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caxyanalysis · 2 years ago

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Watching the DBZA Buu Bits and I need to talk about something from canon DBZ now.

Vegeta's sacrifice to try and kill Buu.

This is a man with a very, VERY complicated history. Born an elite, the prince of his people and the pride of his father. As a child the same age Goku was when he met Bulma, he was training against Saibamen in groups of 3 or more regularly and walking away without a scratch. Each Saibaman has power equal to Raditz. Vegeta, as a CHILD, was such a prodigy and such a powerhouse that when he was 10-12, he was facing 3 enemies more powerful than Goku was at start of DBZ.

And his entire world was destroyed, and all he could do was face the reality that he would, from then on, be underneath someone's boot. He, who bore the pride of the entire Saiyan race on his shoulders, he alone who held the power so worthy of his people, and he alone who knew the legends and tales of his kind by heart.

Nappa was never a friend. Nappa was a lackey, a fool who thought only with his muscles, and relied far too heavily on mere brute force in every aspect of life. Vegeta, even with all his pride, knew when to use his head as well as his fists.

And in matters concerning Freeza, his fists would be no use. So he played the role of willing servant, hoping that one day Freeza would slip up, that his chance would come. And then, Raditz, a low-level warrior staying with the pack out of mere kinship of species, remembers his brother and tracks him down, believing by now Kakarot must be, if nothing else, awaiting his people to sell the planet he wiped out.

Only to hear that Raditz was killed by his younger brother. Surely this Kakarot was worth their attention after all, if he was able to kill Raditz so easily. And on top of that, dragon balls, which rumors had circulated about. Wish granting power without limit. How could he resist? This was his chance to finally stop Freeza. He could wish for immortality, or power, or anything else he needed to kill the tyrant and avenge his people.

And if, in the process, he could bury the man who dared kill his entertainment, he would. After all, with so few Saiyans left he couldn't abide the murder of an able-bodied warrior, even if they were a little on the weak side.

So he reaches Earth, watches Nappa crush the opposition, and out of sheer curiosity, allows them time for Kakarot to arrive. This mysterious man, brother to Raditz, who these Earthlings were so confident could beat them both...Who was he? What was he like? Why did they have such faith in him? He was a failure. A low-level runt, worse than Raditz, and yet even the most powerful among them insisted Goku was far better, was better than Nappa. Was better than Vegeta.

And that, he could not abide.

Yet he's shown, mere hours later, this Kakarot is something more than he expected. It should be impossible. Saiyans get stronger with each battle, but a lowly runt could never achieve that which he, an elite, the Prince, had achieved. And yet there, with Nappa balanced atop his palm, stood Kakarot with barely a hair out of place after shattering Nappa's spine and leaving him completely useless.

It was infuriating. Everything he knew was in danger of falling, the shaky foundation of Saiyan logic faltering beneath him. And in his anger, and his realization Nappa was no good to him, he kills one of the last remaining Saiyans with a smile on his face, knowing that while Kakarot may be powerful, it will only mean it's more fun to break him.

But he doesn't break him. Kakarot matches him blow for blow and even when he becomes a great ape, it takes some effort to get his hands on Kakarot. And by the end of the fight, he's been beaten, battered, bruised, and humiliated repeatedly by this man's refusal to die.

But he did hear something important. Namek. On Namek, there are more dragon balls. And he can't wait to get there. Unfortunately, Freeza knows too, and now it's time to make his play. He needs to get there, quickly, and gather them. But it isn't that easy. There's competition from the Earthlings, who are far stronger now and may be useful, and competition from Freeza and his men. It's looking bad, and then who should arrive, but Kakarot.

Kakarot, who single-handedly defeats multiple Ginyu Force members and even pushes Ginyu to fear, resulting in Ginyu recognizing Kakarot's strength and stealing his form. And when all is fixed, with Kakarot in his own body again, he needs rest. Because with power like his, they may stand a chance.

Vegeta's world has crumbled. He's been not only beaten by this "low class warrior", but outmatched entirely in this man's actions against the Ginyu Force. And with this new increase in power, he may very well be the one to realize his people's greatest legend. He may already have.

