Goku The Timeline So Far
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VOICE OVER: Ashley Bowman
WRITTEN BY: Jonathan Alexander
What a journey it's been! Join Ashley as we look over the complete timeline of Goku from the Dragon Ball franchise, including his best moments from "Dragon Ball", "Dragon Ball Z", "Dragon Ball Super", and more!
Script written by Jonathan Alexander
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re walking through Dragon Ball: The Complete Timeline of Goku So Far.
For this list, we’ll be catching you up on everything “Goku” through the years so you’re ready for the new film.
Let us know in the comments if you want to see timelines for any other “Dragon Ball” characters!
The planet of a warrior race had outlived its welcome and so, the galactic overlord in charge of it decided to wipe it from existence. But before he could do that, a young couple known as Bardock and gine placed their child on ship that would send him far, far, away.
That violent child would be found by a wise martial artist who cared for him regardless of his ill temper, until one day an accident caused the boy to be docile and caring.
Sadly, he held a secret that would mean the end for said martial artist.
Goku was a pretty normal kid. Well, except for the fact he had a tail. And, apparently, also never learned to look both ways before crossing the street. That last one got him into trouble when sixteen-year-old Bulma accidentally ran him over. Don’t worry, Goku’s got quite the thick head. Bulma explained she was in a rush to gather seven wish-granting orbs called, get this, “Dragon Balls.” After some bonding, Goku decided to donate his four-star ball and accompany her on the journey. Along the way, they met quirky comrades, Goku learned the iconic Kamehameha, and they faced off against the ineffectively evil Pilaf Gang. The villains eventually succeeded in stealing the gathered Dragon Balls, but it inadvertently triggered Goku’s transformation into an uncontrollable Great Ape.
After thrashing Pilaf and sending his animalistic side back into hibernation, Goku trained with the cunning Krillin under the tutelage of Master Roshi. While the methods are a tad unorthodox, the two proteges progress enough to nearly win the World Martial Arts Tournament. If it weren’t for a disguised Roshi joining the bracket, Goku may have taken home the gold. But, he didn’t stew in defeat for long, and soon found himself putting up his dukes against the nefarious Red Ribbon Army. Despite throwing generals, psychics, and mercenaries his way, the organization couldn’t keep up with this tailed youngster. In the end, their goal to gather the Dragon Balls only earned them a severely bruised ego.
Thanks to some magical shenanigans, Goku reunited with his late Grandfather. It gave him the motivation he needed to enter another World Martial Arts Tournament, this time versus the thrifty Tien. However, things escalated fast after his second tournament defeat when Demon King Piccolo crashed the party, wished for eternal youth, and tried to enslave humanity. Goku was literally down to his last leg when he managed to finish the fiend off with a gnarly punch through the gut. But, unfortunately, villainy runs in the family. A few years later, King Piccolo’s offspring stepped into the ring ready to exact revenge. Another nail-biting tournament finale fight, epic Kamehameha, and iconic final blow later, Goku picked up his first victory and it seemed the Earth was finally safe.
But, Goku’s retirement with a wife and son didn’t last. Years later, Goku’s long-lost brother, Raditz, appeared and completely uprooted the family tree. Apparently, Goku was an alien Saiyan sent to destroy Earth, not save it. Kind of explains the Great Ape thing. Radtiz’s barbaric day job forced Goku and Piccolo to team up and even then, it took Goku’s life to clinch the win. With two more evil Saiyans en route to Earth, Goku trained with King Kai in the afterlife to master the Spirit Bomb and Kaio-ken techniques. He was wished back just in time to break some backs and go over 9000. But, despite his newfound strength, his beam struggle with Saiyan Prince Vegeta was a bitter, hard-fought ordeal.
Ever the optimist, though, Goku spared Vegeta’s life so they could fight again someday. But, that rematch would have to wait. The first thing on the agenda was reviving Goku’s fallen comrades, which required a vacation to the alien planet Namek. He arrived, fashionably late as always, to discover they weren’t the only ones in search of the Dragon Balls. While Goku shoved around the almighty Ginyu Force like they were the Pilaf Gang, space tyrant Frieza was a different story. With Krillin and Vegeta six-feet deep and even the Spirit Bomb failing, Goku’s rage caused his hair to turn from black to blonde. The series’ first Super Saiyan transformation finished off Frieza, but it left Goku unable to escape the exploding Namek.
Spoiler: He wasn’t really dead. There’s no rest for the weary, either, since he stepped foot back on Earth to immediately learn about forthcoming androids destined to destroy humanity. He trained his heart out, literally, and ended up incapicpated due to chest pain. By the time he recovered, the parasitic Cell had metamorphosed into an even bigger threat. It forced Goku and his son, Gohan, into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for some much-needed training. But, Goku’s eventual bout with Cell ended with him waving the white flag, and instead defaulting to his supposedly stronger son. It epically backfired when Cell tried to self-destruct, forcing Goku to make the ultimate sacrifice. Afterwards, he decided to remain in the afterlife since his presence attracted too many threats.
