Archetype of the main tournament opponent

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Alkiser
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Archetype of the main tournament opponent

Post by Alkiser » Fri Jul 29, 2022 11:47 am

Often in DB fandom there is talk of repetitive patterns, most often concerning the dissection of sagas, and the treatment of characters. But rather, at least I have not seen anyone pay attention to a certain pattern in Dragon Ball tournaments. That's why today we're going to address that pattern, and it concerns the main tournament opponents Goku fought.

What do Tien, Paikuhan, Hit and Jiren have in common?

Aside from being the main obstacle for the hero, these characters have a similar set of characteristics that make them somewhat the same template in different skins.

1) All four are calm, not to say stoic, characters.
2) All of these characters, up to a certain point, underestimated Goku's capabilities
3) Goku always finds a way to get out of trouble, which often results in talk like , "well I definitely underestimated you but I'm going to win anyway."
4. in the vast majority of fights Goku did not win them
- Tien won by having Goku touch the ground first by a fraction of a second.
- The fight with Paikuhan ended in a draw because they both touched the ground.
- Goku gave up the fight and gave the victory to Hit.
- Goku in the anime managed to overwhelm Jiren, but the fight was not won because he did not throw him outside the arena. In the manga, Jiren defeated Goku when Goku used his silver-haired form.

5 After the fight is over, Goku's relationship with his opponent, who initially disrespected him, turns into a friendly relationship based on mutual rivalry.

Feel free to discuss

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LoganForkHands73
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Re: Archetype of the main tournament opponent

Post by LoganForkHands73 » Sat Sep 03, 2022 9:23 am

Can't believe no one responded to this sooner, but yeah, there is a clear formula with these characters and I like them all. To an extent, you could also add Piccolo Jr. in there, though he only started to change his ways and find respect for Goku after the tournament.

It's funny how all of them except Paikuhan (who I wouldn't mind seeing a new take on) were involved in the Tournament of Power and you see how they've all developed. Tenshinhan and Piccolo have both become heroes. Hit has softened enough to gladly team up with Goku, though he still views him as a friendly rival. Then you have Jiren, who heavily resembles Hit pre-character development, making their fight feel oddly personal.

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Alkiser
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Re: Archetype of the main tournament opponent

Post by Alkiser » Sun Oct 16, 2022 9:06 pm

LoganForkHands73 wrote: Sat Sep 03, 2022 9:23 am Can't believe no one responded to this sooner, but yeah, there is a clear formula with these characters and I like them all. To an extent, you could also add Piccolo Jr. in there, though he only started to change his ways and find respect for Goku after the tournament.

It's funny how all of them except Paikuhan (who I wouldn't mind seeing a new take on) were involved in the Tournament of Power and you see how they've all developed. Tenshinhan and Piccolo have both become heroes. Hit has softened enough to gladly team up with Goku, though he still views him as a friendly rival. Then you have Jiren, who heavily resembles Hit pre-character development, making their fight feel oddly personal.
Only now I came back here, and saw that after time someone commented on it. Thank you for adding something of your own in this thread, too.

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