Dragon Ball Daima, the franchise’s fifth official TV anime series,came to a close earlier this year with a bang. Offering some of the best visuals the series has ever seen over its four decades of activity, while also reintroducing the fan-favoriteSuper Saiyan 4 transformation with a stylish new design,Daimaproved itself a worthwhile addition toDragon Ball’s lore. The anime also brought a sizable cast to the Demon Realm, allowing a number of characters some room to shine in their own unique roles.
However, one fan-favorite fighter was notably missing from action. While Vegeta showed off his never-before-seen Super Saiyan 3, and Goku ascended to the new-look Super Saiyan 4,Gohan was nowhere to be seen. The series' most popular and powerful half-Saiyan only recently rose to his former glory in 2022’sDragon Ball Super: Super Hero, which saw him attain an all-new form entirely unique to him before he defeated Cell Max. Unfortunately, it seemsDaimawasn’t on board with Gohan’s comeback, but not without reason.
Gohan Was Missing From Dragon Ball Daima, But Not Without Reason
Post Buu Saga Is When Gohan Began His Downfall
Gohan has had a somewhat complicated history throughout his time inDragon Ball. Upon arrival in the Saiyan Saga, the young son of Goku becomes a focal point of the series, and his time training with Piccolo and with Krillin on Namek seemed to shift the narrative of Akira Toriyama’s original story. It’s arguable that theDragon Ball Zportion of the series is Gohan’s story more than anyone else’s, and he finally adopted the role of Earth’s savior during the Cell Saga.
However, Toriyama ultimately felt thathe didn’t work well as a protagonist, and shifted Goku back into his original role the first chance he could during the Buu Saga. Gohan remained incredibly strong, even if he was no longer the primary focus of the story, but his return duringDragon Ball’s 2010s renaissanceall but destroyed the fighter he’d become. Unfortunately,Dragon Ball Daimatakes place directly in the time skip between the Buu Saga and Beerus' arrival, during which Gohan’s performance slipped.
The reason he was absent fromDragon Ball Daimais relatively simple;Gohan just wasn’t fighting during that time. Instead, he was likely finishing his studies and becoming closer to Videl, rather than training and keeping up his form. By the time 2013’sBattle of Godsrolled around, Gohan could still somewhat keep up with the others, though when Frieza arrived inResurrection ‘F’, he was all but useless in battle.Daimalikely didn’t feature Gohan because it took place just at the beginning of his downfall.
Toei Might Have Wanted Gohan Out of the Spotlight After Super Hero
After Being the Focal Point of Super Hero, Toei Might Not Have Wanted to Double Down on Gohan
While the in-universe explanation for why Gohan didn’t take part inDragon Ball Daimamight be simple, there’s also another probable reason for his absence. Before the most recent anime adventure, the series' last release wasDragon Ball Super: Super Hero, in which Gohan took the center stage. It’s likely that neither Toriyama nor Toei Animationwould have wanted two Gohan-centric stories in a row, seeing as Goku isDragon Ball’s protagonist. Then, if he only played a small part, there would be countless unhappy fans wondering why he didn’t do more.
The simplest solution to that problem would have been to just have Gohan sit out entirely, and that’s exactly whatDragon Ball Daimadid. Though the series might not have featured its most popular hybrid Saiyan, it seems that theDragon Ball Supermanga is gearing up to give him an immensely important role, and whenever it returns,Gohan fans will want to strap in. With his new Beast form, it’s likely that in whatever comes next for the franchise, he won’t be missing again.
Dragon Ball DAIMA
Cast
Dragon Ball Daima sees Goku and his allies inexplicably shrunk into miniature forms, prompting a journey to the Demon Realm. This animated adventure, part of the Dragon Ball franchise, explores their mission to solve the mystery and restore their original statures. Released in October 2024.
