Even though he is evil at heart,
Vegeta is perhaps one of the most strong-willed characters in the series.
Like Son Goku,
he is extremely industrious, constantly striving to be better, but different
purposes drove Vegeta's spirit. Goku fought to
defend the lives and others and to challenge his limitations while Vegeta
fought to satisfy his bloodthirsty appetite and die
hard pride, which is unwilling to accept defeat. This gradually changes
throughout the series.
The primary driver of his will is Son Goku. Vegeta's defeat in his first
encounter with Goku and his unwillingness to accept
Goku being more powerful had constantly fuelled his strong will to continue
to train himself. After seeing Goku turn into
Super Saiyajin and defeating Freeza, he grew even more jealous of Goku’s
achievements and immersed himself in intensive
training. After much sweat and frustration, he finally became Super Saiyajin.
He only enjoyed a fleeting moment of pride in
destroying #20, before being defeated by #18.
Vegeta’s first catharsis occurred during Son Gohan’s battle with Cell.
Because of his rash decision to attack Cell when he
did not have the power to, had caused Gohan’s arm to be seriously injured
when Gohan saved his life. Not only was he not
even close to Cell’s ability, but also served as a hindrance to Gohan.
That was the first time Vegeta accepted his
incapabilities by making an apology to Gohan.
By the time Majin Buu appeared, what used to be a cold-hearted Vegeta changed.
Right before he proceeded to sacrifice
his life in an attempt to destroy Buu, he told Trunks that he cared about
him and how he felt bad about giving Trunks much
less attention then Trunks deserved.
During Son Goku's final battle with Majin Buu, Vegeta goes through a complete
catharsis. He realized that Goku's pure
and kind heart gave Goku the power that Vegeta never had. He finally realizes
that the good ultimately prevails.