I absolutely love how Dragon Ball Z picked up right where the original Dragon Ball left off! While the first series was great for building the world, DBZ is what really exploded the franchise and honestly, it set the standard for so many action-packed anime that came after it. It totally changed the game with all the incredible transformations, intense rivalries, and focus on family – it’s just awesome! The story starts with Goku enjoying a quiet life with his wife, Chi-Chi, and his young son, Gohan, but of course, peace doesn’t last! When these powerful warriors called Saiyans show up, everything changes, and we finally learn why Goku was sent to Earth in the first place.
Man, discovering where I came from as a Saiyan was a total shock – learning about their history was pretty terrifying, honestly! But even knowing all that, I couldn’t abandon Earth, the planet where I grew up. The series just kept throwing new friends and enemies at us, and every fight pushed us to get stronger. What’s really cool about the transformations in Dragon Ball Z is how they build up the excitement – those moments of intense energy and anger always feel way more epic than you’d expect!
10) Frieza’s Ultimate Form Still Gives Us Chills
I’ve seen a lot of powerful beings, but Frieza was something else. He ruled the galaxy through sheer force, and just walking into a room felt like a physical blow – even the proud Saiyans were intimidated. He came to Namek looking for the Dragon Balls, sure, but honestly, he seemed to enjoy flaunting his terrifying power more. It was strange, though – most fighters transform to get stronger, but Frieza seemed to transform to hold back his true strength.
It’s incredible to watch him change – each transformation just unlocks more and more of his real strength! Honestly, his final form isn’t some disguise; it’s him, completely uninhibited and showing off just how powerful he truly is. Frieza really enjoyed toying with Gohan and Krillin, and it ended up costing him dearly, though. It was a huge mistake to underestimate them!
9) Super Saiyan God Revives an Ancient Legend
The Super Saiyan God transformation first appeared in the movie Battle of Gods, and was later included in the Dragon Ball Super anime series. The God of Destruction, Beerus, woke up from a long sleep after having a strange dream, and began searching for a legendary Super Saiyan God. With the help of Shenron, Goku and the other Saiyans learned how to achieve this powerful form, giving Goku a significant advantage in his battle against Beerus.
Super Saiyan God wasn’t a lasting transformation, but it gave Goku enough power to fight equally with a God of Destruction – the strongest beings in the universe. Although he lost this form during battle, his body retained the memory of that incredible power, driving him to reach even greater levels of strength.
8) Super Saiyan Blue Provides Godly Powers
This powerful transformation debuted in the movie Resurrection F, where Frieza is brought back to life and attempts to reclaim his role as a galactic ruler. He even trained to beat Goku, unaware that Goku had become much stronger in recent years. Super Saiyan God combines divine power with the traditional Super Saiyan abilities.
Goku first discovered this ability after his battle with Beerus, as his body had already adapted to immense power. Surprisingly, Vegeta was also able to unlock it, even though he hadn’t undergone the same ritual to increase his strength.
7) Perfect Cell Showed the World What True Terror Means
Even before absorbing others, Cell was a powerful enemy. He reached his peak strength by absorbing Androids 17 and 18, who were specifically created to make him stronger. In addition to his ability to regenerate, Cell can also copy and use the unique skills of fighters like Goku and the other Z Warriors, making him incredibly dangerous.
Once Cell reached his perfect form, he became incredibly powerful – the Z Warriors couldn’t even make a dent in him. Feeling invincible, Cell announced a tournament, wanting to see if anyone was strong enough to pose a challenge before he destroyed them.
6) Ultimate Gohan Unlocks His True Potential
Gohan suffered a tough defeat against Dabura, which made him realize he’d gotten out of practice during the seven years he hadn’t trained. The situation became even more dire when the incredibly powerful Majin Buu arrived and began wreaking havoc on Earth. Although the Z Warriors couldn’t beat Buu, they once again looked to Gohan to save them.
Elder Kai helped Gohan reach his maximum power, making him stronger than Goku’s Super Saiyan 3 form without needing to transform. This form is popularly called “Mystic Gohan,” but its official name is “Ultimate Gohan.” With this incredible power, Gohan could have easily beaten Super Buu, but a single mistake led to a disappointing loss.
