Is This The Secret Behind Goku’s New Transformation In ‘Dragon Ball’?

For months now, Dragon Ball Super has been teasing fans with Goku‘s epic new transformation, which will give the character “shocking” new levels of power!

However, while fans wait for Goku’s new form to be revealed in the upcoming episodes of Dragon Ball Super, there’s much about the transformation that has yet to be fully explored or even defined. While official facts may be hard to come by right now, Dragon Ball fans have been hard at work compiling episode spoilers and teases into speculative theories.

We here at Comicbook.com have a theory we’d like to share based on the info fans have been spouting. So, do we know the secret behind Goku’s transformation? We just might…

Costly New Power

Recent reports of upcoming Dragon Ball Super episode titles revealed that after the big two-part event where Goku battles Jiren (109 – 110), fans will see Hit step up to fight Jiren in 111. At first glance, that seems odd: why would Universe 6’s most powerful fighter need to step up to Jiren if Goku is going to manifest this all-powerful new form? That’s where our theory comes in: 

We know that during his battle with Jiren, Goku will be go SSB and attack with both a Spirit Bomb and Kaio-Ken x20, which still won’t be enough to stop Jiren. Out of that dilemma, we will finally see Goku achieve new transformation in order to truly bring the fight to Jiren. However, just because Goku unlocks a powerful new form doesn’t mean he’ll automatically achieve victory against Jiren!

If anything, it seems like Goku’s new transformation could leave him more vulnerable than anyone realizes. By the time he achieves it, we know he will have already burned through the energy required for god form, perform a Spirit Bomb, and a massive Kaio-Ken power-up. The transformation could sap what little strength Goku has left. Moreover, with episode 113 reportedly carrying a title like “Fighting Maniac Saiyan Battle,” it’s possible that Goku won’t even be able to control the power he manifests at first – especially if it is linked to emotion as has been rumored. 

If Goku’s transformation leaves him vulnerable, then it would only follow that fighters like Hit (episode 111) and Vegeta (in episode 112) would have to step in to finish the fight. They may even need to protect Goku until he recovers strength or gets control of his new form. 

Echoes of Z

If this storyline sounds familiar – it’s because it is! We’ve already broken down how Dragon Ball Super is directly echoing Dragon Ball Z right now, and Goku’s upcoming transformation is so similar to the original Super Saiyan transformation that it’s hard to ignore. 

In Z, Goku tried to use a Spirit Bomb against Freeza only to fail. Freeza then killed both Piccolo and Krillin in retaliation, causing the emotional trigger that made Goku finally go Super Saiyan. However, even in that new form, Goku wasn’t yet at full power; he held back in order to test Freeza first, and eventually reached full power for the final showdown with the villain’s final form. 

In Super, we speculate that Goku’s new transformation will result from his use of the maximum Kaio-Ken against Jiren. The technique won’t stop the Universe 11 fighter, but it could temporarily mutate Goku’s ki and level-up his godly powers. The mix of the Kaio-ken x20 and an emotional trigger inspired by Jiren might be enough to alter Goku’s ki, granting him a powerful new Kaio-Ken technique, that comes with high cost.

As stated, while Goku’s new form will be powerful, it could come with serious side effects. The technique’s boundless power may be harmful (even fatal) to the user, like all other Kaio-Ken attacks. For Goku, the consequences could mean the permanent loss of his god form and ki, or even death.

Depending on how closely Super follows Z, Goku could take time after his initial transformation to tap into his new power and finish the fight in the Tournament of Power. In a worst-case scenario, the Saiyan’s pivotal blow against Jiren could end in sacrifice, but it would allow his comrades to bring home a win. We’ll find out next month when Dragon Ball Super returns!

Dragon Ball Super airs on Crunchyroll Saturdays at 7:15 p.m. CST. Toonami will begin airing the English dub on Adult Swim Saturdays at 11:30 p.m.