Why Was Super Saiyan 2 So Forgettable?

The Saiyan forms are some of the most iconic aspects of the Dragon Ball franchise and, in terms of transformations, are easily the most important in the entire anime industry. The reveal of almost every one of these forms was met with an incredible amount of hype from the fandom, as these moments have cemented themselves as being among the most pivotal in the industry.

However, some forms are generally better received than others and have had more of an impact on the overall story of Dragon Ball. One of the more forgettable ones is Super Saiyan 2 which, despite being tied to one of the greatest moments in the history of the franchise with Gohan’s first time unlocking it against Perfect Cell, was ultimately underwhelming in the grand scheme of things after this. So, let’s see why this is.

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The Importance Of Super Saiyan 2

What The Form Gets Right

Although this is a transformation that is quite chastised by the fandom, it isn’t without its merits. For one, Teen Gohan’s first time unlocking the form is almost as iconic as Goku’s first time awakening Super Saiyan against Frieza, as it finally showed the fruits of all of his and his father’s training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to defeat a threat far too great for anyone else to deal with. When the form was first shown, it shook the foundations of the series by placing Gohan on a separate tier from everyone else, humiliating Perfect Cell in the process.

Moreover, it also served as the new benchmark of power for the remaining Saiyans to meet, subsequently increasing the overall power scaling of the series in the process. By having the main characters fight against new foes in Super Saiyan 2, fans had an idea about how strong these newly introduced characters were compared to those that came before. This form also allowed the Saiyans to use even more powerful attacks than what they had shown before in base or Super Saiyan.

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The Pitfalls Of Super Saiyan 2

Why It Was Ultimately A Forgettable Form

While Gohan’s awakening of Super Saiyan 2 is remembered fondly by fans of the series, the form itself was ultimately a forgettable one. Firstly, the design was far too similar to that of the original Super Saiyan. While every canon Saiyan transformation between Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan Blue doesn’t offer too much in terms of a huge design change, most of them are still largely unique enough from a visual standpoint.

However, Super Saiyan 2 is a bit different in this regard, since the only change it had from the standard Super Saiyan form is spikier hair and lightning surrounding the aura. It was quite a substantial change for Teen Gohan since his hair in Super Saiyan is relatively flat and in Super Saiyan 2, it’s quite different. However, for Vegeta, Goku, Trunks, and even Adult Gohan, the form offers very little in terms of a visual change from their standard Super Saiyan transformation.

Moreover, it’s very basic in terms of functionality, since it doesn’t really offer anything new in terms of how the user fights. Even though this is the case with all the standard Super Saiyan transformations, Super Saiyan 2’s lack of change in a visual sense just makes it seem like it’s not different from the regular form. Moreover, it saw the most use in the Buu Saga, but only felt like a placeholder, especially after Goku unlocked Super Saiyan 3.

In Super, Super Saiyan 2 is almost an afterthought that characters barely even use, only being a little relevant in the Tournament of Power when the Universe 6 Saiyans unlocked it. However, even here, it was overshadowed by Super Saiyan 3 when Goku used it for a brief moment and was only acknowledged by the Universe 6 Saiyans as being a stepping stone for them to eventually achieve the ultimate Super Saiyan form. Even before this, the main characters would rarely use it to gauge the strength of others, relying mostly on the regular Super Saiyan form.

All in all, Super Saiyan 2 was a largely forgettable transformation after Gohan used it for the first time against Cell. However, it’s still pretty cool and many fans want to see it and other standard transformations used again in the series, since they’ve been almost completely forgotten about in favor of the God forms in Super. There are many ways to rectify this and make these forms relevant in the series again, such as introducing someone that is immune or otherwise impervious to God Ki or somehow takes it away from Goku and Vegeta.

By placing the focus back on the Super Saiyan transformations, each of the forms that fans largely agree have been forgotten can play a role once again, making the story and its past elements mean so much more. Once the manga returns, fans may finally get the chance to see this happen.

Dragon Ball can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

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Dragon Ball Z is a Japanese anime series produced by Toei Animation and a sequel to the 1986 Dragon Ball series. It continues the adventures of Son Goku as an adult while also paralleling the life of his son Gohan. Son Goku typically defends the Earth from villains like Vegeta, Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu. The series is followed by Dragon Ball GT and then Dragon Ball Super. 

Release Date

April 26, 1989