Why Vegeta Probably Had Not Unlocked True Ultra Ego Yet in Dragon Ball Super

I thought the Ultra Ego Vegeta used against Granolah was probably not the final version of the form. Based on the clues in the Dragon Ball Super manga, Vegeta's own words about failing Lord Beerus and the way Goku's Ultra Instinct kept evolving, I thought it very likely that Vegeta would keep training and eventually discover a true Ultra Ego.

To see why, it helps to start with how Ultra Instinct itself changed over time.

Goku's Ultra Instinct kept evolving after its first appearance

I remember the night in October 2017 when Dragon Ball Super episodes 109 and 110 aired consecutively on Fuji TV and we got our first look at Ultra Instinct in the anime. At the time it was actually Omen, but we did not know that. Since then there have been multiple variations on UI depending on which arc we were in and how far Goku's story had progressed.

We saw perfected, or mastered, Ultra Instinct, which is Goku with the silver hair. Then we got the version Goku could use at will during the Moro Arc, where he knew how to tap into the silver haired form without having to trigger anything internally. The Granolah Arc then introduced the concept that Ultra Instinct's properties could be used in previous forms, like the god forms of Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan Blue. The goal, based on all of that, is for Goku to eventually achieve Ultra Instinct in base, where it is always turned on.

When we first saw UI against Jiren, we all thought that was going to be it. We did not know there was going to be another silver haired form. That history is exactly why I question whether the Ultra Ego we saw was the whole story.

Vegeta admits he failed Beerus against Granolah

The Granolah Arc introduced us to Ultra Ego, but have we really seen its full power? During the fight with Granolah, Vegeta admits that he failed Beerus. What he meant is that he was unable to fully utilize Ultra Ego. He could not follow what Beerus explained to him: to become a God of Destruction and really use that power, you have to let go of all your guilt.

That is hard for Vegeta, because he has changed so much. This is someone who at one time was a serial killer and a genocidal maniac. Bulma, Trunks and Kakarot all had a very big impact on his change in Dragon Ball Z, and that continued in Dragon Ball Super when he had a daughter and was able to work alongside Goku more often than before. Without question, Vegeta is a different person than he used to be.

The old Vegeta felt no guilt, and Beerus wants that mindset back

Vegeta used to be a guy who did not really care about life. He was so prideful of the number he got when he was born, the one that said he was supposed to be the strongest, and because he is of the bloodline of the ruling monarchy of Planet Vegeta, he thought he was above everyone. That lasted until he met Kakarot, who gave him a tough fight and showed that even low class warriors with proper training and discipline could overcome a low power level at birth. For a long time, though, Vegeta simply did not care.

Beerus's role as God of Destruction is sort of like that, but not exactly. Destroying is part of his job, and he has to find a way to mentally block his guilt and emotionally control himself. When Beerus blows up a planet or a solar system, he knows there were living people on it who are going to die, but it is just part of the job.

Vegeta has to get back into that mindset. The previous Vegeta destroyed a lot of civilizations and felt no guilt for the people who died. Beerus wants him to return to that place, but instead of doing it in a malicious, evil way, it is more about blocking out your guilt. That is why Vegeta was unable to really use Ultra Ego.

Toppo's God of Destruction form and the manga versus anime split

I have previously compared Ultra Ego Vegeta to Toppo, the God of Destruction candidate from the Tournament of Power. It is worth remembering that the manga and the anime of Dragon Ball Super are two different continuities. They tell the same stories in a general sense, but small details, and sometimes big ones, make the manga differ from the anime.

For example, we did not really see Toppo utilize his God of Destruction form in the manga with the look it had in the anime. That was something the anime staff chose to do and worked on; it was not really a Toriyama concept. It does make you wonder what is going on with Toppo having that power.

Still, I am not sure Toppo is the real indicator here, even though you could take that concept and bring it back for Vegeta. The difference between them is that Toppo was actually training to become Universe 11's God of Destruction, whereas Vegeta just wants the power.

Dragon Ball Super has struggled to find new goals for Goku and Vegeta

One of the crutches in Dragon Ball Super's writing has been figuring out new goals for Goku and Vegeta. Toyotarou himself admitted during an interview on the official Dragon Ball site that he had problems writing Goku because Goku had already been made so perfect. What he meant is that by the end of the Moro Arc, Goku clearly knew how to tap into silver haired Ultra Instinct at will, so no other form could really come after it.

Based on everything we have heard, Ultra Instinct is a power that not even mortals should have. It is an angelic technique or form; whatever you call it, it is a state of being. That made it hard to know what to do with Goku next, which eventually led into the True Ultra Instinct debacle that I have discussed before. It seems they were really having trouble figuring out Goku's path, and that is pretty obvious considering Ultra Instinct keeps getting new variants.

Then, at the end of the Granolah Arc, Black Frieza shows up with a new transformation and one shots True Ultra Instinct Goku and Vegeta, laying them both out.

Why I expected Vegeta to keep training toward a true Ultra Ego

So is the Ultra Ego that fought Granolah the true final form? I would say it is probably not. Based on the trajectory Goku has followed over the last few arcs and the symbolic road he has traveled, I would not be surprised, and in fact it seems very likely, that we have not seen the end of Vegeta evolving and learning how to properly use Ultra Ego.

If Ultra Ego is going to be Vegeta's version of Ultra Instinct from now on, then he will have to become stronger and more accustomed to using that power, which he is not yet; it is still all new to him. Vegeta cares enough to state himself that he does not want to disappoint Lord Beerus, and that tells me the training will continue until he finally discovers the true Ultra Ego. "I think it's inevitable."

Don't forget, too, that Dragon Ball Super has been constantly introducing new forms, not just Ultra Instinct and Ultra Ego but also Orange Piccolo, Gohan Beast and Black Frieza. I would not be surprised in the least, and in fact I was expecting, that Vegeta would continue to train under Beerus and eventually learn true Ultra Ego. As I put it at the time, "it feels inevitable at this point."

Do you think the Ultra Ego Vegeta used against Granolah was its final form, or was there a true Ultra Ego still waiting for him?