The original Super Saiyan form is the most iconic transformation in Dragon Ball, but it hasn't been the series' strongest form in a very long time. In fact, most fans forget, but it didn't take long for Super Saiyan to get outclassed by new villains. The reason Akira Toriyama introduces Super Saiyan Future Trunks just a few chapters after Super Saiyan Goku defeats Frieza is to make it clear SSJ will not be a get out of jail free card for the heroes.
By the end of the Cell Saga, Super Saiyan has been outdone by multiple transformations, which Dragon Ball Super has only doubled down on. As of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, the Saiyans, Z-Fighters, and villains have all but abandoned Super Saiyan in favor of unique, personal transformations tailored to each individual character. Super Saiyan just doesn't have a place in Dragon Ball's future anymore.
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8 Every Super Saiyan Upgrade is Better Than SSJ1
Getting the obvious out of the way, every single upgrade of the original Super Saiyan form is obviously stronger than SSJ1. The Cell Saga introduces Super Saiyan Grade 2, SSJ Grade 3, Full Power Super Saiyan, and Super Saiyan 2. The Majin Buu Saga introduces Super Saiyan 3 as exclusive forms for Goku and Gotenks. Dragon Ball DAIMA finally canonized Dragon Ball GT's Super Saiyan 4 after decades.
Finally, Dragon Ball Super features Super Saiyan God, Super Saiyan Blue, Super Saiyan Rosé, Super Saiyan Rage, Super Saiyan Blue Evolved, and Broly's Legendary Super Saiyan form. Every evolution of the Super Saiyan form comes with a stronger multiplier than SSJ1, making the original form more or less redundant these days.
7 Ultimate Gohan Was the Strongest Form in Dragon Ball Z
Gohan's seemingly has no limits. At the end of Dragon Ball Z, Old Kai unlocks all of Gohan's latest potential, triggering the Ultimate Gohan transformation. Ultimate Gohan brings out all of Gohan's raw power to the surface without the need to turn Super Saiyan. In fact, Old Kai says that turning Super Saiyan would be outright useless in Gohan's case. By the end of Dragon Ball Z, Ultimate Gohan is far and away the strongest unfused character in the series.
7 Most Overpowered Dragon Ball Super Transformations, Ranked
The most overpowered transformations in Dragon Ball Super raise their user's Power Levels to heights they frankly shouldn't be capable of.
Unfortunately, Gohan stops training between Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super, losing the means to use his Ultimate form at its full power. Gohan can still trigger it after training with Piccolo for the Tournament of Power, but Ultimate Gohan never manages to catch up to Goku and Vegeta's God forms. Fortunately, Gohan gets a new transformation in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero that puts him far above any other Z-Fighter.
6 Golden Frieza Became Stronger Than the Super Saiyans in Four Months
Frieza was naturally the strongest mortal in Dragon Ball Z, despite having never trained a day in his life. After being killed by Future Trunks, Frieza spent his time in Hell image training and trying to learn from his mistakes. Once revived in Resurrection F, Frieza spends a mere four months training with one of his weakest soldiers and goes from weaker than a regular Super Saiyan, to as strong – if not slightly stronger – than Super Saiyan Blue.
After being killed a second time, Golden Frieza manages to grow even stronger just through image training, roughly being equal in Power Level to Mastered Super Saiyan Blue Goku before the Tournament of Power. The fact Frieza could go from Super Saiyan tier to God tier in just four months is a feat no other character in Dragon Ball has been able to accomplish.
5 Orange Piccolo is Finally on Par With Goku & Vegeta
It's been a long time since Piccolo was able to keep up with the Saiyans. Dragon Ball Super's first few story arcs did not treat him kindly, but Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero finally course-corrected things by turning Piccolo into the movie's main character. By making a wish on the Dragon Balls to grow stronger, Shenron unlocks Piccolo's potential and throws in a little bonus, which becomes the Orange Piccolo transformation.
Orange Piccolo is even stronger than Goku and Vegeta's God forms, and Akira Toriyama stated that his purpose with giving Piccolo a new form was to make him equal to Ultra Instinct Goku and Ultra Ego Vegeta. It'll only be a matter of time before the Saiyans surpass Piccolo, but for the time being, Orange Piccolo is far above any Super Saiyan form and puts Piccolo in league with Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan once again.
