Why Beast Gohan May Have Surpassed Goku and Vegeta in Dragon Ball Super

Beast Gohan revitalized Gohan for a lot of fans, and plenty of them were happy to see him rise to prominence again as the hero of Dragon Ball Super Super Hero who defeated Cell Max. But as always with Dragon Ball, there was controversy even when there did not need to be. In chapter 101 of the Dragon Ball Super manga, Whis confirmed that Gohan may have surpassed Goku and Vegeta.

When Whis says something, it means something, because he has a lot of credibility with Dragon Ball fans. He is an angel with an immense amount of knowledge of the universe and the multiverse, so if he says something, "it's probably safe to take it to the bank." A lot of fans still seemed bothered by the idea that Gohan may have surpassed Goku and Vegeta.

Akira Toriyama Said Gohan Was the Strongest Mortal Two Years Before Whis Did

What is interesting to me is that another figure with as much, if not more, credibility than Whis had already said the same thing: Akira Toriyama himself. Two years before chapter 101, when the Dragon Ball Super Super Hero movie came out, Toriyama went on record saying Gohan had surpassed everybody and become the strongest of the mortals.

At the time, that comment was met with a bit of controversy, but I did not see too much in the way of fights over it, mainly because fans were unsure where Super Hero fit in the timeline. The Granolah arc was still going while the hype train for the movie was also running. I had already told my audience that Dragon Ball Super Super Hero took place after the Moro and Granolah arcs, so after the film came out, that placement was confirmed, and the story continued into the manga with some changes made by Toyotaro.

Goku and Vegeta Fans Feel Robbed Because They See Gohan's Power Ups as Unearned

By this point in the story, Goku and Vegeta had unlocked Ultra Instinct and Ultra Ego and were gaining incredible power and abilities far beyond anything seen before. It felt hard to swallow that Gohan would surpass them, and I understand why Vegeta fans get frustrated. It seems like every time Vegeta is about to get a big win, something happens to rob him of it, and I have seen that complaint for a very long time.

The one thing Vegeta fans and Goku fans agree on is that both characters are hard workers. They are pure blooded Saiyans who train constantly, always trying to reach new levels. Gohan is different. Being a half breed, he has a stronger emotional connection with humans and with life than Goku and Vegeta do, so he prefers to focus on other things. He is not a battle hungry Saiyan the way Goku, Vegeta and Broly are, because of his diluted bloodline, and that is why fans feel like he gets cheap power ups.

Gohan's Power Ups Have Always Come This Way, From Super Saiyan 2 to Ultimate Gohan

When Gohan got Super Saiyan 2 against Cell in Dragon Ball Z, it did not feel cheap. It felt earned, and it was built up all the way back at the start of Dragon Ball Z when we learned that half breed Saiyans have faster power growth than pure bloods. Gohan's anger and rage repeatedly gave him boosts that some fans considered unrealistic or not quite earned, though that never bothered me back in Z.

The biggest complaint I ever saw about this came during the Majin Buu Saga. Gohan slacked off on his training between the Cell and Buu sagas, so Goku and Vegeta surpassed him. Then all it took was Gohan breaking the Z Sword and letting the Old Kai perform a ritual on him to unlock his latent potential and become Ultimate Gohan. A lot of Vegeta fans did not like that power up because they felt it was not earned, even though a lot of Gohan fans and Dragon Ball fans as a whole loved how awesome Ultimate Gohan was.

Gohan Was Sidelined for Years Before Super Hero Made Him the Lead Again

For a long stretch after Ultimate Gohan, there was not much done with the character. In Battle of Gods and Resurrection F, Gohan barely did anything, and he was left out of the Universe 6 and Future Trunks arcs as far as combat goes. He got some shine again in the Tournament of Power, but he was mostly a backup player to more important characters like Goku and Vegeta.

That pattern continued into the Moro arc, where Gohan became a supporting character, and he was nowhere to be seen in the Granolah arc, though I note that was not really his story to tell. The same goes for Dragon Ball Super Broly. Dragon Ball Super Super Hero, on the other hand, is his story, along with Piccolo's.

My Take: Gohan Surpassing Goku and Vegeta Is Nothing New

Personally, I never had an issue with Gohan having this latent potential and surpassing Goku and Vegeta, though if other fans do, that is their right. It seemed strange to me that people had a problem with Whis saying it in chapter 101 when Toriyama had already said the same thing two years earlier. Did fans just ignore Toriyama, or assume he was joking?

I understand that reaction somewhat, because Toriyama was known for being a troll in interviews. "He likes to make himself laugh, he likes to mess with the fans," and he is not a strictly serious creator, since he started as a gag manga writer and never fully lost those roots. But this should not be surprising, because Gohan has always done this. As a four year old boy, Gohan was able to leap past Goku, who trained relentlessly and fought in multiple tournaments throughout the entirety of the original Dragon Ball, simply by getting angry. To me, that is nothing new.

As of the point covered in chapter 101, Gohan does seem to have surpassed even true Ultra Instinct Goku, technique aside. Maybe not. Maybe Goku has some tricks up his sleeve, or maybe his training will continue further. But based on what Whis and Toriyama have both said, that is how it stood.

Do you think Gohan actually deserved to surpass Goku and Vegeta, or do you side with the fans who feel it was never fully earned?