Dragon Ball Super fixed Goku’s problem in the original anime

Dragon Ball Super made significant strides in addressing the one problem that Akira Toriyama always had with Goku’s portrayal in the original Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z anime. While Goku is undoubtedly the greatest hero in the classic Dragon Ball and DBZ anime, Toriyama felt dissatisfied with how the character was depicted, and Dragon Ball Super aimed to rectify those issues by aligning Goku’s character more closely with Toriyama’s original vision.

In a 1997 interview with WIRED Japan (translated by Kanzenshuu), Akira Toriyama revealed his displeasure with how Goku was portrayed in the anime adaptations. He envisioned Goku as a character driven by a desire to engage in battles with the strongest warriors in the universe. However, the anime transformed him into a “righteous hero” archetype. Although Goku is a good-natured person who cares deeply for his loved ones, his primary motivation was never to protect the innocent or save the universe. In the manga, Goku’s actions naturally led to him defending the innocent and confronting villains who threatened global or universal destruction. However, Dragon Ball Super aimed to eliminate the “righteous hero” characterization and return Goku to his original essence.

One of the key moments that showcases Goku’s departure from the heroic archetype occurs in Dragon Ball Super’s “Universe Survival Saga” by Akira Toriyama and Toyotarou. In this saga, the Z-Fighters are reluctantly entered into the Tournament of Power, a multiversal tournament organized by Grand Zeno at Goku’s insistence. Goku’s motivation for the tournament was purely self-centered: he wanted to challenge the strongest fighters across the multiverse to test his own strength and improve accordingly. However, the consequences of the tournament were severe. Every universe that lost all its representative fighters was wiped out of existence, but Goku showed minimal concern for the destruction he had indirectly caused.

While Goku did care about saving his own universe and didn’t wish for other universes to be obliterated, his excitement for battling the strongest warriors overshadowed any existential guilt. Both Lord Beerus and Whis warned Goku against involving Grand Zeno due to the potentially catastrophic consequences, but Goku’s desire to fight the strongest prevailed, leading to the creation of the Tournament of Power. Even during the tournament, as universes were being destroyed, Goku remained exhilarated while facing off against Jiren. Each blow exchanged with Jiren brought Goku closer to unlocking Ultra Instinct, and he seemed to derive enjoyment from the intense battles, regardless of the dire circumstances faced by other fighters who were fighting for their universe’s survival—an outcome largely caused by Goku’s own recklessness.

The “Universe Survival Saga” alone demonstrates that Goku is far from the “righteous hero” archetype depicted in the original Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z anime. His motives in Dragon Ball Super were not driven by heroism but by his insatiable desire to engage in combat with the strongest opponents across the multiverse, without considering the far-reaching consequences of such a tournament. Akira Toriyama can find solace in the fact that Dragon Ball Super addressed his major concern with Goku’s original anime portrayal, providing a more faithful representation of the character according to his original vision.

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