Dragon Ball Super Saiyan Forms, Explained

Here's an overview of the Super Saiyan forms introduced throughout the Dragon Ball franchise, including some of their minor and obscure variants.

Super Saiyan is one of the most significant things to come out of the Dragon Ball franchise. It was already awe-inspiring when Goku realized the legend in his climactic battle with Frieza in Dragon Ball Z. However, once the Cell Saga opened up the idea of new levels of Super Saiyan, that started a trend nobody could have expected. Super Saiyans 2 and 3 are remembered as the primary forms to come out of that ideology, but they were only scratching the surface.

There are a lot of Super Saiyan transformations throughout the Dragon Ball Franchise. Dozens of them exist between the anime, movies, games, manga, and other media. Many of them are only slight variations on the primary forms that no one would think about, but each of them has a subtle charm that gets fans excited. This is all to say nothing of the thrill of seeing a Saiyan attain a form they didn't have before (like Vegeta becoming a Super Saiyan God). Whether a Super Saiyan form is well-known or obscure, just hearing the name is enough to stir something in fans. With that in mind, here are all the Super Saiyan variations anyone will ever need to know about - at least until the next ones are introduced.

The Original Super Saiyan

The initial Super Saiyan transformation gives the user 50 times their power. It spikes up the Saiyan's hair and gives it a golden glow with a matching golden aura. This form has several variations even before the transition to the next level. Goku and the other Saiyans found several new grades of Super Saiyan in their search for a means to ascend in the Cell Saga. Vegeta and Trunks discovered muscle-bound Powerhouse forms that pushed their power to new heights in exchange for speed; Vegeta only went up to the Second Grade to maintain his speed, but Trunks, not understanding the trade-off, went up to the Third Grade. Goku and Gohan achieved Super Saiyan Full Power (AKA Fourth Grade), which became the standard variant. Eventually, all these forms were rendered obsolete when even more powerful transformations were discovered.

The anime also introduced more subtle variations of Super Saiyan. The fourth DBZ movie, Lord Slug, had Goku transform into what the anime assumed a Super Saiyan would look like. However, once the official Super Saiyan transformation was revealed in the manga, the form in Lord Slug was renamed Pseudo Super Saiyan. There's also a partial manifestation of Super Saiyan known as Super Saiyan Power! This form gives the user all the visual attributes of a Super Saiyan, except the hair color change. This form is only briefly shown as a Saiyan becoming a full-on Super Saiyan, but Goku notably used it in the Other World Saga.

There are a few more variations of the initial Super Saiyan form that have been introduced throughout the franchise, but they're best discussed as part of the other transformations and power-ups they're associated with. With that in mind, here is how the form has been altered and improved upon over the course of the franchise.

Super Saiyans 2, 3, and 4

Super Saiyan 2 was a considerable follow-up to Super Saiyan. Even if it only doubled the power of the user (as opposed to Super Saiyan's 50X multiplier), to attain it was to ascend and become a Super Saiyan among Super Saiyans. Again, Goku and the other Saiyans went through various new grades of Super Saiyan to break the barrier. However, Gohan was the only one with the potential to push himself to the next level (initially). This form is recognized by its spikier hair and sparks of electricity.

Super Saiyan 3, while four times stronger than Super Saiyan 2, was considered a downgrade by many. The way it burned through the user's energy reserves made the lesser forms of Super Saiyan more practical for drawn-out battles. Regardless, fans still think this is one of the better Super Saiyan forms aesthetically because of its longer hair, lost eyebrows and pronounced brow ridge.

Dragon Ball GT introduced another fan-favorite in Super Saiyan 4. This form has several distinguishing features, including red fur, long black hair, yellow eyes, red outlines around the eyes, and a tail. It makes Saiyans ten times stronger than Super Saiyan 3 and doesn't come with the energy-draining drawback. Whatever people think of GT, many agree that Super Saiyan 4 was one of its best contributions to the Dragon Ball franchise.

There are a few more noteworthy forms associated with Super Saiyan 4. Before attaining this form, Goku and Vegeta became Great Apes with a Super Saiyan transformation called a Golden Great Ape. Xeno Goku and Vegeta also found Super Full Power Saiyan 4 Limit Break in the Super Dragon Ball Heroes canon; this form is obtained by having the energy of several other strong Saiyans transferred into them; this form gives them magenta fur (and aura), crimson hair, and even some of the whitish hues commonly associated with Ultra Instinct.

