The Greatest Father & Son Team in All Shounen Anime History: Goku and Gohan by Dan

The Son Family

When looking at characters growing up in Dragon Ball Z, many of us may fondly remember Goku growing up in the original series, becoming an adult and having a child of his own, which is a coming of age story. But now that he has grown up, it is time for his own child to grow up into a man. His son, Gohan, whom was named after Goku’s Grandpa Gohan is introduced in the first episode of Dragon Ball Z, having run off, getting lost, and falling off a cliff, only to be found by Goku who was looking for him in order to introduce him to the crew.

Only a member of the Son family could go chase a butterfly (or something akin to that) and end up being chased by dinosaurs and fall off cliffs. Both Goku and Chi-Chi were notorious for getting lost like that, And this is where the next chapter starts, with Gohan having some interesting father figures in his life.

Many dismiss Goku as irresponsible, terrible, and absent, however, they couldn’t be any more wrong. Goku applied what he learned from his own father figures, and learned to share their wisdom with Gohan, and tried to remain on the same page as Chi-Chi when it came to raising their son. As much as he wished for Gohan to learn Martial Arts with him, Chi-Chi’s argument was that she didn’t want Gohan to fight against threats like King Piccolo or the Red Ribbon Army. She wants Gohan to live a normal life in peace, a sentiment that is proven right through the series, and that decision was soon taken out of both their hands.

Four-year-old Gohan was a very sheltered boy, often remaining under his mother’s watchful eye; he was very shy, a crybaby, and easily scared. His wild Saiyan nature was also apparent from when he was far younger, the only one noticing that detail being Goku himself. Once, when Goku and Chi-Chi were out on a peaceful walk with a toddler Gohan, they found a family of birds, and then let go of the carriage for a few seconds, and it went riding off, with Goku working hard to follow, with Chi-Chi trailing behind. Panicking, the young toddler would unleash an unusual power, destroying a tree, with Chi-Chi assuming it was Goku. He was the only one that witnessed it, but Chi-Chi wouldn’t listen, assuming it was all his energy that helped recover the now eager Gohan.

This could be when he wished to train Gohan in Martial Arts in the hopes that Gohan can properly channel that energy and power, so he wouldn’t hurt anyone, but Chi-Chi would shut it down every time, and she wouldn’t listen to his point of view on the incident, with her already believing her own narrative of things, and as much as she gave Goku a hard time, there’s a part of her hero-worship of her husband Goku that may have blocked her from believing him. She also wished for Gohan to focus on education, something that, despite what many may think, Goku also approved of, especially when Gohan showed that he was very talented and gifted in the academic arts.

There’s a reason why in the first episode, Goku had an easy time tracking Gohan, and that’s because he’s got Gohan’s ki signature memorised, similar to how he’s got Chi-Chi’s signature memorised, so that he can find them anywhere in the world, and particularly after that incident, he would know Gohan would be in danger if his hidden potential were to activate.

After Gohan turned 4, Goku wished to introduce him to the rest of the gang for the first time, as it took Goku a lot to convince Chi-Chi to let him take Gohan. Sure, concerns over Bulma’s immaturity or Roshi’s lecherousness might be valid, but Goku really wanted to keep in touch, and was only able to go spend time with them alone. But the first time he was there, not even ten minutes later, Raditz showed up, who kidnapped Gohan.

Gohan cried and cried and cried, and constantly told him that his Daddy would come and save him, with his unstable ki signature that would make Raditz jumpy, which would surprise Raditz, with Gohan having a blackout in his memory of that event. But Goku would be forced to do something that many parents would do, but they would hope that such an incident would never take place. Goku took a bullet for Gohan, as he restrained Raditz, and both would get impaled by Piccolo’s Special Beam Cannon.

Understanding that the Saiyans are going to arrive a year later, Goku understood that Gohan would never be the same ever again. He died for his son, but knew that he’d have to come back to protect Gohan, and train hard. People judge Goku, as he was forced to do this several times in his life, but there were reasons for it, and it would end up protecting and saving his family time and time again. And time spent with his son is the most painful sacrifice he could make, and one that pains him every single day.

He also expressed that he was relieved that of all of his friends that ended up training Gohan, he was glad it was Piccolo, cause he knew that Piccolo would be a harsh teacher and make him strong. He was also aware of what kind of character the Namekian was, and knew that Piccolo would not let Gohan die. (I had to word things carefully, cause saying that he wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him, or wouldn’t hurt him would be rather misleading) He always supported the bond between Gohan and Piccolo, and it essentially left Piccolo as Gohan’s godfather, despite Chi-Chi’s protests and Piccolo’s irritation with Goku on the matter.

