“Dragon Ball” is arguably the single most influential anime and manga of the past 50 years. It’s a property that’s gone on to shape the entire battle shonen genre, turning Goku into the archetypical anime protagonist, popularizing time jumps/power-up transformations, and more. And yet, classic “Dragon Ball” is even better than its reputation suggests.
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In case you have been in a coma for the last 40 years, “Dragon Ball” follows a young boy named Son Goku, who goes on adventures around the world (and beyond) in search of magical Dragon Balls that can grant any wish. Of course, the series quickly becomes a superhero show, with Goku developing into a Superman allegory who battles evil alien invasions and even literal gods.
For ’80s and ’90s kids, “Dragon Ball,” and even more so “Dragon Ball Z,” was the biggest thing on the planet when they were growing up. Seeing Goku go Super Saiyan for the first time remains one of the significant and most influential moments in the history of animation (just ask Vulture), while the death of the warrior Yamcha became such a staple of pop culture that it gets homaged even to this day.
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Death, in general, is actually a big part of the “Dragon Ball” franchise. From the moment Krillin — who audiences who’d watched the original “Dragon Ball” show had grown to love as one of the biggest and most powerful characters in the series — is killed by one of Piccolo’s henchmen, audiences started getting used to seeing their favorite characters die, then die again and again and again. Indeed, it seems everyone can die and return to life in “Dragon Ball,” be they a villain or even a protagonist.
Likewise, despite being the most powerful being in the universe, Goku has had his fair share of deaths. So, if you’re down to revisit the most shocking and painful moments in the “Dragon Ball” franchise, here’s every time Goku died.
Every time Goku died in canon
Goku has died three times in the main “Dragon Ball” canon. The first two times were as heroic as you’d expect. For starters, Goku sacrificed himself in the fight against Raditz — his brother, as well as a pawn of the galactic conqueror Frieza — by holding onto the Saiyan warrior and letting Piccolo hit both of them with his Special Beam Cannon. It was a desperate solution to get rid of what, at that time, was the biggest threat planet Earth had seen — one that eventually led to the enemies Goku and Piccolo allying themselves to combat the alien.
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Of course, Raditz’s death gave rise to even bigger dangers, including Vegeta and then Frieza himself. Still, Goku’s initial death was a shocking moment that forever changed the anime. After all, it’s a common fan theory that Goku no longer fears death in the wake of his first experience with it, ultimately resulting in his ability to turn Super Saiyan.
Goku’s second death was also a heroic sacrifice. When he battles Cell, the super-powered android activates a self-destruct move that will obliterate the planet. Goku then decides to use his teleporting ability to take him and Cell to another world, where Goku is killed by the explosion. Of course, Cell somehow survives the blast. Meanwhile, Goku’s spirit travels from the Other World back to the land of the living to help his much stronger Gohan in doing a Father-Son Kamehameha to destroy Cell. After the battle, though, Goku decides to stay dead rather than being revived by the Dragon Balls.
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Finally, in “Dragon Ball Super,” Goku dies yet again in arguably his funniest death. We know Goku loves fighting. He loves it so much, in fact, he quickly abandons his family just to battle some random being for a little while. In “Dragon Ball Super,” Goku quite literally hires the assassin Hit to kill him just so he can fight him. Hit actually succeeds, striking Goku with a deadly blow. Except that death only lasts a few seconds since Goku fires a ki blast right before dying, which somehow revives his heart.
Goku’s momentary deaths and alternate timelines
Contrary to its simple premise, the “Dragon Ball” franchise has a rather complicated continuity, complete with shows that aren’t canon, feature alternate timelines and universes, and more. Because of this, there are at least two more Goku deaths that happen outside the main continuity — and they are quite different than his main demises.
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First, there’s the emotionally devastating death of Goku in Future Trunks’ timeline. When we first meet Trunks (the son of Vegeta and Bulma’s son), he explains that in his timeline, Goku just dies from heart failure. That’s it. No big battle, no super-powered deity delivering an unstoppable blow. Just an ordinary man dying from natural causes. It’s an unceremonious death and the biggest shock to Goku fans in the entire franchise.
In the Future Trunks saga of “Dragon Ball Super,” however, we get another Goku death, albeit one that’s quite surprising and unceremonious. Turns out that Zamasu, the Supreme Kai of a different universe, is furious that a mere mortal like Goku can battle actual gods, so he takes control of Goku’s body and uses it to murder his entire family. Then, once satisfied, he destroys Goku’s body.
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Goku has died plenty of times, but at least we know he always (eventually) returns to fight another day.