And then, with a power increase of his own, he thinks that maybe HE'S done it. Maybe he's become the legendary warrior. The one they told tales of on his homeworld.

But no. No, he hasn't. Because Freeza was afraid, so afraid of that warrior he destroyed their entire race for fear of it. And here he is, mocking Vegeta and batting his attacks away as if they're nothing. And when Kakarot arrives, fully healed, he can feel his power. He can feel how close it is to Freeza's. And he has hope, for the first time in his entire life, for someone other than himself.

For this hope he is killed. And he finds himself in Hell. Punished for his crimes in service to Freeza, and in pursuit of power to stop him. But he isn't there long, he's suddenly revived, finding himself buried on Namek. Buried. None had reason to give him a funeral, and yet someone did. And it could only be that infuriating, insufferable, and incredible warrior named Kakarot.

Kakarot, who now faces Freeza with power beyond anything the tyrant could ever hope to achieve. Kakarot, who now shines with golden light, hair burning like a star, and radiating light like pure divinity. Kakarot, the legendary warrior.

Kakarot, the Super Saiyan.

So he races to make his wish, seeing his opportunity, beaten there by Freeza and, as the dragon confirms a wish has been made, he readies an attack and...

Finds himself on Earth. No resolution. No immortality. No idea what happened to Freeza or Kakarot. And now, with nowhere to go, nobody to serve, he spends some time on Earth, and with a chance to blow off steam, conceives a child with Bulma.

Eventually, they find that Freeza has survived and come to Earth, expecting Kakarot to be there. Rather than this, he is met by yet another Super Saiyan. Another. A surviving Saiyan, powerful enough to kill Freeza and his father in seconds.

Two Super Saiyans now, and neither were him. This is another blow to his pride, and Kakarot isn't even here to deal it. Not only that, but this god among Saiyans, this legendary warrior so much stronger than he is, claims there are beings to fear. Beings more powerful than he is. Beings so far and above his league that he never stood a chance against even one of them, and they always work as a pair.

Unaware of the life growing within Bulma and, by nature of being Saiyan and not caring either way, he leaves to train.

He trains extensively, and when he does return, he's far stronger, and Kakarot is facing one of the prophesied threats, and losing. But Vegeta is no longer behind him. He's obtained the power of a Super Saiyan as well, and with incredible ease, destroys one of the androids. He's proven himself now. The boy from three years ago could not defeat these beings, despite wiping out Freeza with ease. Kakarot, with three years to train, failed to defeat the lackey of the two. Yet Vegeta did not fail.

Until he learns the truth. These are not the ones they were warned of. They are exponentially weaker than those the boy mentioned.

The ones he mentioned, when they do arrive, absolutely humiliate him. Three years. A death wish. Power unending. Godhood, in his eyes, and it meant nothing to but ONE of these two monsters. His power, great as it is, was nothing to them.

He recovers, he's stronger, but does it even matter? Each time he fights, he's reminded how insignificant his growth is. Each new challenger puts him firmly beneath Kakarot. He's found a wall he cannot break through: The power ceiling known as Kakarot.

And then he learns of the Time Chamber. A year of training in a single day. And who better to train against than the boy who decimated Freeza. A solid, clear indication of his power. If he trains with this boy, who at half Kakarot's age was able to easily beat Freeza, not only might the boy become exponentially stronger than either of them, giving them an easy chance at defeating the androids, but training against one with such potential, such explosive growth, maybe he can surpass Kakarot, if he trains against someone capable of doing just that.

And he does, he succeeds, he's drastically stronger than Kakarot. But then Kakarot goes in with his half-breed son, and when they exit, both are stronger than he is. Not only has the boy grown to match him, if not surpass him, but Kakarot and his son have surpassed him without a doubt.

And then there's the matter of Cell. His second form was nothing. But his Perfect Form absolutely humiliates the prince. Another challenger come to invalidate his efforts. Another battle he finds himself losing to buy time for Kakarot.

And the tournament is no different. Kakarot is the main event, and all Cell cares about. Until Gohan snaps. Kakarot's son explodes with power, elevating to a whole new league and rendering everyone, including Kakarot, obsolete. The power he displays is above anything even Cell could have ever hoped to see.

