Dragon Ball Daima's approach to Son Goku is much more closely linked to the manga than you might think

Some fans were shocked when Goku went out of his way to save a complete stranger during a scene in Dragon Ball Daima episode #4. As a result, it seemed that the late Akira Toriyama had finally embraced the overly heroic portrayal of Goku in the anime, which reached its apex during the Saiyan's iconic fight against Frieza on Namek. After all, Toriyama once expressed frustration with how the anime changed Goku, using colorful phrases like “extremely distorted person” to describe his true nature or even saying that there was “poison” inside him.

Even those who were unaware of Toriyama's own views would often point out how Goku only fought to protect his friends or family, or to challenge himself against strong opponents, rather than following some stereotypical heroic ideal. However, both previous and subsequent events in the Dragon ball manga reveals this Goku is actually much more heroic than die-hard fans realize.

Goku has helped complete strangers countless times in Dragon Ball

Goku always had a generous attitude

In fact, Toriyama himself laid the foundation for Goku's heroic nature as early as the third chapter, when the young Saiyan went out of his way to help a random sea turtle that was far from the ocean. By this point, Goku was determined to find his grandfather's four-star Dragon Ball, and he had just befriended a girl named Bulma, who provided him with the only means of actually finding it (and the other six). And still, Goku couldn't think of anything else other than helping this stranger get homeregardless of Bulma's sincere attempts to bring Goku's focus back to his mission.

So in chapter #84, Goku was in the middle of his last attempt to retrieve the coveted four-star Dragon Ball, and yet, he was distracted once again after witnessing another stranger in danger. In this case, it was the young native Upa that Goku had not yet met, and the boy was crying out for his father's help. Of course, some might point to the fact that Goku seemed more curious than inspired by anything heroic, and didn't attack until he realized that Upa had been captured by the Red Ribbon Army. Goku even later downplays his contributions when Upa's father tries to thank him, attributing his actions as a byproduct of "beating up" the Red Ribbon Army. However, his actions were still heroic.

Much later in Dragon Ball Z chapter #263, Goku was only inspired to fight Majin Vegeta after his then ex-friend killed innocents in the process. In fact, Goku had rejected Vegeta's challenges up until that point. It is true that other civilians were murdered earlier during the heated argument, but it was less direct. Furthermore, Goku only agreed to fight if they were in a more neutral area away from the remaining spectators, noting that he did not want to risk hurting them. Even though Goku only directly expressed anger at the fact that Vegeta allowed himself to be dominated, Goku showed real concern for people's safety on that occasion.

Dragon Ball Daima really supports how complex Goku is as a hero

Goku has Neve been a “hero” in the classic sense

Of course, Goku has also exhibited more problematic behavior that supports the general surprise about how he saved a complete stranger in Daima. In a situation that has similarities to Goku's reaction to Upa's father, Goku only agrees to save a captured mayor in chapter #57 when a girl named Suno asks him, and the reason is because she rescued him in the previous chapter. However, Goku's worst offense occurs much earlier, in chapter #16 of Dragon ball when Goku is not moved to action when one of Carrot Monster's henchmen kicks a woman with her child. He just stares blankly while chewing some food.

However, the only thing these cases prove is that Goku is a much more complex character than some people believe. There are times when he goes out of his way to help people, even when it doesn't immediately benefit himself, his friends, or family, and there are times when he puts himself first. And this is still in line with what Toriyama said about Goku and the way he wanted to portray him. It's encouraging to see this Dragon Ball Daima it's staying true to the nuances and contradictions that make the character so memorable.