Highlights
- Eternal Dragons in Dragon Ball grant wishes to those who collect the Dragon Balls, but each dragon has its own unique powers and aesthetic.
- Shenron, Porunga, Ultimate Shenron, Black Smoke Shenron, and Super Shenron are some of the Eternal Dragons featured in Dragon Ball Z, GT, and Super.
- Toronbo is the only Eternal Dragon featured in the Dragon Ball Super manga, and he requires two Dragon Balls to be summoned for a wish.
Throughout the entire Dragon Ball history, a constant and evolving presence in the lore of the story is the Eternal Dragons. Eternal Dragons are known for granting wishes to those who seek out and collect all seven Dragon Balls, before summoning the giant beasts and redeeming their rewards. Over time, Dragon Ball and its many continuities have welcomed more Eternal Dragons with greater powers, allowing characters to come back to life, even if they had been revived once before. Each dragon comes with its own aesthetic, keeping up with the aura of an Eternal Dragon while sporting some differences that make them stand out from one another.
In this list, each Eternal Dragon will earn its spotlight and some history behind their presence in Dragon Ball history. Covering the manga and anime specifically, this leaves out examples such as Mr. Poko Poko, an Eternal Dragon that appears in the Dragon Ball Online game. Focusing on the Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, and Dragon Ball Super stories, here are the seven Eternal Dragons in the series, and what makes them special.
Original Shenron (Dragon Ball)
The original Shenron’s first appearance comes when Emperor Pilaf and his assistants gather all seven Dragon Balls and summon him to make their wish. With planet domination in his aspirations, his wish is interrupted by Oolong, who races into the picture and shouts out his wish to obtain the comfiest pair of underwear, which Shenron grants. Upon disappearing from the scene, the seven Dragon Balls scatter across the planet, building up the narrative of a character seeking them out once more to make their wish. Shenron is also not immortal, as evident by his death at the hands of King Piccolo. After making his wish of returning to his youthful form, King Piccolo manages to slay Shenron before he can vanish. While he is eventually revived by Kami, the idea of a God-like creature being destroyed is a moment Dragon Ball fans won’t forget.
Appearing as a neutral figure, Shenron is both courteous and polite to those who summon him, and grants one wish to the summoner. Whether it is for good or evil intentions, as long as it is within his power to do so, Shenron will grant it. Shenron can’t grant the same wish twice to the same summoner, nor can he kill anyone beyond the power limit of those who hope to have their wish granted. With just one wish on hand, those who call upon Shenron will have a difficult decision to make.
Porunga (Dragon Ball Z)
Porunga is the Eternal Dragon of Namek and presents himself as quite the intimidating character. He has a more muscular appearance, puffing out his large chest and flexing his biceps, and comes off like a domineering dragon. Like Shenron, Porunga is kind-hearted and fair, though he does have a sense of humor and can be impatient at times. He also has the ability to grant three wishes, which is two more compared to Shenron’s powers. While on Namek, he sarcastically tells Gohan and Krillin to wish for nothing three times, so he can leave when the duo takes too long to think of their wishes. He demonstrates his good intentions when he saves Yamcha, Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu the time it would have taken them to traverse the Snake Way again, returning them directly to Earth when they are wished back to life. He also shows a hint of embarrassment when Bulma says he’s kind of cute.
Porunga also dies during his first appearance in Dragon Ball Z, while in the process of granting his third wish. After reviving Piccolo and then transporting him to Namek, Vegeta demands the third wish to be used on him to become immortal. As Porunga is about to grant the wish, he stops dead in his tracks and turns to stone, marking the end of his mortality. This is due to Guru’s death, which is directly linked to Porunga’s life span. He is eventually returned to form when Shenron’s wish is used to bring back everyone to life who were killed by the Frieza Force, which includes Guru.
Ultimate Shenron (Dragon Ball GT)
At first glance, Ultimate Shenron appears to be the red-colored version of the original Shenron, but the differences don’t stop there. Packed with a sinister approach, his appearance in Dragon Ball GT comes with an impending sense of doom when his rules are stated. Ultimate Shenron may grant any wish to the summoner, without limitation, but once the Black Star Dragon Balls are scattered across the entire galaxy, they must be retrieved within one year of the wish. If the Black Star Dragon Balls are not recovered, the planet which the wish was made on will explode. This makes Ultimate Shenron’s involvement in the story a dire one, as those who are unaware of the condition may end up putting their own life, and the lives of everyone on the planet, at risk.
