While details on the upcoming anime film Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero remain under wraps, the movie has released a new teaser image of the main characters assembled. Among the revelations in the image is not only the confirmed inclusion of Gohan, after the fan-favorite Super Saiyan was conspicuously absent in 2018's Dragon Ball Super: Broly, but also that he was reverting to his classic outfit in the film and sporting a slightly new hairstyle. While the full extent of Gohan's role in Super Hero is still unknown ahead of its release next year, his apparent appearance hints at what direction the character may take in the film -- and it's poised to make his fans very happy.
The most noticeable thing about Gohan is that he's back to wearing his purple Namekian gi that he wore throughout much of Dragon Ball Z. First obtained when he began training under Piccolo at the start of DBZ, Gohan continued to wear the outfit for much of the series, even after training under Goku, as a clear show of respect to his original mentor. Gohan would eventually ditch the purple gi for his Great Saiyaman costume before changing to a variation of his father's costume as he returned to Earth after unlocking the Ultimate transformation. Gohan back in the purple gi could suggest he has continued to train under Piccolo -- something he resumed over the course of Dragon Ball Super after realizing he had lost his fighter's instinct.
The other intriguing detail in the Super Hero teaser image regarding Gohan is his hairstyle. Gohan's hairstyle at the start of Dragon Ball Super was a combed-down look that reflected his more peaceful life before he resumed his training after nearly being killed by Frieza. Gohan's hair is visibly longer and spikier in the teaser image than it was for the entirety of the Dragon Ball Super anime series, perhaps showing just how dedicatedly Gohan has resumed his martial arts training since the Tournament of Power. The longer, spikier hair could also reflect that Gohan has succeeded in an ambition he revealed during Dragon Ball Super.
While training for the Tournament of Power with Goku and Piccolo, Gohan declared that he wasn't interested in following the conventional Super Saiyan progression as his father and Vegeta had, but instead wanted to forge a new type of Ultimate Saiyan that had never been seen before. This suggests Gohan will continue to develop the transformation unlocked by the Elder Kai, with Gohan tapping into his full potential and achieving new forms that could rival Super Saiyan God -- perhaps the Ultimate form's equivalent to a Super Saiyan 2 transformation as evidenced by the longer, spikier hair. Should Gohan succeed, this would put his already impressive powers to rival Goku and Vegeta as the mightiest in the Dragon Ball franchise.
While Broly primarily kept the action relegated to Goku and Vegeta, it will be good to see Gohan, Piccolo and Pan play a larger role in Super Hero, although the full nature of their involvement is still unknown. However, Gohan is certainly dressed for combat and ready to remind audiences why exactly he was once the most powerful among the Z Fighters after falling behind his father by the end of DBZ and having to rediscover his fighting instinct in Dragon Ball Super.
