With Super coming to an end after 131 episodes, it’s about time we took a step back and reevaluted the 64 episode run of Dragon Ball GT. Originally the only sequel to the series, GT was the red headed stepchild so many fans struggled to accept. On a whole, it was a poorer product than either anime that preceded it. It’s not as if Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z were perfect adaptation, either. Both suffered from poor pacing and tonal issues, but they at least had a strong source material to adapt from. GT was a new product entirely, and it showed.
Without the backbone of Toriyama’s story, character writing, and choreography, Toei clearly struggled to maintain a consistent quality with Dragon Ball GT. It was ultimately so divisive in tone and content, it’s not unusual to find fan preferences all over the place. Some like the softer tone of the beginning and others prefer the action heavy back half. Whichever one you prefer, though, GT is undeniably the most flawed anime in the franchise. With those flaws comes a rich history of production mishaps, missed opportunities, and a localization details that are going to completely change how you perceive Dragon Ball GT.
25 Dragon Ball GT Doesn’t Even Fit In The Anime’s Own Continuity
From a production persecution, Dragon Ball GT is a blatant sequel to the Dragon Ball Z anime. Super is a sequel to the Z-era’s story, but it doesn’t follow it as naturally as GT does. As inherently flawed as GT is, the mere fact it feels like a genuine continuation of the series’ anime adaptation gives it a degree of credibility you can’t find in Super. It looks like Z, it sounds like Z, and, rarely, it even feels like Z.
Unfortunately, Dragon Ball GT is an anime bogged down by inconsistencies that render it incompatible with the anime’s continuity. During the Super 17 arc, viewers are granted a glimpse at past villains as their escape Hell. Among old favorites like Nappa, the Ginyu Force, and General Blue, we see Cooler: a movie villain. No matter how you cut it, Cooler cannot fit into the anime’s canon turning a cute reference into an issue of shaky continuity.
24 The English Dub Is Completely Nonsensical
Funimation’s English dub of Dragon Ball Z is quite infamously one of the worst dubs of an anime ever produced. Names are liberally changed, Kikuchi’s score is replaced with a soundtrack that was already dated by the time the show hit the West, and the entire tone of the anime was virtually incompatible with its source material. You could genuinely make a case for the English being its own adaptation and it’d have legs to stand on. As bad as Funimation’s DBZ was, it was nowhere close to the atrocity known as English GT.
Where Funimation’s DBZ at least tried at times to keep the story consistent between both dubs, GT didn’t even pretend it was a dub. Plot points and character motivations were all changed with seemingly no reference to the source material. This was a problem Z had, but dialogue changes there were at least semi-recognizable to fans of the original script. GT is basically its own beast, with little to no logic in its changes. If English Z might be an adaptation, English GT is an adaptation.
23 GT Was Originally Going To Take Place Before The End Of Z
Before Battle of Gods gave fans the DBZ interquel they felt they were missing, GT was originally going to be a foray into the uncharted era and expand on the gap between Buu and Uub. It’s a concept that makes enough sense Toei ended up coming back to it decades later, but, at the time of GT’s development, Toei wasn’t sold on filling in an era Toriyama intentionally left blank.
Feeling it would interfere too intimately with the manga’s legacy, Toei relented and instead focused on a sequel that took place after Goku flew off with Uub. That way, the manga could stand alone as its own complete package without any potential interference. It’s interesting, had Toei ended up making GT an interquel, would Battle of Gods still have taken place in the time gap?
22 Gohan Almost Had A Mini-Arc
It's not too unusual to see fans referring to Dragon Ball GT as “Goku Time.” Time and time again, GT would sideline its absolutely massive cast in favor of giving good ol’ Goku some screen time he didn’t need. Naturally, former main character ended up getting left in the dust. Gohan, who was arguably DBZ’s deuteragonist was one such casualty. While he played a supporting role in the Baby arc, he was virtually non-present for the rest of the series. That doesn’t mean Toei didn’t try to fit him in, though.
While he played a supporting role in the Baby arc, he was virtually non-present
Presumably meant to set during the Super 17 arc, there would have been a set of episodes that would have focused on Gohan finally getting his fighting spirit back and heading out to fight. One proposed scene featured Chichi trying to stop him and Gohan going anyways, showing his resolve. For whatever reason, the subplot fell through and nothing substantial was ever done with Gohan past Baby.
