Gohan reaches his ultimate transformation in chapter 99 of Dragon Ball Super, finally making the Saiyan’s peak form from the movie fully manga canon.

Dragon Ball Super chapter #99 finally features the long-awaited appearance of Gohan’s ultimate form, Gohan Beast, in the manga for the first time. While watching Orange Piccolo struggle against Cell Max, Gohan unlocked a new level of power, allowing him to finally compete at a level where he might be able to defeat the behemoth villain.

Piccolo achieved his own transformation not long before, allowing him to grow in size to be large enough to face down Cell Max on a relatively even footing, but soon found himself struggling against his massive enemy, even with help from the other fighters present. Piccolo urged Gohan to channel his Chi until it was powerful enough to overwhelm Cell Max, but the process was slow, and it was looking like Piccolo might not be able to hold out.

Seeing Piccolo tank a powerful attack sent Gohan into a rage, finally unlocking the next step in his own journey: the Gohan Beast form.

Dragon Ball Super Shows Off Gohan’s New Power

The Gohan Beast state is said to be an evolution of his “Potential Unleashed” form, a transformation for Gohan which is distinct from Super Saiyan. It causes Gohan’s hair to turn white (akin to his father’s hair when using Ultra Instinct) and stand up to a massive degree, as well as crackling lightning emerging from his energy aura. Gohan is incredibly powerful in this state, able to take a point-blank strike from the enormous fist of Cell Max without even budging. Gohan proceeds to turn the tables on Cell Max, sending the huge creature flying backwards at immense speed.

While Cell Max isn’t fully defeated before the end of the chapter, the villain is clearly on his last legs, attempting to escape, only to be held in place by Piccolo. Piccolo urges Gohan to get the final hit in, even if it ends up taking him out along with Cell Max. Gohan Beast has already made an impressive debut, a unique and powerful transformation that finally lives up to all the potential Gohan has been known to have. Gohan’s power might even be a bit too impressive, as it’s already clear that he has this situation under control, removing a bit of the uncertainty from the cliffhanger that chapter 99 left out on.

It’s always exciting when a new transformation makes its debut, and Gohan Beast is no different in that regard. While many fans will have already seen it in the original Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie from last year, the manga debut is every bit as exciting, and it confirms that the form is canon, which some fans had worried might not be the case at the time. Gohan Beast will be on display in the next chapter as well, given that the fight isn’t finished, so fans do have a bit more time with the new form before the manga’s Super Hero arc comes to an end. Perhaps Gohan Beast might even be a match for Black Frieza when the Dragon Ball Super manga returns to its original storyline next year.