Vegeta is the Greatest Anime Character Pt 1: The Introduction.
Vegeta is the greatest anime character. Very few characters in anime undergo significant changes, and even fewer characters change in shonen anime. One of the many aspects that separates Dragon Ball Z from other shonen stories is the way many of its characters actually change dramatically.
Toriyama was clearly experimenting with villains who develop into heroes. Yamacha, Tien, and Piccolo all start out as villains. The degree to which characters change heart was steadily ramped up throughout the series until we reach Vegeta. Death is a constant in Dragon Ball Z, so I think Toriyama deliberately picked characters to develop, and I think Vegeta is the perfection of what he had been practicing. Vegeta is the perfect contrast to Goku; a character who’s personality changes minimally throughout the series.
Part of what separates Vegeta from other villains is his introduction. The fight with Raditz is a warm up and a warning that Vegeta and Nappa are coming. The entire supporting cast trains to fight Vegeta and Nappa, but they can’t even kill Nappa. Then, when it’s time for him to fight, Vegeta kills Nappa in one blast after Nappa spent 20+ episodes killing most of the supporting cast.
There are more episodes of people getting ready to fight Vegeta then there are in some entire series. It almost feels like the first arch of Dragon Ball Z is a red carpet welcoming Vegeta; the character that will grow and change the most throughout the series.
The introduction is flawless, and the hype allows Toriyama to show us one of the most interesting characters in manga or anime.
Read Part 2 Here:
https://jo-wallice.tumblr.com/post/161051669699/vegeta-is-the-best-anime-character-pt2-his-change
Read Part 3 here:
https://jo-wallice.tumblr.com/post/161071479129/vegeta-is-the-greatest-anime-character-pt3-his
Side note: I’ve been writing a lot on Tumblr, and I’m working on a novel. If you’d like to keep up with me follow this blog. I appreciate all the support I’ve gotten from this community.
Thanks, Jo :)