Vegeta has come a long way since his introduction in the Saiyan Saga of Dragon Ball Z. From being a destructive and evil Saiyan hell-bent on conquering worlds, he has since started a family and has become one of the universe’s most important protectors, even being one of the few chosen to represent his universe in the Tournament of Power, which saw the strongest fighters from across all reality fight it out for survival.
In this arc, Goku attains his Ultra Instinct form, which was a transformation he used to house the technique of the Angels. Vegeta tried this too but failed, later on creating his own powerful Ultra Ego form in the Granolah arc that matched his rival in strength. However, in the arcs since then, Vegeta hasn’t used the form even once for some reason, so let’s see why this is and why it may mean something even greater is coming to Dragon Ball.
Dragon Ball: Where Will The Heroes Go Next?
No one knows what’s going to happen with Dragon Ball Super once it returns. What’s next for Goku and his friends?
Ultra Ego’s Last Appearance
Last Appearance
Dragon Ball Super, Chapter 87, “The Universe’s Strongest Appears”
Date
August 20, 2022
Story Arc
Granolah the Survivor Arc
Ultra Ego’s last appearance, at the time of writing, was at the end of the same arc where it made its debut. In his fight with Granolah, Vegeta eventually reveals a brand-new transformation that allows him to utilize the Energy of Destruction that only the Gods of Destruction can properly use. This new transformation is not only the strongest one in Vegeta’s arsenal, but it also finally brings him to the same level as Goku’s Ultra Instinct.
A God of Destruction taught me that power derived solely from instinct is unbounded!
However, just like Ultra Instinct’s first usage, Vegeta’s first time activating Ultra Ego showed that he didn’t have sufficient training with the form. Due to this, he was unable to finish off Granolah despite doing a lot of damage to him, instead driving the Cerealian to almost kill both of them in one large attack. After this, the form was seen again at the very end of the chapter in the fight against Gas and then again when Frieza showed up. The Galactic Tyrant was so powerful that a single punch knocked Goku and Vegeta’s most powerful forms.
Where Has It Been Since?
After the end of the Granolah arc, the stage was set for the manga to retell the story of the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie, where Vegeta played a fairly minor role. Since this arc served mostly to bring Piccolo and Gohan back to the top tier of strength in the series, they were the central focus and had to bring down Cell Max with the help of their new and powerful forms.
There was a side story concerning the pureblooded Saiyans on Beerus’s planet, but this was mostly just to train Broly to keep his monstrous Super Saiyan powers under control. To show him what control over his powers would look like, Whis instructed Goku and Vegeta to undergo a sparring match without any Ki Blasts or power-ups, using only their base forms and Ki control in order to give Broly an idea of what to strive for.
This was why Ultra Ego was not shown again during the Super Hero movie. However, fans were left scratching their heads at the end of the manga’s rendition of the arc, when Vegeta eventually sparred with Gohan Beast. It was surprising to see that instead of using his immensely powerful Ultra Ego to combat Gohan’s strongest form, which was able to contest with Ultra Instinct and Super Saiyan Broly, Vegeta instead opted to use Super Saiyan Blue, leaving many fans bewildered.
Dragon Ball: 5 Super Saiyan Transformations Vegeta Never Achieved
Despite decades having now passed since their introductions, there are still some Super Saiyan transformations that Vegeta has never achieved.
Why we may not see Ultra Ego again:
Ultra Ego, despite being one of the strongest transformations in the series that can use the power of the Destroyer Gods, is still not a very reliable form due to its intrinsic trait of taking damage to get stronger. After realizing that he cannot revert to his egotistical self to use the form to its highest potential, many fans feel that Vegeta may have just abandoned this transformation to find a new one that is far more stable.
Apologies, Lord Beerus. I couldn’t revert to the callous, unfeeling man I once was. That God of Destruction power was beyond the scope of a novice like me.
Since everyone who sparred with Gohan Beast did so in their most powerful forms, fans felt it out of place when Vegeta didn’t, so many think that he is going to train to unlock something far better, effectively saying goodbye to Ultra Ego. To use the power of the Gods fully, one has to put destruction over everything else, and Vegeta realizes that this is simply something that he cannot do.
Why we may see Ultra Ego again:
The easiest answer as to why Vegeta has not used Ultra Ego again is simply that he hasn’t had the need to. In the side story regarding him and Goku sparring on Beerus’s planet, the entire point was to show control over Ki in their base forms, so Ultra Ego was already off the table for that. However, the reason why he didn’t use it against Gohan is probably more complex. Ultra Ego encourages a brawler’s fighting style; exactly what Vegeta is.
Damage is nothing but fuel for me. Do you know what that means? I’m only getting stronger!
It all comes down to how Vegeta has had virtually no time to train this form. Just like how Ultra Instinct Omen was taxing on Goku’s body and incomplete in every aspect other than defense when it was first shown, Ultra Ego’s arc could be quite similar to that, as it is more likely just an incomplete form that Vegeta is yet to master. To use it against Gohan Beast wouldn’t have worked for a spar, since it greatly affects his body to use it. Eventually, when it is mastered, Ultra Ego will likely have a trait that makes Vegeta’s body incredibly durable like Ultra Instinct, so he can take and deal damage far more effectively.
