What's your opinion of chi-chi?
I personally think Chi-Chi is a lovely character that doesn’t get a lot of credit from the rest of the franchise. I hear a lot of people say how she’s this loud, boisterous, bully of a woman and say a lot of things about her that makes me just look at people and go “and yet??? you don’t say the same thing about Bulma???” I mean, I can understand why a lot of people don’t like Chi-Chi; that doesn’t mean she deserves all the hate that she gets. Some people also seem to support that because of how she is, and how she acts, that is seems more plausible for Goku to potentially step out on her. How….does that work? Have we all forgotten that the strongest man in the universe is not only in love with his wife but is also afraid to piss off said wife? If anything, that would more than likely deter Goku from even thinking such a thought (not even going into the fact that Goku doesn’t seem to care about that). And yes, people can say that that’s not love but instead fear, but the saiyan attraction for the males when it comes to picking their mates, as they have stated time and time again, and confirmed by Vegeta in Super, Saiyan men are attracted to strong-willed women. Do you really think that Goku as he is, would have been attracted to Chi-Chi if she was some sort of soft, quiet, meek woman going off of his bloodline? I highly doubt that.
Upon their first meeting in Dragon Ball, Chi-Chi has always kept the same sort of attitude about her and if Goku didn’t like that, Goku always had the option to leave or just leave Chi-Chi alone. When they met up again in the Grand Martial Arts Tournament again in Dragon Ball, it was Chi-Chi’s strength and strong will that allowed her to assert herself to Goku and to take him on in hand to hand combat trying to hold him up to the promise that he made to marry her, I feel really spoke and appealed to Goku. She didn’t bend his arm, she didn’t make him marry her in the way people make it out to be, No. She did what any other woman who has an iron will would do. Didn’t matter if they made a promise as kids or not. To her, it was something she held dear to her heart and kept with her though her formative years. And, just like any strong woman should, she held him to his promise. Obviously, when he told her that he didn’t know what she meant by marriage, Chi-Chi, although disappointed, was not about to FORCE Goku to marry her; she was going to bow out and let it go. It was GOKU who held up his end of the promise and asked Chi-Chi to marry him. That will to hold onto such a promise, in the hopes that she might see him again and show him that she kept hope (while kicking his ass cause he forgot her), spoke to Goku on such a level and he fell for her. Chi-Chi has NEVER lost hope nor faith in Goku.
Another reason why I love the character Chi-Chi is because, although Goku was going off fighting in order to protect the universe and taking (or dragging, depends on how you view it) Gohan with him in some instances, Chi-Chi had every reason and every right to leave him. This was obviously not the light she sought for herself; a man who is almost never home, taking her son who she wanted to have an education off to fight in dangerous situations where they might not live to walk through the door. Obviously, this is not something anyone would want for themselves; the stress alone of not knowing whether or not they’d come home would and has strained marriages and ultimately, broken them up. But, Chi-Chi stood her ground and held firm. She had so much faith in him that she’s stuck around. Chi-Chi is such a support system for Goku, Gohan, Goten, for their entire Son family. No one can tell me that she doesn’t contribute something to the characters and their development that fighting cannot. Just as Bulma is the support system for Vegeta and Trunks, Chi-Chi is the support system for them.
And not even just that, do not forget that Goku has died time and time again–once to Raditz and once to Cell, of course in two different arcs. Had it not been for Chi-Chi, Goku and his legacy to his family would’ve been just that as well, dead. She didn’t allow for him stay dead. She kept his memory alive and continuously, in her own way, reminded her sons of her of their father. She kept his memory alive and she kept the household going while he did what he had to do in order to keep the world going. Seeing this, not only for himself, but surely through the words of his mother, Gohan continues to have such a great respect for his dad. It is through his mother and his brother that Goten KNEW of Goku before he met him, and upon a few seconds of meeting him, he ran into his father’s arms. His sacrifices were beneficial not only them, but for the rest of the world; for their children to grow up in a world where they didn’t have to fight anymore. Chi-Chi understood his will to fight and she understood that the reason why he had that will to fight was not only just because of his blood, because of his good heart although she preferred that he didn’t.
Chi-Chi is one of the strongest characters in that entire franchise. She could’ve let her household collapse. She could’ve left Goku and sought a better life. She could’ve let his memory die among the lives of her sons but she didn’t do that. No. Chi-Chi did what Chi-Chi does best, she stands tall, firm, and keeps on going. She never lost faith in Goku, from the time they were kids to them now, her faith and love in him is just as strong, if not stronger. You don’t have to raise fists in order to fight and Chi-Chi proves that all the time, everyday. She deserves more love than what she gets because, without her keeping one part of their life afloat, what legacy would Goku have? Who would carry on his name and keep him going? Without Chi-Chi, Goku would’ve died a long time ago and would’ve stayed that way, permanently.