Basically I am defending my ideas against a lot of the negativity surrounding Fusion Dragonoid.
We’ve all heard it. Maybe we even think it. Titanium drago was way better in its presentation. and this is true I would say. But I think due to that being such a popular bandwagon cold take, Fusion has gotten way more hate than it deserves. So let’s start here:
#1 - Design
#2 - Power/Presentation
#1: Design - Gotta address this. The stupid first picture in the thumbnail. Idk why this seems to be the only high def full body image you can find of Fusion Drago with just a quick search, but it is. And it’s fan-made. His proportions are off, he looks kinda derpy, his legs and face look and are shaped weirdly. His wings are strange and his chest piece is incorrect. What Fusion Dragonoid actually looks like is in the following pictures.
In my opinion, I always felt that the humanoid line really followed a theme. Helix looks like base Drago with a humanoid form. Lumino makes him look like a Knight. Blitz makes him look like a Level 100 Knight. Titanium makes him look like a successful and highly decorated Knight post-war. Fusion makes him look like a King. With the crown-like chest piece, and it being the only evolution to extend Drago’s golden headpiece across his whole head like a crown. As a kid, Fusion Drago’s design really screamed “King of all Bakugan“ to me.
#2 - Power / Presentation
Two main things to say about this:
1 - Fusion Dragonoid as far as we ever saw or knew, only ever used his full power against Evolved Razenoid. In that fight, Drago said “let’s show them our full power” before launching a blast we never saw again. In the Betadron fight, there’s no indication that Drago is using his full power. He actually actively doesn’t want to fight Betadron and is trying to talk him out of it for a large majority of the fight. It was also said by Dan during the fight: “what’s going on, Drago should have way more power than him.” Guntz says this is due to two things: 1. a hatred amp, and 2. Betadron and Guntz continually remark that Dan and Drago simply don’t want the win that badly. They’re both doing this out of a reluctant necessity more than anything. Drago is fighting Betadron at first with the attitude of “I don’t really see the reason for this fight” and then upon realizing Betadron is determined and bloodlusted, decides “okay fine, I’ll just have to put this guy in his place.” And they win, with Drago fine and Betadron on the floor. Drago reluctantly fought Betadron and won, unharmed afterwards, with no sign of exhaustion or battle damage. All of this to say, Evolved Razenoid is likely >>>> Betadron (even moreso considering it’s a plot point that Drago and Razenoid (mutated Dharak) are simply the two strongest Bakugan in existence.
2 - Fusion Drago’s power generally presented itself through Dragonoid Destroyer in MS2. Summoning a Mechtogan Destroyer is something no other being in the series on their own ever did. Dragonoid Destroyer is an extension of Drago (and Dan’s) power. As such, Dragonoid Destroyer was treated as MS2’s “Drago Trump Card” rather than an ability. Now, is this lame? Yeah kinda. But Drago is still the strongest bakugan in existence bar none, with nobody other than Razenoid even coming close. Mechtogan are just a different beast who happened to become the main focus of MS2.
Addressing Other Claims against Fusion I see:
“Titanium Dragonoid did better against mechtogan than Fusion.”
This is not actually true. Titanium used his higher tier abilities to take down mechtogan significantly weaker than the 4 main mechtogan from MS2. And Fusion Drago was capable of taking those guys down with his weakest abilities like Dragon Thrasher. Coredegon was only one who tanked his attacks, which Drago couldn't believe, and Coredegon replies “I’m not your average Mechtogan.” The doom dimension mechtogan were mutated and far more powerful than mechtogan of the past. Coredegon was effectively the final villain of the series and clearly intended to be essentially the strongest mechtogan in the series as well. After Drago’s attacks didn’t knock down Coredegon, before Drago even uses another move on Coredegon, him and Dan power up and summon the literal most powerful thing in the entire series, Dragonoid Destroyer, who as discussed before, is effectively just an extension/culmination of Fusion Drago’s own power and bond with Dan.
“Why did Drago have to fuse / use suits or summon even Dragonoid Destroyer to defeat some of the Nonets and their fusions?”
I don’t see why this is problematic. Drago isn’t Goku. He isn’t trying to win every fight on his own nor does he desire ultimate power. The fused nonets were a threat. Dragonoid destroyer was by far the easiest way to deal with nearly every threat efficiently and even allow others like Reptak to assist. Drago isn’t the type to ever really say “everyone step aside I’ll take him on with my own power and hold back too.” He usually says “this is a threat and we will eliminate it as efficiently as possible, whatever that entails.” All of his 1v1 fights start because he needs to protect/defend something, is forced to by circumstance, or because the villains want to be Goku and challenge the strongest guy (Drago). Regardless, Drago literally defeats Betadron, the strongest nonet, fair and square, and was fine afterward as covered already. I’m sure Drago *could* have dealt with the fused nonets, but he didn’t have to. He had friends nearby and had a mechtogan destroyer he could summon down with zero drawbacks basically whenever.
Final Point:
At the end of MS1, Wonder Superior failed 3 times against Evolved Razenoid, and Dragon Maximum Striker did nothing as well. Drago and Dan fully accepted and mastered Code Eve’s gift (The Gate & Key), which triggered his evolution into Fusion Dragonoid, giving him full control of his power, and allowing him to defeat Razenoid with a single full power attack. After this fight, Fusion Drago was essentially never pushed that far again by any Bakugan. Not even the mechtogan could, with the exception of the mutated Coredegon and then obviously Mechtavius Destroyer. Drago and Dan immediately respond to being pushed like this by creating their own damn Mechtogan Destroyer which ended up ultimately being the strongest thing in the whole series.
Verdict: Fusion Drago is the goat, and MS2 just chose the wrong direction and focus. MS1 should have been the whole season or it should have stopped after MS1 alltogether l, with Fusion basically getting its best 3 minutes of screen time and one-shotting Razenoid as the series finale.
