Dragon Ball has always had both a massive cast, and a particularly tight focus on Goku. The natural result of this combination is that countless characters wind up not living up to their potential. Even characters who receive significant build-up and are consistently treated with importance can often wind up falling short – Tien failing to use the Evil Containment Wave in the King Piccolo Saga being an infamous example.

While Goku and Vegeta are given constant opportunities to shine in Dragon Ball, many of their friends and enemies wind up being disappointments. Z-Warriors like Tien Shinhan and Piccolo are infamous for how far they've fallen since the days of their respective primes, and theoretically important villains like Raditz continue to baffle fans with their lack of importance. Be it DBZ, Dragon Ball Super, Dragon Ball GT, or Dragon Ball DAIMA, no anime in the franchise manages to do right by its entire cast.

Piccolo isn't just a fan-favorite; he was the favorite character of Akira Toriyama. It's easy to see why, based off the first arcs in which he appears, with him being the single-most fun villain in the original Dragon Ball, and the emotional core of the Saiyan Saga. Since then, however, .

Piccolo has been the only non-Saiyan character consistently treated as important since the Frieza Saga, but he hasn't actually done anything more for the story in all this time than Yamcha. The power-ups he gets from his fusions with Nail and Kami, and his transformation into Orange Piccolo all ultimately amount to nothing. Even Dragon Ball DAIMA gives him absolutely nothing to do, making it seem doubtful that he'll stop being a disappointment in the Black Frieza Saga.

In his debut arc, Tien Shinhan revolutionized Dragon Ball. He was Goku's first serious rival, the first character with an emotional redemption arc, the first major character with the ability to fly, normalized ki attacks that weren't the Kamehameha, and was the first ally of Goku's capable of matching him in strength. Yet .

Since the beginning of Dragon Ball Z, Tien has undergone no character development, and the only canon fight of any importance that he's won has been against a Saibaman. He's only ever useful for his ability to use the Tri-Beam in desperate situations, but this doesn't even continue to be the case in Dragon Ball Super. Tien in DBS is a joke, portrayed as weaker than Roshi, accomplishing nothing in the Tournament of Power, depicted as useless in everything he tries, and even being outshone by Chiaotzu during the Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga.

In any other anime, being the older brother of the main character would guarantee Raditz a position of importance. While he is important in the sense that his arrival on Earth in the first episodes of Dragon Ball Z is game-changing, . Since being killed by Piccolo, Raditz has remained dead, and has rarely ever been mentioned.

There have been ample opportunities for Goku to revive his brother and give him a second chance, but he doesn't even seem to think of Raditz as family at all. While this is understandable given that Raditz threatened to kill both him and his four-year-old son, Goku has forgiven far worse. Speaking of which, outside Goku, there could be plenty of potential in a relationship between Vegeta and Radtiz, who never had the opportunity to interact on-screen.

Chiaotzu is only disappointing because viewers are repeatedly tricked into thinking that he'll eventually be important. From the point he's introduced, through the Cell Saga, he's consistently presented as a member of the main cast. But, in all that time,

Chiaotzu has a uniquely adorable design, and psychic powers that distinguish him from the rest of the cast. This makes people want to see more of him, but he barely even gets a personality, let alone memorable moments. Chiaotzu didn't need to be in Dragon Ball, and DBZ was smart dropping him when it did.

King Cold is one of the few Dragon Ball characters designed to be intentionally disappointing. After an entire arc hyping up Frieza as being the strongest being in the universe, DBZ shocks fans by revealing that his father is equally powerful. , however, as he's swiftly killed by Future Trunks.

Had the follow-up to the Frieza Saga actually been about Frieza's revenge, King Cold would have gotten to come off more like the monster he was. However, this likely wouldn't have been nearly as interesting as the conflict with the Androids, especially since Cold's personality didn't seem to be too different from Frieza's. Thus, he was ultimately much better off just serving as fodder in Future Trunks' glorious introduction.

During the early portions of the Buu Saga, Videl is the best-written female character in the series up to this point, bar none. She's independent and has clear goals, she's equal parts charismatic and flawed, and her dynamic with Gohan is delightful. But, , and things have only gotten worse for her since.

Videl is Dragon Ball Super not only isn't a fighter, but she doesn't have any of her old personality at all. She's barely around and, when she is, her dynamic with Gohan isn't nearly as fun as it used to be. It's sad that non-canon movies like Broly - Second Coming and Wrath of the Dragon do her more justice than any canon material.

Goten and Trunks are victims of circumstance. When they were added to the cast in the Buu Saga, they were meant to serve as supporting characters in Gohan's story, leading to the shift in focus to Goku and Vegeta making them irrelevant. Goten and Trunks are charming and entertaining characters who've proven they can carry stories on their own, but the franchise has rarely shown any real interest in them since their short-lived prime.

During the Buu Saga, Goten and Trunks briefly become the universe's last hope, and the sheer stupidity of Gotenks would have doomed everyone if not for the timely arrival of Gohan. Since then, the two haven't developed at all, they're consistently kept far away from the main action, and they haven't had any memorable roles in fights. The recent High School Saga has begun to change their fates, and has finally allowed them to look like teenagers, but it remains to be seen if this will go anywhere.

Gohan comes closer to being treated with the same level of respect that Goku and Vegeta get than anyone else, but that just makes his shortcomings all the more disappointing. After being built-up throughout the Saiyan, Frieza, and Cell Sagas as Goku's successor, Gohan fully replaced his father as the protagonist of Dragon Ball, and the result was exceptional. Alas, Toriyama didn't see things that way, resulting in a never-ending loop of Gohan being treated with reverence, only to get side-lined in favor of Goku.

In Dragon Ball Z, Gohan fails to fulfill his role as Earth's savior, losing to Super Buu. It's humiliating to see him lose in the exact same way he nearly lost to Perfect Cell, and the embarrassment continues as he fails to catch the Potara earring that Goku tosses to him. Come Dragon Ball Super, Gohan spends several arcs going back and forth between focusing on his normal life, and dedicating himself to his training. By the point he finally catches up to Goku and Vegeta as Beast Gohan, it's difficult to even care.

Making Pan the deuteragonist of Dragon Ball GT was a genius decision. She was a fresh new face introduced only during the final episodes of Dragon Ball Z, and the way she took after her Grandpa Goku made her immediately endearing. Unfortunately, there's a reason .

Pan in Dragon Ball GT isn't the cheerful, passionate fighter who could slap her Uncle Goten around at Age 4. Instead, she's a bratty bully who is only part of the main cast so Goku has someone to constantly rescue. It's a complete waste and, while Dragon Ball Super has successfully crafted a far superior version of Pan, she still hasn't been given much time to shine.

At the beginning of Dragon Ball DAIMA, Glorio appears to be the deuteragonist of the anime. He's even presented this way during the series' ending credits, and the early reveal that he was a traitor working as a spy for Arinsu among the Dragon Team was an exciting spin on the way Goku normally has to beat his rivals before they turn good and join his cause. But, as soon as the action starts ramping up, Glorio's role is swiftly diminished, and his storyline winds up being both underwhelming and underdeveloped as a result.

The disappointment with Glorio begins early on, once it's revealed that his lightning magic isn't even a threat to Base Mini Goku. After proving to be laughably weak, the mysterious, stoic traitor stops even being an active character, with Vegeta arriving to steal his role as the deuteragonist. Glorio is barely a presence in the latter half of Dragon Ball DAIMA, there's never any exploration of his past with Arinsu, and with how little time is actually dedicated to his and Goku's relationship, it feels entirely unearned when he ultimately betrays his mistress in favor of the Dragon Team.