How Old Was Gohan When He Fought Cell?
Ages can be hard to figure out in the world of Dragonball. After all, the characters’ ages in the series were hardly mentioned. In addition, with the involvement of the Hyperbolic Time Changer, we can’t really count on their birth year to tell their age. One of the characters whose age is a mystery is Goku’s son, Gohan.
Gohan was around the age of ten and eleven when he went to face Cell. While his age is vague in the anime, his birth year is 757, while the Cell Games took place in 767. He spent most of a year in the Hyperbolic Time Changer, making him at least a year older than his calendar age.
There are a lot of confusing factors and hints to his age. It seems the characters in Dragon Ball may have forgotten Gohan’s age due to the effects of the Time Chamber. It’s also possible that the other characters don’t count his time in the Chamber as a year passes. This article will discuss a bit more about Gohan’s age.
What was Gohan’s Calendar Age When He Fought Cell?
Based on his calendar age, Gohan would be around 10. This is because Gohan is said to have been born in 757, while the Cell Games took place in 767. We can assume he’s at least older than nine because there was a filler of Gohan celebrating his birthday due to missing the opportunity of commemorating it during his training with Goku.
What was Gohan’s Physical Age When He Fought Cell?
Because Gohan and Goku Spent almost a year of training in the Hyperbolic Time Changer, they are a year older than their supposed calendar age, making Gohan at least 11 years old.
The Hyperbolic Time Changer is a critical player in Gohan’s confusing age. The Chamber can be accessed through different doorways throughout Universe 7. The doorway Gohan used is the one on The Lookout on Earth. If the Chamber is accessed through this doorway, then one year inside the Spirit Room will be only equivalent to a single day on the outside.
Other cool things about the Hyperbolic Time Chamber are used to help prepare the Saiyan Z fighters for the Cell Games. Still, since the focus is on Gohan’s age, we’ll only focus on the effects the training grounds had on the young Saiyan.
Gohan entered the Hyperbolic Time Chamber when he was about ten years old. By the time he and Goku emerged out of the Chamber, his 11th birthday would have already passed. Hence, the short scene in the anime depicts Gohan’s family celebrating his birthday. The filler was apparently meant to celebrate the birthday he had missed while he was in the Chamber.
Why is He Called Teen Gohan in the Games?
Those who have played the Dragon Ball Games on Playstation consoles may have noticed that the Gohan character that newly beat Cell is labeled as Teen Gohan. This is just a filler Toei added to show differences in their ages.
In the games, Gohan is introduced to us with three different ages and are referred to as “Younen” Gohan, “Shounen” Gohan, and “Seinen” Gohan in the Japanese version. So doing an age bump was just easier to understand than the actual Japanese translations of those words for their English audience.
How Many Years Have Passed from the Cell Games to the Buu Saga?
The Cell Saga ends in the year 767. Meanwhile, the Buu Saga begins in 774, meaning there had been at least a seven-year period of peace for earth between threats like Cell and Buu. Notable differences between the characters are their features due to several of them aging.
By this time of the series, Gohan would be 18 and attending Orange Star High School. Gohan lives with his mother, Chi-Chi, and his younger brother, Goten, who is seven years old. Goten was born after the Cell Games, meaning he could not meet his father, Goku.
Before the events of Buu, Gohan adapts a persona called The Great Saiyaman as a means to fight crime and maintain a normal façade in school. However, his classmate Videl uncovers the truth of his powers after a while.
Are Videl and Gohan the Same Age Since They Are in the Same Class?
If fans are to follow his calendar age, then both Videl and Gohan are the same age since they were born in the same year. However, Gohan is physically older than Videl due to his time in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. But since it’s hard to explain his age in records, he was put in the same year according to his calendar age.
Will Gohan Grow Old in the Series?
All Saiyans will eventually grow old, including Vegeta and Goku. A Saiyan just ages slowly when they reach adulthood and are generally considered young at the age of 80, or at least according to Vegeta in episode 32.
But how about half-Saiyans? Will they get the chance to live as long as a pure-breed? Unfortunately, Dragon Ball Super hasn’t gotten to the part where they explain the lifespan of a half-Saiyan, but it might be longer than a human.
While it isn’t canon, in GT, Pan, who is ¼ a Saiyan, is still alive at 110 years old. While she may look older, she still looks fit and capable for her age. If Super is to follow this type of aging for non-pure-Saiyans, at least we know Gohan will be around for a long time.
Whether fans get to see him as a grandpa is highly unlikely. Dragon Ball Super stopped production in 2018, and there hasn’t been any news regarding a new Dragon Ball series. However, the franchise has a new movie called Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. The anime has already hit Japanese cinemas, but it will be released to North American fans on August 19, 2022.
Based on the trailers, fans will probably not get to see an older Gohan, but the trailer revealed that he might have a new form for himself. Even his daughter Pan seems to get some action in this movie.
