Dragon Ball is one of the most popular shonen series of all time, with its larger-than-life battles and memorable characters making it an iconic anime that fans still can't get enough of to this day. The advent of Dragon Ball Super has made it pretty clear that the popularity of this series isn't waning anytime soon, and fans can't wait to see the next chapter in this franchise after the release of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. This movie placed a greater emphasis on the exploits of Piccolo and Gohan, with the series' leads Goku and Vegeta taking more of a back seat instead.
Speaking of Goku, it must be said that the protagonist of Dragon Ball is one of the most beloved characters in anime history. Despite being a bit too airheaded for his own good, there's no denying that Goku is kind, brave, strong, and willing to stand up for the right thing at all costs. Even for battles that don't concern him, Goku will put life and limb on the line to save the people who matter... which has led to this character dying several times over the course of the series.
5 Hit's Phoenix Eye Fist Temporarily Stopping His Heart
Dragon Ball Super moves into major filler territory following the Future Trunks saga, with Goku and his friends fighting Copy Vegeta and playing baseball during this downtime. One particularly interesting filler arc deals with Hit and the assignment he gets to kill Goku. This makes for an engaging fight where Hit manages to hit Goku point-blank with a Phoenix Eye Fist that stops Goku's heart and leaves him for dead.
Luckily enough, Goku had thrown a ki blast in the air that landed on him right after this move, restarting his heart and allowing him to breathe once again. By the end of this confrontation, it's revealed that Goku was the one who put the assassination contract on himself, hoping to engage with Hit in a serious fight. Suffice it to say, he pretty much got what he asked for and then some.
4 Being Killed By Zamasu, Who Took Over His Body
During the Future Trunks saga, it's revealed that Zamasu actually went to a different timeline where Beerus was inactive. Here, he decided to take over Goku's body and cut all ties with his family by killing them in cold blood. Of course, Zamasu made sure to eliminate all loose ends by destroying his own body, ending Goku's existence in the process.
This led to the infamous appearance of Goku Black, a heinous villain who could access a new Super Saiyan form by using divine ki. However, since Zamasu was never an innate Saiyan, he failed to unleash the full potential of this body and was pummeled into the ground by the Saiyans once they trained to enhance their power. This prompted Future Zamasu and Goku Black to fuse, which ended up serving as the final nail in the coffin for this character since the wish for immortality was tainted by this fusion.
3 Dying Of A Heart Disease
Anyone who has seen The History of Trunks OVA knows just how tragic Goku's death really is in this tainted timeline. Without any prior knowledge of the same, Goku ends up succumbing to his heart virus, causing a downward spiral with the Androids coming and killing everyone who could've potentially saved Earth.
It's this fate that Future Trunks plans to avoid by giving Goku heart medicine in an alternate timeline to save him from this disease. While Goku's carelessness almost led to him losing his life, the Saiyan's friends managed to give him the heart medicine in the nick of time to save his life.
2 Sacrificing Himself To Save The Earth From Cell's Self-Destruct Technique
During Gohan's fight against Cell, he managed to reach the Ascended Super Saiyan form that was eluding the other seasoned fighters for the longest time. This was a long-awaited moment that finally led to Gohan unlocking his latent potential and becoming the only fighter capable of taking out Cell.
However, Gohan became cocky, with this sudden surge of power also unleashing a prideful side of this hybrid Saiyan. He humiliated Cell at every step of the way, punching him so hard that the villain puked out Android 18 and reverted back to his Semi-Perfect form. This caused Cell to pull out a Hail Mary and initiate a self-destruct move that would obliterate Earth. Realizing the danger, Goku decided to use Instant Transmission to move Cell out of harm's way, sacrificing himself in the process.
1 Holding Raditz In A Death Grip That Killed The Brothers
The first arc of Dragon Ball Z saw Goku meet his brother and understand the true nature of his existence. He was actually a Saiyan from another planet who was sent to Earth to take over this weak planet but ended up losing his memory after hitting his head during a botched landing.
After kidnapping Gohan, both Goku and Piccolo decided to pull out all the stops to defeat this Saiyan. However, both fighters were outclassed in terms of strength, forcing Goku to hold Raditz in place and sacrifice his own life as Piccolo speared both of them with his Special Beam Cannon technique.