What happened to Grandpa Gohan in Dragon Ball? Explained

Modified Nov 10, 2024 05:44 GMT

What happened to Grandpa Gohan in Dragon Ball? Explained — Grandpa Gohan as seen in Dragon Ball (Image via Toei Animation)

While most Dragon Ball fans know about Grandpa Gohan and how he adopted Goku after he arrived on Earth, not many fans know what happened to him before the series. As explained by the anime, Grandpa Gohan had passed away before the series began, i.e., before Goku met Bulma in the first episode. So, what happened to Grandpa Gohan in Dragon Ball?

Grandpa Gohan was accidentally killed by young Goku after he looked at the moon and turned into his Great Ape form. Unfortunately, Goku had no memory of this and blamed a monster for killing his grandfather for the longest time. Fortunately, he realized the truth later in Dragon Ball Z.

Grandpa Gohan's death in Dragon Ball, explained

Great Ape as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Grandpa Gohan was accidentally killed by Goku in his Great Ape form. As explained by Goku, his grandfather had warned him not to look at a full moon and stay indoors on nights of one. This implied that Grandpa Gohan had witnessed Goku transforming into the Great Ape once before and had survived the ordeal.

Unfortunately, Son Goku seemingly wasn't able to adhere to his grandfather's warning and happened to look at the full moon one night, transforming into the Great Ape. This time, Grandpa Gohan did not survive the Great Ape's rampage and sadly passed away.

Son Goku as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Another sad part about the story is how Goku had no recollection of this. Thus, he believed that Grandpa Gohan was killed by a monster and that his soul was in the Four-Star Dragon Ball. Even Goku's friends deduced this truth after they witnessed him transform into the Great Ape.

As for Goku himself, it was only later in Dragon Ball Z, when he witnessed Vegeta transform into a Great Ape that he realized that he was responsible for his grandfather's death.

Grandpa Gohan's role in Dragon Ball

Grandpa Gohan and Son Goku as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

As fans may remember, all Saiyans were sent to different planets to eradicate the existing race and sell the planet to someone else. Similarly, Goku was sent to Earth to kill all humans. Fortunately, after falling into a ravine and hitting his head, he lost his memory and became a regular, happy, loving boy.

Hence, following Goku's change in nature, Grandpa Gohan passed on his martial arts to him. Thus, if it hadn't been for Grandpa Gohan, Goku may have never become a martial artist.

Bulma as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

On top of that, Goku may have never met Bulma as well. This is because, the only reason Bulma met Goku was due to Grandpa Gohan's four-star Dragon Ball, which she located using her Dragon Radar.

Thus, had it not been for Grandpa Gohan, Son Goku's life on Earth may have been entirely different. Surprisingly, this would have also affected his son Gohan as he was named after Goku's grandfather.