10 Biggest Plot Twists in Dragon Ball

While Dragon Ball has been characterized as a fun series with great battles and transformations, the anime has proved to be much more complex than that, since several times during its run the story surprised the viewers with mind-blowing plot twists that showcase Akira Toriyama's brilliant storytelling, which influenced many series to come.

From the shocking origin and unknown powers of some characters to the surprising appearances of enemies and allies that recontextualize what the characters and the viewers thought they knew about the world of the series, the best plot twists in Dragon Ball elevated the tension in the audience, who couldn’t wait to see what will come next from the heroes, cementing the series as one of the most iconic anime of all time.

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10 Krillin Doesn't Kill Android 18 and Ends Up Marrying Her

Dragon Ball Chapter 426 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 205

Krillin has a remote control capable of destroying 18 and thus preventing her from being absorbed by Cell. However, Krillin's life was previously spared by Android 18, and he unexpectedly decides not to press the button and destroy the controller, despite the risk it poses. However, it was necessary in the story for Cell to reach his perfect form.

But what could have been a horrible decision due to Krillin having developed a crush on her and recognized her as a fellow human was later confirmed to have been the signal of an impending relationship, since in the World Tournament Saga, 7 years after the events of the Cell Games, it's revealed that Krillin ended up marrying Android 18, and both had a little girl named Marron. Definitely a relationship that fans didn't see coming, but that turned into one of the best couples of the franchise.

9 Kami and Demon King Piccolo Were the Same Person

Dragon Ball Chapter 167 & Dragon Ball Episode 125

After Goku defeats Demon King Piccolo, he follows Karin's instructions and ascends into the heavens using his nyoibou to meet Kami, the guardian of the earth and creator of the Dragon Balls. But upon Goku's arrival, he enters into battle mode after mistaking Kami for King Piccolo. But Kami explains his origins to Goku, revealing they were once the same being.

This not only reveals that killing Piccolo will also eliminate Kami and the Dragon Balls, but also that Goku's fight has not ended yet, since the Demon King expelled an egg with his essence before dying, so he must train with Kami and enter the next World Tournament to defeat him. This was the best start to the Piccolo Jr. arc, elevating the stakes for the upcoming fight with the reincarnated Demon King, who nobody would have expected to become one of the most beloved characters in the franchise later on.

8 Goku Killed His Grandpa

Dragon Ball Chapter 20 & Dragon Ball Episode 12

While Grandpa Gohan has been dead since the beginning of the story and Dragon Ball fans were aware that Goku wasn’t a normal human since he had a mysterious tail, the connection behind those two facts was ignored by the viewers until the Emperor Pilaf Saga. Goku believed that Grandpa Gohan was killed by a monster and that his soul remained in the Four-Star Dragon Ball.

But after he and his friends were trapped in a prison on a full moon night, and he unexpectedly transformed into a Great Ape, it became obvious that Goku was the monster that killed his grandpa. This wasn’t only a well-delivered plot twist, but also a sad scene, since the revelation that he was the one who ended his adoptive father's life, even if involuntary, is incredibly tragic. Even more, as Goku himself only realizes this many years later in his fight against Vegeta.

7 Goku Dies at the Beginning of Dragon Ball Z

Dragon Ball Chapter 203 & Dragon Ball Episode 5

The first part of Dragon Ball Z is one twist after another, from Goku having a son to him collaborating with his previous enemy Piccolo, reaching its peak when the recently learned Saiyan decides to sacrifice his life to defeat his much more powerful brother Raditz and save the Earth from being destroyed.

No fan would expect Goku to lose his life that way and so soon after in the new series, much less at the hands of his former archenemy Piccolo. But the worst revelation for the characters is that more powerful Saiyans will be heading to Earth in a year. Goku's death not only shifts the focus of the story to Gohan, but he is forcibly taken by Piccolo to train for the upcoming threat after showing a hint of his potential. A truly unexpected development.

6 Gohan Achieves a Higher Transformation Than Super Saiyan

Dragon Ball Chapter 408 & Dragon Ball Episode 185

Even though Dragon Ball Z has been building up since the appearance of Raditz, the potential and hidden strength of Gohan, it was surprising that his power was unleashed in the shape of a higher state than the Super Saiyan form introduced in the Frieza Saga. Gohan awakens the Super Saiyan 2 form after Cell kills Android No. 16 in one of the most impactful and shocking scenes in the series.

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While this is the power that Goku always saw in Gohan, the Super Saiyan 2 form confirms that the Saiyans’ strength increases after experiencing genuine wrath, like when watching others suffer, as Gohan reaches this form similarly to Goku. This moment also proved there were higher levels that the Saiyans could achieve, later introducing even stronger transformations in Dragon Ball.

