Estoy reviendo la saga de Majin Buu de Dragon Ball Z, siendo además la última vez que la había visto la versión de DBZKAI, y acabo de ver el capítulo “Vegeta pelea por sus seres queridos”… y volví a sentir unos escalofríos de emoción en el momento final. Es el sacrificio más impactante de todo DBZ y lo es gracias a los casi 237 capítulos previos de de DBZ.
Con esto me refiero a que este es el capítulo 237 pero Vegeta no estuvo desde el primero ni participó en todos, pero es su largo desarrollo, con la crisis de identidad que le revela a Gokú poco antes cuando le grita que se dejó poseer por Babidi para volver a ser el príncipe saiyajin cruel y despiadado al que no le importa nada y que quería tener una batalla perfecta.
Sin embargo, hubo un cambio en Vegeta del que ya no podía volver atrás aunque quisiera: al darse cuenta del verdadero peligro que corren su esposa e hijo, aunque primero trató de negar que le importaran, y lamentando que por su culpa haya muerto Gohan, se enfrenta sólo a Majin Buu para solucionar el problema que él mismo causó aunque le cueste la vida: ¡No me iré sólo al Infierno! ¡Ustedes tendrán que venir conmigo!
Cuando ve que no puede ganarle a Buu por su capacidad de regeneración decide sacrificarse en vez de pelear hasta la muerte o derrota como contra Cell, o en vez de rendirse como contra Freezer.
Entonces le pide a su hijo que lo deje abrazarlo por primera vez. La musicalización aquí en Z, y cuando habla con Piccolo luego, es muy superior a la Kai, porque es triste como corresponde mejor a la situación, más que nostálgicamente heroica como la de Kai; aunque antes de rever este capítulo creía que era mejor la musicalización de Kai para cuando Vegeta autoexplota, ahora pienso que dejar su grito y explosión sin música hace aún más impacto.
Ese fue el final orgulloso príncipe saiyajin: sabiendo que iría al infierno, que su alma perdería sus recuerdos y se usaría para otro ser vivo, el conquistador galáctico que tomó aprecio a la Tierra y a la paz y a su familia terrícola se inmola por sus seres queridos con una sonrisa antes de explotar.
Y que haya sido en vano no cambia el significado del suceso. Supera a los dos de Gokú porque ya era parte de su carácter que se sacrificaría por los demás si era necesario. Y supera al de Piccolo porque en su caso fue una reacción y reconocimiento súbitos de que quería proteger a Gohan aunque le costara la vida y por eso el correr de inmediato para interceptar el ataque. Pero Vegeta llega a esto tras reconocer su mencionada crisis de identidad y teniendo que ser él mismo quien se elimine, en vez de sufrir el ataque de otro.
ENGLISH VERSION (translated from Spanish with ChatGPT)
Vegeta's Sacrifice
I'm rewatching the Majin Buu Saga from Dragon Ball Z. The last time I watched it was the DBZ Kai version, and I just got to the episode "Vegeta Fights for Those He Loves." Once again, I got chills during the final moments. It is the most powerful sacrifice in all of DBZ, and it only works because of the nearly 237 episodes that came before it.
What I mean is that this is episode 237. Vegeta wasn't there from the very beginning, nor did he appear in every episode, but his long character development—and especially the identity crisis he reveals to Goku shortly beforehand—makes this moment so meaningful. He screams that he allowed Babidi to possess him because he wanted to become the ruthless, merciless Saiyan prince he once was again, someone who cared about nothing and only wanted the perfect battle.
And yet, Vegeta had already changed in a way he could never undo, even if he wanted to. When he realizes the true danger threatening his wife and son—despite initially trying to deny that he cared about them—and after lamenting that Gohan has died because of him, he chooses to face Majin Buu alone to fix the very problem he himself created, even if it costs him his life: "I'm not going to Hell alone! You'll all have to come with me!"
When he realizes he can't defeat Buu because of his regeneration, he decides to sacrifice himself instead of simply fighting to the death or losing as he did against Cell, or surrendering as he did against Frieza.
Then he asks his son to let him hug him for the first time.
The music in the original DBZ during this scene—and later, when he speaks with Piccolo—is far superior to Kai. It's genuinely heartbreaking, which fits the situation much better than the nostalgically heroic score used in Kai. Before rewatching this episode, I actually thought Kai had the better soundtrack during Vegeta's self-destruction. Now I think leaving only his scream and the explosion, without any music at all, makes the moment even more powerful.
That was the proud Saiyan prince's final act. Knowing he would go to Hell, that his soul would be stripped of its memories and eventually reincarnated into another living being, the galactic conqueror who had gradually come to value Earth, peace, and his human family gave his life for the people he loved, smiling just before he exploded.
And the fact that his sacrifice ultimately failed doesn't diminish its meaning.
It surpasses both of Goku's sacrifices because by that point sacrificing himself for others had already become part of Goku's nature. And it surpasses Piccolo's sacrifice because, in his case, it was a sudden realization that he wanted to protect Gohan, followed by an instinctive decision to throw himself in front of the attack.
Vegeta's sacrifice, on the other hand, comes only after he fully acknowledges his identity crisis and consciously chooses to destroy himself, rather than simply becoming the victim of someone else's attack. That's what makes it, in my opinion, the most emotionally impactful sacrifice in all of Dragon Ball Z.
