With Akira Toriyama teasing a newDragon Ballstory viaDragon Ball Daima, Goku and his friends will once again embark on a grand adventure. This time, Goku and his pals need to figure out a way to reverse their unexpected deaging, certainly giving earlyDragon BallandDragon Ball GTflashbacks to fans. However, fans of theDragon Ballseries may be eager to see whether certain characters get the kind of development their manga versions have received in their stories.
As with other manga adapted into anime, others are convinced anime counterparts of certainDragon Ballcharacters were lagging in the characterization department. In this regard, just whichDragon Ballcharacters are best portrayed in their manga appearance instead of their anime adaptation?
10Beerus
The God Of Destruction Doesn’t Always Threaten Destruction
Beerus remains one of the most powerful forces in theDragon Balluniverse, serving as one of the few threats even Goku cannot defeat. Had it not been for Beerus’s love for Earth’s delicacies,the God of Destructioncould destroy it on a whim. And while these traits remain similar in both the anime and manga, Beerus of theDragon Ballanime is treated more as a moody, hot-headed, temperamental being who casually threatens destroying the world.
In contrast, Beerus in the manga is a more self-aware and contained being much closer to his movie appearance. While still temperamental and more than capable of pulling off his “destroy the Earth” bluff, the lack of casual threats add more meaning to when Beerus does actually imply using his Hakai.
9Gohan
Goku’s Son Gets Involved In More Grounded Fights To Showcase Growth
Both the anime and the manga established thatGohan remains the most powerfulDragon Ballcharacter in the absence of Goku and Vegeta, and considerably more so with his Beast form also making its way in the current run ofDragon Ball Super. While Gohan’s anime feats were lauded as better representations of his power scaling, one could argue Gohan in the manga received more grounded growth from the perspective of his fights.
The more condensed version of combat in the manga allowed Gohan to showcase more surprising feats, cementing his warrior potential. This is especially seen in the Cell Saga, when the condensed fights slowly build up to Gohan having to accept his role as the universe’s new protector after surpassing even Goku’s limits.
8Cell
Longer Fights May Have Wasted The Tension Of The Perfect Being’s Presence
Cell’s cunning and eventual arrogance were both demonstrated in the anime and manga, but the more condensed fights in the Cell Saga paved a stronger arc that showed the irony of pride bringing down even the strongest genetically-created warrior. However, Cell became a much better-developed character in the manga as it does a more consistent job showing him as an insurmountable threat only Gohan can overcome.
Juxtaposing his opening moments struggling against Piccolo with Vegeta allowing him to reach his full potentialshowcases Cell as a villaindoing exactly what the heroes have done to defeat the likes of Vegeta. And Cell being irritated at Gohan second-guessing his potential and goading him to do the same was a stronger show of personality in the manga.
7Frieza
The Tyrant Only Kills When Necessary
Compared to Frieza in the anime who has a penchant for casual sadism, Frieza in the manga has a flair for false politeness. Throughout the manga’s Frieza Saga, the tyrant had never killed a henchman and only resorted to extreme violence when people vehemently oppose his goals.
Granted, Frieza didn’t show any signs of actually “repenting” during his time in Hell, which in turn makesFrieza’s return as a villain in theSupermangaall the more expected. However, Frieza’s first appearance as a character who won’t resort to violence except only when absolutely necessary makes him a more calculating and more sinister figure.
6Chi-Chi
The Nagging Mother Stereotype Didn’t Hold Well
Modeled after the stereotype of a strict mother of a rural household,Chi-Chi’s depiction as a worrywartmay be hilarious in Japanese culture while also unbearable for Western audiences of theDragon Ballstory. Unfortunately for Chi-Chi, her anime counterpart suffers being plastered as a stereotype due to exaggeration. In contrast, the more condensed manga gives Chi-Chi a more defined room to grow as a character.
Chi-Chi starts reluctant towards Gohan’s training and becomes more tolerant of his training. In the Cell Games, she pleads Goku not to let Gohan fight Cell, as though remembering the time Piccolo beat Goku half to death in the first parts of the manga. Buu Saga sees Chi-Chi become more carefree, letting Goten play with Trunks.
5Future Trunks
Certain Decisions Ruin Trunks’ Point Of Being Independent
Trunks makes his return as aDragon Ball Supercharacter whenanother version of Future Trunksseeks Goku and Vegeta’s help to from the past to stop the evil Goku Black from fully destroying his timeline. WhileSuper’sanime Trunks defeats Future Zamasu with a rage-empowered form and a Spirit Bomb-empowered sword slash, the MacGuffining of these powers and Vegeta lecturing him made him a weakly-written character.
In contrast,Super’s manga Trunks gets healing powers. Despite being a more lackluster approach for his character growth, the more realistic power-ups remain consistent to the original manga’s Future Trunks. After all, Trunks’ tutelage under Gohan taught him to become his own self without needing Vegeta to teach him, making him a more independent character.
4Jiren
Not Solely Being An Unbeatable Threat Humanizes Jiren
Jiren’s fierce independence and abhorrence of trust transformed himinto an insurmountable obstacle for Goku to defeat, resulting in one of the best fight scenes in anime history. However, whereas Jiren seemed like an unbeatable fighter in theDragon Ballanime, he receives better characterization in the manga.
Jiren’s wish of resurrecting his mentor to “properly” graduate as a fighter adds a humanizing element to the warrior in the manga. This element also adds dramatic irony to his character, as while he always fights at his fullest as per his learnings, Jiren doesn’t apply his master’s most important lesson: teamwork.
3Piccolo
A More Quiet Piccolo Makes His Conversations More Meaningful
Piccolo being more of a father to Gohan than Goku remains a popularDragon Balltrope among fans, and this is shown both in the anime and the manga. Fans may argue that the anime does this trope more justice, especially when filler episodes givePiccolo more opportunities to bond with Gohan.
While the lack of filler chapters in the manga means Piccolo is more often seen as stern and serious, this also adds more meaning to moments when he softens up. Piccolo being a Namekian of a few words but more than willing to risk his life for his student (and arguably godson) makes him a more believable father figure in the manga.
2Vegeta
No Filler Vegeta Paves The Way For More Consistent Characterization
Fans already impressed withVegeta’s growth as aDragon Ballcharactershould read the manga to fully immerse themselves with his development. Despite having less chapters than the number of action-packedDragon Ballepisodes, the manga succeeds in showcasing his character progression with more nuance.
The lack of action filler in the manga combined with more deliberate storyboarding showcases more impactful moments of Vegeta’s growth. Moments of self-sacrifice against the likes of Majin Buu, his succumbing to darkness as Majin Vegeta, and even training under Beerus to attain Ultra Ego become more meaningful especially when juxtaposed to Goku-centric stories.
1Goku
More Fighting, Less Heroics
Despite theDragon Ballarcs in the anime showcasing Goku’s heroic efforts to save the world through intense action-packed fights, Goku’s rather valorous personality seems starkly different from his original depiction in the manga. In fact, such was Goku’s desire to fight strong opponents that he’s more of a martial artist than a typical protagonist.
It’s this original characterization and Goku’s more heroic persona in the anime that initially angered Toriyama.Goku’s innocent selfishness in seeking strong enemiesis better represented in the manga, which more accurately explains his eagerness in getting into fights. The anime depicting Goku as a hero can confuse fans with contradictions, such as choosing training over raising his sons.
