Goku & Vegeta’s Ultimate Sacrifices Show Who Is Dragon Ball’s Best Hero

Both Goku and Vegeta sacrificed their lives but Vegeta accepted much worse consequences for his selfless act, making him Dragon Ball’s best hero.

Goku and Vegeta both sacrificed their lives at different moments in Dragon Ball. However, the differences between the two Saiyans’ ultimate sacrifices prove who is Dragon Ball‘s real greatest hero.

Goku and Vegeta are undoubtedly the two main characters in Dragon Ball. The two powerful Saiyan warriors have been bitter enemies, rivals, and finally friends in the series. Goku and Vegeta also have a lot of differences: while Goku is naive and easygoing, Vegeta is serious and prideful. However, they also have many things in common, such as an unbounded passion for fighting and for becoming stronger by constantly testing themselves against powerful opponents. Interestingly, both characters once made the ultimate sacrifice, giving up their lives for the greater good.

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Both Goku And Vegeta Sacrificed Their Lives To Stop A Powerful Enemy

Goku sacrificed his life at the end of the Cell Saga. After Gohan’s rage unlocked his transformation into Super Saiyan 2, he easily overpowered Cell. However, rather than finishing Cell, Gohan toyed with his opponent, which let the villain trigger his self-destruct sequence, threatening to destroy the entire planet. Goku then teleported Cell to King Kai’s planet, and died in the explosion. In Vegeta’s case, instead, he was the one who did the blowing up. After realizing he could not defeat the recently-awakened Majin Buu, Vegeta pulled up a last-resort move and let all his energy explode, killing himself but also tearing Buu to pieces (even if he was able to regenerate).

There are many parallels between the two moments. Goku and Vegeta were ultimately unable to defeat their opponents despite their sacrifices, as both Cell and Majin Buu regenerated. Also, the two Saiyan got the chance to say one last, emotional farewell to their sons before dying. However, there is one key difference. Before blowing himself up, Vegeta asks Piccolo if he will be able to see Goku in the afterlife. The Namekian answers that, unfortunately, Vegeta has killed too many innocent people during his life, so he will go to Hell where his memory will be erased and his soul will reincarnate in a new body. It’s a bleak prospect, but Vegeta accepted it nonetheless, while Goku knew perfectly well that, after dying, he would go to Heaven, where he kept training (and even achieved Super Saiyan 3).

Vegeta Accepted Much Worse Consequences Than Goku For His Ultimate Sacrifice

Goku still made a sacrifice, because he had to say farewell to his family and friends. However, Vegeta had it much worse, because he knew what terrible fate awaited him after death. Still, the Prince of Saiyans accepted it and, for the first time in his life, he fought for someone other than himself: his family. This is a fundamental step in Vegeta’s path to redemption that marks his growth as a character. In the end, while both Goku and Vegeta sacrificed their lives for the greater good, Vegeta accepted much worse consequences for his first selfless act, which makes him Dragon Ball‘s best hero.

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