One of Dragon Ball Z's most iconic characters is Vegeta, the Prince of All Saiyans. His fascinating redemption arc sees him evolving from an arrogant warrior without a shred of remorse into a loving father and husband. One of the things that makes this arc so compelling is that, right at the peak of his characterization, Vegeta tries (and fails) to return to his old, violent self.
Majin Vegeta is one of the most fascinating points in Vegeta's arc. It highlights the great changes Vegeta underwent over the course of the series thus far, offers fans a chance to see Vegeta become a villain once again and puts Vegeta in two of the best fights in Dragon Ball Z history, only to culminate in an emotional moment of self-sacrifice that shows exactly how far Vegeta has come since trying to wish for immortality.
Majin Vegeta Culminates Vegeta's Arc Throughout Dragon Ball Z
What makes Majin Vegeta such a terrific character is that he exists as the culmination of Vegeta's arc up until this point. Vegeta starts off the show as a sociopathic villain, bent on immortality and fulfilling the legacy of the Saiyan race. Over the course of the Cell Saga, Vegeta achieves this. He becomes a Super Saiyan, but despite his insistence that he is pure evil, he also ultimately becomes a better person. Sure, he lets Cell absorb 18, but he also grows attached to his son to the point where he is genuinely heartbroken when Cell kills Trunks.
By the start of the Buu Saga, Vegeta is seemingly domesticated. He's taking his son to the amusement park after training, has developed a surprisingly healthy relationship with Bulma and has seemingly left his trail of destruction long behind him. However, this has put Vegeta into a sort of midlife crisis. While men in their midlife crisis buy expensive cars, Vegeta wants to gain immeasurable power and destroy planets.
Majin Vegeta allows Vegeta to achieve the goals he wanted at the start of the series. He gets to fight Goku again, achieve incredible power and fulfill the legacy of the Saiyan race. He manages to do so in spectacular fashion, fighting Goku in arguably one of the coolest fights ever.
Majin Vegeta's Growth as a Character Shows Best Here
While Majin Vegeta's massacre of people at the World Tournament and battle with Goku highlight his destructive potential, what makes Majin Vegeta such a fascinating iteration of Vegeta is how he throws it all away in the fight against Buu. While Babidi ends up granting Vegeta his pure evil form, he turns against him fairly quickly to fight Buu. Buu proves unstoppable, but this pushes Vegeta to the limit. Vegeta ultimately chooses to destroy himself in a glorious, but vain, attempt to save the world, his family and even Goku from the wrath of Buu.
What makes Majin Vegeta's self-sacrifice all the more powerful is what he does right before blowing himself up with the Final Explosion technique. He spends his last moments giving Trunks a hug, only to knock him and Goten out so Piccolo can carry them off to safety. He has a moment of vulnerability, talking to Piccolo in the anime about his future in the afterlife. Piccolo outright tells Vegeta he'll go to Hell and be unable to keep his body after death, only for Vegeta to just unflinchingly walk forward and sacrifice himself anyway. Even though Vegeta ends up keeping his body so he can rejoin the fight against Buu later, he doesn't know this.
These moments highlight Vegeta's growth as a hero. This is the moment where Vegeta goes from just a reformed villain, as he was during the Frieza and Cell Arcs, to a true hero. It is telling that even Porunga, when reviving all the good people Buu killed, deems Vegeta worthy of resurrection, despite his actions as Majin Vegeta. After all, Majin Vegeta encapsulates Vegeta's entire redemption in a short, succinct package. This is Vegeta at his best.