Bardock

Key facts and history

Following that conquest, Bardock began having visions of Frieza's plan to destroy planet Vegeta and of Goku's future on Earth.^[3] He attempted to prevent the destruction by challenging Frieza but was obliterated.^[3] Toriyama explained that Bardock and his wife Gine are among the rare Saiyans joined by an emotional bond rather than a practical reproductive purpose.^[4] After his team conquered planet Kanassa, a surviving native struck Bardock, which granted him the ability to foresee future events.^[5][3]

As Frieza's attack destroyed him, Bardock's final premonition showed him Goku confronting Frieza, and he died with a smile.^[3] According to Akira Toriyama, Bardock ranks among the most powerful low-class Saiyan warriors, yet his strength does not reach that of a mid-class warrior.^[4] Bardock has been featured in nearly 30 Dragon Ball video games, with major storyline roles in Dragon Ball Online and Dragon Ball Xenoverse.^[6]

What the cited sources add

Toriyama stated in a 1995 interview that he really likes the story of Bardock, Goku's father.^[2] Sonny Strait told TheOASG that he believes the video games have done a lot for Bardock's popularity, noting they sometimes recorded three Dragon Ball games per year.^[7] According to the "History of Bardock" article on Kanzenshuu, Nakatsuru was assigned to create the designs for Bardock and his team for the television special during the summer of 1990.^[2] Megan Peters of Comicbook.com reported that Shadow Studio released a premium statue showing Bardock and Gine as they watch Goku leave in his space pod.^[8]