Is Freeza The Main Antagonist Of DB?

[ABED]

I don't think he is. I liked it that DB knew when to end a villain's run instead of continually trotting them out to the point of ruining what made them interesting.

Yes, his role in Z and Super have pretty much made him the face of DB villains. He may not be in every arc but his stamp on the franchise and story can always be felt.

So can Professor Moriarty's, but he's only in a single Sherlock Holmes story. That doesn't make him the main antagonist, just a popular one.

[Snakeway Skywalker]

I don't think he is. I liked it that DB knew when to end a villain's run instead of continually trotting them out to the point of ruining what made them interesting..

But's exactly what they've done with Freeza...

[ABED]

I don't think he is. I liked it that DB knew when to end a villain's run instead of continually trotting them out to the point of ruining what made them interesting..

But's exactly what they've done with Freeza...

Still doesn't make him the main antagonist. He's a prominent antagonist, but not the main one.

[Jinzoningen MULE]

I don't think he is. I liked it that DB knew when to end a villain's run instead of continually trotting them out to the point of ruining what made them interesting..

But's exactly what they've done with Freeza...

Notice he said "knew", not "knows". Though honestly, the ToP kinda retroactively justifies everything Toriyama's done with Freeza lately. As long as he doesn't default back to a previous role, I think it's still safe to say that the utilization of antagonists is still in the clear.

[Neo-Makaiōshin]

From a narrative stand point Frieza is the main antagonist because he has by far the farthest reaching influence:
[spoiler]

1. He is tied directly to the main character as he both enslaved and destroyed his people and home planet.
   
   Depending on on which you prefer, he destroyed Vegeta on the day Goku left for earth or Goku was sent out of fear of that destruction.
   
   His actions insurde that Goku is allowed to live on earth without outside intervention for far longer then would have likely been allowed if the saiyans were still around.
   
   He is the murderer of Goku's biological parents.
   
   He has, going by Super, at least 448 planets under his control, Advanced and Primitive.
   
   Vegeta along with Nappa and Raditz (the main threats from the saiyan arc) were basically his slaves.
   
   He slaughtered Piccolo's people in cold blood, destroyed their world and forced them to relocate.
   
   His power is so great that his most powerful minions (Ginyu and Oozaru Vegeta) are still 5x weaker then his weakest form and Zenkai and Namekain Fusion were invented just to help the heroes bridge the horrific power gap.
   
   His actions on Namek resulted in every participating hero, save Bulma, forever carrying a deep seated hatred for him to this day.
   
   Its thanks to him that Goku became the first SS of his era.
   
   He is the one who helps raise the curtain for the Android arc with Trunks.
   
   The main threat of the Android arc, Cell, was created using some his DNA and Cell's design is heavily influence by him.
   
   He made 2 cameo appearances in the Buu arc filler.
   
   He has ties to 5 of the movie villains one way or another. He is mentioned as a threat to Turles (Eng dub only), Slug's power is compared to his by Kaio, Cooler is his brother, Broly was on planet Vegeta when he destroyed it (another thing that would have added to the demented saiyan's psychological baggage) and he is freed from hell by Janemba, who's design was also partly influenced by Frieza.
   
   He gets a cameo in GT and it is his actions that led to the wish that birthed Yī Xīng Lóng, GT's penultimate threat.
   
   He is known personally by the GoD of U7, Beerus.
   
   He is the first true villain to be resurrected with the Dragon Balls.
   
   His is the only Main manga/anime villain to get a movie based around him.
   
   In just 4 months of training his potential power has been suggested to have surpassed or at least be comparable to most of the main threats in the story that appeared after him with only Beerus, Fused Zamasu and Jiren being confirmed as definitively more powerful.
   
   Almost beat the heroes again if not for outside help from Whis.
   
   As of RoF, he has destroyed 3 iconic planets in the series.
   
   Is resurrected again to take part in a tournament to save U7 from destruction.

[/spoiler]

His resamay completely eclipses every other villains in the franchise, that combined with his continued relevance and use in the series easily makes him the most iconic villain and the primary villain of DB.

This would make Freeza the villan with the most influence in the in-universe story at most but not necesarily the main villan of the franchise since the characters only know of his existence and actively face him in 1 arc out of all 10 DB arcs and is only heavily feature in that 1 arc.

[SpiritBombTriumphant]

Well that depends how you look at it.

Compared to many of his contemporaries, Blackbeard from One Piece for example, Frieza is very different because he is not the over arcing villain of DB. He's not behind the curtain or active in the universe along side Goku. However Frieza is very much like many western comic book villains. While he is Goku's primary villainous counter part, he like Luthor, Joker and Green Goblin, gets brought out every so often then put back in the box until its his turn again.

