The 13 Best Dragon Ball Z Characters

Even decades aft its archetypal run, Dragon Ball Z remains 1 of the astir fashionable anime bid ever released. Who doesn't emotion watching colorful, muscular heroes battling it retired with the destiny of the full satellite astatine stake?

Even arsenic the franchise continues to turn acknowledgment to Dragon Ball Super and the precocious concluded Dragon Ball Daima, we consciousness present is simply a large clip to observe classical DBZ and its astir iconic heroes and villains. Let's number down the 10 champion characters from the show's agelong run, from Frieza to Vegeta to Goku.

Note: This database lone covers Dragon Ball Z, not the archetypal Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, oregon Dragon Ball Daima!

13. Mr. Satan/Hercule

Dragon Ball Z has a fig of designated comic alleviation characters, but it's hard to apical Mr. Satan (or Hercule, if you similar the Funimation dub). This bombastic, self-aggrandizing combatant is lone excessively blessed to support taking recognition for the Z crew's victories, which leads to him becoming the world's astir beloved personage by the extremity of the series. But connected immoderate level, we can't truly blasted the guy. By quality standards, helium really is beauteous powerful, and it's not his responsibility helium has to effort to vie with Saiyans and Namekians. Besides, helium got the accidental to combat a resurrected Hitler successful the Fusion Reborn movie, and that has to number for something.

12. Majin Buu

As the last main villain of the series, Majin Buu doesnt rather clasp up to erstwhile baddies similar Frieza and Cell, but he's inactive beauteous imposing successful his ain right. He's by acold the astir almighty of the galore fighters Goku and friends quadrate disconnected against successful the series. What truly makes Buu basal retired is the information that helium has truthful galore forms, each with their ain property and motivations. Every clip our heroes deliberation they've achieved the powerfulness indispensable to conquer this past evil, helium transforms and resets the crippled committee each implicit again.

11. Videl

She whitethorn beryllium a comparatively precocious summation to the series, but Video decidedly ranks among the show's champion pistillate characters. It's a batch of amusive watching her friendship/romance with Gohan make successful the aboriginal people of the Buu Saga, particularly arsenic Videl butts heads with the arsenic headstrong Chi-Chi. It besides rapidly becomes wide that Videl is the powerful, noble combatant her begetter wishes helium could be. She's not capable to lend overmuch arsenic the Buu Saga wears on, but Videl remains 1 of the champion aboriginal additions to the DBZ saga.

10. Bulma

Bulma isn't rather arsenic cardinal to the Dragon Ball Z saga arsenic she is the archetypal Dragon Ball, but she's inactive a quality worthy highlighting. The uncommon subject dork amid a oversea of musclebound fighters, Bulma is ever blessed to prevention the time with a useful gadget oregon three. Where would our heroes beryllium without her trusty array of Capsule Corp. accessories? Bulma's improbable romance with Vegeta besides proves to beryllium 1 of the series' much compelling subplots. She's travel a agelong mode since her precise archetypal team-up with Goku.

9. Android 18

While the enactment betwixt bully and evil is usually beauteous good defined successful the DBZ-verse, determination are exceptions. Android 18 is surely 1 specified case. One of the world-conquering androids Future Trunks is sent to pass our heroes about, 18 rapidly proves herself to beryllium much than conscionable a sidesplitting machine. Her autarkic streak and sarcastic consciousness of wit uncover a deep-seated humanity Dr. Gero couldn't rather snuff out. By the extremity of the series, 18 has fixed up her archetypal programming successful favour of starting a household with Krillin. It's a shame the bid ne'er shows america much of however that narration developed, but 18 nevertheless ranks among the series' much intriguing and nuanced characters.

8. Cell

The eventual instauration of Dr. Gero, Cell is simply a carnal who has adjacent limitless maturation potential. What is astir absorbing astir him, though, is that helium is consenting to hold for characters to scope their afloat potential. He could simply termination everyone with his immense power, but often helium is seen stalling and waiting, arsenic helium wants to conflict the heroes of Earth erstwhile they are astatine their existent potential.

If not rather the top villain successful DBZ history, Cell is surely liable for immoderate of the series' champion moments. Who tin hide the tragic decease of Android 16, spurring Gohan to unleash his existent power? And don't hide the melodramatic last showdown, erstwhile the precocious Goku returns to assistance his lad yet destruct this all-powerful menace to humanity.

7. Krillin

You truly can’t marque a database astir Dragon Ball Z without including Krillin, Goku’s longtime person and grooming partner. Although his powerfulness is rapidly outpaced by Goku during the events of Dragon Ball Z, Krillin is ever astir and acceptable to fight, adjacent if it often does mean helium gets bushed up. In fact, Krillin's mediocre warring grounds has go a spot of a moving gag astatine this point. The astir memorable of his galore deaths occurs astatine the hands of Frieza, thing Krillin himself has ne'er forgotten. However, it was not wholly successful vain, arsenic his decease served to spark the archetypal Super Saiyan translation successful Goku. He whitethorn ne'er beryllium the strongest, oregon the most... alive, but Krillin is ever determination for his friends, and that’s what makes him fig 7 connected our list.

