Why Didn't Goku Teach Piccolo the Kaio-ken?

[blacksymbiote]

I figured Tien got some level of kaioken harnessed and that's why his tribeam could damage Cell and Buu who outclassed him so much and using it a bunch of times without dying. Also, doesn't Tien have some line in the manga about mixing his own training with what he learns from King Kai?

[Koitsukai]

I figured Tien got some level of kaioken harnessed and that's why his tribeam could damage Cell and Buu who outclassed him so much and using it a bunch of times without dying. Also, doesn't Tien have some line in the manga about mixing his own training with what he learns from King Kai?

That's also my headcanon. He only can use KK for that attack, probably his body wouldn't be able to sustain the technique in motion, etc. I don't know about that manga line, I don't recall anything like that, but I could be wrong.

[LightBing]

As always when this pops up.

- Anybody else probably wouldn't be capable of learning it(maybe Vegeta). Even Kaio, the creator, couldn't use it. Let's not forget Goku is an omega-ultra-duper prodigy.

- The technique is incredibly dangerous and a last resort, even if Goku somewhat trivialized it.

- Goku doesn't truly become a teacher until the Cell Arc. It really isn't out-of-character for him not to teach in the period of their training(he didn't bother teaching Gohan SSJ and that's worse).

- Post that period there wasn't any point.

I rather the humans learned something unique, maybe the pseudo-UI of Roshi in the Super Manga, than copying Goku. All the Saiyans getting SSJ wasn't interesting in the least.

[blacksymbiote]

I figured Tien got some level of kaioken harnessed and that's why his tribeam could damage Cell and Buu who outclassed him so much and using it a bunch of times without dying. Also, doesn't Tien have some line in the manga about mixing his own training with what he learns from King Kai?

That's also my headcanon. He only can use KK for that attack, probably his body wouldn't be able to sustain the technique in motion, etc. I don't know about that manga line, I don't recall anything like that, but I could be wrong.

It was after they swore not to fight Frieza and King Kai agreed to train them if I recall

[MajinPopo]

I feel like Piccolo would have trouble learning it, simply due to his demonic nature at the time. Sure, he trained Gohan and was maturing, and was starting to set himself apart from King Piccolo, but he still gave Gohan the Demon kanji on his gi. That is, he still considered himself demonic and bestowed that symbol onto Gohan.

The Demon aspect of Gohan really just manifested in his new family of devil-themed folk, an a Toriyama subversion.

Piccolo didn't properly start to mellow until he absorbed Kami and he experienced 7 years of peace.

Could he learn the techniques of a Kai now? Debatable. But I like the idea that the reason Gohan and Piccolo are struggling to advance with their training is that right now, they're two immutably good people with good hearts, still falling back on Demon-style training. They simply can't progress because they're on the wrong "reward track", to use game terminology.

And indeed, Gohan only has passion for fighting when it's in the role of Superhero. Even when Gohan fought Goku in Super, he did so in his Saiyaman gear.

So ultimately, I would like to see a story arc where Gohan and Piccolo stop being Master and Student, since Demon-style training is to their detriment, and have both Gohan and Piccolo become students of some kind of God figure on equal footing.

I like the idea of an alternate universe where Demon Piccolo learns the "Makaio-Ken", but that's neither here nor there.