How strong was Dabura?

[Hugo Boss]

Kaboom, your analisis was one of arguments taken from the man I copied the quote. He said Akira Toriyama intended to make Gohan a SSJ in this panel and the others that he appeared as one, but then provoked a plot error. And if he could go back he would redraw Gohan as a Super Saiyan 2. The art is consistent, but not the plot.

[Fionordequester]

Because it doesn't make any sense from an in-universe perspective. Why in the world would Gohan use anything but Super Saiyan 2 against Dabura, an opponent noted to be "as strong as Cell", who had just murdered Piccolo and Krillin right in front of him, and who's death would mean Piccolo and Krillin reviving. There is absolutely no reason why he could not or would not go SSJ2. And besides that, Toriyama's art style was constantly evolving, and besides that, the dude has always tended to be a bit forgetful. How do we even know that he wasn't simply going back and forth about how to draw SSJ2?

Maybe Gohan needed to be angry to go SSJ2. Since he became that rusty. Him going SSJ was because he master it. But it is possible he only went SSJ2 because he angry at the Budokai Tenkaichi

So basically, he got angrier at Kibito, who simply asked him to transform...then he did at Dabura, who had just turned two of the best friends he's ever had into stone, stood by as two of his own teammates were murdered by Babidi, AND was associated with the same group who beat Videl into a bloody pulp?

[RandomGuy96]

I mean, it's right there. A clear demonstration, in the original manga, showing us what Super Saiyan 1 and Super Saiyan 2 look like compared to each other.

So again, the author consistently drew things a certain way for the entirety of the arc up to that point, and as if that wasn't enough on its own, he actually later drew and wrote a character to say, "here, look. This is what this form looks like, and this is what this other form beyond it looks like." How could anyone possibly argue against that? Why even bother trying?

Because the dialogue contradicts, the Daizenshuu contradicts it, every single character looks like an idiot, and nowhere was it ever stated that lightning sparks are needed for a SS2. Again, we've seen non-SS2s with the aura (Vegetto, Nappa) and SS2s without it (Gohan doesn't have sparks drawn in some panels of the Cell fight). So no, this is a subjective visual comparison and nothing more, and your interpretation contradicts the official word. Unless you can get a statement from Toriyama that says "Yeah, I meant for Gohan to be a Super Saiyan here, and always intended all Super Saiyans 2s to have lightning aura" (unlikely, as he forgot what SS2 looked like), then it will just remain a subjective visual comparison.

Also, for me, plot/logic > art. You may feel differently, so go right ahead.

Edit: Wait a second. Wasn't it around this time that Mr. Toriyama changed Gohan's SSJ2 Design? Broly the Second Coming was made in the middle of 220 and 221. Which is around the time the manga chapters and anime episodes with Gohan vs Dabura was made

Where is that sketch from?

So yes. As far as concerned, the facts are obvious, and these constant repetitive debates about it are just meaningless noise.

I can see that you are open minded to other points of view and respectful to people with different opinions.

Maybe Gohan needed to be angry to go SSJ2. Since he became that rusty. Him going SSJ was because he master it. But it is possible he only went SSJ2 because he angry at the Budokai Tenkaichi

Then why did no one comment on his inability to go Super Saiyan 2? Why did everyone keep bringing up his rage boosted self in the context of him killing Cell, not at the tournament?

And him being angry doesn't make a lot of sense either. We've seen that Gohan's anger boosts are instant things. He gets angry, loses control, and bursts. The same thing goes for transformations; it's how Goku first achieved Super Saiyan, and how Gohan first achieved Super Saiyan 2. Gohan here may have been angry before, but when he actually transformed he was doing it on demand and of free will when he was clearly calm.

To add more fuel to the fire, Gohan would have a lot more reason to be angry at Dabura then he would at the tournament. Dabura was not only the boss of the guys who beat up Videl, but he murdered Piccolo and Krillin, two of Gohan's closest friends right before his eyes. On top of that, he's trying to revive an ancient monster that will kill everyone Gohan knows. Later, he mocks Gohan will bragging about how awesome he is.

