Dragon Ball: Goku (Part 4)
Even though he was supposed to die on Namek, Akira Toriyama by popular demand pulled a bit of a Deus Ex Machina. Goku manages to escape and ends up on a planet called Yardrat. After training he manages to return to Earth only to find himself in a new mess. Unfortunately, Goku developed a heart virus at some point and when the new threat came to pass it took hold.
Goku originally was supposed to die from it but a mysterious young man from the future gave the Z Fighters the cure. It took Goku out of the fight for a couple weeks, he recovered in time to fight the ultimate enemy of this arc Perfect Cell. After a fierce battle Goku had no choice but to concede and named his son Gohan the next combatant.
Gohan however despite his power and potential wasn't the warrior his father is and allowed the fight to drag out due to an overall unwillingness to fight. Eventually Gohan snapped and obtained a new level of power but his arrogance and general inexperience forced Goku to make the ultimate sacrifice to save Earth. Gohan and the rest managed to finish Cell off with a little motivation by Goku from the Other world via King Kai.
Goku despite being able to be revived by the dragon balls opts to remain in Other World believing the Earth to be better off without him. He would remain "dead" for about 7 years when events on Earth would go to the point of no return. This is when an evil sorcerer would revive a powerful being known as Majin Buu. Despite Goku's efforts he ended up having no choice but to be revived to fight Majin Buu. He would be successful leading us into the current time line of Dragon Ball Super.
Goku is ultimately an typical shonen anime fighter. He's not very book smart but is able to fight at a level unknown to others. Goku is even able to learn and plan during battles allowing him to take on opponents more powerful than him and still come out on top. Goku may live on Earth but he is of Saiyan origin from the planet Vegeta. His race (Saiyan) have a unique ability in that even in defeat they can recover and rise up stronger than before. This is known as a Zen Kai boost.
The powers he possesses are many but the most common ones he uses are...
Instant Transmission: A (faster than?) light speed method of travel which he can use either by himself or if others are touching him Goku can transport them as well.
Kamehameha: Destructive turtle blast, a stream of Ki energy that also has great mass that is used to attack enemies and is Goku's go to move and perhaps his most famous. He primarily uses his hands and arms in this technique but it is possible to use this technique with his feet and legs.
Genki Dama: AKA The Spirit Bomb. This technique takes time to charge and borrows energy from the environment. The more energy taken the more power it has. This unique energy attack is powerful but rarely seems to finish off an opponent. It also boasts the unique ability to discriminate; unlike other energy attacks only those of evil alignment can be harmed by it.
Transformation: While this doesn't change Goku too radically it does provide a massive boost to his power. Goku and other Saiyan characters can go what is simply refereed to as "Super Saiyan". There are many different levels; Super Saiyan 1,2 and 3 are all Earth realm type power boosts. After that Goku and his rival Vegeta are able to channel "god Ki" that is able to transcend the Earthly boundaries into godhood. This does not make them gods though.
Thank you for reading my four part series on Goku! Please like and comment!