Dragon Ball Never Meant to Give Gohan a Signature Move, and I Think I Finally Know Why

Gohan is easily one of my favorite characters in all Dragon Ball. He's had so much thrown on his plate from such a young age, and even with the pressure of the world on his shoulders, he's always played his part. Even though he might not be a fighter in his heart like his dad and Vegeta, he still recognizes that his power is needed against the biggest threats the world, and even the galaxy, has to offer.

The characters in Dragon Ball are defined by their attacks. Each character's signature ability is a representation of who they are as characters. Goku gets his strength from those who have poured their strength into him, just like his Spirit Bomb. Vegeta is all about finality and destruction, just like his Final Flash. Gohan is the only character in the series without his own signature move, and it makes total sense: he's the only fighter who doesn't actually want to fight.

Dragon Ball Is Defined by Its Attacks

Dragon Ball Has Some of the Best Attacks in Anime

I think I can speak for everyone when I say that Dragon Ball is one of the best anime franchises of all time. From the original Dragon Ball, to Dragon Ball Z, to Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, and now Dragon Ball DAIMA, each iteration in the franchise is special in its own right. Dragon Ball stands out from other shōnen series because of its attacks. It's one of the few shōnen series to have its attacks tied to the characters using them.

No other anime series has attacks so indicative of its characters. Not only are the attacks in Dragon Ball ridiculously iconic, each of them is a representation of the character using them. Goku's two best attacks, his Kamehameha and his Spirit Bomb, are both handed down to him. He's a character whose strength is derived from those around him, and his two signature abilities are a perfect example.

This theory can be extended to everyone else in the series. Vegeta is over-the-top in every aspect of his character. His most recognizable attacks are his Galick Gun, his Final Flash, and his Big Bang Attack, where he looks to end the battle in a huge flash of energy. Frieza's attacks are all about cruelty and destruction, like when he impales Krillin, implodes Krillin, or destroys Namek with his Death Ball.

Gohan Is the Only Character Without His Own

His Best Attacks Are Either Goku's or Piccolo's

While Gohan is easily one of the strongest fighters in Dragon Ball, he doesn't really want to be. I always felt bad for Gohan growing up. He never had a normal childhood, and because of his Saiyan heritage, he never had a chance to live a quiet life. He was always destined to be one of Earth's strongest fighters, forcing him to defend the planet because nobody else really could.

While other characters all have their own attacks that they've developed into their own, Gohan doesn't. He's the only character not to use a unique ability. In Dragon Ball, Gohan's three most iconic attacks are his Masenko, which he got from Piccolo, his Special Beam Cannon, arguably Piccolo's best ability, and his Kamehameha, his father's attack and the textbook technique of the Turtle School.

Gohan Beast and Goku Ultra Instinct before the Dragon Balls

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Even Krillin has his Destructo Disc, Yamcha has the Spirit Ball, Tien has the Neo Tri-Beam, Gotenks has the Super Ghost Kamikaze Attack, and Majin Buu turns people into candy. Giving characters unique abilities is an area where Dragon Ball shines, and it's not an accident that one of the greatest mangakas of all time, Akira Toriyama, didn't give Gohan his own. He did it on purpose.

Gohan Doesn't Have an Attack Because He Doesn't Want One

Gohan Has Been Reluctantly Fighting Since He Was Five

Gohan has only really ever wanted one thing: to study. While his mother forced it onto him as a kid, he grew to love his studies. In Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, a man with a gun comes to his window to try and kidnap Gohan, and Gohan couldn't care less. He's so focused on his work that he flicks the would-be shooter's gun away so he can get back to what he was doing. Piccolo comes by earlier in the movie and admonishes the half-Saiyan for neglecting his training, and while Gohan apologizes and admits that Piccolo is right, he still tries to show his mentor what he's studying.

Gohan with his iconic smirk in front of a smirking Vegeta and a confused Goku.

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Gohan has been through more death and heartache than most other shōnen protagonists, and that's saying something. He was first kidnapped by his uncle, Raditz, when he was only four years old. Even then, he had to break out of Raditz's pod and attack him when Goku and Piccolo were overwhelmed. When he turns five, he has to defend the Earth against Vegeta and Nappa. Less than a few years later, he heads to Namek and faces the Frieza Force and Frieza himself.

This all happens before Gohan even turns ten. He even misses one of his own birthdays because he's training for an entire year in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with his dad. When he comes out, he's forced by his dad to take on Cell, a being threatening to destroy the entire world. While the English dub of Dragon Ball claims Gohan is eleven at this point, the manga and subtitled versions say that he's even younger.

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When other kids were having play dates, going to school, and making friends, Gohan was training. Not only was he training, but he was getting ready to quite literally fight for his life and fight to defend the lives of those same kids he would never get a chance to be like. It's no wonder why, as he got older, Gohan never developed his own unique technique. Once he got the opportunity to stop fighting, he took it, choosing instead to live as a scholar until Piccolo 'kidnaps' Pan and sucks him back into the world he so desperately wanted to leave.

When Everyone Else Wants to Train, Gohan Wants to Study

He Only Fights Because He Has To

Gohan only ever became a fighter because he had to.If he wasn't half-Saiyan, and his dad didn't love fighting more than anything, Gohan would be a normal, studious kid. He loves learning as the series progresses, and as soon as he gets the opportunity to stop fighting, he takes it. Unlike Goku, Vegeta, and most of the other characters in Dragon Ball, Gohan never enjoyed fighting: he's a pacifist. It's a big reason why Cell was able to hurt so many of Gohan's friends and even kill Android 16: Gohan didn't want to get involved at all.

Gohan, from the scene where he first transforms into Super Saiyan 2, stands in focus with Goku and Veneta behind him.

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Gohan's incredible latent power may be his biggest downside. Whether he likes it or not, he's easily one of Earth's greatest defenders. According to Akira Toriyama, he's even stronger than Goku and Vegeta, if he wants to be (which he doesn't). As a huge Gohan fan, I loved Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero because it put Gohan in the spotlight, giving him one of the coolest forms the series has ever seen. It also made me feel bad for Gohan, because that isn't what he wants.

Unfortunately for us Gohan fans, if we really love the character, we should be ready to let him go. Gohan doesn't have a 'Final Flash' or a 'Destructo Disc' because he doesn't want one. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero proved that if it was up to Gohan, he'd study for the rest of his life rather than step onto yet another battlefield.