Hard Choices

Another hard choice Goku had was the decision to send Gohan to the battlefield. He didn’t have as much choice in the matter after the Saiyan saga, as Kami was dead, and the only long-term member of the crew that was able to fight on a certain level was Krillin, and Gohan was the only one that had enough power to fight back. It took Chi-Chi weeks to forgive him, but Goku knew that they would need to fight Frieza and get the Namekian Dragon Balls, and time was of the essence. He was in a body cast, and Master Roshi was past his prime and nowhere near close enough to really make a difference. Therefore, he sent Bulma, Krillin and Gohan to Namek, with very little options.

But when he catches up to Gohan on planet Namek, he tries his best to minimise Gohan’s place on the battlefield, not wanting him hurt, but he was also proud of how Gohan was coming along. He was aware that Gohan now loved Martial Arts and testing himself physically, and wanted to prove himself to not just Piccolo, but particularly his father Goku. Fighting Frieza was far more different than fighting Raditz and Vegeta, With Piccolo injured in the battle, Goku had his son bring Piccolo to the ship, and this was the first time Gohan ever heard his father raise his voice and order him to do something in a tone he only heard his mother use. This shocked him, and forced him to do as he was told, despite the protests about wanting to remain at his father’s side.

This filial loyalty is something Goku takes pride in, but he works to have Gohan listen to him when needed. It is proof of the bond the two share, and we see that Gohan is definitely a daddy’s boy, wanting to be just like his father, and wanting to prove himself to Goku. The legacy Goku grew, Gohan was eager to carry it, and yet, there was a particular immaturity in Gohan that Goku loved.

As I mentioned, when he was separated from Gohan yet again, in order to learn more techniques in order to protect his son and wife, Goku knew that there would be more threats, and that Raditz’s arrival caused a chain reaction, and that his peaceful life was over, and he would need to fight battles yet again, something he wished was behind him. But he made the sacrifice of time spent with his son, in order to ensure his son can live a long, peaceful life.

And none would wish to hear any ill talk of Goku around Gohan and Chi-Chi. She tried to hire a tutor, ignorant of his methods, the one time he spoke badly about Goku, Gohan did not appreciate that, and Chi-Chi tossed him out, after he claimed that Goku was a deadbeat, with Chi-Chi aware that Goku didn’t do anything for no reason, and that Goku didn’t abandon them, but had to learn at a distance and she knew he’d come back, and she would not tolerate any insult sent his way, and Gohan agreed with her.

And when he returned, Goku spent three years with Gohan, Chi-Chi and Piccolo, training him, and taking care of him closely, observing his growth. This is the first time Goku truly trained him, after two years of training himself, proving himself a far more ruthless teacher than Piccolo, saying that he knew what Gohan was capable of. He wanted Gohan to be prepared for the battle ahead, but it wasn’t just training that they spent together.

Goku enjoyed the small moments between training, like when he learned how to drive, and embraced the mundane parts of life, something that he sometimes had to remind Gohan, in order to ground him. Gohan loved training, he fell in love with Martial Arts, and eventually loved life-or-death battles, a habit Goku wanted to train out of Gohan. He wanted Gohan prepared for the fight ahead, and pushed himself and Gohan hard.

All the while, enjoying fishing with Gohan, loving to go on picnics with his family, and even wanting to make things even warmer when Ox-King would join the family. That’s what Goku values most. Family. And there’s one small detail that one can notice when one observes things. There’s only one real person that Goku doesn’t clown, or plays the fool in order to bug everyone, and that’s Gohan. Goku is honest and genuine with his son, and doesn’t play the same pranks he pulls on everyone. Gohan is witness to his mischievous side, and eventually picks up some of those habits himself, but it’s often aimed elsewhere because he loves to see everyone react to his teasing.

People also dismiss his paternal talents and forget about the training period before Cell, as he spent a lot of time with Gohan, teaching his son how to enjoy life, and how it’s important to ground himself from combat and training. Goku grew up with nothing but training, but he missed out on a lot growing up, and he didn’t want Gohan to live that life, so he taught Gohan the value of family. We see him fishing with Gohan, sleeping lazily side by side next to the river, enjoying a slow life, not stressing about the battle to come, and in the Time Dilation Chamber, we see plenty of tender moments. Baths together, eating together, teasing about Gohan’s growing hair, even caring for Gohan when he comes down with the flu.

Goku’s entire life after getting Gohan was about his wife, son and the extended family. The saying “it takes a village…” is definitely something that is part of the team, and Goku’s role in it is often derided and dismissed. And to those who say these things I say… Go and rewatch the series from Goku’s point of view. Not “every opportunity”, but see the series from Goku’s point of view, and the sacrifices a parent has to make for their child.

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Also Crown of Blood has a new edition, with maps, character bios and more!