Pinkie’s “What If Raditz Turned Good” Chapter 1

It is no secret anymore that I am a huge Dragon Ball fan. I consume just about everything that is covered with those fish egg coloured wishing orbs. This includes the amazing Dragon Ball Z Abridged and the stories of that goku’s voice actor Masoko X. He made a great point telling us Goku’s brother Raditz was completely wasted in the show and wrote a story to keep him in the fold. It is an amazing story that has given me so much joy that I decided to give this scenario a retelling of my own.

The Power of Memories

The story of Dragon Ball Z would begin much like it would in the original. We would see the iconic farmer with the shotgun scene and Goku and Raditz first meeting at Kame house would also go exactly the same. Well… not exactly the same. There is one difference. In the recent Broly movie we see Raditz speaking about his little brother. While dismissive there is some sort of empathy there.. it’s not much.. a kindle at best but seeing the crying Gohan would briefly spark a memory in Raditz.. a memory of his crying brother with a power level of 2.

This memory on it’s own would not do much and Raditz doesn’t show this emotion towards the group but when he takes Gohan away and flies off into the distance he can be seen frowning. Remembering how his little brother was send off moments before his planet was  destroyed. He always had doubts about the meteor story since Bardock.. in the new cannon is shown to have his own doubts about Frieza. It is more than likely he would have shared these with his son. He can not prove it.. but he always felt there was more to this story. Seeing his race now live on in the form of this hybrids those doubts begin to gnaw at him once more. However since Frieza is such an insurmountable force, he quickly dismisses the thoughts as a figment of his imagination. Yet he is slightly less rough in the way he locks Gohan into his pod.

The Double Battle Against Raditz

Back at Kame House Goku and Piccolo unite to fight this high powered menace that has suddenly shown up. They would move forward towards his pods location and the fight would proceed as usual with Raditz dominating the fight. However everything would change when Gohan suddenly gets his rage boost.”Leave My Daddy alone” he would yell as his power skyrockets, headbutting Raditz and breaking his armor. In the original this would lead to Goku being able to grab his tail and Raditz into deceiving him.. this time the young boy has changed his mind.

“What was that” he asked cringing with his tale still held into a grapple”. Tricking Goku in the original by feigning compliance this time, this time Raditz actually calms down and grows cooperative. The power surge that just happend, could that perhaps solve his people’s bigger problems? Could this boy be the key to their freedom? Raditz never fully believed this story, in this timeline and we see actual proof in the main story. While Vegeta is shocked to learn the truth..he really deals with it within seconds.. as if somewhere he already knew. That alongside his hertigage makes me think such an action from Raditz has some merrit to it.

Lore and Legends

The older Saiyan would surrender to Goku, crushing his scouter before he begins to explain. That he and the other two and last remaining Saiyans work for a galactic tyrant named Frieza. While Piccolo is mistrusting of the man and wants to kill him he is stopped by Goku who takes interest in this tale. The idea of fighting someone that mighty.. that is stronger than anyone in this world facinates the man who’s motivations has always to be strong fighters. Raditz tells Piccolo that he could easily stop them with their power level.. if he wished. Saying his mistrust is foolish Namekian. We get some lore on the Saiyans and of the Namekians as well..but his story would mostly be about how terrible Frieza is how regardless of the outcome of this fight this man will eventually enslave everyone. Yet then he brings up.. a certain legend.

Raditz does believe that the Saiyans one day will take down Frieza, he spent a lot of time with Vegeta after all.. putting him in place as low class warrior. While initially Vegeta claims the legend of the Super Saiyan to be nothing but a legend, he is very familiar with i and connects it from basically nothing. Gohan displayed a surge of uncontrollable rage power right there. Having much more connection to the myth. As the son of Bardock.. a proud Saiyan who was very skilled at employing what is available to you and versed in Saiyan Lore.. Raditz should be able to connect the dots. This time he does. Explaining how the power of that young boy might be connected to Legendary Super Saiyan.

A plan for all Saiyans

Goku initially gets super excited about the idea of there being such strong fighters in the galaxy and how his son could be key to a new sort of power accesible to his “race” that he just discovered about. Piccolo snaps some sense into him telling Goku this man is asking Goku to put his son at a terrible risk. Goku gets scared and cries out “Chichi is gonna kill us”

Raditz frowns and asks “What is A Chichi, my scouter said you are the two highest power levels” Goku begins to explain and we see come cutaways how they met and got married. A small clipshow to make viewers aware there was a show before this. Raditz tells Goku he would blow anyone away who stands in the way of stopping Frieza. Goku simply says.. “no no.. we don’t do that around here… we might just need the Dragon Balls to convince her…. oh whoops”

Raditz learns about the Dragon Balls immediately recognizing their potential and has another request a wish that might be able to stop the Saiyans , who of course are still coming. His first plan is to show them Gohan’s potential.. or discover what technique he used to raise his power THAT much. iF they are not able to get strong enough these wishing orbs could proof that Frieza is behind the destruction of Planet Vegeta.. which could most likely convince Vegeta to fight against the tyrant. Who is about 10 times stronger than him. The Tyrant Frieza surpasses that guy by at least 50 times.