5) Future Trunks Made History With His Super Saiyan Transformation
A major surprise in the series is the introduction of time travel, and it’s revealed that Bulma and Vegeta’s son is the one who does it. After his future timeline is devastated by Androids, Future Trunks travels back in time to warn Goku and his friends about the danger they pose. Unfortunately, Goku is still recovering from his intense fight with Frieza on Namek and hasn’t returned to Earth yet. This allows Frieza and his father, King Cold, to arrive first, determined to destroy the planet.
The Z Warriors were ready for a fight, but none of them were strong enough to win against the villains without transforming into Super Saiyans. They were shocked when a mysterious swordsman appeared who was a Super Saiyan, and even more surprised that he easily defeated Frieza.
4) Vegeta Finally Transforms into a Super Saiyan
Seeing Goku become a Super Saiyan filled Vegeta with conflicting feelings. He was happy to know the old legend was real, but deeply frustrated that Goku, not him – the Prince of all Saiyans – had achieved it. Driven by this, Vegeta trained incredibly hard after the battle on Namek, pushing himself to his limits to become stronger.
Just when things looked bleakest, Vegeta also achieved the Super Saiyan transformation before the Androids arrived. He quickly defeated Androids 19 and 20, but the remaining Androids proved to be a much greater challenge for him to face on his own.
3) Goku Shakes the World With Super Saiyan 3
In the final battles, Goku’s transformation into a Super Saiyan 3 was so powerful it caused the planet to tremble. Because he sacrificed himself to save Earth, he was allowed to keep his body in the afterlife. This enabled him to train for seven years and achieve the next level of Super Saiyan power.
This transformation is incredibly strong, but it quickly exhausts Goku, preventing him from using it for very long. He only used it in the first place to buy time for the other Z Fighters to prepare their attack against Buu.
2) Gohan Unlocks the Next Level of Super Saiyan
Even though he was just eleven years old, Gohan had the immense pressure of saving the world from Cell. Cell was incredibly strong – so much so that Goku, Gohan’s father, believed he couldn’t win. But Goku thought Gohan had a chance. Cell, however, enjoyed tormenting Gohan by attacking his friends, and he callously killed Android 16 right before Gohan’s eyes.
That moment was too much for Gohan, pushing him to achieve a new, more powerful Super Saiyan form and quickly defeat Cell. Driven by intense anger and sadness, Gohan became the first Saiyan to reach Super Saiyan 2. It was incredibly satisfying to watch him easily overwhelm Cell, who had underestimated him.
1) Goku Turns Super Saiyan in Namek
I don’t think anything in the history of Shonen anime and manga quite compares to when Goku first turned Super Saiyan. It wasn’t just a power-up; it actually proved an old legend was real, happening right in the middle of his fight with Frieza. That moment completely changed how transformations were used in Shonen stories. Before that, the idea of a golden-haired Super Saiyan was just a forgotten myth.
I’ve always been amazed by the Saiyans. For generations, even millennia, they never unlocked this incredible power, but Goku was different – he was destined for something greater. Even with a significant boost in strength, he was struggling against Frieza. But then, pure anger took over, and he transformed into something Frieza simply couldn’t compete with.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
https://comicbook.com/anime/list/10-anime-characters-stronger-than-goku-list/embed/#
Read More
- Gold Rate Forecast
- How To Watch Under The Bridge And Stream Every Episode Of This Shocking True Crime Series Free From Anywhere
- BrokenLore: Ascend is a New Entry in the Horror Franchise, Announced for PC and PS5
- Silver Rate Forecast
- Two DC Comics Characters Have Lifted Thor’s Hammer This Week (And Everyone Missed It)
- Get rid of the BBC? Careful what you wish for…
- Britney Spears’ Ex Kevin Federline Argues Against Fans’ Claims About His Tell-All’s Effect On Her And Sons’ Relationship
- Taming Quantum Chaos: A Stochastic Approach to Many-Body Dynamics
- Sony to Stimulate Japanese PS5 Sales with Cheaper, Region-Locked Model
- South Park Creators Confirm They Won’t Be Getting Rid of Trump Anytime Soon
2025-11-17 05:12