Grandpa Son Gohan (孫悟飯) also referred to as just Gohan, is the adopted human grandfather of Son Goku.
He is often referred to as "Grandpa Gohan" instead to separate him from Goku's first son, Son Gohan, that is named after him in honor of him.
Background
Grandpa Gohan with Goku as an infant.
His birth year and early childhood is a complete mystery. Son Gohan was a great martial artist who trained under the great Master Roshi alongside with the Ox King when he was much younger. He was close friends with the Ox-King as well. According to Master Roshi, a young Gohan and the Ox-King had both delivered bottles of glass milk, just like how Goku and Kuririn did later on as part of their training under Roshi.
When Gohan was now an elderly old man he had lived all alone by himself on Mount Paozu (in Dragon Ball Z, his old house is still next to Goku's new house). He became the adoptive grandfather of Son Goku when he had found him near the landing site of his space pod when he was just a baby. When Goku first landed on planet Earth, his mission was to in due time, destroy the entire human race and sell the planet to another race. Being a Saiyan, who are known to be very aggressive and short tempered too, Goku was very uncooperative at first while Gohan was taking care of him after bringing him into his home at that time. An example was giving him a soap bath, making him go to sleep early, along with trying to get him not to bite on a bed sheet and having him not hit him with random solid objects such as a baby bottle or toys like a block. However he found out that Goku has a love for food.
Grandpa Gohan helps Goku recover from his head injury.
One day after falling into a deep ravine one day, Goku hit his head, causing him to lose his memory, and became a regular happy go lucky, loving boy. Grandpa Gohan passed on his martial arts knowledge to Goku. He also warned Goku to never look at a full moon and to stay indoors on nights of one; implying that Goku had already transformed into a Great Ape before, and Grandpa Gohan managed to survive the first time. Goku followed his advice for sometime until one night when Goku stepped outside to relieve himself. He then glanced at the full moon, by transforming into a Great Ape, and went on a rampage, killing Grandpa Gohan, though because Goku did not remember what he did when transformed he was not aware of it.
From that time on, Goku believed that Grandpa Gohan was killed by a giant monster and that his soul was inside of the Four-Star Dragon Ball. In Dragon Ball Z, when Goku was battling against Vegeta as the latter transformed into a Great Ape. Goku finally realizes that he killed Grandpa Gohan when he was little, and apologizes to his grandfather.
Personality
Grandpa Gohan is described as being a kind hearted, strict and loving old man. Being kind enough to adopt Goku when he found him in the woods. It is likely that much of Goku's personality, and morality came from him. He was also very strict especially when he tells Goku to overcome his weaknesses. According to Goku, Grandpa Gohan had good manners and acted very well towards ladies. Grandpa Gohan may have been popular with the ladies, or perverted just like Master Roshi, because he says "I've got a lot of friends, and most of them are brunettes" in the Fortuneteller Baba Saga.
- Dragon Ball Evolution
Appearance
Grandpa Gohan is a short, stubby old man with tan skin, small dark eyes thick eyebrows and a bushy white mustache. He wears a Chinese martial arts uniform, which consists of a sleeveless orange jacket over a long sleeved black shirt, and wears a hat.
- Dragon Ball Evolution
Abilities
Kamehameha
A whitish blue energy wave shot from both hands, invented by Master Roshi himself.
Jan Ken
The martial arts technique invented by Grandpa Gohan and translating the game rock-scissors-paper.
Turtle School Tranquility
Grandpa Gohan's Ultimate Blast in Budokai Tenkaichi 2 and 3. Grandpa Gohan kicks his opponent into the air and flies toward the enemy and kicks them down. While the opponent is falling, Grandpa Gohan performs the Jan Ken technique on them.
Turtle School Four Virtues
A rush attack used by Grandpa Gohan. First, Grandpa Gohan says "Got you now!" as he kicks the opponent into the air. Then, he jumps behind the opponent and dashes to punch their feet making them fall. Finally, he hook kicks them away.
Thunder Shock Surprise
One of the most powerful attacks invented by Master Roshi. Grandpa Gohan uses it in Dragon Ball: Origins.
Explosive Wave
He creates a weak burst of energy for protection, with himself serving as the nexus. If anyone comes in contact with the wave, they will be knocked away, and receive minor damage. Used in Dragon Ball: Origins.
Afterimage Technique
Grandpa Gohan moves so quickly that he leaves an image of himself behind. Most often, it is used to dodge an incoming attack and get behind the opponent to perform a counter-attack. Grandpa Gohan uses the Afterimage Technique in Dragon Ball: Origins. In the Budokai Tenkaichi series, he instead uses the Afterimage Strike.
