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I pointed this out on another forum, but a lot of it comes down to Tien really lacking any relevant dynamic in the main cast.
Master Roshi was Goku's former teacher so highlighting an episode showing that "he still got it" kind of writes itself.
Krillin is the designated Comic Relief so showcasing an episode where despite often being the butt of the jokes, that he can be competent is another one.
Piccolo is Gohan's mentor and other parental figure.
Tien is the three eyed dude who trains in the mountains. He was Goku's rival a long ass time ago but outside of that he has no real dynamics with anyone else in the cast. And given the series tendency to only really show interest in the new shining toys, there's no real push to give him new material to make him relevant again.
Thing is too is you kind of see the same thing with Majin Buu, Kid Trunks, and Goten as well, so it's not like he's the only character getting hit with this either.
@Saiga - No Mercy, lol.
I really never understood that to be honest though. For me, it makes no sense why an author would ever have disdain for a character that they themselves created out of the figment of their imagination. And if an author has grown to come hate one of their characters, why not just kill them off and be done with it?
@Lionheart - But don't you think that's a sign of laziness? I'm sure they can come up with ways to make them relevant if they seriously put the effort in.
Just because you hate a character doesn't mean they're not useful to your story. Not that Tenshinhan is useful to the story but the point still stands.
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True. And him letting his guard down was more a matter of Honor Before Reason than anything else. He saw Harmira as a Worthy Opponent and wanted to give him a dignified elimination.
Really, I have to admire a guy who knows he has no chance of catching up with the main cast, but still keeps training anyway because he's that passionate about martial arts. Krillin's still my favorite, but I do agree that Tien deserves better (in general, that is; in the latest episode I had no problem with how he performed).
edited 4th Sep '17 2:38:33 PM by TyeDyeWildebeest
No beer?! But if there's no beer, then there's no beef or beans!Maybe Toriyama just finds Tien boring. I know I do.
Or you know... walk up to him. All they had to do was just walk up to him and punch him. There was no need for two of them to even gang up on this guy, the other one could went after the other one, instead of sending Tien on a suicidal charge.
Even by Super standards Goku and Vegs were sandbagging it like mad this episode.
All good points, it's just I don't understand the 'want' to shit on Tien by Toei. And it's not even a 'want' per-se, it's unabashed neglect. And I know nobody's entitled to see their favorite character shine. All I'm asking for is that, if a character has obviously run their course, leave them be. Don't bring them back just for the sake of it.
In the manga, the last we hear of her is a mention that she left her job at Kame House to go chase after Tien. She does show up in the anime a couple times though, including in the Continuity Cavalcade of past characters donating energy to the Spirit Bomb.
edited 4th Sep '17 3:00:48 PM by HamburgerTime

Roshi and Kuririn should have just been treated like he was as well.