Apparently beating up a creepy stalker is a worse crime than killing two of Gohan's oldest friends and mentors.

[TheGmGoken]

Because it doesn't make any sense from an in-universe perspective. Why in the world would Gohan use anything but Super Saiyan 2 against Dabura, an opponent noted to be "as strong as Cell", who had just murdered Piccolo and Krillin right in front of him, and who's death would mean Piccolo and Krillin reviving. There is absolutely no reason why he could not or would not go SSJ2. And besides that, Toriyama's art style was constantly evolving, and besides that, the dude has always tended to be a bit forgetful. How do we even know that he wasn't simply going back and forth about how to draw SSJ2?

Maybe Gohan needed to be angry to go SSJ2. Since he became that rusty. Him going SSJ was because he master it. But it is possible he only went SSJ2 because he angry at the Budokai Tenkaichi

So basically, he got angrier at Kibito, who simply asked him to transform...then he did at Dabura, who had just turned two of the best friends he's ever had into stone, stood by as two of his own teammates were murdered by Babidi, AND was associated with the same group who beat Videl into a bloody pulp?

Remember Gohan was ALREADY angry. Remember Videl. You think just cause she got a zenzu that Gohan just let that go. Hell naw. Do you smell was Gohan is cookin? He's cooking up a can of WHOOP ASS!

[RandomGuy96]

Again, why didn't he get angry when Dabura murdered Piccolo and Krillin? That's way worse than just beating up Videl.

Also, see what I said about his anger boosts above. If he was only able to transform because he was angry, then it's completely different from every other rage boost/transformation boost he ever got.

[Fionordequester]

Remember Gohan was ALREADY angry. Remember Videl. You think just cause she got a zenzu that Gohan just let that go. Hell naw. Do you smell was Gohan is cookin? He's cooking up a can of WHOOP ASS!

And then he got critically wounded by two guys, including the very guy who wrecked Videl. And even if I were to accept this explanation, that still doesn't explain why Goku and Vegeta didn't react at all to Gohan, you know, fighting at half the power he displayed at the tournament, in a struggle involving the fate of two of his best friends.

I can see that you are open minded to other points of view and respectful to people with different opinions.

RandomGuy, I agree with your argument, but I actually don't think this is a respectful thing to do either. I don't have mod authority, but I would like to ask you to please not do that, if you don't mind.

Again, why didn't he get angry when Dabura murdered Piccolo and Krillin? That's way worse than just beating up Videl.

Well...see, to be fair, Dabura didn't really kill them so much as he basically just put them in a coma...still should've made him mad, but, just wanted to point that out.

[Kaboom]

I can see that you are open minded to other points of view and respectful to people with different opinions.

Normally, yes, I actually am. But not when it comes to the same pointless crap being argued over and over for no reason because the answer is as clear as day. Again, Toriyama literally drew us a picture of the differences between Super Saiyan 1 and 2. Like, it's right there. The differences. He drew them, and explained them, right there in the manga. THAT is what you should make everything else fit with.

But you know what? I'll bite for now. Give me a list of the so-called "problems" that Gohan being a Super Saiyan 1 would cause in the plot, and I'll see how easily I can explain them. Take your time, make it orderly and concise, and I'll tackle it tomorrow.

[TheGmGoken]

Again, why didn't he get angry when Dabura murdered Piccolo and Krillin? That's way worse than just beating up Videl.

Also, see what I said about his anger boosts above. If he was only able to transform because he was angry, then it's completely different from every other rage boost/transformation boost he ever got.

Plot most likely.

Why did everyone keep bringing up his rage boosted self in the context of him killing Cell, not at the tournament?

He most likely wasn't mad enough. I was angry not enraged. He was angry when the Cell Jr was kicking Piccolo,Krillin, and Goku's ass. He was enraged when #16 died. Indeed it was different.

Where is that sketch from?

Daizenshuu 6.

I can see that you are open minded to other points of view and respectful to people with different opinions.

I agree with this xD.

Apparently beating up a creepy stalker is a worse crime than killing two of Gohan's oldest friends and mentors.