Ultimate Shenron grants wishes on two separate occasions; Emperor Pilaf’s wish to turn Goku into a child, and Baby’s wish to bring back Planet Vegeta. The Black Star Dragon Balls eventually turn to stone, marking the end of Ultimate Shenron, and he is never seen again.
Black Smoke Shenron (Dragon Ball GT)
Known to be the opposite of Shenron in terms of manners and attitude, Black Smoke Shenron quickly became a favorite among those who got through the Dragon Ball GT series. Possessing a foul mouth, Black Smoke Shenron is rude to those who summon him, and is the first true evil Eternal Dragon shown in the Dragon Ball story. He is summoned from the cracked Dragon Balls, and was created from negative energy. He also chooses not to grant wishes, solely based on not feeling up to the occasion, instead choosing to break out a cigar and laugh in the summoner’s face.
The cracked Dragon Balls are due to over-usage, causing small cracks to become more visible and store negative energy. Upon his first and only appearance, Black Smoke Shenron refuses to grant a wish to Goku, instead splitting into seven Shadow Dragons. Releasing his seven individual personalities, the threat becomes greater than ever.
The Shadow Dragons (Dragon Ball GT)
Following Black Smoke Shenron’s split, the Shadow Dragons are born. Naturon Shenron, Eis Shenron, Syn Shenron, Rage Shenron, Nuova Shenron, Haze Shenron, and Oceanus Shenron are the seven entities embodying a granted wish from the past, over the many years when the Dragon Balls were used. As a consequence of using the Dragon Balls too many times, for selfish reasons, they cracked and gathered negative energy, which filled the bodies of the seven Shadow Dragons. This threat required Goku and friends to take them down one by one, fighting through a variety of different levels of power and attacks.
While none of them stood out individually, in terms of interest, Omega Shenron stole the show with his unique appearance and demeanor. A manifestation of all seven Shadow Dragons into one, Omega Shenron poses the greatest threat of all and forced Goku and Vegeta into fusing, in order to store enough power to take him down.
Super Shenron (Dragon Ball Super)
Super Shenron appears in Dragon Ball Super and may be the most-powerful Eternal Dragon of them all, and his yellowish-gold appearance definitely gives off that aura. With crimson red eyes, Super Shenron is a manifestation of the Super Dragon Balls, which were formed by Zalama, the Dragon God. Super Shenron is summoned when all seven Super Dragon Balls, which are the size of planets, are gathered. The summoner must also repeat the phrase, “Come forth, Dragon of the Gods, and grant my wish pretty peas!” in the Divine Language. Once Super Shenron appears, the summoner must state their wish in the same language. Unlike most other Eternal Dragons, the wish Super Shenron grants has no limit, and does not hold any bias towards good or evil wishes.
Zamasu showcases this perfectly when he has his wish granted by taking over the body of Goku in a separate timeline, becoming Goku Black and killing both Chi-Chi and Goten. Super Shenron is also summoned to the end of the Tournament of Power, when Android 17 is named the MVP of the battle and receives the Super Dragon Balls as his prize. He uses his wish for good, reviving all the universes that were once wiped as a result of its team losing in the tournament.
Toronbo (Dragon Ball Super)
Currently, Toronbo is the only Eternal Dragon to be featured in the Dragon Ball Super manga, but not the anime. Toronbo is the Eternal Dragon of Planet Cereal, and bears a silverish-blue appearance with red eyes. Like Shenron and Porunga, Toronbo is a neutral figure, showing no bias towards good or evil. He is well-mannered and polite, and even offers alternative wishes to the summoner if he believes the wish to be impractical. Unlike the other Eternal Dragons, Toronbo requires two Dragon Balls instead of seven, making it much easier to summon him for a wish.
Granolah is the first in the manga to summon Toronbo, and he uses his wish to become the strongest fighter in Universe 7. Unfortunately, the wish is only capable of unlocking his fullest potential and no further, which tests his limits while battling Goku and Vegeta. When Granolah states the wish isn’t enough, Toronbo offers to condense to increase in power, but at the cost of shortening his life span to three years. As Granolah accepts the offer, the wish his granted and Toronbo vanishes from the scene, with the two Dragon Balls scattering across the planet.
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