The Underrated Characters Thread

[LoganForkHands73]

Dragon Ball is famous for being a simple, digestible story, but which characters get slept on the most when it comes to how well they come across on page or screen? Which have surprisingly good or deep characterisation? I've decided to do a small series going over some of my top picks.

Gowasu


Zamasu's beleaguered mentor, the Kaioshin of Universe 10. The legacy of Gowasu mostly lives on through memes about how often he says Zamasu's name, and he is generally perceived as an ineffectual master because of his blindness to Zamasu's obvious flaws. I don't think that makes him a bad character though, quite the opposite, really.

Turning a blind eye to another person's flaws is relatable for anyone. Gowasu is more of a supportive father figure to Zamasu than some other mentor archetypes we see in the series. There's more love and respect in their bond than two gods would be expected to have. Some of us probably have at least one casually older racist relative who makes poor taste jokes and weird comments around the dinner table, but we don't say anything so as to not start any family drama. With the usual age roles reversed (I suppose Zamasu is more like a weird alt-right stepson who casually posts racist memes on 4chan in this analogy), that pretty much describes Gowasu and Zamasu's dynamic. It's only when Zamasu starts happily detailing how he'd exterminate unnecessary lifeforms that Gowasu starts to become concerned, but as soon as Zamasu respectfully drops the subject, Gowasu is still willing to let it slide. It's only theoretical, right? I mean, surely a humble Kaio apprentice wouldn't be able to kill off all mortals... right?

Although he looks obviously shifty to us, all of the gods in Dragon Ball are pretty dismissive of mortals. Even Zamasu's killing of a Babarian, which is framed as a "moral event horizon" moment, would not be notable in any other context considering that gods casually kill mortals all the time. Soft-hearted Shin probably has his fair share of mortal blood on his hands considering how casually he said he could destroy Freeza. In the manga, Shin never suspects Zamasu when asked by Beerus if he's met any gods with "extremist ideals". Tellingly, his mind first goes to Kibito, who always loudly makes his prejudices against mortals known, but everyone ignores it because he's on the good side. Zamasu is even more subtle about it, so can you really blame Gowasu for not seriously suspecting anything from him? Especially since Zamasu was inducted into the Kaio realm, where everyone is meant to be born pure of heart? Of course, Zamasu was pure, but not in a good way.

Anyway, I dig the conflict in Gowasu's character, it all comes across as very believable. He makes many big mistakes and feels guilty for them, but his errors in judgement come from an understandable place. You can feel his confusion and betrayal when Beerus and Whis force Zamasu to reveal his true colours. His pride and love for Zamasu often shines through in fun moments like them bantering over using the Potara to fuse. Gowasu also reveals many fascinating details about the Dragon World, i.e. how Kaioshin are supposed to nurture life, how the Time Rings work, how Kaioshin choose their successors. His near-death scene in the manga at the hands of Goku Black is honestly quite moving, as we see his sheer desperation to see the good in Zamasu in spite of everything he's done. Too bad that his empathy is wasted on an evil, corrupted apprentice.

[LoganForkHands73]

Paragus (Super)


While many dismiss Dragon Ball Super: Broly as a film about nothing but endless fighting, I'm of the opinion that there is a solid story in there if you squint, and most of it revolves around Paragus as well as his more crowd-pleasing heir.

Paragus is one of several important father figures present in the film and, in many ways, he's the most complex. There's a neat spectrum of how each of them approach fatherhood. You have King Cold at one end, a terrible father who satisfies every evil whim of his even more terrible son, literally handing over his entire empire. You have King Vegeta, an emotionally distant helicopter parent who can't stand the idea of his overgrown sperm being upstaged in any way. You have Bardock, an actually good father who risks his life to protect baby Kakarrot. Then you have Paragus, somewhere in the middle of all three.

How much did Paragus truly love Broly? Most of the debate surrounding his character boils down to that one question and I think it's really cool that there isn't a straightforward answer to it. It's undeniable that Paragus and Broly have a very unhealthy relationship, which several characters comment on. He keeps a painful shock collar on Broly at all times, manipulates him into being completely dependent, and generally treats him as more of a pet or a tool than a person. But there's also no denying that Paragus also risked it all to save his son, in a much more dramatic way than even Bardock did. Bardock sent Kakarrot off in a space pod and if he was wrong about Freeza, he'd bring him back home. It's only shocking in the context of Saiyan society that an average bloodthirsty warrior would take even a small risk to save his son when most don't care at all for their families. Paragus, on the other hand, publicly defied his king and flew off to find Broly without a second's hesitation. He ruthlessly murdered Beets in order to save on provisions for himself and Broly. If he didn't love Broly at all, none of this would've happened.

Being stranded on a hostile planet with only one other person for company is also not great for one's mental health. Paragus's grudge against the Vegeta family has obviously been stewing for many decades and it severely clouds his parental instincts. Paragus becomes more abusive and demanding when he finally sees an opportunity to brings his dreams of REVEEEEENGE into reality. Tragically, he only realises his mistake when he thinks that Broly's about to die, at which point Freeza suddenly gets a very bright idea.

There might be a theme building up here of underappreciated father figures. I guess it's hard to be popular when you're old and non-combatant. I'll try and spice it up.

[Koitsukai]

Gowasu had some love for Zamasu that cannot go unnoticed. He was determined to save the guy, he was like a mother, Ted Bundy's mother. No matter what my boy does, I'll always give him one more chance.

I think he knew he was being unpractical, and that he should've stepped up much sooner, before things got out of hand, I guess his love or whatever for Zamasu, was stronger than his godly duties. To me it looked like Gowasu was being more of a mortal than a god, in his approach, and it backfired. Pretending that's not what Zamasu meant, or buying the bullshit Zamasu told him to excuse himself... So, I suppose he was too invested in Zamasu to accept he was damaged goods, too blind to see the full picture.
I'd rather think it was his affection for Zamasu that blinded him, than his own hubris, THIS IS MY CANDIDATE, I CANNOT BE WRONG ABOUT HIM.

I mentioned Ted Bundy's mom, but maybe I should've said Ed Norton's mom in American History X. Only Zamasu never reformed.

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I enjoy Paragus, the dude has a lot of affection for his son, he's willing to drop everything to go after him. He's a tough love father, like the military gay dude from American Beauty, both of them loved their sons, they just had fucked up ways to express themselves.
And after all, he ended up raising a pretty nice man, all things considered (barren planet, exile, resentment towards your own, focusing on just making your boy stronger).