5 Piccolo and Kami Are Also Aliens

Dragon Ball Chapter 214 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 22

While Goku's enemy Piccolo was an evil magic Demon King, it wouldn't be until the Saiyan Saga that the series revealed that this wasn't the whole truth. Piccolo and Kami were from a race of the planet Namek, so they were also aliens like Goku and not demons. This was revealed by Vegeta and Nappa upon their arrival on Earth, who also showed knowledge of the Dragon Balls, meaning that the ones created by Kami on Earth weren't the only ones in the universe.

This changed the perception fans have of Demon King Piccolo and opened up a whole new storyline, which will be explored later during the Frieza Arc when the heroes go to the planet Namek to search for the other Dragon Balls after Piccolo and Kami's deaths. However, the Namekian's origin has been further developed in Dragon Ball Daima.

4 Cell Is the Biggest Threat to Earth

Dragon Ball Chapter 358 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 140

Even though the revelation that Android 19 and 20 weren’t the main enemies in Future Trunks' timeline was surprising, Cell’s existence in itself was a bigger twist, as one of the most shocking moments in Dragon Ball was when Gohan, Bulma, and Future Trunks find the empty egg and the other time machine. Also, not only Cell came from the future, but he possesses the genetic material from Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Frieza, and his father, elevating the stakes as now the Z Warrior has another strong villain to fight.

Additionally, Cell’s appearance changed the direction of the Android Saga, as he steadily became stronger until he finally absorbed Android 17 and 18, becoming extremely powerful and cementing his role as the final enemy of the saga and one of the best villains in the franchise.

3 Goku Transforms Into the Legendary Super Saiyan

Dragon Ball Chapter 317 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 95

After hitting Frieza with the Spirit Bomb, Goku reunites with Gohan and Krillin to celebrate the victory; however, the attack was not enough as Frieza suddenly emerges again and launches an attack that is intercepted by Piccolo, leaving him seriously injured. Then the planet conqueror makes Krillin explode, which unleashes all the anger of Goku, who becomes Super Saiyan for the first time.

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This moment isn’t only one of the most epic in the franchise and marks a before and after in the history of anime and manga, but it’s also one of the biggest twists in the series since the legendary Super Saiyan was considered a person, the one that Vegeta named so much and Frieza feared the most, and not a transformation that could be achieved by the Saiyan race by unleashing all their wrath and power.

2 Future Trunks Shocking Arrival

Dragon Ball Chapter 330 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 119

After the battle on Namek, Goku finally returns to Earth, but to the surprise of fans, not only is it revealed that Frieza is still alive now with a robotically reconstructed body, but he is easily defeated and humiliated by a mysterious young Saiyan who reveals one of the biggest twists of the series, that his name is Trunks, and he is the future son of Vegeta and Bulma and that he traveled to the past to warn about the dangerous enemies that will come.

This drastically changed the future of the series, introducing time travel and an entire multiverse to the franchise as well as confirming that Vegeta, who was an enemy turned ally in the previous arc, will form a family in the future with an earthling, something incredible to think about for the fans at that time.

1 Goku’s Surprising Origin and Mission

Dragon Ball Chapter 195 & Dragon Ball Z Episode 2

Goku was never ordinary, since before his tail was cut, he turned into a giant ape when he watched a full moon. However, his true nature wouldn’t be shared until the beginning of Dragon Ball Z, where it was revealed Goku was part of an alien warrior race from the planet Vegeta and had been sent to conquer Earth.

Allthough this wouldn't be the only twist, since Goku older brother who was much stronger than him, Raditz, came to Earth to carry out the mission that he didn't complete and kidnapped Gohan to force Goku to fight. This discovery not only gave a complete turn to the plot but also began a series of events that fans wouldn't have expected—certainly the best twist to opening Dragon Ball Z and the biggest surprise for those who had followed Goku's story since his childhood.

Dragon Ball

From the creative mind of Akira Toriyama, Dragon Ball is a mega multimedia franchise that spans back to the 1980s. Dragon Ball expanded quickly, starting as a serialized manga for Weekly Shonen Jump in Japan. It made its way overseas via manga and an anime adaptation that is enjoyed worldwide. Dragon Ball was the initial starting animated series that followed the adventures of the young Son Goku as he sought after the Dragon Balls. These mystical orbs would grant the wish of any who gathered them together. Then, the series would branch off into the immensely popular Dragon Ball Z, which followed Goku as an adult and featured high-intensity battles and Goku's never-ending search to be the strongest. The series has also enjoyed several popular video game adaptations and continues to release several new animated series and theatrical films up to the recent popular Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.