Piccolo (Dragon Ball)

Piccolo
Dragon Ball character
File:Piccolo (Dragon Ball) photo.jpg
First appearance	Dragon Ball chapter #161 Dragon Ball episode 122
Created by	Akira Toriyama
In-universe information
Alias	Piccolo Jr. Piccolo Daimao Junior Green Man Ma-junior "The Namek" Satanàs Cor Petit
Nickname	"Big Green", "Green Bean"
Species	Namekian
Gender	None
Relatives	Katattsu (grandfather) Piccolo Daimao (parent / incarnate) Kami (good counterpart, later assimilated) Nail (assimilated) Cell (modified clone)

Piccolo (ピッコロ, Pikkoro) is a fictional character from the Dragon Ball manga, authored by Akira Toriyama. Piccolo was first introduced as the reincarnation of the evil Piccolo Daimao, making him a demon and archrival of the primary protagonist named Son Goku. However, it is later revealed that he is from the race of alien beings called Namekians. Even though Piccolo is consistently referred to as male, being of Namekian heritage makes him genderless.

Piccolo's name is originally derived from the musical instrument, as all of the great Demon King Piccolo Daimao's henchmen (who are his other children) had the names of various instruments. Around the start of the Freeza Saga, it's revealed that his name means "another world" in Namekian.

After his narrow defeat against Goku, Piccolo is soon forced to form an at first uneasy alliance with Goku and his friends against newer, more dangerous threats. Out of necessity he also takes it upon himself to train Goku's child Son Gohan, forming a powerful bond which ultimately redeems him when he sacrifices himself to save the child's life. After his resurrection he fully joins Goku and the others in their struggles against ever more powerful villains, although he frequently makes up the excuse of doing so only because he wants to take over the world someday, in contrast to his genuine reform.

Character outline

Heritage

Piccolo's original incarnation was introduced as Piccolo Daimao (Piccolo The Great Demon King), the evil counterpart of Earth's god, Kami. Right before his original body was destroyed by Goku, Piccolo Daimao reincarnated himself into the form of an egg, which then hatched into his reincarnation named Piccolo Jr. Even though Piccolo by definition is a demon, his actual race is later revealed to be Namekian, which is extraterrestrial.

Appearance

Piccolo is one of the few characters whose appearance does not change drastically throughout the series. Being from another planet called Namek, Piccolo appears as a typical Namekian: green skinned and hairless. The only major difference between his original appearance in the manga and then his appearance in the anime is that in the manga he has four fingers on each hand while in the anime he has five fingers. Piccolo is known for his white turban and long white cape. He wears a purple Asian martial arts uniform (gi) underneath his cape, with a red obi (changed to blue in the anime), and light-weight brown footwear. The only time he wears something other than his original clothing is in the episode where Goku and Piccolo are forced by Chi-Chi to take up driving lessons, in which Piccolo dons a cap, jumper and trousers.

Character history

Many years prior to Dragon Ball, Piccolo and Kami were a single entity (thought the original name had been long forgotten), who had escaped to Earth from Namek following a violent planetary storm. The Namekian longed to become Earth's god, and vouched for the throne of Kami. The Kami at the time had seen a dark evil in the Namek's heart, and made him split himself into two entities. The good counterpart was allowed to become Kami, and the evil counterpart named Piccolo wreaked havoc upon the Earth. However, following many years of havoc, Piccolo was sealed inside an electric rice cooker with a technique called the Mafuba.

Piccolo emerged several hundred years later during Dragon Ball, only to be killed by Goku. Before his death, Piccolo reincarnated himself in the form of a son named Piccolo Jr, whom he intended to have continue his mission of world domination, and avenge his death against Goku. Three years later, Piccolo Jr entered the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai under the alias "Ma Junior" (Demon Jr). Piccolo fought Goku in hopes of avenging his father and ruling the world, but was defeated in the final round.

Five years later, Piccolo was confronted by an alien named Raditz whose power surpassed that of even Goku's. Realizing the evil Saiyan would thwart his plans for world domination, Piccolo teams up with Goku in an attempt to stop Raditz from destroying the Earth, and so that Goku could retrieve his kidnapped son named Gohan. When the two arch rivals teamed up, Piccolo was able to defeat Raditz, and conveniently eliminate Goku at the same time. During the battle, Goku's son Gohan had revealed an awesome hidden power, and Piccolo knew that it would be useful against the two other Saiyans that would be arriving a year later. It is also later revealed by Kami that Piccolo sensed his upcoming death against the approaching Saiyans, and that his attempt to train Gohan would've resulted in him gaining a successor.

Piccolo's role in the series changes as the year progresses, becoming a good character when he is revealed to have become fond of Gohan as a friend. When the Saiyans arrive a year later, Piccolo's fondness toward Gohan results in him sacrificing himself for the boy, which also results in the death of Kami and the Dragon Balls. After Goku returns and defeats the Saiyans with the help of Gohan and Kuririn, Gohan and others travel to Piccolo's home world Planet Namek to revive those who died against the Saiyans with the Namekian Dragon Balls. Piccolo is resurrected on Planet Namek to help Goku and others defeat the evil Freeza. Upon his arrival, Piccolo physically assimilates another Namekian named Nail, and gains a massive amount of power. In spite of his massive power increase, Piccolo is defeated and severely injured by Freeza, leaving Goku to defeat him alone. Piccolo is restored to health, and waits a year until Goku arrives back on Earth. He then trains with Goku and Gohan to prepare for a battle against two powerful artificial humans.

