After Dragon Ball Super Ends, There’s Only One Path the Franchise Can Take, But Fans May Not Like It

adminMarch 23, 2025

0 13 4 minutes read

Dragon Ball Super may be on hiatus, but there are plenty of reasons to think that the manga is closer to ending than not. But what happens when Super ends, and catches up with the final episodes of Z?

So far, all new Dragon Ball content has been created in the gap between the defeat of Buu and the end of Dragon Ball Z, which is set 10 years later. It was specifically indicated that Super Hero was set only one year before the end of Z, so there’s very little room left for new content without running over Z‘s epilogue–and then there’s Dragon Ball GT to consider. While Toei continually insists that GT remains canon, even with all its continuity problems with Super, and now Daima, the time is rapidly approaching when that will be put to the test. When Dragon Ball Super ends, and the next project begins, when will it be set?

Dragon Ball Super’s Ending Spells a Problem for GT

GT is a Problem for Future Installments of Dragon Ball

The fact of the matter is that between Daima and Super, the period between Buu’s defeat and the end of Z is basically fully filled in at this point. There’s simply no room to squeeze more stories into this era, so the only option is to set the next series, whatever it may be, after the epilogue of Z. But that would immediately put the new series into conflict with Dragon Ball GT, which is set a few years after the epilogue. While it’s possible that some more stories could fit into the gap between the end of Z and the beginning of GT, doing so would only delay the issue a little longer.

As it stands, GT is almost impossible to reconcile with Super and now Daima. If GT is set after Super, then what happened to everyone introduced in Super, and especially the transformations and powers gained during that series? How can Goku go Super Saiyan 4 for the first time in Daima, and in GT? Despite Toei’s insistence that GT remains canon, there’s simply no way that can be true. The only option left is to declare GT noncanonical, but that’s a potential problem of its own. While GT was not well-liked during its initial run, many fans have changed their tune on it in recent years.

Dragon Ball GT certainly has its fans as well, and they will no doubt be upset when the series is declared noncanonical. But what, then, would those fans propose the solution to be? GT ends pretty definitively, taking away both Goku and the Dragon Balls, ensuring that nothing new can happen after it. A remake of GT could be an answer, but it would feel quite repetitive since Daima borrowed so many plot points (and Super Saiyan 4) from GT. The only option that remains is to rule out GT and establish a new continuity in its place.

Dragon Ball Must Forge a New Path

The Franchise Can Only Continue By Forgetting GT

Goku working as a farmer with Goten nearby.

It’s clear by now that while Toriyama’s death has disrupted some plans for Dragon Ball, the franchise itself won’t be dying with him. Setting aside the legal issues that Dragon Ball is embroiled in, there will be a new series some day, to pick up from where Super left off. That series will have to declare once and for all that GT is no longer canon, finally settling an issue that has literally been debated for decades. But Dragon Ball freeing itself of GT‘s constraints will ultimately be a good thing for the franchise’s future, and opens the way forward.

That doesn’t mean that everything from GT must be discarded, however. Ideas from GT‘s run could still be used, like having Pan go along on adventures. But this time, Pan could be more of a fighter herself, perhaps even becoming capable of being a Super Saiyan. Characters like Pan and Bulla don’t have to stick with their original characterization in GT, but could still exist and play a role in the story. Even GT concepts like the Black Star Dragon Balls could make a comeback, if so desired. The new creators could pick and choose the best parts of GT, while forgetting what didn’t work.

GT Still Exists, Even If It’s Noncanonical

The Series Won’t Be Going Anywhere

Goku looking back with a broad smile on his face at the end of Dragon Ball GT.

One thing that’s important for fans of GT to realize is that the series becoming noncanonical doesn’t mean all evidence of it will be deleted. It’ll still exist as a series, and its fans can always rewatch it any time they want. Being noncanonical didn’t stop some fans from watching Super Dragon Ball Heroes, after all, so why should it prevent anyone from watching GT if they so wish? It will still be there, as it has always been, for those that love it to enjoy it.

With the conclusion of Daima, the time has come for those at Toei to finally reconsider the Dragon Ball canon and officially remove GT. It’s the final nail in the coffin that Super has already built. It may be painful for some fans, but it’s what’s for the best if the franchise is to continue on into the future. Trying not to go against GT has been a restraint on the potential for storytelling in the franchise, but Daima has finally done away with that by outright contradicting it.

Without GT, the future of Dragon Ball is a blank slate following Super. The story can go in any direction it wants, and it can pick and choose elements from GT that might be worth keeping. For fans of GT, the series will still exist and can be enjoyed just as well whether it’s considered canon or not. Eliminating it from official canon only affects future productions going forward, and they need the freedom to create a good story. Dragon Ball Super‘s ending, whenever it comes, will ultimately force the issue, so they may as well go ahead and get it over with now.