It's kind of a shame that an interesting world as the DB world has been so confined to a small amount of stories

[Koitsukai]

If you add up every planet shown in GT + every planet shown and mentioned in Z (including filler, obviously) + every planet shown in DBS, I bet there are over 28 planets. I know that line shouldn't apply to the GTverse, but still, we fans were always under the impression that there are more than just a handful of planets.

[Skar]

I think it was to subvert expectations since probably every franchise involving aliens has nearly infinite inhabited planets. Then we find out Freeza's army is way smaller than any intergalactic empire and the Galactic Patrol smaller than any intergalactic law enforcement agency like Green Lanterns or Nova Corps.

GT had the freedom to introduce anything and still only had a handful of new planets to collect the Dragonballs before the next three arcs took place on Earth. In DBZ, almost every arc and movie had the alien threat invade Earth aside from when they fought Freeza on Namek and Meta Cooler on New Namek. All of this was before we find out how small and sparsely populated the universe was.

DB isn't a space opera that requires a vast universe and it was only to introduce new stronger characters after Goku became the strongest in the world. The multiverse served the same purpose of introducing stronger opponents and it was two tournaments taking place in a neutral area between universes and Kaioshin from another universe invading a different timeline's Earth.

I'm not a fan of it being that small since he could've easily said there were only a few hundred planets left and still vastly underpopulated compared to other franchises involving aliens. It's something that was said and implied with the other ways so I rather leave it alone. Toyotaro wasn't hindered by it when writing the Moro and Granolah arcs. I think it would have to be a corporate decision of "we want to try milking the franchise indefinitely so we'll eventually go past that number". Given how almost everything written by Toei also took place on Earth then they probably won't go past that count by much anyway.

[Kunzait_83]

A small amount of stories and it’s a manga that ran 11 years straight and it’s animation adaptation. A anime exclusive series. 21 movies. A co-existing manga and anime sequel that has been running off and on for 11 years. 3 tv specials. 2 OVAs and a short run prequel manga. And a MMO game I had to remind myself exist


Small amount of stories? Okay sure. Right

Co-signing the living fuck out of this. Seriously, the title of this thread is psychosis-inducing.

We've had like 20 major story arcs in total across all the mainline series (not even counting all the individual one-off stories across all the dozens of movies, specials, OVAs, and countless anime filler), that spans an entire fictional cosmos, complete with an afterlife (Heaven, Hell, Limbo, Demon Realm, etc) a mortal galaxy spanning over 20 planets, a fucking multiverse with at least 12 different realities, complete with their own cosmos, races, afterlifes, etc.

Folks: not everything absolutely has to be Marvel or DC or Star Wars or Star Trek, with infinite-spamming content for all eternity. Its perfectly ok for something to simply be utterly massive, but still relatively finite every once in awhile. Seriously, if the current amount of DB content (with yet more on the horizon) isn't enough to satisfy you, you'll simply never, ever be satiated. Like, ever-ever.

But hell, even if you completely disagree and absolutely must insist that everything you like simply needs to be Marvel/DC/Star Wars/Star Trek-levels of infinite, never-ending content forever and ever and ever and ever (and ever and ever and ever and ever)... fine, fair enough then.

But even in that case and even from that particular standpoint: simply speaking in NO plane of existence in NO corner of reality is something with Dragon Ball's current amount of content and storylines anything remotely within the same zipcode as "small". Like, just objectively on the factual merits here of the utter gobs and gobs and unholy gobs of content that's sitting right here in front of us.

Maybe its my offhand reference to my Catholic school upbringing in my earlier post today that's giving me flashbacks and influencing me subconsciously here, but I can't help but be reminded by these kinds of threads of these two bits here from Seven:





At some point its ok, even dare I say recommended, to simply say "I'm full, I don't need to eat anymore ice cream".

[Michelle91]

Folks: not everything absolutely has to be Marvel or DC or Star Wars or Star Trek, with infinite-spamming content for all eternity. Its perfectly ok for something to simply be utterly massive, but still relatively finite every once in awhile. Seriously, if the current amount of DB content (with yet more on the horizon) isn't enough to satisfy you, you'll simply never, ever be satiated. Like, ever-ever.

But Hell, even if you completely disagree and absolutely must insist that everything you like simply needs to be Marvel/DC/Star Wars/Star Trek-levels of infinite, never-ending content forever and ever and ever and ever (and ever and ever and ever and ever)... fine, fair enough then.

Honestly, I hate when people want DB to be just like a big IP like Star Wars, Marvel, etc. Honestly, I'm fine if somethings are left unexplore as it can lead to people being creative with their own ideas and interruptions. I'm also burn out by Dragon Ball as a whole too. Like I just want Super to be done and over with. After that, let the franchise rest.

