How could Goten have been written better?

[Zebra]

The general consensus is that he's a bland, pointless character to have around. How would you have changed or improved him? Personally, I would've liked him to be evil or at least an antagonist, with him becoming an anti-hero later on.

Feels pretty redundant for Gokuu to have two "good" sons. There's nothing that you can do with Goten that you can't already do with Gohan.

[angeldreamZ004]

He was important in the Boo saga as without him Trunks wouldn't have someone to fuse with or to train with under Piccolo's teachings.
Though you can argue it could've been anyone else, but it's the character Toriyama decided to go with as he chose him to form a duo with Trunks as both were children of the two main rivals in the series.

I also believe Toriyama intended to have some sort of replacement, as Goku died and there was also no kid figure at the point in the son family as Gohan got older (you can see that the series always feel the need to do this everytime the characters get older, so in EoZ where everyone got older it's introduced Pan and Uub, in GT it's Pan and Goku becomes a kid again, in Super Pan becomes more important character the moment Goten and Trunks get older)
So Goten would not only replace Goku but also bring back the memories of when he was a kid, that's why he was even given the same hair style. Obviously if this was indeed Toriyama's intent, it didn't proceed with the rest of the Boo arc, making it redundant.

In Super he becomes more of a Trunks' sidekick than he already was, and while GT tries to separate the two, he was still just a very support character, so his major feats were getting a girlfriend and serving as a host for Baby. So nothing was ever done with him independently that impressed me. I did like how he's given different hair styles in his older apperances though.

Answering the question, I personally have no idea of what else could be done with him, though this is very likely because I think he's boring due to what you said of him being bland, so makes me uninteristed to see more from his character. I do have a idea though that he could keep following the more traditional Saiyajin power route. While Gohan follows the more magic - demonic route as he trains with Piccolo. And Goku follows the Angelic - Divine route. So each member of the Son family follows a different power path, but this is just me enjoying the differences in characters powers, other than this I don't know, maybe something related to Great Saiayman X could be done with him, though I personally never liked the super hero theme in the series that much since the early Boo arc.

Toyotaro said that he's interested in working more with him though, so maybe he has some ideas, but who knows if we'll ever see them.

Maybe you can find something interesting with him in fan manga.

[Zephyr]

He is a pretty bland character, and I've never understood how he's got diehard fans. But every character is someone's favorite, so it's okay if I don't get it. I don't mind that he's kind of pointless. Him just existing makes the world seem a bit bigger, like Bra in the epilogue. In life, some people are gonna just kinda exist on your periphery, and some people are going to exist more on the periphery of a protagonist's life, even if they do appear for a stretch of story.

But he isn't entirely pointless. Toriyama was better at delivering exposition through character pairs talking to each other, so if nothing else it makes sense to give Kid Trunks his very own Pu'er.

[Kid Buu]

I felt like GT handled him pretty well to be honest in terms of making him a separate personality to Goku and Gohan.

He is a pretty bland character, and I've never understood how he's got diehard fans. But every character is someone's favorite, so it's okay if I don't get it. I don't mind that he's kind of pointless. Him just existing makes the world seem a bit bigger, like Bra in the epilogue. In life, some people are gonna just kinda exist on your periphery, and some people are going to exist more on the periphery of a protagonist's life, even if they do appear for a stretch of story.

But he isn't entirely pointless. Toriyama was better at delivering exposition through character pairs talking to each other, so if nothing else it makes sense to give Kid Trunks his very own Pu'er.

To be fair, Puar actuallly wins fights.

[Zebra]

He was important in the Boo saga as without him Trunks wouldn't have someone to fuse with or to train with under Piccolo's teachings

Not really. Gotenks accomplished nothing, and all he ended up doing was make Boo stronger. Nothing really changes if Boo blows up Earth earlier on and fights Ultimate Gohan on some other planet.

I felt like GT handled him pretty well to be honest in terms of making him a separate personality to Goku and Gohan.

They just turned him into Yamcha. Goten's basically a dumber "ladiesman" version of Gohan in GT; both of them are weak and fail to make the most of their potential.

Similar issue with Trunks. He's a goody two-shoes just like Gohan, and sometimes even rocks the same nerdy glasses in GT. But at the very least, Trunks looks different to Gohan.




Gohan and Goten look practically identical in several frames. Sometimes they even look like Vegeeta.

