Son Goku is a fictional character and main protagonist of the Dragon Ball manga series created by Akira Toriyama. He is based on Sun Wukong (known as Son Goku in Japan and Monkey King in the West), a main character in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West (16th century), combined with influences from the Hong Kong martial arts films of Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee. Goku first made his debut in the first Dragon Ball chapter, Bulma and Son Goku, originally published in Japan’s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine on December 3, 1984. Born Kakarot, Goku is introduced as an eccentric, monkey-tailed boy who practices martial arts and possesses superhuman strength. He meets Bulma and joins her on a journey to find the magical seven Dragon Balls that can grant the user one wish. Along the way, he finds new friends who follow him on his journey to become a stronger fighter. As Goku grows up, he becomes the Earth’s mightiest warrior and battles a wide variety of villains with the help of his friends and family, while also gaining new allies in the process.

As the protagonist of Dragon Ball, Goku appears in most of the episodes, films, television specials and OVAs of the manga’s anime adaptations (Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z) and sequels (Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super), as well as many of the franchise’s video games. Due to the series’ international popularity, Goku has become one of the most recognizable and iconic characters in the world. Outside the Dragon Ball franchise, Goku has made cameo appearances in Toriyama’s self-parody series Neko Majin Z, has been the subject of other parodies, and has appeared in special events. Most Western audiences were introduced to the adult version of Goku appearing in the Dragon Ball Z anime, itself an adaptation of Dragon Ball manga volumes 17–42, as opposed to his initial child form, due to the limited success of the first series overseas. Goku’s critical reception has been largely positive and he is often considered to be one of the greatest manga and anime characters of all time.