From a narrative stand point Frieza is the main antagonist because he has by far the farthest reaching influence:

I'm not 100% sure. I believe that Freeza is the catalyst for the entire series, and he's a major antagonist. Freeza blowing up Planet Vegeta to destroy any chance of a Super Saiyan appearing and defeating him, all the way to Goku fighting him on Planet Namek, is an entire story in itself. But afterwards, he fades out as Cell, Buu, and Zamasu/Black appear. He certainely is the most recurring antagonist, and almost as important to the series as Goku himself. Since he is the catalyst for everything, he is partially responsible for everything that happens up until his defeat. If you consider 151 episodes of Dragon Ball and 104 episodes of Z, he is responsible for what happens in the first half of both DB and DBZ.

However, with the number of times his annoying butt has returned, it could be that Toei is trying to make Freeza be to Goku what Joker is to Batman. Not the main antagonist despite everything I mentioned above, but the timeless villain that will forever be battling Goku, similar to Ganondorf and Link/Zelda. I think that like the heroes of other franchises I've mentioned, Goku and Freeza are supposed to simply be the representation of good vs evil for the series. When I watched the series as a kid, I saw Goku and Freeza as just that. When Goku became a Super Saiyan, it epitomized the timeless battle of good vs evil. Goku was an underdog, the good guy, and the only one who could save the universe. Freeza was the powerful, big, evil villain.

Much like in the Bible with God vs. Satan and how the world will have its worst days in the last 7 years before the second coming of Christ, or how people say "it's always darkest before dawn," Goku and Freeza are the simple representation of good and evil, with good overpowering evil just like in the aforementioned examples. Goku is losing, but then becomes a Super Saiyan and defeats evil. I think that, regardless of intention, the everlasting struggle between Goku and Freeza, who simply won't die and stay dead (or out of the picture, at least), represents the eternal struggle of good vs evil: evil will never die, but if good men stop fighting then evil will win one day.

So yeah, not the main antagonist, but the iconic villain representing a theme as old as time itself, and the catalyst for the entire series.

[ABED]

I don't think Freeza represents anything. He was simply the latest in a line of big bads and a possible final big bad for the story.

[Shinda Forever]

Yes, i think so. Freeza is the most iconic villain and the only one alongside with Hitto that can compete with Goku.
Freeza also can evolve through transformations to keep up with Goku and Hitto has Junsui naru Seichō (pure progress).
However, the topic is about who is the main antagonist and definitely Freeza is the one, the real deal and finally, i believe that he will replace Vegeta as Goku's main rival.

[sintzu]

I believe that he will replace Vegeta as Goku's main rival.

Vegeta isn't getting replaced by anyone, even one of the producers said he was his eternal rival when this arc was announced.

[Shinda Forever]

I believe that he will replace Vegeta as Goku's main rival.

Vegeta isn't getting replaced by anyone, even one of the producers said he was his eternal rival when this arc was announced.

He can be his eternal rival, but, that doesn't mean Freeza is not going to replace him as Goku's main rival. What i mean is that Freeza will be stronger than Vegeta and if you look at the db heroes clip, it seems Goku and Freeza will be the last two warriors standing from U7. You need to prepare yourself.

[sintzu]

It seems Goku and Freeza will be the last two warriors standing from U7. You need to prepare yourself.

I was pretty sure he and those 2 would be the last fighters but it doesn't mean Vegeta is weaker or Freeza is so much stronger that he can't catch up.

Goku and Vegeta are rivals & Freeza is the villain, that's something the franchise is known for and its main selling point so they're not going to change that. Once this tournament is over it's going to be business as usuall for those 3.

[Shinda Forever]

It seems Goku and Freeza will be the last two warriors standing from U7. You need to prepare yourself.

I was pretty sure he and those 2 would be the last fighters but it doesn't mean Vegeta is weaker or Freeza is so much stronger that he can't catch up.

Goku and Vegeta are rivals & Freeza is the villain, that's something the franchise is known for and its main selling point so they're not going to change that. Once this tournament is over it's going to be business as usuall for those 3.

You are forgetting Hitto, just remember that in one of the new DB heroes cards they have Goku, Freeza, Jiren and Hitto as the top 4. Yes, you are right, Vegeta can catch up with Freeza in the next arc and i agree that once this tournament is over it's going to be business as usual for those 3. I hope Hitto can be in the top 4/5 as well.

[Snakeway Skywalker]

Yes, i think so. Freeza is the most iconic villain and the only one alongside with Hitto that can compete with Goku.
Freeza also can evolve through transformations to keep up with Goku and Hitto has Junsui naru Seichō (pure progress).
However, the topic is about who is the main antagonist and definitely Freeza is the one, the real deal and finally, i believe that he will replace Vegeta as Goku's main rival.

Frieza taking more of a "rival role" towards Goku rather than being arch nemeses sounds really interesting! It does seem like they've been setting that up since ep#94. After the tournament, and if Goku really does revive Freeza, maybe big F won't feel like enacting his revenge quite yet. That is, if he isn't erased in the tournament for scheming with Frost.

