The cast of the various Dragon Ball anime and manga series have seen their fair share of victories and defeats, with the latter occasionally having a tragic end. This has required using the Dragon Balls to revive those who have passed, with even franchise protagonist Goku needing this sort of resurrection at one point. There’s another character fans want to see brought back, but it might not be as necessary as some think.
Android 16 was built to be a killing machine, but the robot actually had a surprising degree of kindness and gentleness. Instrumental in helping Gohan push his strength to its limits, 16 has long since been dead in Dragon Ball‘s narrative. While there might be a way to bring him back to life, the character sadly wouldn’t have much of a role, and it’s very likely that he’d become simple background filler. Such a fate has befallen several former Z Fighters, and it’d be a waste to bring back a former villain just for this to happen to him.
Shenron Can’t Revive Android 16 for One Reason
Despite the name, the nature of the Android series created by Dr. Gero is something of a misnomer. Only a few of them are purely robotic androids, whereas Android 17 and Android 18 are merely reconfigured humans with cybernetic enhancements. This is shown in 18 later marrying Krillin and having a child with him, proving that little in way of her actual biology was changed. Unlike his two successors, the (sometimes not-so) gentle giant Android 16 was completely mechanical and wasn’t a human beforehand. This is the main reason why he hasn’t been revived at some point by the eternal dragon Shenron.
Shenron can’t restore inorganic beings such as Android 16, as they were never truly “alive” to begin with. It would be similar to using new parts to recreate a house: it would look similar, but it wouldn’t really be the exact same building. For this reason, the idea of bringing 16 back has never really been explored, and thus the Z Fighters simply forgot he ever existed. Nevertheless, there are all kinds of loopholes with the rules surrounding the eternal dragons, with others such as the Namekian Porunga not having the same “weaknesses” as Shenron. This could present one way to possibly bring 16 back to the land of the “living” in Dragon Ball Super — but there might not be much point to it in the end.
Android 16 Doesn’t Need to be Revived in Dragon Ball Super
As mentioned, Android 16 essentially served the narrative purpose of dying so a distraught Gohan could turn into a Super Saiyan 2 and destroy the villainous Cell. Outside of this, his only real role was being something of a friend with Androids 17 and 18, both of whom are in a far different point in their lives. 18 in particular is now a wife and mother, with 17 somewhat taking on the nature-loving attributes of 16. If Android 16 came back, he’d have to carve out an entirely new life for himself, all the while grappling with the concept of his potentially not being truly alive. Given how much the Dragon Ball series has continued to focus almost solely on Goku and Vegeta, this is highly unlikely to happen.
Former big shots such as Krillin, Yamcha and Tien are mere footnotes in Dragon Ball Super, while even Goku’s son Goten and Vegeta’s son Trunks are only recently getting the spotlight. There’s simply no place for wasted narrative potential on Android 16, even if he did somehow return. Further proof of this is the android’s ancestor, Android 8, who fought and befriended Goku when the latter was a child. Last seen in cameos in Dragon Ball Z, the Frankenstein’s Monster-esque android is about as important to the series’ current narrative as Launch or Puar. Since Android 16 already achieved his desires by defending nature and making friends, it’s for the best that he rests in peace as a hero rather than returning to become an afterthought.