When the Saiyans were introduced in Dragon Ball, the most important aspect of their character was their tail, especially Goku. The tail of the Saiyans was one of the biggest sources of their power, but it also worked as an identification for them. Fans could recognize any Saiyan by their tail, but the concept of Saiyans having a tail was eventually removed from the Dragon Ball narrative.
Akira Toriyama, the legendary creator of Dragon Ball, evidently started hating the concept of tails being related to the Saiyan race. Thus he decided to remove it completely, and along with it, he also took away the great-ape power-up, also known as the Oozaru form. This was one of the biggest changes in the Dragon Ball narrative ever.
However, this was not a problem for the protagonist of the series, Son Goku. Goku had another aspect of his physical appearance that made him easily recognizable. This aspect was his unique spiky haircut that has been the same since the beginning of the Dragon Ball series in 1984.
A Saiyan’s Tail Was Their Distinguishing Feature
In 1995, the Dragon Ball Daizenshuu 2: Story Guide (via Kazenshuu) featured an exclusive interview with Toriyama where he was asked about the tail and how it made Goku look like a monkey. The mangaka revealed that the reason behind giving Goku a tail was to make him stand out.
He stated:
Yeah, to have it be completely like “Journey to the West”. This wasn’t very innovative, so I decided to have the protagonist be a human, and made him an ordinary boy. But I wanted him to have some kind of distinguishing characteristic.
The protagonist in “Dragon Boy” had wings, so I wanted a distinguishing characteristic in that sense, where you could tell it was him just by looking. So I gave Goku a tail. So even if he was hidden behind a rock, if you could still see his tail you’d know that it was Goku.
As fans know, Goku was inspired by the Monkey King from Journey to the West. But Toriyama wanted Goku to look different from him but also represent him in a way, and this is why he gave him a tail.
Goku’s tail became a distinguishing characteristic for him that made him easily recognizable even though he was hidden behind a rock. Thus it was a crucial part of his identity in Dragon Ball.
Another Feature That Made Goku Visually Iconic
While Goku’s tail was an intriguing element of his physical appearance, it was not the only thing that made him unique. His eccentric haircut which hasn’t changed since 1984 also made him look different from other characters. In 2018, while giving an interview that was shared by Skullknight, Toriyama talked about Goku’s haircut.
He stated:
I didn’t have anything specific in mind, but I did try to include panels that would attract the readers’ eyes when they open the pages. And Torishima-san always told me to draw so it would always be clear who was doing what. That’s why I always tried to include long shots. The characters get smaller, but you can identify the characters by their characteristics, like Goku’s spunky hair.
Akira Toriyama pointed out that he created long shot panels in Dragon Ball manga to make it look appealing to the fans. However, this proved to be a hindrance for the characters as they looked incredibly small.
However, this was not a problem for Goku as he was easily recognizable because of his “spunky” hair. He has stuck to this quirky haircut since he was a child, and even though there have been different characters who have had a similar haircut, none of them have been able to wear it like the Dragon Ball protagonist.
Dragon Ball is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
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