Dragon Ball Needs to Fix Its Goku Problem While It Still Can

The Dragon Ball franchise currently finds itself in a tenuous situation. The series has plans to continue following the conclusion of the Dragon Ball Super anime, but defining its next steps is easier said than done. Akira Toriyama’s untimely death robbed the franchise of its leader, and there isn’t exactly an obvious best path forward. The series may opt to directly adapt the currently running manga, but it will eventually go in a brand new direction. Whatever their long-term plans may be, though, there’s one problem they need to solve: how to make Goku interesting again. Even though Dragon Ball Super armed the hero with incredible new transformations and strength, as a character and in the context of the plot, he never felt weaker.

However, by the end of the Dragon Ball Super anime, it’s hard to see Goku as the same incredibly powerful but equally fallible being he existed as previously.

Honestly, needing to make Goku more interesting isn’t meant to be an attack on Goku. He’s an incredible character who’s earned his real-world imprint, but there is real stagnancy that exists in the son of Bardock come the end of Super. Goku became a legend in manga and fiction as a whole because of his mortality and the losses he suffered in the pursuit of ultimate victory. However, by the end of the Dragon Ball Super anime, it’s hard to see Goku as the same incredibly powerful but equally fallible being he existed as previously. Goku needs to be given something new to fight for, as well as something new to reach for. Otherwise, he risks losing what made him so exciting as a character and would be better off being replaced.

Dragon Ball’ Super Saiyan Gohan and Majin Buu

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The Man, the Myth, the Legend

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The Saiyan Son Goku has become a multi-generational inspiration on par with characters like Batman. He adorns the walls of everything from children’s bedrooms to international taquerias, inspiring perseverance and self-confidence around the world. But this borderline idolatry isn’t because he has strength beyond anyone else; it’s because he always finds the strength he needs to overcome. Goku isn’t a monolith, he’s just a man who’s always willing to try even harder. Through Dragon Ball, he forces himself to redefine his limits time and again in the face of hard losses and impossible circumstances. Unfortunately, by the end of Dragon Ball Super, Goku feels a bit closer to the deities he fights for than the desperate mortals that are representing them in the Tournament of Power. Goku’s slowly become a monotonous pinnacle of strength and hasn’t cleanly lost a consequential fight against a mortal since being sucker punched by Majin Vegeta.

While there’s been a perception of Goku as being the anointed breaker of every bad guy but Perfect Cell, his record before Super was surprisingly a mixed bag. While he beat Frieza and Buu, most of Goku’s big victories were only possible thanks to saving throws from his friends, and he actually lost every fight he took on in the Android/Cell Sagas. But this is what made the character so appealing across the series. The known quantity of Goku’s already impressive strength still being matched by seemingly insurmountable odds made the journey of his fights exhilarating. There were certainly complaints about the pace it took him to overcome those odds, but the long climb to victory was what created a sense of inspiration and accomplishment. That accomplishment is missing in Super, with Goku’s conflicts abbreviated, and his fighting dominance never left in question long enough to create suspense around its legitimacy.

Black Frieza Stares Down Ultra Ego Vegeta in the Dragon Ball Super manga

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A Main Character Needs Character

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Not only are the struggles of Goku’s fights waning in their excitement but so are the struggles of Goku as an actual character. This isn’t to minimize the literal implications of his plots, of course. A conflict threatening the destruction of multiple universes matters and would matter to Goku. But it’s such a played-out concept that it feels more like the paper-thin and painfully undercooked plots of Dragon Ball GT than the culmination of a project directly created with Akira Toriyama. Perhaps it’s the growing fatigue towards stories that threaten a multiverse, or a problem of an expanding scale growing too big, but nothing feels especially personal for Goku. Even passively, he doesn’t seem to be striving for anything but pure strength. Even if he gets it by reaching the same heights as a God of Destruction, it’s hard to think of what that really accomplishes for him or what would come next.