Sleep
One of Grandpa Gohan's Blast 1 attacks in the Budokai Tenkaichi series.
Dragon Ball (Anime)
Fortuneteller Baba arc
During the Fortuneteller Baba Saga, Son Goku, Yamcha, Master Roshi, Upa, Puar, and Krillin must fight Fortuneteller Baba's five fighters in order to find the last Dragon Ball. Goku is the last one left to fight and Fortuneteller Baba brings out a "special" fighter as her last. The last opponent is a mysterious man wearing a fox mask. Master Roshi then realizes that the man is Goku's dead grandfather, Grandpa Gohan.
Grandpa Gohan and Goku fight about evenly, until Gohan grabs Goku's tail (knowing his weakness as he trained and raised him) and beats him on the ground, back and forth, with Goku helpless. The others are baffled as to why he is just pounding and pounding on Goku. After unintentionally ripping Goku's tail off, thus causing Goku to go in a rage, Grandpa Gohan surrenders and explains that he was trying to make a point to Goku that he needs to train harder and make his tail work for him instead of against him, and through these words, Goku realizes his identity. Seeing no reason to continue concealing his identity, Gohan unmasks himself, leading to an emotional reunion.
Gohan and Baba go on to explain that Baba has the power to bring the dead back to life for one day only. Bulma then explains the Dragon Balls and her adventures with Goku to Gohan. Gohan is quite content with "life" in the Other World, and thus chooses to remain dead, by vanishing after thanking Roshi for teaching Goku and giving his grandson a final farewell. It appears that Grandpa Gohan possesses some of Master Roshi's perverted traits, as he states "I've got a lot of friends, and most of them are brunettes".
Anime Filler
Grandpa Gohan makes another appearance in a anime filler. He appears in the final two episodes of Dragon Ball in which Goku and Chi-Chi have been in the middle of a quest to lower a new fire engulfing Fire Mountain with the Ox-King being trapped inside while trying to protect Chi-Chi's wedding dress.
Goku and Chi-Chi come upon the gateway between the living world and the next, making their way past numerous illusions, they find themselves in the cave of the Spirit Furnace. They end up meeting up with Grandpa Gohan, whom Goku mistakes for being the legendary furnace keeper Annin.
Grandpa Gohan is actually a bodyguard for Annin, as well as protecting the lever that can turn off the Spirit Furnace. After a small scuffle with Annin, Goku is allowed to travel into the depths of the furnace where he is able to patch the leak. Goku bids a final farewell to his grandfather as he and Chi-Chi move on into the beginning of wedded bliss for many years.
Dragon Ball Z (Anime)
While seen only through flashbacks, Grandpa Gohan appears quite a few times throughout the Dragon Ball Z series. Out of three known flashbacks, the first is when Master Roshi tells Goku of Grandpa Gohan's story of finding him. Through this flashback, it's insinuated that Goku's first "off-screen" Great Ape transformation occurred after his arrival upon Earth and following a first glimpse Grandpa Gohan had of him. Later on, another flashback takes place where Goku recalls a pre-Dragon Ball moment of his grandfather warning him to never go outside on the night of a full moon after he sees Vegeta transform into a Great Ape. When Goku sees this, he finally came to realize that when he transformed, he was the one that killed Gohan. He apologized and promised to him that he would defeat Vegeta.
The final flashback of him comes much later in the series wherein Goku fondly remembers being found by Grandpa Gohan (a sequence originally shown in the Bardock special, upgraded in animation in a sepia color-tone) followed by a short sequence of Grandpa Gohan's training that raised Goku into a boy "trained like steel".
Dragon Ball Super (Anime)
During the recruitment of Team Universe 7, Goku mentions Grandpa Gohan after recruiting Android 17. He says the reason he does his heroic actions is because of what his grandfather taught him.
Goku would later on reenact his fight with Grandpa Gohan as the former was waiting for Fortuneteller Baba to return with Frieza.
Dragon Ball GT (Anime)
Grandpa Gohan makes one small appearance during a flashback that Goku has at the end of the Dragon Ball GT series. Grandpa Gohan is seen holding Goku up in the air during Goku's final walk outside the World Martial Arts Tournament arena.