Apparently so.

Normally, yes, I actually am. But not when it comes to the same pointless crap being argued over and over for no reason because the answer is as clear as day. Again, Toriyama literally drew us a picture of the differences between Super Saiyan 1 and 2. Like, it's right there. The differences. He drew them, and explained them, right there in the manga. THAT is what you should make everything else fit with.

Issue is. Manga statements with Dabura's power kinda proves otherwise. I'm on team Gohan being SSJ. But once again I easily understand how people will debate this.

But you know what? I'll bite for now. Give me a list of the so-called "problems" that Gohan being a Super Saiyan 1 would cause in the plot, and I'll see how easily I can explain them. Take your time, make it orderly and concise, and I'll tackle it tomorrow.

Well even through I'm Team SSJ I must say that Gohan can sense right? Why didn't he not use SSJ2 if he could sense Dabura power being similar to Perfect Cell. Even through Dabura called him trash Gohan got some good hits in IMO. Dabura being around Cell's power and Gohan getting some hits in hints that GOhan SSJ > SSJ Kid Gohan. Something that was not stated.

Now since I'm team SSJ let me explain. It's possible that Gohan was counting on getting angry but he could't do it like he could as a kid

[Fionordequester]

But you know what? I'll bite for now. Give me a list of the so-called "problems" that Gohan being a Super Saiyan 1 would cause in the plot, and I'll see how easily I can explain them. Take your time, make it orderly and concise, and I'll tackle it tomorrow.

1) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, it sure is strange that Gohan is only fighting at half of the power that he displayed at the tournament."

2) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, I wonder why his hair looks completely than it did at the tournament". It's like in Yu-Gi-Oh, where Yugi would regular grow a full foot taller and have his voice lowered several pitches without anyone commenting on this. Am I supposed to take it that everyone was apparently just blind, deaf, and stupid in that anime (rather than just artistic license)?

3) It means that apparently, Gohan was angrier about his girlfriend getting beaten up than his two best friends, one of whom raised him since he was five.

4) Gohan apparently never even tries to go SSJ2, despite the fate of his friends hanging in the balance, hence a lack of any thoughts like "Darn, I can't go SSJ2! Shucks, I guess I have to be stuck at SSJ1!".

5) Supreme Kai still has supreme confidence in Gohan's power despite the fact that, according to this theory, SSJ Gohan should probably be weaker than the Supreme Kai.

...and as GmGoku brought up (thank you so much for being fair)...

6) If Dabura was truly only around Perfect Cell's level rather than Super Perfect Cell, and SSJ Gohan was weaker than he was in the past, why was he still doing so well? I'll admit to only going off of the Anime, but from what I saw, the two were pretty much at a stalemate. And despite what GM says, I would think that almost getting killed at several points would make Gohan at least a LITTLE angry if for no other reason than adrenaline.

[TheGmGoken]

1) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, it sure is strange that Gohan is only fighting at half of the power that he displayed at the tournament."

2) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, I wonder why his hair looks completely than it did at the tournament". It's like in Yu-Gi-Oh, where Yugi would regular grow a full foot taller and have his voice lowered several pitches without anyone commenting on this.

Okay these remarks was not helpful like the rest . Before I start debunking this. That was so the people watching would know who was who. Just like Goku had Goku voice regardless of him being in Ginyu's body. On topic: You should have said " Vegeta never wonder to ask why is he not fighting at his full power. With Goku agreeing". Dbz might be blunt but it isn't THAAT blunt. Point number 2. Really. Just really? You think they're going make remarks about HIS HAIR! C'mon man! You can think better then that! HAIR REALLY! You could have said Aura or just kept expanding with Dabura power being similar to Perfect Cells. Which means him being SSJ yet getting good hits in would make SSJ Teen Gohan > Kid Gohan SSJ.

3) It means that apparently, Gohan was angrier about his girlfriend getting beaten up than his two best friends, one of whom raised him since he was five.

Plot logic lol. Maybe Gohan was having a teenager moment. When everything is all about his girlfriend . Also it's 4. Unless you're counting the 6 month time skip for Piccolo's and Gohan's training.

