Was Chi-Chi really a worthless character in the end?

[DBZAOTA482]

After seeing her lame portrayal in Super thus far (well between it and her gimmick in the Extreme Butoden game), I just had to post this...

Anyways, if you've been around the fandom long enough, you'd know Chi-Chi isn't too well liked among the community… some even viewing her influence on the story as cancerous… is that affirmative?

First, is her character/role. When we first saw her… she was the incredibly fearsome Ox-king's scared "warrior princess" who was capable of decapitating a T-rex by accident (shocking Yamcha and Puar)… she even gave Yamcha a hard time (in which he compliments her as a "fearsome brat" after knocking her out) and developed a crush on Goku by a misunderstanding…culminating in a proposal of marriage. 6-7 years later she became even stronger than before (not just physically) with now she seems to have actual martial arts training under her belt even participating in the 23rd Budokai (the hardest year where only the super experts make it through and she is one of the finalists... quite easily so just as the other finalists did by casually one-shotting opponents) and coming to fulfill the promise Goku made with her …likely also impressing him with how strong she gotten.

Then DBZ happens, she suddenly loses just about everything special about her... she is just Goku's wife/Gohan and Goten's mother and her character is seemingly reduced to only having her supposedly negative traits played up.

People would even believe that Goku's life and the turns of events of the series would pan out for the better if he had married Bulma (or other female character) regardless of the facts.

Then there's her fighting abilities. Just because Goku beat her (via ring-out) with a charged Shockwave Fist (Kobushi no Shogekiha; which is like striking the air with tremendous energy according to Muten Roshi when trying to comprehend it) technique that Kami taught him and never did anything outside filler/movies people tend to ignore the rest of her fight against Goku in the 23rd TB, the praise she received, and the implications surrounding her entry into the tournament and even making it to fight Goku. Even going as far as to claim Mr. Satan or Videl (of all people) can beat her or people believing she's not even comparable to fighters from the early volumes… which still happen even to this day. Even her feat of being able to decapitate a T-rex is downplayed just cuz she used a weapon… even though she used her own strength to throw the blade and that was enough to cut the dinosaur's head off… it's also possible she was holding back given how emotion she was (I don't think even strong men can do that).

Did Chi-Chi really offer nothing to the series, and the series would be better off without her?

Is Videl also basically everything Chi-Chi failed at being (a female love interest for the main character who has natural fighting talent)? Of course, her potential is cut short but she's at least respected/taken seriously as a fighter (people even going as far as to making her out to be a lot stronger than she actually is) and is a love interest who's generally remembered for something other than her supposedly negative qualities.

[Chuquita]

I think Chi-Chi's biggest problem is that Toriyama doesn't like writing her; I don't think you can realize a character's full potential if you the author don't like writing them. It's one thing for the author to dislike a character, but it's another to dislike using them. You'll look for ways to avoid including them in the plot instead. There's specialty ways to use her that aren't utilized. She's Ox King's daughter; making her one of the few in the cast with actual ties back to "Journey to the West". What kinds of unique powers/abilities did "Journey to the West"'s Ox King have? Also, Chi-Chi's one who tends to fall for pop culture trends or things she reads in magazines; do something with that for comedic effect. Hell, you could have her be so irritated at Gokû for forgetting who she is that she gives up on trying to marry him and instead continues training but with a chip on her shoulder over him; she'll continue training because she's going to get strong enough where the next time they meet he'll never forget her and she'll make him wish he hadn't forgotten about her.

[LightBing]

In a way she is worthless. The character is just a group of mechanisms to create story, that could be replaced with almost any women besides Bulma and Lunch. She the gives birth to Goku's offspring and influences is son to be a scholar. Her earlier traits are destroyed, mainly a taste for martial arts, to conform to the story told. Because her initial background is completely void and her insertion in the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai is parallel to the main storyline of the arc; she becomes the "wife" and nothing more.

The "promise when they were young" is unimportant, since the emotion is null. Just Goku going along with it. Played like a joke.

She's a "trophy mechanism wife" but only Bulma would be any different.

[Rocketman]

Chichi gets a bad rap compared to Videl because not only was her solo fight in the ignored pre-Z era (and especially in the super-ignored 23rd Budokai), it was against Goku, so she looks way weaker than she is.