Video Games
Grandpa Son Gohan is a playable character in all the following video games:
- Dragon Ball Advanced Adventure
- Dragon Ball Daimao Fukkatsu
- Dragon Ball Fusions
- Dragon Ball 3 Gokuden
- Dragon Ball Origins
- Dragon Ball Origins 2
- Dragon Ball Revenge of King Piccolo
- Dragon Ball RPG Shonen-hen
- Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2
- Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3
- Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle
- Dragon Ball Z Idainaru Son Goku Densetsu (Cutscene only)
- Dragon Ball Z Kyoshu! Saiyan
- Dragon Ball Z Sagas (Cutscene only)
- Dragon Ball Z Super Gokuden Totsugeki Hen
- Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi (Cutscene only)
Quotes
- Goku you must never look outside during a full moon
Relationships
Son Goku
Grandpa Gohan with Son Goku.
Grandpa Gohan's relationships with his adopted grandson is a loving caring one. Goku felt grateful that Grandpa Gohan took him in as an infant, and taught him martial arts. Goku also reveals that Grandpa Gohan was strict, but had a pure heart. Goku even thought that his grandfather's spirit was in the Four Star Dragon Ball, and kept the dragon ball as a memento of him. Years later after Grandpa Gohan die, Goku still lived at the old man's house and had gotten along with all the forest animals. When Goku first met Bulma, Goku reveal that Grandpa Gohan told him to be nice to girls If he had ever met one. When Goku reunites with Grandpa Gohan during the Fortuneteller Baba Saga, Goku happily cries and embraces him. Goku tells Gohan that he really misses him, and shows him that he still kept the Four Star Dragon Ball.
Years later, when Goku is 18 years old. He reunites with Grandpa Gohan again after the Piccolo Jr. arc. Goku is happy to see Grandpa Gohan again, and introduces Chi-Chi to him. When Goku attends to help Chi-Chi free her father from his castle by forming a plan with Annin. Goku accepts the task to use the items that he and Chi-Chi found so they use it to free the Ox King. But Grandpa Gohan told Goku not to, and Goku was force to use aggressive force to his grandfather to make him understand how Important Chi-Chi's father is to him. Grandpa Gohan then understood how Goku felt about helping others, and wished his grandson good luck on the task at hand.
When the task was complete, Grandpa Gohan congratulate Goku on a job well done. Then he gave his blessing to his grandson on having a happy loving life with his new fiancé. To which Goku and Chi-Chi happily thank him for. A month after Goku and Chi-Chi got marry. Goku has his very first child. At First Goku, Chi-Chi, and Goku's father in law, the Ox King , couldn't think of a name for the infant boy. But when Grandpa Gohan's name was mention, the baby laughed at the name. So Goku decide to happily name his child after Grandpa Gohan, and the boy was named Son Gohan in honor of Grandpa Gohan.
Chi-Chi
the Ox King
He probably gets along with him.
Master Roshi
He gets along very well with him.
Bulma
Kuririn
Yamcha
Puar
Fortuneteller Baba
Annin
Knownable Relatives
- Unnamed Parents
- Son Goku (Adopted Grandson)
- Chi-Chi (Adopted Granddaughter in law)
- Son Gohan (Adopted Great Grandson)
- Son Goten (Adopted Great Grandson)
- Videl (Adopted Great Granddaughter in law)
- Pan (Adopted Great Great Granddaughter)
- Son Goku Jr. (Adopted Great Great Great Great Grandson)
- Master Roshi (Mentor)
- the Ox King (Fellow Student)
- Future Grandpa Gohan (Future Counterpart/dead)
Trivia
- Grandpa Gohan apparently had an appetite similar to Goku's. In the episode "Dress in Flames", the Ox-King comments Goku shares his grandfather's fierce appetite, though since it would later be revealed Goku was a Saiyan. However it is not uncommon for highly trained Earthling martial artists to demonstrate superhuman appetite for food as Yamcha and Krillin have occasionally been shown to eat in a manner similar to Goku, usually for humorous effect.
- The mask Grandpa Gohan wears was originally seen worn by Nejishiki in Dr. Slump.
- Goku has grown up thinking that Gohan's spirit rests within the Four-Star Dragon ball. He thinks this because it was his most prized possession before he died.
- Goku's son, Son Gohan is named after his Grandpa Gohan only because the baby went without a name for a while, until the name "Gohan" came into conversation, and the baby laughed because he liked the name. So then Chi-Chi, Goku, and Ox-King decided to name him that. In the Japanese version, Gohan's name is chosen after Goku is unable to think up a name and states that he is hungry, and Chi-Chi yells that they ate breakfast (朝ご飯) not long ago.
- In Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3, when Goku fights Grandpa Gohan as a Super Saiyan (any type), Goku says "Grandpa, look I'm a Super Saiyan" then Grandpa Gohan says "Oh, that's very good".
