Since Goku first reached the golden-haired form in his fateful fight against Frieza, the Super Saiyan has become a staple of the Dragon Ball franchise. As Goku’s saga has continued, more variations of Super Saiyan have appeared, such as spikier-haired Super Saiyan 2 and long-haired Super Saiyan 3. Most recently, Dragon Ball Super has introduced the game changing Super Saiyan God, Blue, and Rosé, which all approach the form from another angle entirely.
As familiar as these power-ups has become, however, there are a few facts about Super Saiyans that even some of the most dedicated fans may not know about.
10 Super Saiyan 2 And 3 Were Almost Phased Out
For many years, Super Saiyan 3 was considered the pinnacle of Super Saiyan transformations, with the exception of Dragon Ball GT’s non-canon Super Saiyan 4. Yet Super Saiyan God left Super Saiyan 3 in the dust, giving Goku a fighting chance against Beerus that the previous Super Saiyan form had not. After Battle of Gods, Akira Toriyama had actually considered phasing Super Saiyan 2 and 3 out entirely, arguing that Goku would gain more strength and waste less energy training in his base and first Super Saiyan form. Toriyama likely changed his mind, however, as Super Saiyan 2 and 3 returned repeatedly during Dragon Ball Super’s run.
9 Super Saiyan Gods Can Heal
As the article’s title suggests, Super Saiyan God allows its users to heal themselves to some degree. When Beerus stabbed Goku’s heart during their fight in the Dragon Ball Super anime, the Saiyan managed to heal himself while underwater. Since then, it hasn’t always been clear when Goku’s used this ability again, although it does explain how he's been able to recover from injuries in later fights. Some fans have speculated that God Heal may not be a move Goku consciously uses, however, as he has not been shown to heal from similar attacks by other enemies, like Zamasu.
8 Super Saiyan God Was Almost Much Buffer
The original script for Battle of Gods was not written by Akira Toriyama, but Yūsuke Watanabe, who came up with both Beerus and the Super Saiyan God. However, Toriyama radically revised both concepts when he heavily rewrote the script and overhauled certain character designs. Beerus was changed to resemble Egyptian cat-gods, as well as Toriyama’s own cat, while Goku became much slimmer in his Super Saiyan God form.
The original version of Super Saiyan God, designed by longtime Dragon Ball animator Tadayoshi Yamamuro, was given a more muscular build than a Super Saiyan’s, and even had a cape. Toriyama, however, decided on “paring it down to the absolute limit.”
7 Goku And Vegeta Might Be Able To Access Super Saiyan Rosé
Zamasu’s Super Saiyan Rosé was essentially Super Saiyan Blue with a different hair color and aura to reflect Zamasu’s godhood. Goku and Vegeta are mortals, but characters in Dragon Ball don’t have to be born deities to become them. Whis is specifically training Goku and Vegeta to become Gods of Destruction, and Dende became the god of Earth when replacing Kami. The title of god has also been shown to be more than cosmetic: in the Super anime, Top outright transformed into a God of Destruction. Therefore, if named gods, Goku and Vegeta might be able to go Rosé, but may find it redundant.
6 Super Saiyan God Was Almost A One-Off Form
While the Super Saiyan God form would continue to appear regularly in the manga, the transformation made far fewer anime appearances after Resurrection ‘F,' being essentially supplanted by the stronger Super Saiyan Blue. Still, it may be surprising to learn that Battle of Gods almost became the Super Saiyan God form’s only appearance. Toriyama originally felt that Goku absorbing Super Saiyan God’s power boost into his base form had made the God state redundant. Having not yet conceived Resurrection ‘F,’ Toriyama had likely not yet decided that Super Saiyan God could also be performed without the ritual, which Goku had expressed dissatisfaction about.
5 Super Saiyan Blue Can Be Perfected
For all of its power, Super Saiyan Blue has one major flaw: its energy can run out quickly. Though rarely addressed in the anime, it was initially a constant concern for Goku and Vegeta in the manga. Both fighters would compensate by primarily fighting as Super Saiyan Gods, switching to Blue at key moments for a strength boost. Eventually, Goku finally found a fix by absorbing Blue’s aura into himself, preventing any energy from passively leaving his body. However, this manga-only, “completed” Super Saiyan Blue was also imperfect, as holding in all of that power could eventually start damaging a Saiyan’s body.
4 Super Saiyans Save On Ink
Toriyama’s a practical creator who likes to keep things simple. Why are Super Saiyan Gods’ hair red? Because Toriyama considers it a strong color. Why did the Super Saiyan God ritual need six Saiyans? It was convenient for the story.
Therefore, it shouldn’t be too surprising to learn he made the original Super Saiyan forms were blonde so his art assistant on the manga could spend less time inking Goku’s hair! Similarly, Goku’s eyes were made clear (except in color, where they were green) so readers would have less difficulty telling when he’d look to one side, e.g. when scowling at Frieza from below.
3 The “Tingly Back” Reveal May Explain Some Things
Dragon Ball Super introduced the divisive revelation that the Super Saiyan form can also be reached by gathering energy at the center of the spine. Yet despite the “tingly back” method’s controversy, it would explain how Goten and Trunks become Super Saiyans so easily in Dragon Ball Z.
Previously, Toriyama has stated that Goten and Trunks had transformed easily by lacking tails, as well as being less encumbered by Earth’s lighter gravity. That explanation never made it into the manga or anime, however, and Toriyama has changed his mind about backstory before. Given how S-Cells are arguably even more controversial, the “back tingle” explanation may be the slightly better option.
2 Super Saiyan God And Blue Have Distinct Fighting Styles… Sometimes
Initially, there wasn’t a big difference between how Saiyans fought as Super Saiyan Gods versus how they fought as Super Saiyan Blues. When working on Dragon Ball Super: Broly, however, director Tatsuya Nagamine and his fellow animators took great care to show how Goku and Vegeta approach combat differently in each form. In his words, “God relies on predicting and dodging the opponent’s movements, plus godly techniques rather than power. Then Blue puts all the emphasis on bulldozing the opponent with brute force.” This is certainly conveyed in the movie, with even Vegeta evading more than usual when using Super Saiyan God against Broly.
1 The Bruce Lee Connection
Akira Toriyama is a well-known fan of martial arts cinema, including the work of Bruce Lee. When introducing the Super Saiyan form for the first time in the manga, Toriyama decided to homage the legendary actor/martial artist by basing the glare Goku gave Frieza on the look Lee would have in some of his films. Interestingly, when adapting the scene to animation, Tadayoshi Yamamuro decided [apparently on his own] to also look to Lee for inspiration, immediately recognizing Lee’s iconic stare and posture when seeing the image of Super Saiyan Goku.