One of the things that fans want to see in just about any show that they watch is that of character growth. Especially when it’s the main character or side characters of the show/film that they’re watching. They want to know that the characters they like will have a meaningful arc when all is said and done. Even anime like Dragon Ball have fans who want this.
The twist though is that not all arcs are appreciated. Such as with Dragon Ball’s fan-favorite character of Gohan. Who after being setup as “Earth’s Next Greatest Hero” took a backseat in the series in many ways. Including becoming a family man and a teacher. During an interview for the now out movie Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Piccolo actor Christopher Sabat defended who Gohan has become, and even compares him to a certain someone:
“Gohan has always been the one that wants to be the scholar and he wants to study and everyone just keeps asking him to stop studying so hard. Everyone wants him to fight, even the fans. And sometimes I wonder if Gohan is some sort of weird metaphor for Akira Toriyama himself, because Akira Toriyama loves to do the comic stuff,” Sabat shared.
“He likes to be lighthearted and fun, and the fans of the show are just like, “Fight more, fight more. I want more explosions.” And I wonder if he put some of himself into that Gohan character a little bit, because Gohan’s just trying to be himself in a world where everybody else is doing something different. As much as I love to see Gohan doing the amazing things, everybody does, I kind of like the fact that he’s dedicated to his studies. It’s a good example of doing what your heart wants you to do instead of what everyone else wants you to do.”
Is he write about this? That’s up for you to decide.
