HAPPY NEW YEARS! Hey guys! So, it's been awhile since I've done any kind of blog, and now doesn't seem like the best time to do one — given our lack of an actual community — but hey, new year, so why not? When you think Dragon Ball, what's one of the first things that pops into your head?
Not even beating around the bush here, the Kamehameha is the most iconic attack in all of shōnen anime, beating out even other classics like the Spirit Gun by miles. It codified the essence of a shōnen attack, perhaps in no small part by simply expanding on what the Hadōken from Street Fighter can do. Regardless, love it or hate it, the Kamehameha is here to stay! So I wanted to do a blog: Top 11 Kamehamehas. Why Top 11? Because I like to go one-step beyond.
Beforehand, let me remind you that this is by no means pulling from some official ranking; these are all my own personal opinion, so take that with you before reading. I'll only be pulling from the manga and Dragon Ball Super anime for these moments, so don't get on my case if movie attacks aren't here.
11. Son Gokū's First Kamehameha[]
It's fitting that the weakest Kamehameha on this list would also be the lowest. I'm not sure how many American fans remember this scene, because not a lot of Americans got into the original Dragon Ball when it first hit the West. But to those of us — Japanese fans and American fans who experienced the series as it was intended — this moment is small, but iconic. Just after seeing Muten Rōshi utterly wreck a mountain with this technique, Gokū turns around and performs the same technique without any kind of explanation, and fires one off successfully. We tend to forget that mimicry and instantly learning a skill goes as far back as the original Dragon Ball, and little Gokū was the first to show us how it was done. This Kamehameha right here was Gokū's first step down the road to greatness, and we love it for it.
10. Turning Kamehameha[]
Do you remember, back in the day, when battles in the series contained strategy, and clever, on the fly solutions to problems mid-battle? Well, I do, and the Turning Kamehameha is one of those moments of genius on Gokū's part. He first unveiled this blast against Piccolo Daimaō in Dragon Ball, and later used it again on Raditz during the second half of the manga, to varying degrees of effectiveness each time. The simplicity is its genius, with Gokū controlling the path of the beam by bending it, allowing him to nearly ensure the blast hits the target. It's honestly a tragedy we don't see this one more often.
9. Super Black Kamehameha[]
I love this one solely for the delivery on the part of Masako Nozawa in the Japanese version of the series. How she had Black deliver this line was utterly brilliant; she voiced it differently than how she has Gokū or Gohan recite the incantation for the technique, and every syllable sells it. It was low, it was threatening, and it was laced with killing intent. The pink colour, accented by the black in the centre of the sphere, seasoned by the best vocal delivery of a Kamehameha in the series to date? It was that scene that made anyone lose the right to criticise Nozawa for her voicework, and if I had to go on my favorite Kamehameha by voicework alone, it would be this one.
Don't mess it up, Schemmel.
8. Kamehameha Boost[]
Another clever manoeuvre on Gokū's part, though it has been used to great effect by Muten Rōshi as well. In the early Dragon Ball series, flying did not factor in. To avoid ring outs in the Tenka-Ichi Budōkai, one had to make clever use of their ki or other physical traits to avoid losing a match by technicality. This Kamehameha proved useful in that regard, but it was perhaps at its best when Gokū used it to propel himself into Tenshinhan during their battle in the Tenka-Ichi Budōkai, landing a solid and powerful headbutt. Pity it wasn't enough to win Gokū the match, or a higher spot on this list.
7. Kamehameha from the Feet[]
There is a lot of Dragon Ball — or rather, a lot of the manga's first half — on this list, but what can I say? I love that part of the series the best, and Toriyama put more thought into the series then than he does now. During his match with Piccolo Jr., Gokū, for some reason, either concealed his ability to fly, or learned it right before nearly dying. So he had to make clever substitutions to make up for the lack of flight. The Kamehameha from the Feet was one of them, allowing Gokū to propel himself upward while leaving his hands free. It was such a brilliant tactic that even Rōshi was impressed, and Piccolo sure as hell didn't see it coming.
6. Teleportation Kamehameha[]
Look! It's the first winner from the second half of the manga — Dragon Ball Z — and it certainly won't be the last one on this list! Gokū's battle with Cell was brutal, hard-fought, full of anime filler but also some really solid fighting. Gokū knew he couldn't win but he brought his all to the table and it showed. This Kamehameha was utterly brilliant. Bluffing everyone, Gokū charged a Super Kamehameha right at the planet, and before he let the blast loose, he teleported, reappearing in front of Cell and killing him. Based on later manga dialogue that has neither been adjusted nor fixed, this should have been enough to kill Cell, but he survived. A Super Saiyan Son Gokū would later bring this move back against Beerus in the movie Dragon Ball Z: God and God, and it was beautifully animated, but still not enough to destroy the Hakaishin.
5. Parent and Child Kamehameha[]
The Parent and Child Kamehameha. This is as iconic as the Super Saiyan transformation to some fans, and when you say "Kamehameha", many American fans will most likely remember this one. Gokū sacrificed himself to save the planet, but Cell came back, and was now super perfect! The fate of the world hinged on a single deathmatch; the Solar System Destruction Kamehameha versus the Parent and Child Kamehameha. Gohan put all of his strength into this final, one-handed blast, and with some support from his father in the Netherworld, and some last minute assistance from Vegeta, Gohan was able to overpower Cell and erase him entirely. The anime would go on to make this moment even more epic, with all of the Dragon Team deciding to man up and attack Cell, despite their ineffective efforts, merely to give Gohan a fighting chance. It was Gohan's first — and last — killing blow in the history of the series.