Super Saiyan God and Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan

Super Saiyan God, despite its name, is more of a variation of a Saiyan's base form than any Super Saiyan transformation. It doesn't spike up the user's hair like Super Saiyan, but it does change it to a deep red, along with their eyes and aura. The muscles also become smaller, despite the form granting more power than even Super Saiyan 3. This form is ideally attained by funneling the energy of five Super Saiyans into one, but it can also be earned with the necessary training. Any Saiyan who gets a feel for godly ki like this can also channel it into the rest of their Super Saiyan forms.

The proper melding of godly Ki and Super Saiyan results in a new transformation formally called Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan (Super Saiyan Blue for short). This form takes the Super Saiyan God transformation and applies Super Saiyan's multipliers to it. It looks like a Super Saiyan, but the eyes, hair, and aura are all blue. Saiyans can obtain this form by taking their godly ki and preventing it from leaking. Fans theorize that this form can be pushed further into Super Saiyan Blue 2 and 3.

However, there are canon variants of Super Saiyan Blue that exist. When Vegeta tried to push himself to a new level, he ended up with Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan Evolved; this form adds an extra layer of blue. The manga also introduced perfected Super Saiyan Blue, which takes the principle for becoming a Super Saiyan Blue and refines it to its limit; the result is a complete lack of aura flowing out of the user. Goku Black also found a variant color scheme for the form he dubbed Super Saiyan Rosé, though it's not known to make the user any stronger than Super Saiyan Blue; it gives the user pink hair, gray eyes, and a dark purple aura with red and black outlines.

Other Super Saiyan Transformations

There are a few more noteworthy Super Saiyan variations, starting with Broly's (and Kale's). He has a form known as the Legendary Super Saiyan, which grants unimaginable strength in exchange for his sanity. It also engorges his muscles, whites out his eyes, and turns his hair and aura green instead of gold. Broly's odd form comes with a few more subvariants of Super Saiyan. He used Super Saiyan A-Type to turn his hair purple or blue when he first fought Goku in the eighth DBZ movie named after him. In the tenth movie, Broly: Second Coming, he became a Super Saiyan C-Type, which resembles the standard Super Saiyan transformation. He can also turn into a Legendary Super Saiyan 2, 3, and 4 in media like Dragon Ball Heroes.

Future Trunks never made it past the Super Saiyan form, but he did find something called Super Saiyan Rage. This form has properties of transformations above Super Saiyan, like electrical sparks and a godly aura. Most media refer to Future Trunks in this state as Super Trunks.

Super Dragon Ball Heroes also introduced Super Saiyan (Berserk). This form corrupts Super Saiyan and its variants with Evil Aura and causes them to go on a rampage. Some Saiyans like Vegeta can tame the Evil Aura; he specifically became a Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan (Controlled Berserk) by doing this.

Several hybrid transformations combine Super Saiyan with some other technique or power-up. Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan is technically one of these, but there are others. Spirit Bomb Super Saiyan was acheived when Goku absorbed the Spirit Bomb in Super Android 13. He can also mix Super Saiyan with the Kaio Ken. Cumber can use his evil aura to become an Evil Saiyan-- Super Saiyan. Perfect Cell used a variation of the Powerhouse form against Gohan called Power-Weighted. Baby became a Tuffleized Super Saiyan in Vegeta's body; this form was further evolved into Strongest Form 1 and 2. Dragon Ball Heroes also gave Super Saiyan a Dark Dragon Ball enhancement for characters like Xeno Bardock and the Future Warrior in Black. Demon Realm Race hybrids like Mira and Fu can also become a variant of Super Saiyan with red eyes and spiked hair.

Video Game Super Siayan transformations

The video games have a few more miscellaneous forms, that are variations on pre-existing Super Saiyan forms. They include GT Super Saiyan, Super Vegeta, Super Vegeta 2, Future Super Saiyan, and Super Saiyan (Special Move). The only differences in these transformations are their in-game functionality. Villainous Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan 2 were also introduced to the Xenoverse games.

New Super Saiyan forms will likely continue to appear for as long as Dragon Ball continues as a franchise. New additions will no doubt be welcomed by fans, as they continue to expand on the lore and mythos of the overall Dragon Ball universe.