4) Gohan apparently never even tries to go SSJ2, despite the fate of his friends hanging in the balance, hence a lack of any thoughts like "Darn, I can't go SSJ2! Shucks, I guess I have to be stuck at SSJ1!".

I'm team SSJ. But this is a good statement

[Fionordequester]

1) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, it sure is strange that Gohan is only fighting at half of the power that he displayed at the tournament."

2) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, I wonder why his hair looks completely than it did at the tournament".

Okay these remarks was not helpful like the rest . You should have said " Vegeta never wonder to ask why is he not fighting at his full power. With Goku agreeing". Dbz might be blunt but it isn't THAAT blunt. Point number 2. Really. Just really? You think they're going make remarks about HIS HAIR! C'mon man! You can think better then that! HAIR REALLY! You could have said Aura or just kept expanding with Dabura power being similar to Perfect Cells. Which means him being SSJ yet getting good hits in would make SSJ Teen Gohan > Kid Gohan SSJ.

Well, I wasn't trying to be completely literal with that . Basically, what I meant was, there really should've been SOME confusion from Vegeta and Goku as to what Gohan was doing. And if hair is too implausable, how about noticing his aura? You don't think they would notice his aura looking completely different than it did at the World Tournament?

[RandomGuy96]

Well...see, to be fair, Dabura didn't really kill them so much as he basically just put them in a coma...still should've made him mad, but, just wanted to point that out.

I consider stoning them to be killing them, mostly because they may as well be corpses instead of statues, since they're, you know, devoid of life.

But you know what? I'll bite for now. Give me a list of the so-called "problems" that Gohan being a Super Saiyan 1 would cause in the plot, and I'll see how easily I can explain them. Take your time, make it orderly and concise, and I'll tackle it tomorrow.

To give an abridged version:

-Gohan transformed of free will at the tournament. While he was mad before, when he transformed it was clearly not rage boosted. He was calm and did it on request. He only transformed into a normal Super Saiyan out of rage, and that was before the match with Kibito.
-Goku tells Gohan to get mad to beat Dabura, bringing up the Cell Games as an example. If he just saw Gohan turn SS2 of free will not five minutes ago, then there's no reason he shouldn't say "just transform" if that's all that's needed to crush Dabura.
-Goku says that Dabura is as strong Cell, however he says that what he saw may not have been "full force". Later he corrects himself and states that Dabura is much stronger than he thought. Yet apparently both of those remarks refer to a suppressed version of Cell.
-Gohan doesn't get angry at all when Dabura murders his friends who basically raised him, yet he gets angry when a girl he knew for a short time gets a beating (by guys under orders from Dabura/Babidi, btw). He also doesn't get "angry enough" upon seeing Kibito blown up, despite getting angry at seeing a robot that was made to kill his dad get broken.
-Goku and Vegeta don't comment on Gohan's inability to turn SS2; they just say that he got rusty. This makes them look like complete idiots; him not turning SS2 would be a huge deal, yet they never comment on it. I mean he's literally half as strong as he was a few hours ago. They don't notice?
-Vegeta says that Gohan is losing and that he needs to step in to end it. Goku says no, it's not like Gohan is completely losing. For some reason neither of them bring up the possibility of Gohan just transforming like he easily did at the tournament, not even Goku when he's trying to defend his son. Why would they think he's losing if they know he's fighting at half power? If anything Vegeta and Goku would just be mad that Gohan's toying with Dabura. They JUST saw him go Super Saiyan 2 of free will, come on now. This would also be an excellent time for Vegeta to insult him more for being weak; he already established that Gohan as a SS2 was pathetic to him, so why doesn't he say "He can't even transform!" rather than just doing the general purpose "he's weak" talk?
-Gohan never notes an inability to go SS2... which would be a REALLY huge deal. He never even attempts to go Super Saiyan 2.
-When Initial Fat Buu shows up, Gohan says that he needs to be an enraged SS2 (or at least draw out his hidden power, which in context has always been used to refer to him at the Cell Games) to win, while Dabura calls him powerless trash. Gohan could be referring to an anger boosted Super Saiyan, but that's not a thing that has ever existed, and even if his hidden power is JUST his normal Super Saiyan 2 form like at the tournament, this remark would make no sense, as he still implies that Fat Buu will be trouble (he calls his ki incredible and says that "it's not like there's nothing I can do" rather than "I can crush this guy"). This is a guy who Gohan thought was not much stronger than Dabura, if at all.
-When Fat Buu one-shots Dabura, Gohan gets extremely shocked, despite already knowing that this guy was a SS2-tier fighter. He wouldn't be impressed at all by Fat Buu one-shotting a guy supposedly less than half of Gohan's own strength. He'd already know that Fat Buu was fully capable of doing that.
-From a Dolylist perspective, Fat Buu's power up would make no sense if he was already strong enough to do what he did to Dabura.
-The Daizenshuu states he was a Super Saiyan 2, and contrary to popular belief, no, it's not contradicted by any other statement in the Daizenshuu.
-The Daizenshuu states that Dabura's BP is the exact same as Cell's. Note that it doesn't say "his power is nowhere near Cell's, but they're at similar levels as long as Cell is suppressing himself".
-Gohan's hair style is different between when he's clearly a Super Saiyan, i.e. when sparring with Goten, and every time where he would logically be a Super Saiyan 2 after the tournament. See the Daiz 6 sketch; Super Saiyan 1 is two bangs, Super Saiyan 2 is one bang.