[angeldreamZ004]

Not really. Gotenks accomplished nothing, and all he ended up doing was make Boo stronger. Nothing really changes if Boo blows up Earth earlier on and fights Ultimate Gohan on some other planet.

Well, that is about Gotenks himself, the point was that Toriyama still spent a good amount of time in the Boo arc with those two and their fusion, and it was only possible because Goten was there. About Gotenks being useless it's pretty much what happened for giving him the role of a intermediary character to buy time for another character to show up (Ultimate Gohan, then Goku, then Vegeta, then Vegetto, then Goku and Vegeta) so there was nothing much to do about it as he was written to fail lol. You can view the Boo absorption as some sort of accomplishment though (for Gohan and Piccolo too), not all of them have to be positive for the heroes.

Gohan and Goten look practically identical in several frames. Sometimes they even look like Vegeeta.

Vegeta got a new haircut that came very close to Gohan's, who already became more similar to Vegeta after getting the Ultimate form in the Boo arc.

[Zebra]

Not really. Gotenks accomplished nothing, and all he ended up doing was make Boo stronger. Nothing really changes if Boo blows up Earth earlier on and fights Ultimate Gohan on some other planet.

Well, that is about Gotenks himself, the point was that Toriyama still spent a good amount of time in the Boo arc with those two and their fusion, and it was only possible because Goten was there.

None of it amounted to anything, though.

[Zephyr]

It was funny.

[Salt-sensei]

Similar issue with Trunks. He's a goody two-shoes just like Gohan, and sometimes even rocks the same nerdy glasses in GT. But at the very least, Trunks looks different to Gohan.




Gohan and Goten look practically identical in several frames. Sometimes they even look like Vegeeta.

Reminds me of how, without context, you cannot tell them apart when Gohan and Baby Goten are fighting, both shirtless and as Super Saiyans.

[super michael]

In DBS the answer is so simple, let Goten train. He is more intelligent than Goku, that right there makes him different. Goten is different compared to Gohan, since Goten actually likes to train and fight, he likes to compete against Trunks.

Goten can train with Goku, Vegeta, Whis, Piccolo, Tenshinhan, etc. Goten can learn how to use a sword like in DBO.

[Zebra]

Goten doesn't like fighting once he grows up. He's not smart, either. He's basically just a dumber Gohan.

[dragonballhero]

Not going to lie, I honestly don't need Goten to just be Goku 2.0 (or even Gohan 2.0). If nothing else, I feel like both DBZ (well, the end of the series, anyways) and DBGT were onto something with him.

Frankly, it was a little bit entertaining to see Goten EXPLICITLY attempt to get out of training with his dad and niece in DBZ: Kakarot's EoZ DLC. Gohan may not like fighting like the average Saiyan, but even he trains with little argument when it really comes down to it.

Goten, on the other hand? Not being challenged by anyone other than Trunks and Pan probably resulted in him just growing out of martial arts as a hobby and unlike his big brother, he's spent more than enough time interacting with society (thanks to Trunks, most likely) that he knows well enough by now that there's SO much more to life than being a battle maniac.

Specifically, maybe Goten could be depicted on his downtime as being FAR more of a socialite than any other member of the Son family. You know, really show that he DOES have a life outside of his family and Trunks. Super's manga depicted such a thing, but I think they can take it further and show that he has a social circle way bigger than anything his dad, mom, or brother could ever hope to have.

Not only that, but I've thinking about the "ladies' man" angle that his teenage self has been given and it makes me wonder... in the event that DB media decides to NOT play that whole bit straight, maybe have it be that he isn't able to keep a girlfriend for much longer than a week for whatever reason unlike Goku and Gohan, who weren't even looking for love but had it come to them.

[Koitsukai]

I'm a big fan of GT Goten, he is his own character. He is strong due to being a hybrid but not that strong due to being sort of a real person, with real life goals and desires.
I like it that he isn't that strong due to not giving two flying fucks about training (his father, his uncle, his neece, his brother and his best friend already have that covered, he just chooses to enjoy life), but also isn't fodder either because he still is a superman. The perfect balance, and exactly what I wouldd do if I was part of that family.

GT really captured the spirit of a teenager/grown up exploring the world beyond the saiyan-world.

[Zebra]

Specifically, maybe Goten could be depicted on his downtime as being FAR more of a socialite than any other member of the Son family. You know, really show that he DOES have a life outside of his family and Trunks. Super's manga depicted such a thing, but I think they can take it further and show that he has a social circle way bigger than anything his dad, mom, or brother could ever hope to have.

