Quick Links
Warning: Contains spoilers for Dragon Ball Daima.In one of the biggest surprises inDragon Ballhistory,Dragon Ball Daimafinally made Super Saiyan 4 canon after almost 30 years. Granted,Daima’s interpretation was different both visually and narratively from its original depiction inDragon Ball GT, but for anyone who grew up withDragon Ball GT, something as iconic as Super Saiyan 4 becoming canon was still great to see.
As great as Super Saiyan 4 becoming canon was, it hasn’t been without its problems. While it was plenty cool to see in the moment, some of the further details aboutDaima’s take on Super Saiyan 4 made it a bit confusing, to say the least, and by the time ofDragon Ball Daima’s finale,Dragon Ball Daimamade Super Saiyan 4 so confusing that it went from being the coolest part of the series to one of its most controversial. There’s a lot that goes into why that is, and unfortunately, it’s unknown if it will ever be resolved.
Dragon Ball Daima’s Finale Makes Super Saiyan 4 A Blatant Plot Hole
Why Super Saiyan 4 Doesn’t Work Anymore
The main reason why Super Saiyan 4 is so divisive is because of the bizarre wayDragon Ball Daimaexplained its existence. Unlike inDragon Ball GT, where Goku unlocked Super Saiyan 4 after turning into a Golden Great Ape, Super Saiyan 4 first appeared inDaimaafter Neva used magic on Goku in the battle with Gomah. That made it seem like Super Saiyan 4 now had a magical origin, and as such,manyDragon Ballfans assumed Super Saiyan 4 would be explained away by making it a form Goku could only use thanks to magic.
Unfortunately,Dragon Ball Daimadidn’t go that route with Super Saiyan 4. InDragon Ball Daima’s finale, Goku revealed to Vegeta that he already knew Super Saiyan 4 but just hadn’t mastered it, so at best, Neva just gave Goku the means of gaining full control over Super Saiyan 4. That means that Super Saiyan 4 is something Goku can use like any other Super Saiyan form, and that means thatSuper Saiyan 4 Goku inDragon Ball Daimais a blatant plot hole because there’s no explanation for why Goku didn’t use it inDragon Ball Super.
WithSuper Saiyan 3 Vegeta, it’s easy enough to explain Vegeta never using by remembering how its stamina drain makes it a liability and how Super Saiyan God made it redundant, but with Super Saiyan 4, there are numerous fights inDragon Ball Superwhere it would have made sense for Goku to use it, most notably when he fought Beerus. Add in Goku’s explicit statement about Super Saiyan 3 being his strongest form, andunlike Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta,Dragon Ball Daima’s finale turns Super Saiyan 4 Goku into a blatant plot hole that needs to be corrected.
Dragon Ball Daima Forgets Why People Loved Super Saiyan 4
Why Was Super Saiyan 4 So Popular To Begin With?
A bigger issue withDragon Ball Daima’s handling of Super Saiyan 4 is that it highlights how the series doesn’t understand what made it so popular, in the first place. Super Saiyan 4’s great design is one thing, but between all the workDragon Ball GTput into its build-up with Goku’s constant struggles for more power, by the time it finally happened, it felt more than earned in every regard.Dragon Ball GTmade Super Saiyan 4 popular not just for its visuals, but for the story attached to it, and that hasn’t changed after almost 30 years.
All of that is another reason whyDaima’s take on Super Saiyan 4 doesn’t work. While Super Saiyan 4 being canon is great, some people have criticizedDaimafor making the form come out of nowhere as opposed to having any sort of build-up, and the reveal that Goku unlocked it offscreen only makes that worse, as it now can’t even be said that Neva at least helped Goku unlock his hidden potential.Dragon Ball Daimamaking Super Saiyan 4 entirely unearned for Goku completely forgets what made it so special inDragon Ball GT, and that’s nothing but disappointing.
Something also worth considering is how the new take on Super Saiyan 4 loses a lot of the mysticism of the original. Super Saiyan 4 was originally presented as the form of the Legendary Super Saiyan, and withDragon Ball Daimaemphasizing its red coloring, it seemed like the new take was referencing that by combining it with Super Saiyan God’s aesthetic. Unfortunately,Dragon Ball Daimamaking Super Saiyan 4 just a regular transformation robs it of all the mysticism that helped make the original version so great, and there’s no real way for the series to resolve that.
How Dragon Ball Daima Can Resolve Its Super Saiyan 4 Plot Hole
It’s Still Possible To Make Super Saiyan 4 Work
Super Saiyan 4 is undeniably a plot hole, so the question now is howDragon Ballmight resolve it. Naturally, there’s no way to retroactively put it intoDragon Ball Super, but wheneverSuperreturns, Goku can simply use Super Saiyan 4 and the story can either say that he used it in training sessions with Whis or forgot about it while mastering Super Saiyan God and Ultra Instinct.Dragon Ballhas never been a stranger to retcons, soit wouldn’t be out of the question forDragon Ballto solve its Super Saiyan 4 problem with more retcons.
Is Super Saiyan 4 Really As Big A Problem For Dragon Ball As People Say?
Does The New Super Saiyan 4 Ruin Dragon Ball Daima?
There’s been plenty of discussion aboutDragon Ball Daima’s take on Super Saiyan 4, but whether it’s a problem is another story. While the blatant contradictions toDragon Ball’s lore are annoying, as is the lack of prestige and narrative weight to it, it was still great to see Super Saiyan 4 finally become canon, and the stellar fight scenes accompanying it helped sell that even further. Overall,Dragon Ball Daima’s take on Super Saiyan 4, while greatly flawed, isn’t bad to the point of breaking the franchise, and that’s probably the best anyone can say about it.
Super Saiyan 4 becoming canon was something fans had been waiting decades to see, and with how iconic a form it was to the point that it’s often the sole thing people like aboutDragon Ball GT,Super Saiyan 4 deserves a better portrayal than what happened withDragon Ball Daima, where it was mostly just flashy without any real narrative weight behind its existence. WhetherDragon Ballfinds a way to makeDragon Ball Daima’s take on things work like that is unclear, but hopefully, it will happen sooner, rather than later.