Plot, guidebooks, dialogue, and hair say Super Saiyan 2.

Sparks are the only thing that suggest him not being a SS2, and those don't automatically override everything else.

[TheGmGoken]

1) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, it sure is strange that Gohan is only fighting at half of the power that he displayed at the tournament."

2) Vegeta and Goku never once think to themselves "Huh, I wonder why his hair looks completely than it did at the tournament".

Okay these remarks was not helpful like the rest . You should have said " Vegeta never wonder to ask why is he not fighting at his full power. With Goku agreeing". Dbz might be blunt but it isn't THAAT blunt. Point number 2. Really. Just really? You think they're going make remarks about HIS HAIR! C'mon man! You can think better then that! HAIR REALLY! You could have said Aura or just kept expanding with Dabura power being similar to Perfect Cells. Which means him being SSJ yet getting good hits in would make SSJ Teen Gohan > Kid Gohan SSJ.

Well, I wasn't trying to be completely literal with that . Basically, what I meant was, there really should've been SOME confusion from Vegeta and Goku as to what Gohan was doing. And if hair is too implausable, how about noticing his aura? You don't think they would notice his aura looking completely different than it did at the World Tournament?

Already said that:

ou could have said Aura or just kept expanding with Dabura power being similar to Perfect Cells. Which means him being SSJ yet getting good hits in would make SSJ Teen Gohan > Kid Gohan SSJ.

Off topic: You didn't see this most likely but. About what you said about Yugioh.

Before I start debunking this. That was so the people watching would know who was who. Just like Goku had Goku voice regardless of him being in Ginyu's body.

[Zephyr]

3) It means that apparently, Gohan was angrier about his girlfriend getting beaten up than his two best friends, one of whom raised him since he was five.

4) Gohan apparently never even tries to go SSJ2, despite the fate of his friends hanging in the balance, hence a lack of any thoughts like "Darn, I can't go SSJ2! Shucks, I guess I have to be stuck at SSJ1!".

3) His friends weren't beaten up. They were turned to stone, and he knew that that was going to be fixable. Piccolo and Krillin are tough, them becoming casualties during conflicts with bad guys isn't uheard of, nor is it something that one wouldn't expect to happen. Videl on the other hand, was one of the toughest normal humans. It would naturally seem unlikely for anyone at the TB to be able to match her, let alone almost beat her to death. She's also not been on the front lines of insane, apocalyptic battle like Piccolo and Krillin have. Thus, Videl being beaten to a pulp would evoke more surprise, and her being less prepared for it, than Krillin and Piccolo were for their defeat, would surely evoke more of an emotional response than what happened to the other two.

