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Captain Marvel Visual Artist Explains How Dragon Ball Influenced Carol's Intense Look


Captain Marvel's intense CGI look at this year's blockbuster reminded some fans of Goku's Super Saiyan form from the Dragon Ball franchise but it turns out that Dragon Ball was not the main influence for Carol Danvers' powerful look.

During a recent interview with Inverse, Christopher Townsend, a visual effects supervisor who works with Marvel Studios, talked about Captain Marvel's live-action look, and her powered-up form.

"We wanted her to feel incredibly powerful," Townsend said. "We wanted it to feel it wasn't her suit that was energized, it was her," Townsend continued. "The energy was coming from her, and that's difficult when she's wearing a full body suit. So we talked about ideas. Maybe the suit should be perforated so you can see the energy through. We had visual tests."

Townsend said that his team thought about Tesla coils, photon energy, and fireballs to create Captain Marvel's fiery look. When asked if Dragon Ball Z influenced Carol Danvers' powerful look, he said, "We did look at anime, certainly, but it wasn't the strong influence. I've seen Dragon Ball, I know what it looks like, but it wasn't the intent".

So it turns out that Goku is not the primary influence for Davers's intense look in Captain Marvel but fans can't help associate her powered-up form to the iconic Super Saiyan look.

The manga chapters for Dragon Ball Super are available at Viz Media. The anime is currently airing its English dub on Adult Swim.

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