Oozaru
Oozaru (大猿 Ōzaru, lit. Great Monkey) is a fictional term from the manga series Dragon Ball and the anime series Dragon Ball, as well as Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT. It refers to the giant gorilla-like creature that saiyans can transform into. It literally means "giant ape" or "large monkey", though Toriyama appears to be the first to have applied it to primates of such gigantic proportions. Some fans call the Oozaru form the "Saiyan Ape" or "Were-Monkey".
Conditions for Transformation
In order for the transformation to take place, the saiyan still needs to have a tail, as the glands responsible for initiating the transformation are located exclusively there. He also needs to absorb at least 170 million zeno units of Bruits ("Fruits") Rays (called "Blutz Waves" in the English dub and Green-spectrum Radiation in the English manga) through his eyes, to initiate a transformation. Bruits waves are found only in sunlight reflected by a moon. If there is no moon, a planetary body will reflect the same amount of rays. The easiest way to achieve this is to gaze at the full moon. If any clouds covered the moon and/or a planetary body, it would block certain amounts of the radiation. Vegeta once made himself transform by firing a "Power Ball" reflecting the requisite amount of Bruits Rays into the air, then staring at it.
In Dragon Ball Z movie 3, "The Tree of Might", Tullece did the same thing to provoke a transformation in Gohan as a joke, for he knew he was powerful enough to handle him. According to Tullece in the same film, the power ball's residual effect would keep Gohan (and any other transformed Saiyan) in their Oozaru form for a limited amount of time even if the power ball is destroyed (which Tullece does). It can be assumed that, since it is so close to the planet, weather conditions do not affect the Power Ball's radiation output.
If a natural source of bruits rays (a full moon or planet) was destroyed or the tail is amputated, this would cause the Saiyan to instantly transform back to their humanoid form. Additionally, during Dragon Ball GT, Bulma created the Bruits Ray Machine, which could induce the transformation on a Saiyan even if the Saiyan did not have a tail.
Characteristics of Saiyans in Oozaru form
An Oozaru's power level is equal to the saiyan's power level prior to the transformation multiplied by ten. A saiyan loses the ability to reason in this form, and will typically display berserk and destructive characteristics, even in the cases of protagonists. However, as Saiyans mature, they are taught how to reign in their instincts and retain normal congnitive functions as Oozaru. This explains why Son Goku and Son Gohan lose control in Oozaru form, as they never received this training and are at first unaware of this transformation. Saiyans in Oozaru form can also shoot an energy beam from their mouth, in a manner akin to (and possibly an intentional mimicry of) Godzilla's nuclear breath. As the transformation causes the saiyan to grow to several times their original size, the saiyans wear special armor which can stretch to fit the Oozaru form and shrink back to fit their normal form, Goku and Gohan don't have this since they live on earth so the transformation rips their clothes apart meaning they revert to their normal forms naked. The transformation is also quite exhausting, as Goku and Gohan both pass out after all of them. Yet with trained Saiyans such as Vegeta, they can go back to their original forms exhausted, but not to the point of losing consciousness.
The "Golden Oozaru"
An alternative and far stronger type of Oozaru, known as a Golden Oozaru (黄金大猿 Ōgon Ōzaru), can be seen in Dragon Ball GT. It is attained by saiyans who have a tail and are already in use of the Super Saiyan form and above before looking at either a moon or a full planetary body (sunlight reflected from a planet apparently works equally well, as Son Goku used the "full Earth" to transform). Aside from its fur being gold-colored and standing on end, its appearance is identical to that of a regular Oozaru, except Golden Oozaru Bebi Vegeta's skin is inexplicably blue coloured, possibly a result of the mutations Bebi was performing on Vegeta's body.
It is also possible for a Super Saiyan in "Golden Oozaru" form to transcend entirely, and enter the Super Saiyan 4 stage. This requires that the Saiyan first regain control over his mind and his power. Once this is achieved, he will regain a humanoid form, with wild untamed hair and a shade of red fur covering most of his upper body. Super Saiyan 4 is usually considered to be a "compact" form containing the power of a Golden Oozaru. Bebi Vegeta as Golden Oozaru was able to surpass Goku at Super Saiyan 4, however he was not able to transform into a Super Saiyan 4 because that transformation is exclusive to pure blooded Saiyans and the parasite Bebi was not a Saiyan, thus inhibiting the transformation. Bebi's seemingly greater power as a Golden Oozaru had more to do with the greater muscular strength and mass of that form providing physical strength surpassing that which a smaller human-sized being could possess, while also providing greater area for the damage of attacks to be spread over, lessening the effects.
The Golden Oozaru may have been a take on Vegeta's story of the legendary super saiyan given in Dragon Ball Z. While there was one legendary super saiyan, it is said that he could only hold the transformation while transformed into an Oozaru. Hence, the Super Saiyan/Golden Oozaru.