- In Dragon Ball Super, it is revealed by Goku to Android 17 that he refuses to let innocent people and animals is because that is what his grandfather taught him, indicating that Goku's main heroic qualities are due to the influence of his Grandpa Gohan who helped mold Goku into the warrior he ultimately became. Goku would pass on these teachings to his own children including his grandfather's namesake, Gohan. This also falls in line with the teaching of Master Roshi's Turtle School of which Grandpa Gohan and later on Goku himself were students of.
- Although he doesn't appears in Dragon Ball Super, his fight with Goku during the Fortuneteller Baba Saga is referenced in the episode "The Evil Emperor Returns! A Reception from Mysterious Assassins?", as Goku re-enacts their fight at Baba's place while waiting for Frieza to be revived.
- Though not a Saiyan himself or even aware of Goku's Saiyan heritage, through observation of Goku, Gohan came to understand the nature of Goku's Great Ape form and that it was triggered by the full moon, leading him to warn Goku about going outside during a full moon. Presumably he did not explain the true nature of the transformation as he may not felt Goku was old enough to deal with it and may have planned to tell him about it once he was old enough, though unfortunately he was unintentionally killed during one of Goku's transformations, which may explain why Gohan never told Goku the truth when the met during the Fortuneteller Baba Saga or in the anime filler as he likely wanted to spare Goku the guilt of being responsible for his death, which Gohan knew was due to Goku's inability to control himself in said form and likely realized it would be too dangerous for him to even attempt to master said transformation or if he even could master said form. He also knew about Saiyan tails being their weak point as he advised Goku to train his tail to overcome his weakness, making Goku the only low class Saiyan know to have trained his tail, as Raditz never trained to overcome this weakness unlike comrades Nappa and Vegeta who were higher class. Goku would also use this weakness against his own brother, though he never revealed to Piccolo that Saiyans could train to overcome it though it is possible that he simply forgot it as it had been many years since Goku had trained his tail to overcome said weakness before it was removed by Kami. Ironically, Goku never trained his son and his grandfather's namesake Gohan to overcome this weakness, due to academically minded Chi-Chi forbidding him from training their son in the martial arts. Interestingly, even after Gohan was allowed to train, Goku never taught him to train his tail when it grew back sometime before Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge which presumably takes palace during the three-year wait for the Androids, as Gohan is weakened when Dore grabs his tail. However presumably the tail was removed to prevent the possibility of Gohan transforming into a Great Ape as Goku by that point was well aware of the danger presented by the form, despite Gohan demonstrating some control over the form during the battle with Vegeta.
Grandpa Gohan shares some similarities with his live action self from Dragon Ball Evolution.
- Grandpa Gohan was trained by Master Roshi.
- As in the manga, Grandpa Gohan is a cheerful old man and a master of self-defense as well as ki control.
- In Dragon Ball Minus, Grandpa Gohan found Goku as a child along with adopting him and training him.
- Grandpa Gohan gives the Four-Star Dragonball to Goku shortly before dying.
Grandpa Gohan has many differences with his live action self from Dragon Ball Evolution.
- Grandpa Gohan and Goku live in a large house in the middle of nowhere here, whereas Goku (and formerly Gohan) lived in a small hut in the manga.
- When giving the Dragon Ball to Goku, he explains the power behind them. In the manga, it is Bulma that explains the secret of the Dragon balls to Goku.
- Gohan is a bit more silly in this movie than he is in the manga or anime.
- According to Goku, Grandpa Gohan says to "beware the Nameks". In the manga, no one on Earth knew what a Namekian was (or that King Piccolo, Kami, or Piccolo Jr. were Nameks) until the Saiyan Saga.
- Grandpa Gohan is fatally wounded when Piccolo caves in his home with him still inside. Whereas in the manga, he is killed when Goku, as a Great Ape, steps on him.
- Grandpa Gohan is significantly fatter in the manga.
- In the manga, Gohan is a famous martial artist. Whereas in the movie, Gohan appears as just any other person with a black belt.
- In the video game adaption of the film his voice is simply recycled lines done by Sean Schemmel for Goku in the Shin Budokai games.
Voice Actors
- Japanese : Osamu Saka (1987 – Present), the late Kinpei Azusa (Bardock The Father of Goku), Shigeru Chiba (Dragon Ball Kai/DB Ultimate Tenkaichi)
- English : Christopher Sabat (2002 – Present)
all information on Grandpa Son Gohan came from http://dragonball.wikia.com/wiki/Grandpa_Gohan
Gallery
