The Dragon Ball franchise has been running for decades, with the series chronicling Son Goku’s adventures from childhood to adulthood. Following the tragic passing of creator Akira Toriyama, the shonen franchise decided to continue moving forward with new projects that will span into the future. Later this year, Dragon Ball Super: Beerus will hit the small screen, remaking the pivotal storyline, while Dragon Ball Super: The Galactic Partrol Arc will finally adapt the long-awaited manga. During its long history, Dragon Ball has introduced more characters than we can count, and some are in dire need of a comeback.
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5.) Launch
When it comes to characters that have been missing from Dragon Ball for quite some time, Launch is normally the “go-to” example of a supporting figure that went from being a significant fixture to completely forgotten. In the original Dragon Ball series, she was effectively a main character, causing serious problems for Goku and company thanks to her affliction. Whenever Launch would sneeze, she would completely shift personalities from a more affable character to a cursing, gun-firing loose cannon. While her final appearance in Dragon Ball’s manga was at the latter end of the original series, Dragon Ball Z briefly brought her back during the Majin Buu arc, though this isn’t considered canon overall. Ever since the early days, Dragon Ball as a franchise has focused far more on its powerful characters, meaning that Launch would get the short end of the stick. Since we never foresee Launch gaining the strength to rival Super Saiyans or Namekians, it’s hard to believe we’ll ever see her comeback anytime soon, but her history with the series shouldn’t be outright ignored.
4.) Android 16
Considering the impact that Android 16’s death had on the Z-Fighters, acting as the match that lit the fire of Gohan’s Super Saiyan 2 transformation. The creation of Dr. Gero was quite powerful, though he was far different from his brethren of Androids 17 and 18, always seeking peace rather than war. While he was still programmed to eliminate Son Goku, he played a pivotal role in the fight against Cell. While 16 was an android, it’s still surprising that none of the Z-Fighters have tried to either recreate him since his demise and/or wish him back to the land of the living. 16’s power level might be dwarfed by almost all the characters in Dragon Ball Super, but his calming influence might make for an interesting addition to the shonen sequel series. Since 17 and 18 have grown far stronger in Dragon Ball Super, while becoming pivotal parts of the franchise in the process, seeing 16 make a comeback is something that would be unexpected but would be welcome all the same.
3.) Grandpa Gohan
The parental figure to Goku who was the originator of Gohan’s name, Grandpa Gohan was the character who helped Son to become the man we would come to know today. While the character was dead before Goku met Bulma on that fateful day that would set things into motion when it comes to all things Dragon Ball, being deceased didn’t keep him away forever. In the original Dragon Ball series, Goku’s grandpa would return as a secret opponent to his grandson, giving him both a good fight and some worthwhile advice for the future. Unlike Launch and Android 16, Gohan doesn’t need to have a significant role for his comeback, but rather, simply seeing Goku’s grandpa make a comeback for a brief period of time would work well for the shonen franchise. Even seeing Gohan’s reaction to things like Super Saiyans and Ultra Instinct would make his return well worth it, let alone having the opportunity to meet Goku’s son for himself for the first time.
2.) Raditz
Goku’s older brother helped kick off the next phase of the Dragon Ball franchise, landing on Earth as the first big villain of Dragon Ball Z. Thanks to Son teaming up with Piccolo, an act that was as eye-popping as Goku teaming up with the likes of Vegeta and/or Frieza at the time, Raditz was killed thanks to a well-placed Special Beam Cannon. Ever since, Raditz has never returned in the main series, aside from random appearances in Dragon Ball Heroes, which gave him his own iterations of Super Saiyan transformations. Before the release of the latest Dragon Ball movie, there were even rumors swirling that the film would see Raditz return from the grave. Whether it be as a hero or a villain, seeing Raditz return to Earth and interact with his brother would make for some interesting stories, especially with the recent Granolah the Survivor Arc diving further into Bardock’s earlier years.
1.) Garlic Jr.
Garlic Jr. might be an anime-only character, but he was a significant one in Dragon Ball Z’s run. Specifically, the pint-sized demon helped kick off Z’s movie run, introducing plenty of fans to the series thanks to Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone. Hoping to rule the world ala the Demon King Piccolo’s modus operandi, aka with an army of demons at his beck and call, Jr’s evil personality was infectious and he had another major ace up his sleeve. Unlike Frieza, Garlic Jr. managed to actually become immortal thanks to making his successful wish to Shenron. While he was defeated in the debut that introduced him to the anime world, Garlic Jr. would return in a “filler arc” of Dragon Ball Z, sandwiched between the Frieza and Cell Sagas. The demon could be brought back as a continuation of his previous appearances or remade in the same vein as Broly, granted a brand new origin story, especially since Dragon Ball Daima examined the Demon Realm.
