It’s May 9th and that means it’s time to celebrate one of anime’s most iconic characters: Goku! To the uninitiated and unfamiliar of the fan holiday in Japan, Goku Day holds a very similar meaning to those familiar with May the 4th (Star Wars Day), as the number 5 can be translated as “Go” and the number 9 can be translated is “Kyu/Ku”.
To celebrate Goku Day, we’re counting down what we believe to be the top five fights Goku has had throughout the series, from Dragon Ball to Dragon Ball Super! Keep this in mind that this is only our opinion and that we’d love to hear what you believe are to be some of his iconic fights!
#5. Goku vs. King Piccolo
There’s something cathartic about this fight as it’s one of the very first times where the stakes haven’t been higher. World domination had been teased before with the Red Ribbon Army, but this was the first time we, as viewers, could feel that the world was in jeopardy. This fight itself would set precedence to some of the larger fights that would come later down the line.
#4. Goku vs. Perfect Cell
While not as iconic as the fight that comes after, Goku against Cell is an epic bout in its own right and sets up one of Dragon Ball Z’s most famous transformations. As viewers, we’ve come to expect that Goku would be the one to come out victorious and author Akira Toriyama does a great job at subverting our expectations. The best thing about this fight is that it harkens back to the good old days of Dragon Ball, providing us with some greatly choreographed fights before taking us to the earthshattering clashes we’ve come to expect from Z.
#3. Goku vs. Beerus
It’s easy to say that Toriyama’s foray back into Dragon Ball with the latest sequel: Dragon Ball Super has brought us plenty of interesting characters, but no new character is as interesting as the God of Destruction himself: Beerus. It’s through his quest of finding a worthy opponent (finally), that we’re introduced to the series new power cap and it’s through his interactions with Goku that we’ve received some new iconic transformations for our hero.
#2. Goku vs. Frieza
Easily controversial as our second pick, Goku and Frieza’s fight on Namek is definitely one of the most iconic and exciting fights ever produced within the series. Frieza has proved himself to be one of the cruelest and most tenacious foes that the heroes have ever fought against and it’s only through Krillin’s death and Goku’s bone chilling transformation into the series defining transformation in the series that he comes out on top.
#1. Goku vs. Vegeta
Our number one spot goes to Goku vs. Vegeta during the Saiyan saga as nothing can make us forget about the scene of these two would be rivals posing in the middle of a rocky wasteland to decide the fate of the Earth. It’s through this initial fight that we see the cultivation of what would be Goku and Vegeta’s relationship throughout the series. It’s from this fight alone that we would receive one of Dragon Ball’s best characters and rivalry that still exists even to this day.
Did you like our list (or not)? Let us know on our social media accounts by clicking on our links below. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter via @BandaiCollect to let us know what other topics you’d like to read. If you did like our selection, also check out our gallery below to see some of these fights (and more) recreated by Tamashii Nation's S.H.Figuarts line!