Here's the analysis of who I believed to be one of the better characters ever written:The story starts off with Goku living in Mount Paozu, where he hunts and has a shed containing his most cherished possession - The four star ball. The ball is his memento for Gohan and because Grandpa Gohan was the one who raised and loved him, Goku cherished the ball more than anything else at the time. Goku was also shown talking to ball which showed he believed in reincarnation, which he must've learned from Gohan before his death. Bulma shows up to Goku's location and introduces herself to him, Goku's interaction with Bulma was the first of many scenes that showcased Goku's little knowledge of the world and how he only knew as much as his deceased Grandpa Gohan taught him, and not by what he's actually seen which is why he couldn't tell what most things were by mere sight alone and seemed oblivious to the world. He couldn't tell Bulma was a girl until she told him and was later shown to be surprised by the features of a girl. Bulma explained to Goku about the Dragon Balls and how his grandpa's ball was one of them, Goku wasn't interested in exploring the world but Bulma mentioned how Gohan informed Goku to treat girls with respect which lead to Goku deciding to join Bulma. This scene showcases a key side of Goku. His desire to honour Grandpa Gohan, a side which influenced his later actions in the series.
Although he treats girls nice Goku didn't have any romantic interest in girls. Goku was indifferent about beauty in woman. He viewed all girls equally in terms of beauty because he didn't have any human feelings to guide him to the human idea of beauty. He only found them stranger than men because of their features in comparison. This is a result of what Goku was used to growing up with only his Grandpa as well as his genetics (Which we'll get to later). This was shown in scenes such as when Master Roshi showed him two girls with Goku not being able to tell which one was beautiful, and when Goku brought back a huge and not so attractive woman when Roshi told him to bring back a pretty woman.
Goku's training with Krillin - The rival turned best friend through the bond their shared during the training, under the teachings of Master Roshi, which was reflected through the World Tournament itself, was what moulded Goku into the fighter he grew up to be. Master Roshi taught Goku that there's always someone better and that he shouldn't be seduced by the adulation or status that comes with perusing Martial Arts but rather see events such the World Tournament (And in turn the goals that inspired him and others to become martial artists) as only a checkpoint to evaluate his growth as a fighter, but not substantiate it. That there is no greatest and that the true value in working is the work itself and one should work purely to improve themselves, which worked perfectly in conjunction with Goku's own purity. This important life lesson is the foundation of Goku and his belief as a fighter, with each challenge Goku faced strengthening that belief because he was always able to surpass his own limits through his work without status or titles being a barrier for his potential. Training under Roshi led to Goku breaking the human wall, an aspect of his character that has a deeper meaning once his heritage was introduced later on.
Goku is known to constantly push his limits and always preferring a fair fight. Where that mentality derived from was during his training with Master Roshi. When Goku was delivering milk as his training session, Goku was worn out and suggested using the nimbus with Roshi replying that it wouldn't be training and that Gohan did the same training. This hits home the theme of improving oneself because the training was to improve the body with the nimbus negating that. This motivated Goku to push on and always believe in a fair fight, because he strongly cherishes his grandpa.
The RRA Arc was one of the most important arcs for Goku's development. It starts off with him going on a selfish quest to retrieve his four star ball but in the process learned how much people cherishes their lives and took responsibility for it, leading to him going on a selfless quest to obtain all the Dragon Balls.
Goku learning how much people cherishes their lives stemmed from a hostage scene, where General White held a village chef hostage. He threatened to kill the chef if Goku makes a move on him, and Goku was reluctant to do anything at first but then the chef exclaimed that saving the village is more important than saving him. Goku after hearing that instantly was about to comply with that notion until the chef said he still wants to be saved. Goku then was reluctant yet again. This scene had a great impact on Goku's character. Goku is pure hearted yet had no troubles killing the innocent chef, this was because he wasn't pure by human standards and thus didn't feel like humans despite being taught morals by grandpa Gohan and comprehended said morals. Goku realized that humans cherish their lives to the point that they'd value it more than the greater cause through the village chef. This was the start of another one of Goku's themes - The meaning of purity.
