Would Goku Go SSJ If Bulma Died instead of Krillin?

[PrinceVegetto]

Hypothetically, if Freeza killed Bulma in front of Goku instead of Krillin, would he still have gone SSJ? It seems it's always Krillin's death that triggers Goku the most.

[Yuji]

He didn't turn when he thought Piccolo had died. While he has known Bulma the longest, their relationship was never as tight as Kuririn's. The only other people who could have made him turn with their deaths would have been Gohan, Chi-Chi and Roshi.

[Krillin1994]

Goku's interactions with Piccolo were fighting him in the 23rd TB, teaming up out of necessity to save Gohan and then seeing him on Namek.

Whilst he told Gohan that Piccolo wasn't that bad really (Which Gohan relays to Piccolo), and is undoubtedly very grateful he saved Gohan from Nappa's attack. I don't see the established bond being there at that stage. Once he spends three years solidly training with Piccolo then I think he's finally up there.


Bulma on the other hand whilst seeing Goku less and less over the years, was the first person Goku ever met besides his Grandpa. Even if he is dense, I think he has enough awareness that everything that happened in his life stemmed from that and always holds a special dynamic with her, kinda like an annoying younger brother to her. If she died on Namek he would've been angry enough to turn SSJ since she stepped up despite not having any physical capanilities to try and rescue everyone whilst he was helpless. Piccolo on the otherhand knowingly came to Namek knowing the stakes more of his own volition rather than a necessity.

[Peach]

I think Gohan, Krillin, Chi Chi, and maybe Master Roshi were the only ones who could enrage him that much.

Bulma, like Yamcha, Tien, Piccolo, and Chiaotzu, wouldn't trigger him enough imo.

[Koitsukai]

The way Freeza kills also has relevance, he blows you up, he doesn't just take your life. Goku seeing Bulma explode into a million pieces would provoke a response.

I think the fact that Bulma is not a fighter, and should be off limits, would put him over the edge, too.
It's like a Hitler shooting up a harmless puppy. And Goku has been friends with this puppy for decades.

I can't believe I'm low-key calling Bulma a bitch.

[Kaboom]

Worth mentioning that Kuririn having already died once before was probably also a big factor in how infuriated Goku became. As far as he was aware at the time, Kuririn couldn't be brought back to life again and was now just gone for good. Wouldn't have been the case with Bulma, even if she ranks right alongside Kuririn in the "oldest and bestest friends" list.

[TobyS]

Yeah assuming the can't be brought back wasn't the majority factor here I think Bulma and Yamcha would enrage him close enough to Kuririn, but not as much.

I think although he gets on with Kuririn more than Bulma I think Goku understands on some level that she is a defenceless civilian too so I think that might morally offend him enough to close the gap.

I agree Ten and Chaozu might not be enough and Piccolo at this stage wasn't.

[nickzambuto]

He most definitely would have transformed. Bulma is a very "protected" character in the series and rarely has to suffer the brutality and violence that other characters endure. She's very innocent in this way. Goku knows Krillin is a fighter and he's even seen Krillin die once before already. Seeing Bulma suffer would be a new sight, and probably very disturbing.

A big reason Goku got angry, as he explains to Freeza, is because Krillin was a good guy and never hurt anybody. So that line of reasoning goes double for Bulma who was a bystander and not even a fighter.

[ChronoTwigger]

Goku trigger for sure, as seeying a defenceless innocent that cannot fight back or flee being murdered on top of his own inability to stop Frieza at the moment.
You should figure out the entire scene, and what Frieza will say when killing her, paired with her scream and Goku frustration...
This could have been *way* more shocking to the audience!
Bulma is considered a "gag character", and see her in a glimpse of desperation could have been dramatic enough to justify such change in the overall plot of DB.

[DBZAOTA482]

I don't think so. Not necessarily because Goku and Krillin's bond is strong but because Goku would know Bulma could be revived at that point as she didn't die before.

[Saiya6Cit]

It is possible. But I am not sure.

Some people always critize that he lost it for krillin but not for gohan who was also terribly beaten up.
I think Goku felt gohan somehow was involved into that for being his son but somehow krillin was too painful? consider that this was the second time Krillin was dying and because of his fault, goku did not know abut the namek dragon balls at that time, so it's logical he reacted that way, he truly thought he would not see his dear friend Krillin again.

[Lukmendes]

I don't think so. Not necessarily because Goku and Krillin's bond is strong but because Goku would know Bulma could be revived at that point as she didn't die before.

