Summary
For many fans ofDragon Ball, the best character in the entire franchise is the Prince of all Saiyans, Vegeta. Though he started off as a villain, he eventually defected to the side of the good guys and started a family on Earth, becoming one of Universe 7’s most staunch and important protectors, which is why many credit him as having one of the best character arcs in all of anime.
His influence on the anime industrycannot be overstated, as he has not only left an indelible mark onDragon Ball, but has even gone on to set the blueprint for many tropes within the medium. However, some people believe that the heartless acts he committed as a villain in the earliest part of the series are far too heinous to redeem him, so let’s see if this claim is true or not!
Story Arc
Saiyan Saga
In his initial moments, only glimpses of the villain were shown every now and then. Raditz had even warned that a year following his arrival on Earth, 2 even more powerful Saiyans were going to come. During their journey to Earth, Vegeta and Nappa were shown a few times, traveling to various planets, where they showed theirunmatched strength and destructive capabilities.
One of the most villainous acts that Vegeta ever committed was seen during this journey, where he and Nappa eventually stopped at Planet Arlia in an attempt to subjugate the people and provide the planet for Frieza to sell. After deeming that it was in too poor of a condition to be of any real value, Vegeta proceeded to destroy the whole planet with minimal effort, effectively snuffing out billions of lives with a single attack.
Welcome to the end of your life. And I promise, it’s going to hurt.
This set the precedent for the power that the Saiyan Prince held, which was further exemplified when he and Nappa finally reached Earth. Nappa proceeded to take on all the Z-Fighters and even killed a few, putting up an incredible effort to defeat many opponents at once, only losing to Goku in the end. However, Vegeta showed just how ruthless he was. Completely disregarding how useful Nappa proved to be before his loss to Goku, Vegeta still called him weak andmercilessly killed one of his oldest allieswithout even thinking twice about it.
This attitude would continue when he almost singlehandedly killed the remaining Z-Fighters, including Goku, and caused an untold amount of devastation. Though the heroes were able to defeat him, Vegeta left Earth to recuperate, crossing paths with the Z-Fighters once again on Namek, where he continued to be a bully to the Namekians, often harming them when he didn’t need to. Though he sided with the heroes this time, he kept his merciless attitude and was only allying himself with them to further his own plans.
After the Namek Saga ended, Vegeta found a new home on Earth, where he started to mellow out a bit more and even started a family. Though he was still cold, Vegeta was now a heroic figure who had also become a Z-Fighter, protecting the Earth from threats. However, it was due to Vegeta’s arrogance thatCell reached his perfect state, leading to the deaths of many more people and almost the complete destruction of Earth.
Finally, in the Buu Saga, Vegeta allowed Babidi to take control over his mind in order to release the latent evil within him, once again becoming the ruthless Saiyan he used to be simply because he wanted to do whatever it took to surpass Goku. When Majin Vegeta was born, he immediately destroyed a large section of the World Tournament arena, killing hundreds of people in the process.
Is His Redemption Warranted?
Now, the question of whether Vegeta truly deserves to be redeemed for his villainous actions in the past becomes a rather philosophical one. On the one hand, he is a character with an extremely large kill count of innocent lives and despiteonly carrying out Frieza’s ordersfor the early part of his life, it was still him who carried out the killing blow.
However, his speech to Goku when he turns into Majin Vegeta is a perfect example of what his thought process had been for much of his life. Despite being born a Prince, his race didn’t exist anymore, and he was basically the workhorse of the person responsible for destroying his planet. His entire youth was spent in deep and bitter resentment, which is why he sought out strength over all else.
Trunks, Bulma, I do this for you. And yes, even for you, Kakarot.
The evil deeds that he has committed are things that he has to live with for the rest of his life. They cannot be excused or forgiven, but understanding can be made as to why he did all of that in the first place. Vegeta has faced the horrors of what he has done and has gone on to becomeone of Universe 7’s main protectors, fully understanding that while it doesn’t erase what he has done in the past, he deserves a second chance, one that he will not waste.
This is why his final atonement in the Buu Saga remains one of the series' greatest moments. He realizes all that he has done and that there is no forgiveness for it, but he knows that sacrificing his own life will make his character arc come full circle. Going from a villain who ended lives without a care in the world, Vegeta has redeemed himself by being willing to give his life to save millions of others on multiple occasions.
