Transformation has been at the center of the Dragon Ball franchise for a very long time now. Stretching all the way back to the early days of the series, people were transforming all the time. Oolong is one of the earliest examples, along with Puar, as both went to Transformation School. Goku himself showed audiences the Great Ape for the first time within the first fourteen episodes of the original anime and this would not be the last time that a young Saiyan would be powered by their tail. Monster Carrot could turn people into, well, carrots — and the list of transformations goes on and on.
No transformation, however, is as iconic as the Super Saiyan transformation in the context of Dragon Ball. The imagery alone has spread internationally and is referenced in all forms of media, from music to non-Dragon Ball video games, to western comics and cartoons. There is a distinct timeline and evolution when it comes to the transformation, so let’s take a look at the chronological timeline of the Super Saiyan. (For the purposes of this timeline, we’ll be sticking to the initial transformations and reveals of each character and form, but not the indistinguishable variants like Trunks and Vegeta’s in the Cell Saga, since they aren’t strictly transformations.)
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Bardock, The “Original” Legendary Super Saiyan
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Time travel in the universe of Dragon Ball has very few hard and fast rules and can be horribly confusing. Dragon Ball: Episode of Bardock acts as a sequel to Bardock: Father of Goku, where the blast of Freiza blowing up Planet Vegeta actually knocks Bardock into the past. This establishes what has to be a stable timeloop. Bardock ends up battling an ancestor of Frieza’s, Lord Chilled, which triggers the Super Saiyan transformation in Bardock.
This is where things get a little weird, as Lord Chilled goes on to warn his descendants of the Super Saiyan and their power to stand against them. Thus, Bardock himself is the Legendary Super Saiyan that Vegeta came to talk about later, a kind of power that carried through generations. While the “canonicity” of this OVA is debatable, it has appeared in official timelines in the past. It also calls into question how this is a timeloop while Future Trunks is just accessing the multiverse but, let’s face it, this is one of those questions that will never be addressed.
Super Saiyan: The Beginning Of The Icon
Dragon Ball Z, Episode 95 – “Transformed At Last”
Goku stands facing Frieza after Krillin has been killed for the second time in his existence. At this point in the series, the Namekian Dragon Balls are still out of reach and Krillin’s resurrection is not guaranteed. This was a moment that made something snap in Goku. While he had been on the backfoot before, the sudden shift into the form of a Super Saiyan firmly placed him ahead of Frieza in that fight.
This wasn’t just a monumental moment for Dragon Ball, it was a monumental moment for all of anime history. This scene is one of the most iconic in the series and would permanently shift the way fights in the franchise worked from there on out. The Super Saiyan form becomes the benchmark of power from here all the way through the end of Dragon Ball Z.
A Second Super Saiyan Emerges: Hello Trunks
Dragon Ball Z, Episode 120 – “Another Super Saiyan?”
To be completely honest, the Super Saiyan transformation didn’t get a lot of time to be unique to Goku. Only around thirty episodes after the form premiered, Trunks would come onto the scene to demonstrate his own version of it. Before anyone knew anything about Trunks, he’d swooped into the past to end the life of Frieza and King Cold as they had come to earth in order to get some revenge for Frieza’s fate.
Trunks becoming a Super Saiyan was one of the biggest hints that he had to be related to Vegeta or Goku and, since it was unlikely that Goku would pull a Joseph Joestar, this only meant that Vegeta was destined to have descendants. This was also the beginning of what would swiftly become the Super Saiyan bargain sale. It did make for exciting twists and turns while it lasted, though.
Vegeta Unlocks Super Saiyan: Finally!
Dragon Ball Z, Episode 129 – “The Might of Vegeta!! The Blood of a Super Saiyan Awakens”
Vegeta was the most vocal character when it came to his desire to gain power, even after his shift over to the apparent side of good. He would be the third visible Saiyan in the franchise history to become a Super Saiyan and he happily showed that off in his fight with Android 19, putting the absolute fear of god into the android in the process before killing him in spectacular fashion.
While Vegeta gaining this new form was inevitable, his own ego would overestimate the form itself in his future fights. Vegeta in the Super Saiyan form also demonstrates the sadistic nature that Saiyans tend to have and acts as a bit of foreshadowing for what Gohan would be like once he unlocked the next phase, Super Saiyan 2. That said, Vegeta’s first showing as a Super Saiyan was a dominant one.
Super Saiyan 2: The Red Flags for Gohan
Dragon Ball Z, Episode 184 – “Cell Juniors Attack!”
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Gohan turning into Super Saiyan 2 was always something of Goku’s plan, but it didn’t turn out exactly like how he wanted. This transformation was one that represented a major change for Gohan himself, as watching Android 16 die after he was getting the life beaten out of him was just too much for the young teen. The sickening rage he feels within also comes with a thirst for sadistic vengeance.
Gohan’s power multiplies exponentially but comes with a sudden dip in the deep end of Saiyan bloodlust, leading to Gohan brutally doing away with the Cell Juniors and spending too much time figuratively playing with his food. While this all ends up with Goku’s death and Gohan eventually neding to overcome his internal weakness, it is one of the most beloved moments in the anime. This is also the first example of an entirely new Super Saiyan form rather than an ascencion.
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Dragon Ball Z, Episode 245 – “Super Saiyan 3?!”
The Buu Saga was both a concluding arc for Dragon Ball Z and something of a parody of the franchise in certain places. This is where a lot of the original flavor of comedy that the initial phases of Dragon Ball were known for started creeping back in after the end of the Cell Saga. However, this moment is not one of them.
Goku, fresh off of fighting Vegeta, comes in to take on Majin Buu himself and shows off the different levels of Super Saiyan before absolutely shattering the old school speakers of our early 2000s televisions as he screamed his way into Super Saiyan 3. Visually, this is the most vastly different-looking form in the line up until this point with its wild hair and lack of eyebrows. In similar fashion, the gap between Super Saiyan 2 and Super Saiyan 3 is a monumental one.
Super Saiyan God: A Short Lived New Era
Dragon Ball Z: Battle Of Gods
The base DNA of Dragon Ball Super began with one of the first Dragon Ball movies to come out in a pretty long time at that point. Super Saiyan God is the first transformation to be shown as needing outside interference and a small ritual with several Saiyans.
This form is actually significantly slimmer than a lot of the other forms, using something known as “God Ki” as its driver, allowing Goku for just a moment to hold his own against the God of Destruction, Beerus. While this was the first explicitly canon new transformation that had come out in a while, it did not keep that throne for very long.
Super Saiyan Blue: The New Standard
Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection F
Super Saiyan Blue (or originally Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan) became the go-to transformation for pretty much all of Dragon Ball Super once it made its apperance. It is quite visually impressive and marks the next evolution of power scaling in Dragon Ball, which really has only gotten more and more convoluted with time.
Super Saiyan Blue is, well… blue. On top of this new dye job, the abilities are many times that of the original Super Saiyan transformation. Unfortunately, what takes away from it is the fact that, in the context of Dragon Ball Super, this fills a very similar role to Super Saiyan in Z. It being a repetitive standard makes it feel a little more run-of-the-mill.
Beast: Gohan’s New Super Saiyan 2
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
It’s debatable whether or not anyone other than Gohan can access this form, but it is a doozy of a power up for Gohan. As a way for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero to have its own Super Saiyan 2 moment, the Beast form transformation leads into a scene of Gohan using the Special Beam Canon, which many fans have waited years for. This form seems to be powered purely by righteous rage, which is fitting for Gohan. Hopefully, audiences get to see more of this form in the future.
