For 40 years now, Dragon Ball has been doing something rare: aging without losing its gravitational pull. What began as a gag-heavy adventure serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump didn’t just grow into a franchise; it evolved into a culture-defining series that spans generations and ideologies of fandom. While 2026 marks four decades since Akira Toriyama’s gem of a series release in anime form, it also quietly marks 30 years since what was once considered the final chapter in the story, Dragon Ball GT . Over the last 30 years, fans have debated where GT belongs in the ever-expanding Dragon Ball universe. At launch, its role seemed obvious; it was the direct follow-up to Dragon Ball Z and the finale of the series as we knew it. But time has complicated that a bit. As new series, films, OVAs and official timelines have proliferated, GT has drifted into a kind of narrative limbo. Treated less like canon and more like a question mark. Yet it’s that ambiguity that may be its greatest strength. Three decades later, my take is simple: GT is the boldest branch of this franchise. It’s a series willing to sit with consequence, loss, and stages some of the most grim moments in the franchise's history. GT dares to imagine a future where power has a cost, where the heroism of the Z-Fighters as we know it corrodes over time, and presents a future where even Future Trunks might pause and wonder if this timeline was worth saving at all. Three decades later, after everything that’s come and gone, Dragon Ball GT is still a hell of a watch. Let’s break down everything with this series and what makes it awesome. Dragon Ball GT Retrospective What Is Dragon Ball GT? What Makes Dragon Ball GT Unique? Why Dragon Ball GT Still Rules Dragon Ball GT’s Impact on the Franchise What Is Dragon Ball GT ? Without mincing too many words, Dragon Ball GT is the follow-up to Dragon Ball Z , which was the follow-up to Dragon Ball . A series that premiered in 1996, following the conclusion of the Buu Saga in Dragon Ball Z (which featured its own time skip in the final episode of 10 years), GT takes place five years after that. In that time skip, we get the teenage years of Goten and Trunks, the growth of Gohan’s daughter Pan, a much older-but-still-kicking Master Roshi, and, of course, Goku still at the peak of his powers, training the reincarnation of Majin Buu, Uub. The series starts off with a major event by revisiting the Pilaf Gang. Emperor Pilaf wants to make a wish for world domination, but this time, he’s using the newly introduced, but infamous Black Star Dragon Balls (complete with an incredible-looking red Shenron known as Ultimate Shenron). However, Pilaf accidentally wishes for Goku to revert back into a kid. Upon making a wish with the Black Star Dragon Balls, they scatter across the universe, and the rules state that they have to be retrieved or the Earth will explode. It’s completely chaotic, but it sets up things very well for an adventure through space. By turning Goku back into a child, the series destabilizes the power fantasy that Z perfected. With strength now unreliable and everything on the line, the show becomes colder and less forgiving than the somewhat hopeful series that preceded it. In terms of the series’ name, the term GT stands for "Grand Tour," symbolizing the trip Goku, Trunks and Pan would be taking around the universe in order to find the Black Star Dragon Balls. Similar to traveling to Namek or Other World, it was a continuation of an attempt to open up the Dragon Ball universe beyond its borders with more grim stakes. What Makes Dragon Ball GT Unique? Where do we even begin? Well, unlike any Dragon Ball series before it, GT isn’t based on a manga. While the previous series was an adaptation of Akira Toriyama’s work, there’s no blueprint or structure to follow in GT . This, to me, gives the show a sense of freedom and wild, unpredictable energy. While Akira Toriyama provided consultation, character art, and the name of the series, this leg of Dragon Ball was purely and uniquely developed by Toei Animation and produced by Kozo Morishita. From a story standpoint, while major villains have always been the driving force of conflict in previous Dragon Ball series, the real antagonists in GT are the consequences of the Z-Fighters. After decades of adventures and fights, they’re reckoning with the fallout of their own habits using the Dragon Balls. The Dragon Balls — once framed as sacred, once-in-a-lifetime miracles — had become tools deployed casually to undo death, bypass loss and brute-force the future into submission. GT pauses long enough to ask what that kind of power does to the universe — and to the people wielding it. Also, the soundtrack and overall visual palette of the series is starkly different from what we’re used to in Dragon Ball up to that point. Where Dragon Ball Z thrived on