[Skar]

Disney is one of the largest studios in the world and still forced to slow down with SW and Marvel after a few years of losing money on movies that flopped and low rated shows that weren't renewed. I think the diehard fan perspective is that the studio could churn out as much content as possible for their favorite franchises and there will always be enough of an audience. Most studios are probably aware that's not the case which is why most franchises don't go that far.

In terms of overall content the DB revival had less than the original run. They've slowed down even more since the Super anime ended which is like every revival that has a peak and doesn't continue forever. The common argument is "DB is successful so they'll make more" but that goes without saying for any successful product. That doesn't really tell us anything about what this specific studio will actually do since so many fan predictions have been wrong. Probably no one predicted the manga would be on hiatus this long and the new anime is a seasonal remake that will take a few years to slowly adapt the rest of the manga.

[PerhapsTheOtherOne]

Something important to note:

When people say "a small amount of stories", OP is referring to going beyond the main stories. Stuff that does more than follow Goku and friends' journey.

For example, people bring up the multitude of films and anime and whatnot, but those don't really go outside the scope of the main cast much. THAT is what people are referring to, having stories that don't need to involve the main cast and can be their own things set in the world of Dragon Ball.

And to an extent, I would agree. We could do with more overt spinoffs that do their own things, still taking place within familiar settings and character types but not needing to be beholden to Goku and co.

[The Dark Knight]

In terms of overall content the DB revival had less than the original run. They've slowed down even more since the Super anime ended which is like every revival that has a peak and doesn't continue forever.

The difference between Dragon Ball slowing down and franchises from Disney is that Toei made the smart decision to do it while Dragon Ball was arguably at its highest in popularity during the tournament; they didn't run it into the ground then stop things like what happened with star wars for example.

[Skar]

The difference between Dragon Ball slowing down and franchises from Disney is that Toei made the smart decision to do it while Dragon Ball was arguably at its highest in popularity during the tournament; they didn't run it into the ground then stop things like what happened with star wars for example.

To be fair I think Japanese studios are more likely to do that and slow down after a series peaks than the other approach. There have been some manga and anime that were cancelled but vast majority just end. Every franchise out there could theoretically come up with more sequels but doesn't mean they will do it just to see if it would work. A Boruto sequel about Naruto's grandson, a sequel to One Piece revealing another treasure called the Two Piece, unlimited sequel or spinoffs for FMA, YYH, MHA, Demon Slayer, JJK, etc.

Even in Hollywood not many studios have the means to go as far as Disney to have multiple flops within a short time before slowing down. Terminator and Ghostbusters were classics then they had a few sequels/reboots in the 2000s every few years that barely broke even. They might try again but most likely less frequently.

[JulieYBM]

The difference between Dragon Ball slowing down and franchises from Disney is that Toei made the smart decision to do it while Dragon Ball was arguably at its highest in popularity during the tournament; they didn't run it into the ground then stop things like what happened with star wars for example.

To be fair I think Japanese studios are more likely to do that and slow down after a series peaks than the other approach. There have been some manga and anime that were cancelled but vast majority just end. Every franchise out there could theoretically come up with more sequels but doesn't mean they will do it just to see if it would work. A Boruto sequel about Naruto's grandson, a sequel to One Piece revealing another treasure called the Two Piece, unlimited sequel or spinoffs for FMA, YYH, MHA, Demon Slayer, JJK, etc.

Even in Hollywood not many studios have the means to go as far as Disney to have multiple flops within a short time before slowing down. Terminator and Ghostbusters were classics then they had a few sequels/reboots in the 2000s every few years that barely broke even. They might try again but most likely less frequently.

The BORUTO animated series was long-running and coming up with its own original stories while occasionally adapting from the comic up until it ended. A twenty year-long production line broke a part because there was no longer a way to sustain long-running battle-heavy animated series. If it were possible to have the manpower available to handle the production, it would still be running.

It also doesn't help that the industry is so focused on the comic creators now that there's less room to let directors do their things with stories. It really goes to show how much cartoons are just a commercial for selling a different product.

[super michael]

The difference between Dragon Ball slowing down and franchises from Disney is that Toei made the smart decision to do it while Dragon Ball was arguably at its highest in popularity during the tournament; they didn't run it into the ground then stop things like what happened with star wars for example.

To be fair I think Japanese studios are more likely to do that and slow down after a series peaks than the other approach. There have been some manga and anime that were cancelled but vast majority just end. Every franchise out there could theoretically come up with more sequels but doesn't mean they will do it just to see if it would work. A Boruto sequel about Naruto's grandson, a sequel to One Piece revealing another treasure called the Two Piece, unlimited sequel or spinoffs for FMA, YYH, MHA, Demon Slayer, JJK, etc.

