Dragon Ball Dragon Team / Characters

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Major Martial Artists

Dragon Team/Z-Fighters

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A group of Earth's mightiest warriors. Formed as a team during the Saiyan invasion, they gradually gathered beforehand over time, and have always fought many battles in order to test their skills and reach other goals, and in turn, have become the unofficial defenders of Earth.

Aborted Arc: After dying in the Saiyan invasion, Tien, Piccolo, Chiaotzu, and Yamcha are all introduced as training under King Kai in Otherworld, and all had gotten there significantly faster than Goku himself. There are a few episodes of Filler showing them training and even beating the Ginyu Force with relative ease, which would put them significantly around Goku's level when he first arrived on Namek, building up their strength. Unfortunately, this amounts to nothing as three out of four of them never truly have a proper fight again after that point.
Blood Knight: All of them enjoy a good fight, some more than others. Best shown in the Android/Cell Saga, where all of them go against Bulma's suggestion that they find Dr. Gero and stop him before he can activate the Androids,^note deciding instead to spend the three years training in preparation. This is despite the fact that Future Trunks had already told them that the Androids would kill them all.
Can't Catch Up: Unfortunately, anyone who’s not a Saiyan...
- Dragon Ball Super goes to some lengths to redress the problem by giving many of the Z-Warriors large power-ups. But, if anything, the problem is worse than before. Ever since Goku and Vegeta gained divine ki and Super Saiyan God transformations, everyone else has been left in the dust, including Gohan and the other Saiyan hybrids (who originally had the most potential of them all). Occasionally, someone like Android #17 will come along with a significant power boost and briefly put Goku on edge, but by the next arc, Goku will only grow even stronger and surpass everyone else once more.
- Finally averted for real in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, where both Gohan and Piccolo gain exclusive new transformations that put them in the same ballpark as Goku and Vegeta.
Defeat Means Friendship: The large majority of them were once past enemies of Goku’s, to varying degrees. (Krillin and Tien were rivals, Piccolo was a villain but reformed by the end of the following arc after his debut, and Vegeta was a Token Evil Teammate through and through until the end of Z.)
Everyone Has Standards:
- In the Frieza Saga, while Gohan, Piccolo, and Krillin all make it perfectly clear they hate Vegeta's guts and wouldn't care if he died, they're still left shocked and horrified at the sight of Frieza brutally torturing him. Similarly, in the Buu Saga, Krillin and Piccolo are mournful when Vegeta sacrifices himself (in vain) to destroy Fat Buu, with Krillin actually screaming his name.
- Come the Cell Saga, despite all of the horrible things Cell has done and wanting him to go down, most of them are left horrified at sweet little Gohan's sadistic joy in cruelly picking the android apart. Well, except for Goku, who was less concerned that his son was torturing someone to death and more concerned that Gohan was taking too long and would eventually drive Cell to do something desperate.
Fire-Forged Friends: Most of the Z-Fighters (barring Gohan) were initially enemies or rivals to Goku but the number of hardships they endure like facing the same goal (like the Dragon Balls or sharing the same enemy) resulted in them becoming great friends and allies.
The Friends Who Never Hang: In the Z era at least, the Z-Fighters as a whole would rarely hang out unless the world was in danger and could go for years without even seeing each other, either due to their other responsibilities or simply living too far away from each other and losing contact. This is mostly averted in Super where they are more close-knit, often having parties and get-togethers at Bulma's place.
Hard Work Hardly Works: All of them get hit with this hard. They often put themselves through Training from Hell, but they simply Can't Catch Up to Goku or the Saiyans.
Honor Before Reason: They generally prefer not to gang up on opponents even when it would be pragmatic to do so.
I Have Many Names: Bearing in mind that these guys are a Ragtag Bunch of Misfits rather than some highly organised superhero team, they don't have any official In-Universe name, though there are several non-diegetic names that are used by fans and marketers for convenience. "The Z-Warriors/Z-Fighters" is the most common name derived from the anime ^note. However, Akira Toriyama prefers the more inclusive "Dragon Team" name, which can be used to describe Goku's entire friend circle rather than just the combatant members. Other names include "Earth's Special Forces", "Super-Warriors", "Group Z"^noteGerman dub "Team Universe 7" and simply "the Dragon Ball Gang", among others.
Informed Attribute: Chiaotzu, Tien, Yamcha, and Piccolo are all stated to be students of King Kai, however, the results of said training isn't really shown outside of a power boost, something that isn't shown outside of Filler. None of them use the techniques of the Spirit Bomb or the Kaioken, or any moves attributed to his training.
Magnetic Hero: Nearly all of them were brought together by their shared association with Goku. The group as a whole has gradually built up a massive number of allies and won the begrudging respect of many opponents.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Some more than others, but more often than not, the current conflict is exacerbated by the Z-Fighters' own actions. Cell and Majin Buu in particular would never have gotten as far as they did had the heroes not kept screwing things up again and again.
Not Wearing Tights: Make no mistake, the Dragon Team are not superheroes. Hell, they're not even an official team as such. They're just a group of warriors who happen to fight powerful threats to the Earth, but in their daily lives, they do not go around looking for crime to fight or global problems to solve (only Gohan and Krillin do this as a part-time superhero and police officer, respectively).^note
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: A monkey boy from outer space, his half-human son, a short noseless monk, a desert bandit, a former demon king, a three-eyed assassin, an alien prince, etc. Essentially, they’re a random collection of warriors that the earth AND the whole universe is lucky to have, in every sense of the word, to keep them safe from evil.
Rival Dojos: Way back when the main gang was mainly comprised of Master Roshi's Turtle School pupils and their friends, the Crane School were their main rivals. When Tenshinhan and Chaozu turned over a new leaf, they joined Roshi while keeping their Crane martial arts teachings. Since then, the various world-ending threats that the Dragon Team run into can be viewed as twisted variations of the Rival Dojo trope, e.g. King Piccolo and his Demon Clan, Vegeta and his Saiyan comrades, Dr. Gero and his Android creations. Most of them get absorbed into the Dragon Team in some fashion after their defeats.
Rooting for the Empire: In-Universe. When Mr. Satan challenges Cell, most of the Z-Fighters get so irritated by his loudmouth, overbearing, braggart attitude and his constant underestimation of Cell's ability that they all find themselves taking the latter's side during their "fight". After Cell easily dispatches Satan in one hit, Krillin freely admits to Gohan that he was rooting for Cell, and even Piccolo winds up being disappointed that Cell didn't just kill him.
Skewed Priorities: Nearly all of them suffer from this to one extent or another as they can prioritize their desire for a good fight over the safety of the Earth. Even the human fighters, despite having a higher willingness to be pragmatic, have codes of honor that would be seen as quite alien to normal people.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Their initial alignment with Vegeta was riddled with this. The trend continued in Super with their brief team-up with Frieza.
True Companions: They're all close friends, despite going anywhere from three to ten years without speaking to each other, and although Vegeta spends the rest of his life resenting how Goku beat him up, he eventually becomes part of the group.
We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": In later arcs, the effectiveness of the characters in the grand scheme of things was basically whittled down to a few Saiyans. The overall narrative structure of every one of Z's sagas could be summed up as "major characters of varying degrees of importance lose against the main villain one by one (if they're lucky, they'll be able to kill a secondary enemy or two) until Goku is able to step in, fully recovered from whatever last held him back and stronger than ever, to finally defeat them."
We Have Become Complacent:
- All the heroes, except for Goku, Vegeta, and Tien (the last having never stopped training despite a case of Can't Catch Up), become this in the Buu Saga. After Cell's defeat, the Earth went through seven years of peace without incident. Then Babidi came with his most powerful minion being only as strong as last season's main villain. Still, he was able to effectively kill Piccolo and Krillin and fought Gohan to a draw because he had actually gotten weaker from not training. Vegeta also sold his soul for power, making Goku the only person able to stop him. Things got worse when Buu was awakened, who is many times stronger than any previous villain catching the entire cast, except Goku, flatfooted. They spent most of the saga frantically trying to get strong enough just to challenge Buu.
- From the Cell Saga onwards, Goku finds himself exasperated with his friends and loved ones for their tendency to do this, especially since they constantly depend on him to save the day when one day, he will die permanently and when that day comes, no one will be able to counter the next big threat to Earth unless they stop being so dependent on him. This leads to him trying to pass the torch to first Gohan, then Goten and Trunks, but sadly, they end up being too lazy to keep training, adding to his annoyance.
Weak, but Skilled: Many of the Z-Fighters, especially compared to Goku and Vegeta, and even then, they fall into it on occasion. Super shows this especially, where many of the non-Saiyan Z-Fighters manage to hold their own against, or even defeat, comparatively stronger opponents using unique skills or greater experience.

Master Roshi

Master Roshi (武天老師, Muten Rōshi/Wutian Laoshi, lit. Martial Heaven Old Master)
AKA The Turtle Hermit (亀仙人, Kame Sen'nin)

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Voiced by (Japanese): Kouhei Miyauchi (Dragon Ball and Z), Joji Yanami (DB episode 137 only), Hiroshi Masuoka (Z, GT, Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!), Masaharu Sato (Movie 13, Kai, Battle of Gods, Resurrection 'F', Super), Kinya Aikawa (The Path to Power), Takkou Ishimori (Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure)
Voiced by (English): Clifton Wells (Harmony Gold dub); Michael Donovan (DB ep. 3, Curse of the Blood Rubies), Ian James Corlett (DB ep. 7-8, DBZ ep. 1-34, Edited version of Movie 3), Peter Kelamis (DBZ ep. 50), Don Brown (DBZ Movies 1-2, Uncut version of Movie 3), Terry Klassen (DBZ Season 4-6) (BLT/Ocean dub); Mike McFarland (Funimation dub);^note Dean Galloway (Blue Water dub); Ed Marcus (AB Groupe/"Big Green" dub); Nesty Ramirez (Creative Products Corp., Philippines); Dave Bridges (Animax dub); Kirk Thornton (Bang Zoom!/Toonami Asia dub in Super)
Voiced by (Latin American Spanish): Jesús Colín (DB, Z and GT), Jorge Roig (Kai), Miguel Ángel Sanromán (Battle of Gods, Resurrection ‘F’, Kai the Final Chapters and Super)
Voiced by (French): Pierre Trabaud (DB, Z), Gérard Surugue (GT), Gilbert Lévy (Kai, Super)
Voiced by (Italian): Mario Scarabelli

"Now listen to me boys! Always remember these words: Work hard! Study well! and eat and sleep plenty. That is the Turtle Hermit way! We must master the art of peace in addition to the art of war!"

Goku's first mentor. A hermit whose home is located on a small island in the middle of the ocean. Very strong (at least at the start of the series) and with a keen eye. Also very perverted and usually hits on any pretty tail that comes his way.

