Colonel Silver vs Giran

[SSJ2]

Giran can’t use his gum. Who wins?

 

[Captain Cadaver]

Definitely Giran. Goku seemed to be far more serious with his punch to Giran's stomach than his kick to Silver, not to mention being able to KO the latter with just a slap from his tail after that. Silver's speed did surprise Galu, but he was still able to speedblitz him upon taking things seriously whereas that wasn't the case with Giran; having to block his punch before hitting him in the stomach rather than simply zipping past it. Add in flight given Giran the high ground and Silver doesn't really have much going for him here.

 

[SSJ2]

Keep in mind Goku only had to block Giran prior to having his tail. As soon as his tail regrew and he demonstrated his power, Giran forfeit the match. Silver took a kick from Goku with tail, albeit not as serious, and was still willing to fight.

 

[Captain Cadaver]

The tail seems to be more of something that aids Goku's balance rather than outright increasing his strength and speed, since it doesn't really make much sense for a tail's regrowth or loss to drastically increase or decrease strength when considering later parts of the franchise such as Goku being prepared to beat Grandpa Gohan after losing his tail, Vegeta being confident in being able to kill the Dragon Team after his defeat on Earth or Baby outright stating Galu regrowing his tail didn't increase his power at all if wanting to count GT. Breaking walls was a feat inferior to some Goku and Yamcha showcased in the previous arc and Kuririn was capable of breaking through a wall during the preliminaries, so Giran's surrender likely had more to do with Goku's resilience in being able to do that after having also taken a beating from him and breaking out of his Guru Guru Gum. Against Silver, he doesn't show any moves in which his tail would aid in his abilities, unlike his jumping kick against the wall, so I doubt his moves against Silver were more potent.

 

[SSJ2]

The very fact that Goku couldn't break out of Giran's gym until his tail grew back implies that he gained strength from it.

Chapter: 40, P12.4, 13.1
Goku: “Heheh! I knew that I’m in better condition when I’ve got my tail!”
*He smashes wall*
Goku: “Alright! I’m in tip-top shape, tip-top shape!”

Goku wouldn't need to test his abilities after his tail grew back if it only affected his balance.

 

[Big Ank]

he said "I knew that I'm in better condition when I've got my tail" in response to him breaking out of the gum? then it's practically official imo.

 

[SSJ2]

I think after he trained his tail like Son Gohan told him to, the need for it disappeared. Hence why he was okay with Kami removing it. Initially it definitely made him stronger.

 

[Captain Cadaver]

Goku never even got an opportunity to break out of the gum until regrowing his tail, with Giran having kept up a constant assault on him without any opening until the tail regrew.

 

[SSJ2]

Spoiler

He had plenty of chances but was physically unable to break free. He was about to lose and was cursing Giran for using unfair tactics to beat him.

Considering he broke free almost instantly when his tail returned, it seems evident that it gave him strength.

 

[Captain Cadaver]

He didn't really seem to put in much effort in escaping during those pages though and, even when he did, it seemed to take a fair amount of effort to do so.

Spoiler

With what we're later told about how Ki works, Galu's previous actions can also be attributed to a loss in shouki from being surprised by this ability.

 

[SSJ2]

I’m going to have to agree to disagree then. Your explanation is valid enough but I simply don’t agree. I think Goku’s admittance of defeat implies he couldn’t break free of the gum without his tail. When Goku was initially captured in the gum, he had ample time to escape imo. He admitted to being unable to move and knew he was about to lose. He didn’t even attempt to put as much effort in as he did once his tail grew back and conceded defeat.