The Dragon Ball franchise is continuing its celebration of the 40th anniversary, despite having just celebrated its 41st, but who am I to complain? We now have the dubbed version of Dragon Ball in HD, and there’s an event planned for next year that could have some big announcements. There’s also some fun for fans to take part in, as people around the world are encouraged to help rank their favorite characters.
The official Dragon Ball site has posted a poll and encouraged visitors to vote for their favorite characters of all time. The results of the voting thus far have hit the internet as Round One is set to close on November 24th, and I’m shocked by one character who is currently in the top 10.
Bardock, The Father Of Goku, Is In The Top 10 Of Most Popular Dragon Ball Characters
I wasn’t entirely surprised by the names that popped up on the top 10 list for Dragon Ball‘s voting so far, save for one entry. Coming in at number seven is the Saiyan Bardock, whom fans more commonly know as the father of Goku.
First introduced in the special Bardock: The Father of Goku, Bardock was among the original Saiyans who served Frieza, back when Vegeta’s father, King Vegeta, was still alive. Bardock tried to rebel against Frieza and save the Saiyans, but was killed in the attempt.
Outside of that story, Bardock has only had fleeting appearances in other Dragon Ball projects and is usually a playable character in the video games. It’s surprising, to me at least, that a character with so little screen time has such a high ranking among the best fighters, as I’m not sure he’d even make my personal Top 10 ranking.
Who Else Is In The Top 10 Of Dragon Ball?
Given that Dragon Ball is an iconic anime with a lot of fans worldwide, I’m not totally shocked by most of the characters I see in the Top 10. I’ve seen lots of cosplay, fan art and memes featuring these characters over the years. For those curious, here’s how things are looking at present with a few days left on voting for Round One (via X):
- Goku
- Vegeta
- Gohan
- Vegito
- Piccolo
- Future Trunks
- Bardock
- Cell
- Android 18
- Frieza
I don’t think anyone is surprised that Goku has the top spot, except maybe Vegeta. It’s not surprising to see both Cell and Frieza as the two villains on the list, as they are definitely the most notable in Dragon Ball Z. Personally, I would rank Frieza higher than Cell, but that’s just me.
I will say that that as surprised as I was to see Bardock in the top 10 list, I was shocked that Krillin missed the cut. That said, he is just on the outside looking in on the eleventh spot. Maybe this list will hold to the end, but I think there’s a chance we could see Krillin make his way into the top 10 eventually.
Vegito is another rarely seen character in the Dragon Ball show, who is also really high up on the list. That said, I can understand why the fused form of Vegeta and Goku is so popular given that the two characters are the top two on the list and the highlight of those old-school anime music videos. Even so, I can’t wait to see how this top ten list holds up, and if everyone is still in their spot when the final list comes out on the official YouTube channel on January 24th.
Those looking to get back into Dragon Ball to get in the spirit of the anniversary can find the shows streaming on Crunchyroll, along with a lot of other great anime shows. As someone who has really gotten back into the genre over the past year, I’m a big fan!
