The special thing about the Saiyans from the anime Dragon Ball is their different Super Saiyan forms. The Super Saiyan 3 (SSJ3) is the first in the series where the appearance changes drastically. However, originally the SSJ3 was not supposed to differ so much from the previous Super Saiyan levels.
What is the Super Saiyan 3?
- The level can only be reached by those who have previously attained SSJ and SSJ2 and have trained hard for years.
- The first Saiyan to show this level in the anime is Son-Goku. Gotenks, the fusion of Son-Goten and Trunks, remains the second and last Saiyan in the anime to transform into an SSJ3.
- The Saiyans suddenly get a huge, blonde mane on their heads. In return, they lose their eyebrows.
- In return, the eyebrow area slightly protrudes and the gaze becomes darker than usual.
- The SSJ3 was rarely seen in the anime. Even rarer was the Saiyan power manifested.
However, the design that we know of the Super Saiyan 3 is not what the creator of Dragon Ball originally planned. Akira Toriyama actually wanted a more subtle design for the SSJ3, which we now know thanks to a look at the original drawing.
Presumably, the SSJ3 will not make an appearance in Dragon Ball Daima next year. You can see the trailer for the anime here:
This is how the Super Saiyan 3 could have looked
In an original drawing, the original SSJ3 and the level appearing in the anime are shown side by side. On the left is the form that Akira Toriyama actually envisioned for the transformation. On the right is the one we know from the anime.
If Toriyama had stuck to his original idea, the transformation would have oriented itself more towards the first two levels. The hair has only become a bit longer and still looks spiky. Also, it appears that the hair does not have lost its eyebrows.
The artist nicolasrivas920 took the original sketch and created a version of the SSJ3 as it might appear in color in the anime:
In the image, it is noticeable that Son-Goku would have looked less threatening through the original design. The artist may have ultimately chosen the design with the missing eyebrows to make Son-Goku appear more mature and powerful.
The jump to SSJ4 is again substantial: The hair of the Saiyans turns black again and they possess a monkey tail. The version in the anime actually does not come from Akira Toriyama, but from another artist.
Outside the anime series, the Super Saiyan 3 has also been seen in films like Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn or Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon. In addition, he has made several appearances in various video games, including the Budokai series and Dragon Ball Heroes.
Are you looking forward to more episodes of Dragon Ball? Then you should check out the new anime Dragon Ball Daima, which will be released in 2024:
Dragon Ball: New series of the cult anime starts in 2024 and lets Son-Goku and Vegeta shrink again
