The Dragon Ball franchise is filled with powerful characters doing amazing things that basically defy the laws of physics. You have people pushing their ki into concussive energy blasts, people turning into giant apes, and a large supply of aliens and demons mingling with the people of Earth. Also, it’s a universe where dinosaurs still exist and no one seems to really care, so obviously anything can happen here. It should come as no surprise that many of the characters, whether in the manga or anime, make absolutely no sense whatsoever. Perhaps the person who leaves us with the most questions is the franchise’s top villain, the planet-conquering Frieza.

While he isn’t ultimately the strongest villain in the Dragon Ball continuity, he is certainly the most memorable. He is responsible for the near destruction of the Saiyan race, which led to Goku being sent to Earth in the first place. He played an intricate role in the series as the catalyst who brought Super Saiyan power ups into the show. The thing about Frieza, though, is he kind of doesn’t make as much sense as you would think. Go back and re-watch the show and you’ll notice that some things don’t add up. From his introduction in Dragon Ball Z to his appearances in Dragon Ball GT and the movies, and finally to his reintroduction in Dragon Ball Super, he has a long and winding story that is difficult to make sense of. Here are 20 things about Frieza that make no sense.

20 Why Bother To Hide it?

Frieza
via animevice.boards.net

Frieza is known as one of the most powerful beings in the universe, but before the events of the series he spent most of his time hiding his true power. We first see him as a small diminutive bad guy before taking on several new and powerful forms. It’s easy to explain it that he wanted people to underestimate him, but he was already so much stronger than anyone else, so what was the point?

It has certainly been explained that Frieza developed alternate forms in order to preserve his power, but he wasn’t exactly saving it for anything, considering that power isn’t finite. If he was worried about being able to maintain his power in combat, maybe he should have practiced keeping his true form so that he wouldn’t be so ill-prepared when he needed it.

19 How Normal Is He?

Frieza
via Nerds4LifeBlog

It is said that Frieza is some kind of mutant being among his alien race, but we have no idea what that actually means. Some genetic mutation has allowed him to become as powerful as he has, but how far does that mutation really go? Is he physically mutated? We don’t know what his race is supposed to look like, so we have nothing to compare him to.

We know that his family members are also mutated, but they all look completely different, so it’s hard to really figure out whether or not the mutation has changed their bodies. Cooler’s original form and Frieza’s Universe 6 counterpart Frost also seem to have a similar design, so it’s hard to say whether or not their race is supposed to look like that.

18 How Were They A Threat At All?

via ComicBook.com

Frieza may have been powerful, but it didn’t stop him from being unreasonably paranoid. His Galactic Army conquered the Saiyan homeworld and forced its citizens to work under him. They proved to be valuable warriors, but Frieza felt the Super Saiyan legend and their unnatural ability to improve themselves as a potential threat to his reign. It ultimately led to him destroying the planet, but was it really necessary?

Frieza’s top men were shown to be more powerful than any of the Saiyans, and in his most basic form, he ended King Vegeta with one punch. How then were any of them supposed to pose a threat to him? When Frieza does eventually find a Super Saiyan, he’s basically just as strong, so it seems like a rash decision on his part, unless it all came down to paranoia and racism.

17 This One Makes No Sense

Frieza Third Form
via Villains Wiki

Frieza went through a comical amount of transformations over the course of the original Frieza Saga, but one of those new forms in particular looked ridiculous. You can tell how his first form easily transitions into his second, but his third form really doesn’t make any sense when you consider where he came from and where he is ultimately going.

In his third form, Frieza’s horns begin to recede, however, he also sprouts a second pair of horns for some reason. He loses his nose for some reason and his head becomes disproportionately extended so that he begins to resemble a Xenomorph. This form is very much a transitional transformation, but when we see that his final form is nice and sleek, it doesn’t really make a lot of sense.

16 Where Is Everyone Else?

Frieza Cooler King Cold Chilled
via YouTube - Blazerverse

Frieza, King Cold, Cooler, Frost, and even Chilled are all members of whatever the heck you call their alien race. So little is known about their race that it doesn’t even have a name in the canon. In a series that explores Namekians and Saiyans, it seems weird that Frieza’s race is never even mentioned in passing, because fans need to know whether or not there is an entire planet of Frieza-like beings.

The members of his race that we do see are often described as mutants, but what does that really mean? If their mutation is what allows them to be this strong, does that mean Frieza’s race is full of peaceful weaklings minding their own business? Did he end them all? It makes no sense that we know nothing about them at all.

15 This Was A Poor Choice

Vegeta Nappa Radditz
via Dragon Ball Wiki

Frieza was so paranoid about the Saiyan race the he decided to destroy the entire planet and pick most of them off. The race could have been completely annihilated with the exception of Goku, but Frieza decided to make the questionable decision to spare a few of them. If you’re worried what an entire race of people could do, it’s weird to keep their strongest warriors on your payroll.