ChiChi is also the "Mom" character, who keeps telling the guys not to go do funcool stuff (ie, smashing each others' brains out), and reminds the boys and manchildren of their own nagging mothers who keep telling them to get a job. Videl, meanwhile, is a perfect waifu who drops anything independent-minded to tag along cheerleading.

[Doctor.]

I don't get the Chi-Chi hate, really, she's a funny character. She's not supposed to be funny, but the scenes she's in were drawn with that intention. Any time she appears on-screen with those common rage bursts of hers, she comes off more-like a concerned mother or wife, rather than annoying.

The only time I've been disappointed with Chi-Chi's portrayal in any Toriyama-approved material is in Super's opening.

[FoolsGil]

Chi Chi wasn't a worthless character-How else was Gohan to be born if she was sterile?

But does she have the least amount of character development of all the tertiary characters? Yea. Her motivations were 1) Marry Goku 2) Have son. turn into scholar 3) Forget what manga series she's living in. That's all she was as a character. Goku's wife, Gohan's mom, and the only character too dumb to live in Dragonball, slapping Buu as she did.

[DBZAOTA482]

I think Chi-Chi's biggest problem is that Toriyama doesn't like writing her; I don't think you can realize a character's full potential if you the author don't like writing them. It's one thing for the author to dislike a character, but it's another to dislike using them. You'll look for ways to avoid including them in the plot instead. There's specialty ways to use her that aren't utilized. She's Ox King's daughter; making her one of the few in the cast with actual ties back to "Journey to the West". What kinds of unique powers/abilities did "Journey to the West"'s Ox King have? Also, Chi-Chi's one who tends to fall for pop culture trends or things she reads in magazines; do something with that for comedic effect. Hell, you could have her be so irritated at Gokû for forgetting who she is that she gives up on trying to marry him and instead continues training but with a chip on her shoulder over him; she'll continue training because she's going to get strong enough where the next time they meet he'll never forget her and she'll make him wish he hadn't forgotten about her.

The sad part it doesn't even have to be this way. I mean, it's a well-known fact he doesn't like Vegeta either but that doesn't stop Toriyama from giving him all that development (of course, that has to do with Vegeta being one of the most popular character in the whole franchise).

[Dbzejo]

I dont think she was a worthless character. I really liked her in original DB and her fight with Goku. To be fair, she rarely appeared in the manga but a lot of times in anime filler and she was annoying in most of those so fans think shes worthless and annoying because of that. She gave birth to Gohan and Goten, after all, and she is a mother, she worries about her kids, so cut her some slack dammit

[FoolsGil]

I dont think she was a worthless character. I really liked her in original DB and her fight with Goku. To be fair, she rarely appeared in the manga but a lot of times in anime filler and she was annoying in most of those so fans think shes worthless and annoying because of that. She gave birth to Gohan and Goten, after all, and she is a mother, she worries about her kids, so cut her some slack dammit

If it wasn't for the existance of Bulma this would have been a adequate defense.

[irreality]

I like Chichi -- I think she was well utilized in DB (even if a lot of fans ignore DB, I like it a lot). I don't think Goku could have married Bulma -- their personalities would not mesh *at all*, Chichi is the only woman it made sense for Goku to marry, with her childhood ties and liking fighting. I love how her dad and Goku's grampa were friends training under Kamesennin, and the kids they raised end up married -- it is cute. So she is necessary in that sense to give family ties to Goku.

But yeah, she is underutilized in DBZ, and it is a shame. They could have had her come along to Kamesennin's and have her react to Radditz. I actually liked her a lot in the Cell saga, taking care of Goku and whatnot. I don't mind the gags of Goku sometimes forgetting his strength around her: because she is strong enough that we can blow it off as a careless mistake for laughs instead of "that really should have killed her, wtf Goku!" I think the truly wasted moment was during the Great Saiyaman Saga, though! They should have shown us, not told us, that Chichi trained Goten -- maybe even had her learn to fly. That would have been cute and awesome.