Later on the RRA arc, during when he met Upa and his father Bora, Tao showed up to kill Goku for the RRA. Bora instead fought Tao in his place with Goku letting him. This led to Bora dying and Upa alone without a father. This was a pivotal moment for Goku because it made him take responsibility for the lives of others. When he saw Upa mourning over his loss, Goku stared at his grandpa's ball, the ball which saved his life from Tao. This symbolised how Gohan was his motivation for taking said responsibility because Upa loss was a reflection of the loss Goku himself faced when Gohan died because he felt he attracted Tao much like he attracted Oozaru. Symbolising/Foreshadowing how Goku needed to fully understand himself in order to take full responsibility for his actions. His lack of understanding of himself was what lead to Gohan's death and his selfishness led to Bora's death, with both deaths connecting for said symbolism. This is why Goku decided to gather all the Dragon Balls to wish Bora back instead of his selfish quest. He felt responsible for Bora's death because he attracted the danger of Tao towards him.
Afterwards, he climbed up Korin's tower and met Korin. Goku was tasked to take the sacred water from Korin who was too skilled and fast for Goku. Goku at this point was highly motivated which led to a scene when he contemplated taking the water from Korin during his sleep. Goku was inches away from grabbing it but paused and thought to himself. Although Goku strongly wanted to revive Bora to atone for allowing him to die, he also still strongly believed in fairness as a fighter. Both of which was a result of him honouring Gohan. This was the start of Goku's defining characteristics - His conflicted nature. In the end, Goku decided not to cheat, believing he'd be able to work for it. But it was really his true nature that made that decision, which was revealed later on. In the end, Goku was able to take the water but it was revealed that it was actually ordinary water he was working for. The power he gained came from the work he put into the water not the water itself, which reinforced the main themes of the show, valuing hard work over the reward.
During the Baba Tournament saga, Goku competed to get the last Dragon Ball and wish Bora back. When Goku brought Upa via nimbus cloud, he gave Upa words of encouragement almost like an older brother. Goku reveals that he was once scared like Upa too but after exploring the world realised how much fun it is, as shown by Goku's fascination with the wonders of the world throughout his adventures. He also told Upa that it'd be possible for him to experience all that fun once he trains and learns from Bora him, much like Goku did from Gohan. His final opponent was revealed to be none other than his grandpa. A touching moment ensued with him reuniting with his grandpa after their match. This was the first and only time Goku was shown crying, which furthered the impact of it, because he cherished his grandpa more than anything else. It showed a vulnerable side to Goku, showing that no matter how joyous one appears, some scars don't truly heal, something that is brought up again later on in the series. Him growing to care more for lives also influenced his emotion towards Gohan. Gohan explained that he was wearing the mask to make sure Goku didn't held back and evaluated his progress. He also told Goku that he needs to work on his weakness - His tail (Which was revealed to be a grander weakness once his heritage was introduced later on). Which Goku did during the 22nd Tournament, further showing how Gohan motivates his actions. The main theme of Goku's character during the RRA - Baba arc was the responsibility of one's actions and the rewards and that come with it. A corresponding theme of a later arc.
Goku's reaction to Krillin's death was a reflection of how much he grew from the RRA arc, he truly felt the pain of loss to the point that he was out for revenge and was willing to take great measures to avenge his friend's deaths by drinking the real sacred water that could've led to his death and gaining greater power. Although he hates taking short-cuts, he was in his most dire situation and had no choice. After he defeated King Piccolo, Mr. Popo soon reminded him that statuses are no barrier for power, and that there's always someone better by outclassing him in every way and teaching him ways to improve his fighting methods.
During the 23rd World Tournament Goku has now grown into a young adult. Where he met the girl he promised to marry as a kid - ChiChi. Goku's purity and desire to honor his grandpa led to him accepting marriage even though he doesn't have any romantic feelings for ChiChi and women in general. It took an unconventional guy like Goku, who goes against the idealogical pure hearted person, to court someone like ChiChi who attempted to follow the idealogical steps for marriage but by marrying Goku did the opposite due to not being very bright similar to how Goku misunderstood marriage by not being very bright himself. There might be a hidden message in there about how we perceive love as a species back then. Because standards for a man used to be to have a wife and child, and to be a pure person would be to have the required feelings that comes with that. But with Goku, his pureness didn't gave him any predetermined straightness because that's not what his pureness stems from. He only married a woman because she follows what she perceived to be society's standards at the time and as a result Goku felt obligated, but not romantic. It could be commentary about how we're not truly following our hearts, but rather what society determines our hearts should be like.
After the epic fight between Goku and Piccolo Jr, Goku made a decision that foreshadows what's to come in the Z era - Giving Piccolo a Senzu Bean and allowing him to escape for the sake of having a rival to test his limits on. It may appear that Kami's ties to Piccolo was what the decision stemmed from, but little did Goku know that it was actually an action that stems from his heritage.
Part 2: http://www.kanzenshuu.com/forum/viewtop ... 2#p1059682