Dragon Ball isn't a slice of life series like that, though. Goten might be suited for a lighthearted filler episode, but whenever the plot gets serious, he just takes up space.

I like it that he isn't that strong due to not giving two flying fucks about training (his father, his uncle, his neece, his brother and his best friend already have that covered, he just chooses to enjoy life), but also isn't fodder either because he still is a superman. The perfect balance, and exactly what I wouldd do if I was part of that family.

Goten's only uncle is dead, unless you jokingly mean Piccolo or Vegeeta? Trunks doesn't train in GT.

Relying on others to train and protect Earth for you is irresponsible, because they're not invincible; this is why Goten and Trunks get scolded. The only person who's strong enough to matter in GT is Gokuu, anyway, and he's an idiot. And Pan is weaker than Goten; why would he rely on her?

[Koitsukai]

Specifically, maybe Goten could be depicted on his downtime as being FAR more of a socialite than any other member of the Son family. You know, really show that he DOES have a life outside of his family and Trunks. Super's manga depicted such a thing, but I think they can take it further and show that he has a social circle way bigger than anything his dad, mom, or brother could ever hope to have.

Dragon Ball isn't a slice of life series like that, though. Goten might be suited for a lighthearted filler episode, but whenever the plot gets serious, he just takes up space.

I like it that he isn't that strong due to not giving two flying fucks about training (his father, his uncle, his neece, his brother and his best friend already have that covered, he just chooses to enjoy life), but also isn't fodder either because he still is a superman. The perfect balance, and exactly what I wouldd do if I was part of that family.

Goten's only uncle is dead, unless you jokingly mean Piccolo or Vegeeta? Trunks doesn't train in GT.

Relying on others to train and protect Earth for you is irresponsible, because they're not invincible; this is why Goten and Trunks get scolded. The only person who's strong enough to matter in GT is Gokuu, anyway, and he's an idiot. And Pan is weaker than Goten; why would he rely on her?

I like irresponsible characters.

[The Dark Knight]

I think one way to develop Goten would be to give him an inferiority complex; have that be the start of a self-discovery journey he goes on to build himself up. His brother went to space and saved the world from Cell, his best friend's future counterpart killed the mighty Freeza and saved an entire timeline (that he doesn't exist in), Vegeta is a prince who is just one step behind his father, and his father is Goku, the warrior who has accomplished so much he couldn't even comprehend. If you go further you can have him look at all their friends, as even Yajerobe and Chatzu, have all accomplished more than him.

[JulieYBM]

I'd probably make Goten have a greater interest in doing any-and-all martial arts away from his family. When he wants to train, he goes off on his own. When he wants to fight, he goes off to a tournament on some other planet. Goten should want to be free from comparisons to his family.

If you want to define Goten, you do it without having him need to think about or interact with his fanily.

Also, you put him on HRT and dating Trunks.

[super michael]

Goten doesn't like fighting once he grows up. He's not smart, either. He's basically just a dumber Gohan.

In EOZ there is no indication that Goten doesn't like to fight, he just had a date on the same day as the tournament. There is no indication that Goku forced Goten to train with him, the only thing Goku forced Goten to do is go to the tournament.

In DBS Goten did want to fight, train and join any tournament, it isn't his fault that everyone didn't allow him.

Trunks is in love with Mai, I can't remove if Goten is in love with someone or if someone is in love with him.

[Zebra]

Gokuu explicitly says that Goten's been slacking from his training, so the implication is that Gokuu forced Goten to train with him. Goten clearly doesn't enjoy fighting or training much once he grows up.

[super michael]

Gokuu explicitly says that Goten's been slacking from his training, so the implication is that Gokuu forced Goten to train with him. Goten clearly doesn't enjoy fighting or training much once he grows up.

I was checking herms translation I found these:

Chapter: 519 (DBZ 325), P1.3
Context: after Goten and Boo are matched up in the tournament's first round
Goten: “Th-that can’t be! How can I go up against Boo right in the first round?!”
Goku: “It’s only a problem because you keep slacking off in your training.”

Chapter: 518 (DBZ 324), P3.5
Vegeta: “Hmph. It pains us both how weak our children act.”
Goku: “Haha, that’s true. Well, that’s peace for you.”

The thing is slacking can also mean that Goten isn't training as hard as before, therefore training less. It doesn't automatically mean that Goten quit training 100%. We know that Goten priority is dating, he never said he doesn't enjoy to train and fight.