Dragon Ball: Who Actually Kills Frieza?

He started out as one of the most terrifying characters in the "Dragon Ball" universe, but after canonically being killed twice throughout the anime's history, Frieza's success rate hasn't been that great. 

Any "Dragon Ball" fan worth their weight in senzu beans remembers where they were when Goku had a hair change and finally beat the snot out of Frieza in one of the most epic battles of "Dragon Ball Z."  Reaching the iconic power level of Super Saiyan, Goku kicked that tiny tyrant around Namek like a purple soccer ball leading to his eventual defeat in "Dragon Ball Z." It was a loss that didn't last, though, when it was revealed sometime later that Lord Frieza, even after being cut down by his own homing disc and obliterated on Namek, had made it back from the brink, getting rebuilt with mechanical parts by his father, King Cooler.

Of course, heroes and villains returning from near-death or even beyond is nothing new in the beloved anime series. Frieza himself has made a trip back from the afterlife like many others, and incredibly, it wasn't the legendary Super Saiyan that offed him the first time around. Technically, after surviving his humiliating defeat on Namek and getting given an upgrade, Frieza's first official death was being sliced and diced by the time-traveling Saiyan Trunks in no time at all. It was in the years that followed that Goku got a second chance (off of another second chance) to kill him properly. Kind of.

In hindsight, Frieza's first death after being killed by Trunks was more of a huge flex if anything, but that didn't stop him from getting offed once again years later. After being cut down by the time-traveler with a super-cool sword initially, Goku took up the task and killed Frieza when he tried yet again to battle Earth's strongest warrior. 

Returning in "Dragon Ball: Super" to exact his revenge, Frieza applied pretty much the same tactics as the last time he fought Goku, begging the question of if he'd learned anything at all. Throwing a blast at Earth that was strong enough to destroy it (honestly, our planet can never get a break), Whis rewound time moments before Frieza's last-ditch effort, allowing Goku to kill his old foe for good. Of course, we say "good," but the three-toed monster was back in action shortly after, this time at the request of Goku himself. 

After what marked the first occasion in anime's official canon of Goku killing Frieza, the Saiyan enlisted the intergalactic loser to fight for Universe 7 in the Tournament of Power after being sent to Hell.  His acceptance led to eventual victory alongside Goku, allowing Frieza to be rewarded with yet another chance at life, which he swore he'd use to continue his evil ways, proving that alien warlords really just can't die enough.