"Dragon Ball Can't End": A Damning New Interview Reveals How Dragon Ball GT Really Came to Life

Dragon Ball GT has long been the franchise's most controversial anime series, and now, a new interview with Dragon Ball manga editor Fuyuto Takeda reveals the anime's true origin story. In an interview between former Dragon Ball editors translated and summarized on X by user @Venixys, Takeda confirms that Dragon Ball GT was largely born out of a need to keep Dragon Ball going at all costs.

According to Takeda's recall, as the ending of Dragon Ball Z rapidly approached, future Fuji TV president Kenji Shimizu told Takeda, "Dragon Ball can't end. It just can't". This led to a long discussion that eventually led to the idea for Dragon Ball GT, with the GT short for Grand Turismo. Gran Turismo is a type of race also called endurance racing that is meant to test a vehicle's durability, clearly indicating that GT was intended to be a long journey that would cover a great deal of distance.

Dragon Ball GT Was Created Out Of Necessity

Dragon Ball Z's End Was A Big Cause For Concern

Takeda recalls that during the final phase of Dragon Ball, He would inform the company that the series could end within a certain number of episodes, but that it could also go on longer. This created uncertainty, but since it was Dragon Ball, he was given flexibility that other titles wouldn't have been granted. However, the lack of a clear endpoint made it difficult to plan for what would come next, and when it became clear the series was truly ending, concern spread everywhere, from editorial departments to TV broadcasters.
Takeda specifically remembers a Tezuka or Akatsuka Awards party where Kenji Shimizu (now president of Fuji TV), said to him insistently, "Dragon Ball can't end. It just can't". After a long discussion, that pressure led to the birth of the idea for Dragon Ball GT.
Even though there was always a time lag between the manga and the anime, they still had to prepare in advance for what would follow. So when Toei asked how to continue the series, the answer became: GT, which stands for Gran Turismo.
Although over time a rumor spread that GT stood for Gomen Ne, Toriyama-Sensei ("Sorry, Master Toriyama"), that's just an urban legend. Toriyama himself basically said "We'll make a story about space travel in Gran Turismo style and let's call it GT."

Though it's far from surprising given the massive impact of the franchise, it's clear that the ending of Akira Toriyama's original Dragon Ball manga and the subsequent ending of its anime adaptation presented a unique form of crisis both to the production staff at Toei Animation and to the anime's Japanese broadcasting home, Fuji TV. Given the massive amount of revenue the series was generating, Shimizu's insistence that "Dragon Ball can't end. It just can't." makes sense.

While the quality of the product made in response to the crisis of Z's ending is debatable, the desperation of all involved certainly casts Dragon Ball GT in a new light. On paper, many of its creative choices make sense as a continuation of the Dragon Ball story. According to Takeda, it was actually Toriyama himself who suggested the series be a space adventure. This sense of adventure and turning Goku into a kid again would later be revisited in Daima.

The Spirit Of Dragon Ball GT Survives To This Day

For Better Or Worse, The Anime's Legacy Looms Large

Dragon Ball GT was definitely controversial at the time of its release, with many fans feeling the loss of Toriyama's creative voice. Now, though, fans have definitely softened on it. While this could very well be due to the rose-collored glasses of nostalgia, it's also possible that Dragon Ball GT no longer being the last Dragon Ball anime produced has meant the anime series now carries less weight. There are even some fans who feel like GT's ending is better Z's, so it's clear the follow-up series has grown on people.

Perhaps the biggest sign that opinions have changed about GT is the response to Dragon Ball Daima. Daima borrowed many elements from GTand has largely been met with a positive reception by fans.

Toriyama in the center smiling with Goku to the right and Super Saiyan Goku to the left

A Year After Akira Toriyama's Death, Dragon Ball Is Honoring Its Creator With a Touching New Tribute

The latest volume of Dragon Ball Super has just been released, and inside is a touching tribute to the late creator of the legendary series.

Posts3

Now, for better or worse, the mindset of "Dragon Ball can't end" seems to be taking a pause as fans and producers reckon with the passing of Akira Toriyama. Dragon Ball Daima is over, Dragon Ball Super is on indefinite hiatus, and if there are any other anime projects in the works, they're not known to the public. The reasons for this are complex and multi-faceted, but there is a kind of irony to be found in the contrast between where Dragon Ball is now and where it was when Dragon Ball GT was created.