscious, only leaving them alive so they can be fed off later.
10 Moro Vs Merus
Following Goku and Vegeta’s failure to stop Moro on Namek, Galactic Patrolman Merus is forced to step in. Actually an angel in training, Merus restrains his true power so that he can serve as a Galactic Patrolman, the closest tell to him being an angel being his signature super speed. Merus primarily fights Moro by sticking to his guns, not doing enough damage to kill the wizard, but holding him back enough to buy the main characters time. In truth, Merus was never intending to defeat Moro, but simply create a means for others to do so.
9 Moro Vs Majin Buu
Which is where Majin Buu factors in. The Galactic Patrolman arc kicks off with Buu being taken in by the Galactic Patrol on account of him having absorbed the Dai Kaioshin in the series’ backstory. Since Dai Kaioshin sealed Moro’s magic in the past, the Galactic Patrol believe Majin Buu is their only hope.
By awakening Dai Kaioshin’s psyche within Majin Buu, the Djinn remembers his past and fights Moro on behalf of all the friends he lost. While Majin Buu manages to deliver a massive beatdown on Moro, the wizard escapes as soon as Cranberry summons Porunga – flying off to get his wish on the Dragon Balls.
8 Moro Vs Goku, Vegeta, Dai Kaioshin, & Merus
After having his wish granted on the Dragon Balls, Moro heads into Outer Space so he can drain all of Namek’s energy from afar. Goku, Vegeta, and Majin Buu – now taking on the face of the Dai Kaioshin – head up to confront Moro. The two Saiyans have access to God Ki again and Dai Kaioshin is an incredible asset, but Moro proves to have gotten too powerful, too fast.
The main characters are only saved once Merus is able to intercept once again. Still fast enough to keep up with Moro, Merus buys Goku & company enough time to escape, but he’s not able to defeat Moro himself. With the wizard free, Goku and Vegeta part ways to train for the upcoming confrontation.
7 Moro Vs Goku (Rematch)
After the first set of skirmishes with Moro, Goku goes off with Merus to train in a lesser version of the Room of Spirit and Time in order to finally master Ultra Instinct. Unfortunately, their training is interrupted by Whis – being an angel, Merus can only empower Goku against a specific threat so much.
Goku only manages to master Ultra Instinct -Sign- before his fight with Moro. While the battle itself is one of the best choreographed in the manga, Sign simply isn’t enough to contend with the sheer amount of strength Moro has gained since eating Namek.
6 Moro Vs Vegeta (Rematch)
While Goku trains with Merus in the Room of Spirit and Time, Vegeta trains on Planet Yardrat in order to better refine his Ki control (or as the people of Yardrat call it, Spirit control.) Vegeta spends months learning Yardratian techniques, even picking up Instant Transmission faster than Goku (albeit without the mastery.)
The main skill Vegeta picks up on Yardrat is Forced Spirit Fission, a technique which allows him to dispel “spirit” out of a person’s body – using the technique to free the Namekian souls that Moro ate. Although Vegeta depowers Moro considerably, the wizard unfortunately absorbs Seven-Three before he can be killed.
5 Moro-73 Vs Everyone
With both Goku and Vegeta failing to save the day, Moro-73 immediately starts wreaking havoc. Virtually the entire main cast are forced to step in and they ultimately do little. Piccolo is shot through the torso with his own Makankosappo; Androids 17 & 18 ostensibly do chip damage; and Goku’s stuck in Super Saiyan Blue. Moro-73 even rips a hole through Goku’s chest, once again only leaving the main characters alive so they can be eaten later.
4 Moro-73 Vs Merus
Despite being an angel, Merus mainly fights with weapons. In his first two battles against Moro, he uses his gun as a member of the Galactic Patrolman. As part of his last battle, however, Merus uses an angel staff to break Moro’s absorption crystals. Merus knows he’ll be erased by the end of the fight if he goes full power, but he needs to if Goku’s ever going to master Ultra Instinct. In sacrificing his divinity, Merus teaches Goku everything he needs to tap into his full potential.
3 Moro-73 Vs Goku
Watching Merus die doesn’t trigger a visceral emotional reaction on Goku’s part. He doesn’t burst into rage and trigger Ultra Instinct. Instead, he recognizes the sacrifice Merus just made for the universe and processes these emotions to tap into Ultra Instinct in its purest state.
In some of Toyotaro’s best choreography yet, Goku utterly bests Moro in combat. Goku doesn’t kill Moro, however, giving him an opportunity to use one last remaining absorption crystal to tap into Merus’ power. Adding Merus’ angel powers to his own might, Moro prepares to get his revenge.
2 Morus Vs Goku
Only for Goku to swiftly put him in his place. The sheer divine power flowing through Moro proves to be too much for his body. Even then, he’s not strong enough to do significant damage against Goku. Keeping Ultra Instinct fully intact, Goku continues his beatdown of Moro, but unfortunately takes too long to finish off his foe. When given the chance, Moro fuses himself to Planet Earth, forcing Goku to potentially destroy the world he loves if he plans on saving the universe.
1 Planet Moro Vs Goku
The final fight against Moro brings Vegeta back into the picture to dispel Planet Moro as much as possible, giving Goku a chance to break through the giant’s body. Even by creating a makeshift Genki Dama to power up Goku, Vegeta isn’t able to funnel enough power into Goku to fully stop Moro.
It isn’t until the Dai Kaioshin finds Uub that Ultra Instinct is powered enough for Goku to finish breaking his way through Moro’s body, finishing the fight off with Dragon Ball’s first canonical Dragon Fist.