DBZAOTA482 said:
Originally, I thought the whole "Gohan is a nerdy loser" thing was concoded by Toei but it turns out it's mainly Toriyama-sensei's writing.... which is strange because I didn't think the Battle of Gods movie handled him too badly (he actually got to touch Beerus) unlike the Super anime's version where Beerus didn't even view him as worth playing with
Beerus never deemed as a worthy opponent in BoG either. He casually kicked his ass just like everyone else. Plus, I don't think that Gohan is a loser, just not as badass as he was before.
. But then Resurrection F came and he looked rather derpy.
Yes, indeed. The RoF arc overall wasn't kind to him. Getting humiliated by Frieza, witnessing his best friend murdered in front of him, Frieza threatening to kill his whole family...all of that just because he wasn't strong enough to stop him. So he had to rely on Goku and Vegeta...I actually pitied him. At least, the whole incident convinced him to train again (in Anime, at least).
Finally, there's the scene where Vegeta suggests to bring Gohan to the Universe 6 Tournament and Goku's like "Pfft, fuck Gohan! He's a nerd... he can't even find his gi!".
In the manga, at least.
Let me reiterate, I'm not one of those self-inserting Gohan fans who want SSJ2 "badassery" but I think Gohan should treated with way more respect than given by the man.
I don't think that Gohan was treated poorly, personally (in Anime at least, though in the RoF arc...
damn you, Frieza). In addition to the fact that he was never intended to be a fighter, he has his studies (considering the job he want to do, he sure need to work his ass), a wife and a child to take care of, so it doesn't come off as a surprise that he doesn't spare much time to training. And considering how strong Boo was, and the series' tendency to escalate the powers beyond belief, it was pretty obvious that Gohan wasn't going to be one of the top-dogs again, unless he had a power-up falling from the sky (*cough* Ultimate Gohan *cough*) or is a mary-sue (and we don't want Gohan to be that, right?)
With that said, it's true that the RoF arc wasn't kind to him. I mean, in addition to the bad drawing (since when Gohan is THAT skinny?), he gets his ass kicked by Frieza, watch his friend getting murdered before him, has the life of his loved ones threatened, and he couldn't do anything to stop it simply because he was way too weak. This event convinced him to take his training again (in Anime at least) to be able to protect his loved ones. That is also in-character: Gohan's Saiyan nature comes not because he want to fight, but for a greater cause, dealing with the injustices around him. This is the reason behind all of his raging moments and that is also the reason for the creation of "Great Saiyaman".
As for Goku being "fuck Gohan", it was Manga only. In the Anime, Gohan actually wanted to come to the tournament to see the result of his training, but he remembered that he couldn't because he had a conference. And Goku was much more understanding of Gohan's decision. In fact, he even encouraged him to go at his conference, telling him that his studies are important.
So, in a nutshell, I think that DBS doesn't mistreat Gohan (as far as the Anime goes, at least. Guess that Toyotaro doesn't like Gohan). In fact, his characterization was handled pretty well. Everything that happened so far in Dragon Ball Super are simply a result of said characterization. You won't kick ass if you don't train for over seven years, even if you have good genetics: reality ensues here. And even then, I am confident that Gohan is going to make his comeback in the Multiverse tournament.
