After a long wait, Dragon Ball Super finally redeemed Gohan, and though it happened late in the series, this could still have a big impact on the character's future in the world of Dragon Ball. Gohan, Goku's son, has been one of the anime's principal characters since he was introduced as a child in Dragon Ball Z. Despite his young age, it was made clear early on that Gohan, as the planet's first human-Saiyan hybrid, had great fighting potential; however, this potential was squandered, and by the end of DBZ, the character was reduced to a punchline.
Gohan, after being trained by Piccolo, fought beside the Z-Warriors in their battle against Nappa and Vegeta in the Saiyan Saga. He was one of only a handful of characters to survive the clash with Nappa. Gohan continued to serve as a major player in the Frieza Saga, despite being a child, when he, Krillin, and Bulma traveled to Namek to gather the Namekian Dragon Balls and wish back their fallen friends. Throughout these early struggles with villains like Dodoria, the Ginyu Force, and Frieza, Gohan further demonstrated that through his anger, he could become a force to be reckoned with.
In the Cell Saga, Gohan's potential was acknowledged by Goku, who admitted — much to everyone's shock — that Gohan was more powerful than him. Goku, who understood what Gohan was capable of, forfeited his fight with Cell so that Gohan could take him on instead. After unleashing his full power, Gohan reached new heights and killed Cell. From the looks of things, it seemed that Dragon Ball Z was putting Gohan in a position to replace Goku as the protagonist, but this never happened. In the years that followed, the Dragon Ball franchise took a step back from Gohan, and the direction it took Gohan next hurt the character.
Against Cell, Gohan proved that he could have been the strongest of them all, a fact that's even been recognized by Vegeta himself in Dragon Ball Super. After all, Gohan was just a teenager when he beat out Goku and Vegeta to become the first character to achieve the Super Saiyan 2 transformation. This may have looked like a sign that great things were coming for Gohan when he reached adulthood, but it was not so. The Buu Saga jumped forward seven years into the future, and Gohan was no longer the warrior he once was. Completely absorbed in his studies, Gohan gave up fighting and allowed his power to wane. He became a subject of mockery when he invented a silly, superhero alter ego that he called "The Great Saiyaman." It was here when Gohan stopped being the hero of the story and became comedic relief.
Gohan's lack of training put him in a situation where he had to struggle to get back the power that he formerly had. Finally, the show gave him a boost of power by turning him into Ultimate Gohan, but it was only temporary. To make matters worse, Gohan had the power to defeat the saga's main villain, but his overconfidence caused him to make a costly mistake. Because of his failure to beat Buu, Earth was destroyed.
As for Dragon Ball Super's treatment of Gohan, the anime didn't make any immediate moves to restore Gohan to his former glory. Gohan remained significantly weaker than Goku and Vegeta, and wholly uninterested in fighting altogether. Gohan finally began to realize his mistake when Piccolo had to sacrifice himself to save him from Frieza in the Golden Frieza Saga. It was an eye-opening experience, but dozens of episodes had to pass before Gohan actually took any meaningful steps toward becoming a fighter again.
The redemption that Gohan sorely needed happened at last in Dragon Ball Super's Tournament of Power arc. After getting a wake-up call from his mentor, Piccolo, Gohan regained his Ultimate form and became more powerful than he ever was before. He even became strong enough to force Super Saiyan Blue Goku into using his Kaio-ken technique just to beat him. Due to Gohan's intelligence, he was chosen by Goku to lead Universe 7's Tournament of Power team. During the tournament, it became apparent that Gohan was the perfect choice. Goku and Vegeta may have been the team's strongest fighters, but Gohan was the most rational member of the bunch, as he didn't let his pride, his enthusiasm, or his anger guide his actions. He couldn't control Goku, Vegeta, the androids, or Frieza, but he was able to keep the rest of the team focused on their goal.
As warrior after warrior fell in the Tournament of Power, Gohan became one of the last eight fighters remaining. Gohan fought valiantly, surviving encounters with Top, the Universe 6 Namekians, and Anilaza of Universe 3. Gohan had his last stand in a team-up with Golden Frieza to take down the super-fast Dyspo from Universe 11. Gohan's victory over Dyspo resulted in his own elimination, but without his sacrifice, Universe 7 would have lost for sure. Gohan's performance in the Tournament of Power gave him his best moments since the Cell Saga, and reminded viewers of what Gohan can contribute to the heroes' efforts.
Dragon Ball Super redeemed Gohan, but did it come too late for it to matter? It could be argued that Gohan let himself fall so far behind that he'll never be able to catch up to Goku and Vegeta again, especially since the two of them are constantly improving as well. Is it even possible for Gohan to ever truly be relevant again? The Tournament of Power has proven that he can. It's true that he couldn't beat Universe 11's third strongest warrior without help from Frieza, but in the manga version of Dragon Ball Super, it's revealed that Gohan can actually fight Kefla to a stalemate, a character who Goku could only defeat using his Ultra Instinct form.
Gohan came so far in such a short time that if he keeps up his training, he can continue to narrow the gap between himself and the two main characters. In the manga continuation, Gohan does continue to get stronger. In whatever story the Dragon Ball franchise decides to tell next — whether it be the manga continuation's Galactic Patrol Prisoner story, or something new — Gohan could potentially receive a prominent role. Given enough time, Gohan can fight alongside Goku and Vegeta and turn the duo into a trio.
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