Why are we still stuck in the "10 years" period?

[SHINOBI-03]

Going to make this simple:

In 2008, there was a brilliant idea of having a short side story taking place in the 10 years period between the defeat of Majin Boo and the Tenkaichi Budokai as seen in the Jump Special.

Fast forward to 2025, and it seems like we are still figuring out what else that can be told in that same period from Battle of Gods, Revival of F, Dragon Ball Super anime, Dragon Ball Super manga, Broly, Super Hero, all the way to Daima and whatever we get in the video games.

I've been thinking about this for a while and I just have to wonder: Are Shueisha, Toei or Bird Studio/Capsule Corp doing this because they think it is an interesting place to explore? Or is there some sort of contract or mandate that prevents one side from exploring the years after the Tenkaichi Budokai with Goku mentoring Oob?

Is this still a reaction to the how the fandom saw Dragon Ball GT and the message they received was the fandom doesn't want to watch their characters age up or grow too old they can't relate to them?

I don't want this to be a tinfoil hat moment, but at some point one has to wonder what stops the people behind Dragon Ball from moving out of that phase and explore true new territories after the original manga's ending or if it is indeed a deliberate move to keep the series as "timeless" as possible.

[Vegeta th3 4th]

There was an interview conducted back in 2004 (I think) between Toriyama and Nakatsuro (I think), and Toriyama said that if he were to ever write new stories for Dragon Ball, he'd set them during the 10 year gap due to him believing that the characters were too old at the end of Z. The 2008 OVA, Battle of Gods, and Daima were all written as one-off stories, so I didn't mind these three being set there, but a long running series like Super should've been set after the end of Z.

Now that Toriyama is gone though, I expect everyone involved to just double down on this time period, as it's proven to be successful and it's what Toriyama was working within. Superhero was basically a few months before the end of Z, only for Daima to send us flying back 10 years to right after Buu's defeat. Once, or if, Super ever wraps up, I expect them to just pick up where Daima left off and go from there, giving us another long running series set in that time period.

[SHINOBI-03]

There was an interview conducted back in 2004 (I think) between Toriyama and Nakatsuro (I think), and Toriyama said that if he were to ever write new stories for Dragon Ball, he'd set them during the 10 year gap due to him believing that the characters were too old at the end of Z. The 2008 OVA, Battle of Gods, and Daima were all written as one-off stories, so I didn't mind these three being set there, but a long running series like Super should've been set after the end of Z.

Now that Toriyama is gone though, I expect everyone involved to just double down on this time period, as it's proven to be successful and it's what Toriyama was working within. Superhero was basically a few months before the end of Z, only for Daima to send us flying back 10 years to right after Buu's defeat. Once, or if, Super ever wraps up, I expect them to just pick up where Daima left off and go from there, giving us another long running series set in that time period.

So I wasn't far off with my presumptions. With Super is also frustrating that it feels like we just now had some characters like Pan, Trunks and Goten finally age up and while still not past the Tenkaichi Budokai it was still a refreshing change of pace, only for Super to take a halt and we're back in time with Daima where it doubles down with the characters aging backwards.

[JulieYBM]

I believe that the issue probably falls on Toriyama and the others having a pretty narrow minded view of what could conceivably be a good type of Dragon Ball story. The idea of showing the characters changing and aging seems to scare them. I think that it's pretty short-sighted, especially since they want to also not really developed characters too much or give them serious scenes.

It's a shame, I would have loved to see them just ignore the Uub chapters and killed off characters and made new, permanent changes to the status quo. The lack of a firm step is creatively harmful.

[Vegeta th3 4th]

So I wasn't far off with my presumptions. With Super is also frustrating that it feels like we just now had some characters like Pan, Trunks and Goten finally age up and while still not past the Tenkaichi Budokai it was still a refreshing change of pace, only for Super to take a halt and we're back in time with Daima where it doubles down with the characters aging backwards.

