Reassessing Dragon Ball GT: Its Impact on the Anime Industry and Enduring Legacy
Jessica Wilkins
Updated on May 17, 2026
By Published May 12, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT Joshua Edward Ryan Fox is a freelance writer for Screen Rant with a passion for pop culture. Joshua grew up in Connecticut where he developed an appreciation for writing and entertainment and has earned a Master's degree in professional writing and technical writing. His writing has been quoted by both the anime streaming site Crunchyroll and the anime YouTuber Gigguk. Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap
Even after 30 years, few anime are more divisive than . It’s one thing for it to be a blatant cash grab sequel designed to keep Dragon Ball going as long as possible, even after it reached its natural ending, but it did all of that while being dragged down by bad writing and visuals that never reached the heights of its predecessors. It’s to the point that most fans refuse to acknowledge it as canon, and that got especially easy after Dragon Ball Super was made with Akira Toriyama’s direct input and blatantly contradicted GT’s lore.
Dragon Ball GT was hardly the worst anime, and it did have some good ideas that made it worth watching, most notably the iconic Super Saiyan 4 form, but its bad elements far outweigh its good ones, so it’s hard to argue with anyone who thinks it’s the worst Dragon Ball anime in the franchise. That being said, the series played a surprisingly pivotal role in the anime industry, and without it, there’s no telling what could have happened to the medium as a whole.
How Dragon Ball GT Kept The Anime Industry Alive In The 90s
It’s been well-documented that when Dragon Ball and Slam Dunk both ended in the mid-90s, Weekly Shonen Jump’s readership hit an all-time low to the point that the magazine was at risk of being cancelled. Naturally, it stands to reason that the anime side of things was also in trouble; while Slam Dunk’s anime only ran for three years, Dragon Ball’s anime had been running for straight years, so when the millions of people obsessed with it would inevitably be forced to watch something else, the thousands of people working on the franchise would be out of work, as well.
[SITEURL] | KI Power Level Scanner Personality Quiz ScreenRant/ Anime/ Dragon Ball/ Personality Quiz Dragon Ball · Character Profile Which Dragon Ball Character Are You? “Power comes in response to a need, not a desire.” 👊 Goku The Fighter 👑 Vegeta The Prince 🧘 Piccolo The Mentor POWER UP → QUESTION 1 / 8PERSONALITY 01 A powerful new enemy appears. What’s your first reaction? AThis is amazing! I can’t wait to fight them and see how strong they are! BI’ll defeat them myself. No one else is worthy of the challenge. CWe need a plan. Rushing in blindly is how people get killed. NEXT → QUESTION 2 / 8INSTINCTS 02 How do you train for an upcoming battle? AFind the strongest sparring partner I can and push myself past my limits every day BTrain alone in isolation — I don’t need anyone holding me back CMeditate, study the enemy’s weaknesses, and train the younger fighters so they’re ready too NEXT → QUESTION 3 / 8TEAMWORK 03 Your team is losing a fight. What do you do? AJump in front of everyone — I’ll take the hits so my friends can regroup BGet angry. I refuse to lose — my pride won’t allow it. I’ll surpass my limits right here. CFall back and coordinate — someone needs to think clearly while everyone else is panicking NEXT → QUESTION 4 / 8CONFLICT 04 A rival challenges you to a one-on-one fight. How do you respond? AAbsolutely! Let’s go right now — no holding back! BFinally, a chance to prove I am the strongest. I accept — and I will crush you. CIf it serves a purpose, fine. But pointless fighting is a waste of energy. NEXT → QUESTION 5 / 8TRUST 05 An old enemy offers to join your side. What do you do? AI don’t trust them — once an enemy, always an enemy. They’ll betray us. BSure! Everyone deserves a second chance. The more friends the better! CI’ll allow it, but I’m watching them closely. Trust is earned, not given. NEXT → QUESTION 6 / 8WEAKNESS 06 What’s your biggest weakness? AI’m too trusting and sometimes let enemies power up just for the thrill of the fight BMy pride — I’d rather die than accept help from someone else CI keep everyone at arm’s length — caring about people is a liability I struggle with NEXT → QUESTION 7 / 8APPROACH 07 You sense a massive power level approaching Earth. What’s your move? AFly straight toward it — I want to meet them first and see what they’re made of BPrepare myself — if this threat is real, I’ll be the one to destroy it CGather the fighters, assess the threat, and make sure the people I protect are safe first NEXT → QUESTION 8 / 8VALUES 08 What drives you more than anything? AProtecting those who can’t protect themselves — someone has to be the responsible one BThe thrill of getting