Convincing Chichi

Goku and his brother now have to convince Chichi to let Gohan train with them which goes about as well as expected. “What about his studies? Our boy should be a doctor, under no circumstances Gohan can go.. you are not putting our boy in danger”  While Goku gets all nervous at Chichi’s behaviour Raditz is much less intimidated. He is used to verbal abuse and people talking trash. He’ll have non of it.

He begins with telling her how Saiyans raise their kids.. explaining she can’t suppress his nature. She defends with how training is not something for a young boy to do. Raditz counters “My Brother just told me he met you while training, if you or he had not been fighters Gohan would not even haf existed’. This reminds Chichi of her “warrior” days and weakens her resolve.

Raditz tells about all the terrible things he has done in Frieza’s name.. not sparing any details. She can not let that happen to her Gohan. Raditz embalishes a bit.. saying that someone with as much potential as Gohan will never be save from a man like that.. if he doesn’t train this planet will most likely be destroyed. In truth .. he only suspects this to be remotely true but anything to further his cause. He also reluctantly tells her that the prince of their entire race would owe Gohan, giving it just enough prestige to make it more appealing to Chichi.

“He can train but only if you let him do his homework, he needs a proper job when he grows up’. “I bet Prince Vegeta will reward you so handsomely for your help you, your son or his son’s son would not have to worry about money ever again. Raditz smirks as he just screwed Vegeta over with such a propmiss. Somewhat reluctantly..but this time permanently Chichi accepts her sons heritage and grand future. While I get the over protective mother sentiment, the whole world of Dragon Ball resolves around fighting and she was raised into it to an extent. So it should be way easier to convince Chichi than Goku made it.. especially this early on. Raditz numerical approach would help greatly.

Training and new Techniques

Meanwhile Piccolo takes it upon himself to train up the other Z-Fighters In true Toriyama style they get relegated to the background , quite a bit faster this time though training under Piccolo will give them quite a level boost when it comes before the epic showdown. Piccolo would also get a lot stronger from his training with stronger fighters than Gohan. Yet it would also mean that Piccolo hasn’t fully abandoned his plan to kill Goku with the Special Beam Cannon yet.. if this Frieza is emperor of the galaxy and they could get strong enough to defeat him.. by killing the people who killed him he might be able to rule the galaxy himself. ..A thought reminiscent of his father.. that he now can not shake as well as before. Turning him into a rather merciless trainer.. only improving the Z-Fighters gains further.

Training at Kami like normally first Gohan keeps being very afraid of Raditz hindering their training when Kami has an idea. Using the same sort technique he once used on the Z-Fighters in a filler episode to let them fight against Saiyans of the past he uses this same strategy on Gohan, Goku and Raditz. Hoping that seeing the seriousness  of all will make Gohan get over his fear. Much like in the original the group the scenario is basically an unwinnable one. Unlike in the original this illusion is made   more in the vain of the Kobayashi Maru scenario from Star Trek where a captain has to  learn how to cope with that fear of certain defeat.

However this goes not as Kami and the others would have expected. While Raditz gets taken out first he does manage to seriously damage the fake historic saiyans. Gohan paralyzed with fear sees his father taken down while trying to protect Gohan he manages to take down Scarface . Shorty then cruelly  guns down a weakened Goku with a beam technique. This causes Gohan to snap again.. his power rising to new levels taking out the second saiyan. Breaking out the illusion Kami walks in surprised that they actually won. Raditz inquires about Gohan’s power boost  againg. Praticing Kii sense himself. Kami is unsure what Gohan’s rage boost is as well.. but as Raditz describes it as Gohan’s power level multiplying many times over the old Namekian says  he might know of a power like that.

Raditz scolds at the man for being so mysterious and that he should speak up. Kami ensures him that learning it would be quite impossible as they would have to travel to King Yemma and beyond which is normally only accesible if you are dead. “Goku blurts out that if Babba can cross people over from the dead to the world of the living the other way might be possible as well, they could ask this King Yemma to be there longer train. Kami sighs and says ‘Very well.. I shall tell you.. it is a technique called the Kaio-Ken’

And this is where  our story ends for now. A young boy with mysterious powers, recruits an ally stronger than ever before..but also might spell doom for the entire planet. Will Goku and his family be allowed to train in the after life? Will Raditz be able to convince the evil saiyans? What will become of Piccolo? FInd out the next time on :

Dragon Ball Pinkie!