Future Trunks Was Not Stronger Than Perfect Cell, and the Full Fight Shows Why

Many Dragon Ball fans believe Future Trunks was stronger than Perfect Cell and simply couldn't keep up with his speed. Only half of that is true. Yes, Trunks had speed issues, but Cell was still as strong as Trunks, if not stronger, and the full fight proves it.

This is one of the Dragon Ball myths I debunk, alongside others that in some cases have been around for decades, such as Bulma's last name being Briefs or Toriyama wanting to end the series at Cell. Many of these ideas were spread by fans so much that they have come to be true in their eyes, but they are not. Whenever I take one on, I back it up with facts and statements from the anime, manga, or interviews. This one isn't quite as irritating as some, but the fandom still discusses it, and it centers on the battle between Perfect Cell and Trunks after Perfect Cell knocks out Vegeta.

The Cell line fans quote only works without context

With this myth, I feel the issue is mostly people's memories rather than a mistranslation. Many fans haven't watched Dragon Ball Z in a long time, some of them in 20 years, so not remembering these details makes sense. But I know for a fact that someone will bring up the scene, in both the manga and the anime, where Cell says outright that Trunks is stronger than him. That moment comes early in their fight.

Without context, though, it doesn't work. There are tons of times in Dragon Ball where you can take snippets out of context to tell your story and your narrative. You can try to validate your argument that way, but unless you have the context of the entire fight from start to finish, it won't hold up. Why Cell told him that is a question I'll answer further down in this piece.

If you want to follow along, using the original chapter numbering, the fight begins in Dragon Ball manga chapter 385, which correlates with Dragon Ball Z episode 162 and Dragon Ball Kai episode 81. It takes several chapters and episodes to get through everything, but that is where Trunks versus Cell begins.

Trunks' Super Saiyan Grade 3 looked like enough at first

Trunks displays an incredible amount of power never seen before in the series, beyond even what Vegeta showed Cell during their fight. This transformation is commonly known as Ultra Super Saiyan, or by its original Japanese name, Super Saiyan Grade 3. Trunks powers up and is very, very strong, and Cell himself remarks that he thinks Trunks may have surpassed him.

This is where the line gets blurry if you look at the fight without proper context and don't read or watch the whole thing. At this point Cell and Trunks begin to fight and things look pretty even. Quickly, though, we find out that Trunks has issues connecting with Cell. He can't land any shots on him.

Goku already knew this form was not the answer

While this is going on, Goku is talking with Gohan in the Room of Spirit and Time about these upgraded forms of Super Saiyan. He discusses how Vegeta was able to do grade two and Trunks did grade three. Gohan even thinks that at this point Goku is able to beat Cell, but Goku says, "It's not enough. This is not what we're looking for."

In hindsight, we now know that what they were seeking is what would become known as Super Saiyan Grade 5, also called Super Saiyan 2. This is where Goku realized that to reach that level of power, it might be best to become natural in the Super Saiyan state, which is where Full Power Super Saiyan came from. He tells Gohan that the goal is to reach that state before upgrading to level two.

Goku also remarks that the bulked up form is too bulky and not effective for battle. Goku and Vegeta, with far more experience than Trunks, knew the form had too many flaws to be good against somebody like Cell, who has their cells along with those of Frieza and others and was very smart. Trunks didn't know that, which is why he used the form without knowing its major drawback.

Cell could do Grade 3 himself, and showed Trunks

The reality is that Cell knew about this form the entire time and knew it had a problem. Not only did Cell know about grade three, he was able to perform it right in front of Trunks and tell him, "Oh, I can do that, too." He bulks up into what I guess is the Cell version of Super Saiyan Grade 3.

That was a lesson in humility for Trunks, or a way to knock him off the high horse he had gotten on. If you remember, Trunks says he didn't even want to show that form to his father because he didn't want to make him feel bad. That's ironic, because we find out Vegeta knew about the form the whole time and chose not to use it in battle because he was aware of its drawbacks. And Cell, a complete stranger to Trunks, has to be the one to tell him. That's pretty sad.

So Trunks was not stronger than Cell, because Cell could have easily brought out grade three at any point and matched Trunks power to power. He didn't, first, because he's an egomaniac who wants to laugh at Trunks and prove how great he is, which is in character for him. Second, he knew the drawbacks of the form. How he knew is difficult to say, but he definitely knew, because he told Trunks. He figured it out. And if you look at Trunks' face in both the anime and manga, there is genuine shock, amazement and fear at the power Cell had been keeping inside himself.

Cell was suppressing himself, and that doesn't make Trunks stronger

So was Cell suppressing himself against Trunks? The answer is yes. If you want to say Trunks is stronger than a suppressed Cell, okay, go for it. But that's like saying Frieza is stronger than a suppressed Beerus: if Beerus were sleeping, Frieza could get him. Sure, maybe. But that doesn't work in combat.

Strategy works in combat, and Cell knew exactly what he was doing the entire time while Trunks didn't. When you have the cells of Goku, Vegeta and Piccolo, who have so much more experience than Trunks, that's what tends to happen. It's a very straw man argument. You can't use the idea that someone was suppressed to validate Trunks being stronger than Cell.

At full power, Trunks was equal to Cell or weaker

At the end of the day, at full power, Trunks was either equal to or weaker than Cell. The reason I say possibly weaker is how Cell performed against Goku and Gohan in the Cell Games. Obviously he trained after his fight with Trunks, and it's impossible to quantify how much stronger he got, because Trunks also went back into training during those days.

Still, Cell was leagues above Trunks in the Cell Games, and he was at least equal to him in this fight before the Cell Games.

Cell called Trunks stronger to toy with him

So why did Cell say Trunks was stronger than him? This is one of those things that gets lost without that magical word, context. Cell is a narcissist. Cell is very sarcastic, and Cell is an egomaniac. He told Trunks that while knowing he was stronger than him, to mess with him. That's what Cell does.

Trunks knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was finished when he humbled himself and asked Cell to finish him off. That's when Cell said, "You know what? Let's do a tournament." That led to the Cell Games. All Cell wants to do is test his perfect body. So when Cell goads Trunks into powering up and then says, "Wow, you really are stronger than me," come on. He's toying with him.

Cell proved it at the end of the fight by powering up, getting buff, and showing he was at least equal to Trunks. I've laid out enough evidence to prove this to be true. Never forget that context is key in everything.