WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for Dragon Ball Super: Super HeroBy making Piccolo and Gohan into protagonists, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero proves Dragon Ball can work without Goku. 29 years after Dragon Ball Z’s Cell Saga, Gohan is back in the spotlight in Super Hero, Dragon Ball Super’s new movie that takes place four months after the events of Dragon Ball Super: Broly and around one year before Dragon Ball Z's Peaceful World Saga. Although Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is a very self-contained story, it offers the Gohan-centric adventure that audiences have been asking for so long, and it sets up a brighter future for Goku’s firstborn.

The first Dragon Ball movie to be made mainly with CG animation, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero revisits some of Dragon Ball’s oldest antagonists, the Red Ribbon Army. More than eight years in-universe after the events of Dragon Ball Z’s Cell Saga, Dr. Hedo, Dr. Gero’s grandson, is recruited by Magenta to work for this new Red Ribbon in the making of new androids. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’s Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 are a direct callback to Dr. Gero’s androids, but that is not the only way Super Hero references the Cell Saga. The Red Ribbon Army’s ultimate plan was to unleash a new Cell android, Cell Max, setting up a new iteration of one of Dragon Ball Z’s best moments – Gohan vs. Cell.

Related: Piccolo's New Form In DBS Super Hero Explained: Power Level & Origin

With a story that relates to so many elements from Gohan’s past, it would have been a waste if Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero was not a Gohan movie. Fortunately, Gohan is Super Hero’s main character along with Piccolo, a welcomed change of pace given that both Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super had been mostly Goku-focused. Goku is only in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero for a couple of scenes as he, Vegeta, and Broly spent the entirety of the movie on Beerus’ planet. Goku, Vegeta, and Broly were not even aware of Cell Max and everything that was happening on Earth, a smart story decision that made sure Super Hero’s focus remained on Piccolo and Gohan. The last time Dragon Ball truly tried to have another main character other than Goku was during the final episodes of Dragon Ball Z’s Cell Saga, which saw Goku dying and Gohan stepping up as the world’s protector. Gohan’s time as the main character didn't last long back then, which is why it is so positive that Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero's ending battle does not involve Goku.

Why Dragon Ball Is So Afraid Of Moving Past Goku

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Originally, Goku was not supposed to return for Dragon Ball Z’s Majin Buu Saga. Goku’s death during the Cell Saga had been one of the most emotional Dragon Ball Z moments, and it set up Gohan to become the new protagonist. According to Dragon Ball Z creator Akira Toriyama for the Dragon Ball guidebook Daizenshuu, he “intended to put Gohan into the leading role” after the Cell Saga. However, according to Toriyama, it did not work out because Gohan was “ultimately not suited for the part”. While Toriyama did not specify why Gohan could not become the main character, it most likely had to do with Goku’s popularity throughout the Dragon Ball sagas. Goku is one of the most recognizable characters in pop culture history, and leaving him out of the franchise forever would never work. Still, as proved by Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Goku can work as a supporting character under the right circumstances.

It is symbolic that Gohan’s return to the spotlight was against Cell — or at least a new version of Cell. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is not only a great callback to Gohan’s best Dragon Ball Z story but also a reminder that Dragon Ball does not always need Goku to work. It will be interesting to see if there will be another Dragon Ball movie after Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero that keeps Goku as a supporting character only.