Sure, Vegeta, Nappa, and Radditz were likely the most valuable warriors at the time, but why would he keep them around after he was responsible for the genocide of their people. It’s not like these three knew the truth and were ok with it. This was Frieza playing with fire, and it basically blew up in his face because they are the reason Goku got involved.

14 If He Only Waited A Little Longer

Golden Frieza
via Villains Wiki

When Frieza was brought back to life in Dragon Ball Super, he realized that Goku and Vegeta had far surpassed his power in the time since his passing. That mean that if he were to get his revenge, he needed to train himself to become even more powerful than before. Cue up the training montage because Frieza has some work to do—and it lasts for four months.

At this point, Frieza had been gone for 14 years, so if he’s waited this long for his revenge, why not train a little longer than four months so that he could get even stronger. He basically does the bare minimum, discovers a new transformation, and thinks he’s all set. Sure, he’s impatient and arrogant, but even Goku and Vegeta admit that if he trained a little longer he would have probably beat them.

13 This Was Quite A Shock

via: dragonball.wikia.com

While it’s not one of his main powers, Frieza has shown some telekinetic abilities. He mostly uses it on inorganic objects, like rocks and mountains, but it is mostly remembered for being the attack that ended Krillin. Considering his usage of the attack, it’s actually worth wondering why he never used the attack again, because apparently there is no guarding against it.

Instead of getting his hands dirty, which he clearly doesn’t like to do, he could have used this attack from the start. Obviously it was accomplished out of surprise because everyone thought he was gone at the time, but the attack takes seconds and could have really saved some time against some of his opponents. Even if stronger enemies like Goku could somehow block it, the likes of Gohan, Vegeta, and Piccolo didn’t stand a chance.

12 How Did This Work?

Mecha Frieza
via Superpower Wiki

When Frieza was wished back to life with the Dragon Balls in Resurrection ‘F’, he was returned to the exact state in which he passed. This meant he was brought back to life still in pieces from the attack by Future Trunks. It’s certainly a weird restriction to place on a wish, but it’s also bizarre to consider that Frieza was not gone at that point and was actually conscious while in pieces on the ground.

His mean had to gather his pieces and put them in a tank to regenerate him, but how exactly did he keep his mental faculties about him when he his brain was literally cut into pieces. You might say that his body tissue was still alive, but we do see his eyes moving. It was such a bizarre work around that they should have just skipped the whole thing.

11 Something Doesn’t Add Up

via youtube.com (Sam Sketches)

Since Bardock is largely the creation of FUNimation, there are some inconsistencies in his story. One of the weirdest parts of the whole thing is seen in Bardock - The Father of Goku, where Frieza orders Dodoria to take out Bardock and his soldiers. It’s a weird thing to do when the villain had clearly already planned to destroy the entire race anyway.

The plan doesn’t work out so well when he is left hurt but ultimately survives to raise a rebellion against Frieza. Sure, no harm, no foul, but of Dodoria was actually a competent soldier, he would have made sure Bardock was properly taken care of. Frieza either should have just waited to destroy him with the planet or dealt with Dodoria for his incompetence.

10 What Was He Waiting For?

via youtube.com

Brought back to life and given another chance to defeat Goku and friends, Frieza actually ends up underestimating his opponents again and failing. It seems that no matter what, he is incapable of learning from his mistake. As he lays defeated at the feet of Vegeta, he tries something new by destroying Earth, but his biggest mistake was not doing that from the start.

Yes, Frieza was eager to get his revenge on Goku, but instead of returning and immediately destroying the planet, he decides to make a big thing out of it. If he blew up the planet first, maybe he could have actually succeeded in ending his enemies. At the very least, he would have left them devastated with no home to protect anymore.

9 This Was A Pretty Long Time

Sorbet Tagoma
via YouTube - THE SHIELD 500

It was said that between his end at the hands of Future Trunks to his resurrection in Resurrection ‘F’ was a span of 14 years. After the loss of such an imposing and ruthless leader, his empire should have fallen to pieces. The loss of King Cold and Cooler should have also caused the whole operation to collapse to the point that no one would be loyal enough to bring back Frieza.

Somehow Sorbet not only managed to keep things afloat for years, but also decided that handing over the whole thing to Frieza was a good idea. Yes, loyalty can be bought, but who is paying those bills? Even if the Galactic Army was far weaker without their leader, it makes no sense that anyone would willingly hand over control of an entire empire for a guy who is literally gone.

8 He Should Have Known Better

Via NeoGAF

It is established early on that the scouters everyone wears on their faces can actually work as communication devices. This feature is how both Vegeta and Frieza come to learn about the Dragon Balls. Since Vegeta is clearly not working for the villain at this time, Frieza must have been eavesdropping. This means that he should have heard everything else the Saiyan Prince had been saying, like his plan to rebel.

