Most Clever Strategies Goku Used In Dragon Ball

Summary

• Goku showcases intelligence in battles, making smart decisions on-the-fly to gain the edge.
• Utilizes unique tactics like using Kamehameha with feet and throwing frogs to outsmart foes.
• Exhibits strategic thinking by countering opponents’ techniques, such as Hit’s Time-Skip and Kefla’s attack.

Given that Dragon Ball implements a ton of cliches when it comes to writing its protagonist, it’s easy to see why most people assume that Goku is dumb. He makes stupid remarks numerous times and can seem a bit ditzy.

However, he’s a completely different beast in battle, showing a level of intelligence that fans don’t expect from him. This allows Goku to carry out some smart decisions on-the-fly that help him gain the edge in a battle.

8

Holding On To Raditz’ Tail To Keep Him In Place

Goku Would’ve Earned More Smart Points Here Had He Not Fallen For Raditz’ Obvious Deception

• Occurs In: Piccolo’s Plan (Episode 4 of Dragon Ball Z)

After struggling against Raditz even with Piccolo’s help, Goku remembered that his tail was a weak spot and decided to hold on to his brother’s appendage to paralyze. This would’ve been one of his smartest moments had it not been for his gullible nature.

All Raditz had to do was utter some false promises to make Goku drop the tail, which was incredibly short-sighted from the protagonist. Ultimately, he had to use a Full Nelson hold and die along with Raditz as Piccolo used the Special Beam Cannon to win the battle.

7

Using A Kamehameha With His Feet To Launch Himself

Prevented Himself From Being Knocked Out Of The Tournament

• Occurs In: Goku’s Trap (Episode 146 of Dragon Ball)

The original run of Dragon Ball had a focus on tournament fights, and Goku was on the verge of being knocked out during one such battle against Piccolo Jr. However, the Saiyan was quick on his feet and used a classic technique to save himself from trouble.

He positioned himself in the air and used a Kamehameha with his feet to propel himself in Piccolo’s direction, landing a savage two-handed punch. It’s one of the smartest uses of a Kamehameha in the series that showed just how adept Goku was at using this legendary technique.

6

Throwing A Frog In The Nick Of Time To Nullify Ginyu’s Body Change Technique

Impressive Quick Thinking Given How Injured Goku Was At That Time

• Occurs In: Captain Ginyu… The Frog (Episode 74 of Dragon Ball Z)

Ginyu is one of the funniest antagonists in the series who was instantly outclassed by Goku and decided to use the Body Change technique to turn the tables. Thankfully, the protagonist managed to regain control of his body, but the battle was still far from over.

Ginyu unleashed the Body Change technique against a reckless Vegeta, which is when Goku wracked his brain even after being heavily injured. He found a frog and chucked it in the nick of time, taking out Ginyu’s threat in the smartest and most hilarious manner possible.

5

Stalling Majin Buu By Slowly Going Through His Transformations

Gave Trunks The Time He Needed To Get The Dragon Radar

• Occurs In: Race to Capsule Corp. (Episode 244 of Dragon Ball Z)

After the birth of Majin Buu, Goku had to buy time for Trunks and distract both Buu and Babidi. He did this by giving both villains an education on how the Super Saiyan transformations worked.

It instantly grabbed Buu’s attention and allowed viewers to witness the majesty of Super Saiyan 3 as well, killing two birds with one stone. Even after Trunks stalled midway when witnessing Goku’s strength, he still had more than enough time to recover the Dragon Radar.

4

Deceiving Frieza To Land Some Hits Before His Super Saiyan Transformation

Exploited The Fact That His Opponent Couldn’t Detect Energy

• Occurs In: Clash of the Super Powers (Episode 88 of Dragon Ball Z)

It was clear that Frieza had outclassed Goku in terms of pure strength, who had to get innovative with his offense to land some hits. He did this by hiding underwater and using two delayed ki attacks to fool Frieza.

Since the tyrant couldn’t sense energy, he was easily fooled by this technique and punished with a powerful dropkick. It was a small victory in this battle that showed Goku’s strength, but it was clear that the Saiyan needed something more to turn the tables against the strongest foe he’d ever faced.

3

Goku Figuring Out Hit’s Time-Skip

The Assassin’s Technique Befuddled The Show’s Strongest Warriors, But Goku Figured It Out

• Occurs In: The 6th Universe’s Mightiest Warrior! Engage the Assassin Hit!! (Episode 38 of Dragon Ball Super)

The battle between Universe 6 and 7 saw some of the strongest and most accomplished warriors from Goku’s world in attendance. All of them were left flummoxed by Hit’s Time-Skip ability, with Vegeta succumbing to this technique.

However, Goku was cut from a different cloth and stayed in his base form until he figured out a way to counter Hit’s Time-Skip, which is one of the most underrated moments in the series that showed just how impressive Goku’s battle IQ was. While the debut of Super Saiyan Blue Kaio-ken overshadowed this moment, fans will appreciate how smart Goku was during this fight on a rewatch.

2

Using Instant Transmission To Hit Cell In The Face With A Resounding Kamehameha

One Of The Greatest Kamehamehas In The Series

• Occurs In: No More Rules (Episode 179 of Dragon Ball Z)

Goku’s best moments come courtesy of an impressive use of his Kamehameha, and combining this move with Instant Transmission was a great way to show how ingenious this Saiyan was with this technique. After charging a hellacious Kamehameha and aiming down at Cell, the Z Fighters assumed that Goku was throwing caution to the wind and destroying the planet to defeat Cell.

He fooled everyone until the last second, using Instant Transmission to transport himself right in front of Cell and blast a Kamehameha right in the bio-android face. If Cell didn’t have regenerative powers, he would’ve been toast at this moment.

1

Sliding On Kefla’s Beam Attack To Avoid Any Damage And Close The Distance

Realized That His Imperfect Ultra Instinct Form Was On A Timer And Adapted On The Fly

• Occurs In: Signs of a Turnabout! The Autonomous Ultra Instinct Erupts! (Episode 116 of Dragon Ball Super)

Dragon Ball Super took a while to get going before coming out of Z’s shadow, with the Tournament of Power showing the very best of what Dragon Ball had to offer. Goku unlocked the Imperfect Ultra Instinct form during this competition that reared its head when he was struggling against Kefla.

Goku was already exhausted at this point and needed to unleash all his power in a single hit, deciding to charge a Divine Kamehameha that would take no prisoners. His Ultra Instinct reflexes helped him dodge Kefla’s attack until he was in mid-air and Kefla decided to launch a powerful beam attack at his opponent. However, at this moment, Goku’s instincts kicked in and he used his brains to slide along Kefla’s attack, launching what just might be the greatest Kamehameha ever fired by this Saiyan in the series.