Is Super Saiyan 3 a failed transformation?

[precita]

As we know, Super Saiyan 3 just never quite felt right. It didn't seem like a natural extension of the Super Saiyan line and Goku using it always drained his power too quickly. Whereas SSJ2 was just a stronger version of Super Saiyan that wasn't even named when it debuted in the Cell saga (and only teen Gohan looks different, everyone else looks the same), SSJ3 came out of nowhere.

Also unlike the original Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan God, there's no "legend" of a Super Saiyan 3 at all, meaning Goku is probably the very first one to have created it. It felt like Goku created this new transformation out of his training, although it doesn't make sense why Gotenks was able to become one true.

Also we have Vegeta skipping SSJ3 in Super just like in GT. Vegeta goes to Super Saiyan God in Super, and in GT he skipped SSJ3 and went straight to Super Saiyan 4.

So is Super Saiyan 3 just a botched transformation?

[Xeztin]

There are only really two Super Saiyan lines, (3 if you count GT) those being Super Saiyan, and Super Saiyan God. As we know, 2 and 3 are just Variants or levels of the normal SSJ form itself, rather than being completely different transformations like Freizas. To be fair there was not a legend of SSJ 2 either, but as you said you don't think 3 fits the normal SSJ line, so that would be pointless to you. In my opinion SSJ 3 was, in a way a failed transformation as it has terrible side effects on the body. Goku only pulls out SSJ 3 when he knows he has no other choice, Gotenk's just does it for the heck of it I think. I was always baffled as to why SSJ 3's hair went so long, I figured it would have been somewhere around SSJ4's length. I am pretty certain though that in Toriyama's mindset, this transformation was the end all be all, probably meaning he had no plans to ever come back at the time, which he didn't for a good 18 years, so he went all out and created what he thought was the most "epic" of them all. If you look at it from a different perspective then In a way it isn't a failed transformation, just that they couldn't really master it like they did the two previous. I think Vegeta want's to go SSJ 3, but if he can go SSG what's the point? As for GT there are more plot-holes than one can probably wrap his head around, but he didn't turn SSJ4 naturally either. I don't even think he had a tail? I think Gohan's SSJ2 was at first supposed to be exclusive to him, because of his hidden potential mixed with Super Saiyan, and it wasn't really called SSJ2 at the time because of that. After it continued on to the Buu Arc, and Goku and Vegeta got the form, they found out it wasn't exclusive to Gohan, so they had to give it a name. Boom! SSJ2 was born, this is what I've convinced myself of being true.

[B]

It was always my interpretation that 2 and 3 were "fabrications" that the users invented themselves through training. I wouldn't call 3 "failed" so much as "flawed." Obviously from an out-of-universe perspective, 3 is designed to simultaneously be ridiculous and still establish that the user is stronger, so if you want to try to go into Goku's mindset and decipher why it looks like that or what function does longer hair serve... That is, if he even had any control on how it looked to begin with. I figured Gotenks was able to replicate it because A) gag manga, B) he had the strength/capabilities to assess how Goku did it. Kind of like how the characters can see instantaneous movements that look like blurs to normal people. Or, y'know, how everyone and their mama picked up on the Kamehameha based solely on the visuals of it; like that but at a more advanced level because it's Gotenks.

So, 3 isn't foolproof, much like the Kaiou-ken wasn't foolproof. They're at least better than the Grade transformations.

[fadeddreams5]

SSJ3 isn't a failed transformation. It's a forced one, sort of like USSJ, only it manages to increase both speed and power. It always came off as a "last resort" sort of thing, which is what made it great, unlike SSJ4 and SSJB, which seem perfect.

If we go by the anime, Gotenks learned it by watching Goku transform into it. Being a fusion of two SSJ prodigies, you can imagine it wasn't too difficult.

Also, I hate that SSJ2 even became a thing, but it should have completely replaced SSJ, imo. I hate that Goku tends to fight as a SSJ at all after revealing this form.

[precita]

The weird thing is, isn't Super Saiyan 2 only mentioned once in-show when Goku is powering up to SSJ3 for Fat Majin Buu?

They never mention when Vegeta goes SSJ2 either. Its just expected when he's fighting Goku as Majin Vegeta. And for Gohan its not brought up. Its almost like something that was just added in there to sell toys or videogame variants.

