The Great Saiyaman has become an icon of Dragon Ball Z, but it is also a satire that explains the similarities and differences between Japanese and American heroes
The last arc of Dragon Ball Z, initially, was the return of the franchise to its origins, offering us an adventure and Gohan's daily experiences. Obviously, with its touches of humor and a plot based on his identity as a superhero. And this series has shown its representation of superheroes, but also the differences between the Japanese and American versions of these figures.
It is important to note that Dragon Ball, at the end of Dragon Ball Z, showed us all the main differences between American and Japanese superheroes. AND this was thanks to Gohan and his Great Saiyaman. Below, we will tell you more about this.
Gohan's Great Saiyaman is Japan's representation of superheroes
The Great Saiyaman was one of the great introductions at the end of Dragon Ball Z
One of the most interesting appearances at the end of Dragon Ball Z was the Great Saiyaman. This is the alter ego that Gohan designed to protect his identity, since he was attending classes, but He couldn't put aside his heroic instinct and desire to help. to civilians in distress. Although there are also other theories that seek to explain this.
Then, Gohan went to Bulma and asked for a suit to protect his identity. Obviously, there is nothing impossible for this scientist, who built a special clock that allowed him to become the Great Saiyamanhis own version of a hero.
An interesting detail is that The Great Saiyaman officially debuted in chapter 229 of the Dragon Ball Z manga, titled “A Hero is Born.” It is important to note that this alter ego makes sense, as it is the best solution Gohan found to protect his identity while fighting crime.
The Great Saiyaman is the wonderful representation of Japanese heroes
The Great Saiyaman also serves to understand the differences between Japanese and American heroes
One of the main peculiarities of Great Saiyaman is that he is a hero who has a suit that might seem ridiculous to some, as Trunks himself thought. But it is not all, since in its special uniform we can see different features and characteristic of the Japanese interpretation of heroism.
On the one hand, we have to Great Saiyaman's helmet is similar to the one used by Ultraman and the Super Sentai. But that's not all, since it has a cape, which is characteristic of American heroes, like Superman and Batman, for example.
Therefore, we can affirm that the figure of the Great Saiyaman is the perfect combination between the vision of the oldest American and Japanese heroes, but used in a modern representation. This means that Dragon Ball Z showed us not only the differences between these superheroes from different parts of the world, but also other important aspects, in a perfect combination.
Protecting identity It is something characteristic of heroes. A good example of this is definitely Superman with his Clark Kent alter ego. In this way, he can lead a normal life, but without abandoning his duty to humanity.
However, Japanese heroes are somewhat different from American ones, as demonstrated by the figure of Gohan with the Great Saiyaman. But that's not all, since we must also point out that one of the main differences between these two types of heroism is that Westerners usually fight against villains who have well-defined morals, while the Japanese often face people who waver between good and evil, which is something important. Not to mention that the latter always handle the possibility of becoming allies.
An additional detail that we can mention is that American heroes are often represented as serious figures. While it is true that some may have more sense of humor than others and be funnier, it is not something that seeks to define them all. While, in Japanese heroism, many hilarious figures stand out, as Gohan demonstrates with his ridiculous poses, possibly inspired by the Ginyu Special Forces that appeared on Namek and created a new standard of villain.
The appearance of the Great Saiyaman may also be a satire of how Japanese heroes They have acquired so many characteristics of Westerners, making this line much more blurred between the two.
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