If Daima ever gets a continuation, then it really needs to be set after Z. There's just nothing you can do during a time skip due to things having to line up at the end. You can't kill any character off, you can't change anyone too drastically, and you can't really introduce new characters to the cast. One story is fine, but a long running series in that period will just kill any potential for creativity and surprises. They already made this mistake with Super; I really hope they learned their lesson.

The idea of showing the characters changing and aging seems to scare them.

This makes no sense when the original series, even GT, relied heavily on change and time moving forward. I agree with you; I just don't get why they'd be scared of doing something that the series was originally known for.

[coola]

So I wasn't far off with my presumptions. With Super is also frustrating that it feels like we just now had some characters like Pan, Trunks and Goten finally age up and while still not past the Tenkaichi Budokai it was still a refreshing change of pace, only for Super to take a halt and we're back in time with Daima where it doubles down with the characters aging backwards.

If Daima ever gets a continuation, then it really needs to be set after Z. There's just nothing you can do during a time skip due to things having to line up at the end. You can't kill any character off, you can't change anyone too drastically, and you can't really introduce new characters to the cast. One story is fine, but a long running series in that period will just kill any potential for creativity and surprises. They already made this mistake with Super; I really hope they learned their lesson.

The idea of showing the characters changing and aging seems to scare them.

This makes no sense when the original series, even GT, relied heavily on change and time moving forward. I agree with you; I just don't get why they'd be scared of doing something that the series was originally known for.

If i remember correctly, someone (Torishima?) had to "convince" Toriyama to age Goku into adult for 23rd Budokai.

[Vegeta th3 4th]

If i remember correctly, someone (Torishima?) had to "convince" Toriyama to age Goku into adult for 23rd Budokai.

It was the opposite, Toriyama was the one who had to convince him and the editorial department at Jump, as they didn't want to make such a drastic change to the main character. He faced so much push-back that he threatened to walk away from Dragon Ball if he couldn't age him up.

[JulieYBM]

Toriyama threatened to quit if he could not age Gokuu for the Twenty-Third Tenka-ichi Budoukai, actually.

[Hellspawn28]

Having the characters in their prime age makes it easier to market. They could go beyond Z if they want, but probably don't want too. And I doubt GT is the reason, as they keep Super and GT as their own thing.

[JulieYBM]

They can just make the characters look younger. It would hardly be the biggest issue.

[BootyCheeksJohnson]

People already mentioned Toriyama wanting to use the 10 year gap because he felt like there was room for stories during that time period that never got shown. But, who knows what he would've done or allowed Toei/Toyotaro to set up had he not passed when he did.
As for Toei, I think that they're afraid because GT wasn't a commercial smash in Japan.
On the manga side I think Toyotaro as a mega fan is afraid of doing anything set after the EoZ out of possibly disrespecting Toriyama in his eyes.

[Vegeta th3 4th]

People already mentioned Toriyama wanting to use the 10 year gap because he felt like there was room for stories during that time period that never got shown.

I do agree with this to an extent, but I think it can only work in a limited way, like with stories directly tied to the Buu arc.

But, who knows what he would've done or allowed Toei/Toyotaro to set up had he not passed when he did.

Superhero got extremely close to the 28th Tenkaichi, and Moro's arc had a cameo from Uub, so I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that we may have gone beyond Z eventually.

As for Toei, I think that they're afraid because GT wasn't a commercial smash in Japan.

I don't think GT failed to take off because it was set after Z, but I can understand that line of thinking, assuming that's indeed their belief.

On the manga side I think Toyotaro as a mega fan is afraid of doing anything set after the EoZ out of possibly disrespecting Toriyama in his eyes.

Yeah, I can see this being the case. With that said though, I don't know how much say he has over these kinds of things, so it may not be up to him one way or the other.

[nineko]

People already mentioned Toriyama wanting to use the 10 year gap because he felt like there was room for stories during that time period that never got shown.

I do agree with this to an extent, but I think it can only work in a limited way, like with stories directly tied to the Buu arc.