4) Gohan hasn't used the form in 7 years. When he went SSj2 at the tournament, it took him a great deal of time, even after recently seeing his girlfriend nearly beaten to death. If it took him that long with incredible emotional stimulus, imagine how much longer it would take him with lessened emotional stimulus? Why would he waste his time trying to powerup that long when he could just try to fight, and backup would be right there to salvage the situation if his SSj1 power doesn't meet the standard.


And referring to the lightning confusion, two points:

- Were those other non-SSj2 characters displaying lightning in their aura consistently, or was it only when they were powering up?

- Were those points when the SSj2s lacked the sparks not also points where they lacked an aura altogether? I seem to remember them always having the lightning whenever their aura was present, though I could be wrong.

[TheGmGoken]

- Were those other non-SSj2 characters displaying lightning in their aura consistently, or was it only when they were powering up?

- Were those points when the SSj2s lacked the sparks not also points where they lacked an aura altogether? I seem to remember them always having the lightning whenever their aura was present, though I could be wrong.

Post 1: The character in the MANGA was powering up. I surprised no one said this to be honest. Nappa was the exception since that was his attack.

Post 2: When Kid GOhan had no aura he no sparks. With Aura he had sparks. With exception of the FatherSon Kamehameha. Don't know where he got that info from or what manga he was reading lol.

[Fionordequester]

3) His friends weren't beaten up. They were turned to stone, and he knew that that was going to be fixable.

Only if he managed to kill Dabura.

Piccolo and Krillin are tough, them becoming casualties during conflicts with bad guys isn't uheard of, nor is it something that one wouldn't expect to happen.

...Eh, I'm not going to call you wrong, but I highly doubt that you would stop feeling grief and rage at a friend's death just because they were more ready and accepting of it than others. I'm fairly certain that soldiers in say, Afghanistan or Vietnam were pretty tough hombres, yet War-Vets would still have nightmares upon them getting murdered. I know that death was a bit different than what happened here, but I'm not sure we can really rationalize like that when it comes to innocent people getting hurt.

And let's not forget, Android 16 was a complete stranger to Gohan AND a lifeless android as well, yet his death was STILL enough to push Gohan over the edge. So why should Kibito, a living being of flesh and blood, not be just as tragic, if not moreso?

4) Gohan hasn't used the form in 7 years. When he went SSj2 at the tournament, it took him a great deal of time, even after recently seeing his girlfriend nearly beaten to death.

Wait though, was that the anime, or the manga? Because the Anime isn't unusal at all in that regard, and probably did that more for padding than anything else.

And even should you answer these, again, I ask you, why would Vegeta and Goku not take notice of Gohan looking radically different AND fighting at only half his power?

[TheGmGoken]

And even should you answer these, again, I ask you, why would Vegeta and Goku not take notice of Gohan looking radically different AND fighting at only half his power?

I can understand why Vegeta would't ask. As he was pissed off enough by Gohan. Goku not taking note is a shocker to me. Through it did seem like he was a little bit disappointed in Gohan but had a soft spot cause Goku's a good guy.

[RandomGuy96]

And referring to the lightning confusion, two points:

- Were those other non-SSj2 characters displaying lightning in their aura consistently, or was it only when they were powering up?

- Were those points when the SSj2s lacked the sparks not also points where they lacked an aura altogether? I seem to remember them always having the lightning whenever their aura was present, though I could be wrong.

Vegetto only has it when powering up. I'm pretty sure Nappa has it drawn consistently in his aura when serious. Then there's Cell, of course.

There's at least one panel where kid Gohan has an aura and no sparks. It's while he's kicking Cell in the face. He also apparently had no sparks during the Kamehameha (according to the above poster, I haven't double checked myself). In another panel in the Buu Saga, while Goku and Vegeta are bouncing back from each other's hits, Vegeta has no sparks (in the very next panel, he does). Later again, while he's giving his speech about being evil, he has lightning, but then he powers up and there appears to be no lightning. Finally and probably most tellingly, after knocking out Goku, he has an aura but no sparks, and still has no sparks when he eats the senzu bean and then powers up. So yeah, there are many examples of the aura being inconsistently drawn. Yet I never see people say that they all temporarily reverted to Super Saiyan in these cases.

