Super Saiyan
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The Super Saiyan (超サイヤ人, Sūpā Saiyajin), was introduced as a fictional legend in the manga series Dragon Ball created by Japanese manga artist Akira Toriyama. The Super Saiyan makes its debut appearance in volume 27 of the 42 volume manga series, better known to general fans as "Dragon Ball Z"; named so after the anime adaptation of the manga series was split into two sub-series. The Super Saiyan also appears in a third, anime-only series called "Dragon Ball GT". In the series, the Super Saiyan is a minor transformation that is only accessible to characters who possess heritage from the fictional race called the Saiyans. The effects of the transformation results in greatly enhanced physical abilities.
The first transformation to Super Saiyan occurs involuntarily, when a Saiyan has reached his natural limit and is overcome with intense emotion. Future transformations are achieved when the Saiyans massively increase a certain energy in their bodies called chi. As the series continued, the status of the Super Saiyan as being "legendary" is quickly departed from due to more characters developing the ability to transform.
Legend
- This account of the Super Saiyan legend is based on the account presented in the manga series, being that the manga account is more consistent with the rest of the Dragon Ball timeline.
The legend of the Super Saiyan is first introduced by the character Vegeta during a period of the series called the Freeza Saga[1]. Even though a detailed description of the legend is stated in the Freeza Saga, an indirect reference was made to it earlier in the series in the previous saga called the Saiyan Saga.[2] The legend was a myth that was passed down through the generations of Saiyans, telling the story of a Saiyan who had power so great that it destroyed him and the planet that he inhabited. The assumption that many Saiyans had was that any Saiyan becoming a Super Saiyan was an extremely rare event, and only being a possible transformation for the stronger individuals of the race.[3] When a Saiyan became a Super Saiyan, it was said that their true power was awakened by rage. This Saiyan would be revered as the Super Saiyan, being recognized as the strongest being in the Universe by wielding nearly limitless physical power.
Because the Super Saiyan transformation had not been demonstrated by any Saiyan in recorded history, many races (including the Saiyans) considered it to be simple mythology. This was until several Saiyans emerged that possessed physical potential that had rapidly evolved beyond their known natural limits. After the galactic overlord Freeza witnessed a lower class Saiyan defeat one of his elites, he came to fear the Saiyans enough to destroy the entire race, in the hope that a Super Saiyan would never emerge to challenge him.
However, four Saiyans escaped the destruction. One of them named Son Goku achieved the transformation to Super Saiyan while battling Lord Freeza twenty-five years later.
It was originally stated that a Saiyan must be pure of heart to make the transformation,[4] whether it be pure good or evil. After Goku's transformation, he was known as the legendary Super Saiyan; however, just after one year, another Super Saiyan appeared.[5] It was later discovered that any person with Saiyan heritage was biologically capable of ascending to Super Saiyan if they were powerful enough, but only under the appropriate conditions. In the main series, all the male characters with Saiyan heritage who existed after the Freeza Saga managed to achieve Super Saiyan, and some of the characters managed to achieve advanced Super Saiyan transformations.
Transformations
- The following descriptions of the transformations are based on the displayed traits in the manga series, with the exception of the transformations that exclusively appear in the anime. The order at which the listing for transformation and characters appear is the chronological order at which the levels were achieved in the primary Dragon Ball timeline.
False Super Saiyan
False Super Saiyan (擬似超サイヤ人, Giji Sūpā Saiyajin), is a partial transformation to the Super Saiyan, and did not appear in the original manga. This form is the result of a Saiyan who is unable to increase their chi enough for their bodies to complete the transformation to a Super Saiyan. Even though the transformation is incomplete, there are certain Super Saiyan features such as elevated hair and a yellow chi aura that blazes around their body. Other features include no pupils or irises. Due to the inability to completely transform, the Saiyan uses much more energy than if they were either in their regular state, or fully transformed. This results in the need to revert to their regular form after only a short time. Goku only uses this form in Movie 4 and in an anime filler during an episode which Goku fights the Ginyu Special Corps in the Other World.
This isn't the actual name of the transformation used in the film (Lord Slug), where it is referred to as "Super Saiyan" form. Dragon Ball Daizenshuu #7(Dragon Ball encyclopedia) introduces the name to cover the discrepancies between the Super Saiyan transformation in the film and the actual Super Saiyan form in the manga.
Confirmed users:
Super Saiyan
The Super Saiyan (超サイヤ人, Sūpā Saiyajin) is a transformation that occurs when a Saiyan who has reached their natural physical limit becomes emotionally distressed; in most instances, from despair or rage.[7] After the initial transformation, the state usually can be utilized at will.