It then comes as a surprise that Frieza would allow Vegeta to use his facilities to recuperate after his battle on Earth. Maybe he still thought he could manipulate the Saiyan, but he should have known that Vegeta was after the same thing. Frieza should have at least ordered his officers to refuse him medical attention until after he already ordered immortality.

7 That Should Have Been The End Right There

Frieza Fusion Reborn
via Dragon Ball Wiki

It is an established fact that people in the afterlife can be be taken out a second time. If this happens then their soul ceases to exist and they are truly gone forever. This fact should have been considered with what happens to Frieza in the movie Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn. When the demon Janemba causes a break between life and the afterworld, a group of past enemies return to the land of the living.

Frieza leads these bad guys in order to get revenge against the Z Fighters, but he’s quickly stopped by a grown up Gohan. He manages to hit the villain so hard that he explodes. Since it is established that these villains are not truly alive again, Frieza’s second destruction should have been it for him.

6 This Would Have Been A Better Idea

Frieza
Via YouTube - Mexus

The Frieza Saga depicts one of the biggest battles in anime and manga history with the fight that takes place between Goku and Frieza. As things turn in Goku’s favor following his transformation into a Super Saiyan, the villain gets desperate and launches an attack that will destroy the planet Namek in five minutes.

If Frieza were smarter, he probably should have left the fight right there and then in order to seal his victory. Frieza can survive in space and Goku can’t, he should have just distracted him enough and flew away into space in order to leave his opponent stranded on the planet. Goku would have had no way of getting off Namek and Frieza would have won. If only some stupid sense of pride didn’t get in the way.

5 He Was A Really Bad Boss

Frieza Zarbon
Dragon Ball Wiki

Frieza was so afraid of Saiyans that he destroyed the entire race and kept three of them in his service. However, if he went through all the trouble it took to spare them, maybe he should have treated Vegeta a little better. Instead of putting him among his elite warriors in order to keep the egotistical Saiyan Prince happy, he allowed his men to bully and terrorize him.

For some reason, Vegeta was considered one of the lowliest soldiers within Frieza’s Army before finally rebelling and proving them all wrong. It’s like that he needed to train more before he could take out most of the people, but Frieza should have seen his potential and either given him room to grow or get rid of him and save his other soldiers. As things stand, he was a terrible boss.

4 How Was This Organized?

Galactic Frieza Army
via Dragon Ball Wiki

As the emperor of the universe, it makes sense that Frieza would name the Galactic Frieza Army after himself. However, it gets a little complicated when you realize that this is a family business and his father and brother are also involved. If everything is named after Frieza, but he is clearly part of some family dynasty, how exactly does this organization work?

Frieza’s father is a king, but it’s never exactly clear what he’s a king of, but you get the sense that Cold is really the man in charge. It’s also weird that Frieza, the younger son, is the prefered son over Cooler. Was the empire always named Frieza and the villain was given that name or was it originally called something else before the it was changed?

3 Someone Messed Up Here

Frieza
via Pinterest

It would seem that Frieza was involved in a little bit of a continuity error when it comes to the status of his body in the afterlife. Following Mecha Frieza’s annihilation by Future Trunks, he is later seen in the afterlife with his original body. It makes sense that his spirit form would take on his organic body, though the same scene shows that Dr. Gero retained his android body.

This was in the middle of Goku’s fight with Kid Buu at the end of Dragon Ball Z. When we see Frieza in the afterlife in Resurrection F, he is still seen to be in his Mecha Frieza form, even though we already saw him in DBZ. Considering he already came back to the land of the living in his natural form in Fusion Reborn, it might be safe to say that this was a mistake.

2 He Could Have Done More

Frieza Cell
via Wallpaper Cafe

After Frieza’s demise, he was sent to the afterlife where he met up with other villains like Cell and the Ginyu Force. All this power should have been enough for him to take control of the afterlife and rule over the entire dimension. Considering villains were somehow allowed to keep their bodies, it makes no sense that this didn’t end up happening.

In Dragon Ball Super, it is shown that Frieza is kept in a cocoon, likely because of the problems he previously caused. We see Goku is easily able to get him out of it, so it’s weird that Frieza couldn’t manage it himself. Since it’s just a cocoon, a simple power up should have quickly disintegrated it and allow him to do whatever he pleases.

1 He Really Shouldn’t Have Been Defeated

via dbzgames.org

When you get right down to it, there’s no way Frieza should have been beatable by anyone when he has the power to blow up a planet with his finger. He’s certainly shows himself to be powerful in a fight, but he eventually loses to Goku after he transforms into a Super Saiyan. It’s certainly possible that Goku could also blow up a planet, but since he hasn’t tried, we don’t know for sure.

Considering Goku managed to beat Frieza, is the implication then that Goku is now stronger than an entire planet? Planets don’t exactly give off energy signatures, so we don’t know how powerful one can actually be, but it seems like someone who can blow one up so effortlessly should be able to beat anyone, even if they have the ability to focus their ki.