Dragon Ball's Bulma is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best and most beloved female anime characters ever. Not only is she a determined and courageous woman, always willing to fight for what she desires, but she is also a true genius without whom Goku and his friends would have fallen in battle long ago. Her mastery of technology, physics and mathematics is almost unmatched in the industry, making her a sure candidate for the position among the most brilliant anime characters ever.
Still, despite Bulma's superior intellect being an undeniable fact, even the most hardcore Dragon Ball fans can admit that other scientists and researchers among the anime have been shown to be smarter than her. From those who have mastered nearly every realm of human knowledge to master manipulators whose intellects can confound even the most brilliant of detectives, there's no shortage of incredibly smart creatures in anime who could teach Goku's first friend a thing or two.
Dragon Ball: How Much Has Bulma Changed Since Episode 1?
Bulma has been a huge part of the Dragon Ball franchise from day one. How far has she come since the introduction?
7
L Lawliet – Death Note
Hailed as the best detective ever born into the world by Death NoteL is a man whose mind can solve even the most intricate puzzles. Ever since he was a child, Lawliet displayed a level of intelligence far above the average for all children. He grew up helping the police solve crimes that seemed impossible to crack, setting traps for the most skilled criminals and doing it without ever revealing his identity to the world.
Death Note: L's 8 Biggest Mistakes
Although L was an impeccable detective with impeccable skills, he made critical mistakes that eventually led to his demise.
L's genius went as far as deciphering the secret of Kira's killing methods, even when he had no idea what the Death Note was, or what the Shinigami rules its users had to follow were. What made L stand out from other anime characters was his open mind, which allowed him to easily accept conclusions that others would completely disregard. Sadly, even his intellect was not enough to predict how fickle emotions could be, resulting in one of the saddest and most controversial deaths in the business.
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Johan Liebert – Monster
While most of the smartest anime characters in history tend to use their gifts for the betterment of humanity, there are some whose genius leads them to become ruthless and despicable villains. Such is the case with Johan, the antagonist of the widely loved one Monster series and a man with an intellect that seems to be supernatural. Since he was young, this twisted individual showed great ease in learning and mastering almost any subject.
In a few hours, Johan could compete with experts in any field in heated debates, thanks to his eidetic memory and high rational capacity. He would go on to use these gifts to dominate the criminal world of the series, ruling from the shadows to fulfill his plans and prove himself the superior human. He is a brilliant man, and objectively one of the best villains in all of anime.
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Sora and Shiro – No Game No Life
While video and board games are mostly known to be fun pastimes that help people unwind after a stressful day, those who have a passion for the medium know how much skill and talent it takes to be good. For others, like Sora and Shiro, two of the best players in anime history, games were more about showing dominance than anything else. Better known as the Blanks, these siblings could learn and master almost any game in minutes.
From strategic games like chess to psychological challenges, there's no activity these brilliant youngsters can't excel at. Their minds work in such an advanced way that they can even predict the outcome of rigged challenges, as seen at the end of Season 1 of the anime. It's no wonder that the God of Games himself found them worthy contenders, as they are among the most broken protagonists in Isekai, even without magical powers.
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Vegapunk – One Piece
Over the four seas that make up the world of One Piecethere is one man admired and loved by almost all the inhabitants: Vegapunk. Called the most brilliant scientist in history, this man was responsible for most of the advances seen in Eiichiro Oda's world-famous series. His most brilliant inventions and devices, such as the machines used to clone himself and separate his consciousness into multiple vessels, are too advanced for any other character to ever replicate.
Vegapunk was also able to trick the world government into giving him access to forbidden knowledge just so he could use it against them when the time for the people to rise up finally came. His Devil Fruit, The Brain-Brain Fruit, is considered to have one of the strongest abilities in the series, as it gave him the ability to absorb infinite knowledge, as well as the means to remember it perfectly. In the hands of someone less capable, the true potential of this treasure may have been lost, but Vegapunk used it to push the limits of humanity and leave behind a legacy of brilliance.
3
Kiyotaka Ayanokoji – Classroom of the Elite
Raised as part of the White Room program created by his father, Kiyotaka is a disturbing combination of natural born talent and extreme pressure, resulting in one of the most manipulative people on the show. He tends to hide his true intelligence behind a detached persona, allowing others to think they are superior to the boy. While this is happening, he manipulates events from the shadows, controlling people's reactions and making sure his plans remain uninterrupted.
What sets Kiyotaka apart from other anime intellectuals is his willingness to abandon his morals to achieve his goals, traits acquired during his time in the mysterious and inhuman White Room. This forces him to consider paths and solutions that others may ignore because of their costs or the other damages. Most of the people around him don't even notice his manipulations and schemes, which proves how much thought and talent is hidden behind his ordinary student persona.
2
Lelouch Vi Britannia – Code Geass
While it's not uncommon for anime dealing with dystopian worlds to have terrorist protagonists, these stories tend to place a heavy focus on the protagonist becoming stronger and using their abilities to dismantle the government. Code Geass protagonist Lelouch preferred to take a completely different approach, using his unique mind control abilities and high intellect to destroy his father's empire piece by piece.
Due to his noble upbringing, Zero was trained in most fields from an early age, making him quite more skilled than many other residents of the British Empire. Combined with his superior strategic mind, which could conjure up solutions to almost any problem in seconds, you have an opponent worthy of an entire nation. While some of his plans may be seen as morally reprehensible, no one can deny the level of intelligence required to single-handedly take down an entire empire.
1
Senku Ishigami – Dr. Stone
No matter how smart an anime character can be, their stories and goals often focus on one topic. Whether this is to produce technological advancements, as in the case of Bulma, or to become one of the best tacticians in the medium, there are only a handful of examples of geniuses merging disciplines. Senku, from the widely popular Dr. Stone anime, threw those rules out the window by becoming a master of almost every science and craft.
Since he was first introduced to audiences, this brilliant scientist has impressed the world by not only possessing the knowledge to restore human civilization, but also possessing the skills necessary to achieve this. Senku has also shown a very strategic mind, capable of fooling clever individuals and coming up with plans so strange that ordinary people could never hope to understand. He is clearly one of the best analytical minds in anime.
- TV program
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Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super, Dragon Ball DAIMA
- First TV show
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Dragon Ball
- Created by
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Akira Toriyama
- Latest TV show
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Dragon Ball DAIMA
Dragon Ball is a franchise by Akira Toriyama that follows the adventures of Goku, a mighty warrior who protects the Earth with his group of friends. A new title from the series is Dragon Ball: The Breakers, an action game where 7 players must survive being chased by Raiders.
