Highlights
- Goku’s transformation into a Super Saiyan marked a shift in power dynamics, showing his edge over Vegeta to the Saiyan prince’s dismay.
- Vegeta’s obsession with surpassing Goku stems from his upbringing as Saiyan royalty, leading to a constant need to prove himself superior.
- Vegeta’s brute force training approach pales in comparison to Goku’s calculated growth strategy, hindering his progress in catching up to his eternal rival.
Eternal rivals turned sworn allies, Goku and Vegeta have always had their differences, ever since they first locked horns in Dragon Ball Z’s Saiyan Saga. Through countless battles and incessant training to outdo one another over the course of many years, the pair have now entered the realm of the gods, but there has always been a slight gap in power between them.
Following Goku’s transformation into a Super Saiyan on the planet Namek, Akira Toriyama has always depicted him as holding an edge over his rival, much to Vegeta’s chagrin. During the Cell Games Saga of Dragon Ball Z, the main factor behind this gulf in their strength became more apparent, as it was also a reflection of their contrasting attitudes to the pursuit of power.
Inside Vegeta And Goku’s Rivalry
Vegeta’s desire to outshine Goku has been one of the defining traits of his character for several years now, for better or for worse. Although Vegeta was considerably stronger than him at the time of their first fight during the Saiyan Saga, Goku showed impressive resilience and perseverance to push past his limits and survive the battle while relying on the help of his allies.
Subsequently, during the Frieza Saga, Vegeta’s pride was dealt another blow upon seeing Goku transforming into a Super Saiyan, which cemented the fact that he had grown stronger than the Saiyan prince. From then on, Vegeta’s overconfident posturing in the Cell Saga, and his needless provocation of Goku during the Majin Buu Saga of Dragon Ball Z, were all quite obviously driven by a need to prove himself as better than Goku, which partly stems from his heritage.
Born as the son of King Vegeta, he grew up as the prince of all Saiyans, and was taught to regard all others as inferior to him. This was the heart of Vegeta’s frustration before his death in the Majin Buu Saga, as he could not come to terms with the fact that a low-born Saiyan such as Goku had grown stronger than him. His anger soon turned into an obsession, and he made it his life’s mission to defeat Goku in single combat to prove his superiority.
A Privileged Prince Vs. An Everyman
There is an intriguing disparity in the lives that both Saiyans lead on Earth, even when their relationship became more amicable after the events of the Majin Buu Saga in Dragon Ball Z. Whereas Goku is a humble radish farmer who lives in a secluded home with limited means, Vegeta is married to Bulma and lives a life of luxury, with every single form of comfort a person could dream of.
In a way, this further reinforces the contrast in their respective upbringings. Vegeta was groomed to be his father’s successor, and his prodigious talent as a warrior was immediately respected among his peers. Goku, on the other hand, grew up on Earth and honed his strength through countless journeys, battles, and constant training with a host of powerful mentors, which tested and molded him into the warrior he is today.
Needless to say, Vegeta has also endured losses of his own in Dragon Ball Z, but his pride and insistence on doing things alone left him at a disadvantage to Goku. Hence, Goku was able to push ahead as he cultivated his power by studying with others and through his heroic exploits, while Vegeta’s only real avenue was in training to strengthen the many innate gifts he was blessed with.
How Goku Always Manages To One Up Vegeta
Things began to spiral out of control during the Cell Games Saga, where Vegeta lagged behind Goku even after training with Trunks twice in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. It was this particular stretch of time that revealed the first hint about Vegeta’s inability to progress on par with his rival.
Although Gohan, Goku, Vegeta, and Trunks all worked on enhancing their Super Saiyan forms, the latter father-son duo made the mistake of purely powering up their transformation to yield the flawed Super Saiyan Second Grade and Third Grade forms. On seeing the problems with this approach during his first foray into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Goku chose an alternate path that focused on minimizing energy loss while in Super Saiyan, to fully master its power without any of the original drawbacks.
”
It is painfully clear at this point that no one among this group is stronger than Kakarot is. Not even… myself. So, he deserves to have the fight of a true warrior, and that means… to the death.
”
Eventually, this culminated in the Super Saiyan Full Power form, which allowed both Goku and Gohan to remain Super Saiyans indefinitely while passively refining their ki control and bodies to adapt to the form’s needs. This state also negates the downsides of Super Saiyan, such as the energy required to maintain it, along with the aggression and heightened emotional state that accompanies it. As a result, both Gohan and Goku were both able to fight calmly without any rage clouding their judgment.
Despite entering the Hyperbolic Time Chamber a second time, Vegeta could not see the folly in his mindset, and made little progress in terms of amassing more power. Soon after, he was grudgingly forced to acknowledge that Goku was a better challenger to Perfect Cell. This only added insult to injury, and highlighted how Vegeta’s pride and tendency to become hyper-fixated on the single-minded pursuit of power was always holding him back.
The Flaw In Vegeta’s Approach
Seven years after the Cell Games, Vegeta was constantly training like there was no tomorrow, and while his insecurities seemed to have settled down, this would not last for long. When Goku returned from Other World for the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament, Vegeta’s envy reared its ugly head once again. Upon witnessing Goku’s Super Saiyan 2 form, followed by Super Saiyan 3, Vegeta realized that he was still playing catch up.
Even after training every day for seven years, Goku had still managed to surpass him. It is no secret that Vegeta’s pride got the better of him on multiple occasions throughout Dragon Ball Z, and this ties into how his brute force approach to training, slowed down his growth compared to Goku, who was more calculated and goal-oriented. Although Vegeta was able to achieve forms such as Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan 2 through his method, he often struggled whenever he did not have a clear end result in mind.
Fortunately, this tendency to invest effort without a proper objective, seems to have been mitigated to an extent in Dragon Ball Super, where Vegeta has accepted Beerus and Whis as his mentors. By swallowing his pride and conceding that he has a lot to learn from others, Vegeta may be on the right track now, but it still may be a while before he finally outshines his old rival.
Dragon Ball Z is available to stream on Crunchyroll.
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