Achilles in His Tent: He doesn't get involved with the Red Ribbon Army Saga despite being superior to Son Goku around this time.
Adaptational Badass: In the anime version of the Tournament of Power, he was already formidable enough, but in the manga, even though a lot of his spotlight got sidetracked, he was able to survive long enough, being the 6th overall fighter to get taken out from the Tournament of Power, even outlasting Gohan, Piccolo, and Android 18. He singlehandedly took out a Pride Trooper (Kahseral) and even managed to endure Jiren temporarily as an attempt to buy Goku time to rest.
Adaptational Jerkass: While Roshi was always characterized as lecherous in the manga, he never outright assaulted anyone and his only crimes were acts of voyeurism. On the other hand, Toei's anime filler goes out of its way to give him far more dodgy sexualized scenes for comedic relief, mainly of him groping female characters (with the character Maron basically being created to be the butt of these "jokes"), that would certainly get him indicted on some kind of register in real life. He usually receives comeuppance for his dirty deeds, however.
Animal Motif: Turtles. His teaching style is based around them and he wears a shell on his back for training.
Awesome, but Impractical:
- His Max Power form makes him strong enough to destroy entire mountains and the Moon with a single Kamehameha, but the muscle increase greatly slows him down, and using even one ki attack will burn him out. As of Resurrection 'F', he's more mobile and can use more than one energy attack while in that state.
- The Mafuba. In terms of power and use, it's virtually a OHKO that can work on anyone, even beings who are far stronger than Roshi is, and since very few people know about the attack, Roshi is almost guaranteed to land it when he is able to use it. However, the technique has a steep cost to use, and can often kill the user if they are unprepared for it, such as what happened to Roshi when he used it on Demon King Piccolo back in Dragon Ball. Even if the user doesn't die, they are left exhausted as a result, and if someone is able to learn about the attack, they can reverse it and seal the caster, or another target.
Baldness Mockery: For all the depth of his conflict with Master Roshi, Master Shen, Roshi's Evil Counterpart, is not above teasing the "300-year-old pervert with a head that is bald and shiny".
Big Good: In Dragon Ball, by virtue of being the wisest and most experienced of the group. Kami effectively took this role after his introduction up until his fusion with Piccolo.
Bilingual Bonus: A very interesting case for his name. Outside of the translations of his titles seen above at the top of his page near the folder, note that "Laoshi/Rōshi" literally means "Old Master" In the most current English dub, he basically is called "Master Old Master" if one literally translates "Master Roshi".
Bishōnen Line: When he buffs up, his missing teeth grow back.
Brilliant, but Lazy: Roshi was, for a long time, one of the most powerful people on the planet. However, he spends his days watching porn and exercise videos, letting his students save the earth rather than get off his island.
- Subverted when Frieza comes back to life and invades Earth while Goku and Vegeta are absent, during which he's seen fighting off the alien armada alongside Gohan and Piccolo. He would then join Team Universe 7 in the Tournament of Power and was able to hold his own for a relatively impressive amount of time.
Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: He came the closest to stopping King Piccolo by using the Evil Containment Wave to seal him into a rice cooker. He misses the cooker and dies soon afterward, allowing Piccolo to get his wish to regain his youth.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He's a 300-year old perverted man... who happened to be the creator of the Kamehameha, tutor of Goku and Krillin and in early parts of the series, the greatest martial artist on Earth.
Butt-Monkey: To extreme levels after being Demoted to Extra, but had moments in Dragon Ball.
Buxom Beauty Standard: He's attracted to women with large busts, such as Bulma, Launch and Krillin's Filler girlfriend Maron, though it's shown that he'll go for any girl in general regardless of bust size as long as they're considered attractive which he does later on with Krillin's wife Android 18 and Gohan's future wife Videl.
Can't Catch Up:
- He retires from fighting during the second tournament arc, admitting that the new generation is both stronger and no longer needs his guidance. During later story arcs, he expresses frustration at not being able to help during the major fights. Though, considering how strong Frieza, Cell, and especially both Buu and Beerus were, he wouldn't had a chance.
- Averted as of Resurrection of 'F. He takes on Frieza's henchmen with ease and Toriyama states that he could have always been that strong, and started to train himself rigorously again.
- In Super, during a brief arc where he gets mind-controlled, he defeats Tien and Goku had to put effort into beating him and later notes that he must have been training in secret the whole time. He is later chosen to be a part of the team in the multiverse tournament, while Yamcha, Goten, and Trunks, are not. This is partly because, due to the way the competition is entirely based on ringing out opponents, combat experience is as equally important as raw strength. While Yamcha had tournament experience, he's deemed too rusty to be a strong competitor. In contrast, the fact Master Roshi clearly had been continuing his training, in conjunction with being a character with one of the most experience under his belt leads to the hope that he'll be a good teammate. Goku's judgment is spot on, as Roshi quickly proves to be one of the most effective members of the team.
Chick Magnet: He's perfectly capable of getting women if he wanted to. As Jackie Chun, girls even asked for his autograph before his fight with Man-Wolf.
Clark Kenting: His disguise of Jackie Chun involves taking off his shades and putting on a wig. Only Yamcha saw through it until Roshi tricked him and Goku didn't think he was Master Roshi since they didn't smell the same, Roshi covered his scent with perfume.
Combat Pragmatist: What he becomes by necessity in Super. He's absolutely ancient by human standards and even with the arena specifically designed to prevent Ki-based flight abilities and balancing the Super Weight that heavyworlders (or those who train like them) gain when fighting on an optimal field, he relies on trickery, esoteric techniques, and wisdom to defeat opponents who outclass him by power alone. This goes so far as Roshi specifically seeking out warriors he knows will trip up his stronger, but less canny, students. The no-flight clause is played to his advantage, as Roshi never actually learned the ability to fly without assistance.
Comedic Sociopathy: He's a perverted old man who would be in jail for sexual assault if he was a real person. Him being regularly beaten up by Bulma, Blond Launch, adult Chi-Chi, and Android 18 is karma for the most part and invokes almost no sympathy from anyone.
Confusion Fu: When he's using his Drunken Master technique. He pretends to be drunk to make his movements unpredictable. This works extremely well against Goku since he can't copy this technique since he has never been drunk.
Cool Old Guy: Back in Dragon Ball. Regains most of this status in Super and Resurrection ‘F’
Cool Shades: Never without them since he fought as Jackie Chun in the 22nd Tenkaichi Tournament. Until the Tournament of Power in Super forces him out of retirement, that is.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass:
- The poster boy for this trope since he's normally a goof and a Dirty Old Man, but when he decides to get serious, he is a very skilled fighter with the power to destroy the moon with one shot, making him one of the biggest badasses in the original Dragon Ball up to as far up in the timeline as the later parts of the Saiyan Saga.
- The sunglasses, Hawaiian shirts, and (most of) the sex jokes fall by the wayside during the King Piccolo arc, as he takes charge of the situation.
- Taken to extremes where it's revealed via Resurrection ‘F’ that he could have stood up to a few of the Z villains if he'd bothered trying rather than letting his students take care of everything.
- In Super, he proves that despite not having the raw strength of his two students anymore, he more than makes up for it with his wisdom and skill, effortlessly dodging combatants using direct attacks and outwitting the trickier opponents. And when all of that fails, he reveals that his signature move, the Kamehameha, is still nothing to scoff at.
Cutting the Knot: When Goku transforms into a Great Ape during the World Martial Arts Tournament. Yamcha tries to tell him he needs to cut off Goku's tail to change him back. Roshi opts for a more permanent solution by blowing up the moon itself.
Dangerous Forbidden Technique: The Mafuba (Evil Containment Wave in the dub) is the technique that Master Mutaito used to seal King Piccolo during his original rampage. The attack requires so much energy that it more often than not kills its user, as Master Mutaito died from using. Master Roshi attempts to use the Evil Containment Wave to reseal King Piccolo after he escapes, but not only does he misses the rice cooker, he end up dying like his master. In Super, he reluctantly teaches the Evil Containment Wave to Goku since it's the only way to defeat Future Zamasu who is an immortal. By the time of the Tournament of Power, Roshi has trained enough to be able to use it three times before being fatigued, with the last two times being very close to each other in terms of usage.
A Day in the Limelight: The second DBZ movie, The World's Strongest, gave him a pretty big role, helping Goku and friends fight against Dr. Wheelo. Resurrection 'F' also gave him a considerable role, helping to fight off Frieza's army. The Universe Survival arc in Super has a whole episode dedicated to him taking out 3 of Universe 4's fighters.
Death Seeker: Played with in that he's not actively trying to die during the Tournament of Power, but he's more than willing to spam dangerous techniques on multiple occasions even if he risks killing himself in the process just to give U7 any edge he can so his disciples can go on living. His heart actually stops beating after he puts everything he has into a giant Kamehameha and Goku has to ki-blast jumpstart his heart working again. And even after that, he continues to fight until he ends up getting saved from having to perform a Heroic Sacrifice by Vegeta, who urges Roshi that it's time to forfeit and let the others take care of the rest because he's done his part.
Demoted to Extra: In Z and GT to ridiculous degrees like everyone else. By the time Dragon Ball Z rolls around, the only purpose he really serves is just having a house for all the characters to frequently meet up at in-between fights or for the non-fighting characters to wait around while watching TV. In Super, he does get a little more screen time since the series retells Resurrection 'F', in which he fights Frieza's men, and he teaches Goku the Evil Containment Wave. He is also chosen to be part of Universe 7's team for the Universe Survival Saga.
Department of Redundancy Department: Roshi means "old master". Therefore, in the English dub, Master Roshi leaves us with "Master Old Master".
Dirty Old Man: Probably one of the most recognizable anime examples. He provides the page image, having made perving on women his favorite pastime. He has a steady supply of girly mags, is easily distracted by any female that catches his eye, and will cop a feel at every given opportunity. Roshi always ends up paying for it, but he'll just do it again anyway. In Super, he realizes these tendencies are his greatest weakness, and undergoes training to learn to control his urges... and in the Tournament of Power, we see this actually worked, as he does not fall for a female opponent's attempts to seduce him, and he is able to No-Sell Universe 2's Maidens use of a love-themed attack.
Doting Parent: Whenever Master Roshi spends quality time with young Goku and Krillin (such as eating with them, playing with them, and teaching them how to read and write) and whenever he affectionately pats their heads in praise. For both now-adult warriors, he is the closest thing they have to a father. Especially for Krillin, as he ends up living with Roshi through the rest of the series (even when he gets married and has a kid!).
- His horrified reaction to Jiren brutally beating Goku to as close to death as he could without killing him is much like a father who doesn't want to see his son get hurt but can do nothing about it. He sounds like he's on the verge of tears and can't help but avert his eyes.
Drunken Boxing: One of his fighting styles. It acts as the perfect counter to Goku's Awesomeness by Analysis since he has never been drunk before, so he can't properly copy it. However, Goku is able to counter it by just acting completely insane.
Eccentric Mentor: To Goku, Yamcha, and Krillin. He is a big pervert who spends his days reading and watching porn and hitting on hot women. He was also the strongest man in the world until Goku's generation.
Ephebophile: Went too far on this trope. He did a few times showed his perverted side to minors, once with Bulma (asking to see her underwear in exchange for his Dragon Ball, though he originally didn't expect her to be completely bottomless), groped Android 18's breasts (not only is 18 still physically a teenager herself, he did this right in front of her infant daughter Marron no less), and one with Videl (poking her chest on Kami's Lookout). Both Bulma and Videl were 16 at those points, while 18's age is far harder to guess as she has no memory of her old human life.
Flanderization: The anime adaptations of both Z and Super massively overplayed the pervert aspect of his character, to the point of turning him into a multi-time attempted rapist. His Hidden Depths come off as inexplicable by comparison.
Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: The foolish sibling to Baba's responsible, Baba is a capable and serious fortune teller that is well known for her magical abilities and essentially has her own business. Roshi is a very perverted martial arts hermit that is more invested in ogling ladies than he is actually teaching.
Forgotten Phlebotinum: In the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament, he almost defeats Goku using an electricity-based attack that paralyzes the nerves, leaving the target helpless. This potential Story-Breaker Power is never mentioned again until Roshi is suddenly catapulted back to relevance in Super and uses the technique against Tien while under mind control. He uses it again during the tournament to paralyze a fighter from Universe 4, helping Tien easily knock the man out. It's heavily implied that he simply doesn't like using it because the technique is potentially lethal and he's a Martial Pacifist.
Genius Bruiser: He has many years of wisdom, as well as being the strongest human at the start of the series
Hard Work Hardly Works: Despite spending roughly a hundred years training, Goku is almost equal to him after a few years of training. In fact, it took Roshi fifty years to master the Kamehameha Wave, and Goku learned how to do so after simply seeing Roshi use it once. To make matters worse, Krillin was able to use it on the basis that he saw Yamcha do it and reasoned he should be able to do it as well.
- His training regimen is demonstrated to be one of the toughest on the planet. It would soon be overshadowed by aliens, mutants, and supernatural beings who were born leagues above Roshi's strength, along with secret techniques and fantastic methods that amplify an individual's strength far more than Roshi's training ever could.
Hermit Guru: Well, he is called the Turtle Hermit.
His Name Really Is "Barkeep": He shows his driver's license in an episode of the anime (confirmed to be accurate by Daizenshuu 4) which shows that his name really is Muten-Rōshi, or "Master Roshi" in the FUNimation dub. For context, Muten-Rōshi would never be perceived as a proper name by someone who knew its Japanese meaning; Rōshi just means "old master", while "Muten" is a combination of mu (martial) and ten (heaven), meaning his name is literally "Old Heavenly Martial Arts Master."
Horrifying the Horror: Despite being much weaker than King Piccolo, he manages to scare the Demon King shitless by revealing that he knows the Evil Containment Wave. Although Roshi fails to trap Piccolo and dies, Piccolo is left shaking on the ground for several seconds.
Hypnotic Eyes: Has been shown hypnotizing Goku into falling asleep and the Man-Wolf into believing that Krillin's head was the full moon so he could recover his human form.
I Am Not Left-Handed: In most of his fights, he appears to be a wrinkly old man. However, he can bulk up to Hulk-like levels with his MAX power. Also, there's his immense collection of techniques and tricks, including hypnosis and shooting lightning from his hands.
I Ate WHAT?!: During the tournament arc in the original manga, he, Launch, and Krillin accidentally ate pufferfish stew. They all ended up bedridden.
I Was Quite a Looker: Claims he was very attractive when he was young. In a filler storyline, Goku went back in time and met the young Roshi, who showed there was truth to his claim. When looking at an old photo of him, even Bulma commented he looked attractive.
Bulma: Whoa, he's handsome! Who is he?
Roshi: That's me.
Bulma: Nuh-ah. That's impossible, he has hair!
Roshi: I wasn't born bald, you know!
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He can be an obnoxious pervert, but beneath it, he's still a kind-hearted person. His first lesson for Goku and Krillin was to never use martial arts for aggression and only for self-defense. During the first tournament, he showed compassion to Nam by explaining he did not need the prize money to buy water after he was defeated by Goku and gives him a capsule to store water from a well to take back to his village. In the English Dub, it's even implied Roshi would have thrown the fight if Nam beat Goku and made it to the finals.
Kamehame Hadoken: He invented it. The first half anyway.
Killed Offscreen: Played straight in the manga which only shows a stick figure of Super Buu killing off the majority on Kami's Lookout via the Elder Kai's globe. Averted somewhat in the anime where we get the admittedly horrifying Shadow Discretion Shots of Roshi and the others being changed into chocolate bars and eaten by the Majin.
Living Legend: When he was introduced, Master Roshi was revered as the God of Martial Arts and the World's Strongest Man; in the episode "Tien's Atonement", he's even able to get Tien off the hook for a murder accusation just through his personal endorsement.
Lovable Sex Maniac: Roshi is seriously perverted but he's shown to be a really nice person at several points. He loves Goku and Krillin like they were his own sons and lets the latter start a family at his home.
Lust Makes You Dumb: He can be such a horndog that he'll sometimes harass women who are more than capable of seriously harming or killing him, such as Launch, whose Split Personality is a violent, gun totting criminal, and Android 18, who is strong enough to fight people who can blow up planets. This habit of his is so bad that in Super, part of his training for the Tournament of Power involves learning to control himself enough to prevent any female opponents from seducing him into letting his guard down. During the tournament, one his female opponents, Caway does try to seduce him and it looks like it works at first... but he only acted that way to get her to let her guard down.
Manchild: Master Roshi is of old age, but behaves like a child. A very perverted child.
Master-Apprentice Chain: He is the master of a number of characters who pass his style to the next generation, giving him one of the longest chains in the series: Mutaito and Korin > Master Roshi > Son Gohan, Sr and Ox-King > Son Goku, Yamcha, Krillin, and Chi-Chi > Son Gohan, Son Goten, Pan, and Uub
Meaningful Name: "Roshi" means master.
Mentor Occupational Hazard: Sacrifices his life to try and reseal King Piccolo, only for the attempt to fail. He does get resurrected later, although, by that point, his role of mentor has been passed to other characters. He tries it again in Super several times, thinking he must have this mindset for his students, until Vegeta makes it clear in a few short words it isn't necessary to die there and that he has already fulfilled his duty as a warrior in this battle.
My Death Is Just the Beginning: Gives such a speech to King Piccolo after his failed attempt to reseal him:
Roshi: You haven't won. Your dark dreams will never come true. Somewhere, someone will succeed where I failed. Until that day, live in fear. You will fall. We're only human... but... but we will survive. We will... survive...]]
Roshi [Latin American Spanish dub]: I...I thought...that this would bring your end and all would return to normal, but unfortunately, I was wrong. I have the hope that someday, someone more powerful than you...will be able to finish you and save the whole world, of that I'm sure...it wouldn't be fair to be wrong.
Obsolete Mentor: For everyone but Krillin by the start of Z. Even Krillin is mentioned as explicitly being stronger than him in the very beginning when Bulma gets the Scouter working. This gets Subverted somewhat in Super, since Goku goes to him to learn the Mafuba, called the Evil Containment Wave in the dub. During the tournament arc, Goku and Krillin also went to him specifically to re-train their basics, and he was actually able to still teach them a thing or two. So, yeah, his students may now be stronger than him, but his wisdom definitely makes him by no means obsolete.
Older Hero Versus Younger Villain: Roshi vs. Goku at the climax of the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai is told from Roshi’s perspective, with Goku as the Hero Antagonist.
Old Master: Was once the strongest man in the world and mentor to several of the main characters, and they still think of him as their master despite most of them being stronger than him.
Passing the Torch: Did this when he retired from being Jackie Chun.
The Peeping Tom: Roshi tried to use Bulma's inventions for this twice. Before, he used a watch that can shrink the person who is wearing it as a way to spy on Bulma while she is on the toilet but failed. Again, when he used Bulma's little fly robot to spy on some girls on the beach.
Porn Stash: Owns a huge collection of lewd magazines. Strangely, he also sometimes leers at women's aerobics shows despite all the actual porn he owns.
Really 700 Years Old: Thanks to the Immortal Phoenix (or Paradise Herbs in the Super anime), he's over 300 while still looking in his 70s.
The Resenter: Briefly, when he realizes that Goku has surpassed him during the 22nd Martial Arts Tournament, he's so upset about it that he can barely concentrate on his matches. Fighting with Tien snaps him out of it, as he realizes that the new generation surpassing the old is good for the future of the Martial Arts and that he's truly proud of his best students.
Retired Badass:
- When he was satisfied that the younger generation had surpassed him, he stopped training. Though at times when the world's at risk, he regrets this. However, considering the ridiculous amount of Sorting Algorithm of Evil that happens in Z, he couldn't reach the level of Frieza's Mooks, let alone Frieza. And that's not even getting into Cell, Buu, and Beerus.
- Averted in Resurrection 'F', where he fights off Frieza's army along with several other Z-Fighters.
- Again in Super's fifth major arc, where he's part of the team representing Universe 7.
Reused Character Design: His appearance is based on the God of Earth in Doctor Slump (not to be confused with Dragon Ball's Kami-sama).
The Rival: To Master Shen and his Crane school. They used to be friends until the Crane Hermit turned to evil after being corrupted by King Piccolo.
Secret-Keeper: Knew that Goku was really an alien after Grandpa Gohan confided to him, and kept it a secret from Goku until the day that Raditz came to Earth and confronted Goku.
Secret Identity: Jackie Chun. He never does let the others know he and Chun were the same person.
Shock and Awe: His used-only-twice ultimate technique, the Thunder Shock Surprise/Bankoku Bikkuri Shou. Justified in that he can't actually do anything else while he's using the move, and it doesn't cause enough pain to severely harm opponents of extreme durability.
Signature Laugh: The English dub gives him an extremely unique laugh that anyone can recognize. Yamcha even uses it as evidence that he was Jackie Chun since they literally had the same laugh.
Signature Move: The Original Kamehameha.
Sunglasses at Night: Rarely takes his shades off. When he does it when not wearing a disguise, get ready to run.
Super Mode: His "Max Power" form, where he basically bulks up like the Hulk.
Supernatural Sealing: Roshi can use the Mafuba to seal demons away by sucking them into a special container, which requires a large amount of stamina. Roshi later uses the technique in the Tournament of Power, using it to eliminate one opponent, and nearly succeeds with two others, but is prevented from completing the seal both times.
Team Dad: In the original Dragon Ball. He was the mentor and father figure to Goku, Krillin, and later Yamcha and even Tien.
Telepathy: The first to use it in the series. Nam, a participant of the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai, even suggested this ability is a sign of a great martial arts master.
Temporary Bulk Change: His Max Power form causes him to bulk up greatly.
Took a Level in Badass: During the lead-up to the Tournament of Power, Goku realizes Roshi has gotten stronger over the years. It's not nearly at the level the Z-Fighters are usually fighting at, but Roshi can hold his own against opponents at roughly the same tier as base-level Goku. As icing on the cake, he learns to get over his habits as a Dirty Old Man.
- In episode 107, Roshi, while exhausted from previous fights, is briefly able to fight off Frost in close combat, even though Frost outpowers him by orders of magnitude!
- In the Super manga, he manages to outlast 18, Piccolo, Gohan, and every other universe outside of U11 to be one of the 10 remaining fighters in the Tournament of Power after Kale's rampage, subsequent fusion with Caulifla into Kefla, and her elimination by Gohan.
  - Also from the manga, he fights Jiren alone in order to teach Goku that skill can surpass raw power. He lasts a while, dodging Jiren's attacks far more efficiently than anyone else up until that point — Beerus compares Roshi's technique to Ultra Instinct.
Training from Hell: In-universe, he's infamous for it... And it's actually harsher than rumored. The exercises he's seen subjecting his pupils to are:
- Delivering milk on foot over vast distances that include climbing a mountain (there's a staircase, but it's still a few kilometers), crossing a river near the top of a waterfall, walking on a fallen tree over a cliff, crossing a desert, and being chased by a dinosaur, all with a single break on top of the mountain. All but the mountain is to be done running, as it's speed training and the delivery has to be made in time. This is only the early morning training;
- Plowing a large field bare-handed to reinforce their hands. This is done after a short break after the Milk Run from Hell, and before breakfast... Assuming they do the job quick enough to earn the breakfast;
- Perform construction work for at least five men, each, to increase physical strength (and earn some money). They can use tools for this, but nothing with an engine;
- Swimming across a lake and back ten times. While chased by a giant shark;
- Reflex training? Dodge angry bees while tied to a tree. After the shark, this is pretty tame;
- After the first day, he has them wear 20 kilos shells on their backs all the time, progressively increasing the weight. He himself wears a 40-kilo shell all the time;
- Reconstruction as he knows what he's doing, he gives his pupils only exercises they can deal with (and actually makes sure they're strong enough before accepting them as trainees), grants them enough rest between the exercises (something Goku takes to heart for his and Gohan's training session in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber; it's also at first implied and later stated outright that Vegeta, having been born supremely powerful, never learned the importance of rest, resulting in his own training from hell being far less effective than Goku's), feeds them all they need (even Goku), and takes time to teach them other basic skills such as writing and reading, math (this actually was crucial for Krillin's victory over Chiaotzu: the latter was winning until Krillin distracted him with math questions, and pummelled him when he tried to count on his fingers, as Chiaotzu's teacher had neglected to teach him math), common knowledge, manners, honour, and so on. In fact, the Milk Run from Hell, plowing a field and performing construction work double as legitimate work, so they can learn its value..
  "Work hard, study well, and sleep plenty, that's the Turtle Hermit's way to learn."
Tritagonist: For the First and Second Tournament Arc and the King Piccolo Arc.
Wake-Up Call Boss: Serves as this when disguised as Jackie Chun. He easily beats Yamcha and Krillin, and hands Goku his first real defeat, showing them that they still have a lot to learn. He is also the first one to really challenge Tien, although he surrendered.
Warrior Poet: Rarely shows it clearly, but his wisdom is undeniable-and more covertly, his Training from Hell includes lessons of basic skills such as reading, writing, and counting, and teaches both the value of hard work and some hard but useful professions.
Wax On, Wax Off: His method of training includes having his students work by delivering milk by foot at the break of dawn, then sowing fields with their bare hands, then helping out at a construction site, all the while wearing heavy turtle shells on their backs. And boy, does it pay off. Unlike the trope namer, Master Roshi is actually upfront about it (although there's little room to argue considering the tasks are anything but easy).
Weak, but Skilled:
- Roshi's hat in the Universe Survival Saga; he may not have a ton of raw power, but he has a lot of experience, and unconventional techniques on top of that, such as hypnosis, the Evil Containment Wave, and his paralysis technique. Roshi himself notes that compared to most of the cast who usually get focus, he's more inclined to fight dirty if he is allowed to. During his one-on-one fight with Ganos, the latter is explicitly stated to be much stronger and faster, but Roshi beats him anyway because he can easily read Ganos' movements and turn his own power against him, leading him to be the third consecutive fighter from Universe 4 that Roshi knocked out.
- This doesn't hold up nearly as well when facing an opponent who was powerful and cunning. Roshi got stomped by Frost, had to resort to the Evil Containment Wave, but ended up missing after his stamina was drained. He tried it again for Magetta, but Frost intercepted it and successfully turned it on Vegeta. Roshi was able to salvage the situation by using a directed ki blast to shatter the bottle and free Vegeta.
We Used to Be Friends: He and the Crane Hermit used to be friends who trained under the same master. That is until King Piccolo corrupted Shen and they became bitter rivals.
Wig, Dress, Accent: Well, more like "Wig, take off the sunglasses" and "Not Even Bothering with the Accent"... Now, who is this mysterious Jackie Chun? For a moment, it seemed like kid Goku saw through it, but Goku actually guessed that Roshi and "Chun" were related. Roshi pulled out a prop family tree and falsely acknowledged Goku's guess.
World's Best Warrior: Even though he's no longer the world's strongest, he's still the most skilled martial artist in the world by far, to the point where even Goku still comes to him for fighting advice. The Tournament of Power arc showcases this nicely, as he beats several opponents far stronger than he is, and he displays insight that is so finely attuned that Beerus actually mistakes it for the god-like Ultra Instinct ability.
World's Strongest Man: He was, at one point, the most powerful human being on the planet. He willingly gave up this position at the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai, where he stepped aside to let the next generation take over. By Super however, he has become the most powerful flightless human, and, more notably, the most powerful flightless mortal in Universe 7.
Wowing Cthulhu: His successes in the Tournament of Power are so great that he impresses Beerus.
Would Hit a Girl: Inverted when he is habitually beaten by the majority of the female cast, and he never makes an effort to fight back. He just takes the beatings. He is a creepy old hermit, but still...
- In Super, he had no problems fighting Yurin, and he states that he will fight the female combatants of the Tournament of Power. It seems that while he normally will not fight women, he makes exceptions if they are causing evil or need to be defeated to save the universe.
- Alternatively, the hits he gets from women he pervs on aren't fights, and most of them aren't fighters. He doesn't bring out the kung-fu skills against them for the same reason most wouldn't seriously fight someone who simply slapped them in the face a single time. In short, if approached as a true martial artist, he WILL give the honor of a fight regardless of gender.
Wrestler in All of Us: At the end of the 21st Tenkaichi, he considers using the Cobra Twist and the Figure Four Leglock to defeat Goku before discarding them due to Goku's excessively small size. We later see him using his considerable grappling skills against Tien in the following tournament, to such great effect it would have been a very quick victory by ring-out had Tien not been able to fly.

Krillin

Krillin (クリリン, Kuririn)

^{Click here to see Krillin in the Buu Saga.}

Voiced by (Japanese): Mayumi Tanaka
Voiced by (English): Wanda Nowicki (Harmony Gold dub); Terry Klassen (Ocean dub); Laurie Steele (Young), Sonny Strait (Adult) (Funimation dub); Mike Thiessen (DB), Dan Gascon (GT) (Blue Water dub); Sharon Mann (AB Groupe/"Big Green" dub); Apollo Abraham (Creative Products Corp dub); Brian Beacock (Adult), Julie Maddalena (Young) (Bang Zoom!/Toonami Asia dub in Super)
Voiced by (Latin American Spanish): Eduardo Garza (current voice), Rossy Aguirre (young and adult until mid-Frieza saga), María Grey (Dragon Ball Harmony Gold), Luis Daniel Ramírez (Majin Buu saga and Movies 4-13), Alejandro Illescas (GT)
Voiced by (Brazilian Portuguese): Fábio Lucindo, Thelma Lucia (DB, Gota Mágica), Alex Minei (Kai: The Final Chapters), Yuri Chesman (Battle of Gods, Clone)
Voiced by (French): Claude Chantal (DB, Z), Thierry Mercier (GT), Monique Nevers (Kai, Super)
Voiced by (Italian): Veronica Pivetti (Most of DB), Marcella Silvestri (Rest of DB, Most of Z), Luigi Scribani (Rest of Z, GT, Super)

One of the few human characters who retained most of their screentime even in DBZ (even though it was mostly as a Plucky Comic Relief and by few we mean the only one). Started off as a rival to Goku when both trained under Master Roshi when they were kids. He soon became a best friend and Heterosexual Life-Partner to Goku and the two have been through thick and thin through their battles and lives.

