Was Dragon Ball GT intended to be longer (or shorter) than it actually was?

[ABED]

In a scenario that they planned to end in episode 40 and had to change plans, it wouldn't be surprising for them to change the scripts it in advance, adding this hint that things would continue.

What I find most strange is the decision to air the TV Special after the Baby events, before the Evil Dragons arc (and Epilogue) even begins.

I personally think it's a shame they didn't end it there. It would be a single organic story arc that would live up to its title, and would consolidate itself as a "small" post-Dragon Ball Z parallel adventure.

And also because I think what comes after episode 40 lacks fun and creativity. It's just boring and soulless.

Interesting because I think that final arc is one of the best of the entire series. It's original and the ending especially is heartfelt.

Whenever people talk about GT having “good ideas, bad execution” I think they’re primarily referring to the Evil Dragons arc. On paper, it’s a great and original idea that serves as a very fitting end to Goku’s adventures, but the way it plays out is kind of underwhelming. Much of the arc plays like an episodic monster of the week situation where Goku, Pan and Giru are the only characters involved, and even once the other characters eventually show up, they’re little more than fodder.

It doesn’t help that despite the allegedly high stakes of the arc, you don’t get the feeling that the gravity of the situation is really weighing on any of the characters until episode 63, which is when the conflict comes to an end.

The monster of the week thing is great. I don't know why people who watch TV look down on it. I love that structure and it works well here. It helps the tentioin ramp up as the threats become bigger. Honestly, I feel like people dismiss most of the dragons but It's just 2 of them that feel underwhelming.

By sending the Dragons across the universe, you then have to establish those world and make that impact emotional in some regard. The pretext is just as superficial as the ticking clock of the Earth but at least with Earth, there is the very tangible emotional connection in it being the main characters' home.

I would've preferred seeing the other characters play a part in the final arc given that it was the FINAL arc of DB, but the bad execution isn't the plot. It's always been the quality of the fights.

Anyway, to answer the thread question, It depends what you mean by "intended" or rather when. At the start of the series, my guess is they had a certain episode order and then as things progressed, they were successful enough to get more and changed accordingly. I don't think they would've teased the DB's cracking at the end of the Baby arc if that was the final story arc.

[90sDBZ]

Another thing to consider is SS4. It would have felt a bit of a waste to introduce a new form for just that one fight. For a lot of people it represents the turning point were GT finally "got good".

The writers have said they intentionally went back to a more action focused approach around the time Baby shows up, due to negative feedback of earlier episodes.

The debut of SS4 is the culmination of that, and was the moment that brought a lot of fans back. Toei likely anticipated that reaction, and wanted to keep that momentum going. Also the toy sales would have been a huge factor.

[taikufuru]

It makes sense!

[Hellspawn28]

The perfect files mention the original Saiyan planet still possibly being around. It's possible that a post-Shadow Dragon saga could have explore this idea.