Indeed, as I mentioned elsewhere, I think Daima (with all its inherent problems) would have been a nice direct continuation of Z, if Super didn't exist. If you think about it, releasing Super after Daima and setting it after EoZ, with the proper writing, would have easily fixed (or merely avoided) all the continuity issues. Super and Daima could have easily coexisted with a little more proper planning, heck, even the Tarble special could have fit with some little tweaks here and there.

I'm not suggesting a complete overhaul, Evangelion tried to do that and it was bad, but still...

[Desassina]

They could have set Daima after the EoZ instead and leave DBS alone. The story started with everyone getting young again so whichever complaints existed about the main cast having aged would be gone. I guess that the 10 year period is the most coveted since that's when there are more characters at a time of peace. They're also at their most iconic with forms and techniques that are unique to them and Boo is still around to represent a former villain while Freeza and Cell had no such luck before DBS. Just ask yourself this question: would you have set a Dragon Ball story in Gohan's 7 years of growth instead? The answer to that question will give you an insight towards the other one.

[Koitsukai]

Yeah, the idea of thinking they'd be too old for good stories was the cause, I believe. They ended up making up more stories in that time period than in the original run. Not to mention, the previous stories and stakes seem minor compared to those in the addendum.

Just when we thought we were out, we were pulled back in with Daima. I assume Daima was placed there, "rebooting" the revival somehow, also because of this fear of moving past EoZ. It's like they rather have two branches of continuity than going past the ending of the manga.

Daima after EoZ would've been perfect, Daimakai being the reason why the god forms cannot be accessed and SS4 being the shiny new thing. We didn't even need to have the Black Freeza thing wrapped up either.

[Goten_jr]

We have 8 Story Arcs and an entire Anime Original ( Daima ) placed in the 10 Year Time gap now. I'm pretty sure GT is the Answer it's the Dragon Ball Story after end of Z

[nineko]

You know, now that you mention GT, one has to wonder if GT actually is the reason we're stuck here, like they're thinking "let's not do the same mistake again".

Then again, they did shamelessly copy entire traits from GT to Daima, so I don't really know.

[SHINOBI-03]

If i remember correctly, someone (Torishima?) had to "convince" Toriyama to age Goku into adult for 23rd Budokai.

It was the opposite, Toriyama was the one who had to convince him and the editorial department at Jump, as they didn't want to make such a drastic change to the main character. He faced so much push-back that he threatened to walk away from Dragon Ball if he couldn't age him up.

So Toriyama went from "Please, let my characters grow up" to "Please, don't let my characters grow up". I guess times do change some people.

[Skar]

I always remember VegettoEX's comment about this revival being the "twilight years" of DB. It's basically a way for Toriyama to revisit the series without the same level of commitment a sequel and new ending would require. No matter what happens in Super, Daima, or any other new timeline the story eventually ends with Goku leaving to train Uub.

Toyotaro said Online was "canon" to him since he liked it. Maybe that's how he also envisions the story after EoZ as in nothing major happening for the rest of Goku's lifetime and the next big threat doesn't appear for a few hundred years. GT was similar except they had a few villains appear in quick succession before a 100 year timeskip of peace.

[JulieYBM]

I always remember VegettoEX's comment about this revival being the "twilight years" of DB. It's basically a way for Toriyama to revisit the series without the same level of commitment a sequel and new ending would require. No matter what happens in Super, Daima, or any other new timeline the story eventually ends with Goku leaving to train Uub.

Toyotaro said Online was "canon" to him since he liked it. Maybe that's how he also envisions the story after EoZ as in nothing major happening for the rest of Goku's lifetime and the next big threat doesn't appear for a few hundred years. GT was similar except they had a few villains appear in quick succession before a 100 year timeskip of peace.

Toyotaro liking Dragon Ball Online makes me wonder if he would suggest adapting parts of it for any further continuation of Dragon Ball when the production committee members inevitably want the manga continued. They would have the excuse of the base idea being from Toriyama, which they could market as such, at least.