Several noted physical alterations occur with the Super Saiyan. The most noticeable change is that the hair is now a golden yellow and is forced upward as if standing on end. Other altered physical characteristics include the Saiyan's eye-color changing to green (although the color sometimes can look aqua or blue), with the muscle mass and features becoming more prominent. The aura of the Super Saiyan is often interpreted as blazing yellow (as portrayed in the anime adaptation), however in the colored manga chapters, the aura is portrayed as white, flame-like waves.[8].
Being that the Super Saiyan is primarily achieved by experiencing rage or despair, Super Saiyans have described themselves as having a constant feeling of "restlessness" or "aggression" while transformed[9]. These feelings are later supressed as the Saiyan becames more adept at using the transformation. The first character to appear as a Super Saiyan in the series was Son Goku after becoming overwhelmed with rage when he witnessed the murder of his best friend Kuririn. The Super Saiyan transformation is reverted when the Saiyan's chi becomes too depleted to maintain the transformation, or their chi disperses from either conscious control or by force.
Confirmed Users:
- Son Goku[10]
- Vegeta[11]
- Son Gohan/Future Son Gohan (Alternate time line)[12]
- Broly[13]
- Son Goten[14]
- Trunks[15]
- Gotenks [16]
- Gogeta[17]
- Vegetto[18]
- Future Trunks
- Son Goku Jr.[19]
- Vegeta Jr.[20]
Super Saiyan 2nd Grade
Super Saiyan 2nd Grade (超サイヤ人第2段階, Sūpā Saiyajin Daini Dankai) or Ascended Super Saiyan is a transformation that occurs when a skilled Super Saiyan increases their chi to a point that advances their abilities beyond the regular Super Saiyan limitations.
This advanced state appears as a Super Saiyan, but with longer, finer hair that is forced further upward. The muscle mass on a saiyan is also significantly increased, but to a point that does not reduce their movement and speed. The aura changes from gentle yellow/orange waves to a blazing uncontrolled torrent. The behavioral changes from the original Super Saiyan level to this one are apparent--this state is known for its increased aggression, even from the original Super Saiyan state. Super Saiyan 2nd Grade isn't considered an ascended state of Super Saiyan because the same basic limits and characteristics of the regular Super Saiyan still apply.
Confirmed Users:
Super Saiyan 3rd Grade
Super Saiyan 3rd Grade (超サイヤ人第3段階, Sūpā Saiyajin Daisan Dankai), is an advanced form of the Super Saiyan 2nd Grade. Officially named in the manga by the character named Trunks as "The Super Super Saiyan"[24], the more common "Ultra Super Saiyan" is unofficial term that was coined by fans of the series.
This transformation is very similar to the Super Saiyan 2nd Grade form but a bit different. In order to achieve this Super Saiyan form, the user increases their ki to full capacity, which results in this flawed transformation. This transformation is considered insufficient for battle, as the muscle mass itself has increased to a point that actually drastically inhibits the Saiyan's speed[25]. In addition, the users ki depletes more quickly because of the amount of ki the form needs. The flaws of the form were further exposed by a villain in the series named Cell, who explained the form's own weakness through mimicry of the transformation[26].
This form appears as a Super Saiyan 2nd Grade with increased muscle mass, as well as the locks of hair becoming more firmly upright than the two previous forms of Super Saiyan. The aura that surrounds the user blazes wildly.
It was also suggested by Trunks that his father Vegeta was able to use this form, but like Son Goku, immediately noticed its flaws and avoided using it[27].
Confirmed Users:
Full Power Super Saiyan
This form of Super Saiyan is unique, simply because instead of being an alternate transformation from the regular Super Saiyan, it is a state of power achieved through mastering the regular Super Saiyan form. Once full mastery of the Super Saiyan occurs, this state of power becomes the Saiyan's regular Super Saiyan transformation. This state is achieved by training the body to overcome the negative effects of the regular Super Saiyan transformation, which includes both chi consumption and behavioral alterations from the Saiyan's untransformed state. By doing this, the Super Saiyan is able to retain transformation almost subconsciously, and without having excess energy consumption during transformation or fighting. Goku first thought of mastery of the Super Saiyan when he was training in the Room of Spirit and Time with Gohan. He knew that in order to efficiently fight Cell, he and Gohan needed to suppress the negative effects of Super Saiyan and have a natural feeling while transformed.
The intention of this form is energy conservation rather than energy amount, so it is achieved through improving the general skill rather than increasing the chi. This results in a Saiyan who is able to fight longer and more efficiently than with Super Saiyan 2nd Grade or 3rd Grade. This form has no major physical alterations from the original Super Saiyan form; however, the locks of hair become more defined. The most referenced alteration is in the aura, the aura is still gentle waves, but is smoother and more consistent than the regular Super Saiyan form.
