Dragon Ball Z has been considered one of the most infamous offenders of power creep in anime. Not only did this series that was once about martial arts transition to planet-destroying battles, but many of its characters became virtually useless in a fight. However, that may be too critical of a way to look at things. While it's true that many fighters couldn't handle the bigger threats as the story progressed, DBZ still found things for them to do. Additionally, the number of characters ready and willing to fight remained about the same throughout the series. In defense of DBZ, here's a look at how many fighters stayed in action and for how long.

This will be a look at how many Z Fighters had or at least could have had a good fight within each major arc of DBZ. Since they all take place around the same time, the Namek, Ginyu, and Frieza Sagas will all be counted as one arc; the same will be done for the Android and Cell Sagas. This will include non-canon material from the anime; even if it never happened in the manga, it still gives fans of these characters a reason to cheer for them. A character will be considered a victim of power creep when they either can't significantly influence a fight or opt-out of fighting altogether; with that said, they'll still be credited for trying. Human characters who never really stood a chance in any of these planet-destroying fights like Mr. Satan and Videl will be excluded altogether. With that in mind, here's how well the Z Fighters were able to handle DBZ's notorious power creep.

RELATED: Friendship, Effort, Victory: Shōnen Jump's Guiding Principles For All Its Series

The Saiyan Saga Bridges the Power Levels Between Dragon Ball & DBZ

Few characters were ready for the start of the Saiyan Saga. When Raditz arrived on Earth, only Goku, Piccolo, and Gohan working together had what it took to stop him. At this point, the Z Fighters were all woefully underpowered.

By the time Vegeta arrived on Earth a year later, all of the fighters from the end of Dragon Ball had plenty of time to train. Tien, Yamcha, and Krillin were all shown to be strong enough to fight the Saibamen, who were supposed to be on Raditz's level. Since Chiaotzu and Yajirobe went through the same training as them, it's possible that they could have beaten the Saibamen, too.

Unfortunately, some more signs of power creep showed up again when Nappa decided to fight. Neither Chiaotzu nor Tien were able to do any significant damage to him. If Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan had a better idea of what they were doing, they might have won. Goku, obviously, wiped the floor with Nappa.

When Vegeta decided to fight, he outmatched everybody still alive to fight him. Goku kept pace with him well enough, and Gohan, Krillin, and Yajirobe were all able to help decide the match. If Goku hadn't stopped Krillin, he could have even killed Vegeta with Yajirobe's sword. With this, the number of fighters who stayed at least somewhat relevant between the end of Dragon Ball and the end of this saga is about seven or eight.

RELATED: Naruto Battles Were Always Going to Reach Dragon Ball Z Levels of Big

Goku's Friends Are Mostly Outmatched on Namek

dragon ball z characters on namek

Throughout the Namek and Ginyu Saga, Krillin and Gohan were unfortunately outmatched by everyone who wasn't a basic henchman for Frieza. Only Vegeta was strong enough to take on the likes of Cui, Dodoria, and Zarbon, though he wasn't really a Z Fighter at this point. Again, If Gohan and Krillin knew what they were doing against Guldo, they might have beaten him. Goku and Vegeta were able to take out all five members of the Ginyu force, though Vegeta could only beat the other four after receiving a Zenkai boost from fighting Recoome.

The Z Fighters and Vegeta had mixed results battling Frieza. Vegeta was confident that he, Krillin, and Gohan could handle Frieza's first form, but he squandered their opportunity to try by goading Frieza into transforming; he went on to be helpless against Frieza in all of his other forms. Krillin was constantly outmuscled by Frieza, but he could still give the galactic tyrant trouble with his Destructo Disc and Solar Flare; this presumably applies to all four forms. Gohan was able to keep pace with a mix of Zenkai boosts and latent potential. Piccolo merged with Nail and could fight Frieza's second form one-on-one, but that was about it; he also bought time for Goku to finish preparing the Spirit Bomb along with Krillin and Gohan. Finally, Goku was able to beat Frieza, but only after becoming a Super Saiyan.

There's also some anime-only content that's worth noting. In Otherworld, Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu were able to fend off the Ginyu Force sans Captain Ginyu. Counting this, the total of relevant fighters left by the end of the Frieza Saga is eight. Yajirobe, unfortunately, remained on the sidelines for all of this.

RELATED: One Important Quality Made DBZ's Frieza a Better Villain Than Cell and Bu

Super Saiyans Became the Measuring Stick During the Android & Cell Sagas

The Z Fighters in Dragon Ball Z.

The Android and Cell Sagas are a little harder to argue for. This arc was specifically set up to make Super Saiyans and whatever lay beyond the only thing that could handle the androids. It essentially set everyone else up to fall victim to power creep.

Regardless, there are ways that characters besides Vegeta, Trunks, Gohan, and Goku were able to stay relevant. Piccolo, most notably, was able to fight evenly with Androids 17 and 18 by merging with Kami; he also might have killed Imperfect Cell before he got too strong. Tien was able to keep Semi-Perfect Cell in place with his Tri-Beam attack. Krillin was tasked with shutting down and destroying Android 18, and he very well may have if not for his change of heart; he also killed his timeline's version of Cell, for whatever that's worth. Yamcha was immediately beaten by Android 20, though the anime did let him, Tien, and Piccolo help out in the final battle against Cell. Counting all of this, the number of relevant fighters is once again around seven or eight. This time, it was Chiaotzu who was completely removed from the fighting, though he did help Tien with his training.

RELATED: Dragon Ball: Bulma and Her Children's Ever-Changing Hair Colors, Explained

Power Creep Is Too Much to Handle in The Buu Saga

The Buu Saga cast in Dragon Ball Z.

Sadly, this is where power creep really started to get to the other characters. Yamcha and Krillin had both retired from fighting altogether. Even when they and Android 18 were forced to defend themselves against Majin Buu, they were swiftly turned into candy and eaten. In the anime, however, Yamcha was shown fighting some strong fighters in Otherworld, one of whom may have been stronger than Perfect Cell.

Tien's only contribution in this arc was deflecting one of Super Buu's energy blasts. After this, he was quickly knocked unconscious. If it weren't for this, however, Goku would have considered using the Potara earrings on him to fight Buu after he absorbed Gotenks, Piccolo, and Gohan.

For the most part, all of the Saiyans remained relevant throughout the arc, even the two newest ones. Goten and Trunks, while not especially strong on their own, were able to fuse into Gotenks and give Super Buu a hard time. Gohan lost to Fat Buu but kept Super Buu on the ropes after having his potential unlocked. Vegeta actually fell hard to power creep against Buu and needed Goku's help to win, but it's okay because it was all part of his character arc; at the very least, he kept up much better than most. Goku gets a lot of credit for bringing down Kid Buu once and for all; this arc also marks the first time he'd won a major battle since Frieza.

This arc's power creep is definitely real, but it's also difficult to judge. For one thing, Buu ended up outclassing nearly everyone, including key fighters like Goku and Gohan; the only fighter he could never surpass in strength was Vegito, who let him win anyway. Krillin and 18 both tried to fight, but they ended up being helpless. Yamcha had a significant win under his belt, but only in the anime. Goten and Trunks can only make a difference as Gotenks, so they really only count as one fighter. Piccolo left Babidi on the brink of death, which definitely counts for something among the fans. With all this in mind, the number of capable fighters who at least put up a fight in this arc can be anywhere from six to 10. Given how close to unbeatable Buu was throughout this arc, the real number is probably closer to the lower end of the spectrum.