| "Krillin, I'll protect Marron with my life! So go fight as much as you wish!"
— "How Dare You Do That To My Bulma! Vegeta's Metamorphosis of Fury?", Dragon Ball Super |
Yamcha (ヤムチャ, Yamucha) is a main protagonist in the Dragon Ball manga and in the anime Dragon Ball, and later a supporting protagonist in Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super, with a few appearances in Dragon Ball GT. He is a former boyfriend of Bulma and the lifelong best friend of Puar.
A former desert bandit, Yamcha was once an enemy of Goku, but quickly reformed and became a friend and ally.[11] Brave, boastful and dependable, Yamcha is a very talented martial artist and one of the most powerful humans on Earth, possessing skills and traits that allow him to fight alongside his fellow Z Fighters when major threats loom. Although he retired by the latter half of Dragon Ball Z, due to being largely outclassed by both his allies (namely the Saiyans) and their enemies, he is always present whenever a new threat approaches, and will occasionally lend a helping hand, thus proving himself to be a powerful ally in his own right.
Appearance[]
Yamcha's appearance changes throughout the series, mainly his clothes and hairstyle. Yamcha started out the series with long hair and bangs. After settling down in the city, he cut his hair to fit in. Later on, he would grow his hair out again and eventually cut short to a spikier hairstyle and completely short before outgrowing his hair once again. Several of Yamcha's hairstyles are also used by Gohan at various points in his life.[15] Another of Yamcha's most significant appearance changes were the mysterious scars he got sometime during his three years training for the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. According to Android 19's scanner, Yamcha is 183 centimeters tall and weighs 68 kilograms, during the Androids Saga.[4] The first kanji Yamcha has on his clothes 楽 (raku) stands for "comfort" or "easy"; there is no real meaning behind it other than he just enjoys being comfortable.[16] After training with Master Roshi, he takes the "turtle" or "Kame" kanji "亀" as a sign of respect. Later, after training with King Kai, he wears both "Kame and "Kai" kanji. He wears them the opposite way Goku did ("Kame" on the back and "Kai" on the chest), except in Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might where he wears the "Kai" kanji on the back and "Kame" on the chest.[17] Yamcha sometimes wears a white martial arts outfit with black trousers that bears a striking resemblance to the outfit worn by Bruce Lee during his fight with O'Hara in the film Enter the Dragon, as shown during one of his brief appearances in the Red Ribbon Army Saga and in the movie Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods (an outfit similar is also worn by Tsukutsun Tsun in the Dr. Slump remake). In the Majin Buu saga, Yamcha wears a yellow suit jacket along with a white long-sleeved shirt and wears yellow suit pants and black shoes. At the end of Dragon Ball Z and throughout Dragon Ball GT, Yamcha now has his hair long again and wears it in a ponytail and retains the same outfit that he wore in the Majin Buu Saga as his undershirt are now sleeveless.
In Dragon Ball Super, Yamcha's outfit is a white martial arts with gray trousers (which is the exact same attire he wore in the movie Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods). His hair is almost the same style as the one he had during the Saiyan Saga and Frieza Saga.
When Akira Toriyama decided to create Dragon Ball, he used Wu Cheng'en's Journey to the West as a prototype for his own series. Yamcha is most likely based on Sha Wujing, also known as Sha Seng and Sha Heshang, from this novel. Both are powerful bandits who are associated with sand, (Yamcha from a sandy desert, Sha from a sand river), who reform and join the heroes on their quest.
Personality[]
In Dragon Ball Super, it is revealed Yamcha actually has grown stronger and has been training. However, he uses his strength for baseball rather than fighting at this time. During the Universal Survival Saga, Yamcha overhears Goku and Gohan's conversation, which implies that his passion for fighting still lingers especially in the upcoming Tournament of Power (although he plans to refuse their offer at first and then show up at the last minute to make a flashy entrance). When learning that he wasn't picked as a member for the Universe 7 team, Yamcha doesn't take it personally and states to Puar, Oolong, and Bulma that the fate of the Universe is in their hands.
Biography[]
Dragon Ball Super[]
God of Destruction Beerus Saga[]
Some time after the battle with Majin Buu, Yamcha and Puar head towards Bulma's birthday, which is being held on a cruise ship, where they encounter Krillin, Android 18, and their daughter, Marron. They are also flying to get there, as it was taking too long driving in a car. Yamcha and Puar later encounter Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu on the ship. When Beerus arrives on the ship, Yamcha is one of the first to introduce himself to Lord Beerus. He exaggerates his power, proclaiming himself as the strongest one on the ship. He roughly slaps him on the back, which worries Vegeta that it might upset him, but Beerus just shrugs it off.