21 GT (Surprisingly) Got Vegeta Right
For all of GT’s many faults, and there are many of them, it does have one strength it’ll hold over Super until the end of time: Vegeta. By the end of the Buu arc, Vegeta has completely reconciled his feelings towards his rivalry with Goku. He’s accepted Goku’s superiority and finds comfort in that, reflecting on the journey and growth he had in his pursuit to surpass the only man to ever break his pride. Super dials this development back, regressing Vegeta to a limbo between growing up as a person and wanting to surpass Goku. GT works with it.
Vegeta in GT is a clearly matured character. Not only are his negative feelings towards Goku virtually gone, he’s also proactive and humble enough to realize he won’t catch up via normal means. When the Shadow Dragons roll around, he puts his pride aside in order to artificially trigger Super Saiyan 4 and even goes along with the fusion dance in order to beat Omega. Like Gohan, he isn’t very active, but he’s handled quite well when he’s around and not possessed by Baby.
20 Nothing Interesting Is Done With The Shadow Dragons
The Dragon Balls shatter and seven evil dragons split off and start wreaking havoc on the Earth. With such a large cast to hunt down the dragons and make sure they’re stopped, this is an arc that basically writes itself. Unfortunately, proper character management was never quite GT’s strong suit. Instead of giving the former main characters their chance against a dragon, Goku gets to take on every single Shadow Dragon on his own with some very minor help from Pan. Gohan, Vegeta, Piccolo, 18, and Goten and Trunks could have all taken on one dragon while still leaving the last two for Goku and Pan. That would be sensible, though, and we know GT is anything but.
19 A Poor Man’s Future Trunks
GT Trunks is animated proof that imitations are just that: imitations. Despite being an adult version of Kid Trunks from the Buu arc, GT Trunks is virtually unrecognizable to his young counterpart. Where Kid Trunks was brash, crude, and a trickster at heart, GT Trunks is a mild, polite young man who resembles a certain mysterious youth from the Cell arc. GT Trunks could have been a fun look at Kid Trunks all grown up, but instead, he’s a husk resulted from Toei’s desire to capitalize on Future Trunks.
Toei forgot what made Future Trunks so compelling.
It’s as if, in writing GT Trunks, Toei forgot what made Future Trunks so compelling. Born in a dying future where most of the main cast is dead, Trunks manages to be the beacon of hope in a hopeless situation. He’s determined to make his future a better place and he’s in no way cynical about it. He’s a sincere character with a strong motivation. GT Trunks has no such motivation, he just is. His personality contradicts how he acted at the end of Z, and he lacks the gripping backstory of his Cell arc counterpart.
18 GT Took A Ridiculous Amount Of Breaks
Weekly breaks aren’t unheard when it comes to anime, but Dragon Ball GT took it to a new level. Not only did every arc feature at least two breaks, these breaks would occasionally last for weeks. There was almost a one month gap between the airing of the seventh and eighth episode during the Black Star arc; The Baby arc, at most, only aired three episodes a month from July 1996 until the new year; the start of the Super 17 arc had a month long break between its first and second episodes; and the Shadow Dragons arc took a month long break before Goku and Vegeta fuse into Gogeta. GT isn’t a great series as is, but watching it live and being forced to wait a month for the plot to drag on must have been a truly excruciating experience.
17 Chewbacca Was In A Hero’s Legacy
With a good chunk of fans clamoring for a Mark Hamill casting in Super’s English dub, it’s natural to see quite a bit of push-back from more pessimistic fans. He may be a voice actor, yes, but he’s a Star Wars actor. Arguably the Star Wars. Why would anyone cast in the most iconic science fiction trilogy of all time resort to doing voice work for a Dragon Ball dub? Well, it’s likelier than you think.
Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca himself, lent his voice for the Dragon Ball GT film, A Hero’s Legacy. Playing the role of Gettō, Susha in the dub, Mayhew’s role was relatively minor but still worth noting. He’s certainly not one of Star Wars’ major actors, but his importance in the franchise as a whole is undeniable and his name certainly commands fan attention. Mark Hamill likely won’t be cast in Super, but there is a precedent set for Star Wars alum dipping their toes in Dragon Ball’s water.
16 Super Saiyan 4 Wasn’t The First Attempt At Bringing Back The Oozaru Connection
GT is often described by fans as a series with good concepts and poor executions. Of all its ideas, however, one concept does stand out as impeccably executed: Super Saiyan 4. While its usage in the series is debatable, and we will touch on that, its design is absolutely genius. In order to progress down the Super Saiyan line, Goku needs to go back to his Saiyan roots and embrace the Oozaru. It’s a concept so genius, it’s hard to believe it wasn’t Toriyama’s.
