While the original manga says:"So the souls he ate tamed him".
"Yes… the heart which he gained by going so far as to lower his power through absorption… has returned once again to the way it was.
Therefore, Buu gets only "one heart" and not "souls". But what about power?
The claim is very prevalent in DBZ discussions about the Buu Saga power ratings.
Now, I'll be frank, at least when I try to analyze the narrative in the original DB manga, basing this on the original text, it always struck me as an odd interpretation. That's because I think that the intention of the narrative is abundantly clear (the only reason South Kaioshin is ever mentioned for is because of his formidable power, while the Dai Kaioshin is mentioned for his "heart" and personality).
South Kaioshin = Power.
Dai Kaioshin = Gentle heart.
"Buu gets weaker because of his gentle heart, therefore he should get weaker for the Dai Kaioshin's influence" - that's what I thought at least. The answer was, however, rather misty, and after a lot of heated discussions about people who would get legitimately offended if I argued that to me the that the strongest implication was the above, I decided to do some searching.
Digging around, I found a rather interesting piece of evidence that - at least in my case - put every doubt to rest. An excerpt from the Majin Buu bio:
"He killed the North and West Kaioshin, absorbed the South Kaioshin, and then when he took in the gentle heart of the Dai Kaioshin, his ferociousness and power were somewhat weakened."
For how I perceive things, here the dividing line is, at least, clear:
1. Majin Buu kills North and West Kaioshin. = OK.
2. Majin Buu absorbs the South Kaioshin = OK.
3. Dai Kaioshin = now power decreasess.
If anything, this means Buff Buu is actually just "somewhat stronger" than Fat Buu (suggesting that the difference between Fat Buu and Super Buu has mostly to do with ferociousness - perhaps Super Buu has access to a bigger pool of ki because of his ferocity), but this would deserve its own topic.
Anyway, what do you think about the idea of putting "Kid Buu > Buff Buu" in rumors? Do you agree? Disagree? Thanks for reading.