How much screentime did Goku get in DBZ, really? About 50%?

[precita]

This has come up often, and since Super has Goku in almost every episode, it seems like people have forgotten what little screentime Goku gets back in DBZ.

Saiyan saga: After the Radditz fight, the screentime seems equally divided between Gohan's adventures and a few eps of Goku while he's dead. The majority of Nappa/Vegeta fighting happens without Goku. When Goku arrives, he only fights Vegeta for like 3-4 episodes before he's out of commission. The rest of the fight is Gohan/Krillin/Yajirobe.

Namek saga: The entire first half of the Namek saga until Goku lands on Namek has him getting very little screentime besides the few training fillers Toei made on his spaceship. He only fights Buter/Jeice and then Ginyu for a few episodes before he's out of focus again. We go all the way to Freeza's final form without Goku. Then of course the rest of the Namek saga is Goku Vs. Freeza where he gets the most screentime in a row. Then in the Garlic Jr. arc he's not there.

Cell saga: Goku isn't in the first 4 episodes when Trunks arrives. After a training filler, Goku quickly loses to 19 and is out of the picture for another two dozen episodes. He doesn't get well again till Cell's in his second form, and after that he quickly goes with Gohan to the time chamber to train. At the Cell games Goku only fights Cell for 3 episodes before quitting. After that and being decimated by Cell Jr's he's sacrifices himself.

Buu saga: After Toei's filler with the Otherworld tournament, the focus shifts to Gohan, then equally to Goku/Vegeta/Gohan in the Babidi's ship, then after Goku/Majin Vegeta the focus shifts to Goten/Trunks and Gohan for most of the saga. Then we get Vegito who if you count as seperate from Goku gets 4 episodes. Then we just get Goku/Vegeta to end the series with.


So in reality it seems like Goku was either absent or got very little screentime for 50% of DBZ's episodes. I think Super which focuses on Goku so heavily and shoves him down our throats has forgotten how little he does for a large chunk of DBZ.

[sintzu]

Him getting so little screentime is why I like him the most in Z, he doesn't overstay his welcome. It also shows how strong the other characters are cause unlike DB, they move a good amount of the story along when Goku is out of the picture and even when he isn't they still play a major role with him.

It also makes his shining moments have more of an impact cause they're far and few between.

[TheRed259]

since Super has Goku in almost every episode

Goku is absent only in episode 7 of Super. XD

[ABED]

I don't like that Z overuses the trope of taking the hero out of action. It's used twice in the Freeza arc!

[Chuquita]

Oh I remember him not being around; but I honestly think that was only because Toriyama was in the middle of his long attempt to pass the torch to Gohan.

I'm grateful to have Gokû around for Super; with Vegeta on hiatus, if it weren't for Gokû I'd be skipping Super entirely until Gokû came back. Unlike Z I don't have the luxury anymore of five "new" episodes each week.

[sintzu]

Oh I remember him not being around; but I honestly think that was only because Toriyama was in the middle of his long attempt to pass the torch to Gohan.

In DB Goku's main goal was to win the Tenkaichi tournament so maybe Toriyama thought people would lose interest in someone who already reached his goal so he decided to focus on the others instead.

[ABED]

I don't know that it couldn't have been his reason, but I find it hard to believe he couldn't create another goal for Goku to aim at. I can't fathom that as a reason why he would put the focus on other characters, especially when the solution is relatively simple.

[sintzu]

I can't fathom that as a reason why he would put the focus on other characters, especially when the solution is relatively simple.

Maybe he was just tired of writing him after so long. Or maybe he just thought more characters in the spotlight would make for a more interesting story cause the focus would be always changing.

[ClutchBangstrip]

I feel bad for Sean Schemmel, during those times. His pay checks must have been pretty short. Poor guy.

[precita]

I feel bad for Sean Schemmel, during those times. His pay checks must have been pretty short. Poor guy.

I recall him actually saying during the early Cell saga that he couldn't pay his bills because Goku didn't have a speaking role for so many episodes.

[SaiyanGod117]

I feel bad for Sean Schemmel, during those times. His pay checks must have been pretty short. Poor guy.

