Let’s Celebrate Goku Day (May 9th) By Talking About Goku’s History And Rise To Fame

Back in 2015, the Japanese Anniversary Association officially made May 9th “Goku” day.

The first half of Goku’s name represents the number 5. The other half “ku” represents the number 9.

That’s why it’s on the 9th of the 5th month (May).

So now that’s been made official, I thought it would be cool to do a post on it. About Goku’s history, how it all started, his rise to fame and how the Superhero, aka Super Saiyan has impacted the Anime industry.

So let’s get to it then.

 

Early beginnings for the young Saiyan warrior

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
Goku’s Saiyan Space Pod.

Dragon Ball Anime was first created in 1986.The Dragon Ball Manga was first created in 1984-1995.

And it starts off with Goku landing on planet Earth in a Saiyan Space Pod.

From there, he’s found by a man named Gohan.

At first Goku is destructive and violent (like a Saiyan naturally is), but then he falls off a rock and bumps his head. Loses his memory, and changes completely into a gentle/kind person.

And Gohan eventually adopts Goku as his own son throughout the DB series.

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
Goku And Grandpa Gohan.

 

And then came Dragon Ball Z

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
Goku and his brother – Raditz.

 

The Dragon Ball Z Anime series was then released in 1989.

And it kicks off with Goku’s brother – Raditz arriving on earth. And the series starts to mainly focus on Goku’s Saiyan history, past, and where he came from.

 

The Success of the Dragon Ball Franchise

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
How Goku would react in real life to the news.

The Dragon Ball manga by itself has sold over 240 million copies worldwide. And is now ranked the second best weekly shonen Manga of all time.

This data is from 2017.

And in 2007, Goku was ranked out of a survey as the strongest Manga character of all time. Boosting his popularity (and the franchise) even more.

And even the creators of Naruto and One Piece admitted that they took inspiration from Goku and the Dragon Ball franchise.

Dragon Ball Z on the other hand was ranked 50th greatest cartoon of all time (I know, it’s not a cartoon). And 78th best Animated show by IGN.

 

Taking it a step further

Since November 2014, Dragon Ball has sold over $5 billion worth of merchandise. Making it one of the most successful Anime’s that sell merchandise of all time.

And the Dragon Ball franchise is recognized as the reason why Japanese Anime ever gained global attention in the first place.

Also many movies like:

  • Broly he legendary Super Saiyan.
  • Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn.
  • Dragon Ball Z: Battle of the Gods.
  • Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection.

And so many others came about because of how successful the DB franchise became.

 

30+ Years later since the Dragon Ball franchise began

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
SS Blue Goku and Vegeta.

Now we have Dragon Ball Super, which was first released in 2015. Taking the Dragon ball franchise one step further in popularity, success and fame in the Anime industry.

And fans today are still as hardcore and dedicated as ever. After so many years into the future.

 

And it all started with one simple character – Goku.

Let's Celebrate Goku Day By Talking About His Rise To Fame
Goku – Dragon Ball Super.

Why Goku is such a great character:

  • He trains relentlessly, and is a perfect example of hard work.
  • Doesn’t judge anyone for who they are, where they come from or what they’ve done.
  • One of the most persistent/confident Anime characters out there.
  • Laid back/care free and does whatever it takes to become a better version of himself.

And I believe that’s part of why Goku has gained such massive recognition and fame in the Anime community. And as a fictional character in general.

Regardless of what Anime shows we like or don’t like. Or whether you hate or love the Dragon Ball franchise…

It’s hard to deny just how much of an impact it’s had on the entire Anime industry.

And not to mention what an impact Goku as a character has had on the Anime industry and business.

Just typing Goku’s name into Google search brings up over 62 million searches.

So I think Goku is deserving of all the credit he (and the dragon ball franchise) is given. For many reasons, including the reasons mentioned in this post.

What do you think? If you have any thoughts, share them.

 

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