In 2023, the first episode featuring Gear 5 in One Piece aired on Japanese TV and streaming platforms, quickly becoming a major event for anime fans. This iconic transformation had actually made a brief appearance in One Piece Film: Red, mostly as an Easter egg for dedicated viewers.
However, no matter how cool Gear 5 looks or how much buzz episode 1071 generated, there’s another transformation that deserves to be called the most iconic. This transformation first aired over 30 years ago.
The Gear 5 Debut Was One of the Most Anticipated Anime Events
Since Luffy’s Gear transformations were introduced in One Piece, fans have eagerly awaited what the next Gear would look like. Gear 4 brought major changes to Luffy’s body, but nothing compares to Gear 5, which not only greatly expands his power but also features a design inspired by classic cartoons.
When Gear 5 was first revealed in the One Piece manga, it quickly became a hot topic in the manga community and got anime fans excited to see it animated. Toei launched an impressive promotional campaign around Gear 5’s anime debut, and One Piece’s viewership soared. Still, some fans were left wanting more than what was delivered.
Gear 5 Can Never Outshine Goku’s First Super Saiyan Transformation
It’s rare for an anime episode to cause as much excitement as Gear 5 did, with even casual viewers tuning in just to see what the hype was about. If you love anime and use the internet, you’ve probably heard about Luffy unlocking Gear 5 even if you’ve never watched One Piece. It’s a global phenomenon everyone is talking about.
Yet no matter how big Gear 5’s anime debut was, it can never match the experience of witnessing Goku’s first Super Saiyan transformation. Back then, everything was different. People around the world watched it on different days since there were no global streaming platforms airing the series simultaneously.
Still, the impact was massive. Super Saiyan was something completely new. No one expected Goku or Vegeta to unlock it, and Goku did so almost by accident. This transformation set the standard for anime power-ups, and Toei likely tried to capture that “Super Saiyan feeling” when promoting Gear 5 as a major event in One Piece.
Super Saiyan 1 Remains Dragon Ball’s Greatest Transformation
Although newer, stronger forms have been introduced, nothing compares to the impact Super Saiyan left on Dragon Ball fans. Because of its context and the surprise it brought, it remains the most beloved transformation.
Today, Super Saiyan (SSJ) is often seen as one of the weaker forms, but it was originally portrayed as a legendary state. Considering this, it’s clear how amazing SSJ truly is, even as Dragon Ball’s power scaling has become more chaotic. So even if Goku and Vegeta unlock forms stronger than Super Saiyan Blue, Ultra Instinct, or Ultra Ego, no new transformation carries the same significance as the Super Saiyan reveal during the Namek Saga.
Super Saiyan started a new trend in Dragon Ball’s storytelling and inspired countless artists worldwide. Dragon Ball played a key role in shaping many shonen manga tropes, with SSJ being a big part of that. While it’s not impossible for another anime transformation to reach SSJ’s level of importance, it’s hard to top because it was essentially “the beginning of everything.”