Dragon Ball GT is the black sheep. For decades, mentioning it in a room full of anime fans was a gamble. You’d either get a nostalgic smile or a twenty-minute lecture on why it "doesn't count" because Akira Toriyama wasn't the primary writer. But things are shifting. As the franchise expands through Dragon Ball Super and the new Dragon Ball Daima, people are looking back at Dragon Ball GT and realizing it actually did a lot of things right.
It’s messy. It's weird. It features a protagonist who gets turned back into a child for no good reason other than a misguided attempt to recapture the magic of the 1980s. Yet, despite the flaws, it carries a soul that some argue is missing from the modern era.
The Dragon Ball GT Identity Crisis
When Dragon Ball Z ended its massive run in 1996, Toei Animation didn't want to stop the money train. Toriyama was burnt out. He wanted to move on to smaller projects like Sand Land. So, Toei stepped in to create a sequel that would bridge the gap between the high-stakes planetary destruction of the Buu Saga and the whimsical adventure of the original series.
The result was a tonal whiplash.
The first arc—the Black Star Dragon Ball saga—is basically a road trip through space. Goku, Trunks, and Pan (Gohan’s daughter) hop from planet to planet looking for these new, red-starred orbs. Honestly? It was kind of a slog. Fans who grew up watching Goku punch holes through gods weren't exactly thrilled to see him haggling with aliens over spaceship parts. It felt small. It felt like the stakes had vanished.
But then came Baby.
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When the Tuffle parasite Baby arrived, Dragon Ball GT finally found its footing. It tapped into the deep lore of the series, specifically the Saiyans' history as planetary conquerors. It turned the heroes' past sins against them. This wasn't just another guy with a high power level; it was a psychological threat that turned Goku’s own family against him. It gave us Super Saiyan 4, a transformation that looks infinitely more "Saiyan" than the blue and red hair swaps we see today. It felt primal. The fur, the tail, the shadow around the eyes—it looked like a warrior from an ancient legend.
Why the Canon Debate Doesn't Actually Matter Anymore
We need to address the elephant in the room. Is it canon? No. Not in the sense that it follows the timeline established by Dragon Ball Super. But in 2026, the concept of "canon" in this franchise is basically a suggestion. Between the Dragon Ball Heroes promotional anime, the various video games like Xenoverse and Sparking! ZERO, and the infinite branching timelines, Dragon Ball GT exists as a "Grand Touring" side story.
Think of it as a high-budget "What If?" scenario.
In some ways, GT handles the ending of the series better than anything else. The Shadow Dragon Saga is a stroke of genius. It posits that the heroes have overused the Dragon Balls. Every time they brought someone back to life or fixed a city, they were pumping negative energy into the orbs. Eventually, the bill comes due. The very items the show is named after become the final villains. That’s poetic. It forces the characters to realize they can't just wish away their problems forever.
The Problem With Pan and the Forgotten Cast
If you want to talk about where Dragon Ball GT failed, you have to talk about the characters. Goku is the sun, and everyone else is just a rock floating in his orbit.
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Pan had so much potential. She’s the daughter of Videl and Gohan—she should have been a powerhouse. Instead, she spent most of the series being the "damsel" or the annoying sidekick. She never even went Super Saiyan. In a show that is literally about Saiyans, leaving the lead female Saiyan at base level was a massive missed opportunity.
Then there's Vegeta. He gets a mustache. Let’s just sit with that for a second. The Prince of all Saiyans spent several episodes rocking a "dad stache" until his daughter told him it looked bad. It was funny, sure, but it felt like the writers didn't know what to do with him until the very end.
- Uub was hyped up as the next big thing and then... he just wasn't.
- Gohan became a scholar and barely fought, which, to be fair, is consistent with his character.
- Piccolo’s death in GT is one of the most emotional moments in the entire franchise, yet it’s often overlooked.
The show struggled to balance its massive cast. It became the "Goku and Friends" show even more than Z ever was.
The Visuals and the Music
One thing you can't take away from Dragon Ball GT is the aesthetic. The animation, handled by veterans like Katsuyoshi Nakatsuru, was often top-tier for its time. There’s a certain grittiness to the later arcs that feels more "adult" than the bright, polished look of Super.
And the music? "Dan Dan Kokoro Hikareteku" is arguably the best opening theme in the history of the franchise. It captures a sense of bittersweet nostalgia that perfectly fits a show about a hero nearing the end of his journey. Even the English dub’s controversial "Step into the Grand Tour" rap has developed a weird, ironic cult following over the years. It’s part of the charm.
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Super Saiyan 4 vs. Super Saiyan Blue
This is the debate that will never die. In the world of Dragon Ball GT, the ultimate form is Super Saiyan 4. It requires a Saiyan to regain their consciousness while in the Great Ape (Oozaru) form. It’s a synthesis of the man and the beast.
Compare that to Super Saiyan Blue. Blue is clean. It’s "God Ki." It’s calm. SSJ4 is anything but calm. It’s aggressive. It has a voice that sounds like two people speaking at once. From a design perspective, many fans still prefer the red-furred, long-haired look over the color-coded transformations of the modern era. It feels like a natural evolution of the Saiyan biology rather than just a spiritual power-up.
The Ending: A Final Farewell
The final episode of Dragon Ball GT, titled "Until We Meet Again," is widely considered the best finale in the franchise. Goku rides off on Shenron’s back. He visits his old friends one last time. He fades into the legendary status he deserves. It’s a tear-jerker.
It acknowledges that the era of the Dragon Balls is over. Goku is no longer just a man; he’s a protector, a symbol, or perhaps even a god in his own right. The 100-year time skip showing Goku Jr. fighting at the World Martial Arts Tournament brings the whole story full circle. It’s a beautiful, quiet ending that Dragon Ball Z didn't quite stick, and Dragon Ball Super hasn't reached yet.
What You Should Do Next
If you haven't watched Dragon Ball GT since the early 2000s, or if you skipped it because the internet told you it was bad, it’s time for a re-evaluation.
- Skip the first 15 episodes. Start right as they get into the meat of the Baby Saga if you find the space-traveling stuff too boring.
- Watch the Japanese sub. The tone is significantly different from the "edgy" 90s American broadcast.
- Check out the "A Hero's Legacy" TV Special. It’s a standalone story about Goku’s grandson and captures the heart of the series better than almost anything else.
The legacy of this series isn't about whether it's "official" or not. It's about the creative risks it took. Some of those risks resulted in absolute disasters, but others gave us the most iconic imagery in anime history. In a world of safe, predictable sequels, there's something genuinely refreshing about the beautiful, chaotic mess that is GT.