I don't mind Chichi is an "Education Mama", though. I think the fact that she and Goku are such hicks (it really comes across in how they speak Japanese), yet being so interested in having her children get the best education possible makes the contrast interesting: a very "american dream" type storyline, wanting kids to aspire to be something more than their parents. I also find it funny that she is the only one that reacts negatively about SSJ based on the hair looking bleached like punk kids. Nobody ever seems to remark on the physical changes of the characters, and I sort of like her noticing those things.

Yeah, she screams a lot. But she also has her moments of "sunshine and roses" when they have happy family moments or when she is reminiscing or dreaming of the future. People portray her as perpetually angry and she is not like that at all: she just goes to extremes, never lukewarm.

[Dbzejo]

I dont think she was a worthless character. I really liked her in original DB and her fight with Goku. To be fair, she rarely appeared in the manga but a lot of times in anime filler and she was annoying in most of those so fans think shes worthless and annoying because of that. She gave birth to Gohan and Goten, after all, and she is a mother, she worries about her kids, so cut her some slack dammit

If it wasn't for the existance of Bulma this would have been a adequate defense.

yeah, i guess.... I like both of them... That avatar tho

[supercat]

How a character is perceived is often times dictated by the plot and the specific turn of events that they are intricately involved in. Each character has a role, or type of role that they are meant to breathe life into. How well they do so, frequently in conjunction with their overall relevance to the main cast and/or central plot seems to be major variable in the amount of "love" they receive from the fandom.

By definition, Chi Chi is anything but worthless when it comes to fulfilling her duties / roles as a wife and mother. However, thanks to the plot, her value has unmistakably been depreciated over time, as she's gone from being a major turning point in Goku's life to someone whose primarily shown with an accentuation of her "negative qualities." She's even been underrated to the point of giving fans a false illusion of her abilities, which in my opinion she shouldn't be scrutinized for anyway, as her role as a martial artist has long ended.

While she does go a bit over the top with the whole prioritizing Gohan's studies over saving the world thing, her desires to see her son go above and beyond and live a life of success shouldn't be attributed with negativity. Her high expectations could actually be considered the norm in the world of parenting, as they are usually backed by a passionate expression of love. Additionally, it doesn't really surprise me that she wants her son to blend in with 99% of the world by living a normal life. Seems like a pretty common style of parenting mothers of superheros embody in various fictional literature.

It's worth seeing past the emotional outbursts and even her other obsessive tendencies, when we consider who she is as a person to some of the heavy hitters that the a large portion of the fandom loves. Her qualities as a mother and wife are second to none, and with the strong influence she has on two of the most arguably prominent members of the main cast, her existence is still essential, regardless of the little screen time she gets. Therefore, putting it in that perspective, and really dissecting the true values she brings to the table, I could never find myself ever questioning her worth.

Personally, I think she far excels as a character in comparison to a dense simpleminded character like Broly, whose tedious persona is nothing short of unparalleled blandness.

[Alex9196]

i dont really think she is "usefull" to the series in any way. also she is by far the most annoying charcter in the entire series in my eyes. most of the time when i see her i ask myself why goku is still together with or would be with her in the first place. she must cook the best meals imaginable, thats the only explanation i come up with.

[DBZAOTA482]

I dont think she was a worthless character. I really liked her in original DB and her fight with Goku. To be fair, she rarely appeared in the manga but a lot of times in anime filler and she was annoying in most of those so fans think shes worthless and annoying because of that. She gave birth to Gohan and Goten, after all, and she is a mother, she worries about her kids, so cut her some slack dammit

If it wasn't for the existance of Bulma this would have been a adequate defense.

Who was never shown doing a single motherly thing for Trunks.

[FoolsGil]

I dont think she was a worthless character. I really liked her in original DB and her fight with Goku. To be fair, she rarely appeared in the manga but a lot of times in anime filler and she was annoying in most of those so fans think shes worthless and annoying because of that. She gave birth to Gohan and Goten, after all, and she is a mother, she worries about her kids, so cut her some slack dammit

If it wasn't for the existance of Bulma this would have been a adequate defense.

Who was never shown doing a single motherly thing for Trunks.

...I'm sorry how is that comment supposed to say that Chi Chi is excused from being a better character? Because every comment even ones that call Bulma by name, is all about Chi Chi since it's the topic at hand.

