Summary
- Super Saiyan 4 is a controversial form that only appeared in Dragon Ball GT and is not part of the official Dragon Ball canon.
- Ultra Instinct is a mental state of mind and less of a physical transformation, making it difficult for Goku to access at will.
- The True Ultra Instinct state that Goku mastered is his most powerful form, allowing him to react effortlessly and defeat the strongest fighter in the universe.
One of the unique characteristics of Dragon Ball’s Goku is his ability to transform into powerful forms such as Ultra Instinct and Super Saiyan 4. Over the course of the franchise, Goku has experienced over 10 different transformations, with each adding a different ability or strength. In the debate over which form is the most powerful, one of the interesting and controversial comparisons is between Super Saiyan 4 and Ultra Instinct.
The process of achieving Super Saiyan 4 form in Dragon Ball GT is convoluted. First, some conditions must force Goku to change into Super Saiyan, such as seeing Baby demolish Goku's former student Uub. Second, there must be a condition to transform into Golden Great Ape form. Lastly, he must transform from the rampaging Golden Great Ape form to Super Saiyan 4
What makes Super Saiyan 4 controversial is that only appeared in the short-lived anime Dragon Ball GT. As such, it has yet to be made part of official Dragon Ball canon.
Ultra Instinct Outperforms Super Saiyan 4
The strength of the Super Saiyan 4 form is that it combines the raw power of the Golden Great Ape form with the focus and control of a Saiyan fighter. In the manga, the normal Great Ape form gave Saiyans strength, speed, durability, and size, as well as the ability to fire an energy beam from their mouth. GT shows that a Golden Great Ape form provides these abilities to a much higher degree. The problem with any Great Ape form is that it causes the user to lose control of themselves. Super Saiyan 4 eliminates this by giving Goku access to all that power while keeping his mental faculties.
The Ultra Instinct form, which Goku first experienced in Dragon Ball Super's Tournament of Power, is less of a physical transformation, and more of a mental state of mind, although when achieved it does physically change Goku to a small degree. Goku obtained this ability largely from training with Whis, an Angel attendant of Destroyer God Beerus. However, due to the difficulty of mastering its intricacies, such as repressing emotion, Goku does not have a perfect ability to make use of it at will. For instance, in Goku's fight against Jiren, Ultra Instinct came about more due to the fact that he was losing the fight, and less because he had the ability to access it at will.
Goku's True Ultra Instinct is His Most Powerful Form
The benefits of Ultra Instinct are more defensive than offensive. While in the form, it is almost as if time slowed to a fraction of its normal speed. So, Goku can see an attack in super-slow motion and simply avoid it. Users of Ultra Instinct need not think of a defense or an attack; the body reacts naturally to analyze the threat or opportunity and moves effortlessly to initiate a response. The problem with the form is that, unless the user has completely mastered its complexities, it is incredibly draining, such that it can only last for a brief period of time.
In the manga however, Goku actually managed to master an improved state, the True Ultra Instinct state, which made it possible for him to maintain it for a longer, if still limited, period of time. Goku even found a way to wield this power while still relying on his emotions, which the form had previously required him to suppress. This ability proved exceptionally powerful, able to defeat Gas, who was wished by the Dragon Balls to be the strongest fighter in the universe at that time. The True Ultra Instinct state that Goku unlocked is thus undeniably more powerful than GT's Super Saiyan 4, making Ultra Instinct Goku's strongest form in Dragon Ball.
Dragon Ball Super is available on Crunchyroll.
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Dragon Ball
- Summary:
- From the creative mind of Akira Toriyama, Dragon Ball is a mega multimedia franchise that spans back to the 1980s. Dragon Ball expanded quickly, starting as a serialized manga for Weekly Shonen Jump in Japan. It made its way overseas via manga and an anime adaptation that is enjoyed worldwide. Dragon Ball was the initial starting animated series that followed the adventures of the young Son Goku as he sought after the Dragon Balls. These mystical orbs would grant the wish of any who gathered them together. Then, the series would branch off into the immensely popular Dragon Ball Z, which followed Goku as an adult and featured high-intensity battles and Goku's never-ending search to be the strongest. The series has also enjoyed several popular video game adaptations and continues to release several new animated series and theatrical films up to the recent popular Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
- Created by:
- Akira Toriyama
- First Film:
- Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Rubies
- Latest Film:
- Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
- First TV Show:
- Dragon Ball
- Latest TV Show:
- Super Dragon Ball Heroes
- First Episode Air Date:
- 1989-04-26
- Latest Episode:
- 2019-10-05
- Cast:
- Sean Schemmel, Laura Bailey, Brian Drummond, Christopher Sabat, Scott McNeil
- Current Series:
- Dragon Ball Super
- Video Game(s):
- Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, Dragon Ball FighterZ, Dragon Ball: The Breakers, Super Dragon Ball Heroes: World Mission, Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Z, Dragon Ball Xenoverse, Dragon Ball Z Kakarot
