Subject: Vegeta
Culture: anime fandom
Setting: Dragon Ball
Context (Event Photos, Primary Sources, Secondary Sources, Field Notes)
"The Dragon Ball universe is an astounding achievement as a whole, but one particular character stands out among the rest as Toriyama’s clearest stroke of genius: the Prince of all Saiyans, Vegeta.
"Prince Vegeta was born into royalty on the home planet of the alien race known as the Saiyans. He was considered an elite warrior at birth, born with a power level that surpassed all his peers. This gave him an immense sense of pride, both in his Saiyan heritage, and in his personal power. Vegeta’s backstory and roots come off as simplistic at first, but he’s easily Akira Toriyama’s most complex and nuanced character. Vegeta slowly changes from a merciless villain into a true hero from Dragon Ball Z to Dragon Ball Super, in a transformation that makes even Super Saiyan seem minor in comparison.
".... What’s so impressive about Vegeta’s treatment as an individual character is how Akira Toriyama slowly peels back his layers over time to introduce subtle changes which eventually amount to a major evolution. Vegeta begins Dragon Ball Z as a simple “Elite Saiyan” warrior who arrives on Earth to seek out the Dragon Balls and conquer the planet for his personal gain. Vegeta’s introduction presents him as a power-hungry and savage villain who destroys for no other reason but than he enjoys it, and who respects nothing but raw strength. At the time, that was likely all that Akira Toriyama had planned for Vegeta. Toriyama’s writing style through the initial run of Dragon Ball is infamous lacking any kind of real planning.
"He instead chose to craft the story from week-to-week on the fly, allowing the plot to unfold organically with each new chapter. As a result, the evil, villainous Vegeta fans first meet during the Saiyan Saga is likely the only one Akira Toriyama knew as well. That’s what makes Vegeta even more interesting. Being that Toriyama didn’t even know the rest of Vegeta’s story at that time, there was nothing to suggest any kind of redemption was possible within him. Toriyama presented Vegeta as a stone-cold killer who even saw his closest allies as disposable, and that’s the only thing there was to him. Over time, though, increasing levels of depth were added to Vegeta, which made him a person who would even come to surprise Akira Toriyama himself."
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