Despite his best efforts, he didn’t stay dead for long. His day-long sabbatical back to Earth got majorly derailed when Babidi tried resurrecting the core of all evil, Majin Buu. Even worse, Vegeta chose that moment to start their long-awaited rematch, which allowed Buu to become on par with even the shiny, new Super Saiyan 3. After both were revived, the two Saiyans set aside their differences and fused together to combat the ever-evolving Buu. But, while the result was certainly powerful, it was also completely overconfident. Vegito failed to finish Buu off in a timely manner, but thankfully Goku still had his trump card: the Spirit Bomb. With the power of the entire planet backing him up, he eradicated Buu in one glorious strike.
In the new era of peace, Goku kept training. Not that it did him much good when the God of Destruction Beerus crashed his gym session. Even after donning the new red-haired Super Saiyan God form, Beerus still handily won their fight. Thankfully, Earthan cuisine saved the planet from destruction - at least for now. When Frieza was resurrected, his assault on Earth was far less forgiving. But, just as Goku’s nemesis debuted a new golden form, he’d already evolved to Super Saiyan Blue. Now that Goku had reached godly strength, his next real opponent came from an entirely different dimension.The sixth universe’s Hit utilized a tricky timeskip technique, but Goku tried on both red and blue auras to make the Super Saiyan Blue Kaio-ken.
With that much power, even time itself was no match for Goku. After a showing like that, the only person who could still keep up with him was himself. Well, kind of. In a different timeline, the aptly named Goku Black was proving to be less than a humanitarian. The evil doppelganger led Goku down a twisted mystery to the true culprit, a maniacal Kai named Zamasu who had a serious grudge against mortals. It took the full might of Vegito Blue to counter him, but Goku would need more than that to survive his next test. A simple multiversal tournament doesn’t sound all that dangerous, but it came with a major catch: the losing universes would be completely wiped from reality.
Thankfully, Goku’s never been one to back down from a challenge. In the face of Universe 11’s unbeatable Jiren, Goku unlocked Autonomous Ultra Instinct, a form that attacked and dodged on pure intuition. But, in the end, it took the combined effort of Goku, Frieza, and Android 17 to secure the win. After the tournament, Goku couldn’t access Ultra Instinct at will, but he didn’t need it to show the rampaging Broly who’s boss. To be fair, most of that was Gogeta’s doing, though. Goku’s long overdue for a vacation, so he’s letting Gohan take the spotlight in the new ‘Super Hero’ film. But, if history is to be repeated, we haven’t seen the end of his golden hair by a long shot.
Dragon Ball: The Complete Timeline of Goku
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re walking through Dragon Ball: The Complete Timeline of Goku So Far.
For this list, we’ll be catching you up on everything “Goku” through the years so you’re ready for the new film.
Let us know in the comments if you want to see timelines for any other “Dragon Ball” characters!
The planet of a warrior race had outlived its welcome and so, the galactic overlord in charge of it decided to wipe it from existence. But before he could do that, a young couple known as Bardock and gine placed their child on ship that would send him far, far, away.
That violent child would be found by a wise martial artist who cared for him regardless of his ill temper, until one day an accident caused the boy to be docile and caring.
Sadly, he held a secret that would mean the end for said martial artist.
Goku was a pretty normal kid. Well, except for the fact he had a tail. And, apparently, also never learned to look both ways before crossing the street. That last one got him into trouble when sixteen-year-old Bulma accidentally ran him over. Don’t worry, Goku’s got quite the thick head. Bulma explained she was in a rush to gather seven wish-granting orbs called, get this, “Dragon Balls.” After some bonding, Goku decided to donate his four-star ball and accompany her on the journey. Along the way, they met quirky comrades, Goku learned the iconic Kamehameha, and they faced off against the ineffectively evil Pilaf Gang. The villains eventually succeeded in stealing the gathered Dragon Balls, but it inadvertently triggered Goku’s transformation into an uncontrollable Great Ape.
After thrashing Pilaf and sending his animalistic side back into hibernation, Goku trained with the cunning Krillin under the tutelage of Master Roshi. While the methods are a tad unorthodox, the two proteges progress enough to nearly win the World Martial Arts Tournament. If it weren’t for a disguised Roshi joining the bracket, Goku may have taken home the gold. But, he didn’t stew in defeat for long, and soon found himself putting up his dukes against the nefarious Red Ribbon Army. Despite throwing generals, psychics, and mercenaries his way, the organization couldn’t keep up with this tailed youngster. In the end, their goal to gather the Dragon Balls only earned them a severely bruised ego.