I recall him actually saying during the early Cell saga that he couldn't pay his bills because Goku didn't have a speaking role for so many episodes.

That's pretty funny, he's making money now his networth is $3 million.

[Totamo]

it's kind of hard to call Goku a character in Z, he feels like a plot device. Starting stories or ending them.

[KorgDTR2000]

It's not something I really thought of before but you're right, he really was absent for a lot of it.

[kinisking]

It was definitely because of Gohan. He was building up Gohan too much to be constantly focusing on Goku. No that Gohans a side character it's not really necessary.

[OhHiRenan]

it's kind of hard to call Goku a character in Z, he feels like a plot device. Starting stories or ending them.

Hard disagree. He has a very clear character that grows and changes throughout Z, and a pretty defined arc in the Saiyan and Namek arcs. It's Not as highlighted than the other character developments we see but it's there.

[ABED]

I don't know if I would agree that Goku goes through big arcs in either of the two arcs you mentioned. He's still a character, though, with a unique personality and motivations.

[floofychan333]

I think Goku was at least in the majority of episodes, but in a lot of the ones he was in had a shared spotlight with other characters or he was dead and training, which most people get bored of watching pretty quickly.

[precita]

I think Goku was at least in the majority of episodes, but in a lot of the ones he was in had a shared spotlight with other characters or he was dead and training, which most people get bored of watching pretty quickly.

In a lot of Saiyan/Namek saga episodes, we literally see no more than 2 minutes of Goku running on Snake way, training in his ship, or in the rejuvenation chamber sensing the Freeza fight before the scene cuts away from him.

Outside of the fillers he got (like Princess Snake, falling off Snake Way into Hell) or the King Kai training episodes, Goku barely got any focus in those episodes until he showed up on the battlefields.

[Lord Beerus]

Goku was all over the place in Z. The only character who was more prevalent in Z was Gohan. I'd say he appears in at least 60-70% of the anime.

He starts the Saiyan arc as the central character and ends it as the central character.

Then when the Androids roll around, he talks and spars with Future Trunks, fights 19, arrives the save Piccolo and Tien from Cell, trains for quite a while with Gohan in the ROSAT, fights Cell for several episodes and even in death plays major part in helping Gohan defeat Cell.

The Majin Boo arc is truly the only arc I confidently say that Goku takes a back seat and Gohan is legitimately treated as the main character, instead of being part of an ensemble cast like before. But once he returns at the WMAT, which is not even 1/5 of the arc's length, he has strong presence in the arc whether it's battling Babidi's minions, fighting Majin Boo himself, teaching Goten and Trunks about the Fusion Dance, watching over Gohan and Gotenks fights Super Boo or training with Gohan on the Sacred World of the Kai. And once Gotenks is absorbed he's virtually becomes the main character again.

And of course that's not even taking into consideration the filler episodes. Which include episodes that have centred around such scenarios as Goku learning about his Saiyan heritage from King Kai, his exploits with Princess Snake, falling into Hell and running into Goz and Mez, searching for the Dragon Balls in the 10 day period before the start of the Cell Games, Gohan's birthday and his battles in the Other World Tournament arc.

I'd say it's only the Namek/Freeza arc where he sits out for lengthy periods of time. But once he arrive on Namek, he's all over the place. He battles Jeice, Recoome, Burter and Ginyu (twice) in several episodes. Then gets put out of commission for a several episodes before coming back to battle Freeza in the longest fight in all of Dragon Ball. His battle with Freeza takes up nearly a 1/4 of the whole Namek/Freeza arc. Yes, the fight is that long.

[precita]

Goku really didn't do much of anything for the majority of the Cell saga either. It's pretty easy to forget how much of it he sits out of. He misses all the Android fights after 19, he misses Cell's first form and almost second form completely...and he only fights Perfect Cell for 3-4 episodes from what I remember.

I'd say most of the Cell saga was carried by Piccolo, Trunks, and to a lesser extent Vegeta then anyone. Gohan also did virtually nothing till the Cell games.