On the surface, it might make sense thatDragon Ball Super’s newest story about the origins of Saiyaman X would focus onGoteninstead ofTrunks,since the Great Saiyaman, aka Gohan, is his brother. However, it’s appropriate thatDragon Ball Superchapter #104 follows Trunks' individual journey instead, based on how both characters are portrayed within its early pages.
This all comes when many in the fandom are understandablyvoicing their disapproval about howSuperreturnedthis way. After such a long hiatus, there was already an increased appetite forSuper’s story to continue, so the fact that it turned out to be a prequel to a saga that many fans already saw as a distraction was a major letdown. But although this may be true, chapter #104’s whole delivery is actually more effective than arguablythe entirety of the controversial Super Hero Saga, and the explanation behind itsemphasis on Trunks instead of Goten helps underscore that.
Dragon Ball Super’s One-Shot Is A Story About Trunks' Journey to Accepting Superheroes
Goten Didn’t Need to Change for the Story to End
Although marketed as the origins of Saiyaman X, this new one-shot is clearly a story aboutTrunks' changing opinion of superheroeslike Clean God and the Great Saiyman. Trunks initially vehemently rejects everything about heroes like them before eventually coming to not only accept but respect them. Clearly,Trunks is the main barrier to him and Goten becoming Saiyaman Xbased on how lame he thinks heroes are, so he would haveneeded to undergo some sort of journeywhere he eventually experienced a revelation that proved him wrong.
Meanwhile,Goten is a huge fan of heroeslike the Great Saiyaman and Clean God at the start of the one-shot, so he doesn’t need to change in any way to accept the idea of becoming Saiyman X. In fact, Goten is the one who brings it up at the end, sonothing had to happen to him in order for the story to move forward. Instead, the big moment is when Trunks, after experiencing everything that happens to him in the one-shot, agrees to Goten’s suggestion and excitedly comes up with their design and name.
So, irrespective of the fact that Goten is the brother of the Great Saiyman who inspires their heroic personas, he couldn’t be the main focus of the one-shot.
As A Whole, Dragon Ball Super Chapter #104 Contradicts Key Moments in the Series
Goten Should Have Actually Been The One-Shot’s Main Focus to Address These Contradictions
However, this is only the case if we’re just interpreting the one-shot as a standalone story. When taking key moments fromDBZandSuperinto account, it would have actually made much more sense for Goten to be the star of chapter #104. This derives from some odd developments that either purposefully retconned past events or came as a result of lazy writing. When Gohan shows his Great Saiyaman costume to Goten for the first time inDBZ, Goten thinks it’s the coolest thing he’s ever seen. But later inSuper, Goten appears to have changed his mind and says that it’s lame.
At first, this development showcased a change in Goten’s character, which is fine. However, it’s odd that teenage Goten is now suddenly infatuated with the Great Saiyaman’s whole look again in chapter #104. With this latest one-shot, Goten’s change in opinion now feels completely random. No explanation would really have been necessary in chapter #104 if Goten had shared the same opinion as he did earlier on inSuperwhen he thought the costume was lame.
But now that Goten has flip-flopped back to how he originally thought, it would have actually made more sense to put follow Goten instead, so he could explore his past opinions of the Great Saiyaman. In the end,Dragon Ball Superfans now have a choice of either enjoying this newest one-shot as a standalone story or grappling with these random changes inGoten’s character and second-guessing chapter #104’s decision to focus onTrunks.