I don't think he'd think that rationally, back in the 22nd tournament, Goku must've known that the dragon balls could be used to revive Krillin (He did use ''em to revive that kid's father years before), yet, he still went on a revenge rampage.

Seeing someone die in front of you, even if they can "get better", it's still going to trigger an emotional reaction out of it, and even if for some reason Goku were to be that hyper rational about seeing someone dying and thinking "Oh, we can just resurrect him/her later", it's still not a guarantee he'd manage to do so, because Piccolo is right there, and just got attacked, while he was still alive, he could still end up being killed, because Freeza was there, and stronger than everyone.

It is possible. But I am not sure.

Some people always critize that he lost it for krillin but not for gohan who was also terribly beaten up.
I think Goku felt gohan somehow was involved into that for being his son but somehow krillin was too painful? consider that this was the second time Krillin was dying and because of his fault, goku did not know abut the namek dragon balls at that time, so it's logical he reacted that way, he truly thought he would not see his dear friend Krillin again.

It's also natural to have a stronger reaction to someone being killed compared to being beaten up.

Also, even if he knew about Namekian dragon balls being able to resurrect people more than once, it wouldn't matter by that point, Guru was dead, the Namekian dragon balls were gone.

[theherodjl]

You know, Goku did flip out with righteous fury when Jiren simply made the gesture of launching a Ki blast at Goku's friends. They wouldn't have died or even been harmed since a couple dozen beings capable of stopping the attack were present among them but that didn't prevent Goku from giving Jiren a furious beatdown. I would think that it is at least possible that Goku might turn SSJ from seeing Bulma be murdered before his eyes.
He can't be so dense that he wouldn't realize that Freeza's was going to target all of his friends.

[Anonymous Friend]

This scenerio reminds me of a scene in Yu Yu Hakusho

Spoiler:

when first encountering the kids with weird powers. In order to get past them, Yusuke has to strike of of his friends as hard as he can. One of his friends had been impersonated by an antagonist and there was no way to tell the difference. He has to either punch Botan or Kuwabara. He hits Kuwabara because he's used to Yusuke punching him in the face, and if they had done something to a non-fighter like Botan, there was no force capable of stopping his rage.

While Krillin had been a trigger point for Goku previously, I think the relationship between Goku and Bulma is a extra special one, and that also trickles down to his two children. I thnk Bulma would have caused a transformation. especially if Freeza had killed her like he did Krillin and not how he thought he killed Piccolo, with the victim floating in the air begging for Goku to save them.

[Lionel]

The emotional bondage probably wasn't enough for Goku to have an over the top reaction against Nappa and Vegeta but with three friends, plus Piccolo whom he heard had sacrificed himself to protect Gohan, dying in the previous arc yet not inculcating him with the seething fury witnessed during the fight with Freeza, I'm sceptical on how much Bulma's death would have impacted Goku. They have history predating experiences with anyone else sans Grandpa Gohan. Goes without saying. But you can see how even back in 22nd tournament he flew into a spontaneous fury and set out immediately to exact vengeance for Krillin.

Again, Goku lost three of his friends plus a Piccolo who may have already touched his heart by that point with the sacrifice gesture. The Dragon Balls were no more. Far as he was aware at the time, none of them could be brought back. Say what you will about the true depth of Goku's relationship with Tenshinhan or Yamcha, all those people dying in battle would have touched a nerve. Although it's been noted how learning of their deaths after the fact isn't the same as witnessing their deaths, particularly when they're brutal executions at the hands of your enemy.

[fleahop]

I'm going to go with a big fat yes.

I've seen a few other people point this out, but it wasn't super clear, so let me clean it up a bit.

He thought he just watched Piccolo die. This would immediately be an "oh shit" moment as he now believes there are no dragon balls.

If he then watched Bulma die, while thinking of all their times together, you bet he'd transform. Because at that moment, he would believe she's gone forever.

Even without that though, I have to agree with others that he would say pretty much the same thing as he did with Krillin. Bulma dying is way too big of a deal. Especially a violent death.

[Yuji]

The emotional bondage probably wasn't enough for Goku to have an over the top reaction against Nappa and Vegeta but with three friends, plus Piccolo whom he heard had sacrificed himself to protect Gohan, dying in the previous arc yet not inculcating him with the seething fury witnessed during the fight with Freeza, I'm sceptical on how much Bulma's death would have impacted Goku. They have history predating experiences with anyone else sans Grandpa Gohan. Goes without saying. But you can see how even back in 22nd tournament he flew into a spontaneous fury and set out immediately to exact vengeance for Krillin.

