I'm Just "Saiyan"

Writing about this, I couldn’t be happier to let my geek out! I was 7 years old when searching through Mexico’s channel 5, I came across a show that would forever leave an impression on me. Back then, the show didn’t seem like a whole lot. It was just a boy with spiky hair, a tail and a staff. He would fight bad guys and live adventures with his friends, a little bald guy and a girl with blue hair. This main character always stood up for the ones that couldn’t defend themselves. The boy named Goku fought evil characters with the martial arts techniques he learned from an old man who wore a turtle shell.

As I grew up, so did this little guy. He eventually became one of the top fighters in the world martial arts tournament and saved the planet from evil tyrants. This is where my interest piked, and I knew I wanted to be just like that character! A new show aired where Goku was now older and had a family. But that wasn’t just it! His power level had changed. He was stronger and he seemed to have more abilities such as flying and being able to use his Ki to power up. Him along with others were able to channel their energy to form powerful blasts to create big explosions. But I don’t want to describe the show, I want to express why to this day, I still reference this anime and the Saiyans.

This character Goku is from another planet and not a descendent of the human race. He comes from planet Vegeta and from a race called Saiyans. This specific race is meant to be of ruthless warriors who have special abilities such as flying, powering up and blast energy from their hands, along with incredible strength. But that’s not it! The Saiyans can reach a power level beyond their limit. At first the show called it a legend, but Goku, the character I described in the beginning broke that barrier and made the legend possible. But how?! So, in the show he becomes this legendary Super Saiyan when his best friend was killed, his son was in danger and a whole planet was in chaos. He used his anger to tap into his inner strength which gave him inconceivable power and ability to reach the level of the legendary Super Saiyan. As the show continues in seasons, he fights many foes and with each he becomes stronger and keeps bursting through his own limits. Goku takes that legendary warrior to a new level each time. This outstanding character eventually reaches levels of a god according to the show. But not only that, he goes even beyond that power level. So powerful that even the gods in the anime give him a stand innovation!

So why exactly am I so fascinated by this? Well, there’s a pattern I noticed throughout the show. This character along with the others from the Saiyan race, would have to get pushed beyond their limits to reach new levels of strength. The warriors would become stronger after healing from fights and fed off each other’s desire to reach new stages. The more battles they fought, new challenges they faced, or new techniques they learned, they became stronger breaking their own limits. I knew then, it would become my motivation for so much! I know how ridiculous this sounds but, it’s the truth! I no longer was a fan of the show because of these awesome graphics and animation. I was looking deeper into it and used the show to learn that every limit is meant to be broken. That if we’re comfortable, we are not growing, if we settle, how do we know how far we can make it?! When I’m at the gym weight training, or even when I’m doing cardio running, I always tell myself. “We’re going to go super Saiyan” or “today I’m going to go beyond super Saiyan”. It’s ok you can totally laugh, because as I’m writing this, I’m thinking to myself while laughing, “I can’t believe you’re actually exposing yourself like that.” But I know that when I say those silly phrases, I’m really telling my mind, “We’re going to go past our limit and tap into that force, channel it and make things happen.”

In my generation, this show and characters from this specific race made a huge impact in the fitness industry. Not only are the characters made out to be in top shape. They also show them getting back up every time they’re defeated. Merchandise such as motivational videos, t-shirts with quotes, and even whole outfits have been made to honor this shows impact in the industry.

One of my favorite things about the main character Goku is the love for his friends and family. His big motivation to always be better is them. He trains to protect them and to make sure they’re out of harm’s way. Goku’s character is so positive and influential that his greatest foe became his best ally. In fact, even more sensationally powerful, the character named Frieza who had such anger and despised Goku so dearly, recognized him as a character who was stubborn at not giving up and admired his willpower to always become stronger. He eventually joined him in a final battle who left all the die-hard fans with jaws dropped because the protagonist and antagonist had joined forces.

As you can tell, I’m one of those fans that would not miss the show! And to this day, before any big event, or gym training, I’ll take a few minutes and watch motivational videos of Goku breaking his limits. I know it’s silly! But as I mentioned earlier, it’s not necessarily the anime, it’s the deep message that comes with it. That we can always achieve everything we fight for. Our battles in life can only make us stronger and better regardless of wins or losses. Stepping out of the comfort zone is what we all need to do to move towards our envision. And of course, patience and limitless practice will assure our success.

Two great examples that immediately come to mind are work and working out. At work I always looked for the person who was the best at the job. Full of questions and intrigued by how they reached that level of expertise, I would submerge myself in learning. Even out of work I’d practice, and practice, and practice some more until I reached their capacity. At the gym, I observe to see who’s the best person I can learn from to reach my personal goals. Or, plain and simple, who will be the one who pushes me past my own limit.

So you see, even though this anime is nothing but fantasy, there’s a learning aspect to it. Akira Toriyama, the creator of this popular anime, is living proof of the concept that inspire me to write about the Saiyans. In 1977, Toriyama entered his first manga (graphic novel) contest in the Monthly Young Jump Award. The first-place winner was awarded 100,000 yen. Whoever took the prize would also be given a promotion to jump start their career. Akira walked away from the contest empty handed but, that spark to create such content immediately turned into a big torch. He might have lost that competition, but he continued to practice his designs and novels to create better ones. He was such a perfectionist that he would draw the same scene over and over until it looked right. Kazuhiko Torishima, an editor at Jump, took notice of Toriyama’s work. With Torishima’s advice and guidance, Toriyama began to see his mangas beginning to grow in popularity. His work was selling rapidly all over Japan. Eventually this led to the creation of Dragon Ball which in 1984, when it became serialized, it turned out to be the second best-selling manga in the entire world. Toriyama never imagined that his art would be such a hit, turning it into one of the biggest franchises in the world.

The creator of Dragon Ball and the Saiyan race, knew exactly what he was doing when he made the main character be a tough fighter and a one who never gave up. Along with all the aficionados out there, I’m a big fan of Akira for giving everyone a look at these important lessons without a lecture. The Saiyans might not be a real race, but I think we can all learn that going beyond what we set as boundaries, is necessary to grow. Losing needs to happen in order to feel the joys of winning, and to make us analyze what we need to do different to get there. Now you know, that my fascination for the show and the Saiyans isn’t because I’m an anime lover. As a matter of fact, it’s the only anime I’ve ever been interested in. My fixation for the show derives from the characteristics of Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, and all the other Saiyans who take no for an answer, sacrifice all to succeed, and stand back up when they’re down. If you’re familiar with the show, you know exactly what I mean. If not, I highly recommend watching it and seeing for yourself how the Saiyans have influential unique characteristics and the show/manga has lessons to teach the world.