But I really do wanna see Frieza becoming Goku's go-to rival in the 5 years that G&V don't talk. I mean, it'll obviously take awhile. After all, for the majority of Z, Vegeta was an anti-hero who reluctantly fought with the Z Fighters so that these other bad guys could kill Goku before he did. I can totally see the TOP and whatever arc comes after this one being like that for Freeza. It's possible, but highly doubtful. I mean, the guy is pure evil.

[Shinda Forever]

Yes, i think so. Freeza is the most iconic villain and the only one alongside with Hitto that can compete with Goku.
Freeza also can evolve through transformations to keep up with Goku and Hitto has Junsui naru Seichō (pure progress).
However, the topic is about who is the main antagonist and definitely Freeza is the one, the real deal and finally, i believe that he will replace Vegeta as Goku's main rival.

Frieza taking more of a "rival role" towards Goku rather than being arch nemeses sounds really interesting! It does seem like they've been setting that up since ep#94. After the tournament, and if Goku really does revive Freeza, maybe big F won't feel like enacting his revenge quite yet. That is, if he isn't erased in the tournament for scheming with Frost.

But I really do wanna see Frieza becoming Goku's go-to rival in the 5 years that G&V don't talk. I mean, it'll obviously take awhile. After all, for the majority of Z, Vegeta was an anti-hero who reluctantly fought with the Z Fighters so that these other bad guys could kill Goku before he did. I can totally see the TOP and whatever arc comes after this one being like that for Freeza. It's possible, but highly doubtful. I mean, the guy is pure evil.

I would say Frieza will be the character that will keep the balance in the Universe 7 and he will keep Goku and the Z warriors in check, furthermore, if he is revived, he will rebuild his Empire for sure which is a great thing for the franchise.

Another scenario is that the next threat will affect the universe 7 again and Freeza will be needed to help again.
Let's not forget that despite this tournament, they still have stronger universes to explore.

[Snakeway Skywalker]

I would say Frieza will be the character that will keep the balance in the Universe 7 and he will keep Goku and the Z warriors in check, furthermore, if he is revived, he will rebuild his Empire for sure which is a great thing for the franchise.

Another scenario is that the next threat will affect the universe 7 again and Freeza will be needed to help again.
Let's not forget that despite this tournament, they still have stronger universes to explore.

But I don't wanna see Frieza rebuild his empire if he's revived! They already had him do that in Resurrection F/Golden Frieza Saga. If you're gonna bring back a character (and I would've preferred Cell, guess the writers have forgotten him), at least change him a bit so that his return isn't just fan service or to shock viewers. Sure, they gave him yet another form, and granted, it's an awesome form, but actually giving F a character arc, something that's never really been done to the galactic tyrant and a storytelling device that is noticeably absent from Super, would be so much better and much more worthy of Freeza's iconic legacy.

[Jinzoningen MULE]

But I don't wanna see Frieza rebuild his empire if he's revived! They already had him do that in Resurrection F/Golden Frieza Saga.

He didn't really, though. That was the reason given for his resurrection, but Freeza opted to focus entirely on his revenge, instead, so seeing him rebuild an empire wouldn't necessarily be redundant. That said, it would almost certainly put Freeza back in the position of being the stereotypical mustache twirling big-bad, which I wouldn't be interested in.

[ABED]

If Freeza rebuilds his empire, that's returning the story to a status quo. This is why I like stories to conclude, so they aren't constantly retreading things and tearing things apart to put them together again.

[Shinda Forever]

If Freeza rebuilds his empire, that's returning the story to a status quo. This is why I like stories to conclude, so they aren't constantly retreading things and tearing things apart to put them together again.

But, in history things move forward and sometimes backwards. It is a constant struggle.

[Jinzoningen MULE]

If Freeza rebuilds his empire, that's returning the story to a status quo. This is why I like stories to conclude, so they aren't constantly retreading things and tearing things apart to put them together again.

But, in history things move forward and sometimes backwards. It is a constant struggle.

#1: Only in a vague sense. The same basic patterns tend to loop, but the Greek Empire wasn't constantly flickering in and out of existence, nor was Alexander the Great ever granted a resurrection. There's a natural progression to things even in reality.

#2: History isn't a crafted story. Well... it kinda is, but you get the idea. A fictional narrative has to progress, to stay unique, or it loses all momentum. Luckily, Freeza is actually being handled really well right now, so it works, but if he were to become the big bad again, unless there's a damn good context for it, will inevitably be redundant. Likewise, Toriyama can never again do what's being done with Freeza now, these scenarios can't work in repetition.

[RandomGuy96]

Well if it's not Frieza then who else is even a contender?

Vegeta. If you go by the manga itself it's not even close really, it's unquestionably Vegeta inasmuch as the series can be said to have one.