Yamcha joins the crowd of people when Beerus eats the octopus balls served to him by Krillin, with one containing wasabi. They chant him on, encouraging Beerus to take a bite. Yamcha then tells Krillin he will guard Marron with his life so he can go fight Beerus. Later, Yamcha joins several others as they board Bulma's space pod to get a better view of Goku and Beerus' fight. In the end, Beerus beats Goku, but he doesn't destroy the Earth because he falls asleep in the process.
Golden Frieza Saga[]
Yamcha in the second ending of Dragon Ball Super
Yamcha wasn't present at the battle against Galactic Frieza Army for unknown reasons. He was killed when Frieza blew up the Earth. This event is however reversed by Whis doing his Temporal Do-Over technique.
Universe 6 Saga[]
Yamcha is traveling with Goku and the rest of the gang to the Nameless Planet where the Universe 6 and 7 Gods of Destruction Selection Martial Arts Competition is being held and they're being taken there by Whis in his cube. After two hours and forty-
five minutes of traveling, they arrive on the Nameless Planet. Yamcha is a bystander and watches the tournament from the stands. He watches the first match between Goku and Universe 6's, Botamo. He is later shocked along with everyone else when Goku is defeated by Frost. During Vegeta's match with Cabba, Yamcha points out similarities between Cabba and a young Goku he fought when they first meet long ago. As Vegeta begins toying with Cabba, he shows some doubt that Vegeta has rid himself of all of his sinister qualities, but dismisses them once he realizes that Vegeta simply wanted to push the weaker Saiyan to increase his power. Yamcha then witnesses the entire tournament, and is present with the Z-Fighters as the wish with the Super Dragon Balls is made, and they all return to Earth.
Potaufeu Saga[]
Yamcha attends Bulma's Universe 7 victory party, and is tasked along with everyone else to keep Monaka's secret safe from Goku. After Goku fought with "Monaka" (Beerus wearing a Monaka costume), Yamcha accidentally points out Monaka passing out from the fight. After Goku sees that there are two Monakas the other Z-Fighters scorn Yamcha, and Beerus starts to grow angry, but calms down when Goku praises Monaka for having the ability to clone himself. The party then starts.
"Future" Trunks Saga[]
During the baseball game between Universe 6 and Universe 7, Yamcha takes over pitching after Goku was nearly ejected from the game due to destroying the field and Yamcha debuts a new technique for pitching, the Wolf Fang Pitching Fist, the speed of his Wolf Fang Fist with the controllability of the Spirit Ball and uses it to near effortlessly strike out Universe 6 for the 1st half of set 1, impressing everyone, especially Bulma who begins to flirt with Yamcha again. When Universe 7 steps up to bat with Yamcha up 1st, who mouths off to Vegeta that he will not lose to him in baseball, Vegeta; who along with Goten were filling in for the missing Hit and Frost of Universe 6, pitches the ball into Yamcha's ribcage and then berates both Yamcha and Bulma for flirting with each other. However this causes Yamcha to walk to 1st base, shocking Vegeta who thought the rules of baseball were to hit the opponent. Goku comes up to pitch next and both power up to Super Saiyan Blue(Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan). Vegeta pitches as hard as he can and is shocked when Goku begins to overpower his pitch, proclaiming that he put all of his power into it. When Vegeta begins to fire ki blasts into the ball to give it more power Yamcha makes a break for 2nd, which causes Vegeta to stop attacking Goku and overpowers Vegeta's pitch but is caught out by Botamo who throws the ball to Goten but misses him so Yamcha makes another break to 2nd base but is struck by both Champa and Vegeta at the same time but still made it to the base and allowed to stay due to being attacked. When Gohan hits the ball Yamcha makes a run to 3rd base but Champa again intervenes and stops Botamo from getting Gohan out and throws the ball at Yamcha, once again hitting him in the spine but Yamcha once again makes it to the base, proclaiming he will not lose at baseball weakly from the ground. Beerus gets mad at Champa for playing dirty and attacking Yamcha so the two gods begin to fight, with Goku recalling that if two gods of destruction fight all of the universe will be destroyed. Everyone runs to Bulma's shield in a attempt to protect themselves except for Yamcha, who bravely makes a dash for homebase during the ki barrage storm that was flying off of Beerus and Champa, which the blasts were destroying the entire area. Whis and Vados stop the fight, saying that it is taboo for Gods of Destruction to fight one another and called the game off saying Universe 7 won. When Champa asked why Vados points to home plate, revealing Yamcha successfully braved the ki barrage storm, winning the game for Universe 7, but was ironically laying inside the crater near death in the exact same pose from when he was blown up by a Saibaman many years ago. Krillin, Gohan and Piccolo all pointing it out as a bad memory. Yamcha weakly says that he is going to take a different kind of walk off and collapsed from his injuries.