Abilities
- In Dragon Ball, Oozaru were just large and powerful, without any special abilities, they just rampaged about destroying anything in their way. They did however share the same weakness as a regular Saiyan in that they can be rendered powerless if their tail was squeezed tightly enough.
- In Dragon Ball Z however, Oozaru became much more destructive with the ability to fire powerful Ki blasts from their mouths. Additionally, Vegeta has shown that certain Saiyans of "Elite" status can control their Oozaru forms, even being able to speak while transformed. Vegeta's speed was not effected by the transformation and he could still fly despite his size. It is also said that a Saiyan's power is multiplied by ten when transformed.
- In Dragon Ball GT, Oozaru gain the ability to breath fire (a flashback shows regular Oozaru also breathing fire, so this ability cannot be attributed to the Golden Oozaru form). Bebi Vegeta also shows the ability to use all the ki based attacks he could if he weren't transformed.
Size
An Oozaru's size remains mostly inconsistent throughout the Dragon Ball anime and manga. A generalization is that most average human/non-transformed saiyans can almost fit into the palm of an Oozaru's hand. Oozaru's are assumed to be around 50 feet tall.
As far as Goku's first (shown) transformation goes, he is much larger in the anime than he is in the manga. In Dragonball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi, the Oozaru's size were significantly cut down but they are still the largest characters in the game.
Appearances
Dragon Ball
- Goku first transforms when Pilaf seals him and his friends inside a chamber designed to amplify the sun's rays effectively cooking them alive when the sun rose. Goku proceeded to go on a rampage destroying Pilaf's entire castle. While Yamcha and company decide it would be best to stay away from Goku until morning, Goku suddenly left the castle and attacked them. Yamcha then decided to try and cut his tail, thinking the pain would cause him to faint. Fortunately, removing his tail causes him to change back to normal. Goku also mentions before transforming that his grandfather Gohan told him never to look at the full moon, and that Gohan was killed by a monster that comes out at the full moon. This implies at least two prior transformations.
- Goku transforms again during the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai when his tail grows back, once again, the transformation saves him from being defeated. Although Yamcha is ready to try and cut his tail off again, Master Roshi comes up with a more permanent solution and uses a Kamehameha to destroy the moon. Interestingly, Goku recovers from this de-transformation and is conscious again before the (delayed) 10 count finishes.
- Due to the lack of a moon, Goku never transforms again, however, an Oozaru appears as a representation of his hidden power, most evident when he kills Piccolo Daimaō.
Dragon Ball Z
- We see Gohan transform for the first time when he's out in the wild. Once again the transformation proves to be useful in a way as it gets Gohan down from a high peak he was stuck on. Piccolo then destroys the moon and then removes Gohan's tail.
- In the anime only, Gohan's tail grew back again, coincidentaly during a time when Goku's space pod started projecting an image of the full moon in the night sky. Piccolo tries his best, but is unable to match the Oozaru Gohan. He eventually finds the source of the moonlight and destroys it, reverting Gohan back to normal. He then removes Gohan's tail once again. Several Homages to Goku's second transformation occur here, including Gohan transforming while being hit with an electrical attack.
- As North Kaio tells Goku about the history of the Saiyans, a flashback shows that the Saiyans were able to completely destroy the Tsufurujin: By transforming into Oozaru due to a Full Moon that happens only once every 7 years, the Saiyan race was able to exterminate the Tsufurujin overnight.
- After Goku manages to overcome Vegeta's Galick Gun with his Kamehameha, Vegeta becomes furious and decides that he needs to transform. He soon takes note at the lack of a moon (They had planned their arrival to coincide with the full moon in case transformation was needed) but fortunately he reveals that he is able to create a power ball to simulate the full moon's light, though this drains his power significantly. He then promptly transforms, overwhelming Goku completely. His transformation is halted by Yajirobe cutting off his tail.
- During the same battle, Gohan's tail grows back and he uses the power ball still in the sky to transform. While Vegeta was able to initially get away from Gohan due to his unfocused rage, Goku was able to help Gohan focus on fighting Vegeta. Vegeta does surprisingly well against the beast, but is ultimately outmatched. He manages to cut Gohan's tail off with an energy disk, but then Gohan falls on him.
- On Namek, when Vegeta confronts Dodoria, Dodoria tells Vegeta about how Freeza got concenerned about the Saiyans and destroyed them. A group of Saiyans is shown transforming into Oozaru and destroying an entire planet. A similar scenario happens in the Bardock Special.
- After this point, there are no Saiyans with tails remaining, and the Oozaru are mostly ignored for the rest of the series, it makes one more appearance during Goku's Super Saiyan 3 transformation once again representing his hidden powers.
