For decades now, one of the most iconic parts of the Dragon Ball franchise has undoubtedly been Goku and Vegeta’s Super Saiyan 4 form. Even with Dragon Ball GT being one of the most divisive entries in the franchise, the power and overall aesthetic of Super Saiyan 4 nonetheless left a mark on fans, even more so than some of the canon Super Saiyan forms introduced in Dragon Ball Super.
Super Saiyan 4 is easily one of Goku and Vegeta’s most iconic transformations, and now’s the perfect time to officially make it canon. Dragon Ball Daima has been introducing new lore that either expands on previous entries in the franchise or somewhat contradicts them in certain ways, and because of that, Dragon Ball Daima has a perfect chance to make Super Saiyan 4 officially canon. That would undoubtedly come with complications, of course, but with how iconic a form Super Saiyan 4 is, it would still be great to see.
How Dragon Ball Daima’s World Could Make Super Saiyan 4 Canon
The Best Ways For Super Saiyan 4 To Become Canon
Dragon Ball Daima could be the perfect way for Super Saiyan 4 to become canon, and there are a few ways to make that happen. For starters, an early episode of Daima saw Goku buy magic bugs that activate various effects when consumed, with some having the power to fuse people and others acting as a substitute for Senzu Beans. Based on that, Dragon Ball Daima could introduce Super Saiyan 4 as a side effect of one of Goku’s magic bugs, which would play very well into the overall aesthetic of the series.
Another possibility lies in the Demon Realm Dragon Balls. The Dragon Ball Super manga and Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, both the most recent stories before Dragon Ball Daima, saw people using the Dragon Balls to make themselves stronger and gain new transformations, so that means Super Saiyan 4 could come about from someone using the Demon Realm Dragon Balls to make Goku or Vegeta stronger. Majin Kuu and Duu, in addition to the Evil Third Eye, remain threats of unknown power, so it would make sense for them to ultimately need that sort of boost to deal with them.
Super Saiyan 4 becoming canon would also make sense from a meta-perspective. Whether it’s been intentional or accidental, much of Dragon Ball Daima’s story has been reworking Dragon Ball GT’s story into a more coherent and entertaining form, so with that in mind, Dragon Ball Daima could make Super Saiyan 4 canon to continue the idea of Daima being a reboot of Dragon Ball GT. Daima has been doing a great job of improving on GT’s formula so far, and bringing in Super Saiyan 4 would be the perfect way to fully sell that point.
Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta Is The Perfect Excuse For Super Saiyan 4 To Be Canon
The easiest way to make Super Saiyan 4 canon, of course, lies in Dragon Ball Daima’s handling of Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta. Episode #12 shocked the world by not only giving Vegeta Super Saiyan 3, but by revealing that he had already unlocked it at some point after the Buu saga, despite never using it in Dragon Ball Super. As such, Dragon Ball Daima could introduce Super Saiyan 4 by having it be something Goku learned offscreen, as Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta being introduced under the same logic gives an excuse for a similar introduction to Super Saiyan 4.
The fact that Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta exists at all sets up Super Saiyan 4 Goku in another way, of course. Goku’s rivalry with Vegeta always pushes him to get stronger, so now that Goku knows that Vegeta’s somehow caught up to his power, Goku could develop Super Saiyan 4 as a means of staying one step ahead of Vegeta. Whether he’d accomplish that through magic or more training is unknown, but it would be a perfect segway into Super Saiyan 4, regardless.
Dragon Ball Super Makes It Hard For Dragon Ball Daima To Introduce Super Saiyan 4
While it would be easy for Dragon Ball Daima to introduce Super Saiyan 4, Dragon Ball Super ultimately presents a problem. Super Saiyan 3 was portrayed as Goku’s strongest form before Super Saiyan God, and unlike Vegeta and Super Saiyan 3, there are numerous situations where it would have made sense for Goku to use Super Saiyan 4. Because of that, Dragon Ball Daima might not be able to introduce Super Saiyan 4 without drastically contradicting Dragon Ball Super, and the series ending with Goku somehow losing Super Saiyan 4 would be a largely unsatisfying workaround to that.
All of that depends largely on how the franchise is handled going forward, of course. Even with Akira Toriyama’s recent passing, Dragon Ball is going to continue in some form, so if Super Saiyan 4 is introduced in Dragon Ball Daima, then whoever is put in charge of the Dragon Ball franchise going forward will ideally have a good way of keeping Super Saiyan 4 around while justifying its lack of presence in Dragon Ball Super. All of that is hypothetical, of course, but regardless, if Dragon Ball Daima does introduce Super Saiyan 4, it would be great to see.
Dragon Ball Daima releases new episodes Fridays on Crunchyroll.
Dragon Ball DAIMA is the fifth overall series in the action-adventure anime franchise. It features most of the classic cast members as de-aged versions of themselves, including Goku, Vegeta, and Bulma. The series was announced at NYCC 2023, with creator Akira Toriyama returning to handle DAIMA’s run.
- Seasons
-
1
- Writers
-
Akira Toriyama