Action Dad: Zigzagged. Once his daughter is born, he officially retires from fighting. However, when trouble arrives, he is one of the first on the front lines. He follows Goku and the others after Gohan is attacked, and fights Frieza's army during his second invasion. In his arc in ''Super'', he is actually worried about what 18 and Marron might think of him, making him train again with Goku, and participate with his wife in the Tournament of Power.
Adaptational Badass: A minor example in Dragon Ball Xenoverse. Unlike in the anime and manga, where he missed Vegeta's tail with the Destructo Disc, in Xenoverse, he successfully chops Vegeta's tail off, mostly due to Yajirobe being Adapted Out.
- In the anime version of the Tournament of Power, Krillin lasted long enough to knock out a fighter from Universe 10 and two fighters from Universe 4 alongside Android 18, before being taken down by Frost after he dropped his guard. In the manga, he doesn't last past the second chapter after the tournament starts and earns no eliminations since Frost takes him and Tenshinhan in a flash. Whether you count "assists" (team knockouts and saving his allies from being knocked out) as half points or full points (only counting knockouts), Krillin tied for 12th with Cabba or 13th with Hit respectively, putting him just outside the top 15% in either case (as Cabba could boast on surviving longer). If you count it by when he was knocked out (he's was the 16th person knocked out of the ring), then he's just in the bottom 20%.
- In the manga adaptation of Super Hero, he manages to clip one of Cell Max's wings with a Destructo Disk.
Adaptational Wimp: While he's normally a good fighter, in the non-canon movies, his role is only as a Plucky Comic Relief and his Butt-Monkey status is much more frequent. He's subject to all sorts of mishaps. Misfortunes that have fallen on him include being peed on by Gohan and having rubble from Garlic Jr.'s castle fall on him (movie 1), nearly getting his face fried by a ki blast and getting whacked in the head repeatedly with a shopping bag by Chi-Chi (movie 7), getting thrown into some rubble by Broly and forgotten by the rest of the Z-Fighters (movie 10) and a Running Gag in several of the films where a villain punches him square in the face, which leads him thinking, "why does this always happen to me?!"
All Up to You:
- Goku gives him the Spirit Bomb to throw at Vegeta. According to Goku, he's the only one who can do it since Gohan doesn't know how to control energy well enough to use it.
- He, along with Gohan and Bulma, goes to Namek to search for the Dragon Balls since Goku is too badly injured to go. He also successfully distracts Frieza while Dende heals Gohan.
Always Second Best: He is the second strongest student of the Turtle School. Despite all his training, he was always weaker than Goku even as a child, and the gap between them has only grown over the years.
Amazon Chaser: One for Android 18. He falls for her for being so strong and pretty, and for not killing him after she and 17 crush the Z Fighters (when they try to help Vegeta). To top it off she even kisses him on the cheek, which not only starts his attraction to her, it also clues him in that the Androids of the present are so not like their Bad Future counterparts.
Armor-Piercing Attack: Much like Piccolo's Special Beam Cannon, Krillin's Destructo Disk is a specialized ki move that can cut through opponents regardless of how much stronger they are than him as they could cut through the likes of Frieza in his second form despite the enormous power gap between them. It's made even more impressive as Krillin later gains the ability to use more than one, and even control them at will with so far the only two beings (Cell in anime filler, Jiren in a scene only in the anime) being able to No-Sell the ability flat out.
Awesome, but Impractical: His signature move, Destructo Disk, can cut through anything (except Cell and Jiren, purely in anime only scenes) and is completely unblockable, but it's slow to produce, its aim is unwieldy, and it can't be guided once launched. And the few times he has an opening to actually use it, he tends to ruin it by Calling His Attacks. By the time of the Universe Survival Arc, however, Krillin has gotten a lot more proficient in its use, being able to fire and control three Destructo Discs as a distraction for a smaller fourth one, and even call them back toward his target.
Awesomeness by Analysis: He learns the Kamehameha by watching Goku and Yamcha do it. He figures since Yamcha is able to do it, he should be able to as well.
Back from the Dead: Just about everyone did this, but Krillin is notable for being the first main character to do so and is tied with Chiaotzu for most deaths in the manga.
Badass Adorable: Not to the degree of Goku or Gohan, but he still counts, especially when he's with his wife Android 18 (whose also one herself).
Badass Normal: Krillin is an ordinary human, but he still manages to put up a fight against stronger opponents with his cunning tactics and powerful techniques. Though the trope is downplayed but still present in the original Dragon Ball where Krillin was the only major fighter who lacked a signature move or unique technique aside from the Kamehameha (which not only Goku uses to a greater effect but also becomes a staple later on). This does not stop him from being a competent fighter during tournaments and battles. ^note
Baldness Mockery: Krillin sometimes suffers from such treatment. For example, Chiaotzu before his Heel–Face Turn teased Krillin for his baldness. When Krillin pointed out that Chiaotzu was also bald, Chiaotzu took off his hat and showed that he had one hair on his head.
Being Good Sucks: He knows exactly where he stands on the power scale, and is the first to state it when things become hopeless and the futility of fighting against overwhelming odds. His need to protect others gets him killed three times, four if you count GT. Despite this, he still keeps fighting and is one of the first on the frontlines, no matter who the enemy is. He lampshades this near the end of the Cell Games, saying how Goku and Gohan changed him and how he would have given up a long time ago if it wasn't for them. He says this with mock resentment.
Big Brother Mentor: To Son Gohan. On Namek, he guides and protects Gohan in Goku's absence. Their experience formed an unbreakable bond that is second only to the one between Piccolo and Gohan.
Breaking the Fourth Wall: His thoughts turn to the author after Goten and Trunks fail to fuse correctly two times in a row. Likewise, in Broly: Second Coming, he mentions that the rest of the cast "wouldn't last a season without him."
Bully Turned Buddy: Initially, he was a bully to Goku. He often demeaned and looked down on Goku for being naive and Book Dumb. Goku being Goku noticed none of this, was very friendly towards Krillin. They eventually become best friends.
Butt-Monkey: He has died three times, he Can't Catch Up, and his signature attack, likely the most deadly in the manga, just can't score a critical hit. He even lampshades this in the movies (where he's a major victim of Adaptational Wimp) shouting "Why does this always happen to me?!". Happens again in Super when he is the first to get ringed out during the ToP. Everyone, including 18, insults him for losing so fast.
Butter Face: Well he's not exactly ugly, but he appears not to even have a nose. That said, he's a pretty buff guy.
By-the-Book Cop: After the Buu Saga, he gets a job as a police officer, and takes it extremely seriously. He has no reservations at all about writing Bulma a ticket.
Call-Back: When he and Goku first meet Master Roshi, Krillin tries to score points by claiming that he's shaved his head since that's what "real" martial artists like Roshi do (Roshi points out that no, he's just bald due to age). Then during the World Tournament in the Buu saga, Goku is confused by Krillin (who he hasn't seen in several years) having hair, to which Krillin replies "I could have sworn I told you that."
Can't Catch Up:
- Started out as The Rival to Goku, although he was never as strong as him, and fell further behind with each new story arc. However, he remains important to the story up until the Buu Saga.
- His acceptance of this trope occurs in the finale of the Cell Games when Cell all but ignored his and every other Z-Warriors' attempts to help Gohan in his Beam-O-War against the monster, and blasted them aside like "flies" just by casually raising his ki. Powerless to defend his beloved friend's son, Krillin bitterly and tearfully laughs:
Krillin: Goddammit all, Goku, you and your son both set such high, wondrous standards that mere mortals like me can't ever possibly hope to reach, no matter how hard I try; I really hate you both so much sometimes.
- To an extent, the Universe Survival Arc downplays it: Whilst he is still one of the weakest, he is an experienced tournament fighter who has developed many techniques based on deception and good position. He manages to defeat Gohan in a friendly match. Sure, it was against base form Gohan but even that far outclasses Krillin power-wise, and Gohan was also doubting Krillin's usefulness to the tournament before that. The tournament also reminds us that Krillin is only a weakling by the standards of his incredibly powerful friends; he competes in a tournament including most of the strongest fighters that existed in the 8 of the 12 universes at the time, and holds his own. He's amongst the most skilled and powerful 80 or so mortals in existence.
Cerebus Retcon: The fandom often makes jokes about how often Krillin has been killed, and how Death Is Cheap in general thanks to the Dragon Balls. Super, however, officially acknowledges Krillin's multiple deaths in an episode where he and Goku fight illusions of previous villains, showing that Krillin is outright traumatized by what's happened to him and that he's terrified of the villains who killed him. Even if he never showed it, Krillin still knows what it's like to die, and just because those deaths were undone doesn't mean the experience just went away.
Character Development:
- While he wasn't purehearted enough to ride the Nimbus at the beginning of the series, he's more than worthy of it now. Shown when he was able to hold and throw the Spirit Bomb, something that only those with a pure heart could do.
- He started off as a shameless Dirty Coward but gradually became a braver and honorable person.
Child Prodigy: A Downplayed exampled. He never was as talented as Goku, who is a Human Alien from a fighting race, but compared to other humans, he was an exceptionally strong child. He was able to survive Master Roshi's training regimen and would have been second only to Goku in the 21st Martial Arts Tournament if Master Roshi hadn't entered. He also learned the Kamehameha on the fly with no prior training at the age of sixteen when it took his master fifty years to developed it. The only things that really held Krillin back was his lack of self-esteem, which was an effect of the bullying he received from the monks at his former temple and his occasional bouts of arrogance.
Chivalrous Pervert: When he was younger, he was almost as perverted as Roshi himself, which is a little upsetting considering his age. Seems to fade out with age as seen with 18 and Maron, as he's shown no perverted thoughts towards either of them.
Comedic Sociopathy: When he was introduced, he was a Dirty Coward who cheated Goku out of his meal after he fairly found Master Roshi's rock, regularly tried to cheat at his training by taking shortcuts, and constantly demeaned and took advantage of Goku's naivety. Which justified all his Butt-Monkey moments early in the series. This aspect of his personality eventually went away as he got older.
Combat Pragmatist: Initially started out like this, using a pair of panties as a distraction against Jackie Chun/Master Roshi, asking Chiaotzu basic math questions to disrupt his psychic powers, and attempting to exploit Goku's Achilles' Heel by grabbing his tail during their fight in the tournament. In Z, he takes on foes many times stronger than him with just his guts and sneaky, underhanded tactics. And he is utterly unapologetic about it, as seen in the "Tien Shinhan Arc":
Son Goku: That was dirty...!
Krillin: Dirty doesn't mean shit in a fight!
Cowardly Lion: He makes no attempts to hide his fear when facing off against opponents that could swat him like a fly, but that doesn't mean he won't fight tooth and nail against anyone he thinks would kill those he holds dear. Best exemplified when he spends the whole confrontation against the Androids frozen in place while the others get beat down but left alive, but immediately attempts to challenge them once they resume their hunt to find Goku to kill him.
Cower Power: When he was a cowardly little boy, he often hid behind Goku to the point of using him as a human shield.
Cruel and Unusual Death: He's hoisted into the air where he hopelessly flails before his body eventually expands and explodes while he cries out for Goku's name in terror. Unfortunately for Frieza, the killer responsible, Goku went Super Saiyan for the first time in response.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's usually used as a Plucky Comic Relief, but he can be a serious badass when it's important.
A Day in the Limelight:
- He is the protagonist of his own arc in Super, where we actually discover his own self-esteem issues on how he Can't Catch Up and having to defeat his demons in the form of visions of the past villains, including Tambourine, Frieza and Super Buu who killed him in the past.
- In the early Namek Saga as well. With Goku left recovering on Earth, the rest of the Z-Fighters dead, Bulma being a non-combatant, and Gohan still a child with little experience, this basically left Krillin as the leader of the hero team up until he made a deal to team-up with then Anti-Villain, Vegeta.
Deadly Disc: His Signature Move, the Destructo Disk/Kienzan.
Deadpan Snarker: When he's not screaming in terror, the guy tends to be the wittiest character and the most likely to lampshade hang.
Death by Irony: His second death: After seeing Frieza transform into his final form, he comments that he doesn't look very intimidating. He later becomes the last character Frieza kills on Namek, screaming in terror as he dies.
Defeat Equals Explosion: Played for Drama. In a moment of Sadism, Frieza fires a ki blast into Krillin's chest, causing him to explode in a particularly gruesome way. This causes Goku to unlock Super Saiyan for the first time.
Demoted to Extra:
- After having a pretty important role in the Saiyan, Frieza, and Namek Sagas, Krillin is surprisingly inconsequential in the Buu Saga, contributing nothing in terms of plot importance.
- In Super He, like most of the main cast, has little to do. While he gets his own mini-arc with growth and confronting his trauma and previous experiences with death, he's still knocked out first in the Universe 7 team during the Tournament of Power with only a few knock outs to his name.
- GT, along with anyone not named Goku and Pan (though Trunks did have a prominent role in the first half of the opening saga).
Determinator: It's very hard to keep this guy down. The only time he gives up is when faced with the Androids, and even then it's because he knows that even Vegeta and Piccolo don't stand a chance.
Deuteragonist: Throughout most of Dragon Ball, except the Piccolo Arc where he's dead and Tenshinhan takes over. He's back in this role for much of the Namek/Frieza Saga.
Dies Wide Open: After Tambourine kills him, this (along with Blood from the Mouth) is how Goku finds his body. Tenshinhan is the one who finally closes his eyes.
Did Not See That Coming:
- In the 21st Tournament, he knocks Jackie Chun out of the ring after tricking him to dive for panties. He would have won... If Jackie Chun wasn't Master Roshi who knows the Kamehameha.
- During the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, he successful grabs Goku's tail, which he thinks will render Goku powerless. He is shocked to learn that Goku overcame this weakness after playing along for a few minutes.
Dirty Coward: When he was first introduced, he had no problem using cowardly, underhanded tactics to get ahead, even if meant throwing Goku under the bus. He gets better after becoming friends with Goku and progressively becomes braver.
Disability Immunity: He has no nose, but that makes him immune to bad smells.
Distracted by the Sexy: With not one, not two but three different females, first being the filler Maron Android 18 and Zangya. He eventually marries the middle.
Dork Knight: Don't let the goofy demeanor fool you, he's still one of Earth's defenders and one of the most powerful martial artists the world has ever seen.
Doting Parent: To his adorable little girl, Marron.
Dreadful Musician: Shown in a movie when he's singing karaoke and he sounds horrible.^note
Dropped a Bridge on Him: In the King Piccolo Saga. He's killed off-screen and in the manga, we only hear his screams.
Dub Name Change: Before the dub that became well-known there, Latin America had a short-lived Dragon Ball dub (based on the equally short-lived Harmony Gold dub) called Zero y el dragón mágico ("Zero and the Magic Dragon", as the Harmony Gold dub changed Goku's name to "Zero"), in which Krillin's name was changed to the quite regional name of "Cachito".
Due to the Dead: Uniquely. Because they plan on wishing him back to life, Bulma builds a cold storage coffin to prevent his body from decaying, shrinks it down with a capsule, and hides it in a drawer of panties. They close his eyes, wipe the blood from his face, and lay him in.
Eaten Alive: He's eaten by Super Buu after being turned into living chocolate. It's so traumatizing that Krillin doesn't want to fight Buu again when King Kai recruits Yamcha and him as a last line of defense.
Empowered Badass Normal: Krillin is a trained martial artist who was raised in a temple by monks since he was a child. Despite being weaker than Goku, he could still kill a tiger with his bare hands and fight against seasoned adult fighters. He becomes empowered after learning the Kamehameha at the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament.
Everyone Has Standards: Despite his hatred of Vegeta, Krillin has moments where he feels the comeuppances the Saiyan Prince gets is far from what he deserves:
- In the Namek Saga, he, Piccolo, and Gohan are sickened when Frieza brutally tortures Vegeta to death.
- To an even greater extent in the Buu Saga, when Vegeta sacrifices himself against Majin Buu, Krillin actually screams his name and mourns his death.
Family Theme Naming: Krillin has a daughter named Marron. Both names are puns on chestnuts.
Fire-Forged Friends: With Goku, after he completed his character development. Krillin didn't like Goku at first, seeing him as a naive idiot who took his strength for granted. After going through Training from Hell together, they become much friendlier. Their relationship is solidified after Goku kills King Piccolo and restores the Dragon Balls, both to avenge and revive him.
Foil:
- When Krillin first appeared, he was an exact foil to Goku. Whereas Goku was an impossibly pure-hearted child who takes his incredible strength for granted and has a lot of confidence in his power, Krillin was a devious Bratty Half-Pint with a blatant inferiority complex. By the time of the series' first Tournament Arc, he's largely grown out of most of this, thanks to his training and Goku's influence giving him genuine self-confidence.
- He's also a foil to Gohan in the Namek arc. Gohan is incredibly powerful, but he's also a five-year-old kid with only a year of training under his belt and a bad habit of not being able to turn down someone in need. Krillin is in his mid-20s, has been a professional martial artist for longer than Gohan's been alive, and is much more pragmatic besides. He doesn't have Gohan's raw power, but he's got a much wider range of techniques and enough strategic cunning to apply them effectively. Gohan comments on this, see Weak, but Skilled below.
Friendly Target: Three times in the manga (which ties him with Chiaotzu), plus another two/three/no one is sure times in alternate timelines, plus another on GT. So, 3-7 times. Ouch.
Genius Bruiser: He's one heck of a strategic fighter. He nearly beats Jackie Chun (Master Roshi) by throwing a pair of panties into the ring and kicking him out of the ring. He defeats Chiaotzu by making him use his hands, the source of his psychic powers, to do basic math by counting on his fingers. He successfully grabs Goku's tail during their match, and it only fails because Goku trained his tail during the three years before the tournament. He also comes up with the technique that can cut through anything, as well as the technique that wiped out the Saibamen. He repeatedly makes good plans to take the stealthy approach on Namek, scores a hit on Frieza (notable, as that's the first time he was injured on screen), and performs a sacrifice that would have worked, had Super Buu not been much faster than he anticipated.
Godzilla Threshold: Hits it during the Frieza Saga; with Frieza himself mere minutes from arriving and killing everyone, Krillin decides that the only way they could possibly stop him was by using their last wish on the Namekian Dragon Balls to make Vegeta immortal. At the time, Vegeta was still a villainous Blood Knight who would most likely kill Krillin and the other Z-Fighters once he didn't need them anymore. The only reason Vegeta doesn't get his wish at the last second is because before Dende can complete the wish, Guru, the Namekian who created the Dragon Balls, dies of grief, causing Porunga to disappear.
Good Is Not Soft: While Krillin is a nice and soft person, he can be rather ruthless when he feels the needs to be in Z. He once tried to kill the badly wounded and fleeing Vegeta with Yajirobe's sword, and was content to let Vegeta die at Cell's hands due to his actions. He even hopes that Zarbon and Vegeta kill each other rather than risk having to deal with either one.
Good Parents: Is one to Marron. Heck, he even sacrificed himself to protect her and his wife. Not that it did them any favors, as said wife and daughter were soon on Buu's next order.
Guile Hero: Although he's far from the strongest character, he is one of the sneakiest. He will use any weakness presented to him to get ahead. He almost beat Master Roshi (who was disguised as Jackie Chun) by throwing a pair of panties into the ring and kicking him when he dives for them, he helps Yamcha win his match against the Invisible Man by making Master Roshi nosebleed on him, he wins his match against Chiaotzu by asking him basic math questions to disrupt his psychic ability, and he takes advantage of Goku's naivety to trick him several times and tries to beat him by grabbing his tail (it didn't work, because by then, Goku had already trained his tail, but it's the thought that counts). As an adult, he invents a technique that can cut through almost anything, taking advantage of foes who like to No-Sell everything, kept Frieza busy so Dende can heal Gohan, and successfully hid a Dragon Ball from Vegeta for several days.
Happily Married: He's smitten by Android 18 from the get go. Following the Time Skip after the Cell Games, they're Happily Married and have an adorable daughter named Marron.
Heel–Face Turn: Krillin started out as a bullying rival of Goku, but became his best friend.
Henpecked Husband: Shows shades of this in Bio-Broly and GT. Also, throughout the series, he's shown to be the obviously submissive one in his relationship with Android 18.
Heir to the Dojo: According to Dragon Ball Online, Krillin becomes the official heir to the Turtle School.
Hero-Worshipper: A mild example. Out of all the characters, Krillin puts the most faith in Goku to solve their problems. He wants to retreat after Goku falls ill, and after everyone is beaten by the androids, Krillin says things would have been different if Goku was there. It takes Tien pointing out that Goku can't be that much stronger than Trunks and Vegeta for him to see the flaw in his logic. His hope is completely restored once Goku gets well and is still willing to fight despite the odds.
Heroic Sacrifice: He attacks Buu first to allow his family and friends to escape his onslaught on the lookout. While it fails for almost everyone (especially his wife and child whom were immediately targeted right after Krillin does), it allows Dende, whose survival was the most important as it allows the Dragon Balls to work, to survive.
He's Back!: As of episode 76 of Super, he's finally managed to shake off the depression and fear that's held him back after dying so many times, awakening his fighting spirit and deciding to become a martial artist once again.
Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Goku. His death is one of the few things that can drive Goku into uncontrollable rages, and Krillin often seeks Goku's approval about things. He also puts the most faith in Goku to save them when things become really bad.
Honorary Uncle: To Gohan, especially after the events of the Saiyan and Frieza Saga. He even calls Krillin "uncle" a couple of times.
Iconic Sequel Character: Krillin is noted as the series' second most enduring character from the original run after Bulma, but he did not make an appearance until the second overall arc.
Idiot Ball:
- Despite being one of the smarter fighters of the Z-Fighters, he takes a while to figure out Goku isn't himself when Ginyu takes his body, despite the many signs (being struck by him, wearing a scouter, teaming up with Jeice, having a different voice, being told by Gohan) until Ginyu himself confirms it.
- As listed under Story-Breaker Power, Solar Flare and Destructo Disc are a very deadly combination he never uses, and it's at its most noticeable during the fight with Freeza. Krillin cuts Freeza's tail with a Destructo Disc, and after Freeza chases him down, Krillin manages to use Solar Flare against him, and then tells Vegeta it's his turn to attack, and when he sees Vegeta not attacking (He was looking at Dende healing Gohan, and was surprised because he didn't know of Dende's healing powers), Krillin decides to fly towards him to ask him what's going on instead of just slicing Freeza with more Destructo Discs.
I Got Bigger: He becomes noticeably taller by the time of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, although he's still really short.
