In any event, the showdown between Goku and the newly fused Kefla begins in earnest, with the latter wiping the floor with the prior, even in his super saiyan god form. I did find it strange that Goku was blown away by the fact that Kefla was a lot stronger than the two individual fighters that made her up. He knows how the Potara earrings work. He's used them twice and even learned a separate fusion technique that operates on a similar principle. I guess they wanted to use this as a way to explain it to new viewers who might just be jumping in, but this seems like an odd spot to put something like that.
Speaking of fusion, Beerus does bring up the fact that fusion is supposed to be against the rules. This was one of the reasons why Goten and Trunks were passed on the roster. Not surprisingly, though, the dual omni-kings allow Potara fusion because it's cool.
This, of course, prompts every universe to consider the tactic, though none follow through at this point for various reasons. Universe 7's Supreme Kai suggests having 17 and 18 fuse. It was actually a clever idea on his part, but when Whis reminds them that it puts two fighters at risk of being eliminated in one foul swoop, Beerus vetoes the idea, leaving Goku to fight the fused saiyan himself.
Of course, he has no problem with this arrangement. Judging by the look on his face, he's having the time of his life, both fighters are. It allows the viewer to get an extra sense of enjoyment from the fight.
Kefla proves so formidable that Goku is forced to go blue, something Kefla was waiting for. She, in turn, goes super saiyan. It does manage to escalate the fight considerably and leaves everyone breathless. You'd think that this would be a forced moment, but Kefla's actually doing a good job presenting herself as an adversary that can legitimately challenge Goku at this stage. When he has to up things yet again using his kaio-ken/blue combo, it feels like something he has to do and not just something the writers are making him do for the sake of placating the audience.
While Goku does seem to be getting a second wind, Beerus notes that Goku's body is still exhausted from his fight with Jiren and that using the kaio-ken at this point is a major gamble. Sadly, we never see any repercussions on that front, but it is another indicator that Goku viewed using the power up as a necessity.
Of course, part of this might be due to the fact that Kefla knocks Goku out before this can become a factor. Yeah, he's out cold. All Kefla has to do is knock his body out of the ring and universe 7 takes a major hit.
Before she can do this, though, Goku's unconscious body begins to stir and he slowly rises to his feet. You can tell right off the bat that something is off, but it's not a bad thing, as it turns out that Goku has managed to tap into the ultra instinct power again. It gives the episode a nice surprise to end on, as well as a cool tease for the next episode where Kefla will face off against the power that managed to give Jiren a quick run for his money.
I can't help but wonder if this is a good thing, though. The form really left Goku exhausted. Even putting aside the peril of the strain on his body, tactically, this could leave the team at a disadvantage. Goku was finally starting to get his energy back. This will burn through it and make him start all over again. There are only 19 minutes left in the tournament, you'd think that having their key player recuperating for a majority of it would be a detriment. Maybe he'll fare better now that his body is somewhat familiar. We'll just have to see.
The episode does also touch on some of the other goings on in the tournament, namely the on-going fights between Vegeta and Toppo, as well as Gohan and Piccolo's battle with the universe 6 Namekians. I'm surprised these two fights haven't gotten more screen time. From what we've seen, these are two match ups that warrant more than an after thought. Maybe future episodes will give them their due. As of now, they're just a nice way to break away from the Goku/Kefla fight for a few minutes.
We also pop in on 18, who has suffered some sort of indian burn on her ankle that is supposed to make me think that she's in trouble. Things only get worse when Katopesla approaches her, voicing his intent to take her out while she's weakened. So much for the whole noble hero thing, I guess.
This might have been a tense moment, but Katopesla's initial appearance didn't exactly paint him as a fighter I'm meant to take seriously. We do see that his speed is legit, even 18 is impressed by it, but I'm still not sold.
Of course, I'm not sold on Toppo either. I mean, come on, his go to move is a bear hug for crying out loud, but that's neither here nor there.
Either way, I didn't see the need for 17 to jump to his sister's aid. Even 18 points out that she didn't need help, but 17 says that he was just passing through, so hopefully that will help quell any potential backlash regarding that scene.
Overall, the episode was solid. The fights were exciting, paced well, and generally visually impressive. There wasn't much in the way of plot progression, but it's kind of hard to do with this set up. Everybody's still kung-fu fighting, and that's the long and short of it.
Although Kefla does manage to pique Jiren's interest, as he continues to show signs of awakening from his meditative state, so we'll see what comes with that particular development
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