After being defeated by the two artificial humans, Piccolo seeks Kami to unite with, and gain another massive increase in power. After uniting with Kami, Piccolo becomes aware of a bigger threat named Cell, even more powerful then the two artificial humans who had defeated him and the others earlier. Needing the two artificial humans to complete his power, Cell encounters Piccolo several times, and Piccolo attempts to thwart his plans to gain power. Piccolo's efforts are in vain when he is nearly killed by Cell, and he is forced to participate in a Tenkaichi Budokai created by Cell. During this time, Gohan ascends Goku and defeats Cell, saving the Earth from total destruction.

Seven years later, Piccolo acts as a trainer to the characters Son Goten and Trunks, and their united form Gotenks. Piccolo trains the boys in fighting the evil demon Majin Boo.

In Dragon Ball GT he is severely injured by Gohan while he was possessed by Baby and later dies with earth in order to destroy the Black Star Dragon Balls. He goes to Heaven but then makes himself be send to Hell in order to take Goku out when he is imprisoned there. He can be seen putting Hell in order and protecting the rulers there. In the final episode Goku stops in Hell to see Piccolo. He tells Piccolo that he will be leaving and that they are glad they met and teamed up. He also says that he has become a good friend and he will get out of hell someday. They shake hands and Goku leaves while Piccolo stays behind.

Abilities

Piccolo has shown many abilities throughout Dragon Ball. Being a Namekian, Piccolo can regenerate lost limbs of his body, as long as his head is still intact. Piccolo also has the ability to conjure various objects, such as clothing.

Like many other characters in Dragon Ball, Piccolo has the ability of flight. Piccolo's signature attack is called "Destructive Wave" which is fired with on hand being supported by the other. One of Piccolo's most powerful attacks is the Makankosappo, (Special Beam Cannon or Light of Death in English adaptations) an attack that is expelled from Piccolo's index and middle fingers. Unlike most energy-based attacks in Dragon Ball, the Makankosappo pierces its targets like a drill rather than enveloping them or exploding on contact. Piccolo's ultimate attack is called "Hellzone Grenade" which involves firing off many orbs of energy that float around the opponent. Piccolo then squeezes his hand to make all the orbs converge onto the opponent, exploding on contact. Piccolo also possesses the ability of "Scatter Shot" in which he fires many different chi blasts shots from one hand at the same time. Piccolo is also seen possessing an attack called the Masenko or Demon wave, which Piccolo teaches to his pupil Gohan. Another move Piccolo is seen to have is the "Light Grenade", which is conjured by putting his hands on his chest, gathering energy and then releasing it outwards. Piccolo also displays the ability to fire laser rays from his eyes, which he shows when he uses it against Goku in the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai and again when he trains Gohan in the Saiyan Saga. This is one of his less frequent techniques.

Piccolo can also perform the "Namekian Fusion" which he first does with Nail on the distant Planet Namek to confront Freeza, and then with Kami at the Lookout to stop Cell.

Video games

File:PiccoloSuperDragonBallZ.jpg

Piccolo as he appears in Super Dragon Ball Z.

Piccolo has been in many Dragon Ball-related video games such as the Super Butoden and the Budokai series of games.

In most Dragon Ball video games, Piccolo had no transformations. However in the recent Budokai and Tenkaichi series Piccolo has multiple forms. He also has super enhanced hearing.

Piccolo has also been a playable character in crossover games such as Jump Super Stars and Jump Ultimate Stars.

Live-action film

Piccolo will also appear in the upcoming Dragonball film adaptation and will be portrayed by American actor James Marsters. In a recent TV Guide interview, Marsters confirms some changes made to the character, including the fact that he will be an amalgamation of Piccolo and King Piccolo.

"He's thousands of years old and a very long time ago he used to be a force of good but got into a bad argument and was put into prison for 2,000 years. It got him very angry, and he finds a way to escape and then tries to destroy the world. The cool thing is, anybody who has seen Dragonball knows that Lord Piccolo transforms into a character named Piccolo, and that is a whole other ball of wax. That is one of the most popular characters in the whole series. I've been told I'm working for people who will just flay me alive if I give too much information, but what I can tell you is the character is green, bald and has pointed ears. Heroic wouldn't be the wrong term by the end, but it's a long journey."

Bibliography

• Dragon Ball manga, Volume 16 — ISBN 1-59116-457-5
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 1 — ISBN 1-56931-930-8
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 2 — ISBN 1-56931-931-6
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 3 — ISBN 1-56931-932-4
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 6 — ISBN 1-56931-935-9
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 9 — ISBN 1-56931-938-3
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 10 — ISBN 1-56931-939-1
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 11 — ISBN 1-56931-807-7
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 14 — ISBN 978-1-59116-180-6
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 15 — ISBN 978-1-59116-186-8
• Dragon Ball Z manga, Volume 16 — ISBN 978-1-59116-328-2

External links

• Capsule Corporation Headquarters
• Guide to Piccolo's Fusions at Daizex