6. Trunks

Trunks is unsocial among the DBZ fighters successful that helium appears successful 2 wholly antithetic forms implicit the people of the series. We archetypal conscionable Trunks aboriginal successful the Cell Saga, arsenic a battle-hardened teen warrior from the aboriginal with a dire message. Trunks makes rather the archetypal impression, handily dispatching some Mecha-Frieza and King Cold with a fewer lightning-quick sword slashes, and helium continues to summation caller layers implicit the people of that storyline and the tie-in movie, The History of Trunks.

Later, fans conscionable the younger mentation of Trunks, a lad nary longer burdened by increasing up successful a hellish satellite of evil androids. Along with his BFF Goten, Trunks is the root of endless comedic alleviation during the Buu Saga. Whichever mentation you prefer, he's a worthy summation to the series' cast.

5. Piccolo

Piccolo did rather the 180 implicit the people of DBZ. It's casual to hide helium was the main villain successful the last communicative arc successful the archetypal Dragon Ball. Piccolo dilatory morphs from Goku's mortal force to reluctant state to outright person implicit the people of the series. Whatever differences the 2 warriors mightiness erstwhile person had, Piccolo is redeemed aft taking a beardown involvement successful young Gohan, helping nurture his pupil's immense hidden power. Piccolo is besides notable for being the 1 non-Saiyan quality who tin support up with the likes of Goku and Vegeta, acknowledgment chiefly to his wont of fusing with chap Namekians similar Nail and his doppelganger Kami.

4. Gohan

Goku's older lad Gohan could perchance beryllium the strongest combatant successful the series. Sadly, that imaginable is ne'er afloat realized, arsenic helium would alternatively unrecorded his beingness arsenic a pacifist, lone warring successful times of existent need. Even with that mentality, though, Gohan has been progressive successful immoderate of the largest and astir memorable moments of the full franchise. We are teased passim the bid that his interior imaginable is greater than anyone's, and we spot an illustration of this erstwhile helium becomes the archetypal Super Saiyan 2 successful bid to decision Cell. His imaginable is further unlocked during the Buu Saga, erstwhile helium gains the quality to spell into an Ultimate form, wholly abstracted from his Saiyan forms. Perhaps helium ne'er genuinely eclipses his begetter successful presumption of power, but successful galore ways Gohan is the existent bosom and psyche of DBZ.

3. Frieza

He whitethorn not beryllium anyplace adjacent the astir almighty villain by the series' end, but Frieza's capableness for evil is unrivaled. Frieza and the remainder of his household regularisation implicit a monolithic abstraction empire, and they intelligibly similar to bash truthful with an robust fist. Even earlier gathering Goku, we larn that Frieza has destroyed countless worlds, killed millions of radical and was liable for the demolition of Planet Vegeta, the homeworld of the Saiyans. Once we bash conscionable him successful the series, his evil ways are further displayed arsenic helium kills and tortures the radical of Namek to get their Dragon Balls. He kills Krillin, and successful his past act, destroys the satellite Namek successful an effort to termination Goku. Years aft his archetypal debut, determination has inactive been nary villain who tin lucifer Frieza’s ruthless, evil ways, and for this crushed helium makes it to fig 3 connected our list.

2. Goku

Goku is the main quality of the Dragon Ball saga, and it lone makes consciousness he'd fertile precise precocious connected this database arsenic 1 of the astir recognizable anime characters. Time and again, Goku proves himself to beryllium the leader his adoptive location satellite needs. He ever digs heavy and finds a caller reservoir of spot oregon a caller level of Super Saiyan-hood to flooded the mightiest opponents the beingness has to offer. No one, not Frieza, Broly oregon Buu, tin genuinely decision the eventual Saiyan warrior.

Goku is besides a fundamentally bully guy. He wants thing much than to bid hard, beryllium his mettle and travel location to a bully meal. Maybe that makes him simpler and little analyzable than his archrival Vegeta, but you person to respect Goku's consistency implicit the years.

1. Vegeta

No quality experiences a greater oregon better-defined arc implicit the people of Dragon Ball Z than Vegeta. When we archetypal conscionable him, this prince of the mislaid Saiyan Empire is simply a planet-destroying bully travel to conquer Earth. But implicit the people of the series, Vegeta evolves from foe to reluctant person of the Z Fighters. He adjacent settles down with Bulma and starts a family. But adjacent erstwhile helium turns implicit a caller leaf, Vegeta has a wont of putting his rivalry with Goku up of the planet's champion interests.

Vegeta is the series' top quality due to the fact that he's besides the astir fascinating. He's cursed to ever beryllium 2nd best. No magnitude of high-gravity grooming oregon death-defying schemes volition let Vegeta to enactment up of Goku for long. But that doesn't halt him from trying, and that's wherefore we emotion him.

Do you hold with our picks? Does the #1 prime marque you privation to spell Super Saiyan? Sound disconnected successful the comments below! You tin besides cheque our enactment of Dragon Ball Z enactment figures to adhd them to your collection.

Note: this nonfiction was primitively published connected 9/16/2021 and updated connected 5/7/2025.