Emperor Pilaf

Pilaf serves as the very first villain Goku encounters in the Dragon Ball manga, establishing the series' early tone as an adventure comedy rather than a pure action story. His schemes to gather the Dragon Balls and wish for global conquest are invariably undermined by his own incompetence and the superior strength of Goku and friends. Despite being physically weak and not particularly clever, Pilaf possesses a stubborn determination and an arsenal of mechanical inventions that occasionally make him a genuine nuisance.

His most consequential action occurs off-screen between Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super, when the Pilaf Gang uses the Dragon Balls and accidentally wishes themselves into children. This event not only provides a comedic reset for the trio but also connects them to the main story in unexpected ways, particularly through Mai's developing relationship with Trunks. In Dragon Ball GT, Pilaf's wish on the Black Star Dragon Balls is what transforms Goku back into a child, inadvertently setting the entire GT storyline into motion. For a character with no combat ability, Pilaf has an outsized impact on the Dragon Ball timeline through sheer persistence and bad luck.