Again, Goku lost three of his friends plus a Piccolo who may have already touched his heart by that point with the sacrifice gesture. The Dragon Balls were no more. Far as he was aware at the time, none of them could be brought back. Say what you will about the true depth of Goku's relationship with Tenshinhan or Yamcha, all those people dying in battle would have touched a nerve. Although it's been noted how learning of their deaths after the fact isn't the same as witnessing their deaths, particularly when they're brutal executions at the hands of your enemy.

The scenario's a bit different. Versus Nappa and Vegeta he had just arrived at the battlefield, versus Freeza he had nothing left, he exhausted all options. Keeping a calm head would help enact revenge in the former case, but he was just lashing out in powerlessness in the latter.

[Lionel]

The emotional bondage probably wasn't enough for Goku to have an over the top reaction against Nappa and Vegeta but with three friends, plus Piccolo whom he heard had sacrificed himself to protect Gohan, dying in the previous arc yet not inculcating him with the seething fury witnessed during the fight with Freeza, I'm sceptical on how much Bulma's death would have impacted Goku. They have history predating experiences with anyone else sans Grandpa Gohan. Goes without saying. But you can see how even back in 22nd tournament he flew into a spontaneous fury and set out immediately to exact vengeance for Krillin.

Again, Goku lost three of his friends plus a Piccolo who may have already touched his heart by that point with the sacrifice gesture. The Dragon Balls were no more. Far as he was aware at the time, none of them could be brought back. Say what you will about the true depth of Goku's relationship with Tenshinhan or Yamcha, all those people dying in battle would have touched a nerve. Although it's been noted how learning of their deaths after the fact isn't the same as witnessing their deaths, particularly when they're brutal executions at the hands of your enemy.

The scenario's a bit different. Versus Nappa and Vegeta he had just arrived at the battlefield, versus Freeza he had nothing left, he exhausted all options. Keeping a calm head would help enact revenge in the former case, but he was just lashing out in powerlessness in the latter.

A silly but obvious proposal here -- why couldn't he use the Taiyoken and Kienzan? Goku knows both techniques. If all bets are off and he's fighting just to survive then everything should be on the table.

[Yuji]

The emotional bondage probably wasn't enough for Goku to have an over the top reaction against Nappa and Vegeta but with three friends, plus Piccolo whom he heard had sacrificed himself to protect Gohan, dying in the previous arc yet not inculcating him with the seething fury witnessed during the fight with Freeza, I'm sceptical on how much Bulma's death would have impacted Goku. They have history predating experiences with anyone else sans Grandpa Gohan. Goes without saying. But you can see how even back in 22nd tournament he flew into a spontaneous fury and set out immediately to exact vengeance for Krillin.

Again, Goku lost three of his friends plus a Piccolo who may have already touched his heart by that point with the sacrifice gesture. The Dragon Balls were no more. Far as he was aware at the time, none of them could be brought back. Say what you will about the true depth of Goku's relationship with Tenshinhan or Yamcha, all those people dying in battle would have touched a nerve. Although it's been noted how learning of their deaths after the fact isn't the same as witnessing their deaths, particularly when they're brutal executions at the hands of your enemy.

The scenario's a bit different. Versus Nappa and Vegeta he had just arrived at the battlefield, versus Freeza he had nothing left, he exhausted all options. Keeping a calm head would help enact revenge in the former case, but he was just lashing out in powerlessness in the latter.

A silly but obvious proposal here -- why couldn't he use the Taiyoken and Kienzan? Goku knows both techniques. If all bets are off and he's fighting just to survive then everything should be on the table.

The Super Saiyan transformation seems to revitalize the user but before he transformed he could barely stand up without help. I'm assuming he was truly out of energy.

[DBZAOTA482]

I don't think so. Not necessarily because Goku and Krillin's bond is strong but because Goku would know Bulma could be revived at that point as she didn't die before.

I don't think he'd think that rationally, back in the 22nd tournament, Goku must've known that the dragon balls could be used to revive Krillin (He did use ''em to revive that kid's father years before), yet, he still went on a revenge rampage.

Seeing someone die in front of you, even if they can "get better", it's still going to trigger an emotional reaction out of it, and even if for some reason Goku were to be that hyper rational about seeing someone dying and thinking "Oh, we can just resurrect him/her later", it's still not a guarantee he'd manage to do so, because Piccolo is right there, and just got attacked, while he was still alive, he could still end up being killed, because Freeza was there, and stronger than everyone.

Kid Goku is a lot more volatile than Teen / Adult Goku. The Namekian dragonballs were gone but Piccolo was still clinging to life do they could still use the Earth dragonballs.