Piccolo
Piccolo is the offspring of the Great Demon King Piccolo. He sometimes goes by the name Majunior.
For many years, Piccolo was Goku’s sworn enemy. Seeking revenge for his father, Piccolo entered the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, where he faced Goku in the finals.
In the fight with Raditz, however, Piccolo had no choice but to join forces with Goku. The battle is won thanks to Piccolo’s Special Beam Canon.
After the defeat of Raditz, to better confront the Saiyans arriving in one year’s time, Piccolo took Goku’s son Gohan and began training him as a warrior. Though Piccolo treated Gohan cruelly at first, over time he developed a friendship with the boy, and in the battle with Vegeta and Nappa, he gave his own life to save Gohan’s.
Later, during the Android Saga, realizing his powers were not enough to confront Android 17, Piccolo cast aside his reservations and fused with Kami. In this way, he returned to his true form, becoming the nameless Super Namek.
Serious by nature, Piccolo has little patience for jokes. This presented a bit of a problem during his training with the fun-loving King Kai.
Krillin
Krillin joined Goku as a student of Master Roshi, and the two formed a fast rivalry in their training. It took Krillin some time to warm to Goku, but eventually they became good friends.
Krillin fights valiantly against even the most powerful of enemies, but his efforts often lead to tragedy, beginning with his death at the hands of Tambourine. Even so, he continues to train, and has become the strongest Earthling among the Z-fighters.
Initially, Krillin began training as a fighter in hopes of attracting a girl friend, but that plan never seemed to work out. After years of forced bachelorhood, however, Krillin finally married 18, and the two even had a daughter named Maron. So in the end, Krillin’s plan proved to be a huge success!
Krillin may not be as strong as Goku or some of the other Z-fighters, but he has many unique skills and techniques, such as his signature Destructo Disc.
Yamcha
Yamcha was Goku’s first real rival and a dirty fighter. In the early days, he attacked and robbed people crossing the desert, and was known far and wide as "The Desert Bandit".
He met Goku and the others as they traveled in search of the Dragon Balls. He was hostile toward Goku at first, but over the course of their adventures they became friends, and Yamcha eventually joined Goku as a pupil of Master Roshi.
There was a time when Yamcha was so terrified of pretty girls that he would go into convulsions just looking at them. After traveling with Bulma, however, he managed to get over his fear. Actually, in an ironic turn of events, he turned out to be quite a ladies’ man.
Bulma, who had been dating Yamcha for a long time, was furious at this turn of character, and broke up with Yamcha. Even so, Yamcha was never cured of his philandering ways.
In the TV series, we see that Yamcha spends his time between adventures as a professional baseball player.
And on King Kai’s planet, Yamcha proves he has some serious fighting skills when he defeats Recoome and Guldo.
Tien
Tien is a serious warrior hailing from the Crane School.
Initially, Tien was a pretty bad guy, essentially working as hired muscle. In the World Tournament, he broke Yamcha’s leg during their match, just for the sake of being cruel.
By the end of his match with Goku, however, Tien had learned the error of his ways. He had a falling out with his teacher, the Crane Hermit, Master Shen, and he and Chiaotzu left the Crane School forever.
After that, Tien devoted himself to becoming stronger. To that end, he and Chiaotzu travel the world on various training missions. However, when the Earth is in danger, he will always rush back to join his friends on the battlefield.
In the early days, the wild Launch developed a bit of an infatuation with Tien, and she continues to chase him wherever he goes. This could be one more reason Tien chooses to move from place to place so frequently…
Saibamen
The Saibamen are strange half-plant, half-humanoid creatures that can be grown in the ground when needed.
On Earth, they were sprouted from six seeds that Nappa carried and launched into a fierce battle with Yamcha and Tien.
Though each one had about the same power level as Raditz, they were clearly no match for the powered up Z-fighters, fresh from
their training at Kami’s lookout. In the face of certain defeat, the Saibamen self-destructed, taking Yamcha out along with
them.
Nappa
Nappa is an elite Saiyan warrior, one of the last survivors of his proud race. Having come to earth with Vegeta in search of the Dragon Balls, upon his arrival, Nappa blew up an entire city with a single blast, just to say hello. Needless to say, he possesses the ruthlessness and love of destruction typical to a Saiyan.
In the battle with the Z-fighters, Nappa demonstrated his overwhelming power, easily defeating Tien, Chiaotzu, and Piccolo.
Nappa enjoys making sport of his prey, and often treats his victims to a wicked one-liner just before he annihilates them.
Published: Nov 7, 2006 11:50 am