Vegeta's past was made more interesting in the Dragon Ball anime by focusing on his relationship with Frieza as a young Saiyan.
Dragon Ball made Vegeta’s past more interesting by adding information about his life as a Saiyan growing up under Frieza's cruel tutelage. Vegeta became a good guy with this new layer of information. This is one of the most popular redemption stories in anime and manga history.
Vegeta's story began as an evil Saiyan. He eventually joined Goku, but only reluctantly. Vegeta even married Bulma, a human, to fully embrace life on Earth. Vegeta's transformation was gradual. It began when Goku asked Krillin on Earth to show him kindness, and then continued as the Saiyan prince fought alongside the Z Fighters on Namek to defeat Frieza. Vegeta's change was made more obvious in the Dragon Ball Z animated series when the Saiyan prince explained why he had become what he is before dying on Namek.
Vegeta became more nuanced in the Dragon Ball Anime
A dying Vegeta tells Goku in chapter 307 of Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball that Frieza has destroyed their planet, and that both their fathers were killed. This is to persuade Goku to kill Frieza so that Frieza can be destroyed by Saiyan hands. Vegeta tells Goku in episode #86 that Frieza made him destroy planets, threatening that his father would be killed if he did not. Frieza still murdered Goku, as well as all Saiyans. Vegeta blamed Frieza, who molded him into the monster he became.
Also Read: How Goku Came To Terms With His Saiyan Heritage In Dragon Ball Z
Most fans understandably assumed that Vegeta was always evil and just had a massive change of heart once Goku entered his life. The anime "filler", instead, shows that Vegeta fell under Frieza's sway as a kid, becoming the cold and cruel Saiyan who showed up on Earth the first time. Vegeta then changed again when he finally realized that he let his worst enemy manipulate him, before slowly reverting to how he would have been if Frieza hadn't dug his claws into him. In addition to having to reckon with the horrible actions he did, Vegeta now would likely have to eventually come to the realization that he had become a monster because of Frieza. In the manga, instead, Vegeta was simply mad because Frieza used him and he was sick of working for him.
This Vegeta Retcon Diminishes His Redemption
The problem with the Dragon Ball anime's retcon is that it diminishes Vegeta as an evil character and his sequent redemption. Yes, fans are now likely to feel more sorry for Vegeta, but his ultimate change of heart isn't as massive because he was actually manipulated into being evil. Thus, it isn't as big a deal that Vegeta married Bulma, joined Goku and the Z Fighters, or cried to Goku before dying because he wasn't an inherently horrible person as he was presented in the Dragon Ball manga.
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