This is a problem a lot of the so-called "character development" has in the series: its really under developed. Now, Piccolo and Gohan bonding is fixed with the Z anime actually showing us how they train and interact more where as the manga just skips over most of this along with Kai. Piccolo's sacrifice isn't earned at aaaaaalllllll. But like I said, at least the Z version of the anime expanded things to make it a bit easier to swallow.BlazingFiddlesticks wrote:Very different opinions here, and they have me really considering mine. I like the concept, but the execution really does leave Toriyama looking as if he skipped a step in his story and Vegeta looking like a plot device.
I've always had a problem with Toriyama's telling us to take his word for Vegeta's settling down. We see very small bits and pieces of it; an episode of his trying to figure out how to relate Trunks, his being more relaxed at the 28th tournament. But its just too fast for me. He tells us he eventually enjoyed the family life, but we haven't seen him struggle with it, we haven't seen him tell himself that for all the embarrassment it will bring him that this is the right thing to do, and make an inevitably clumsy effort. You need something like Episode 2 of Super, at the very least, before you can take Vegeta down the violent reactionary path like that. The whole thing is played far too seriously to just drop on us. His desperation to fight Goku for the last time in his mortal life is fine trigger, but triggers need something to ignite.
And Goku. Wow, the things that ordeal brought out in Goku. The disbelieving betrayal. Not an emotion you associate with him. Too bad Goku and Vegeta's relationship is astoundingly undercooked. Had Piccolo let himself go under- not to stir that old hypothetical- it would have been spot-on. But Vegeta? What had Vegeta done to earn Goku's confidence?
Vegeta, sadly, never got this treatment anywhere and all we have is characters saying he cares without showing anything to prove the point. You also make a good point for why Majin Piccolo would've worked a lot better as an adversary than Vegeta. Piccolo and Goku actually respect one another as do Piccolo and Gohan so him going bad again would've meant something. With Vegeta, its just same old same old with a coat of barely existing paint telling us "No guys! He's totally not super evil anymore! Even though he's done exactly jack and shit to prove this!".