The episode does happen to shift its focus a little bit to show how some other characters are staying busy this time. The most jarring is certainly Goku’s life with Chi-Chi. Goku quickly sees the ultimate threat of the universe shifting from Beerus to his wife. Her behavior towards Goku is pretty insufferable here. Not to mention, she’s somehow managed to spend the 100 million Zeni that Satan gave to Goku at the start of the series.

I seriously don’t know how this is possible. What has she been buying? Ingredients for Bulma’s birthday? New tractor parts. It’s not as if she has a granddaughter on the way and maybe should have been saving some of that money…With Chi-Chi now feeling the strain of her purse strings, she orders Goku to stop his training and find a new job to help support his family.

Gohan is also woefully de-fanged at this point. I know that many viewers (both of the dub and where the anime is actually at in Japan currently) have been anxious for Gohan to “awaken” and become the formidable warrior that was present during the Cell Games and that we got glimpses of during the whole Mystic Gohan situation. Well get ready to keep waiting. Gohan’s characterization is one of the most frustrating in all of Dragon Ball Super, but rest assured that it does feel like the series is interested in turning him back into a serious fighter…it’s just something that’s way off in the horizon. While it’s somewhat appreciated to see this show depicting a fighter that has turned their back on fighting and accepted a different sort of lifestyle, did it really have to be Gohan? The show is exploring the same material with Krillin and it even resonates a little more with him.

On the opposite end of all of that, there’s just a sole Vegeta scene, but it’s pretty characteristically great. The guy is just fuming over how Goku is once more stronger than he is and how he’s got to do something about it. It’s a miniscule touch, but it appears that Vegeta is also doing this brooding at the spot where he and Goku shared their first fight back in Dragon Ball Z. I’d like to think that Vegeta is returning to this pivotal spot where he first learned that Kakarot was stronger than him to have this angry self-reflection.

“Valiant Mr. Satan, Work a Miracle…” isn’t Dragon Ball Super’s most exciting episode. In fact, it even feels a bit duller than it should be due to the big act from last episode that it has to follow. Figuring out how to make an Earth that’s safe still interesting is a dynamic that Dragon Ball has always struggled with to some degree. It’s easy to fill a deadly battle with plenty of story beats and cool scenes to keep people happy, but what about when the dust settles and everything is back to normal? People need more than moments like Chi-Chi scolding Goku for not finishing his chores or Goten for not keeping up with his studies. The benefit here is that because Goku and Beerus’ clash was so significant, many of Earth’s citizens are aware that something major was just happening to the planet. This is a situation where some sort of answer is needed for the public rather than our heroes being able to just go off and party. And when the public needs some sort of answer or a voice to make them feel safe, it usually means that Hercule Satan needs to get involved, for better or for worse.