Yet Kakarot still takes the spotlight. He sacrifices himself to save everyone. And when Cell returns and Gohan finally stops him, for good, Vegeta has this to say:

He has beaten me completely. First by his own actions and then through his son's... and what has he left for me here? How? How could you die like that? How, Kakarrot? I'll... never have the chance... to prove my strength against you! You died without fear, what does that make of me...? I'll never fight again.

Vegeta's only rival, his entire life, has passed on and refuses to be revived. He is left with Gohan, who does not fight, a host of people who will never pose challenge to him, and his son who, while he will need training, will never offer him the level of rivalry Kakarot did.

The ceiling did not break when Kakarot died. It became endless. It became indestructible. Vegeta will never, ever know how he measures up to Kakarot. Because he's seen where he goes when he dies. He is bound for Hell, while Kakarot could have only gone to Otherworld. He's with King Kai, training, while Vegeta will never have that chance. He has fought and fought to survive and improve, and to be worthy of Kakarot's rivalry and to surpass him.

And now, with Kakarot's progress unknown and unknowable, he never will. He has nothing left. His will to fight, his saiyan pride, is gone. Everything that meant anything to him was destroyed along with Cell.

Until the tournament.

Kakarot's back.

For one day only, he's allowed to roam the Earth. And Vegeta must face him. But he's gotten soft. He's been a family man, training Trunks and being a husband to Bulma. He hasn't lost his edge, but it has dulled. He isn't the ruthless fighter he once was.

But he can change that, through Babidi. Babidi can amplify his power and restore him to the bloodthirsty warrior he once was. Only...it doesn't.

He thinks it did, and for a while he's his old self. But you can't erase a lifetime of experiences with a simple wave of the hand. And that family man, that proud warrior, they coexist. They aren't mutually exclusive, and he realizes this. He realizes why Kakarot was always so powerful, so strong, and why he was able to die without regrets.

And now, he too could do the same. He gives his son a hug, showing him the love and pride he has always deserved, so that his final memory of his father will be one of sincerity. And when his son and Kakarot's are safe, he utters these words:

Trunks...Bulma...I do this for you. And yes...even for you, Kakarot...

He sacrifices himself for his son, for his wife, and for the family Kakarot spent his whole life fighting for, and died to protect.

He sacrifices himself so, should Kakarot get the chance, he will have a family to come home to. He sacrifices himself to honor his one rival, his greatest ally, and his most worthy friend.

Vegeta, the proud Saiyan prince, dies not for his arrogance or hubris. Not for his pride or his power. Vegeta, who spent his entire life serving only himself, caring only for the next fight, dies not from his failure, or his weakness.

Vegeta dies not simply to stop Buu.

Vegeta sacrifices himself for love, giving his life freely for those around him, with no concern of where he knows he will go.

His sacrifice is the ultimate turning point of his character. He was conditioned from birth to believe everything, everyone else, every last thing he saw...was beneath him. That he stood atop the pecking order, with none but Freeza in his way.

And repeatedly, he was put beneath everyone else. Cui mocked him, Zarbon and Dodoria belittled him, the Ginyu Force made light of his heritage.

Kakarot, a worthless runt abandoned on a backwater planet, beat him and surpassed him time and time again.

His entire life, his pride was shaken time after time, yet he NEVER let go of it. And when it seems like his pride finally shattered, like he was no longer that proud Saiyan prince, is when he was MOST proud.

He was proud to die for his family. He was proud to die as the Saiyan Prince Vegeta. He was proud to die for Kakarot. His pride was not his downfall, nor was it his weakness. His pride is what gave him the strength to persevere, and pushed him to fight time after time.

And in his final moments, it was his pride that pushed him to sacrifice the only thing he had left to give, his very life.

Vegeta grew, and changed, and became more with each fight in ways that no other character in the show could hope to have done.

In the end, Vegeta was the most human of them all, and his pride is what made the show worth watching, right up to his calm and loving end in the Buu saga.

And people wonder why I adore Vegeta so much more than Goku.

#I know he came back #I don't care #he didn't know he would #He didn't expect to #he was ready #he died without regrets #a truer warrior never was #than the saiyan prince #vegeta

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