While Goku is a simply-motivated character, that doesn’t mean he needs to be restricted to simple motivations. The Saiyan Saga expanded on Goku’s native race and presented a threat that forced him to battle his Saiyan brethren to protect his chosen homeworld. The Frieza Saga then gave him a chance to tenuously reconnect with and avenge that part of himself, joining with Vegeta and ultimately becoming the Legendary Super Saiyan. Cell then presented Goku with the culmination of those he spent his life defeating, creating an opponent intended — both in the series and in real life — to end his tenure as Earth’s protector. He can still be a lovable simpleton while being faced with complex challenges and themes, but Super seemed content to keep things light for Earth’s greatest warrior. Whatever comes next would do better not to follow in those footsteps, and should attempt something more character-focused.

Custom Image of Majin Buu in the center with Kid Buu to the left and Super Buu to the right from Dragon Ball

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Goku’s Undisputed Hero Status

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An argument can be made that Goku doesn’t need to advance in anything but power level at this stage of his fictional life. Maybe that’s true; after all, Goku is universally beloved, and his popularity hasn’t stalled even with the stagnation of his internal development in favor of the external. But if Goku can’t be redefined for the sake of more exciting and suspenseful stories, it could finally be time for him to be replaced as the series’ main protagonist. Akira Toriyama intended long ago to see the character hand the reins of Earth’s protector to his son, Gohan, but that never came to fruition as Goku was constantly pulled back to center stage. Goku’s constant and unquestionable victory in meaningful conflicts since the start of Super makes things feel tiring and predictable and the easiest way to change that is to simply take those conflicts and put them on somebody else.

By the end of Dragon Ball Super Hero, both Gohan and Piccolo had received new transformations. With those revamped looks came power buffs that supposedly made them roughly comparable to Goku, though certainly still a few tiers below his peak. It could finally be time to let the two take the lead in an arc-long battle against a big bad. Vegeta could also get his long-awaited day in the sun, free from the undermining and technicalities that usually cost him glory against the more important villains. These characters deserve to be a bit more relevant in the big picture as Dragon Ball continues into its next era. Similarly, Goku deserves a bit more variety in what he goes through. Limiting the hero’s availability like in the first half of the Buu Saga or shaking up the pecking order of the show’s power scale to Goku’s detriment could work — but no matter what, things can’t stay the same.

None of this is meant to frame Goku as a bad character. If anything, his universal adoration has been reiterated time and again. But the Dragon Ball franchise must find a way to keep telling engaging stories. With Goku, it feels like there aren’t many hair colors left to replace character development he doesn’t necessarily need. Even the newest entries to the series are filled with iconic and memorable characters whose stories and power ceilings could all use some interesting exploration. There are traditional picks like Piccolo and Gohan to Goten and Trunks, and newer entries like Broly. There’s nothing wrong with giving different characters a few days in the limelight. Alternately, it’s just as okay to give Goku a few arcs off if need be.

Goku is synonymous with the Dragon Ball franchise, with its canon spanning his life’s story as one of the universe’s greatest heroes. But at some point, either Goku needs to change — or Dragon Ball does. If the series plans to continue, it needs to find a way to stay fresh, and throughout Super, Goku grows increasingly stale. Thanks to its flashy fights and exciting plots, it wasn’t an issue. But as Dragon Ball continues, it can’t continue to put a character on the back burner when it was previously able to balance engaging plots and memorable beatdowns simultaneously. Dragon Ball is great, Dragon Ball Super is great, and Goku will always be great. But as far as good storytelling and series go, things will have to change eventually, or it will be a problem.

Cast of Dragon Ball Z leaping towards the camera in Anime Poster

Dragon Ball

Dragon Ball tells the tale of a young warrior by the name of Son Goku, a young peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, once all 7 are gathered, grant any wish of choice.

Created byAkira ToriyamaFirst FilmDragon Ball: Curse of the Blood RubiesLatest FilmDragon Ball Super: Super HeroFirst TV ShowDragon BallLatest TV ShowDragon Ball SuperUpcoming TV ShowsDragon Ball DAIMAFirst Episode Air DateApril 26, 1989CastBrian Drummond, Scott McNeil, Christopher Sabat, Laura Bailey, Sean SchemmelCurrent SeriesDragon Ball Super