Goku and Gohan are the only confirmed individuals to have achieved this level; however, by the Buu saga, all existing Super Saiyans appear to have mastered their Super Saiyan transformations.
Confirmed users:
Legendary Super Saiyan
This form of Super Saiyan only appeared in the Dragon Ball Z films, and as a result, was not in the original manga. This is a unique form of Super Saiyan because the ability to transform is exclusive to the character Broli for unknown reasons.
Beyond his regular Super Saiyan transformation, Broli's final form greatly increases his body size and muscle mass, much like the Super Saiyan 3rd Grade. However, his strength and speed exceed the limits of all variations of the Super Saiyan form. Additionally, his irises and pupils seemingly disappear. There are also no apparent power consumption problems, with Broli's power level appearing to increase as a battle wore on.
It is often misinterpreted that Broli's hair has a natural tint of green; however, this was merely the effect of a device that he was fitted with earlier in the film that he made his debut appearance in. In the second film that he appears in, this green tint is not present and he has the normal yellow color of the regular Super Saiyan.
Confirmed users:
Super Saiyan 2
Super Saiyan 2 is a full ascension from the regular Super Saiyan form. It is uncertain how this transformation is achieved, but it has been known to occur through intense emotion, like the original Super Saiyan transformation. The first person to achieve this transformation was the half-Saiyan Son Gohan while fighting the genetically engineered warrior named Cell[33].
This form possesses the same basic characteristic of the regular Super Saiyan, with golden yellow hair, and green pupils. Only slight differences are noted from the regular Super Saiyan form, such as a slight growth in muscle mass. Other physical changes include longer, spikier, more upright-standing hair. The behavioral effects are the same as an un-mastered Super Saiyan and every physical color change remains the same as in Super Saiyan. The Saiyan's abilities increase substantially from their regular Super Saiyan form, resulting in a larger, more violently blazing aura. The aura is also now accompanied with blueish-white bolts of electricity.
Gohan's behavior while transformed to Super Saiyan 2 is noticed to be quite different than Goku and Vegeta's behaviors in the same form. After first transforming during the battle against Cell, Gohan's demeanor drastically changed from gentle to sadistic. An example of this sadism is Gohan's desire to make Cell suffer for his crimes against humanity[34]. This behavior contrasted his regular Super Saiyan state where he actually refused to harm Cell at all[35]. This sadistic nature was never present in Goku or Vegeta when they used it, but their aggression was heightened considerably.
Confirmed Users:
Super Saiyan 3
This form of Super Saiyan is the most powerful in the original series. The transformation is unlike the other regular Super Saiyan form because, like the Super Saiyan 2nd and 3rd Grade forms, the user of the form actually forces their bodies to transform rather than it occurring spontaneously like the regular Super Saiyan form. Unlike the other Super Saiyan forms, much chi is involved with this transformation, much so that those able to utilize the form are limited before being forced to revert to their natural state.
Son Goku was the first person to achieve the form while existing in the Other World, however, as opposed to his living body, he could maintain this form for as long as he liked due to his unlimited chi supply. Upon returning to the living world, Goku's chi supply was severely reduced, so he could not maintain this form for extended periods of time. Son Goku teaches the transformation to his son Goten and Vegeta's son Trunks, who merge their bodies and create Gotenks. Gotenks achieves the transformation, and Goku observes that Gotenks was much more adept at maintaining the transformation then he was. In the sequel series Dragon Ball GT, Goku uses the transformation after he had been transformed into a child, but his under-developed body lacked the necessary physique to sustain the form. As a result, his prolongment in the transformation could not be maintained efficiently and he was forced to revert to his regular form after only a few moments of transformation.
The Super Saiyan 3 is similar to a Super Saiyan 2, but with much longer hair that extends to around the waist, in addition, the Saiyan's eyebrows disappear. The eyes do not change from Super Saiyan 2, however, Goku's eyes in the anime were altered to possess pupils. Like the Super Saiyan 2, the Super Saiyan 3 aura possesses blueish-white electrical bolts. Despite the major drawbacks of the Super Saiyan 3, it substantially increases the physical capabilities from Super Saiyan 2.
Confirmed Users:
Super Saiyan 4
This transformation only appears in Dragon Ball GT, and as a result, never appeared in the original manga and is therefore not considered canonical to some. The Super Saiyan 4 form is the strongest Super Saiyan transformation achieved in the anime series, and is implied to only be accessible to pure full blooded Saiyans; this was discovered when the parasitic Tuffle Baby had possessed Vegeta, and Baby Vegeta could not transform to this because Baby was not a Saiyan, making Vegeta's heritage impure.