Thanks to some magical shenanigans, Goku reunited with his late Grandfather. It gave him the motivation he needed to enter another World Martial Arts Tournament, this time versus the thrifty Tien. However, things escalated fast after his second tournament defeat when Demon King Piccolo crashed the party, wished for eternal youth, and tried to enslave humanity. Goku was literally down to his last leg when he managed to finish the fiend off with a gnarly punch through the gut. But, unfortunately, villainy runs in the family. A few years later, King Piccolo’s offspring stepped into the ring ready to exact revenge. Another nail-biting tournament finale fight, epic Kamehameha, and iconic final blow later, Goku picked up his first victory and it seemed the Earth was finally safe.
But, Goku’s retirement with a wife and son didn’t last. Years later, Goku’s long-lost brother, Raditz, appeared and completely uprooted the family tree. Apparently, Goku was an alien Saiyan sent to destroy Earth, not save it. Kind of explains the Great Ape thing. Radtiz’s barbaric day job forced Goku and Piccolo to team up and even then, it took Goku’s life to clinch the win. With two more evil Saiyans en route to Earth, Goku trained with King Kai in the afterlife to master the Spirit Bomb and Kaio-ken techniques. He was wished back just in time to break some backs and go over 9000. But, despite his newfound strength, his beam struggle with Saiyan Prince Vegeta was a bitter, hard-fought ordeal.
Ever the optimist, though, Goku spared Vegeta’s life so they could fight again someday. But, that rematch would have to wait. The first thing on the agenda was reviving Goku’s fallen comrades, which required a vacation to the alien planet Namek. He arrived, fashionably late as always, to discover they weren’t the only ones in search of the Dragon Balls. While Goku shoved around the almighty Ginyu Force like they were the Pilaf Gang, space tyrant Frieza was a different story. With Krillin and Vegeta six-feet deep and even the Spirit Bomb failing, Goku’s rage caused his hair to turn from black to blonde. The series’ first Super Saiyan transformation finished off Frieza, but it left Goku unable to escape the exploding Namek.
Spoiler: He wasn’t really dead. There’s no rest for the weary, either, since he stepped foot back on Earth to immediately learn about forthcoming androids destined to destroy humanity. He trained his heart out, literally, and ended up incapicpated due to chest pain. By the time he recovered, the parasitic Cell had metamorphosed into an even bigger threat. It forced Goku and his son, Gohan, into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for some much-needed training. But, Goku’s eventual bout with Cell ended with him waving the white flag, and instead defaulting to his supposedly stronger son. It epically backfired when Cell tried to self-destruct, forcing Goku to make the ultimate sacrifice. Afterwards, he decided to remain in the afterlife since his presence attracted too many threats.
Despite his best efforts, he didn’t stay dead for long. His day-long sabbatical back to Earth got majorly derailed when Babidi tried resurrecting the core of all evil, Majin Buu. Even worse, Vegeta chose that moment to start their long-awaited rematch, which allowed Buu to become on par with even the shiny, new Super Saiyan 3. After both were revived, the two Saiyans set aside their differences and fused together to combat the ever-evolving Buu. But, while the result was certainly powerful, it was also completely overconfident. Vegito failed to finish Buu off in a timely manner, but thankfully Goku still had his trump card: the Spirit Bomb. With the power of the entire planet backing him up, he eradicated Buu in one glorious strike.
In the new era of peace, Goku kept training. Not that it did him much good when the God of Destruction Beerus crashed his gym session. Even after donning the new red-haired Super Saiyan God form, Beerus still handily won their fight. Thankfully, Earthan cuisine saved the planet from destruction - at least for now. When Frieza was resurrected, his assault on Earth was far less forgiving. But, just as Goku’s nemesis debuted a new golden form, he’d already evolved to Super Saiyan Blue. Now that Goku had reached godly strength, his next real opponent came from an entirely different dimension.The sixth universe’s Hit utilized a tricky timeskip technique, but Goku tried on both red and blue auras to make the Super Saiyan Blue Kaio-ken.
With that much power, even time itself was no match for Goku. After a showing like that, the only person who could still keep up with him was himself. Well, kind of. In a different timeline, the aptly named Goku Black was proving to be less than a humanitarian. The evil doppelganger led Goku down a twisted mystery to the true culprit, a maniacal Kai named Zamasu who had a serious grudge against mortals. It took the full might of Vegito Blue to counter him, but Goku would need more than that to survive his next test. A simple multiversal tournament doesn’t sound all that dangerous, but it came with a major catch: the losing universes would be completely wiped from reality.
Thankfully, Goku’s never been one to back down from a challenge. In the face of Universe 11’s unbeatable Jiren, Goku unlocked Autonomous Ultra Instinct, a form that attacked and dodged on pure intuition. But, in the end, it took the combined effort of Goku, Frieza, and Android 17 to secure the win. After the tournament, Goku couldn’t access Ultra Instinct at will, but he didn’t need it to show the rampaging Broly who’s boss. To be fair, most of that was Gogeta’s doing, though. Goku’s long overdue for a vacation, so he’s letting Gohan take the spotlight in the new ‘Super Hero’ film. But, if history is to be repeated, we haven’t seen the end of his golden hair by a long shot.
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