Inferiority Superiority Complex: As a kid, Krillin covers up his insecurities by talking about how strong and skilled he is and all the training he received at his former temple. He also talks down to Goku about his lack of manners and education. Gradually, he loses the superiority part and chooses to cover his insecurities with humor instead. He is generally much more confident as an adult, but he's very aware where he sits on the power scale.
Informed Ability: Supplemental material has stated that Krillin is the strongest human character in the series. Ignoring the Can't Catch Up tendency for all the non-Saiyan characters, Tien had the better showings in fights in the series, although this may be attributable to Krillin's cowardice and tendency to enter fights with Gohan and/or Goku at his side. This is not at all helped by Tien being hinted at being an alien born on Earth.
Insecure Love Interest: Even after he married 18, he still wonders why she chose him, and still is worried about if he is worthy of her. 18 chews him out on this leading up to the Tournament of Power, revealing that it was his naturally earned strength that won her over.
In-Series Nickname: Called Pachinko-Head by Yajirobe.
Intergenerational Friendship: He is good friends with Goku's son, Gohan. In the later parts of the Saiyan Saga and throughout the Namek Saga, they were practically Bash Brothers.
Iron Butt Monkey: Out of the main cast, he takes the most physical punishment. Even as a child, having almost all the blood sucked out of his body is Played for Laughs. Chi-Chi also accidentally slammed a door into his head. Krillin often lampshades this about himself.
Kamehame Hadoken: Learned from observing Goku and Yamcha using it. He doesn't use it as often as Goku, though.
Kavorka Man: He may not be the most (conventionally) attractive of the series, but somehow he dated Maron (and was literally seconds away from marrying her before breaking it off), and married Android 18, to the surprise of the fans of the series.
Knight in Sour Armor: He's not cynical in the way that Vegeta and Piccolo are, but when confronted with a particularly strong opponent, especially if said opponent is mopping the floor with someone stronger than him, Krillin will probably be the first to wax on about how hopeless the situation is, and may even suggest escaping. However, it's his loyalty to his friends and his own sense of justice, that not only prevent him from doing this, but often gets him to dig deep and do something surprisingly clever and/or awesome that actually causes much more damage to the opponent than expected.
The Lancer: Until Tenshinhan showed up, where he was shifted into The Smart Guy.
Laser-Guided Karma:
- When he was a sneaky, underhanded child, he got this a lot. The first being when he cheated Goku out of dinner when he stole the rock Goku found as part of Master Roshi's test. Dinner that night was an improperly cooked puffer fish, which made everyone sick except Goku since he didn't eat anything. He also tried to cheat during training, which Master Roshi always caught and forced him to start over.
- Despite all the messes he's been put through, including being the one to die the most next to Chiaotzu and being the resident Butt-Monkey, he gets his happy ending by marrying 18 and having a daughter, because he refused to shut down and kill 18 despite knowing that Cell was looking for her.
- His compassion towards the Androids in general paid off in spades in the long run. No explanation needed for him and 18, as they are clear as day a loving married couple and parents. Him agreeing to help 16 in need of repair led to him motivating Gohan in his dying moments into becoming Super Saiyan 2 which led to the world being saved. In the Super Manga, his wish in removing the bombs inside 17 and 18 is what inspired the former in agreeing to join Universe 7's team, which in turn, led to him winning and wishing all the universes back. All stemming from Krillin's good will.
Lesser of Two Evils: During the Namek Saga, he hits the Godzilla Threshold and agrees to let Vegeta use the Dragon Balls to become immortal because he finds that the better option than being killed by Frieza, who's far worse than Vegeta.
Let's Get Dangerous!: When he has these moments, Krillin is capable of surprisingly kickass things, and gets the drop on the Big Bad of the arc, more than once. For example, briefly fending off Nappa from Gohan and almost killing him with the Destructo Disc, cutting Frieza's tail off in his second form with the same move, and in the anime, saving a young woman and her little brother from Imperfect Cell by ramming into him.
Living Emotional Crutch: Krillin is this to Goku. Very few things can get Goku angry. Hurting or killing Krillin is one of them, and he will go into a murderous rages as King Piccolo and Frieza learns.
Lovable Coward: Krillin never really shakes off his fear of powerful enemies and is easily rattled by disturbing or creepy opponents, but he's always there for his friends when he needs it and is truly a Nice Guy who is willing to put his life on the line to save those he loves.
Love at First Sight: For Android 18. He was falling for her after she kissed him, and for not killing him after she and her brother wiped the group.
Love Makes You Dumb: The reason why Cell was able to absorb Android 18 and reach his final form, although Vegeta didn't help matters since he let Cell go to become complete.
Mundane Utility: He uses his Supernatural Martial Arts skills in his day job as a cop.
Nice Guy: Moreso as a grown up. Not that he wasn't nice as a kid, but he wasn't perfect either.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
- He was the one who suggested going along with Vegeta and Nappa's "cultivars" game against the Saibamen in order to stall for time, as Goku was arriving a day late. It would have worked just fine if but then Krillin himself lost his temper and cut the game short.
- Came very close to this when he wanted to kill Vegeta before he could escape: if Goku hadn't talked him out of it, Vegeta wouldn't have been able to team up with Krillin and Gohan on Namek.
No Body Left Behind: His second death was due to Frieza blowing him up.
The Noseless: Lampshaded in an early fight in Dragon Ball, where he only is able to defeat an incredibly stinky fighter after he's reminded that he has no nose.
No Sympathy: After Vegeta gets his ass kicked by Perfect Cell, especially since Vegeta stupidly let Cell become Perfect in the first place. Krillin only decides to help Vegeta out for Trunks' sake, openly saying that he wouldn't care if Vegeta died, and as far as he's concerned, he deserves to be killed for being such an idiot ^note.
Now, Let Me Carry You: Goku saved Krillin's life several times and even avenged his death when he was murdered by King Piccolo's minion. The one time Krillin gets to repay Goku is when he is nearly killed by Great Ape Vegeta.
Older Than They Look: He comes off as being much younger than he really is at a glance even as the years go by, in part because of his short stature (and in Japanese, the fact he's still voiced by a woman even as an adult).
Overshadowed by Awesome: Former Trope Namer. He is the strongest pure blooded human in the series and one of the few survivors of the Saiyan Invasion and nearly got the killing blow against Vegeta. He also manage to outlive Vegeta against Frieza, being literally the last person to die. However, he is far behind all the Saiyans, yes even the children, Piccolo and even his own wife Android 18. He is often beat up or killed by the latest threat to the point that is what most fans know him for.
Papa Wolf: Don't screw with Marron around him or his wife. He tries to fight Super Buu to protect his family. He didn't last long, but he still tried.
Poor Communication Kills: He never thought to tell Piccolo or anyone else that a Saiyan can make their tails immune to being grabbed. He, and Goku's other friends, also never told him that Saiyans had the ability to transform at the sight of a full moon.
Plucky Comic Relief: Basically his major role in Z and the movies. (For example, disguising himself as Piccolo before saving Gohan, and then doing a cape twirl).
Porn Stache: Despite not having a nose, he manages to grow a big, bushy mustache worthy of a 70s porn star in GT.
Present Absence: He is murdered at the very end of the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, kicking off the King Piccolo Saga. From there, Krillin's death drives Goku on his quest for revenge. He even does it again in the Frieza Saga. It is Krillin's death that allows Goku to become a Super Saiyan.
Punny Name: His name is based on "kuri" (栗), which means "chestnut." ('lin' could also be the alternate reading of 'hayashi' = 'grove'.)
Refuse to Rescue the Disliked: After Vegeta is curb-stomped by Cell, who Vegeta stupidly allowed to become perfect purely for Blood Knight reasons, Krillin states outright that it's his own damn fault and that Vegeta deserves to be killed for being such an idiot... but ultimately gives in and helps him because Trunks believes in him.
The Resenter: At the beginning, he was resentful towards Goku for being so much stronger than him. However, as time went, he lost his resentment until it completely disappeared by the time of the first tournament.
Retired Badass: He officially retires from fighting after the Cell Games, although he's one of the first ones on the front lines when danger appears.
The Rival: His introductory episode was called "Goku's Rival", though the two went from rivals to best friends fairly quickly.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: He kills three Saibamen with his Scattering Bullet special attack when Yamcha is killed to protect him. Also, Goku always has one when Krillin dies.
Robosexual: Played with. He marries Android 18… but that name is a limitation of English in the translation, as the original "Jinzou-Ningen" doesn't specify mechanical or biological artificiality. She and her brother were originally humans before being modified by Gero, thus allowing 18 to have a daughter.
Rooting for the Empire: In-Universe example. After Cell dismisses Mr. Satan by knocking him into a mountain, Krillin tells Gohan without shame that he was rooting for Cell.
Sacrificial Lion: First major good guy to die in the entire series. He is also the last one killed in the Frieza Saga which triggers Goku's transformation into a Super Saiyan.
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The Sensitive Guy to Goku's Manly Man. He is very open about his feelings and often cries, while Goku can be somewhat emotionally repressed. Krillin often looks to Goku as a source of strength.
Signature Move: The Destructo Disc/Kienzan. Although he is hardly the only user of it, he is the one who invented it and uses it the most.
Skintone Sclerae: While a staple of the early Toriyama style, he's the only major character to keep this trait. Interestingly, he didn't have this trait in the anime until the Red Ribbon Army arc. It's averted in the manga however, where colored illustrations depicting him have the same whites in his eyes as everyone else.
The Smart Guy: This is what keeps him in the game until the end of the Frieza arc, and also what keeps him getting the most screen time out of the human combatants even after he's far outclassed by the Saiyans.
Spanner in the Works: Krillin, along with Gohan, were this to both Vegeta and Frieza on Namek. They successfully hid a Dragon Ball for several days, them teaming up with Vegeta kept them alive until Goku arrived, and they took the Dragon Balls and used them before Vegeta or Frieza knew what was happening. Even Krillin's death was the trigger needed to activate Goku's Super Saiyan form.
Spell My Name With An S:
- Oh, let us count the ways... Krillin (Funimation), Kuririn (Viz, also the literal transliteration), Kulilin (wears hats with this on it in the manga), Klilyn (most Bandai toys and in some cel art by Toei)...
- Despite his name having been spelt as "Kulilin" in the manga, the name "Kuririn" involves a play on "kuri", the Japanese word for "chestnut" (this is joked about, with reference to his bald head, at one stage) - likely, "Kulilin" is the result of liberal transliteration of Japanese ("l" and "r" sounds are indistinct), and "Krillin" is supposed to be an adaptation that is better suited for the foreign palate. (Incidentally, you can buy and eat 'krill' with a bit of difficulty, so it keeps the edible theme naming going.)
Story-Breaker Power: This trope is probably the reason he never uses the Solar Flare and the Destructo Disc together to defeat any of his opponents. However, that combination wouldn't work with any enemy who can regenerate or are super powerful.
Strong Girl, Smart Guy: Downplayed but he has some of this dynamic with 18, who is stronger than him by a pretty wide margin in terms of raw power but he's a more skilled and strategically inclined fighter than her.
Super Cop: By Resurrection 'F' and Super, he's found a job as a cop. Bear in mind that he is arguably the strongest Earthling, with enough ki to slice the planet in two, if not destroy it outright. As he takes his job very seriously, however, he will only use the vehicles and equipment issued to him for their intended purposes, using his absurd power only as a last resort.
Superior Successor: He officially surpasses Master Roshi by the time of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. He also surpasses Kami after training with him to fight the Saiyans. Going by Dragon Ball Online, he becomes the new master of the Turtle School.
Surpassed the Teacher: He becomes stronger than Master Roshi and Kami by the time of the Saiyan Saga. Officially, he is stated to be the strongest human in the world.
Taken for Granite: Along with Piccolo, he is turned to stone by Dabura's Super Spit.
Targeted to Hurt the Hero: Frieza tried to do this in Super. He offers his men planets if they can kill Krillin, knowing the emotional pain it will cause Goku. Krillin, however, proves to be far too strong to be killed by standard mooks.
Tender Tears: Sensitivity, thy name is Krillin.
There Is Another: In late Buu Saga anime filler, he and Yamcha of all people are chosen by King Kai to stand by as a last resort against Kid Buu if Goku and Vegeta fail to defeat him. Krillin points out that he lasted less than a second when he tried to fight Super Buu earlier in the same arc, and when Kid Buu briefly teleports to the afterlife to wreak havoc on the already-dead, Krillin gets his ass kicked once again. Yet for all his complaining, he still steps up to fight despite knowing he's hopelessly outclassed against the pink monster.
They Killed Kenny Again: Even for a show where Death Is Cheap, Krillin has died quite a bit. Subverted, however, in that his deaths always hold emotional weight.
- He is the first main character to ever die in the series, being killed by Tambourine back in Dragon Ball.
- He dies at the hand of Frieza, where his death was seemingly permanent due to having died once already (the Namekian Dragon Balls had been turned to stone because of the Namekian Grand Elder's death, and it was thought it would be permanent at this point). There's also the fact his death triggered Goku's Super Saiyan transformation for the first time.
- During the Buu Saga, he is turned into stone by Dabura's spit, which is quickly undone when Dabura gets killed. Then he actually dies when Super Buu turns him into chocolate and eats him.
- In the Super 17 Saga of GT, Android 17 kills Krillin under Hell Fighter 17's influence after he tries to prevent Android 18 from joining them.
Throw the Dog a Bone: Unlike most of the human cast, Krillin continues to receive screentime and plot importance, and he actually comes through with the occasional cool moment at several critical points. He also got to marry Android 18, and have a daughter with her.
Time to Unlock More True Potential: He has his hidden power awakened by Guru, giving him a fighting chance on Namek.
Tiny Guy, Huge Girl: To Android 18, who's as tall as Bulma and Chi-Chi.
Took a Level in Badass: During the lead up to the Universe Survival Arc, he takes several huge ones to the point of being able to hold his own with Base Gohan and give Goku a decent fight. He can now throw multiple Destructo Discs and control their trajectories, just like Frieza's Death Saucers. He also improved his Solar Flare to 100x, which can blind even those with their eyes closed and disable the ability to sense ki for a time.
Took a Level in Kindness: He started out as The Bully and a brat who often cheats and demeans Goku. After becoming friends with Goku, he becomes a nicer person and eventually develops a pure heart, as seen when he is able to hold the Spirit Bomb.
Trauma Button: In Dragon Ball Super, it's revealed that villains like Tambourine, Frieza, Dabura and Super Buu due to their hands in his many Cruel and Unusual Deaths.
Underestimating Badassery:
- He did this all the time as a child. He didn't think much of Goku when they first meet, seeing him as some goofy boy who had no real training. He is also dismissive of General Blue and Fangs the Vampire, seeing them as pushovers since he fought and got fairly far in the World Martial Arts Tournament. All three of them easily beat him up. He still didn't learn his lesson when he meets Chiaotzu, seeing him as a runt. He manages to beat Chiaotzu, although it's a tough match, which he barely won. Even as an adult and a more experienced warrior, he underestimates Frieza's true form since it is smaller and on the cute side compared to his other transformations.
- He gets this a lot himself both as a child and as a small adult on top of being a human. Nappa nearly lost his head because he was going to catch the Destructo Disc if Vegeta didn't warn him to dodge at the very last second and Frieza nearly gets cut to pieces by the same attack. He is also the one to throw the Spirit Bomb at Vegeta, who all but ignored him.
Vocal Dissonance: Like Goku, Gohan, Goten and Yajirobe, his Japanese voice artist is a woman, even in his adult stage.
Wake-Up Call Boss:
- Amusingly, he manages to be this to Piccolo during the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. He makes Piccolo reveal some of his true power and although Piccolo beats him, he's shocked that Krillin is still alive after he thought he killed him, making Piccolo muse that taking over the world may be tougher than he thought even if he kills Goku.
- He's also Goku's first true challenge at the 22nd World Martial Tournament. If Goku hadn't trained his tail, he would have lost to him.
Warrior Monk: Was originally a student at a Shaolin temple, until he got tired of the other students picking on him for being so small, and decided to train under Roshi instead.
Weaponized Stench: During the Tournament of Power, Krillin fights Majora who tracks him by smell. To bypass this, Krillin takes off one of his shoes and throws it in Majora's face, paralyzing him long enough for Krillin to knock him out of the arena.
We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": Subverted. Yes, he's part of Team Cannon Fodder, but Krillin always gets a few good hits in against the villain of the day, and he doesn't lose his importance as a character until the Buu arc.
We Have Become Complacent: He largely retires from fighting after the Cell Saga, preferring to settle down with his family. He reaches his lowest point in Super, where he's become so weak that he can be harmed by conventional bullets. When 18 criticizes him for having become such a weakling, stating that the warrior he had become was not the man she fell in love with, Krillin agrees to train with Goku again.
Weak, but Skilled: This is his hat. Not having nowhere near as much raw strength or ki, he is a seriously cunning fighter. He ran rings around Nappa and Frieza when they tried to kill Gohan, and played a major part in the battle with Vegeta. As 18 is Unskilled, but Strong, it adds a facet to their Opposites Attract relationship.
- This is immediately apparent in his fights with Goku and Piccolo in the World Martial Arts Tournament. Despite clearly being outclassed by both in terms of raw power, he's able to fight evenly with them due to the sheer variety of the techniques he uses (some of which he came up with completely on the fly) and being able to exploit their weaknesses and openings. Notably, the only other person who has shown comparable skill is Master Roshi, who has centuries of experience.
- He's the first non-Crane-style student on Earth to learn how to fly (on his own, though with some idea of how it's done, and on-screen since we don't know when Goku learned). More notable is that he managed to develop a technique that could seriously wound or kill an opponent easily a hundred times his strength. He just rarely hits anyone with it.
- Krillin is able to copy other fighters' techniques, often by seeing them done once. It's how he picked up both the Kamehameha and the Solar Flare, an attack that quickly became more associated with Krillin than its actual inventor (Tien Shinhan).
- He's able to fire off the Genki-dama/Spirit Bomb (Goku collected the Genki) with some accuracy, though it wasn't enough to do in Vegeta.
- During their "image training" on the way to Namek, when Krillin compliments Gohan on his strength, Gohan tells him he was surprised by just how many different techniques Krillin threw at him.
- Even in the Cell Saga when stakes quickly became so high he was outmatched, he still kept his importance due to his skills at observation and resourcefulness - when things look their bleakest, Krillin is often the one to point out something important or give a pragmatic plan of action. And this extends to his ability to sense Ki, as more often than not, he is the first one to sense something from long-range, or is the quickest to sense the 'real' details of someone's new abilities (such as Trunks' not-so-hidden Ultra-Super-Saiyan). He even puzzles out Piccolo's sudden outburst after the Androids beat them. Yamcha takes his threat to betray them seriously while Krillin figures out pretty quickly that he is actually going to fuse with Kami for the power boost and is hiding his embarrassment with aggression. Acknowledged as such in Kai ("I can still sense Ki with the best of them!"), and even referenced in Battle of Gods when Roshi asks if Krillin is still able to follow the fight while the rest of them can't (he can't, but points for trying to sense God Ki).
- In the GBA Game Supersonic Warrior, he's forced to be Earth's champion when Goku ends up succumbing to the heart virus despite Trunks coming to the past. Turns out, "weak but skilled" means he has the best Ki control among the Z Warriors - since he has to keep up with superhumans and aliens, who simply have more of it than he does, he's had to use it wisely - and he's up to the task of merely protecting Earth. Specifically, he stops Super Saiyan Vegeta from destroying 18 before Taking a Level in Badass when Goku uses his free day of life from Baba to teach Krillin both the Kaioken and the Spirit Bomb. He ends up defeating Perfect Cell singlehandedly and even defeating Majin Buu with a well-timed Kamehameha.
- He's able to defeat Gohan in a mock fight in the Universe Survival arc because, as he points out, there are rules and restrictions in a tournament that prevent people like Gohan and Goku from just utterly obliterating their opponents, which puts weaker but more cunning fighters like himself on a more even playing field.
The Worf Barrage: His Destructo Disc is able to cut through virtually anything, and had previously sliced off Frieza's tail with ease. The first sign of just how powerful Perfect Cell really is is when he is hit directly in the back of the neck with one... and the disc shatters while Cell is left without a scratch, and Jiren is able to destroy and catch Goku using Destructo Disk purely to demonstrate how far above he is everyone else in terms of raw power. Before that, in the Garlic Jr. Saga, one of Garlic Jr.'s mooks was able to simply catch a Destructo Disc and toss it aside like a frisbee. Notably, all these are only shown in the anime.
The Worf Effect: Gets this from time to time. He blows past the preliminary round of the 21st Martial Tournament as easily as Goku, yet is completely outmatched by Jackie Chun and he gets his butt handed to him by General Blue despite his good showing against the robot pirate that gave even Goku a hard time. He beats Chiaotzu who is second only to Tien in strength, yet loses to Goku who was playing with him. He is the first to fall to Tambourine and is nearly killed by Piccolo Jr at the 23rd Martial Arts Tournament. In Z, he manages to kill three Saibamen with one shot, but the blast did nothing to Nappa and Vegeta. In Super, he's explicitly shown to be aware of this and even develops a complex over how much weaker he is than the likes of Goku and Vegeta, until he realizes when fighting Frieza's forces that because he's been hanging around fighters like them, he's become insanely strong by human standards.
World's Strongest Man: According to Yamcha and Toriyama, he's the strongest Human character. At the very least, he is definitely the strongest of the "ordinary" humans with no known unusual ancestry or outside physical enhancement.
Wouldn't Hit a Girl: As seen in a movie, when Chi-Chi slaps him with a shopping bag and kicks him, he doesn't make an effort to fight back. This is more likely because she's the wife of Goku, his best friend, as he had no problem fighting Zangya in the Bojack movie.
Wrong Genre Savvy: When Supreme Kai warns the Z Warriors that Babidi is capable of finding even the slightest trace of evil in someone's heart and using it to control them, Krillin points out that one of them wasn't always one of the good guys- Piccolo, who was literally made of Kami's pure evil. However, Vegeta is in the same room too.^note Babidi takes control of Vegeta rather than Piccolo, ultimately leading to Buu's revival.
Your Size May Vary: Although never exactly tall, Krillin's height is wildly inconsistent, especially in the anime. The only time it is ever consistent is when he wears his gi. For instance, early on in Z, one shot shows him to be only slightly shorter than Goku while the next shows Raditz completely towering over him. In Super, he has shrunk significantly, but his height is at least somewhat more consistent. In Super He goes anywhere from being half as tall as 18 to barely coming up to her hips.

