The classical 16th-century-inspired film, Dragon Ball, infuses the elements of Hong Kong martial art, which we see through its characters.
Among them, Piccolo appears to be heavily underestimated but comes on top of each fight, proving his doubters wrong.
But what fighting style gives him the edge in combats, and how does he use it to his advantage? Brace up as we look into the martial art style Piccolo uses in his fights in the Dragon Ball franchise.
Who Is Piccolo, And His Significance in Dragon Ball?
Piccolo is a centuries-old being and the most recognizable Z hero of the Dragon Ball franchise. But it turns out that he’s never been what fans popularly know him in the film.
Akira Toriyama, the film’s producer, introduced him as King Piccolo in chapter 135 as evil and despicable.
However, while Goku successfully killed him, Piccolo had ensured that he’d lived in a reincarnated form – a younger version of himself – in another life.
It turns out he wouldn’t exist as powerful as his enemies thought of him, which is why they constantly underestimated him.
Was it because of his reformation to become an antagonist of the film rather than a dreaded foe? Perhaps.
But while virtually every enemy thought lowly of him, he always came on top in fights, thanks to his fighting style.
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What Style Does Piccolo Use in Dragon Ball?
Most people fail to figure out the style Piccolo used in his fights throughout the Dragon Ball franchise, and rightly so.
If you aren’t so much into martial arts but love the choreographed moves in Dragon Ball fights, we don’t blame you for not knowing.
Piccolo was a subtle character who fought his battles differently every time, but the Explosive Demon Wave was his signature technique.
Ideally, the Demon Clan Style is quite animalistic and chaotic. However, we all know Piccolo for combining this technique with his short-range moves in his Porunga fist moves.
These martial art styles render an opponent within no time, which he borrows from his ancestors from Namek.
Seemingly, the technique relates to the real-world martial arts style, the Bajiquan. It originates from China and involves using more knees and elbows while attacking.
What is Piccolo’s Porunga (Bajiquan) Martial Art Style? – An In-Depth
As we’ve already seen, Bajiquan closely – or entirely – relates to Piccolo’s Dragon Ball’s Porunga style, which he combines with several others, including Explosive Demon Wave styles.
It employs short-range power, including shoulder and elbow strikes. The style was initially known as Bazi Quan to mean “Fake Fist.”
While it doesn’t show a visible aggressiveness, it’s quite a subtle technique that dupes the enemy into thinking so.
The martial art style involves holding the fists loosely and marginally open and striking the opponent using elbows and shoulders.
In defense, Piccolo seems to use his limbs more often, which offers headway to every compromising enemy attack.
It’s a crucial technique that has often seen him out of trouble, as we see in Stalling Buu encounters and Nam battles, even though we learn that he used namekian fusion to absorb power from this monstrous warrior.
We also see Piccolo using this technique when training Gohan to prepare him for the Saiyans. Eventually, his effort seems to bear fruit as Gohan develops into a formidable young warrior.
He doesn’t stop at that since he continues to impress viewers and amaze his foes throughout the franchise as he uses this unique martial art style to subdue his enemies.
Fair to say, it makes him the most dreaded foe as he takes on every fighting challenge with ease.
Conclusion
It’s not always a breeze figuring out the martial art styles that Dragon ball characters use if you aren’t so familiar with the moves.
Nevertheless, that’s easy to figure out if you’re curious. Piccolo is one of the franchise’s characters that amazes and inspires curiosity, with every viewer wanting to understand which techniques of the many in the film he uses.