vibrancy (including Goku’s orange gi, Vegeta’s royal blue attire, Super Saiyan gold, and the distinct but notable color palettes of Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu), GT drains that from this world. GT ’s palette is moodier, heavier and grim. The soundtrack follows suit, exchanging the sounds of triumph that are even built into today’s series like Dragon Ball Super and Dragon Ball DAIMA , leaning heavily into moody rock textures that favor the tension of the series. Everything about GT feels less assured, less hopeful. Another major unique point of the series comes from just watching it. It almost moves at a different rhythm, but is still tied together by the general feeling of uneasiness through adventure. The Goku that we know feels distanced from his original self, and while he does gain some sick power-ups through the iconic Super Saiyan 4 transformation, he’s still burdened by the consequences of his wishes and the wish that brought him to this situation. Even in the final episodes, GT culminates with a quiet departure from Goku, where we’re not sure if he’s even dead or alive. It’s a stark difference to the triumphant closure that’s typical for this franchise. Why Dragon Ball GT Still Rules Even with Dragon Ball Super , DAIMA , and a never-ending parade of movies expanding the universe, GT still rules because it refuses to do what the rest of the franchise does. Where newer series seem obsessed with bigger, flashier forms, more gods, and more universes, GT sticks to its commentary on the series itself. It’s not about winning or breaking limits — although that still happens — it’s about paying for all the cosmic chaos the Z-Fighters have left behind. Also, when you think of GT and its contribution to the Dragon Ball franchise, look no further than Super Saiyan 4. It’s the transformation that makes this series somewhat real for folks, and in a way, takes it back to the essence. The transformation feels more in tune with the physiology and ideology of the Saiyan race, and coming within the Baby arc, where a Tuffle (a race that was exterminated by the Saiyans) is coming back for revenge, it feels like the perfect inclusion to the series. Transformations are moment markers in the series for all Dragon Ball fans, and similar to Super Saiyan God in Super or Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta in DAIMA , Super Saiyan 4 almost legitimizes the series in a strange way. Its popularity has transcended the series, and it’s included in almost every Dragon Ball video game for a reason. What also makes GT awesome are the stories, believe it or not. While the series starts off with returning to form with the adventure, it’s the Baby and Super 17 arc that arguably may be one of the best stretches in the series. The Baby arc follows the Tuffle parasite Baby as he seeks revenge on the Saiyans for the destruction of his race, gradually taking control of Earth and even possessing Vegeta to turn him into a weapon against his own friends. Suddenly, against our will, we’re thrown back in the mix of Goku vs. Vegeta — a never-ending Dragon Ball rivalry. But even after conquering the parasite, another threat is on the horizon when villains begin escaping Hell. This leads to the Z-Fighters encountering a number of Dragon Ball and DBZ villains they’ve previously defeated, along with coming face to face with Super 17 — a creation by Dr. Gero from Dragon Ball and Dr. Myuu from GT . It’s the most interesting stretch of GT by far and fully locks you in to everything to come. Dragon Ball GT’s Impact on the Franchise For the fans who grew up on Z , GT demanded patience and trust, and a lot of it. It traded constant escalation for lingering tension, long journeys through strange planets, and villains who weren’t just one-off threats. But the biggest impact that Dragon Ball GT had on the franchise was… well, simply existing. At the time, it was the final frontier, but it was the first expansion to the series without the original manga as the engine. And while it felt taboo at the time, years later, Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods , Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’ , Dragon Ball Super , Super Dragon Ball Heroes , and DAIMA all followed that same path. When it’s all said and done, GT did it first. For the years between the end of GT and the beginning of Dragon Ball Super , the series was held down by Dragon Ball GT for video games, fan artwork, and stories in the series. Before Whis, Beerus and Jaco existed, we had Super Saiyan 4 Goku, Pan, Omega Shenron, and Super 17 created as figures, video game characters and artwork. GT is a large reason as to why the franchise didn’t completely disappear. 30 years later, Dragon Ball GT still occupies a strange corner of the canon, but it remains the franchise’s most daring swing, one unafraid to trade comfort for ambition.
