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In the Dragon Ball franchise, there are many non-Saiyan characters that fans love. Piccolo and Krillin are among them. Yet there have been many times when longtime support character Krillin has been shoved to the wayside, either by the narrative or by fans.
As much as some Dragon Ball fans may prefer the over-the-top exploits of Goku or Vegeta, many more prefer rooting for some of the less focused characters and underdogs. Case in point: Krillin. This article will likewise do the same, showcasing 10 moments across the Dragon Ball franchise where Krillin was majorly important and/or contributed a lot.
Disclaimer: The following article will contain Dragon Ball spoilers up to and including Dragon Ball Super. Any opinions are exclusive to the author.
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10 times across Dragon Ball where Krillin proved his importance
1) His wits in the original series
In a franchise like Dragon Ball, where characters can blow up mountains, cities, and even planets with the slightest lift of a finger, being smarter than the average person can absolutely help. Krillin has done so numerous times throughout Dragon Ball, even as far back as the original series.
Krillin's smarts come into play multiple times. Examples include tricking Master Roshi into accepting him as his student with a bribe of perverted magazines, making Master Roshi nosebleed all over the Invisible Man so Yamcha could fight him, and yelling basic arithmetic problems to stun Chiaotzu long enough for Krillin to ring him out.
2) Surviving the Saiyan Saga
A lot of people died in the Saiyan Saga, starting with the farmer that got killed when Raditz first arrived on Earth. Following Raditz and Goku's mutual deaths, everyone else set off to train. Krillin's managing to survive the massacre that was the Saiyan Saga says something about his own improvements and improvisations.
Krillin showed his own skills with a scattering shot that destroyed all of the remaining Saibamen following Yamcha's death, save for one that Piccolo had to kill. There was also help wearing down Nappa, nearly killing him with a Destructo Disc after the failed attempt to exploit Nappa's tail weakness. Then there was fighting Vegeta in Great Ape form, helping to ensure his tail got cut via Destructo Disc distraction and a Spirit Bomb hitting him.
3) Surviving as long as he did on Namek
Given that Namek is well known for being the time Krillin died so Goku could go Super Saiyan, Krillin surviving as long as he did is impressive. Goku wasn't present for most of the Namek arc. It was just Gohan, Bulma, Krillin, and Dende having to survive against Frieza's forces and an angry Vegeta.
To this end, Krillin survived via his quick wits and cunning for as long as he could. He distracted Dordoria with a Solar Flare, likewise with Frieza, outsmarted Vegeta by hiding and gathering the Dragon Balls, and managed to slice Frieza's tail off with a Destructo Disc. Alas, he was killed by Final Form Frieza toward the end.
4) Locating Dr. Gero and later fighting Cell
The Android Saga includes plenty of moments where Kirllin is allowed to be awesome. One of them was the pursuit of Dr. Gero, aka Android 20. Krillin is the first to locate Gero and releases Ki to signal the other Z fighters. While he did get attacked by Gero, Krillin ensured they knew where his lab was.
Everyone else was stumped, and Krilln found him first. Krillin later found Cell too the first time they were trying to stop him from absorbing Android 17 and 18. Krillin would likewise go up against Imperfect Cell, saving a family from him in an anime-only episode. He and Future Trunks also killed Cell in larval form.
5) His relationship with Android 18
Krillin and 18's relationship is one of the better relationships in the entirety of the Dragon Ball franchise, starting when she kissed him in the Android Saga and when he couldn't blow her up later on. This developed after 17 and 18 were saved and the bombs were removed from them.
Seven years later, 18 and Krillin got married and had a kid named Marron. The two have been a couple since the Majin Buu saga and haven't had any big conflicts like Goku and Chi Chi or Bulma and Vegeta. The two even competed in the Tournament of Power in Dragon Ball Super together.
6) Having a stable job
One of the funnier, if not ironic, ways in which a Dragon Ball character is more competent than even the lead character is by having a stable job as a police officer. It's not so much a dig at Vegeta, he has a rich wife. But Goku constantly gets praised for being the superpowerful person he is, yet he is also berated by Chichi for not being employed.
That is something Dragon Ball Super brings up: Krillin has a steady job as a police officer to support his family. This has continued even as far forward as Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. He might not have trained super hard, but being able to support his family is very important.
7) Fending off Frieza's forces
For someone who had trained very little since the Majin Buu saga, to the point where Goku's punch was able to throw him across the countryside, Krillin lasted quite a long time against the rebirthed Frieza's forces. The scatter Bullet technique came in handy again, this time obliterating many of Frieza's soldiers that came after him after being promised a planet.
It may have taken Master Roshi's encouragement to get his courage and confidence restored, but Krillin bounced back rather well. He also helped use their last Senzu Bean to get Goku back to full health. It showed Krillin could still fight, though even he admitted he needed more practice.
8) His training and performance in the Tournament of Power
Speaking of training, Krillin went through a lot of different training to regain his fighting spirit. The Forest of Terror training, sparring with Goku, Gohan, and 18, doing team sparring, and everything else they could do proved he could still hang with the rest of them.
His performance in the Tournament of Power was saving 18, helping Master Roshi eliminate people, and even using his shoe to overwhelm an opponent's super senses. The problem was, as is realistic for these kinds of tournaments, he got ambushed and eliminated by Frost afterward.
9) His defense of Earth against Moro's scouts
Krillin and the others got ambushed the first time the Galactic Bandit Brigade appeared and were quickly defeated. It was only by warning Moro's forces that Goku and Vegeta would be there that the bandits fled. That gave the Z fighters two months in Dragon Ball Super to prepare.
When he did prepare and the bandits showed up again, he stood a better chance. Krillin was able to defeat Yunba with the Afterimage Technique and a Kamehameha. He likewise helped Roshi fight the three female convicts and then gave energy to Vegeta to give to Goku to stop Moro.
10) His participation in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
Krillin's police duties involved helping to arrest Dr. Hedo and taking on the new zombie androids he had created. In what effectively is the backstory for the movie, the Dragon Ball Super manga shows Krillin, Goten, and Trunks having to work together to stop Dinodroid 1.
After that, Krillin attempted to pursue the recently released Dr. Hedo but was knocked out. Afterward, he helped during the Cell Max fight by not only using Destructo Disc to distract the monster and save Android 18, but likewise using Solar Flare to distract him while Gamma 2 attacked. Likewise, Krillin reminded Piccolo about his Great Namekian form and saved him from death.
To conclude this look into Krillin's greatest moments in the Dragon Ball franchise, a brief word about all the other characters. Although Dragon Ball as a shonen franchise focuses heavily on godlike characters like Goku and Vegeta, focusing on characters like Krillin helps breathe life into the series.
It's a breath of fresh air, showing that even characters that were shoved aside are still worth having and good to be around. If Gohan, Piccolo, and Mr. Satan/Hercule can get a good deal from the narrative and fandom, so too can Krillin. If any readers want to talk about, add to, or disagree, please do so in the comments.