Yamcha

Yamcha (ヤムチャ, Yamucha)

Voiced by (Japanese): Tōru Furuya
Voiced by (English): Kerrigan Mahan (Harmony Gold dub); Ted Cole (BLT/Ocean dub); Christopher Sabat (Funimation dub); Victor Atelevich (Blue Water dub); Doug Rand (Z Movie 3), Matthew Géczy (Z Movie 9), David Gasman (DB Movie 1), Jodi Forrest (DB Movie 2-3) (AB Groupe/"Big Green" dub); Darren Pleavin, Scott Evans (Animax Asia dub); Grant George (Bang Zoom!/Toonami Asia dub in Super)
Voiced by (Latin American Spanish): Ricardo Mendoza (current voice), Jesús Barrero (DB eps. 5-60), Enrique Mederos (Z eps. 127-132), Rafael Rivera (Dragon Ball Harmony Gold), Óscar Flores (Path of Power)
Voiced by (French): Eric Legrand
Voiced by (Italian): Diego Sabre

Yamcha was a desert bandit, Bulma's first love, and Goku's first rival. Even in the original series, Yamcha was often used as the primary victim of The Worf Effect, hardly winning any important fights despite being one of the most powerful protagonists. By Z he was pretty much a target to show how tough the villains were, so much so that around the Buu Saga he gave up fighting entirely (except for fillers in which he somehow defeated enemies even Goku had trouble with a few years before).

Yamcha was the series' originator for a lot of the tropes and quirks that would later be popularized by characters like Krillin, Tenshinhan, Piccolo, and Vegeta. The Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy, rival-turned-friend, Butt-Monkey, Mr. Exposition, and "bad boy" roles these characters fulfill all started with him. Even Gohan and Future Trunks draw from him; they both inherited his shy awkwardness, sword fighting, and long-haired character designs.

The Ace: During the baseball episode of Super, being the only player on either team with any skill (or knowledge in general) in the game.
Accidental Pervert: Quite lots in earlier chapters of the manga, when his fear of women is still intact, no less. Such as when he accidentally watched Bulma take a bath and likely touched Bulma's boobs when she was naked while sleeping.
Adaptational Badass:
- He fares either worse or better in the anime. Yamcha does more to contribute in anime-only battles and situations, but sometimes he comes off better in the manga's version of events (an example of this is Yamcha had no trouble holding down Great Ape Goku in the manga).
- Yamcha gets more feats to his name in anime filler after his post-Saiyan Saga irrelevancy in the manga. In Namek Saga, Yamcha, after completing his (mostly unseen) training with King Kai, gets to show off his new power and manages to soundly beat down Recoome, a character who was giving Vegeta, Gohan and Krillin serious trouble only a few episodes prior. Much later in the Buu Saga, he and Krillin train with King Kai in the Other World again; Yamcha is shown taking on Olibu, a centuries-old dead warrior who competed alongside Goku in the Other World Tournament against Pikkon, as well as an unnamed gorilla fighter at the same time, and Yamcha defeats them both with a dropkick. Yamcha's (non-canon) performance against Olibu and the gorilla fighter might indicate that he could be on the same level as Perfect Cell during the Buu Saga ^explanation
- Like the other canonically-weaker characters, he can fight leagues beyond his weight class in video games. In Dragon Ball Fighter Z, his fast-paced playstyle has made him the memetic badass of the game. This does not stop Cell, Nappa, Frieza, AND GOKU from making fun of him for being too weak to be affected by the waves.
- A relatively minor example but in the JRPG Attack of the Saiyans, Yamcha is often considered to be the second or third best character in the game, only behind Goku and Gohan respectively. Being a fast, melee-based character, Yamcha can inflict lots of damage very quickly and evade enemy attacks fairly reliably. His skill set is also all around quite good, with lots of heavy-hitters like Wolf-Fang Fist, Wolf Hurricane, Spirit Ball and Neo Wolf Fang Fist. Yamcha even has his own piece of exclusive equipment (the only non-Saiyan character to do so) which doubles his Power and Speed, but cuts his defense in half, effectively making him a damn powerful Glass Cannon. Most people even consider Yamcha one of the more viable characters for fighting Broly with. However, despite his badassery, Yamcha still dies to the Saibamen in the end game.
- In a What-If? Saga in Raging Blast, Yamcha defeats Vegeta and Future Trunks one after another in order to win over Bulma.
Amicable Exes: He maintained a close relationship with Bulma after their breakup. Even telling Future Trunks about Vegeta going Papa Wolf on Cell to make him feel better.
Always Second Best: The first of many characters to always be behind Goku despite giving him a decent challenge when they first met. He is also the overall weakest of the Turtle School (not counting Ox King and Gohan Sr.).
Animal Battle Aura: His battle aura takes the shape of a wolf.
Animal Motifs: Oftentimes, his aura will give him the appearance of a wolf even when he isn't using one of his Wolf Fang techniques.
Animal-Themed Fighting Style: Yamcha's "Wolf Fang Fist" technique involves him rapidly punching and clawing the opponent like a wolf.
Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy:
- In his debut, Yamcha was this (except around Bulma). He lost most of this after his Heel–Face Turn. Yamcha usually has an Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy moment every time he gets a large increase in power from training. Perhaps this trait of his was finally lost during his fight against Shen in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. Coming into the match, Yamcha was absolutely sure of his victory, but after being embarrassed by some of Shen's moves, Shen chastises Yamcha for his arrogance, saying that Yamcha's overconfidence on his own strength as well as his opponent's appearance made him blind to the subtlety of Shen's attacks. After listening to Shen's lecture, Yamcha seemed to have wised up, even managing to land a good hit on Shen before losing, and becomes a lot more focused and dependable on the fights that followed.
- His arrogance did return in the Saiyan Saga. After he easily beat the second Saibaman, he challenges Nappa and Vegeta and says he will fight all the Saibamen at once. This caused him to lower his guard, allowing the defeated Saibaman to grab him and blow him up.
Art Evolution: During most of the original Dragon Ball series, Yamcha had small eyes that were shaped similar to Tenshinhan's eyes. It wasn't until the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai that his eyes started looking more like Goku's.
Ascended Meme: His infamous death pose is referenced every once in a while. In Super's Episode 70, he even makes it, crater and all (alive, this time), when he steals a base.
Barbarian Longhair: His most frequent hairstyle. He mentioned his short haircut was at Bulma's request (Goku couldn't even recognize him when he first showed up with his new 'do) and could be considered an example of him trying to change from an outlaw in the desert to an ordinary citizen in the city.
Becoming the Mask: He initially assisted Goku and the others in gathering the Dragon Balls with the intention of stealing them once they got all seven. It wasn't until the events at Pilaf's castle that he and Puar became friends with them for real.
Being Good Sucks: The reason Yamcha fought the Saibamen was to protect Krillin, who wanted to go next. As he pointed out, Krillin was revived already with the Dragon Balls so him dying would have been permanent, while Yamcha could be revived if the worst happens. For his good deed, Yamcha gets suicide bombed by the Saibaman, making him the first casualty of the Saiyan Invasion and he never even gets the chance to fight Nappa. And worst of all, the fandom won't ever let him live this down.
Big "NO!": He lets out a pretty loud, desperate, pleading no to Roshi when it seems like Roshi's about to kill Goku due to his transformation to a Great Ape. He lets another one out just before Namek explodes and he's begging Goku not to die.
Bittersweet Ending: Yamcha is never seen accomplishing his dream to marry and have a family. In Dragon Ball GT, he's even seen going back to his life alone with Puar in Diablo Desert. After the Cell Saga, he also gave up martial arts and competing in tournaments, when both were things he loved to do. Though he seemed perfectly happy with how things turned out, makes sense seeing how he's such an easygoing guy. He just takes every curve life can throw at him in stride. The end of the Cell arc had him talk about a girl he was seeing, so he's still socializing and dating on his own time, even if we never see it.
Big Damn Heroes: Saves Goku when he was being pummeled by the Rabbit Mob who held Bulma hostage. Also invoked in the same arc, when Yamcha lends the stranded heroes a ride, as part of his plan.
Breaking the Fourth Wall: In both metaphorical AND literal sense of break. In the 8th chapter of the manga, Son Goku sends Yamcha in the air with his punch but Yamcha breaks and bounces off the frame's border back to the ground.
Butt-Monkey: He has it worse than Krillin. From his first appearance, it was always something of a Running Gag that Yamcha was unlucky. And while he puts up a fight, he NEVER gets past the quarter-finals round of the tournament. He never even gets to fight Vegeta and Nappa with the others; he gets distracted and killed in a Suicide Attack by a Saibaman. In the Android Saga, he gets badly injured by Dr. Gero who puts a hand through his chest, and nearly dies. Oh, and then his ex-girlfriend has Vegeta's baby. During the Universal Surviving Saga, he expects to be asked to join the U7 team and waits at home for an invitation. Goku never considers him even when Buu needed to be replaced. Poor guy just can't catch a break.
Cannot Talk to Women: Used to be like this to such a degree that he couldn't even be around women without freaking out. After spending time around Bulma in the Pilaf Saga, and even picking her up to get her to safety at one point, Yamcha mostly gets over his phobia (although he sometimes still does show some nervous tendencies around beautiful women).
Can't Catch Up: Yamcha retires from fighting after the Cell Saga. He Lampshades it himself when, unlike Krillin, he decides to forgo participating in the 25th World Tournament.
Character Development:
- Starts as a thief that's willing to attack and possibly kill others for their supplies in the desert and only teams up with Goku to get a chance at making his own wish come true, he then bonds with Goku and Bulma for real after the ordeal with Pilaf, becoming a genuine Nice Guy and loyal friend.
- In a more negative example, after his death in the Saiyan Saga, he becomes much more reluctant to fight, and seemingly decides to be on the sidelines after Android 20 nearly kills him, though still willing to fight if need be. Come the Buu Saga, he's retired from fighting entirely, having accepted he just can't hope of catching up to the others. However, in Super, Yamcha has seemingly turned this idea around, wanting to be involved in the Tournament of Power, and not hesitating against taking up a fight in the Moro arc, and defeats three of Moro's mooks.
Chick Magnet: Being a handsome guy, he is very popular among girls. In Dragon Ball, he even has his own fan club.
Centipede's Dilemma: Inverted. He thought he was cursed with the inability to talk to or even be around women, and for that reason, once he learned about the existence of the Dragon Balls, he decided to use them to wish away his fear of women. Much to his surprise, by the end of a long period of time where he was forced to be around Bulma, Yamcha learned that his fear of women was all in his head and that it was only when he consciously invoked it on himself that he felt uncomfortable around women. Shortly afterward, he and Bulma started dating.
Clueless Chick-Magnet: Yamcha's quite popular around women despite his shyness.
Combat Commentator: Yamcha's apparently read up on all of the local legends and famous martial artists: he's able to identify Goku's bo staff, Master Roshi, Grandpa Gohan, Ox-King, and the rabbit boss. He even knew that Roshi was the one who trained Gohan and Ox-King and that the two of them were best friends.
Comedic Sociopathy: Mostly in the first story arc where he tries to kill a 12-year-old Goku and robs people for a living. He also planned to steal the Dragon Balls and cripple Goku by grabbing his tail, all just to wish away his fear of women. So, his being constantly humiliated by having Bulma grab him and his amusing injuries were a joy to watch.
Composite Character: Initially, Toriyama used Sha Gojo from Journey to the West for the character. A likely prototype design for Yamcha was the title character to Akira Toriyama's one-shot Pink. Although Pink is a female, she also is a bandit living in a desert hideout who has an animal companion and rides a flying vehicle similar to Yamcha's Jet Squirrel. After cutting his long hair for the first time in the series, Yamcha looks very similar to the character Tsukutsun Tsun from Doctor Slump in both appearance and characteristics.
Cool Sword: He wields a dao early in Dragon Ball.
Commuting on a Bus: It's pretty easy to forget that he and Puar were among the first characters introduced into the story.
A Day in the Limelight:
- In Super's 70th episode, Champa decides to play baseball against Beerus and brings their universe's fighters together to do it. As someone who actually plays baseball for a living, Yamcha is the only one besides umpires Whis and Vados to have any idea what they're doing. While he suffers a ton of Amusing Injuries, he manages to give the other team a run for its money by stealing bases in true bandit style and wins the game by stealing home during a battle between the Gods of Destruction...despite ending up in his memetic death pose while doing so. We also see how his training affects his baseball game since he uses Wolf Fang Fist and Spirit Ball to expertly control any ball he pitches.
- In the Moro arc, Yamcha finally gets a chance to shine and help defend Earth from Moro and his army. He easily defeats three of Moro's goons (despite their strength being enhanced by the evil wizard).
Deadpan Snarker: Has cracked comments like these. He descends into Gallows Humor when the gang is captured by Pilaf and left to die, which Oolong doesn't appreciate.
Defeat Means Friendship: Though it was initially a ruse, Yamcha came to befriend the group and turned good for real.
Demoted to Extra: Namek Saga, Cell Saga, Buu Saga, GT and Super.
Desert Bandits: He was originally one.
Determinator: Yamcha's pretty eager to fight most of the time, he eagerly volunteered to fight King Piccolo when his leg was broken. Until he goes down against #20, at which point he calls it quits (he still tags along with the others at the Cell Games, but only sits at the sidelines until the Cell Jrs. attack).
Deus Angst Machina: Yamcha and Bulma's breakup was never explained, though this was mostly due to Toriyama's disinterest in romance and romantic relationships.
Dub Text:
- Funimation changes his dialogue more than most characters. For example, Bulma being mad at Yamcha for canceling a date due to being broke, became him taking another girl out to a concert in the dub (ironically, this matches up with Toriyama's claims that Yamcha is unfaithful). Even in Kai, Funimation changed a line of Yamcha saying he's got to help Goku with "I'll be there" to "I'll just watch".
- Perhaps one of the cruelest cases happens in the Lookout, as Bulma fondly remembers Goku. Chi-Chi teases her, saying that Bulma is in love with Goku, but she should give up because Chi-Chi is prettier. Yamcha then says that Chi-Chi looks very pretty today, which makes Chi-Chi upset because that implies that she doesn't always look pretty. In the Dub Text, Chi-Chi suggests that, since Bulma likes Goku so much, they should trade husbands: Bulma gets Goku and Chi-Chi gets Vegeta. Yamcha then says that he is available, to which Chi-Chi responds that she wants an even trade, not a downgrade (though he appeared to take her comment as the friendly joke it was intended to be).
Easily Forgiven:
- Yamcha is generally shown as pretty forgiving, possibly due to being bad once himself. When Tenshinhan apologizes for breaking his leg, he just shrugs and says it's nothing.
- Once he stopped trying to prove he was better than Vegeta, they seemed to get along pretty well. He's even paid the prince a genuine compliment once or twice.
- Hilariously, at one point, Tenshinhan criticizes Yamcha for making nice with Vegeta.
Empowered Badass Normal: He has always been very strong for a normal human. He was able to trade blows with Goku and knock him back, Goku tells Krillin in chapter 37 that Yamcha is extremely strong and fast. He was also able to make it to the final eight of the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament without any formal training, unlike Goku and Krillin. By the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, he taught himself the Kamehameha. At the 23rd, he learned a powerful technique known as the Spirit Ball that nearly knocked Shen (Kami's human host) to the ground.
Enemy Mine: When they were still ostensibly enemies, he helped Goku against the Rabbit Mob.
Energy Ball: His first original Ki attack is the Spirit Ball, which he can control at will.
The Everyman: He is perhaps one of the most relatable characters among the Z warriors. For instance, he is commonly seen wearing outfits other than his combat gear and he has been shown driving vehicles like sky cars and airships instead of flying everywhere like most of the other characters. He also has grounded interests like romance and sports and is actually concerned with having money, as opposed to most of the other protagonists, who do not seem to work at all and spend most of their time training. A notable example of how normal he is happens at the end of the Cell Saga when the other protagonists are struggling to think of one last wish to be granted by Shenron. Yamcha suggests that, since nobody else could think of any important uses for that wish, they should wish for something for themselves, like lots of money. The other characters silently stare at him as if shocked that he would ever as much as consider using one of the wishes for purposes that are not altruistic. In response, Yamcha timidly apologizes and agrees to leave the last wish to Krillin.
Expy: He starts out as a clear stand-in for Sha Wujing from Journey to the West.
Fake Ultimate Hero: The whole gag with Yamcha is that he looks like a cool, powerful hero on par with the other Z-Warriors (he is even mistaken for Goku by an enemy at one point), but he's actually quite useless.
Failure Hero: In Dragon Ball and especially Z Yamcha seldom wins clear victories outside of fillers (and never important ones). Though he's had his moments in filler.
Fire-Forged Friends: Became friends with Goku and company after battling Pilaf.
Flanderization: What undoubtedly pushed him from "unlucky" to "one of Dragon Ball's biggest memes" is that while Yamcha never had any major victory over the enemies of the story, and was constantly subjected to The Worf Effect, there were still times Yamcha had a Curb Stomp Cushion in the original series. In Z, Yamcha never even gets this, sure, he defeats the Saibaman like Tien does, but is killed by it soon after in a sneak attack. The fact that he's killed so suddenly was supposed to be a shock factor that Anyone Can Die, but due to the ease the other Saibamen are taken out, and the fact that Yamcha is repeatedly put in situations he simply can't win in, he's reduced to being a character on the sidelines who's perceived in-and-out of universe as unreliable and kind of a joke fighting wise.
Graceful Loser: Was polite and respectful to Jackie Chun and Kami when they beat him in the World Tournament. He was the first to clap when Tenshinhan decided to turn over a new leaf. He's also very friendly to Trunks, his ex's son. They're shown watching TV together and Yamcha is the one who tells him about Vegeta's reaction to his death.
Hard Work Hardly Works: He was shown to do Training from Hell prior to the Buu Saga. Taken to the extreme in the Piccolo Jr. Saga; he worked like a dog for the tournament for three years, created a brand new technique from scratch... and still lost in the quarter-final match.
Heel–Face Turn: One of the first of many throughout the series.
Image Song: Say what you want about the guy but he's got a very good one.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: After Dr. Gero did this to Yamcha, the poor guy retired from fighting.
Informed Flaw: Toriyama's statement is that he's a cheater, with Future Trunks even mentioning how Yamcha was unfaithful to Bulma. However, what we see on-screen is that Bulma tends to be the one who flirts with multiple guys while Yamcha was never once shown to be seriously unfaithful and in a later interview, Toriyama even mentioned how Yamcha got fired from a bouncer job because of his fear of women, making it difficult to view Yamcha as the philandering playboy he's made out to be and even late into the series, Yamcha is still shown to be single and without anyone in his life resembling a significant other.
Kamehame Hadoken: He was the second student to learn it, though he doesn't use it much.
Killed Offscreen: For his second death in the manga near the climax of the Buu arc. Averted somewhat in the anime, but even then we only see his shadow.
Know When to Fold 'Em: He turned down the offer to participate in the 25th Tournament knowing how outclassed he was.
The Lancer: Sometimes holds this role, mainly in the absence of Krillin.
The Leader: In Dragon Ball, he used to take the role of de facto leader when in a group with Goku, Bulma, and the others.
Long-Haired Pretty Boy: When he has long hair.
Loveable Rogue: During his bandit days.
Love Makes You Dumb: Clumsy around women he likes.
Love Martyr: Explained to Puar, this was basically why he puts up with Bulma's mistreatment in Dragon Ball.
Master-Apprentice Chain: He trained under Master Roshi and became a master under the Turtle School: Mutaito > Master Roshi > Yamcha.
Mistaken for Cheating: The Clueless Chick-Magnet above has resulted in this happening on several occasions in Dragon Ball.
Mr. Fanservice: He was the first handsome adult male in the cast.
Mundane Utility: He uses his Supernatural Martial Arts skills when playing baseball.
Mysterious Past: We have no clue what Yamcha or Puar did before they were desert bandits.
- We don't even know the status of Yamcha's family.
Nice Guy: As an Adult, Yamcha is one of the more chill and forgiving characters. He hardly holds grudges, is quick to laugh off most anything, and he's a pretty supportive friend. Despite his occasional arrogance and occasional selfish desires for a wish, he remains one of the most selfless people around.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: His willingness to fight the second saibaman in Krillin's place not only results in his untimely demise, but also results in him becoming one of the biggest memes in the series.
Now, Let Me Carry You: When Goku falls sick during the battle with the androids, Yamcha, who has been protected and saved by Goku several times, physically carries him back to his house and helps care for him along with his wife.
Older Than He Looks: Despite being an ordinary human, Yamcha looks about the same at 57 in Dragon Ball GT.
Overshadowed by Awesome: Yamcha is one of the strongest humans on the planet, with Krillin and Tien being the only ones outright stronger than him. By the time of the Cell Games, he is at the very least comparable to Goku when he left for Namek, and likely stronger than the Goku that fought the Ginyu Force^note. But he's much too far behind his alien peers and eventually gives up fighting entirely.
The Pollyanna: Yamcha will never, EVER, stop seeing the bright side of life, no matter how much of a Cosmic Plaything he ends up as.
Pretty Boy: Yamcha's been described as "good looking in a boyish sort of way" and "a pretty boy". Very slightly lessened after he gets his scars. He also ages very gracefully by the end of the series while Bulma and Krillin are both visibly past their prime.
Prophet Eyes: His eyes turn totally white when he uses many of his moves like the Wolf Fang Fist.
Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs: His Signature Move, the Wolf Fang Fist/Rougafuufuuken. Also his improved version, the Neo Wolf Fang Fist/Shin Rougafuufuuken.
Really Gets Around: According to Future Trunks, this is the reason Bulma eventually left him for Vegeta in that timeline. What's ironic is that Yamcha was initially extremely shy around girls at the start of the series and said he wanted to get married. More importantly, we never actually get to see this attribute.
Redemption Demotion: Yamcha generally remained useful in Dragon Ball and in the first arc, where he and Puar actually saved everyone from Great Ape Goku. In Z Yamcha was really only useful for distracting villains or taking care of wounded characters.
Retired Badass: After the Cell Games. However, in the anime OVA special, he reveals that he still wears his fighting gi under his suit, suggesting that he still misses fighting. Super lines up with this, given his eagerness to be selected in the Tournament of Power.
The Rival: The very first one, also one of the shortest-lasting ones. Back then, he teamed up with Goku to save Bulma from Monster Carrot.
Roboteching: His Spirit Ball Attack/Soukidan, a guided attack that he first develops while training for the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament.
Rugged Scar: After coming back from offscreen Training from Hell at the end of Dragon Ball, Yamcha sports a few facial scars indicating that he's come back stronger, although he still Can't Catch Up.
Sacrificial Lion: In the Saiyan Saga. After Kami's training, it seems like the Z fighters are in a good position: Vegeta and Nappa are willing to take their time which gives Goku more time to get there and Tien has soundly defeated the first Saibaman, and Yamcha has similarly defeated the second one. Unfortunately, he's killed no more than a minute afterwards. This not only shows how dangerous things are going to get, but also shows that the heroes are still in danger of being killed off no matter how well they prepared.
Scars Are Forever: It's never revealed exactly how he got them. After Yamcha came back from his three-year Training from Hell in the Timeskip, he had them on his face.
Shrinking Violet: A male example. At first, Yamcha couldn't even be around women without blushing and fleeing the scene. Even after he hooked up with Bulma, he was still somewhat shy at times.
Signature Move: Wolf Fang Fist and Spirit Ball.
Spiky Hair: During the Android and Cell arcs.
Surpassed the Teacher: He eventually surpasses all of his masters and becomes one of the strongest humans on Earth.
Superior Successor: By the time of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, he's surpassed Master Roshi. He also surpasses Kami after training with him to fight the Saiyans.
Surfer Dude: His English voice has this type of sound and speech pattern in the dub of Z.
Taking the Bullet: Ever since his Heel–Face Turn, Yamcha has been shown as willing to sacrifice himself for his friends. In one of the movies, he even painfully catches a boulder about to crush Bulma. His Saibaman death was actually the result of him volunteering ahead to protect Krillin from a second and (seemingly) final death.
There Is Another: Surprisingly enough, he and Krillin are chosen by King Kai to be the backup B-Team and last hope of the universe against Kid Buu's rampage if Goku and Vegeta fail to stop him, in anime filler only.
This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman: In Episode 70 of Super, when Champa challenges Beerus to a baseball match, Yamcha is the only one who has any idea what the hell he's doing, since he spent the time-skip between Dragon Ball and Z playing in the pros.
The Tooth Hurts: During one of their earlier encounters, Goku knocked one of his teeth out. He's reluctant to go see a dentist.
Throw the Dog a Bone:
- Dragon Ball Super Episode 70 is one long (and long deserved) one for Yamcha. He still gets his ass kicked and there was nothing important at stake in the first place, but he still ends up saving the day, and receives glowing respect and acclaim from the rest of the Z characters in attendance. Even #18 and Bulma blatantly vocalize their newfound respect for Yamcha.
- In the original manga canon he holds one important victory against the Invisible Man during Baba's Tournament.
Training from Hell: Yamcha had been shown to go through this a lot of the time, particularly when the date for the World Martial Arts Tournament nears. For the first tournament Yamcha trained alone in the wilderness for a month, the second time with Krillin under Roshi, and the third was for three straight years.
True Companions: Yamcha seemed to have become this for real with the gang when in Pilaf's desert oven. Even getting distressed when Ape Goku was attacked, hard to believe earlier he was planning to beat up Goku to steal the Dragon Balls.
Took a Level in Badass: In Filler, at least, Yamcha sometimes does better. He defeated Recoome, a guy who beat Vegeta to within an inch of his life while training on King Kai's planet. While training in the Other World along with Krillin, he also defeated some of the top fighters in the tournament that Goku had won while he was there.
Took a Level in Kindness: Like most of the cast, he reforms significantly after his Defeat Means Friendship from Goku's hands.
Tritagonist: In the Legacy of Goku Arc, he gets the most amount of focus after Goku and Bulma.
Twinkle Smile: It happened occasionally in the Dragon Ball anime.
Unbalanced By Rival's Kid: Surprisingly nuanced. At first, he's upset when Gohan asks him if he's Trunks' dad, but he's still respectful and friendly to future Trunks.
Uniqueness Decay: Yamcha was the first Turtle School student to invent his own ki based technique, which is considered an impressive feat that earns praise from Kami himself. However, this was quickly pushed to the side as many more characters have made far more dangerous uses of ki techniques since then.
Wake-Up Call Boss: He's the first person able to physically challenge Goku and defeat him to running out of energy (though the latter was due to Goku's getting hungry at the end of the fight).
We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": In DBZ, he kicks off the trend by being the first to go down in the fight against the Saiyans, at the very beginning before Nappa even gets his hands dirty. Granted, it was a Heroic Sacrifice, and he technically won the fight that killed him, but he plays basically no role in Z from that point forward.
Weak, but Skilled:
- Yamcha's Spirit Ball is the first fully controllable ki attack shown in the series. While Yamcha was beaten handily by the powerful Shen in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, he managed to show his combat smarts by, after failing to hit Shen with his Spirit Ball, he made the energy ball travel underground and erupt under Shen's chin, catching him off guard. Shen even complimented Yamcha on his skills after the battle.
- He was the second student of the Turtle School to master the Kamehameha and surprised everyone by showing this in the 22nd Budokai.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: At the start of the series, he was intimidated by women, such that Bulma's very presence could force him into retreat. He sought the Dragon Balls to help him overcome his phobia. Ultimately, he conquered his fear after spending time around and eventually dating, Bulma.
The Worf Effect:
- Save for Vegeta, no other character got hit with this more. Yamcha suffers from this as early as Dragon Ball, always losing in his first round in the three world tournaments he participates in to show how powerful Jackie Chun, Tenshinhan, and Hero/Shen/Kami are, despite his training. By the time Z came around, Yamcha was the first to fall in the Saiyan Arc and again in the Android Saga.
- In the first story arc, Yamcha has the advantage over Goku due to him being hungry. He could have won, but he sees Bulma and runs away since he's terrified of girls. When he fights Goku the next day, he gets his tooth knocked off and humorously ends the fight early out of pride.
Worf Had the Flu: He had most certainly won his initial fight with the second Saibaman, but was so caught up with the ease that these mooks were being beaten that he let his guard down to taunt Nappa and Vegeta. This gets him killed in a surprise attack.
Would Hit a Girl: Zigzagged. In Dragon Ball, he is forced to knock out Kid Chi-Chi when she attacks him. On the other hand, Yamcha seems unable to strike a beautiful girl in The Legend of Shen Long.
Wrestler in All of Us: He uses an elbow drop to save Goku from the Rabbit Gang.
"X" Marks the Hero: After the three-year time skip at the end of Dragon Ball he gets an X-shaped scar on his cheek.

