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After watching Dragon Ball Super it got me back into the fandom and I started reading some fanfiction of it. There were some really good ones and I noticed that the ones that I liked weren’t just well written and thought out, but they also did their research to make the story, especially the original character seem believable.
Depending on the OC, if they were born and raised in the fictional universe of Dragon Ball they have a name that makes sense. After all, it’s canon that the characters names are puns on regular words, often the names of various foods (more so if the character is a saiyan). For example, Kakarot is carrot, Vegeta is the first six letter of the word vegetable, Raditz is Radish, Broly is Broccoli, Paragus is Asparagus, Bardock is Burdock, Cabba is Cabbage, Caulifla is cauliflower, and so on.
If the OC doesn’t have a pun name it’s usually explained away, such as being raised in another universe where they were given another name to go by. Usually to hide their true identity or they were a baby and wouldn’t have known what their birth name was. Or they’re originally from our – real world in which their name would understandably be quite normal and human.
I mention this because I find myself being pull out of the story when I come across a female pure-blooded Sayian with a normal human name like Mary or Jane. This even applies to male version of Sayian OCs too, with names like Gary or John. I wouldn’t have blink an eye about it if there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for it. But no, I’m suppose to believe that their Saiyan parents had given them that human name (even though everyone around them has a Saiyan name, even their brother). There’s not even the excuse of them being a baby and being found by Earthlings, amnesia, or going to and/or coming from another universe.
If the OC is a full-blooded Saiyan their appearance matches what we know is canon. They have a tail, they are naturally stronger than most races and have a muscular build. They commonly have black hair, although there have been rare occasions when they also have been shown to have dark brown hair. In addition, they seem to possess large hearts, as evidenced by portions of Bio-Broly’s heart shortly after he was drenched in the Culture Fluid.
Also, Vegeta states that the hair of a pure-blooded Saiyan does not deviate from its appearance from the day the Saiyan is born. However, it’s apparent that their hair can fall off, as this is why Nappa is bald (he is shown with hair in the TV special Dragon Ball Z: Bardock - The Father of Goku). This is not the case with half-Saiyans such as Gohan, Trunks, and Goten who are shown to have several different lengths of hair, and wear their hair in different styles throughout the series. Saiyans, at least as adults, are resistant to extreme temperatures, far more so than humans, as evidenced by Bardock going into outer space to face Frieza for the last time, Broly surviving being frozen in a glacier, and Goku training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and facing Lord Slug’s minions when they and Lord Slug used a machine to cause the Earth’s climate to get very, very cold.
Sometimes when the OC is a Saiyan, but doesn’t know what they are the writer does a good job at hinting at their oddness without being too obvious about it. They point out how their dark hair doesn’t change, no matter what they do to style it. That they are naturally fit and strong without putting too much effort into it. However, that doesn’t mean that they are super powerful, just that they don’t have to strain as much when it comes to everyday things. Such as going up and down the stairs to bring in the groceries into the house without being out of breath. That they can walk a mile or two everyday to school or work without their feet and legs aching or breaking out in sweat. But if they were to push themselves to walk further or do more than they would feel the effects.
Or that they are oddly competitive when it comes to sports or they get into them which helps to burn their excessive energy. If the OC see something as a challenge they may not be able to resist taking it on because Saiyans are a naturally aggressive race that strive to get stronger. And when it comes to food the OC would eat a lot, but still stay the same fit shape. It’s not abnormal because some people do have fast metabolism, but it can be another hint that they are not what they seem.
But you might ask, what about the most obvious aspect of a Saiyan, their tail? If the OC isn’t a half-blood it’s usually explain away as it being removed when they were a baby. Usually by their adopted family and hence the OC might even know that piece of information. This happens a lot when the OC is in another universe, mostly one that’s the equivalent to the our – real world. Other times, the OC is on a planet with another race that may or may not know what a Saiyan is. If they do and they might decide to keep the OC identity a secret from themselves by removing the tail. Or in other cases, the OC keeps their tail but they’re never told the significance of it.
Speaking of which I do appreciate it when the writers don’t forget that the tail is a particularly sensitive area for Saiyans, especially if they haven’t trained it. So it would make sense that when grabbed or injured, it would cause a lot of pain to the owner, and temporarily immobilizes their body. There are some stories with OCs that do have their tail, but sadly the writer doesn’t point out that weakness. And if it isn’t a weakness, they don’t point it out either as to why it isn’t anymore.
Should a Saiyan lose their tail or decide to get it removed, I hope writers don’t forget that the tail also serves to help young Saiyans with balance. When Goku and Gohan’s tails were first removed, they had trouble standing, let alone walking or running afterwards. When Vegeta’s tail was cut off, his balance was unaffected (possibly due to the Saiyan soldier’s tails being wrapped around their hip, enabling them to adjust to their balance should they ever lose their tails).
Also, Saiyans from universe six are not as brutal and evil as compared to their universe seven counterpart (which is the universe that the fandom centers around). The Saiyans from universe six are not planet sharks and they are actually employed to stop evil beings. However, they are still a warrior race. The Saiyans in the universe six are also naturally born without tails because of the evolution process they underwent. So I hope that’s something writers will keep in mind if they plan to have a Saiyan OC that comes from that universe.
Another thing that I almost forgot to mention is how most Saiyans all look similar to each other. Bardock, Goku, and Goten aren’t just related, but according to Turles who also looks the same as them, is that their resemblance to each other is because it’s a characteristic of being a lower class breed of Saiyans. Even though Raditz and Gohan don’t take after their fathers, they do bore some resemblance to their mothers even though it’s not a common thing to happen. But it’s pretty cool when writers take that into consideration when it comes to their Original Characters that are Saiyans.
 DamnBlackHeart · Sun Jun 12, 2016 @ 08:49pm · 0 Comments |
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