Super Saiyan 3 is even more inconsistent with the sparks. Goku lacks them for half of his fight with Kid Buu.

[TheGmGoken]

And referring to the lightning confusion, two points:

- Were those other non-SSj2 characters displaying lightning in their aura consistently, or was it only when they were powering up?

- Were those points when the SSj2s lacked the sparks not also points where they lacked an aura altogether? I seem to remember them always having the lightning whenever their aura was present, though I could be wrong.

Vegetto only has it when powering up. I'm pretty sure Nappa has it drawn consistently in his aura. Then there's Cell, of course.

There's at least one panel where kid Gohan has an aura and no sparks. It's while he's kicking Cell in the face. In another panel in the Buu Saga, while Goku and Vegeta are bouncing back from each other's hits, Vegeta has no sparks (in the very next panel, he does). Later again, while he's giving his speech about being evil, he has lightning, but then he powers up and there appears to be no lightning. Right after knocking out Goku, he has an aura but no sparks, and still has no sparks when he eats the senzu bean and then powers up. So yeah, there are many examples of the aura being inconsistently drawn. Yet I never see people say that they all temporarily reverted to Super Saiyan in these cases.

Super Saiyan 3 is even more inconsistent with the sparks.

Nappa was using an attack when the aura appeared. Cell was suppose to be some-what the same power up as SSJ2. Mostly if there is no sparks in SSJ2 in one panel. The panel next to it does. Can't blame him through. It would get annoying. Now ssj3. My good friend author of db already had to draw the hair. Dear lord! I bet he said "Fuck it" and just forgot to draw to sparks. To be honest SSJ3 doesn't need sparks. SSJ2 needs it. Hey. At least it's not like the anime SSj2. The sparks..are for every character and every form BUT ssj2.

[Zephyr]

-Gohan transformed of free will at the tournament. While he was mad before, when he transformed it was clearly not rage boosted. He was calm and did it on request.

And it took him ages, despite recently being pissed off. But to be fair, yes, this was in the anime only I believe.

-Goku tells Gohan to get mad to beat Dabura, bringing up the Cell Games as an example. If he just saw Gohan turn SS2 of free will not five minutes ago, then there's no reason he shouldn't say "just transform" if that's all that's needed to crush Dabura.

And he was also told to "get mad" again, right before Goku and Vegeta went to go fight. Why would he need to be told to get mad again, if he had already successfully gotten mad? And yes, he saw him turn of free will. After taking his time powering up, right after he nearly saw his girlfriend get beaten nearly to death. The point can also be made that at the tournament he wasn't under as much pressure. He was in a match, and was just told to transform. In Babidi's ship, he was fighting to save the universe. He had his father and Vegeta watching him, who he likely knew had high expectations of him. His opponent wasn't just looking to see his power, he was trying to kill him. Remember, this is Gohan we're talking about, not Goku. He's not a fighter. He doesn't like to fight. It doesn't give him an erection. Tension being raised is not necessarily going to increase his ability to concentrate and reach his full power while the entire cosmos is hanging in the balance the way it would for Goku, at least not without the right catalyst (which again, seeing his friends turned to stone was not as extreme of one as seeing his girlfriend beaten to death, again evidenced by Goku not needing to hold him back this time).

-Goku says that Dabura is as strong Cell, however he says that what he saw may not have been "full force". Later he corrects himself and states that Dabura is much stronger than he thought. Yet apparently both of those remarks refer to a suppressed version of Cell.

Wasn't the line referring to him being "as dangerous" as Cell?

-Gohan doesn't get angry at all when Dabura murders his friends who basically raised him, yet he gets angry when a girl he knew for a short time gets a beating (by guys under orders from Dabura/Babidi, btw).