While designing Super Saiyan 3, Toriyama actually did intend to create a connection to the Oozaru form.
Except it kind of was. While designing Super Saiyan 3, Toriyama actually did intend to create a connection to the Oozaru form. Goku would grow a tail while transforming, bringing him full circle. This didn’t end up happening, likely because of Toriyama’s dislike of drawing tails, but it’s nice to see the core idea didn’t go to waste.
15 The GT Staff Couldn’t Commit To A Plot
The Black Star Dragon Balls arc gets a lot of criticism for its lighter tone and monster of the week structure, but it’s one of the only parts of GT that feels tonally consistent. Sure, it can get boring, but there’s a natural progression leading up to M-2. Unfortunately, as soon as they do land on the planet, the entire story starts to tear at the seams.
Early on in production, the GT staff realized they couldn’t make an entire show based around collecting the Black Star Dragon Balls. Instead of seeing the arc to its natural completion, they sloppily transitioned into the Baby arc. When the Baby arc ended, they ran into a similar problem with the next arc where the Super 17 arc was used as a vehicle for the Shadow Dragon arc, replicating that same awkward transitionary feeling where nothing feels properly concluded or established.
14 Baby Is An Incredibly Stupid Villain
Characters in Dragon Ball are hardly immune to being stupid, but Baby takes it to another level entirely. With the ability to take over anybody’s body, it should be incredibly easy for him to carry about all his plans. Ignoring the fact he doesn’t possess the substantially stronger Gohan in favor of Vegeta, he also doesn’t bother trying to possess Goku. There are times where he could have pulled it off during their battle, but he doesn’t even try.
His signature ability is literally to possess anyone without much trouble and he completely forgets about it when he’s fighting the strongest man in the universe. Not only does it make Baby look massively incompetent, it also deprives us of a potentially interesting story where the supporting cast would have to step up to the plate and take on Baby Goku.
13 Super Saiyan 4 Is Useless
Super Saiyan 4, for all its fanfare, amounts to very little in the long run. After blasting away Baby into the sun, Goku never actually manages to defeat an arc villain with Super Saiyan 4. Super 17 beats it out of him, forcing him to Dragon Fist him in base; and Omega Shenron survives every single Super Saiyan 4 attack Goku, Vegeta, and Gogeta launch at him. The only thing that actually works is a universal Genki Dama that Goku, yet again, uses in his base form.
After blasting away Baby into the sun, Goku never actually manages to defeat an arc villain with Super Saiyan 4.
It’s quite frustrating, really. It would get repetitive if every single villain were beaten with Super Saiyan 4, but the alternative is introducing an all-powerful conclusion to the Saiyan line that ends up doing incredibly little. Spin-offs like Dragon Ball Heroes have done a better job at using than SSJ4 than GT. It’s still an amazing concept, but maybe its execution past its inception should be put under more scrutiny.
12 GT Was Originally Set To End With Baby
Believe it or not, Dragon Ball GT’s 64 episode run was not cut short like many believe. Originally, the plan was for GT to cap off at the end of the Baby arc. Following the awkward start of the Black Star Dragon Ball arc, the Baby material, while still imperfect, at least felt like it had a goal and stakes. Ending with Goku defeating Baby would have been a logical stopping point. Surprisingly enough, however, Toei deemed the series worthy enough for a continuation and it plowed right into the Super 17 arc. It’s entirely possible Toei meant the series to actually go past 64 episodes following the renewal, but, either way, it technically still wasn’t cut short.
11 Too Many People Were Introduced To The Series Through GT
A long, long time ago, in a decade far, far away, Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout released on August 21, 1997 for the PlayStation. While this might seem like a fun piece of trivia mixed in with an unnecessary Star Wars reference, it’s important to take in that year: 1997. Dragon Ball had already made its way to the West in some capacity, but it had not yet gained its mainstream notoriety. In fact, for many people, Final Bout was their introduction to the series.
The only thing worse than being introduced to Dragon Ball through GT is being introduced to Dragon Ball through an awful GT themed video game. Final Bout is notoriously one of the worst games in the franchise, relevant only thanks to nostalgic goodwill and its weird in the Western Dragon Ball fandom. It’s honestly a miracle Final Bout didn’t turn off as many potential fans as it gained with its janky gameplay and downright ugly aesthetic.
