When the Ginyu Force arrived on Namek to aid Frieza in finding the Dragon Balls, Captain Ginyu couldn't have possibly imagined how his subsequent journey would play out -- or how long it would last. It's easy to think Ginyu essentially died when he became a frog but, in reality he was quietly off screen for the rest of Dragon Ball Z before finally returning to the fold many years later.
Let's take a look at the power-posing Captain's life and see how he came to spend over a decade in exile on Earth, only to die and be revived by the Dragon Balls in the Buu Saga. Then, after several more years, how Ginyu's surprise re-entrance in Dragon Ball Super led to his second and seemingly permanent death.
Ginyu Becomes a Frog on Namek — But Doesn't Die
As the Ginyu Force piles on Vegeta, Krillin and Gohan while Ginyu himself retrieves the Dragon Balls for Frieza, the villains' plan is proceeding smoothly until Goku shows up. Ginyu quickly realizes he can't defeat Goku as he is, so the crafty alien uses his body-switching power to take Goku's body for himself. However, the plot doesn't work as Ginyu has no idea how to bring out Goku's true power. After being defeated by Gohan and Krillin, Ginyu swaps back with Goku and intends to switch bodies with Vegeta. But the injured Goku grabs a nearby frog and tosses it into the air, catching Ginyu's blast before it hits Vegeta. Thus begins Captain Ginyu's new life as a frog.
However, Ginyu didn't die for quite a long time. When Goku has Dende wish for everyone on Namek to be transported to Earth -- except himself and Frieza -- Ginyu is included with all the surviving Nameks. There Ginyu would stay as a frog for many years -- until Majin Buu's revival.
Ginyu Dies (& Revives) When Kid Buu Destroys Earth
Though he became a common frog with no fighting abilities, Captain Ginyu was never actually killed. Thus, he spent all those post-Frieza years living on Earth, mostly in peace. However, Majin Buu's reign of destruction ended in Ginyu's first death. Even if by some miracle he survived Super Buu's genocidal "Human Extinction Attack" that killed nearly every living being on Earth, he certainly died when Kid Buu blew up the planet.
But when Dende summoned Porunga on New Namek, Vegeta specifically wishes for everyone on Earth who died since the day of the Martial Arts Tournament to be brought back to life -- except the worst beings. Porunga must have judged that Ginyu behaved himself well enough as a frog to deserve revival, because the Ginyu Force Captain reappears one more time, fittingly, in the Golden Frieza Saga of Dragon Ball Super.
Vegeta Kills Ginyu for Good In the Golden Frieza Arc
When the revived and greatly strengthened Frieza returns to Earth with a massive army, Ginyu's many years of hopping around seem to have paid off. During the fight, Tagoma, one of Frieza's most elite soldiers, is headbutted in the crotch by Super Saiyan Gotenks and collapses to the ground. Ginyu, still as a frog, is on the scene quickly, writing the words "Change Now" on the ground in an alien language. When Tagoma unwittingly speaks the words out loud, Ginyu successfully takes over Tagoma's body while Tagoma becomes the frog.
Captain Ginyu, at last in a fighter's body again, feels revitalized after all his years of "struggle." But his grand moment doesn't last long as Vegeta quickly kills him with one powerful blast. It's a fitting throwback to the original Frieza Saga in two ways. First, Goku chastises him for not even giving Ginyu a chance to fight back, to which Vegeta responds that Goku shouldn't be merciful with enemies who want to kill them. It's the same argument they had back when Vegeta killed the already-defeated Recoome. And second, Vegeta had killed all the other members of the Ginyu Force on Namek. It may have taken over a decade, but the Saiyan Prince finally made Captain Ginyu croak once and for all.
