The Dragon Ball franchise is pure shōnen adventure manga and anime at its best. It is not news that it is one of the most popular and highest-grossing manga and anime franchises worldwide, with its fan base only growing larger by the day. What connects Dragon Ball with its fans even to this day, be it the older or the newer generations of the fans, is the rawness of it, at least in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z (DBZ). This true spirit of shōnen was possible because of respected Akira Toriyama's hunger to become and prove his potential as possibly one of the most talented manga authors of all time in the history of manga.

Other than the true spirit of shōnen, it is the content of Dragon Ball that makes it one of the most successful and loved franchises of all time. This is majorly due to the spectacular world created by Toriyama, including the power system of Ki and a set of some of the most phenomenal and intriguing characters of all time, which the fans can never get enough of. Some characters in the franchise are only hinted at and fans are quite eager to learn more about them. One such character is the ancient Saiyan Yamoshi. Let's explore the legend of Yamoshi.

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The Legendary Super Saiyan

Yamoshi is an ancient member of the Saiyan race. He is considered to be the first Saiyan to turn Super Saiyan and thus, rightfully, called the Legendary Super Saiyan. He was one of the righteous Saiyans that existed thousands of years ago, before the events of DBZ. His tale goes like him along with his comrades rebelling against the evil Saiyans. After he was the only one left standing against the evil Saiyans, he transformed into a Super Saiyan. However, he still got defeated at the hands of the evil Saiyans as he exhausted his energy. It is considered that his spirit lived on in search of a worthy warrior who could take up the mantle of the Super Saiyan God.

Yamoshi was first mentioned by Vegeta in the eighty-sixth chapter of DBZ. He stated that a Super Saiyan comes into existence every thousand years and has the power to triumph over the obstacles that even the most experienced and powerful warriors cannot. However, Vegeta sidelined this true legend as a useless tradition or myth until he sensed the potential of Goku to improve and grow in terms of strength in a short span when the latter defeated the Ginyu Force on the planet Namek. Vegeta was still not completely convinced until he saw Goku transform into his Super Saiyan form during his fight with Frieza. Since then, the tale of the Legendary Super Saiyan has become a much loved one by other characters in Dragon Ball and among the fans of the franchise as well.

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Yamoshi Appears

The ancient legendary Super Saiyan, Yamoshi, appeared in the form of a spirit in Beerus' dream in the flick Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods. He also appears in silhouette during Goku's fight against the God of Destruction, Beerus. It was because of the introduction of Beerus into the franchise that the legendary Super Saiyan Yamoshi's tale became popular again in the Dragon Ball world.

However, this was not the first time that Yamoshi was shown in the franchise. In a filler scene of the episode titled Goku's New Power in the DBZ anime adaptation, Yamoshi is shown in his Great Ape form, which has yellowish-colored fur as opposed to the typical brown fur. He is shown madly attacking everyone around him. The filler scene ends with him destroying the planet he was on with his power.

In the anime, Vegeta's version of the Yamoshi legend shows the latter in the Golden Great Ape form, and the English dub of the anime implied that Yamoshi could turn Super Saiyan only in the Great Ape form. According to his legend, he had abilities of flight, Saiyan power, and crushing his enemies with his hands.

It is supposed that the fierce fighting style of Yamoshi is what makes the Super Saiyan legend, depicting a Super Saiyan as a violence-loving warrior. In the movie DBZ: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan, Vegeta and Broly's father, Paragus, believed the form used by Broly was the same one used by Yamoshi. Goku had the same belief in the video game DBZ: Shin Budokai.

Yamoshi's name follows the tradition of Saiyan names chosen by Toriyama. Yamoshi's name cleverly plays on Moyashi, the Japanese term for bean sprouts. This choice seamlessly aligns with the Saiyan naming tradition and intertwines with the lore surrounding the Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan God legends. Yamoshi is depicted as the originating seed from which these legendary tales sprout forth.

The Dragon Ball manga is available to read on Viz and the Dragon Ball anime is available to stream on Crunchyroll.

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Dragon Ball

Dragon Ball is a franchise by Akira Toriyama which follows the adventures of Goku, a powerful warrior who protects the earth with his group of friends. A recent title from the series is Dragon Ball: The Breakers, an action style game where 7 players have to survive being hunted by the Raider.