4. Four-fold Kaiōken Kamehameha[]
What do you think when you think "Beam Struggle"? Personally, I remember Muten Rōshi versus Son Gokū, and most others remember Gohan vs. Cell. This is the other beam struggle people remember, specifically, the other half of that struggle. The battle with the Saiyans was a tough battle, and Gokū had never encountered an enemy quite this strong before. Vegeta, frustrated, was completely ready to blow Earth to atoms with his Galick Cannon. Gokū, in a bid to stop him, prepared the Kaiōken Kamehameha. Their beams clashed, and despite appearing even, Gokū needed to push his power to the limits in order to overcome Vegeta, and poured more power into a Four-fold Kaiōken, enhancing his Kamehameha to greater heights and overcoming Vegeta's blast with the most powerful Kamehameha seen in the series at that point.
3. Twenty-fold Kaiōken Kamehameha[]
How do you exceed four-fold? Well, some would assume "five-fold" but I say skip that and jump right to Twenty-fold! We all remember Gokū versus Freeza, and some may see it as the best fight in the entire series. They're wrong, since that is Gokū versus Piccolo Jr., but we can't all be the guy writing the blog. During that entire fight, prior to becoming a Super Saiyan (what's the rule for spoilers on a twenty-seven year old chapter?), Gokū was pushed to the absolute brink. Freeza was far too powerful for Gokū to comprehend, and had resorted to simply toying with the Saiyan. In order to pull out all the stops and kill Freeza for good, Gokū unleashed a Twenty-fold Kaiōken, higher than anything his body had to endure before, and unleashed a powerful melee assault on Freeza. Reciting the technique the entire way, he unleashed a massive, Kaiōken boosted Super Kamehameha. Freeza may have tanked it, but the effort and display were utterly impressive to watch, especially in the anime.
Honourable Mentions[]
- Ultimate Kamehameha — Gohan deflecting Cell's Earth Destruction Kamehameha.
- Kuririn's First Kamehameha — The first Kamehameha by our favorite monk. It didn't secure a win but it was impressive.
- Tenshinhan's Kamehameha — The most callous display of the Kamehameha seen, Tenshinhan copied it directly from Yamcha and used it on Jackie Chun, the creator of the technique.
- Limit-Break Kamehameha — I'd always wanted to see Gokū use the Kamehameha in God form. It was a cool moment.
- Grandpa Gohan's Kamehameha — We never expected it from some random old man in a mask. But then again, did we expect it from a random old pervert?
- First Form Cell's Kamehameha — There are many ways to prove a point, but this is one of them. When the new villain shows up with the heroes hand-me-downs, you know he means business.
- Feint Kamehameha — It was clever, but not enough to earn it a spot on the list. It did go to show Gokū's ki control, though.
- Majin Kamehameha — A pink Kamehameha existed before Black, used by Boo. The only question now is who wore it better?
- Surfing Kamehameha — We've all seen it, we all love it, it's the latest Kamehameha as of this writing. Gokū surfing along Kaflo's ki blast to strike her with a Kamehameha he'd built up while charging was a fantastic moment, but the series had so many better ones for different reasons. Good try.
- Final Kamehameha — Final though it may be, it isn't the final entry here. The combination of the God Final Flash and the God Kamehameha, this move packs a punch!
- Big Bang Kamehameha — Here, GT fans, one for you. A combination of the Big Bang Attack and the Kamehameha!
2. Kamehameha Max Power[]
Now here it is! The OG Kamehameha. This was the first time we'd ever seen a Kikōha within the series, though it sure as hell would not be the last. With Mount Frypan in danger of burning, Gokū and Chi-Chi had to find the legendary Kame-Sennin to put it out. When he agreed — due to losing the Bashōsen, the actual reason they needed him — his solution wasn't an even bigger fan. No, instead, he 'roids out and utterly destroys the mountain with this gargantuan blast of ki. Its big, its iconic, and it was the first Kamehameha we'd ever seen. This blast paved the way to more ki techniques in the series, it got a kickass redux in The Path to Ultimate Strength, and Dragon Ball just wouldn't be the same without it.
1. The First Super Kamehameha[]
The Super Kamehameha. This was an epic moment in the original Dragon Ball, and if you ask me, deserves far more praise than it gets. Gokū unveiled this blast as one of his trump cards during the fight with Piccolo Jr. — a Kamehameha with even more ki output than we'd ever seen up until this point. The blast was big, it was blinding, and Gokū knew just when to save it. God had just been eaten, and he was presented with no other choice than but to kill Piccolo. With his ace in the hole, his technique competed with Piccolo's and overshot it entirely. It looked cool and dealt massive damage, and it was the first time we really saw just how strong the Kamehameha — and by extension, Gokū — could become. This Kamehameha would become the base template for all the stronger blasts that we would later see. In fact, just five out of the eleven here owe their existence to this blast.
And there they are. My Top 11 Kamehamehas. I don't expect these to fall in line with all of your's, but why don't you tell me what you think are the greatest Kamehamehas in the comments below! Have a happy new years, everyone, and let's continue to take this wiki forward!