Gohan

"Gohan" redirects here. For the adoptive grandfather, see Grandpa Son Gohan.

Son Gohan
Dragon Ball character
File:Screenshotsdbztvspecial2 011.jpg Son Gohan by Akira Toriyama
First appearance	Dragon Ball chapter 196 (Dragon Ball Z chapter 1) Dragon Ball Z episode 1
In-universe information
Relatives	Son Goku (father) Chichi (mother) Future Gohan (alternate timeline counterpart) Son Goten (brother) Videl (wife) Pan (daughter) Ox King (maternal grandfather) Burdock (paternal grandfather) Raditz (uncle) Mr. Satan (father-in-law) Son Goku Jr. (great grandson)

Son Gohan (孫 悟飯, Son Gohan, known only as Gohan in most English adaptations), is a fictional character in the manga series of Dragon Ball created by the famous mangaka Akira Toriyama. When the manga was adapted to anime, the series was split into two sub-series, called Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. Gohan makes his debut appearance in the manga volume 17, or the premier episode of Dragon Ball Z. In the series, Gohan is the first son of the main protagonist of the series Son Goku, and his wife, the Ox princess named Chi Chi. Gohan was the first Saiyan/Human hybrid born in the series, and as a result, has unusual physical abilities. Gohan was named after Goku's adoptive grandfather.

Appearance

Gohan's appearance changes drastically through the series, due to the fact that the series starts out with him as a child and ends when he is fully grown. But Gohan's basic physical appearance pretty much stays the same through the course of the series. Gohan has black hair, black eyes, except when he transforms into a Super Saiyan, where his hair turns yellow and his eyes turn green. He wears many different outfits for battle, most of which take after either Goku or Piccolo's clothing.

Overview

Son Gohan makes his debut appearance in volume 17 of the 42 volume manga series, as the four year old son of Son Goku, the series' main protagonist. Gohan's early childhood was a pampered one; his life was relatively well-balanced with a loving family and a nice home. Gohan was well-adjusted and intelligent, as well as having unusual physical potential for a child. Even with his superior physical potential as a warrior, Gohan can be seen to lack affection for the sport, as he disliked hurting others. As Gohan grows and gets drawn into battles, he becomes more confident in his abilities as a warrior, however he never loses his desire to become a great scholar. At age nine, Gohan succeeds his father as the world's greatest defender by saving the earth from Cell. After peace is restored, Gohan focuses more on his studies until he is needed again at age sixteen to fight Majin Buu. Even through Gohan's lack of desire to fight, Gohan grows to ascend his father as the strongest single warrior in the series. Following a ten year gap at the end of the written Dragon Ball series, Gohan is seen to have a wife and daughter, as well as fulfilling his dream of becoming a great scholar.

Development

Being the son of Goku, Gohan's character was intended to contrast his father's, which was centered on combat and training. As opposed to his father and other pure Saiyans, Gohan as a child does not possess a passion for physical combat, and is seen to avoid it whenever possible. For example, during the battle with Vegeta and Nappa in the Saiyan Saga, he was so frightened by the intensity of the battle that he found himself frozen with fear for part of the battle. As the series continues, and Gohan's understanding of life expands, he learns to accept that combat is sometimes the only option to ensure the survival of the people that he cares most about. Even through his learning, the idea of combat never manifests a true interest in Gohan.

As the series continues, Gohan is seen to gain power at an excelled rate, becoming more disciplined and skillful at fighting as he grows from a child into a preteen. He is the first child in the series to achieve the legendary transformation of Super Saiyan. Within the same year, Gohan is seen to achieve, master, and ascend the Super Saiyan, becoming the first person in the series to become a Super Saiyan 2 at only eleven years old. Through Gohan's training, he comes to accept that he is now the strongest being on Earth, and that he has ascended his father as the Earth's greatest defender. However, Gohan becomes distracted by his school-work and slacks on his training until the arrival of Majin Buu.

During his bouts with Buu, Gohan can be seen to be more comfortable fighting then he was when he was a child. Even though he seems to lack interest, he is not as hesitant as he is earlier in the series.

Future Gohan

In the alternate time line, Gohan is the only surviving member of the Z Fighters. As a result, he trains another half Saiyan named Trunks to assist him in battling the Jinzōningens who killed all of his comrades. In this alternate time, unlike the present, Gohan becomes a Super Saiyan after witnessing the death of his friends. As a result of protecting Trunks, Gohan loses an arm and is eventually killed by the androids.

Power and transformations

Gohan, being of partial Saiyan heritage, has access to Saiyan transformations. Gohan, like pure Saiyans, was born with a monkey tail. This allowed him to transform into the Saiyan were-monkey called an Oozaru. Gohan's tail is removed early in Dragon Ball Z, and as a result, he loses this transformation. However, as his power continues to grow, Gohan gains access to the legendary Saiyan-state called the Super Saiyan and achieves an ascended state called Super Saiyan 2. Gohan is observed to have unusual abilities because of his mixed heritage. As a child, Gohan is known to have within him a seemingly limitless dormant power, which at first only revealed itself when he experienced fierce rage. As he got older, his hard training allowed him conscious access to a large portion of this power, but it was not until he was a young adult that his power was fully awakened and he was able to use it all at his own will. Upon the awakening of his dormant power in the Buu Saga, Gohan is seen to lose the ability to transform into a Super Saiyan, the reason being that that his regular state was also a constant state of maximum power making him the strongest single warrior. In the sequel series Dragon Ball GT, Gohan is seen to have regained his ability to transform into a Super Saiyan, however, this is suggested to only be a simple plot hole in the series.

Voice actors

Toei Animation:

• Masako Nozawa

FUNimation (Ocean Group):

• Saffron Henderson (Child Gohan)

Ocean Group (Blue Water)

• Jillian Michaels (Child Gohan)
• Brad Swaile (Teen Gohan)

FUNimation (in-house actors):

• Stephanie Nadolny (Child Gohan)
• Kyle Hebert (Teen Gohan)
• Dameon Clarke (Future Gohan)

References

• Gohan's Biography on DBZ Fan