The long-awaited Dragon Ball Super manga return may finally be moving in the right direction. V Jump and official Dragon Ball material continue to describe Toyotarou’s manga as an ongoing serialized work, providing another encouraging sign that the series has not quietly ended during its lengthy hiatus.
There is one important catch. Neither V Jump nor Shueisha has announced a date for regular monthly chapters to resume. So while recent language surrounding the series makes its eventual return look increasingly likely, fans should not treat reports of an imminent comeback as confirmation that a new chapter is about to drop.
That distinction matters after more than two years of uncertainty surrounding one of the biggest manga franchises in the world.
V Jump Still Treats Dragon Ball Super as an Active Manga
The newest evidence comes from how V Jump continues to present Dragon Ball Super.
On V Jump’s official page for the series, the manga remains listed alongside its normal story information and collected volumes. More tellingly, the publication currently states that Dragon Ball Super will be on hiatus in its October 2026 super-sized issue.
Calling an individual issue a hiatus is different from announcing that a manga has concluded or been canceled. It indicates that V Jump continues to maintain Dragon Ball Super as part of its active lineup, even though a new chapter is not appearing in that particular issue.
The official Dragon Ball website has used similar language throughout 2026. In July, an official Toyotarou feature again referred to him as the artist serializing Dragon Ball Super in V Jump.
None of this provides the announcement fans really want, but it makes one point increasingly difficult to ignore: Dragon Ball Super still appears to be considered an ongoing manga.
There Is Still No Dragon Ball Super Manga Return Date
This is where some of the excitement surrounding the latest reports needs to be tempered.
As of August 30, 2026, Shueisha has not announced a specific issue of V Jump in which regular Dragon Ball Super serialization will restart. There is no confirmed chapter number, release month, new arc title, or preview artwork for the next major storyline.
In other words, the status of the manga looks healthier than it did during the most uncertain period of the hiatus, but “still serializing” does not automatically mean “returning next month.”
Fans have already seen the manga briefly emerge from its break once. A special Dragon Ball Super one-shot was published in Japan on February 20, 2025, focusing on Trunks and Goten and expanding on their Saiyaman X superhero storyline connected to the Super Hero arc.
That chapter proved Toyotarou was still actively creating material for the series. It did not, however, restart normal monthly serialization.
Why the Dragon Ball Super Manga Has Been Gone So Long
The regular manga entered an extended break in 2024 following the death of Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama.
Toriyama’s involvement in Dragon Ball Super went far beyond having his name attached to the project. He provided original concepts, story material, character designs, and direction that Toyotarou developed into the manga.
His death on March 1, 2024 left the future creative structure of Dragon Ball Super uncertain. Continuing the series meant more than simply drawing the next chapter. The people responsible for the franchise had to determine how a post-Toriyama version of an ongoing Dragon Ball story would work.
That makes the unusually long hiatus understandable.
Toyotarou has remained publicly involved with Dragon Ball throughout the break, producing illustrations and participating in official projects. The official Dragon Ball website has also continued identifying him directly with the Dragon Ball Super manga rather than describing the series as a completed work.
What Could Dragon Ball Super Do Next?
The biggest mystery is no longer simply whether the manga can return. It is what Toyotarou will actually do once it does.
The regular storyline reached the later stages of the Super Hero material before the extended hiatus, while the 2025 special chapter returned to Trunks and Goten’s superhero adventures. No official announcement has identified the next major manga saga.
That leaves Toyotarou with an unusually open playing field.
Several of the manga’s most important characters are now operating at radically different power levels than they were only a few arcs ago. Goku has continued developing Ultra Instinct. Vegeta has Ultra Ego. Gohan’s Beast transformation placed him back among the franchise’s elite fighters, while Orange Piccolo finally gave Piccolo a transformation capable of keeping him relevant beside the Saiyans.
Then there is Black Frieza.
Frieza’s dramatic return near the end of the Granolah storyline immediately changed the series’ power hierarchy. After training for the equivalent of ten years inside a Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Black Frieza effortlessly defeated Ultra Instinct Goku and Ultra Ego Vegeta.
That plot thread remains one of the largest pieces on the board if the manga moves forward with an original post-Super Hero storyline.
Whether Black Frieza becomes the immediate focus, however, remains completely unconfirmed.
Dragon Ball Super Is Also Moving Forward in Anime
The manga is not the only part of Dragon Ball Super showing signs of life.
Shueisha confirmed in January 2026 that a new anime project, Dragon Ball Super: Galactic Patrol, is in production. The project will bring the Galactic Patrol Prisoner storyline into animation, covering manga material that takes place after the Tournament of Power.
That is especially important for anime-only fans. The original Dragon Ball Super television series stopped in 2018 after the Tournament of Power, leaving several major manga storylines without television adaptations.
A separate project, Dragon Ball Super: Beerus, is also scheduled to begin airing in fall 2026. Shueisha describes that production as an enhanced version of the earlier Dragon Ball Super material surrounding Beerus.
Between those projects and the continuing status of Toyotarou’s manga, 2026 has become one of the busiest periods for Dragon Ball Super announcements in years.
What Dragon Ball Fans Should Take From the Update
The latest developments are good news, just not quite the announcement fans have been waiting for.
V Jump continues to carry Dragon Ball Super as an active work. The official Dragon Ball website continues associating Toyotarou with the manga’s serialization. A special chapter already demonstrated that new manga material can still be produced after the beginning of the hiatus.
Those are meaningful signals.
What is missing is the final step: an official announcement stating when regular chapters return.
Until Shueisha or V Jump provides that date, reports that the Dragon Ball Super manga is “returning soon” should be treated as expectation rather than confirmed scheduling.
Still, compared with the silence that surrounded the manga through much of its hiatus, its continued presence in official V Jump and Dragon Ball material is encouraging. The question increasingly appears to be not whether Dragon Ball Super has quietly ended, but when Toyotarou will finally be ready to begin the next chapter.
Sources
- V Jump: Official Dragon Ball Super manga information page, current August 2026 listing
- Dragon Ball Official Site: Toyotarou monthly illustration feature, July 29, 2026
- Dragon Ball Official Site: Dragon Ball Super special one-shot announcement, February 19, 2025
- Shueisha: Dragon Ball Super: Galactic Patrol anime production announcement, January 29, 2026
- Shueisha: Dragon Ball Super: Beerus television announcement, January 29, 2026
- ComicBook.com: “Dragon Ball Super Confirms a Major Update For Manga’s Return,” August 28, 2026
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