Even in Hollywood not many studios have the means to go as far as Disney to have multiple flops within a short time before slowing down. Terminator and Ghostbusters were classics then they had a few sequels/reboots in the 2000s every few years that barely broke even. They might try again but most likely less frequently.

The BORUTO animated series was long-running and coming up with its own original stories while occasionally adapting from the comic up until it ended. A twenty year-long production line broke a part because there was no longer a way to sustain long-running battle-heavy animated series. If it were possible to have the manpower available to handle the production, it would still be running.

It also doesn't help that the industry is so focused on the comic creators now that there's less room to let directors do their things with stories. It really goes to show how much cartoons are just a commercial for selling a different product.

In my opinion I think Boruto should have gone on a break when the Boruto manga finished, that way when the anime returns they can continue on the time skip.


Manga writer has a vision what they want their manga to be like, when the manga writer gives permission to make a anime, they want the animator to follow the manga writer vision. If the anime goes against the manga writer vision, of course it is normal for them not to like it and if it affects the anime in a negative way, then it is normal for the viewers not to like it.

There are anime that doesn't follow any manga, there are plenty of anime like this. Digimon and Pokemon are my best example.

[Zephyr]

Something important to note:

When people say "a small amount of stories", OP is referring to going beyond the main stories. Stuff that does more than follow Goku and friends' journey.

For example, people bring up the multitude of films and anime and whatnot, but those don't really go outside the scope of the main cast much. THAT is what people are referring to, having stories that don't need to involve the main cast and can be their own things set in the world of Dragon Ball.

And to an extent, I would agree. We could do with more overt spinoffs that do their own things, still taking place within familiar settings and character types but not needing to be beholden to Goku and co.

Yeah I think you're right on the money. "We've had so much material already" is cold comfort for people who want material that explores new areas of the fictional universe. Speaking for myself, I can't say I don't love Dragon Ball's world and lore (my favorite thing about Daima was all the new lore additions, for instance), but the days when that was the main thing that kept me interested in the series are long behind me.

I think the divide between people who want more new stories set in the Dragon World (specifically that don't involve Goku and co.) and those of us saying "but we've already had so much stuff" comes down to how we're engaging with "Dragon Ball", and probably art/media in general. I increasingly view works of art less as portals to sprawling living worlds, and more as things that were created by people in specific historical circumstances, and the exercise of appreciating the approach to the craft evident in the final product is what has kept me interested, long into my 30's.

I'm not gonna argue right now which way, if any, is better than the other (although, I've moved from the one to the other for a reason), but when it comes to Dragon Ball in particular, its worldbuilding and lore are so sloppy and held together by duct tape. These only really expand as the story's (or interview's) needs demand, and past lore gets contradicted and revised all the time. The "Dragon World" is an extremely unstable and volatile thing, and there is no real "vision" for what it is and should be. To an extent that's all true for fiction in general, but it's especially applicable to DB. This isn't a world devised by someone like Tolkien or Brandon Sanderson.

The "Dragon World" as a concept divorced from any particular story or work of art is much more interesting to me as a canvas or a creative outlet. Taking disparate details from the many different stabs at a Dragon Ball sequel and seeing how I would weave them together into a coherent story is something I enjoy doing. But when I'm watching and critiquing an episode of "Dragon Ball Super: Beerus", how well its lore coheres to and/or expands Dragon Ball's existing fictional universe doesn't really enter into my analysis or judgment of the work.

[Saiya6Cit]

Well as usual I am arrving late to the discussion and believe or not I do read you and I feel some how the terms spinoff, prequel, sequel and some others are becoming ambiguos now, maybe I just lack of the technicisms...I am not a DB expert after all, I guess I am only a DBZ and DBGT obssessed person ...

My two cents are:
Oh there will be more stories ala Star Wars but hold your horses, we had first SW in 1977 and the mandalorian in 2019. Oh wait, the equivalent to that would be 2028... just wait....

The other thing worth mentioning is... there are many stories already, they are in the form of fan mangas and fanfics. DB must be the fandom that has the most, or at least it has plenty.

[super michael]

In my opinion Dragon ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT was good enough. There was no need to revive the anime.

DBS introduced a lot of good ideas, I give it that, but the writing was awful, they made the character look like complete idiots even if it contradicts how they would acts in the past. Even in DBS Super Hero they couldn't help themselves to again make the main character dumb, even though he should be an expert and there was another character to be clueless.


We can only hope DBS remake fixes many issues that was in the original. Whatever opinion I have on the original DBS, it will not influence my opinion on the remake. If they reduce Goku dumb moment a lot, then I will be happy.

[The Dark Knight]

In my opinion Dragon ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT was good enough.

I'll go a step further and say that Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z were enough; we didn't even need GT, much less everything that we've been getting since then. With that said, I am willing to revisit this thought if the effort and passion started in Daima manages to carry over into Beerus and the Moro arc.