Bardock may be the father of Goku, but he’s nothing compared to his son. Back in Dragon Ball Z, Bardock died with a Power Level of roughly 10,000, making him one of the strongest Saiyans at the time of Planet Vegeta’s destruction, but still utterly outclassed by the entire main cast come the end of the Frieza Saga. That’s the point, though: Bardock’s story is a tragedy, and pure-bred Saiyans like Goku and Vegeta becoming ridiculously strong through training are outliers.
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That said, Dragon Ball Super and the series’ non-canon spin-offs and video games have had a lot of fun making Bardock stronger with various transformations. Episode of Bardock made Bardock the first Super Saiyan in history, Xenoverse 2 had him unlock Super Saiyan 3, and Dragon Ball Super‘s Granolah the Survivor Saga even featured Bardock tapping into a form eerily similar to Goku’s Ultra Instinct. Bardock may have been a lower class warrior in DBZ, but the franchise has been going out ot its way to honor his legacy any way it can.
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6
Great Ape Bardock Was His Strongest Form in Dragon Ball Z
Like most Saiyans before Planet Vegeta’s destruction at the hands of Frieza, Bardock’s strongest form was his Great Ape transformation at the end of Dragon Ball Z. Ending his own TV Special with a Power Level of 10,000, Bardock’s Great Ape form would have had a Power Level of 100,000 (though he never got to use the form at that level before dying). Like with Vegeta, it’s implied Bardock can control his Great Ape form.
Great Ape Bardock was last seen in the Dragon Ball Super manga’s Granolah the Survivor Saga. Bardock was one of many Saiyans responsible for the genocide of the Cerealian race, and was shown in flashback panels using his Great Ape form to destroy the planet. Reminded of his son Kakarot, however, Bardock spared Granolah and his mother, and later defended them from Gas before tapping into a form with enough similarities to Ultra Instinct that UI Goku reminds Gas of Bardock decades later.
5
Super Saiyan Bardock is Slightly Weaker Than First Form Frieza
In Dragon Ball: Episode of Bardock, Bardock is somehow sent back in time to Planet Plant after surviving Frieza’s Supernova attack. In Plant’s past, Bardock meets Chilled, Frieza’s direct ancestor, and the two fight. After befriending a young alien named Berry, Bardock turns Super Saiyan when Chilled threatens the child. Since Bardock had a Power Level of 10,000 upon death, his Power Level as a Super Saiyan would be 500,000.
Frieza had a Power Level of 530,000 in his first form, making Bardock just slightly weaker than the man who killed him in canon. With that in mind, it’s a little depressing and poetic that even a Super Saiyan wouldn’t have been able to stop Frieza. Frieza destroyed Planet Vegeta for no reason, and would have been able to defeat Bardock just fine in his first form.
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4
Super Saiyan 2 Bardock Has a Power Level of At Least 1,000,000
Bardock unlocks Super Saiyan 2 in both Dragon Ball Heroes and Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2. Super Saiyan 2 has a multiplier of 100, meaning that SSJ2 Bardock’s Power Level would realistically only be 1,000,000. Since Second Form Frieza has a Power Level of over 1,000,000, even Super Saiyan 2 Bardock wouldn’t be strong enough to kill Frieza. He’d be able to put up a good fight, but would ultimately lose the battle.
That said, Bardock uses Super Siayan 2 to fight Mira in Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, and Mira is far stronger than any version of Frieza. The Xenoverse version of Bardock almost certainly has a base Power Level of over 10,000 to be able to keep up with such powerful demonic foes. Going off Dragon Ball Z‘s canon, however, SSJ2 Bardock doesn’t make it off Namek.
3
Super Saiyan 3 Bardock Was Strong Enough to Defeat Mira
Super Saiyan 3 has a power level multiplier of 400x, giving SSJ3 Bardock a Power Level of only 4,000,000 – still too weak to defeat Frieza, as both Super Saiyan Goku and Final Form Frieza at 100% power were fighting with nine digits of Power Level at the end of the Namek Saga. That said, Bardock only unlocks Super Saiyan 3 in Xenoverse 2 while fighting Mira, and Xeno Bardock is much stronger than base Bardock.
Super Saiyan 3 Bardock is actually strong enough to defeat Mira entirely. After their battle, Bardock disappears from the Time Rift, leaving Future Trunks to wonder if Super Saiyan 3 was just too much on Bardock’s body, resulting in his death. Goku struggled using SSJ3 as a mortal, and he was far stronger than Bardock in the Majin Buu Saga, so it’s not out of the question that the strain of Super Saiyan 3 would simply be too much for a lower class Saiyan like Bardock.
2
Super Saiyan 4 Bardock is His Strongest Saiyan Form
Super Saiyan 4 does not have an official multiplier like Super Saiyans 1 through 3, but as one of the strongest transformations in the franchise, even Bardock with a Power Level of 10,000 would likely sky rocket to near-God level heights by tapping into SSJ4. Like many other non-canon Saiyans, Bardock unlocks Super Saiyan 4 in Dragon Ball Heroes.
Bardock looks almost exactly like SSJ4 Goku in his own Super Saiyan 4 form. Unlike previous Super Saiyan forms, Super Saiyan 4 Bardock has no real feats to base his power off of. Logic would dictate, however, that Super Saiyan 4 Bardock is leagues stronger than his previous transformations and would be able to defeat Final Form Frieza, if not every other main villain in Dragon Ball Z.
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1
Bardock Tapped Into a Pseudo-Version of Ultra Instinct in Dragon Ball Super
“Ultra Instinct” is Bardock’s strongest form in the Dragon Ball canon; but it’s not really Ultra Instinct. Like Roshi’s own version of “Ultra Instinct” in the Tournament of Power, Bardock is merely using a technique that embodies the same principles of UI. While fighting Gas, Bardock gains a massive power boost that allows him to turn the tide against who should be a significantly stronger opponent.
The biggest evidence suggesting Bardock does tap into a form of Ultra Instinct is Gas being reminded of Bardock while fighting Ultra Instinct Goku decades later. Worth noting, the full color Dragon Ball Super manga gives Bardock a golden aura during the fight, which Ultra Instinct does not have, making it clear this is only an off-shoot of UI and not the real deal.
- Created by
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Akira Toriyama
- First TV Show
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Dragon Ball
- Latest TV Show
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Dragon Ball DAIMA
- Upcoming TV Shows
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Dragon Ball DAIMA
- First Episode Air Date
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February 26, 1986
- TV Show(s)
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Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, Dragon Ball DAIMA