[DBZAOTA482]

...I'm sorry how is that comment supposed to say that Chi Chi is excused from being a better character? Because every comment even ones that call Bulma by name, is all about Chi Chi since it's the topic at hand.

It's not. Since you feel like bringing up Bulma regarding mothers even though their family situation isn't even comparable and Bulma herself isn't that great of a mother (despite her whitewashing fans might wanna believe).... I just felt like throwing that in.

Besides, this is the same Bulma who wanted to see the androids despite Yajirobe's protest (she argued back like mentally challenged child) and slapped Beerus over a birthday party despite seeing him effortlessly wreck the entire Z-Warriors. If you wanna get this point across then I'd figure you'd better than Bulma.... like #18 or even Snow's mom.

[FoolsGil]

...I'm sorry how is that comment supposed to say that Chi Chi is excused from being a better character? Because every comment even ones that call Bulma by name, is all about Chi Chi since it's the topic at hand.

It's not. Since you feel like bringing up Bulma regarding mothers even though their family situation isn't even comparable and Bulma herself isn't that great of a mother (despite her whitewashing fans might wanna believe).... I just felt like throwing that in.

Besides, this is the same Bulma who wanted to see the androids despite Yajirobe's protest (she argued back like mentally challenged child) and slapped Beerus over a birthday party despite seeing him effortlessly wreck the entire Z-Warriors. If you wanna get this point across then I'd figure you'd better than Bulma.... like #18 or even Snow's mom.

Well go ahead make your out of left field rebuttal. It's your topic after all. Don't expect an answer from me about it, I actually strive to stay on topic and made my points.

[Avery]

I don't understand why people hate her so much. She barely even appears in the manga. Some people don't even find her annoying but claim they do just because it's apparently "mainstream" in the DB fandom.

I don't get why everyone says Videl is "Chichi done right", either. She was an annoying tsundere who acted mean towards Gohan for no reason other than being a tsundere. She loved fighting and trained hard but once she settled down with Gohan she left it all behind and became your typical kawaii anime girl...I wouldn't be surprised if she even forgot how to fly. Now she's apparently nothing more than a meek housewife... AT AGE 16.

Chichi at least remained independent, kept her personality and even trained Goten, which suggests she still likes fighting.

[Avery]

How a character is perceived is often times dictated by the plot and the specific turn of events that they are intricately involved in. Each character has a role, or type of role that they are meant to breathe life into. How well they do so, frequently in conjunction with their overall relevance to the main cast and/or central plot seems to be major variable in the amount of "love" they receive from the fandom.

By definition, Chi Chi is anything but worthless when it comes to fulfilling her duties / roles as a wife and mother. However, thanks to the plot, her value has unmistakably been depreciated over time, as she's gone from being a major turning point in Goku's life to someone whose primarily shown with an accentuation of her "negative qualities." She's even been underrated to the point of giving fans a false illusion of her abilities, which in my opinion she shouldn't be scrutinized for anyway, as her role as a martial artist has long ended.

While she does go a bit over the top with the whole prioritizing Gohan's studies over saving the world thing, her desires to see her son go above and beyond and live a life of success shouldn't be attributed with negativity. Her high expectations could actually be considered the norm in the world of parenting, as they are usually backed by a passionate expression of love. Additionally, it doesn't really surprise me that she wants her son to blend in with 99% of the world by living a normal life. Seems like a pretty common style of parenting mothers of superheros embody in various fictional literature.

It's worth seeing past the emotional outbursts and even her other obsessive tendencies, when we consider who she is as a person to some of the heavy hitters that the a large portion of the fandom loves. Her qualities as a mother and wife are second to none, and with the strong influence she has on two of the most arguably prominent members of the main cast, her existence is still essential, regardless of the little screen time she gets. Therefore, putting it in that perspective, and really dissecting the true values she brings to the table, I could never find myself ever questioning her worth.

Personally, I think she far excels as a character in comparison to a dense simpleminded character like Broly, whose tedious persona is nothing short of unparalleled blandness.

I just wish more DB fans thought this way...
We have the perfect answer here

[Polyphase Avatron]

All Gohan and Goten fans need to be reminded that without Chichi, their favorite characters wouldn't exist.