This form is only initially achieved when the primal nature of the Golden Oozaru are consciously suppressed. After this form is first achieved, it can be accessed afterwards without having to transform into a Golden Oozaru first. This form was first achieved by Goku when battling Baby Vegeta, and then achieved by Vegeta during the battle with Omega Shenron. Vegeta however achieved it unnaturally by being artificially exposed to high concentrations of Bruitz waves.
In this form, the Saiyan's hair is not golden yellow like the previous 3 Super Saiyan forms; the color can vary, and is often their natural color. In addition, the power aura of a Super Saiyan 4 lacks sparks of electricity previously seen in the Super Saiyan 2 and Super Saiyan 3 forms. The Saiyan's tail is present (albeit colored red) and their bodies are covered in a shade of red fur. Their top and bottom eyelids also become red and their hair is lengthened substantially, becoming wild and untamed. They also have pupils, but like the hair color, the eye color can also vary. This form looks mostly like the basic Saiyan, but with select Oozaru characteristics such as fur and tail.
Confirmed Users:
- Son Goku (Black hair, gold eyes, scarlet colored fur)[41]
- Vegeta (Dark brown hair, aqua eyes, crimson colored fur)[42]
- Gogeta (Crimson hair, light blue eyes, burgundy colored fur)[43]
Other media
After the success of Dragon Ball, Toriyama created a self parody called Neko Majin Z, which features the characters Goku and Vegeta, and another Saiyan named Onio, who also has the ability to transform into a Super Saiyan. In the series, the Super Saiyan transformation was altered slightly, where the aura of the regular Super Saiyan contains bolts of electricity.
As part of his self parody, the main character Neko Majin actually has a transformation that is similar to the Super Saiyan, where he becomes "Super Neko Majin"[44]. In other media, the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog is also known to have a transformation that is very similar to a Super Saiyan, but is noted to be a tribute and not a parody.
Notes and references
- ^ Dragon Ball: Vol. 24 (DBZ, vol. 8)
- ^ Dragon Ball: Vol 17 (DBZ volume 1)
- ^ Dragon Ball Z: Volume 8 (Pg. 52)
- ^ Dragon Ball, Vol. 27 p. 90 (DBZ vol. 11)
- ^ Dragon Ball, volume 28 (DBZ vol. 12)
- ^ Dragon Ball Z: movie #4 - "Lord Slug"
- ^ Dragon Ball manga,: vol 29, p 89: Vegeta: "Then I ran into a wall, my own limits. Through the rage I felt toward myself, I awoke into a Super Saiyan".
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, volume 27, page 152)
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol 29, page 92
- ^ Dragon Ball, manga vol. 27
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol. 29 (DBZ: vol 13)
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol. 33/ DBZ: vol 17
- ^ DBZ movies: #8 and #10
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol. 36 (DBZ: vol 20)
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol. 36 (DBZ: vol 20)
- ^ (Dragon Ball manga, vol. 39 (DBZ: vol 23)
- ^ DBZ movie #12
- ^ Dragon Ball manga, vol. 42 (DBZ: vol 26)
- ^ Dragon Ball GT episode 64
- ^ Dragon Ball GT episode 64
- ^ DB, manga volume 32 (DBZ vol 16)
- ^ DB, manga volume 32 (DBZ vol 16)
- ^ DB, manga volume 33 (DBZ vol 17)
- ^ Dragon Ball, vol. 32 (DBZ vol 16)
- ^ DB, vol 33/DBZ, vol 17
- ^ DB, vol 33/DBZ, vol 17
- ^ DBZ, vol 17: Trunks: "This is why father chose not to Transform this way, he knew this would happen"
- ^ DB, manga volume 33 (DBZ vol 17)
- ^ DB, manga volume 33 (DBZ vol 17)
- ^ DB, manga volume 33 (DBZ vol 17)
- ^ DB, manga volume 33 (DBZ vol 17)
- ^ Dragon Ball Z, movies #8 and #10
- ^ DB, volume 34/DBZ: vol 18
- ^ DB vol 35/DBZ: vol 19
- ^ DB, vol 34/ DBZ vol 18
- ^ DB, manga volume 34 (DBZ vol 18)
- ^ DB, manga volume 37 (DBZ vol 22)
- ^ DB, manga volume 37 (DBZ vol 21)
- ^ DB, manga volume 38 (DBZ vol 22)
- ^ DB, manga volume 38 (DBZ vol 22)
- ^ DBGT, ep 58
- ^ DBGT ep 61
- ^ DBGT, ep 61
- ^ Shonen Jump, Oct 2007 Issue: Page 371