Is Dragon Ball’s Gohan Really Tapping Into Demon Power? Breaking Down Beast Form

Dragon Ball Daima has been shaking up the franchise with all sorts of new reveals about the Demon Realm, and it turns out that as a result of these new reveals, Gohan just might be tapping into demonic power with his greatest form, Gohan Beast. Dragon Ball Daima has kicked off the anime’s run as part of the celebration for the Dragon Ball manga’s 40th anniversary, and with it has set Goku on a new journey through the Demon Realm. And with the full exploration of this realm for the first real time in the franchise, it’s been revealed that the demons are more connected to the outside world than fans might have expected.

One of the huger reveals in Dragon Ball Daima thus far is the fact that the Supreme Kai is actually a member of the demon race known as the Glind. Not only does he have a brother and sister living in the Demon Realm, but it’s been implied that the Glind are the ones eventually going through a selection process to become a god of a particular universe. And if that’s the case, this all comes back to Gohan himself as his latent power has been drawn out by demons through his life thus far. This demonic power then explodes with Gohan Beast form.

Gohan’s Latent Power is Drawn Out By Demons

Dragon Ball Daima not only revealed that the Supreme Kai comes from the Demon Realm, but also further confirmed that the Namekians once lived in the Demon Realm as well. Although Demon King Piccolo’s ties to the realm had been seemingly dismissed with the reveal of Planet Namek, Dragon Ball Daima confirmed that the Namekians indeed are demons and basically every character with pointy ears in the franchise is a demon as well. While this has been ramifications for the demons’ role in the franchise, it’s even bigger for Gohan.

Gohan has been keenly close to demons through his life. Trained by Piccolo, Gohan was able to find a way to use his inherent Saiyan power to fight. When he needed an extra boost to keep up with the Frieza Force, the Namekian Guru used his magic to draw out Gohan’s latent potential. This is where the curious shift starts as while Gohan and Krillin grow much stronger through this boost, Gohan’s the one that continues to grow in strength thanks to his unique power as both a Saiyan and human.

This demonic technique drew out Gohan’s abilities, and it happened twice as the Old Kai was able to draw out his latent power once more. That’s two significant points in Gohan’s life where demon magic allowed him to grow to a new level of strength, and it resulted in Gohan being unique compared to Goku and Vegeta. Unlike the other Saiyans, Gohan’s power ups didn’t come with a significantly different visual flare either. That was until Gohan Beast in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero gave him the most dramatically different transformation that he had in the series to date.

What Exactly Is Gohan Beast?

Gohan’s rage has been at the core of his massive power since he was first introduced to the series, and it has been at the core of all of his transformations ever since. Gohan’s “Ultimate Gohan” form then bucked that trend by revealing that his truest power self was really just a more in control of his rage version of himself. Thus Gohan Beast being so dramatically different from everything else really stands out. It’s not exactly a Super Saiyan form, and it’s not exactly Gohan being a perfect version of Gohan either.

It’s like a version of Gohan that allows his rage to truly explode and thus is allowed to flourish in that power. In Dragon Ball Super’s manga version of the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero arc, Gohan explains that the Gohan Beast form comes from his willingness to fully tap into his rage and powers up to the point where he’s about to snap and lose control. He’s constantly on the border of completely losing himself in this form, and with it is able to stand on the level of the god forms that Goku and Vegeta unlock during Dragon Ball Super.

There was a question of whether or not Gohan was using god power in this form because it was detectable by Goku and Vegeta, but now thanks to Dragon Ball Daima, it’s more like a form with demonic power at its core. Demons aren’t exactly bad or good like the other species within the Dragon Ball franchise, and thus demon magic being at the center of Gohan’s power is not exactly a bad thing either. Demons have used their power to help Gohan unlock his real self over the years, and Beast is most likely just a culmination of everything.

Gohan is a unique figure in that he’s been powering through Saiyan and human means through the years, and now it seems like he’s got just a little bit of demonic magic within him as well. This would explain why the form makes him one of the strongest fighters in the franchise and on par with Goku and Vegeta when Beast is active, and really raises questions about the other kinds of magic and abilities that are at the demons’ disposal.