- This article is about the Super Saiyan Second Grade, you may be looking for Super Saiyan 2, which on one occasion was also referred to as "Ascended Saiyan" and "Ascended Super Saiyan"
Super Saiyan Second Grade (超サイヤ人第2段階, Sūpā Saiya-jin dai ni-dankai; "Super Saiyan 1 Stage 2") - referred to as Ascended Saiyan in the anime, is the first branch of the advanced Super Saiyan forms, achieved through intense training in the Super Saiyan form. In the form, every nerve is concentrated, sending ki through the body to inflate the muscles. It raises both power and speed. It is a forced increase in the power output of the initial transformation, and thus is not in itself an actual transformation.
This stage appears similar to that of Super Saiyan, with subtle differences. The flowing, golden hair becomes slightly more rigid and pales in color. Muscle mass also heavily increases, but not enough, however, to weigh the user down and reduce mobility (unlike the next stage of Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan Third Grade), and the Saiyan retains his agility. As a result of the muscle increase, the Saiyan's outfit pertaining to the upper torso area will also end up shredded apart, as evidenced by Future Trunks' transformation into the form while fighting Broly resulting in his jacket being torn to shreds. The aura increases in size and becomes more jagged, accompanied by bio-electrical discharge during transformation or when preparing a massive attack such as the Final Flash. The aggressive, remorseless behavior of the initial transformation is magnified; any control over emotion brought on by increased proficiency of the Super Saiyan transformation is canceled out, and energy requirement to sustain the state becomes enormous when compared to the regular Super Saiyan state, thus reducing its effectiveness. This deficiency forced Goku, and in turn, Vegeta and Trunks, to discard the form.
Usage and power
Vegeta and Future Trunks first achieved the Ascended Super Saiyan stage while training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, it took Vegeta two months of training to achieve the transformation. Vegeta used this state to battle Cell in his semi-perfect form, the result of his absorbing Android 17. It is suggested that Vegeta had at least more than tripled his strength as a Super Saiyan while harnessing this form. However, most of it was credited to his extensive training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, in which he spent ten additional months to the two months it took for him to attain this stage, to train himself further. Also, as he stated that Future Trunks was as strong as him to Semi-Perfect Cell (something that Future Trunks later stated when he tried to stop Cell when his father failed to stop him), it is also likely that Future Trunks had achieved a similar increase in strength in the Super Saiyan Second Grade form. This was notably showcased when Vegeta retained dominance during the fight, to the point where Cell began begging for his life and tricking the Saiyan prince into letting him absorb Android 18.
Vegeta's pride, overconfidence and lust for a greater challenge got the best of him, and when Cell became perfect, the tables were quickly turned against the favor of the Saiyan prince. Vegeta proved to be almost no match for Perfect Cell. Despite his best efforts and Final Flash technique, Cell regenerated and defeated the Saiyan with a single kick to the face that knocked him hurtling towards the sky, before being knocked out by a simple elbow drop to the back. Prior, Future Trunks also battled Semi-Perfect in the Super Saiyan Second Grade form for only a few moments (in the manga he is kicked away before doing anything in the stage by Vegeta), before powering up to the Super Saiyan Third Grade stage.
Goku achieved this form in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber as well, along with Future Trunks' own Super Saiyan Third Grade state immediately. He demonstrated this ability to Gohan before transforming into a Super Saiyan Third Grade, shortly after which he realized the vulnerabilities of these stages.
In the anime only, The Super Saiyan Second Grade form seemed to re-appear when Vegeta and Future Trunks battled the Cell Juniors (in the manga Vegeta and Future Trunks were regular Super Saiyans, but in the anime they appeared to have enlarged muscles at several points) Unfortunately, its power was only sufficient to fight on par with the miniature clones for a short time. They were, however, relieved in their battle by Gohan in his Super Saiyan 2 state, who dispatched every single Cell Junior with effortless blows.
The Super Saiyan Second Grade form also appeared in two Dragon Ball Z films; Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan and Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound, utilized by Vegeta and Future Trunks during the movie's conflicts.
- In this form, Vegeta calls himself "Super Vegeta" (超ベジータ).
- In Polish dubbing, Super Vegeta calls himself "Ultra Vegeta".
- Even though "Super Vegeta" is referred when Vegeta obtains the Super Saiyan Second Grade form, "Super Trunks" actually refers to the Super Saiyan Third Grade Trunks, in any games from Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi on, but in the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai it refers to this form.
- In the FUNimation dub of the episode "Super Saiyan 3?!", Goku says that Super Saiyan 2 is also known as Ascended Saiyan. However, this should not be confused with the Ascended Super Saiyan, which is a branch of the Super Saiyan level.