...because it's so iconic.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.It is predictable, but to be fair, it's predictable because it's logical and doing anything else would be absurd and call upon some serious explanation. When it comes to Dragonball, the first thing most people think of is Super Saiyan. Hell, I know people who know next to nothing about the series but know that much.
Improving as an author, one video at a time.I don't think it'd be absurd at all to use something else. I could easily see several things taking place over the first Super Saiyan scene, like Raditz' arrival, the first meeting between Bulma and Goku, the finale, etc.
I also think number 1 spot being something that requires explanation wouldn't be so bad. Probably better than "and for number 1, you knew what it was, k done".
I really would've preferred some other measure than iconicness, I guess.
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Pretty much that.
To note, my personal favorite moment is Gohan turning SS 2, but I will fully admit my personal bias is there as Gohan is my favorite character. Beyond that though, as they best pointed out, it was just the climax of his character arc and the transformation (plus following fight with Cell) were an amazing passing of the torch.
edited 23rd Dec '14 5:32:51 PM by Prime_of_Perfection
Improving as an author, one video at a time.Gohan is everyone's favorite character. He's all the best things about Goku distilled into a socially acceptable human being. It's hard to dislike Gohan.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.What are you talking about? There is a huge amount of hate for Gohan that's pretty easy to find.
I've been thinking lately that, while in character given the whole rage thing, Gohan toying with Cell wasn't good for his character. It's just too similar to Goku/Vegeta's behaviour, and if he hadn't fucked around it could have been one more thing that separated him from Goku and showed why he could succeed Goku - because he'd put the Earth before petty things.
As it is, it ends up more like everybody fucks around but when it's Goku he gets away with it or even benefits (compare letting Freeza power up to 100% to letting Cell becoming Perfect or do the self-destruct thing).'
I take issue with Gohan's Cell Games characterisation (both before and after becoming Super Saiyan 2) and how things were handled later in the Boo arc and post-series, but he is definitely my favourite character as I think I've made clear before. Previously it was Vegeta, but I got annoyed with how Toriyama used him as a plot device post-Freeza arc.
edited 23rd Dec '14 5:43:00 PM by Saiga
Of course it wasn't, but that's not the same as something being good for one's character. Mistakes can be good for a character's development if they lead to growth.
I don't think it was intended to be good or bad, it's just Toriyama's favourite method of giving the losing party a chance to even things up, which gets really frustrating where damn near everyone does it. I don't think it had anything to do with Saiyan instincts getting brought out, because non-Saiyan characters do it as well when they're in a position of power.
But I think it was bad for Gohan in a way Toriyama didn't intend, since Gohan never makes up for this or develops from it. On top of that, he has far less reason to be prone to this behaviour than the full-blooded Saiyans, and it just makes him too similar to them.
I really think that behaviour should've been exclusive to Goku and Vegeta, and it'd still be frustrating in Vegeta's case because it contradicts the cunning moments he had earlier in the series.
edited 23rd Dec '14 5:52:18 PM by Saiga
Thing is, it wasn't completely unprecedented. This was the culmination of all those berserker rage moments Gohan had had before this moment. Yeah, it's more controlled than his previous episodes, due to him now consciously knowing about that side of himself, but that focused form of his hatred wound up causing other problems (turning mindless fury into cold sadism). He wound up reversing his mistake by focusing his power through a different emotion during that final clash with Cell.
And I suppose his final power-up might be switching from anger or hatred or pain into something more like an enlightenment-based power, but that's getting into wild speculation.
edited 23rd Dec '14 6:20:06 PM by Enlong
I have a message from another time...But that's completely different. We knew Gohan flipped out, but nothing suggests he'd turn into a sadist who'd draw things out and fuck around. Hell, it's virtually the opposite of flying into a rage, because you need to restrain yourself to do that.
And my issue isn't with how much grounding it has or how logical it is, but it ultimately just means Gohan is doing the same mistake that everyone else has, and it's been absolutely abused by that point.
Gohan being one to finish his fights as quickly as he could would've made a good contrast to his dad and been consistent with not gaining pleasure from fighting like Goku does.

The first time he went was very terrifying and very iconic.