Dragon Ball GT
- When even Super Saiyan 3 Goku proves to be no match for Bebi Vegeta, Elder Kai decides that the only way he'll stand a chance is to regrow Goku's tail. And while Goku is defeated once again, by looking at the Full Earth, Goku once again transforms into an Oozaru, but this time he has become a Golden Oozaru. In this form he seems to be able to overpower Bebi Vegeta, but is too berserked to focus on fighting him. Eventually Pan is able to get through to Goku and he undergoes the transformation into Super Saiyan 4.
- No match for Super Saiyan 4 Goku, Bulma creates a Bruits wave machine to transform Bebi Vegeta into an Oozaru, too. The beam works, and Bebi Vegeta transforms into a Golden Oozaru. He reveals he is able to control his form, even able to use Ki based attacks. As the battle progresses, it becomes obvious that Bebi Vegeta is slowly becoming more and more out of control, eventually, Goku stops Bebi by blasting his tail off.
- Remembering what the Bruits wave machine did for Bebi Vegeta, Bulma deduces that it can be used to help Vegeta reach Super Saiyan 4. The machine transforms Vegeta into a regular Oozaru and while he shows the classic rage expected from an Oozaru, he apparently was just having some fun, and promtly transforms into a Golden Oozaru, and then Super Saiyan 4.
Movies and Specials
- Goku transforms into an Oozaru near the end of Sleeping Princess in Devil's Castle. Interestingly, even though the movie is set after Goku's first transformation, the scene plays out almost exactly like Goku's first transformation. Goku's transformation frees Yamcha and co from a dire situation, although, instead of destroying everything around him, he immediately chases after his friends. Yamcha once again grabs onto Goku's tail and although Goku isn't completely imobilized like last time, Puar is still able to cut Goku's tail off by transforming into scissors. A complete transformation and detransformation sequence is lacking from this movie.
- In the Movie Tree of Might, Gohan's tail grows in in the middle of a battle with Tullece. Deciding to have a little fun, Tullece creates a power ball and makes Gohan look at it. Interestingly, He destroys the power ball while Gohan is transforming without having an effect on the transformation. Goku fights Gohan with little luck against the beast, but Icarus appears and is able to calm Gohan down. Tullece, annoyed at what is happening, blasts away Icarus, causing Gohan to attack Tullece. Tullece is ready to take down Gohan with one attack, but Goku uses an energy disk to cut Gohan's tail off saving him from Tullece's attack.
- The TV Special Bardock: Father of Goku starts off with Bardock and his team destroying an entire civilization as Oozaru. The morning after they have a conversation about how much they remember of the night prior, and it is revealed that Bardock can apparently remember everything he does as an Oozaru, whether or not he has control of what he is doing is not said. Although technically they should be berserked, the entire team seem to be able to work together in Oozaru form, and refrain from attacking each other.
In Video Games
Due to the Oozaru's large size, and the fact that Oozaru have only physically appeared in the manga series a grand total of 5 times, Oozaru are seldom seen in video games. Three exceptions however, are Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout, Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Battle 22, and Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi which features both an Oozaru and Oozaru Vegeta (named "Great Ape" and "Vegeta (Great Ape)"). While scaled down considerably, they are still the largest characters in the game. Although Oozaru in the anime are depicted as being somewhat fast despite their size, in Budokai Tenkaichi, Oozaru are incredibly slow. (This is to balance out the incredible level of damage the Oozaru characters can give) A special battle in the story mode is unlockable where Oozaru Gohan and Oozaru Vegeta fight. In Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2, the Oozaru are on the roster once again. However, some of the Saiyan characters that never transformed into Oozaru in the manga nor anime are able to do so in this game, such as Raditz, Nappa and Tullece from the 3rd DBZ movie. The generic Oozaru has also now become a transfomation for Kid Goku. Bardock and Bebi-Vegeta can also transform into Oozarus.
An Oozaru appears in the opening to Dragon Ball Z: Budokai as it is a 3-D version of the opening to Dragon Ball Z. Oozaru Vegeta also appears in Budokai's story mode, but only in cutscenes. An Oozaru is also visible during Kid Goku and Bardock's ultimate attacks in Budokai 3.
Ultimate Battle 22 allowed the player to input a combination of buttons to unlock 5 extra characters, including Kid Goku. While playing as Kid Goku, the player could then input another combination of buttons. If near the opponent, Kid Goku grabs them, transform into an Oozaru and smashes on his opponent before transforming back.
Final Bout featured Oozaru (Bebi Vegeta) as the final boss. He was taller than the screen, usually only visible from his waist down. His mouth blast, death ball, and other Ki attacks only hit if his opponent was in the air.