Dragon Ball without Goku would be like a wedding without a bride or like Ash without Pikachu. Goku was introduced into the famous franchise at the very beginning of the first Dragon Ball series. At that time, Goku was only an exceptionally strong child who always had a desire to become stronger. Furthermore, he always fought for peace and justice.
Goku was initially goofy and far weaker compared to his level of power from Dragon Ball Z, not to mention Dragon Ball Super, where he gets godly strength. At first, Goku trained under Master Roshi, who introduced the young boy into the world of martial arts. At that time, Goku could break huge rocks with his bare hands but never be as powerful as his Super Saiyan transformation from Dragon Ball Z, for instance.
When he was a child, Goku fought to rescue others from the clutches of various opponents, and he even managed to defeat an entire army’s arsenal only by himself. That was the Red Ribbon Army, an organization that will soon be revived in future Dragon Ball series and movies. It wasn’t until the King Piccolo arc that Goku proved to be very useful to mankind.
SPOILERS AHEAD: If you don’t wish to be spoiled, head back NOW!
Dragon Ball’s King Piccolo arc: Goku saves the world from evil for the first time
During the King Piccolo arc from the very first Dragon Ball series, it was the first opportunity for Goku, who was still a child, to save the world. He did it in big style, even if he was severely injured by King Piccolo, the main villain at that time. Although Piccolo was preparing to land the final blow to Goku, while our hero seemed to be down for the count, the little boy put all his remaining strength into one single punch and won by making a big hole directly through Piccolo’s chest. The evil King Piccolo failed to conquer the world and impose terror and mayhem on it, while Goku saved mankind for the first time despite being just a kid.
Dragon Ball Super’s Tournament of Power
Goku saved the world several times more when he became an adult and even a lot more powerful than when he was a child. The beloved Saiyan reached new heights in terms of power, achieving transformations such as Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan 3, Super Saiyan 4, and more. Extremely powerful foes from remote regions of the Universe who tried to destroy Earth fell under Goku’s justice: Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu represent good examples.
However, Goku had a much bigger stake during the Tournament of Power arc from Dragon Ball Super, where he and his allies had to defend the entire Universe from getting erased by the almighty god Zeno. It was a battle royale involving eight of the twelve universes in existence. The stake was higher than it has ever been in Dragon Ball: save your universe or get erased from existence along with it.
At this tournament, Goku became stronger than ever, achieving his Ultra Instinct form in a moment nobody thought possible. His main opponent in the tournament was Jiren, a guy who fought along with his team for the survival of his own Universe. At the end of the Tournament of Power, Goku managed to successfully team up with Frieza (yes, you’ve read that right) in order to eliminate Jiren, the strongest opponent, from the tournament. Although Frieza and Goku got eliminated along with Jiren, another warrior from Goku’s Universe remained standing: Android 17. He was the only remaining warrior who remained standing after the huge battle royale, which means that Goku’s Universe became the winner.
In other words, Goku became a cosmic hero, not just the savior of the Earth. He went a long road, from just a goofy child who lived in the caves to a guy who became stronger than the gods.