[Avenged]

Thought it was established ssj3 could only be achieved in an unearthly manner as Goku was dead and first achieved it in the afterlife and Gotenks was able to due to fusion. The transformation itself also hinted at it being the ultimate Saiyan form with the scenes as Goku turning into Great Ape form.

[Scarlet Spider]

I feel like SSJ2 is far better than SSJ3. There's a great boost in speed and power. The only drawback I could remember was slight increased aggression. (Gohan, Goku, Vegeta; mainly Gohan) Gohan instantly became arrogant and sadistic in his fight against Cell. When demonstrating the form at Kibito he was suddenly eager to fight after hesitating. It doesn't take as much ki as SSJ3 yet outclasses regular SSJ. The strain of SSJ3 is so much. But we'll never see them again. Unless SSJB2 happens.

[Lord Beerus]

Yes. SSJ3 is a failed transformation because it has failed to defeat a single villain since its introduction.

[LuckyCat]

I just think it's overstayed its welcome. SSJ3 brought all these ideas that bigger is better and GT went ahead reinforced that. Some fans took it a step further with SSJ5, and it was all rad back in the 90s.

Toriyama is at his best when writing strong characters that look deceptively weak.

[fadeddreams5]

Yes. SSJ3 is a failed transformation because it has failed to defeat a single villain since its introduction.

Hirudegarn!

[Kingdom Heartless]

I see it as sort of a mutation achieved when they transform beyond Super Saiyan 2 under unnatural circumstances, such as being dead or the product of a fusion.

That's why I believe that Vegeta was able to surpass Goku briefly while fighting Beerus. He transformed beyond SSj2 in a more natural way. I feel that in a way, Vegeta has reached Super Saiyan 3, simply not the unnatural version we're used to. Just a personal canon.

[Gmez9]

Only in the hirudegarn movie 13 which doesn't count was ssj3 useful.

His fight with second form janemba wasn't bad until janemba split and then it was over. It was my favorite transformation back in the day.

In my opinion, ssj3 should have been the ultimate level. It seems as if the huge strain on the body would cause damage to the user overtime. With a saiyajin ability to heal, (not just from zenkai boosts), ssj3 should have just been making huge gains in power even though the user gets burned out fast.

Gotenks showed greater control until bog when goku got massacred by bills.

[Lord Beerus]

Yes. SSJ3 is a failed transformation because it has failed to defeat a single villain since its introduction.

Hirudegarn!

I don't count movie villains.

[LuckyCat]

SSJG has also failed to defeat a villain.

[raulvalente]

I hate its design, I remember that when Goku was powering up I was like OH SHIT, but when I saw the transformation itself I though "da fuck?"

And it is a failed transformation, it drains the power of the warrior too quickly.

[Xeztin]

I honestly hoped we'd get a explanation of why SSJ looked so different, but I don't think we ever will get one now unless they're a SSJB2/3

[TheGreatness25]

They look different so you could tell them apart. I mean, my God, people already have difficulty with Vegeta and adult Gohan, relying only on the sparks and electricity. Oh, sure, there could be some in-universe explanation, but realistically, it was just to distinguish them. I'd love to see an explanation for why Super Saiyan 3 is missing eyebrows, though.

[IDreamtIWasABee]

Like Fusion, Mystic, and consistently compelling drama, SSJ3 was only a failure in the Boo saga, not other stuff. Goku used it to strangle Hirudegarn with the lazy ease of a python, and Janemba only overpowered the form with raw force (Goku was dead and in the afterlife, so he wasn't laboring under the transformation's drawbacks when he went down).

Anyway, it seems evolved for zenkais, and if Cell could start pulling those out of his ass, why not Goku? If it's "natural," then it seems like a "gateway" form to a "genuine" SSJ4.

On the other hand, it's the only one of the three genuine SSJ transformations that comes out of nowhere and has zero dramatic impact.

[Son Edo]

If he mastered it, he could probably use it for extended periods of time. But in Boo saga, yeah, it's not really useful unless the user finishes off the opponent quickly.

[Scarlet Spider]

I'd love to see an explanation for why Super Saiyan 3 is missing eyebrows, though.

It went to the Saiyan's scalp.