Dabura murdered Kibito (who didn't raise Gohan), not Krillin and Piccolo. And that girl he knew for a short time was his girlfriend. Have you ever had a girlfriend during adolescence? You tend to develop immensely powerful feelings for them, even moreso than those you may feel for people who may have helped raise you (if only for a short time) (especially if you haven't kept up regular contact with them like you have with her). The fact that Goku literally has to tell him to calm down after seeing Videl get beaten, but not after seeing his friends turned to stone (not murdered) supports this.

-Goku and Vegeta don't comment on Gohan's inability to turn SS2; they just say that he got rusty. This makes them look like complete idiots; him not turning SS2 would be a huge deal, yet they never comment on it. I mean he's literally half as strong as he was a few hours ago.

How would his inability to go SSj2 right off the bat not be a testament to how rusty he got?

-Vegeta says that Gohan is losing and that he needs to step in to end it. Goku says no, it's not like Gohan is completely losing. For some reason neither of them bring up the possibility of Gohan just transforming like he easily did at the tournament, not even Goku when he's trying to defend his son. Why would they think he's losing if they know he's fighting at half power? If anything Vegeta and Goku would just be mad that Gohan's toying with Dabura. They JUST saw him go Super Saiyan 2 of free will, come on now.

A different interpretation of the dialog that fits just as easily with what you're arguing against:
"You're useless son isn't doing the job, Kakarrot. He's not transforming. I'm going to end it because he won't/can't!"
"Aww come on Vegeta, he technically still does have that transformation that he can do if he gets the chance to focus and pull it off. It's not like he's used all of his trump cards, and they've all failed. He's not completely losing!"

-When Initial Fat Buu shows up, Gohan says that he needs to be an enraged SS2 (or at least draw out his hidden power, which in context has always been used to refer to him at the Cell Games) to win, while Dabura calls him powerless trash. Gohan could be referring to an anger boosted Super Saiyan, but that's not a thing that has ever existed, and even if his hidden power is JUST his normal Super Saiyan 2 form like at the tournament, this remark would make no sense, as he still implies that Fat Buu will be trouble (he calls his ki incredible and says that "it's not like there's nothing I can do" rather than "I can crush this guy"). This is a guy who Gohan thought was not much stronger than Dabura, if at all.

-When Fat Buu one-shots Dabura, Gohan gets extremely shocked, despite already knowing that this guy was a SS2-tier fighter. He wouldn't be impressed at all by Fat Buu one-shotting a guy supposedly less than half of Gohan's own strength. He'd already know that Fat Buu was fully capable of doing that.

Or he could have meant that he needed the rage boost to access SSj2. Gohan's assessment of Fat Buu's ki useless though, is it not? Didn't Goku say his ki was a lie? That would make sense for Gohan to think that he can take him when he powers up, as he's still a novice when it comes to combat technique in comparison to his father, trying to sense ki in an extrememely-stressful-and-pressure-filled-situation-immediately-preceded-by-7-years-of-conflictless-peacetime included.

-The Daizenshuu states that Dabura's BP is the exact same as Cell's. Note that it doesn't say "his power is nowhere near Cell's, but they're at similar levels as long as Cell is suppressing himself".

And it doesn't specify which Cell.

There's at least one panel where kid Gohan has an aura and no sparks. It's while he's kicking Cell in the face. He also apparently had no sparks during the Kamehameha (according to the above poster, I haven't double checked myself). In another panel in the Buu Saga, while Goku and Vegeta are bouncing back from each other's hits, Vegeta has no sparks (in the very next panel, he does). Later again, while he's giving his speech about being evil, he has lightning, but then he powers up and there appears to be no lightning. Finally and probably most tellingly, after knocking out Goku, he has an aura but no sparks, and still has no sparks when he eats the senzu bean and then powers up. So yeah, there are many examples of the aura being inconsistently drawn. Yet I never see people say that they all temporarily reverted to Super Saiyan in these cases.

Okay, so then every other fight has at least thrown the sparks in there for a good portion. Only in this one, for some reason, they're completely absent. For the entire duration of the fight. And against Buu.

You'd think if he was meant to be a SSj2 there would be sparks at some point during either of these two fights (since during every other SSj2 fight, there are sparks for a good portion).