10 A Hero’s Legacy Aired Before The End Of The Series
Regardless of its overall quality, A Hero’s Legacy is conceptually a perfect epilogue to Dragon Ball GT. Taking place 100 years after the events of GT, the film follows the appropriately named Goku Jr. as he tracks down the 4-star Dragon Ball to help cure his Grandma Pan. Ignoring the fact this isn’t how Dragon Balls work, it’s a relatively low quality ending to the series that’s nonetheless sentimental. Oddly enough, while it was produced as an end to the anime as a whole, it actually released after the end of the Baby arc.
The film was likely in production long before Toei ever decided to extend the series
Considering GT was slated to end with Baby, this does make sense. The film was likely in production long before Toei ever decided to extend the series, which makes its usage of Goku rather odd. His manifestation from the 4-star Dragon Ball makes sense in the context of the ending of the Shadow Dragon arc, but can’t be reconciled with the end of Baby. It’s a bit of a chicken and the egg scenario. Did Toei plan this end for Goku all along, or did they use his almost omnipotent presence in the film to craft GT’s ending?
9 Toriyama Officially Christened GT A “Side Story”
When people mention “canon” in reference to Dragon Ball, it’s important to remember that nobody in charge has ever actually established what the canon is. Toriyama has made comments about Battle of Gods and Resurrection F falling in the manga’s continuity, but Toei hasn’t made a statement on canonicity. By this logic, GT technically isn’t non-canon. That said, it’s not exactly canon either as it’s one of the only pieces of Dragon Ball media that Toriyama has commented on. While he didn’t say it was non-canon, he did say it was a “side story;” the implication being that it’s relatively unimportant to the series as a whole. Of course, Toei wouldn’t let Toriyama call a property they’re trying to sell “non-canon,” but it’s pretty obvious what this statement actually means.
8 There Was A (Bad) Reason Pan Didn’t Turn Super Saiyan
After her introduction at the end of Z solidified her as an incredibly powerful character with more potential than any other character in the series, Dragon Ball GT went on to do virtually nothing with Pan. She tagged along for every arc, but her growth was minimal and she rarely ever put up a meaningful fight. On top of that, she holds the distinction of being the only post-Namek arc Saiyan in the anime’s continuity to never turn into a Super Saiyan.
She tagged along for every arc, but her growth was minimal and she rarely ever put up a meaningful fight.
Unfortunately, this isn’t an oversight on Toei’s part either. Holding Pan back was a deliberate choice made in order to make Goku come off more heroic. The logic being, if Goku has nobody to save, how can audiences recognize him as a hero? Ignore the fact that Goku was never overtly heroic, and revel in the casual bigotry of that comment. Goku can only be a hero if he has a damsel in distress? Way to diminish a character’s potential right out the gate.
7 “Step Into The Grand Tour” Or: How Funimation Ruined A Great Song
“Dan Dan Kokoro Hikareteku,” also known as “Bit by Bit, I’m Falling Under Your Spell,” is often considered to be one of the best songs to come out of Dragon Ball, right up their with “Cha-La Head-Cha-La.” A beautiful song that scores GT perfectly, it’s easily the best thing to come out of the entire anime. Unfortunately, par for the course for Funimation, the song was removed from the English dub and replaced with “Step Into the Grand Tour,” a cheesy rap that stripped away all the sentimentality from “Dan Dan” and replaced it with the sharpest edge Funimation has ever produced. It’s an embarrassing blight on Dragon Ball and one that shows just how out of touch Funimation was by the time GT aired in the West.
6 Where Did The First 16 Episodes Go?
In a surprising move of marketing brilliance, Funimation began their dub of GT with a quick recap episode of the Black Star Dragon Ball arc before immediately jumping into the Baby related material. While fan perception of the arc has bettered in recent years, Funimation realized that their Western audience wouldn’t want to go from the action heavy DBZ to the lighter start of GT. They deemed cut out the first sixteen episodes, renamed them the “Lost Episodes,” and called it a day.
Funimation effectively created demand for a part of the series Western fans would have likely rejected
In rebranding these episodes and taking them away from fans, Funimation effectively created demand for a part of the series Western fans would have likely rejected had they been introduced to the series with them. Instead, they now sought out the coveted “Lost Episodes.” Out of all of Funimation’s decisions dubbing Dragon Ball, this one is by far their most ingenious.