stronger — there’s always a new level to reach, a new challenge to find CProving my worth — I am the Prince of all Saiyans, and I will surpass everyone REVEAL MY CHARACTER → Power Level Scanned Your Dragon Ball Identity 👊 Goku “I am the hope of the universe. I am the answer to all living things that cry out for peace.” You’re a pure-hearted warrior who lives for the thrill of the fight. Every challenge is an opportunity, every enemy a potential friend, and every defeat just fuel to come back stronger. People are drawn to your infectious optimism and unbreakable spirit, even when your naivety drives them crazy. You’d give your last Senzu Bean to a stranger and charge headfirst into a battle you can’t win — not because you’re reckless, but because you genuinely believe that pushing past your limits is the only way to grow. Like Goku, your greatest power isn’t your ki — it’s your ability to inspire everyone around you to be better. Pure-Hearted Fearless Limitless Inspiring 👑 Vegeta “I do not fear this new challenge. Rather like a true warrior, I will rise to meet it.” You carry yourself with the pride of royalty and the ferocity of a born warrior. Second place is not in your vocabulary, and you’d rather break your body than your spirit. People might call you arrogant, but beneath that iron exterior lies someone who has learned to fight not just for themselves, but for the people they’ve quietly grown to love. Your journey is one of evolution — from cold-blooded conqueror to Earth’s fiercest protector — and every scar you carry is proof that pride and love can coexist. Like Vegeta, you don’t just want to be the strongest — you need to earn it on your own terms. Proud Relentless Fierce Evolving 🧘 Piccolo “Sometimes, we have to look beyond what we want and do what’s best.” You’re the one everyone depends on when things fall apart — the calm center in the middle of chaos. While others charge in recklessly or let their ego do the talking, you see the bigger picture and make the hard calls that need making. You didn’t choose to care about people, but somewhere along the way it happened, and now you’d sacrifice everything for those you’ve taken under your wing. Stoic on the surface, deeply loyal underneath, you’re the mentor, the strategist, and the last line of defense all in one. Like Piccolo, your true strength is wisdom — and the courage to do what’s right even when no one is watching. Wise Tactical Protective Stoic ↻ PLAY AGAIN
The end of Dragon Ball Z was essentially a ticking time bomb for the anime industry in the 90s, and that’s where Dragon Ball GT came in. The legendary former editor of Dragon Ball, Kazuhiko Torishima, was a guest at the most recent Napoli Comicon in Italy, and during an interview, . Sure enough, neither Toei Animation nor the anime industry collapsed in the 90s, so it’s safe to say that the plan was a success.
Much has been said about how Dragon Ball GT was a cheap way of keeping Dragon Ball alive to the point that it premiered immediately after , and while that hasn’t changed, if Kazuhiko Torishima is to be believed, then it was less of a cynical cash grab and more of a desperate attempt to save an entire industry. With that in mind, the mere existence of GT feels far more admirable, and it makes it just a little harder to hate it when all’s said and done.
30 Years Later, Dragon Ball GT Still Gets Way Too Much Hate
The new revelation about why Dragon Ball GT was created adds some much-needed context to its existence, and it perfectly emphasizes that . As much as GT failed in writing, pacing, and fight scenes, it still did a good job of capturing Dragon Ball’s sense of adventure most of the time, leading to a fantastic ending that’s still unmatched by anything else in the franchise. GT’s execution wasn’t perfect, but it put far more effort into things than people say, and it’s now clear just how true a statement that is.
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Dragon Ball GT had a wealth of problems, and fans have been quick to point them out, but the series did do one thing perfectly.
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As much as people view Dragon Ball GT as a stain on the Dragon Ball franchise, its story had far more going for it than people say, to the point that things like can be treated as a big deal, and the fact that it outright saved the anime industry is an even bigger reason to show it some respect. For better or worse, it’s hard to imagine what Dragon Ball would be like without Dragon Ball GT, but hopefully, fans can move on from hating it simply for existing.
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Masako Nozawa Oob (voice) - Yûko Minaguchi Uncredited
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StreamingProducers Kōzō Morishita Seasons 1 Story By akira toriyama Streaming Service(s) Expand Collapse
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