Universe Survival Saga[]
At Capsule Corporation, Yamcha comes to visit right after Bulla is born and he asks to hold her. However, Bulla starts to cry as he makes a funny face and this enrages Vegeta into turning into Super Saiyan Blue. Yamcha overhears the conversation of Goku and Gohan about recruiting fighters for the Tournament of Power, and becomes convinced he will be recruited also, and heads home to wait for Goku to ask him. Yamcha is later seen at his house, rehearsing his lines of initially refusing to join them; and then show up at the last minute, all the while still waiting for Goku. Him and Puar are seen watching television in his bed until Master Roshi and Oolong arrive. Yamcha thinks Roshi is inviting him to join the team. The Turtle Hermit asks for Yamcha to tell Puar to transform into a young woman in order to overcome his perverted antics for the Tournament of Power; in the meantime Yamcha asks Oolong if he is still getting recruited and the latter responds with a "maybe". At Capsule Corporation, Yamcha, Puar, and Oolong is watching the fighters of U7 leave. Yamcha mentions that the universe's fate is in their hands.
Peaceful World Saga[]
Ten years after Kid Buu's defeat, Yamcha is seen along with the rest of the Z Fighters at the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament and witnesses the emergence of Uub, the good, human reincarnation of Kid Buu. Yamcha is said farewell to by Goku, just before he takes off with Uub to his village to train him.
Other Dragon Ball stories[]
Dragon Ball FM[]
Supervillain Yamcha Saga[]
Yamcha turns Supervillain
Yamcha is enhanced by the dark magic of the Demigra. When merely corrupted by the Dark Magic his power is greatly increased beyond what Yamcha was capable of at that moment in history, able to stand toe to toe with Adult Gohan, Piccolo, Tien, SSB Vegeta and SSBKK Goku at the same time, with Vegeta commenting that a single blow from Yamcha was capable of knocking a fighter of Gohan's caliber out cold. After being defeated, Yamcha revives shaving off life to increase power and undergoes the Supervillain transformation. In this form Yamcha easily defeats and kills Krillin, Piccolo, Tien and Vegeta. Goku needed to master Super Saiyan Blue and use kaioken x10 to finally defeat Yamcha. Yamcha then apologises for killing his friends.
Later he finds out that he still has a Supervillain transformation but it is little weaker than before.
Hell Gates Saga[]
Yamcha fights Hyper Perfect Cell in his Supervillain form and easily defeats him. He later saves Piccolo from Splinter and Neo Ginyu Force with the help of Gohan and Grell. Later he gets beaten by Demigra but saved from death by Gohan who transforms into Super Saiyan White and kills him.
Universe Survival Saga[]
Yamcha on the poster of Universe Survival Saga
He is chosen as one of the ten fighters fighting in the Tournament of Might for the fate of Universe 7. In his Supervillain form he eliminates Japono, Koke and Kokor with Super Buu's help and Shida, Hana, Cyborg version of himself, Dayu, Strike and Crimson alone. He gets eliminated by Osore of Universe 11.
Conspiracy and Survival Saga[]
Yamcha fights for the survival of Universe 7 with his friends against Obscurio, Luminous, their fusion Saiko and 1000 angels. He defeats 70 angels with ease in his Supervillain form and then trains for one day (year) inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. He then charges at Saiko unknowing his true power and gets stabbed into stomach. He later lets Gohan absorb him to defeat Saiko once and for all. Then he gets saved from the erasure by Zen-oh as Wolfy writes him off.
List of characters killed by Yamcha[]
- Shu's Dog Patrol - He kills them with series of punches and kicks.
- Saibamen - In The Case of Being Reincarnated as Yamcha, Yamcha is the one to kill the Saibamen.
- Nappa - In The Case of Being Reincarnated as Yamcha, Yamcha is the one to kill Nappa, finishing him with a Kamehameha.