Tien Shinhan/Tenshinhan

Tien Shinhan (天津飯, Tenshinhan)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tienshinhan2.png

Voiced by (Japanese): Hirotaka Suzuoki (Dragon Ball, Z), Kōichi Yamadera (Z eps. 82 and 84 only), Mitsuaki Madono (Burst Limit, Infinite World, Revenge of King Piccolo and Heroes), Hikaru Midorikawa (Kai and Super)
Voiced by (English): Eddie Frierson (Harmony Gold dub); Matt Smith^note (Ocean dub); Chris Cason (Most of Z Season 3; 1999), Lane Pianta (Z Season 3 eps. 104, 106-107; 1999), John Burgmeier (All other media including remastered Z Season 3) (Funimation dub); Brendan Hunter (Blue Water dub); Doug Rand (Z Movie 3), David Gasman (Z Movie 9), Sharon Mann (The History of Trunks) (AB Groupe/"Big Green" dub); Richard Jonson (Creative Products Corp.); Ray Chase (Bang Zoom!/Toonami Asia dub in Super)
Voiced by (Latin American Spanish): Ismael Larumbe (current voice), Esteban Desco (Z eps. 267-268 and 285), Armando Coria (Dragon Ball Harmony Gold), Gabriel Ramos (kid)
Voiced by (French): Georges Atlas (DB, Z), Marc Bretonnière (Kai, Super)
Voiced by (Italian): Claudio Ridolfo

"I might just be a pothole in the road to you, but it's going to be one heck of a deep pothole!"

Introduced in the second World Martial Arts Tournament arc, Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu were initially rivals to Goku, Krillin, and Yamcha (as they belonged to an opposing dojo to Roshi's). The two eventually become friends to our heroes after realizing the lack of honor in their own methods. They become instrumental in the next few arcs following their introduction, but by Z their roles had become less and less till they were reduced to cameo appearances and a few references in Dragon Ball GT. His role is expanded in Super, as he is shown to have founded a dojo himself, and participates in the Tournament of Power.

