Dragon Ball is known for its awesome fights and legendary characters, but fans sometimes forget how often those same characters make dumb choices. From Goku letting his own son fight Perfect Cell to giving Cell a Senzu Bean right before the battle, there are way too many times the world almost ended because someone acted out of pride or just wasn’t thinking. This article looks at 10 of the worst decisions made by Dragon Ball characters—choices that don’t make much sense and seem like they only happened to keep the story moving or to give Goku a tougher opponent.
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10. Vegeta Refusing to Help Goku with the Spirit Bomb
Saiyan Prince Vegeta is a warrior driven by pride and stubbornness, and that pride has caused him to make some extremely dumb decisions over the years. One such decision came during the Tournament of Power when Goku needed energy to power up the Spirit Bomb against Jiren.
While every other member of Universe 7 helped him, Vegeta refused because he didn’t want to share his power with his rival. Admittedly, it might not have changed the outcome, but this was extremely petty and selfish of Vegeta. However, he did have a change of heart later on and gave Goku his remaining energy before being eliminated.
9. Satan Challenging Cell
Mr. Satan has always been the king of ego and bluff, more worried about keeping his celebrity status than actually saving the world. But during the Cell Games, he took his ego to a whole new level by challenging Perfect Cell, a monster who had already crushed the Androids and the Z Fighters.
To think that a human being with zero Ki could even touch Cell is peak delusion, and only Satan could pull it off with a straight face. Of course, Cell swatted him away instantly like an annoying mosquito. While it’s meant to be a comedic moment, Mr. Satan is lucky he didn’t get vaporized on the spot. Somehow, he walked away with his life and his mustache intact.
8. Goku Letting Dr. Gero Live
After witnessing the destruction caused by the Androids in his timeline, Future Trunks risked everything to travel back in time and warn Goku and the Z Fighters about them. But true to his stupidity, Goku refused to act on the information. When Bulma suggests finding and stopping Gero before he makes the Androids, Goku shrugs it off and says he would rather fight them fair and square.
That one reckless decision gave birth to Androids 17 and 18—and paved the way for Cell, a walking nightmare who nearly wiped out the planet. All because Goku just had to get his next big fight, a phenomenon that has put everyone in danger time and time again.
7. Goku Forgets to Take His Heart Medicine
When Future Trunks traveled back in time, he warned Goku that a deadly heart virus would kill him shortly, allowing Earth to fall into the hands of the Androids. To stop that from happening, Trunks even handed him the medicine to survive. But Goku, being Goku, completely forgets to take it, putting himself and the world in grave danger.
As a result, he collapses during the fight against Android 19, forcing the other Z-Fighters to fight without their strongest warrior. Out of all the dumb decisions made in Dragon Ball history, forgetting your life-saving medicine and nearly dooming the planet ranks pretty high on the list.
6. Goku Giving Frieza Energy to Escape Namek
Goku has always been someone who loves a good fight and prefers not to kill his opponents. While that attitude works fine against normal enemies, it makes no sense when dealing with a genocidal maniac like Frieza. After everything Frieza did on Namek, including killing Krillin, Vegeta, and Dende, showing him mercy was plain absurd.
That decision immediately backfired on Goku as Frieza used the energy to start attacking him once again. This stupidly naive decision nearly cost Goku his life and left fans worldwide scratching their heads in disbelief. For once, Goku should’ve channeled his inner Vegeta and killed Frieza once and for all.
5. Frieza Attacking Goku While Injured
Frieza’s pride is unmatched, and he truly believes he’s superior to all other beings in the universe. So when Goku surpassed him by becoming the legendary Super Saiyan, Frieza simply couldn’t accept defeat. Even after being cut in half by his own attack, he refused to give up.
Goku, showing mercy, gave him some energy to escape Namek. But instead of using it to survive, Frieza tried to strike back—only to be killed by his own attack. His downfall is a perfect example of how pride can destroy even the most powerful.
4. Goku Teleporting Cell to King Kai’s Planet
When Cell self-destructed during the Cell Games, Goku made a snap decision to save Earth by teleporting Cell to King Kai’s planet. On the surface, it seemed noble—sacrificing himself to protect everyone else. But in execution, it was reckless. Goku didn’t ask King Kai or the others for consent, leading to their deaths in the explosion.
Worse still, the plan didn’t even work. Cell survived, regenerated thanks to his core, and came back stronger than before. Not only did Goku’s plan fail, but it also resulted in more deaths and gave Cell the chance to kill Gohan. While the intent behind the move was selfless, it was poorly thought out and executed. The consequences far outweighed the benefits. It’s a rare moment where Goku’s quick thinking did more harm than good, and it arguably prolonged the battle and increased the risk for everyone involved.
3. Vegeta Letting Cell Reach His Perfect Form
When Cell was still incomplete, Vegeta had the perfect chance to finish him off. But after Cell begged to absorb Android 18 and reach his final form, Vegeta allowed it just so he could face Cell at full power. Blinded by pride and overconfident in his own strength, he ignored the massive risk to Earth and let the enemy become nearly unstoppable.
Once Cell achieved his Perfect Form, he easily overwhelmed Vegeta and came close to destroying the planet. This reckless decision directly led to the Cell Games and countless deaths. It remains one of the clearest examples of Vegeta’s ego leading him to make one of the dumbest choices in the series.
2. Goku Giving Cell a Senzu Bean
One of the stupidest decisions that Goku ever made was giving Cell a Senzu Bean right before his fight with Gohan. He believed Gohan needed to face Cell at full power to unlock his hidden potential. But Goku failed to grasp that this wasn’t just any fight; it was a life-or-death battle for Earth’s survival.
If Gohan hadn’t transformed into Super Saiyan 2, the outcome could have been tragic for everyone involved. This moment shows how Goku’s obsession with fair fights often blinds him to what truly matters. He risked the fate of the entire world just to give his son a harder challenge—and possibly scar him for life.
1. Goku Convincing Zeno to Hold the Tournament of Power
What began as a casual suggestion turned into Goku’s worst mistake in the series to date. Wanting to face strong opponents from other universes, he pitched the idea of a multiverse tournament to Omni-King Zeno. Zeno made it a battle royale where losing universes would be completely erased from existence.
Billions of lives were put at risk simply because Goku wanted to fight the strongest warriors in the multiverse. Although Universe 7 won the tournament and the erased universes got restored, thanks to Android 17, Goku’s recklessness nearly doomed countless worlds just for the sake of his never-ending need to fight.
And that’s it, folks.