4 Ultra Instinct is Goku's Greatest Transformation
Ultra Instinct is the best thing to happen to Dragon Ball since the original Super Saiyan. A form designed to take Goku back to the basics, Ultra Instinct is all about trusting your own innate abilities and relying on the skills you've developed as a martial artist. Goku has been refining Ultra Instinct every single arc ever since unlocking it in the Tournament of Power, and it's only a matter of time before it becomes the strongest transformation in Dragon Ball.
5 Dragon Ball Super Characters Stronger Than Ultra Instinct Goku
As of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Ultra Instinct Goku is weaker than his rival, his son, and even the series' next main villain.
As of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Mastered Ultra Instinct is Goku's main form, and he can activate it at any time, much like a Super Saiyan transformation. Goku also learned how to stacks his various Super Saiyan God forms on top of True Ultra Instinct during the Granolah Saga, meaning he can boost his Power Level while still making use of UI's instantaneous movements.
3 Ultra Ego Has the Potential to Make Vegeta Stronger Than Ever
In classic Vegeta fashion, Ultra Ego Vegeta has yet to win a fight, but that doesn't mean he's weak. Ultra Ego's biggest problem is that it's a brand new form Vegeta isn't accustomed to yet, and has the major drawback of requiring the user to stay transformed and take damage in order to grow stronger. With enough training, Ultra Ego Vegeta can realistically grow to become stronger than Ultra Instinct Goku (and is likely already stronger as far as Power Levels are concerned).
Although Super Saiyan Blue Evolution became Vegeta's primary form in Dragon Ball Super, he's slowly pivoting to making Ultra Ego his main form. He doesn't get a chance to use it in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (not even against Gohan Beast), but it hasn't been that long since the end of the Granolah Saga. Come the Black Frieza Saga, Vegeta will need to rely on Ultra Ego just to keep up with Frieza's monstrous new Power Level.
2 Gohan Beast is the Strongest Z-Fighter Form Right Now
As of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Gohan is once again the strongest Z-Fighter in the series. While fighting Cell Max, Piccolo fakes his death, triggering Gohan's rage and having him tap into his new Beast form. According to Whis, Gohan Beast is neither a Super Saiyan form, nor a God form, but a transformation unique to Gohan in every sense.
The Official 10 Strongest Dragon Ball Super Forms, Ranked
Dragon Ball Super's power scaling means that the series' forms are leagues stronger than anything seen in Dragon Ball Z, & are only getting stronger.
In many ways, Gohan Beast feels like an evolution of Ultimate Gohan, bringing out all his latent potential and rage into one form. In Dragon Ball Super Chapter 103, Gohan Beast fights Mastered Ultra Instinct Goku and is strong enough to knock Goku out UI. Gohan Beast then fights Ultra Instinct Goku, Super Saiyan Blue Evolved Vegeta, Super Saiyan Broly, Super Saiyan Goten, and Super Saiyan Trunks in a battle royale that he, by all accounts, wins.
1 Black Frieza is the Most Powerful Form in Dragon Ball Super
It's frankly ridiculous just how overpowered Frieza has become. In the Granolah the Survivor Saga, Frieza reveals he's been secretly training in a Hyperbolic Time Chamber for ten years following the events of Dragon Ball Super: Broly. Frieza officially perfects his Golden Frieza form into Black Frieza, which is strong enough to one-shot Gas, Ultra Instinct Goku, and Ultra Ego Vegeta in the span of a few pages.
Frieza is officially the strongest mortal in Dragon Ball Super, and may even be strong enough to kill the Gods of Destruction thanks to Black Frieza. Not a single Super Saiyan form can even come close to Black Frieza, which is saying something considering Legendary Super Saiyan Broly was previously strong enough to obliterate Golden Frieza. The Black Frieza Saga is going to be the Z-Fighters' greatest challenge yet.
- Created by
- Akira Toriyama
- First TV Show
- Dragon Ball
- Latest TV Show
- Dragon Ball DAIMA
- Upcoming TV Shows
- Dragon Ball DAIMA
- First Episode Air Date
- February 26, 1986
- TV Show(s)
- Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, Dragon Ball DAIMA