Aborted Arc: After he reaches Kaio's planet, he thinks to himself he'll learn Kaio's techniques and add twists of his own to them so he can surpass Goku, but nothing comes from this. While he understandably can't surpass Goku anymore, he doesn't get any new technique after training with Kaio, and defaults to using Kikoho/Tri-Beam to deal with his opponents (even mooks).
Adaptational Badass:
- Tien performs better in the anime version of his fight with Goku in the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, being able to match Goku who only has a slight advantage. In the manga, the fight is far more one-sided with Goku dominating Tien until Chiaotzu paralyzes Goku, allowing Tien to badly injure Goku. Although Tien gets on Chiaotzu for this and allows Goku to pummel him as repayment, the damage was done.
- A minor example. In the manga, Drum completely outmatches Tien, who only lands a couple of good hits before going down and nearly being killed. He also never gets to use the Evil Containment Wave because he was using a broken rice cooker. In the anime, Tien puts up a better fight and manages to score several hits on Drum, and effectively defeats him with the Evil Containment Wave (granted, he was aiming for Piccolo and Drum intercepted it). Too bad Piccolo just let Drum out right after.
- During his battle with Cell, he's only able to fire off half a dozen Shin Kikoho / Neo Tri-Beam blasts before collapsing. In the anime, Tenshinhan manages to keep Cell pinned down for a whole episode, pushing himself to the absolute limit while the other cast panic over how long he can hang in for.
Adaptational Early Appearance: In the manga, he and Chiaotzu make their debut at the World Martial Arts Tournament. In the anime, he appears as an antagonist in a filler episode set between the Baba arc and the Tournament. As such, Goku recognizes him as the villain on-site.
Adaptational Jerkass: In the manga, his only real "crimes" are being too cocky for his own good, having the order of fights rigged, and unnecessarily breaking a downed opponent's leg. In anime filler, he's a con man who tortures an animal, attempts murder at least twice, and actually kills a man (albeit in a case of manslaughter rather than murder).
Adaptational Wimp: In the anime version of the Tournament of Power, Tenshinhan manages to last for a decent amount of time, earning a few eliminations prior to his ring out at the hands of Universe 2's Harmira, due to letting his guard down after defeating him and even then, Tien managed to take Harmira down with him. In the manga, he tries to fight Frost from Universe 6 after Frost knocked out Krillin, but Frost takes him down in a flash after tanking his Neo Tri-Beam.
Aloof Ally: Spends the majority of the Buu Saga training in isolation with Chiaotzu.
Always Second Best: Despite being even with Goku during the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, he falls behind Goku after he drinks the Ultra Divine Water and never catches up again. He still tries, despite knowing he can't catch up.
Ambiguously Human: He's never presented as anything but human, but he does have a third eye and unique abilities. There are much more human-seeming aliens throughout the series. Some of the tie-in games refer to him as an alien, but Toriyama has at various times stated that Tien is a descendant of a three-eyed clan of humans and/or that the third eye is the result of achieving enlightenment. Daizenshuu 7 was the source of the claim that has alien ancestry, but it should be noted that it says it's distant and explicitly classifies him as a human alongside Krillin, Yamcha, Bulma, etc. There's a chance Tien might be a mutant human, as it's been stated both in and out of universe that mutations make various races into more formidable combatants.
An Arm and a Leg: Infamously had his arm punched off by Nappa during their fight.
Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Tien is actually a notable subversion. While he certainly comes off as this trope when introduced (and especially, right before and during his match against Yamcha), his arrogance comes from believing he has a better master and Goku doesn't fight or train seriously. But when he finds out Crane was having Chiaotzu use his powers on Goku to rig the fight, he demands his friend stop and gives Goku a free shot to try and make the fight fair again. When he wins by virtue of Goku hitting a car seconds before he hit the ground, he tries to request a rematch because the victory wasn't rightly earned, and even offers to split the prize money with Goku and co because he felt Goku deserved to win that match at least as much as he did.
The Artifact: Due to the power escalation in the series, Tenshinhan's role as The Rival for Goku ended up getting taken over by Piccolo and later Vegeta. Tenshinhan himself actually ended up getting briefly written out of the series during the Buu Saga only to later return. At the same time, he still sees Goku as his rival, as in the bar to surpass, but he's fully aware that it will never happen.
Ascended Extra:
- Move-wise, the Dodon Ray is this for him. He, canonically, only really used it one or two times. In games, it's his standard Kamehame Hadoken.
- Speaking of which, so does the actual Kamehameha. In canon, he used it once at the 22nd tournament against Roshi. In games like Xenoverse, it's a part of his moveset.
The Atoner: After his Heel–Face Turn.
Awesomeness by Analysis: How he learns the Kamehameha and the Evil Containment Wave in Dragon Ball. He is stated to have the ability to copy techniques.
Badass Boast: To Yamcha in his villain days.
Tenshinhan: Poor Yamcha. The only thing more pathetic than a loser is a loser who thinks he's born to win.
Badass and Child Duo: Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu in Dragon Ball. Mess with the kid and he'll tear you apart.
Badass in Distress: He is nearly killed by Cell after he uses almost all his energy pinning him down with a Tri-Beam Cannon. He is saved by Goku who pulls a Teleportation Rescue.
Bad People Abuse Animals: In the anime, his Establishing Character Moment is torturing his "ally", an innocent pig, before Goku attempts a rescue.
Bald of Evil: Before he became a good guy.
Bare-Handed Blade Block: During his fight with cyborg Tao, the mercenary reveals a hidden blade and attempts to stab him in the heart (after successfully slashing him once), but Tien blocks it with his hand.
Big Brother Instinct: Towards Chiaotzu, who is like a little brother to him.
Big Damn Heroes: Tenshinhan gets some pretty awesome moments.
The Big Guy: Until his resurrection, his role was the heavy hitter, mainly by virtue of his Tri-Beam, which was more powerful than any technique at the time. In the Piccolo Daimao and 23rd Budokai arcs, he's the second-strongest hero after Goku, fights the secondary antagonists, and (in the anime) nearly defeats Piccolo with the Mafuba. In the Saiyan arc he's either the second or third strongest hero (depending on where you see Piccolo at this point) and easily defeats a secondary antagonist before himself being easily defeated by Nappa (though he does manage to damage him a bit) to show how serious the situation is. Incidentally, he's also the second tallest member of the group after Piccolo, at 6'2. While he's dead, the gap between him and Goku becomes so vast that they aren't even comparable any more.
Blood Knight: He is the only human, along with Chiaotzu, who keeps training long after the others accepted that they can never catch up to the Saiyans. He also went against Bulma's plan to stop the androids early by using the Dragon Balls because he wanted to fight them. Despite the huge power difference, he still strives to match Goku.
Boring, but Practical: A lot of Tien's move set isn't particularly flashy, but it definitely focuses on practicality above all else. Of particular note, the solar flare is such a useful ability that it gets used by multiple heroes in a pinch and occasionally the villains will use it as well, but all it is reflecting light and amplifying it. It works particularly on enemies who can't sense Power Levels, making them actually dependent on their eyes while the heroes can fight nearly as well blind just with their sixth sense.
Bond Villain Stupidity:
- In his fight against Goku during the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, Tenshinhan, who was starting to feel overpowered by Goku's tremendous stamina and having several of his techniques outdone by Goku's very own, ingeniously decided that, if he could not knock Goku unconscious or push him out of the platform, he would simply destroy the entire platform; that way, Goku would lose by ring out because there would be no platform left to stand on. Tenshinhan, who possesses the ability to fly, did not have that problem. He managed to destroy the platform with his powerful Tri-Beam attack, but instead of simply waiting for Goku, who had jumped very high to escape the blast, to hit the ground, Tenshinhan decided to fly close to him, accompanying Goku as he fell down, in order to gloat about his inevitable victory. That opened an opportunity for Goku to use one last attack that knocked Tenshinhan unconscious, and now both fighters were falling to the ground. Subverted because Tenshinhan, by a stroke of luck, actually won the fight, but he was likely in worse physical condition than Goku by the end of it.
- In the manga he's a bit smarter, he intended to stay where he was and watch Goku fall, but Goku reacted quickly.
Broken Pedestal: Tien idolized the assassin, Mercenary Tao, even after his Heel–Face Turn, which is logical since Tao was his former master. That all came to an end during the Piccolo Jr. Saga when, during their fight, Tao breaks the tournament rules by resorting to a Blade Below the Shoulder.
Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu:
- Tien uses the Tri-Beam Cannon to try and kill Nappa and avenge Chiaotzu's death. His final attack barely destroyed Nappa's armor and he dies for nothing.
- He uses a new version of the Tri-Beam Cannon to pin Semi-Perfect Cell and allow Android 18 to escape. He is only saved because Goku teleports him to safety. In the long run, his efforts amounted to nothing, since Vegeta helps Cell to absorb 18 to become complete.
Call to Agriculture: According to Toriyama, he and Chiaotzu took up farming in addition to their training at the end of Z.
Cannot Tell a Joke: He did manage a joke. Once. But it took rigorous discipline and concentration.
Can't Catch Up: He lasted a little longer than Yamcha and Krillin and was still useful after he fell behind though.
Captain Ersatz: Is based on Hosuke Sharaku from The Three-Eyed One.
Cast from Hit Points: Tenshinhan's Tri-Beam drains its user's life and will kill him if he uses it too much. On the plus side, attacks that use life force, such as this one, far exceed the potential of ki attacks. He kept Semi-Perfect Cell in check with it (it didn't actually cause any damage, but Cell couldn't move until he stopped using it).
Celibate Hero: According to Toriyama, Tien and Lunch briefly lived together some time after the Buu Saga. But due to Tien's commitment to life as a martial artist and Lunch not being cut out for life on a farm, Lunch eventually left though she would drop by at Tien's place from time to time.
Characterization Marches On: Upon his introduction, Tenshinhan is an arrogant fighter who enjoys taunting and mocking his opponents, and even has a somewhat acid sense of humor, like when, after an accidentally humorous and rather embarrassing exchange between Roshi's students, Tenshinhan mockingly suggests that comedy must be one of the disciplines taught at the Kame school of martial arts. Once he changes sides, Tenshinhan became a lot more serious and composed, rarely smiling and so humorless that he is shown struggling to tell a simple joke. That's likely because his earlier humor was mean-spirited and not meant with any sense of irony. As he became nicer and more emphatic that kind of humor probably would be hard for him to pull up again. This is best shown in the Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga where Tien struggled to come up with any insults towards Bikkura, a Metalman whose species is weak to insults, a large contrast compared to his interactions with Yamcha as an antagonist.
Character Development: Tien becomes much more kind and respectful towards others once he switches sides to join Roshi, his humor and attitude take a drastic change to be much more serious than the smug snarker he once was. This, of course, was a result of him realizing that what he had been taught was wrong, and needed to atone for what he had done in the past. Presumably, his Deadpan Snarker habits have gone away because he's much less malicious and smug than he used to be.
Chekhov's Gunman: Gets Put on a Bus during the Buu Saga with the only explanation being that Tenshinhan left to train. He later returns to save Dende from being killed by Buu.
Combo Platter Powers: Force fields, reflecting energy, sealing, Power Copying, Telepathy, Self-Duplication, growing extra limbs, creating blinding light...
The Comically Serious: After his Heel–Face Turn. He completely dropped his serious tone under the training with Piccolo, Kaio, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu. Constantly goofing off, even to the point of incurring the wrath of Piccolo, who respected him back in Dragon Ball.
Con Man: Anime Only. Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu's first appearance in the anime shows them as a pair of traveling con artists.
Curb Stomp Cushion:
- While Tien never properly catches up with the Saiyans and Piccolo in Z or any known media, his Tri-Beam holds the honor of being one of the most powerful techniques in the series, at least from the perspective of its relative effectiveness in comparison to its user. The fact that it can pin down Semi-Perfect Cell and deflect attacks from Buutenks despite both eclipsing Tien in power means that if it was used by the likes of Goku, its output would be insane.
- He fights Future Trunks in the Bojack Movie, while he loses in a couple of minutes, he does force Trunks to use Super Saiyan to get the win, which is an incredible testament for a human. Tien's punch at Trunks's face was enough to convince the latter that he'll be needing to go Super Saiyan to defeat him.
Dangerous Forbidden Technique:
- Like Master Roshi, he knows the Mafuba/Evil Containment Wave, the technique that can seal evil at the expense of one's life. He learns it after witnessing Master Roshi use it during his failed attempt to reseal King Piccolo. He challenges King Piccolo and tries to seal him with it. Depending on if you read the manga or watched the anime, Tien either never gets the chance to use the technique since the rice cooker he was going to use got damaged while he was training, or he succeeds in using it, but Drum interferes, indirectly saving his life.
- He knows another dangerous technique, Kikoho (Tri-Beam in the dub). It uses energy directly from his life force and causes an energy blast that is more powerful than him, which allows him to pin Semi-Perfect Cell and deflect an energy blast from Super Buu. The only problem is it will kill him if he uses it too much like it did when he used it against Nappa. Even when it doesn't kill him, it still exhausts him to the point of not being able to fight and shortens his life.
Deadpan Snarker:
- In his early appearances, he displayed an acidic sense of humor:
  Tenshinhan: (to Yamcha) For someone who doesn't speak pain, you sound very fluent.
- Even after a long time, he still hasn't lost it.
  Yamcha: (to #18, who had just rebuffed Krillin after being revived) Why you...! You should be thankful! Or do you wanna get beat up?
  Tenshinhan: I assume it won't be you to do that...
Death by Disfigurement: His first death, due to losing his left arm to Nappa.
Defeat Means Friendship: Subverted. Tenshinhan actually won; Goku didn't beat him until the next tournament. For that matter, he'd already made his Heel–Face Turn before the fight was even over.
Demoted to Extra: In the Buu Saga, GT and Super. He shows up again to fight in the Buu Saga only to be one-shotted while his GT appearance is reduced to mere cameos. While he did fare better in Super as one of the members of Team Universe 7, he lacks any focus episodes compared to the other members and only managed to knock out two fighters before being unceremoniously eliminated from the Tournament of Power.
Determinator: He has no problem rushing into battle with opponents he knows he can't beat.
- He stands his ground against Semi-Perfect Cell to buy Android #18 time to escape and uses his Neo-Tri-Beam/Kikoho (which is Cast from Hit Points) against Cell. Despite the huge gap between their power, Tien is able to keep Cell pinned down, until he literally collapses from having burned all his energy. The man just does not quit!
- In the Buu Saga, despite already retiring from fighting, he pulls a Big Damn Heroes and intervenes during Majin Buu's rampage, neutralizing one of the Majin's attacks using his Neo-Tri-Beam, saving Mr. Satan and Dende. He tries to use this attack against Majin Buu himself, but it doesn't work, with Buu knocking him out with a kick.
- In Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods, he's the only human who had the balls to fight Beerus.
Deuteragonist: From the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament to the end of Dragon Ball.
Doppelgänger Attack: His Multiform/Shishin no Ken technique, but unfortunately the copies are weaker than the original.
Dragon-in-Chief: To Master Shen. He's stronger, but still follows orders until his Heel–Face Turn.
Dub Name Change: Not as obvious as other examples but "Tien Shinhan" is most definitely not the single name Tenshinhan. Also, Latin American Spanish material gives his name as Ten Shin Han, and some European localizations give his name as Tenshin Han, often shortening it to just Tenshin. See Spell My Name With An S for more details. Bizarrely, the full name "Tien Shinhan" is only ever used in the dub of the original anime, not Z and not even in the more accurately translated properties Kai and Super.
Enemy Mine: After King Piccolo attacks, Krillin is dead, Yamcha has a broken leg, and Goku is off trying to beat up Krillin's killer. Ergo, Tenshinhan, and Chiaotzu get recruited by Roshi to gather the Dragon Balls before Piccolo gets to them. Tenshinhan notes this as much, saying even though he acknowledges his previous actions as wrong, he still considers himself and Chiaotzu as Shen's students, and simply asking for forgiveness won't be enough.
Enlightenment Superpower: Subverted. According to Toriyama, Tien has achieved enlightenment and should have godlike powers, but the evil influence of the Crane Hermit prevents him from ever using those powers to their full potential.
Epiphany Therapy: He turned rather quickly.
Extra Eyes: Has a third eye on his forehead for unexplained reasons, representing his awakened Psychic Powers.
Eye Beams: He can fire beams from his third eye according to the anime. It was only demonstrated during his rematch with Goku at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament.
Finger Gun: The Dodon Ray/Dodonpa.
Flanderization: He used to have a ridiculously high amount of attacks, as listed under Combo Platter Powers, but starting in Saiyan Saga, all he really uses is Kikoho/Tri-Beam to the point you'd think it was his only move.
Flight: One of the first characters in the series to fly, as it is the signature technique of his martial arts school.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: The scar on Tenshinhan's chest is a memento of his tournament battle with Taopaipai, who had hidden a knife in his cybernetics.
Handicapped Badass: He lost his left arm during his fight with Nappa. It didn't stop him from continuing the fight.
Hard Work Hardly Works: Tenshinhan is the only character among the human protagonists who has no interest in living a normal life and spends most of his time training, even during peaceful times. Unfortunately, all of his efforts are still not enough to put him in the same league as the Saiyans or Piccolo, making his usefulness against the incredibly powerful enemies the protagonists must go up against very limited. That said, he still manages to give pause, however slight, to Super Buu after he absorbed Gotenks and Piccolo, which is more than Krillin or even Supreme Kai could say.
Heel–Face Turn: Introduced as a rival trained by an evil dojo. Becomes one of Goku's best allies.
Heir to the Dojo: According to Dragon Ball Online, he becomes the heir to the new Crane School despite breaking ties with his former master.
Heroic Build: Tien is exceptionally muscular thanks to years of non-stop training to keep up with the natural raw power of his comrades. He reaches peak capacity of swollenness in the Cell Saga, but from Battle of Gods onwards he is drawn as slightly more slender.
Heroic RRoD: His Tri-Beam/Spirit Cannon attack, which is supposed to kill the user if used too long; nevertheless, Tenshinhan is able to master it so that it can be used repeatedly. In Z, given the exponential power rise of the opposition, it quickly becomes Tenshinhan's first-choice technique, and using it, he's even capable of pinning Semi-Perfect Cell down for a while before getting incapacitated.
Hero with Bad Publicity: Early on in the King Piccolo Saga, he briefly suffers this; in the episode "Tien's Atonement," he's nearly arrested on suspicion of the murders of several martial artists, though Tambourine is the real culprit. It's not unjustified, since Tien did have a reputation for being exceptionally brutal during fights, most notably breaking Yamcha's leg when he was already down For the Evulz.
Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Chiaotzu. They are almost always together and Tien doesn't feel complete without him. When it looks like Chiaotzu won't be revived since Shenron can't bring someone back to life twice, he's willing to stay in the afterlife with him.
Honor Before Reason: Even while Shen's pupil. When he realizes that Chiaotzu is paralyzing Goku under Shen's orders, he immediately orders him to stop because he wants to beat Goku in a fair fight, and after he does so and Shen is dealt with, he even lets Goku give him quite a beating to even things out.
How Much More Can He Take?: His battle with Cell is this in the anime, as he fights through exhaustion to keep Cell pinned down for as long as possible.
I Let Gwen Stacy Die: He blames himself for Chiaotzu's death. Both in the original DB and Z, sadly enough.
Informed Flaw: Various statements imply that Tien is weaker than Krillin, who is stated to be the strongest human. This is.... very hard to believe in Z. While Krillin did have his potential unlocked, Tien trained with King Kai (and presumably got a comparable power boost). Tien put up a significantly better resistance against Cell (slightly burning him) while Krillin was simply swatted aside. Similarly, Krillin was killed instantly by Super Buu, while Tien put up a fight (however small) against Buutenks, deflecting an attack and dodging a blast from him.
In-Series Nickname: Tsurusennin calls him "Ten," while Chaozu calls him "Ten-san."
Involuntary Cheating: Master Shen ordered Chiaotzu to use his powers to paralyze Goku in order to help Tien win. When Tien realized what was going on, he told Chiaotzu to stop, and actually allowed Goku to hit him just to make up for the free hits that Tien had given Goku while he was paralyzed.
Kamehame Hadoken: He copied it off of Yamcha.
Kick the Dog: He breaks Yamcha's leg after he was already defeated and unconscious.
Kick Them While They Are Down: At the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, he beats Yamcha by landing a powerful kick to his gut while they were in mid-air. After Yamcha falls back into the ring, Tien decides to land a knee drop onto Yamcha's leg, breaking it. Goku calls out Tien on this, saying how Yamcha was already unconscious, so breaking his leg was unnecessary. Tien shrugs him off while laughing. The King Piccolo filler shows that this tendency was not new when he had to confront a man he permanently crippled in the past to retrieve a dragon ball from his property.
Killed Offscreen: His second death was not shown, but it happened due to Buu blowing up Earth.
Logical Weakness: Pretty much the entire idea against the Solar Flare. No matter how strong an opponent may be, their eyes are still sensitive to light, especially if that light's about tens or hundreds of times brighter than the sun. In fact, this technique proves useful many times throughout the series.
Man in a Kilt: In Battle of Gods onwards, he wears a long, flowing monk-like skirt.
Master-Apprentice Chain: He trained under the Crane School whose founder, Master Shen, studied under the same master as Roshi: Mutaito > Master Shen > Tien
Moral Myopia: When he was the Crane Hermit's student, he is angry at Goku for killing Mercenary Tao. This is despite Tao being a renowned assassin and Goku tells him that he was only defending himself.
Multiarmed And Dangerous: The rarely-seen but very-dangerous Four Witches Technique allows him to grow additional arms from behind his shoulders.
Mundane Utility: According to Toriyama, Tien uses his multi-form technique for extra hands while farming.
Mysterious Past: He gets almost no background information outside of being the Crane Hermit's student and training to be an assassin. How he met the Crane Hermit or Chiaotzu is never explained.
Nerves of Steel: While he's stronger than Yamcha, and his power relative to Krillin is debated by fans, what isn't up for debate is that he is much braver than either of them despite not being much (if at all) better off than them relative to the threats they face compared to Piccolo or the Saiyans. Despite this, he shows no fear when he goes up against (or expects to) Buutenks, the Androids, Frieza, or Cell.
No Body Left Behind: His second death was due to Buu blowing up Earth.
No-Nonsense Nemesis: Becomes this after becoming a good guy, arguably being this trope more than any of the heroes besides Future Trunks. Like Trunks, Tien fights full force from the start against the villains he goes up against. He uses his Tri-Beam as a go-to (partly out of necessity though) against Buutenks and Cell, tries to seal King Piccolo immediately, rather than waste time with Drum, is willing to kill Kami when it looks like Goku is defeated, and quickly beats the Saibamen. Unfortunately however, unlike Trunks, Tien lacks the power needed to pose a significant threat to the villains they face as time goes on.
Odd Friendship: Hints of it with Piccolo in the Cell Saga.
Older Than They Look: Looks the same age in GT. By then, he's in his early sixties.
One Free Hit: Way more than one, actually. The Crane Hermit has Chiaotzu interfere in Tien's first match against Goku by using psychic powers to freeze Goku in place, allowing Tien to score major hits on Goku. When Tien realizes what is happening, he forces Chiaotzu to stop, kicks Crane out of the tournament, and then allows Goku to beat him up until it roughly equals the damage that Tien had done to Goku.
Only Sane Man: Shares this role with Piccolo and Future Trunks.
Ordered to Cheat: In the 22nd World Tournament, The Crane Hermit orders Tenshinhan to kill Goku while he's paralyzed by Chiaotzu. He refuses.
Out of Focus: In the Namek/Frieza Saga after dying, and again in the Buu Saga onwards.
Overshadowed by Awesome: Par for the course in this series, as everyone and their grandmother are casually outclassed by even the weakest Saiyans, but Tien is still one of the strongest non-Saiyan Humans. He's won more battles than many other characters, including against Yamcha, Goku, and Taopaipai (in Dragonball), a Saibaman (In Dragonball Z) and Jeice and Burter (in Z filler). That's not too bad considering he's not a Saiyan. He also does pretty well against Trunks in the Bojack movie before he resorts to Super Saiyan.
Papa Wolf: Around Chiaotzu most of his life as well as around Gohan during the Saiyan and Cell Saga.
Pants-Pulling Prank: During his duel with Goku in the original Dragon Ball, Goku steals his belt, and his white boxers are revealed to the crowd.
Power Copying: Tien experiences both ends of this trope, learning a move after he witnesses it and having other people learn his moves. During the 22nd World Tournament, Tien uses a Kamehameha against Jackie Chun to show off how he can easily learn his opponents moves. However, Goku, Krillin and even Cell learns the Solar Flare/Taiyoken and puts it to great use. In Krillin's case, it even becomes his signature move alongside the Destructo Disk/Kienzan, despite the Solar Flare/Taiyoken being Tien's move. The Cell Juniors also use Solar Flare and Tri-Beam in the video games, although this is justified considering the nature of the Cell Juniors and that they have the knowledge of almost all the Z-Fighters attacks during the Cell Saga.
Pre-Final Boss: Serves as this to Goku in the original series, giving him a decent fight before his showdown with Piccolo Jr.
Put on a Bus: After the Cell Games, Tenshinhan had no more reason to hang out with the Z gang since Goku chose not to be revived and went into hiding with Chiaotzu. Throughout the Buu arc, he and Chiaotzu had a couple of brief appearances until Tenshinhan saved Mr. Satan and Dende from getting killed by Buu. He returns as a regular for Super.
Real Life Writes the Plot: Tenshinhan has no spoken lines in Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!! special for Shonen Jump's 40th anniversary due to Hirotaka Suzuoki not being among the living anymore. Toei Animation felt the reason to pay their respects this way because the entire original cast came back to voice their characters, meaning only Tenshinhan would have been the odd one out.
Redemption Demotion: When he was first introduced as an antagonist, his powers were as great as Goku's. After he became one of the good characters, he was surpassed by Goku and, as the series developed, his powers were thoroughly outclassed by the Saiyans, Piccolo, and most enemies.
The Rival: Was this to Goku and gave him one of his toughest matches in the original series. He's also one of the few people to defeat Goku, even if it was a stroke of luck. Although outmatched during the 23rd Martial Arts Tournament, he still gave Goku a decent match and forced him to remove his weighted clothes. In Z, Goku completely surpasses him, but he still tries to reach Goku's level, despite knowing it's futile.
Secret-Keeper: He is aware that Master Roshi is Jackie Chun, but never discloses this to anyone else out of respect.
Sealed Evil in a Can: One of the only people with this ability (the Evil Containment Wave).
Senseless Sacrifice: In the Saiyan Saga. After Chiaotzu's own Senseless Sacrifice and losing an arm, Tien channels all of his remaining power into a one-handed Tri-Beam to attack Nappa with. It only damages his armor, and Tien kicks it while bemoaning his failure; to add insult to injury, according to Vegeta, the technique probably would have done more damage had Nappa not seen it coming at the last second.
Shadow Archetype: Before his Heel–Face Turn, Tien represents what Goku would be like if he allowed his arrogance and natural talent for fighting to go to his head. This difference also highlights the difference between the Turtle and the Crane Schools. Master Roshi went out of his way to teach his students humility and that there was always someone better. The Crane Hermit bloated his students' egos, telling them that there was no one stronger than them.
Signature Move: Kikoho / Tri-Beam + variants. He's also known for Taiyouken / Solar Flare— this is so much his move that Goku mentally apologizes to him for stealing it while fighting Great Ape Vegeta with Krillin following suit using it against Dodoria on Namek. While not as used as frequently, the Multi Form technique is also of his creation and used by the Z fighters and Cell.
Simple, yet Awesome: His Solar Flare (Taiyōken) technique. It doesn't require a lot of power, it is easy to learn, and can blind almost any opponent.
Smug Super: When he was introduced, he truly believed that no one was stronger than him since he trained under the Crane Hermit. He regularly demeaned Yamcha and all of the Turtle School as weaklings. Despite his smugness, he backed it up by beating Yamcha, despite Tien admitting it was a tougher fight than he thought, and Master Roshi, who acknowledged that Tien may have won even if Roshi hadn't forfeited. He also fought Goku, a powerful Human Alien, to a standstill and won because luck was on his side. After the tournament, however, he drops this attitude after acknowledging that he still had a lot to learn.
The Sociopath: He tries to be this, being both emotionally cold and taking delight in causing pain to others like breaking Yamcha's leg after he's knocked unconscious. His goal in life is to be a great assassin like his idol Mercenary Tao. Master Roshi sees right through this and in the dub says that Tien will never be a good assassin because he has a conscience, unlike Tao. During his match with Goku, he also comes to realize that he never had the heart of a killer, since he cares more about winning fairly than killing Goku out of revenge.
Spell My Name With An S: Tien Shinhan vs. Tenshinhan.
Spirited Competitor:
- Of all the humans, he's the one fighting means the most to. In the original Dragon Ball, he was a Borderline Blood Knight. He stops Chiaotzu from weakening Goku with psychic powers so Tien can have a fair fight with him.
- In Bojack Unbound, he insists post-Cell Games Trunks fight him without holding back. He knows he'll lose, but he'd rather lose honestly than lose with Trunks going easy on him.
Sphere of Destruction: Tri-Beam/Kikouhou, though it's actually more of a square.
Surpassed the Teacher: He's surpassed Master Shen when he's introduced in the story. Three years later, he completely outclasses Tao, even after he's stronger than ever as a cyborg. After training with Kami, he becomes stronger than him too. While he lacks the feats to prove it, he likely surpassed Kaioshin as well, given he believed he (but not Chiaotzu) could be useful against the Androids despite knowing they were much stronger than Frieza or his father.
Superior Successor: He is stronger than the Crane Hermit when he is first introduced and he also greatly surpasses Mercenary Tao even after he's rebuilt into a cyborg. He becomes even stronger than Kami after training with him to prepare for the Saiyans. Going by Dragon Ball Online, he becomes the new master of the Crane School and this plotline is carried into Super where he opens his own dojo. At the same time, while he's a superior fighter to his masters, he's inferior as an assassin since he has a conscience.
Super-Senses: With three eyes, it's only natural that he has better-than-average eyesight.
The Stoic: Besides frustration, he rarely shows any emotion even when badly matched. It helps to make him the Comically Serious. He only shows real anger if Chiaotzu is in danger.
Supporting Leader: During the King Piccolo Saga.
Tame His Anger: Master Roshi specifically wanted to do this with Tenshinhan. And he's one of the first major characters to do it (Yamcha and Krillin weren't really angry).
Technician Versus Performer: Despite never being able to catch up to the Saiyans or Piccolo, Tien has several powerful and effective techniques that make him a useful ally. His Solar Flare is one of the best techniques in the series, able to blind even the most powerful opponent and is copied by several characters. His Tri-Beam can pin down monsters like Cell and deflect a planet buster from Super Buu, although at the cost of his lifespan.
Third Eye: On his forehead. Sources vary on how he got it, though it's either due to heritage or reaching enlightenment.
Those Two Guys:
- Him and Chiaotzu, of course, but he also gets lumped into this with Yamcha — particularly in America, where Dragon Ball Z was aired first. While major characters in the original series, in Z he and Yamcha are just the two human fighters who pop up when a battle is going on.
- During the Cell Saga, he's also shown with Piccolo a lot, where the two of them chased after Imperfect Cell, while later observing the events from Kami's Lookout while conversing.
True Companions: Inverted, but ultimately perhaps Played Straight. For most of the series, Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu only associate with the Z-fighters when there's a crisis and seem to have no interest in them socially. They didn't attend the reunion party at the beginning of the Saiyan saga and after the Cell Games, Tenshinhan tells the others that they'll probably never meet again. Tenshinhan and Goku don't even meet face-to-face in Z until Goku returns to Earth at the beginning of the Android saga, eight years after their last meeting at the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai. He seems to loosen up a little about this after Buu is defeated, showing up at the big post-Buu celebration party at Capsule Corporation near the end of Z and appearing at Bulma's birthday party that takes place during Battle of Gods and the beginning of Super. In fact, by the end of Super as a whole, he's grown quite a bit closer with the team, and may just consider them this now.
- Though this is played straight with him and Chiaotzu, as the two are almost always together as well as train in solace together and when Tenshinhan prepared to pull a Heroic Sacrifice to stop Cell his only regret was that he wouldn't be able to say goodbye to Chaiotzu.
Underestimating Badassery: When he was introduced, he was a typical Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy who regularly trashed the Turtle School as a bunch of weaklings. He was especially confrontational towards Yamcha and specifically had Chiaotzu rig the lottery so he would fight him first. Although he beat Yamcha, he does admit that Yamcha was stronger than he thought. He then goes on to say that the rest of the Turtle School should be easy since Yamcha was obviously the strongest since Krillin and Goku were just kids, not knowing that Yamcha was actually the weakest of the three. He only changed his mind after Goku revealed that he killed Tao. After his fight against Goku, he overall becomes a more humble person who never underestimates his opponents again.
Wake-Up Call Boss: He is the first opponent since Mercenary Tao and Gohan Sr. to really give Goku a good match and push him past his limit.
Walking Shirtless Scene: Tenshinhan mostly fights topless.
Warm-Up Boss: Serves as this to Goku during the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. He forces Goku to remove his weighted clothes and fight somewhat seriously, but he never really pushes Goku, something he notes after their match.
We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": In DBZ, though he does get one decent fight in the Cell Saga (see You Shall Not Pass!).
Weak, but Skilled: Though originally he was Strong and Skilled, he possesses an incredible repertoire of techniques (including growing a pair of extra arms) and is one of the most technical fighters in the series. Several characters have copied his techniques for their own use, most notably the Solar Flare. Goku even took it a step further and turned that very attack against Tenshinhan in their rematch.
What Happened to the Mouse?: In the Majin Buu Saga, after Dende healed Tenshinhan from Buu's attack (in the anime only), he wasn't seen again until after the Earth was restored and everyone was revived.
The Worf Effect: Just like the other Earthling characters. He gets destroyed by Drum who Goku takes out with one kick and couldn't match Goku in their rematch at the 23rd Tournament. In Z he loses his arm to Nappa after he punched it off and is choked out by Android 17. He also goes down in one kick by Super Buu.
Worthy Opponent: Part of his Heel–Face Turn happened because he acknowledged Goku as his rival and equal. Even after Goku completely surpassed him, he still trains to fight him.
You Shall Not Pass!: Tenshinhan kept Cell (in his Semi-Perfect form) pinned down using his Neo Tri-Beam so that #18 could get away and hide until the Saiyans completed their training. Note that this is pretty late in the Z series, and he was useless in hand-to-hand combat compared to the now-Super Saiyans. Also, it was only not a Heroic Sacrifice because of Goku's instant transmission and a Senzu Bean.

Chiaotzu/Chaozu

Chiaotzu (餃子, Chaozu)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chiaotzu_alt_outfit.png

Voiced by (Japanese): Hiroko Emori
Voiced by (English): Rebecca Forstadt (Harmony Gold dub); Cathy Weseluck (Ocean dub); Monika Antonelli (All media up to 2007), Brina Palencia (Budokai Tenkaichi 3 onward) (Funimation dub); Sean Broadhurst (Blue Water dub); Jodi Forrest (DB Movie 3 and Z Movie 3), Barbara Anne Weber Scaff (Z Movie 9), Ed Marcus (some battle grunts in Z Movie 3) (AB Groupe/"Big Green" dub)
Voiced by (Latin American Spanish): Patricia Acevedo (current voice)
Voiced by (French): Céline Monsarrat
Voiced by (Italian): Federica Valenti

Introduced in the second Tournament arc, Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu are initially rivals to Goku, Krillin, and Yamcha (as they belong to an opposing dojo to Roshi's). The two eventually become friends to our heroes after realizing the lack of honor in their own methods. They become instrumental in the next few arcs following their introduction, but after the Saiyan Saga, Chiaotzu becomes less important (and after the Cell Saga, so does Tenshinhan). By the Cell Saga they become side characters who are mentioned and seen frequently but rarely do anything significant.

Adaptational Badass: Slightly, combined with Throw the Dog a Bone. Chaozu in the manga never becomes anything close to important again after his Senseless Sacrifice against Nappa. In the anime, he at least gets to show off his training under King Kai by mopping the floor with Guldo.
Advertised Extra: Chaozu is often billed as one of the main Z-Fighters, but he never does anything of any real consequence to the plot. His main role is being a Satellite Character to Tenshinhan.
Ambiguously Human: It's unclear if he's human or a Jiang Shi, and the fact that he never seems to age doesn't help.
Ascended Extra: He plays a much larger role in Mystical Adventure, being the Emperor of Mifan.
Balloon Belly: After eating a lot, being a Big Eater like the rest of the cast.
Blood Knight: Like Tien, he keeps training long after most of the cast left him in the dust. Whether he does so just to spend time with Tien or because he really does love to fight is debatable.
Book Dumb: He has trouble with basic math and can't tell left from right without pausing to think which hand he holds chopsticks in. Apparently, unlike Roshi, Shen doesn't bother providing his students with basic schooling.
Bratty Half-Pint: A more introverted example, but it showed when he was first introduced, insulting Krillin for being short and bald.
Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: He tries to self-destruct on Nappa to keep Tien from being killed, knowing that he can't be wished back with the Dragon Balls. Not only did his suicide attack do no damage to Nappa, Tien dies soon after anyway trying to avenge his death.
Can't Catch Up: Gets hit with this worst than the other human characters. Chiaotzu literally gets left behind during the fight against the androids and the Cell Games.
Tenshinhan: I left Chaozu behind. We both trained... But frankly, he wouldn't be able to keep up with this battle...
Goku: Yeah, it's better that way.
Characterization Marches On: In the anime only in Dragon Ball, Chiaotzu's character quirk is being a Deadpan Snarker while his lack of math skills gets exaggerated to jokes completely going over his head and wondering why he does not have a tail while Goku does. Outside of his appearance as a villain during the Tien Shinhan saga, this characterisation never appears again.
Charlie Brown Baldness: Has only one strand of hair on his head which he proudly displayed to annoy Krillin in his introduction.
Chinese Vampire: Has the appearance of a particularly cute one. It's unclear if he's really a Jiang Shi or a human with the appearance of one.
Con Man: Anime Only. Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu's first appearance in the anime shows them as a pair of traveling con artists. Also fits the sub-trope of The Fixer for his tendency to rig the number of draws at the World Martial Arts Tournaments.
Creepy Child: He starts out like this, particularly in his match with Krillin.
Crippling Over Specialization: Chiaotzu is a legitimately powerful psychic but lacks durability and physical prowess, and the fact his psychic abilities can be no selled, means that he won't be lasting very long in any fights.
David vs. Goliath: Him against Nappa. He loses.
Death from Above: During his fight with Krillin, Chiaotzu took advantage of his ability to fly to stay out of Krillin's reach and bombard him with his Dodon Ray.
Demoted to Extra: In Z more than anyone else.
Enemy Mine: After King Piccolo attacks, Krillin is dead, Yamcha has a broken leg and Goku is off trying to beat up Krillin's killer. Ergo, Tenshinhan and Chiaotzu get recruited by Roshi to gather the Dragon Balls before Piccolo gets to them.
- Tenshinhan notes this as much, saying even though he acknowledges his previous actions as wrong, he still considers himself and Chiaotzu as the Crane Hermit's students, and a simple ask for forgiveness won't be enough.
Evil Counterpart: Was originally this to Krillin.
Extremity Extremist: During his fight with Krillin, he exclusively uses kick-based strikes. Justified because, as Krillin deduces, his hands are being used for his psychic powers.
Failure Hero: In Z. The poor guy didn't get to show off his skills that much in Dragon Ball either.
Fragile Speedster: Quite quick on his feet, in large due to his flight, but goes down quite easily if hit.
Hard Work Hardly Works: Even after his Training from Hell alongside Tenshinhan, he's not considered strong enough to participate in the Cell Games.
Heroic Sacrifice: Against Nappa.
Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Tien. They are almost always together and he sacrifices his life to try to save Tien from Nappa. The primary reason he turns against the Crane Hermit is that he ordered him to paralyze Tien so he can kill him. Chiaotzu refuses, saying he would obey any order from his master, but he can never harm Tien.
Hypocritical Humor:
- Upon seeing Krillin for the first time, he insults Krillin for his height. Chiaotzu is even shorter than Krillin.
- Subverted humorously when he calls Krillin baldy. Krillin calls him out on this but he reveals he has a single strand of hair under his hat. Although Krillin states that hardly counts.
Inconsistent Spelling: Chaozu? Chiaotzu? Chaotzu? Gyouza? Chaos? Kaos (used by the original translation of the Spanish manga. No idea where they came up with that)?
Kick the Dog: His and Tenshinhan's introduction in the anime has them betray InoShikaChō when their con spree is spoiled by Goku. Chiaotzu himself, in the anime, also badly burned one fighter in the 22nd World Tournament preliminaries that said fighter had to be bandaged like a mummy.
Killed Mid-Sentence: His first death. On Tien's orders, he attempts to wish the Demon King Piccolo out of existence... only to be permanently silenced by him halfway through.
Killed Offscreen: His third death wasn't shown, but it happened after Buu blew up Earth since he and Tien were the only ones who could dodge Buu's energy blasts.
Kill the Cutie: He dies against both King Piccolo and Nappa.
Manchild: Inverted somewhat. Chiaotzu looks like a child and even seems to be treated like one as Tien is seen carrying him like one at times. This occurs during the Saiyan Saga when Chiaotzu is in his early 20s. For his personality, Chiaotzu does not seem to display any childish traits.
Master-Apprentice Chain: He trained under the Crane School whose founder, Master Shen, studied under the same master as Roshi: Mutaito > Master Shen > Chiaotzu
Morality Pet: To Tenshinhan during his villain days. Particularly notable in Mystical Adventure.
Mysterious Past: What exactly is he? Is he a type of human or an alien hybrid like Tien? How did he come to meet Tien and the Crane Hermit? It doesn't help that Chiaotzu gets the least amount of screen time of the original cast.
No Body Left Behind: His second and third deaths. The former was due to performing a Kamikaze attack against Nappa, the latter was due to Buu blowing up Earth.
"Not So Different" Remark: When Goku gets confused about how he's eighth in the tournament when he didn't choose a number (despite the fact that Goku was the last to even draw), Tien mocks them for this only for Chiaotzu to be confused as to what's wrong about choosing their own number.
Older Than They Look: Aside from getting slightly taller in the Piccolo Jr. Saga, he looks exactly the same throughout the entire series.
Ordered to Cheat: During the 22nd World Tournament, Tenshinhan finds that their master, the Crane Hermit, has been having Chaozu use his telekinesis to paralyze Goku during their fight.
Out of Focus: He was never given much of a spotlight compared to Tien, but come Z, it'd be easy to forget he even exists.
Overshadowed by Awesome: Following the fight with Nappa, he doesn't fight anymore.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: This being the main reason.
Reasonable Authority Figure: A wise young Emperor in Mystical Adventure.
Redemption Demotion: Post Heel–Face Turn, he is subjected to a lot of losses; Nappa's being the most notable.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Shorter than Krillin and child Gohan, yet he still managed to be a Z-Fighter.
Psychic Powers: Demonstrates both telepathy and telekinesis.
Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training: He needs to use his fingers to solve basic math problems, like 3 + 4. He also can't tell left from right without pausing to think about which hand he holds his chopsticks in. In exchange, he has telekinesis, telepathy, flight, etc.
Satellite Character: After his debut, he's mainly just there to be Tien's best friend. He has little to no effect on the plot aside from being a Sacrificial Lion twice, and barely ever interacts with any of the other Z-Fighters. He does get to help Goku in Super for one episode with his psychic abilities, but that's it.
Senseless Sacrifice:
- He tries to wish King Piccolo away in the latter's saga, but only succeeds in getting himself killed for his efforts.
- During the Saiyan Saga, he self-destructs in an effort to take Nappa with him, knowing that the Dragon Balls can't bring him back to life again. Nappa survives without a scratch, and the other Z-Fighters are left horrified and grief-stricken that Chiaotzu died for nothing.
Signature Move: Dodon Ray, shared with all three other Crane-related characters. He was also the first character to really showcase the flying technique^note, which (like Tenshinhan's Taiyouken/Solar Flare) quickly became a staple of the others' strategies. Chiaotzu's own signature move is his telekinetic abilities although it is also used as a secondary ability by Piccolo, Cell, Goku (Filler only) and to devastating effect by Frieza.
The Sociopath: He comes off like this since he shows almost no emotion in his first appearance, except for annoyance with some bits of sadistic happiness when he's fighting Krillin. This changed the minute the Crane Hermit ordered him to paralyze Tien so he can kill him. Chiaotzu refuses, saying that he will do anything his master says, but he can never hurt Tien.
Squishy Wizard: He has an assortment of unusual, useful techniques and skills including telekinesis, telepathy, and flight, however, he doesn't have much in the way of physical ability and is left pretty defenceless if an enemy can overcome his abilities.
Surpassed the Teacher: He surpasses Master Shen by the time of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. He also surpasses Kami after training with him.
Superior Successor: He becomes stronger than the Crane Hermit after training for the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. After training with Kami to fight the Saiyans, he becomes stronger than him too.
Taking You with Me: Tries this on Nappa. It doesn't work.
Thousand-Yard Stare: Particularly when he was a villain, Chiaotzu could usually be seen facing forward with the blankest expression you'll ever see. It becomes a lot less disturbing after his Heel–Face Turn where in one moment during the 23rd World Tournament, he cutely makes the peace sign after setting up the preliminary draw so none of his friends will have to fight each other.
Took a Level in Badass: Shown best in his battle with Guldo, who nearly killed Gohan and Krillin. Chiaotzu managed to mop the floor with him in under a minute. In Super, Chiaotzu's telekinesis powers have been strengthened where he went from being unable to restrain Nappa to being able to hold down Goku that he felt his body becoming extremely heavy. This implies that Chiaotzu's telekinesis strength is at least 100 times the strength of Earth's gravity.
The Stoic: At first he was very emotionless, but got more Cute Bruiser after his Heel–Face Turn
Use Your Head: Against Krillin. Master Shen even comments that Chiaotzu's head is as hard as a diamond.
Weak, but Skilled: Uses psychic powers due to having a lower endurance than his comrades.
Weaksauce Weakness: Chiaotzu needs to use his hands for his psychic attacks. Krillin gets around this by asking him difficult math questions — Chiaotzu needs to count on his fingers to solve 9 - 1. Chiaotzu attempts to counter with double-digit problems, but Krillin was taught math by Master Roshi, in addition to fighting!
We Are "Team Cannon Fodder": All the time. In the fight against Nappa, the poor little guy blew himself up and didn't make a DENT!
The Worf Effect: He loses a lot, the fight with Nappa being the prime example. In fact, it took until the Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga in Super for Chiaotzu to win against a named opponent.
- He becomes the first Z-Fighter to participate in a World Martial Arts and not make it past the preliminary elimination rounds (alongside Yajirobe, who fought unbeknownst to the others due to disguising himself with a mask). This was done to show that Mercenary Tao had returned (now as a cyborg) and was seeking revenge on Goku and Tien.

Characters / Dragon Ball Dragon Team
aka: Dragon Ball Tien Shinhan

Major Martial Artists

Master Roshi (武天老師, Muten Rōshi/Wutian Laoshi, lit. Martial Heaven Old Master)
AKA The Turtle Hermit (亀仙人, Kame Sen'nin)

Krillin (クリリン, Kuririn)

Yamcha (ヤムチャ, Yamucha)

Tien Shinhan (天津飯, Tenshinhan)

Chiaotzu (餃子, Chaozu)

Alternative Title(s): Dragon Ball Tien Shinhan

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Characters / Dragon Ball Dragon Team aka: Dragon Ball Tien Shinhan

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Major Martial Artists

Master Roshi (武天老師, Muten Rōshi/Wutian Laoshi, lit. Martial Heaven Old Master)AKA The Turtle Hermit (亀仙人, Kame Sen'nin)

Krillin (クリリン, Kuririn)

Yamcha (ヤムチャ, Yamucha)

Tien Shinhan (天津飯, Tenshinhan)

Chiaotzu (餃子, Chaozu)

Alternative Title(s): Dragon Ball Tien Shinhan

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Characters / Dragon Ball Dragon Team
aka: Dragon Ball Tien Shinhan

Master Roshi (武天老師, Muten Rōshi/Wutian Laoshi, lit. Martial Heaven Old Master)
AKA The Turtle Hermit (亀仙人, Kame Sen'nin)