Dragon Ball Talk

How the Movies and GT can be CONSIDERED canon

So, it's a general consensus within the Dragon Ball Community that the movies and GT cannot exist within the main story as there are too many inconsistencies with the original Manga and Super. However, what if I told you there is a way that they can be canon in their own way?

How?

Well, let's look at some interviews with Akira Toriyama (provided by Kanzenshuu). In Daizenshuu 6, Toriyama was asked: "What is your personal stance on Dragon Ball's theatrical films, Sensei?"  

He replied as such: " I take the movies as "stories in a different dimension from the main story of the comic". I'm entirely just an audience member for them." 

This is basically stating that although he didn't write any of the movies, he still sees them within the series, just in a different dimension. For this theory to work, this "dimension" has to be another timeline and you'll see why a little later.

What about GT? How is it canon? 

On the Dragon Ball GT DVD box, there's is a message from Akira Toriyama. The last sentence of this message reads: Dragon Ball GT is a grand side-story of the original Dragon Ball, and it'll make me happy for us to watch and enjoy it together. (Translations provided by Kanzenshuu)

So, this kinda ends the debate on if GT is canon or not. GT is canon, but as a side-story that we can say takes place in the movie timeline. 

Now that we have covered the canonicity of the movies and GT, let's move onto the events that have to take place for the events of the movie timeline to occur. 

Starting off with movie 1, Dead Zone. Dead Zone occurs in the time skip between Dragon Ball and Z. In the movie timeline, this is the first time Gohan meets Piccolo and the other Z Fighters. This event really doesn't have too big of an impact on the story. Just some small inconsistencies to the main story, but can be doable in the movie timeline. 

Moving on to the Saiyan Saga, the events for the first half of the saga play out the same with Raditz arriving and Goku dying and such. It's the second half that we see our first MAJOR change. Instead of Goku arriving late (which leads to the death Tien, Chiaoutzu, Piccolo, and Yamcha), Goku arrives early and all the Z Fighters survive. What stays the same is Vegeta killing Nappa and Vegeta ultimately getting away thanks to Goku.

Now, the events of Movies 2-4 (World's Strongest, Tree of Might, and Lord Slug) can occur with all of the Z Fighters alive for these movies. This is where our next inconsistency occurs. What reason would the Z Fighters have to go to Namek within the movie timeline if no one died? Here's where a little headcanon comes into play. Bulma still has Raditz's scouter. She could've had the communicator and overheard that Vegeta was headed to Namek and tells the Z Fighters. Piccolo gets concerned for his race and only Piccolo, Krillin, Bulma, and Gohan go to Namek while Goku recovers from his fight with Lord Slug. 

In the Frieza Saga, the events play out pretty similarly, but with Krillin and Gohan being slightly stronger and having Piccolo as protection. Goku arrives and beats the Ginyu Force in a similar fashion, but slightly faster with the help of Piccolo. Goku still sustains a bunch of damage after the Ginyu fight and have to stay in the healing tank. This is where another little inconsistency occurs. How do Piccolo and Nail meet? Let's say Piccolo senses a warrior similar to him (Nail) dying nearby and goes off to help him. This is where Nail and Piccolo fuse. Upon returning, he sees that Vegeta has defeated Zarbon and Dodoria and is no standing up against a second form Frieza. The events thereafter stay the same until Goku's spirit bomb. This is where the next MAJOR deviation occurs. Instead of Frieza surviving the Spirit Bomb, he dies because Goku would theoretically be stronger than he was in the main story due to Zenkai boost from fighting Dr. Wheelo, Turles, and Slug. In the aftermath, all of the Namekians who are killed are wished back, the Namekians wish for a new planet because the carnage left by Frieza's men is too much to live with, and lastly they wish to be transported to said planet. However, Dende stays behind because Kami (though Piccolo) offers Dende to take up the mantle as the Guardian of Earth which he humbly takes. (This will be important later.)

From there, we move onto movie 5, Cooler's Revenge which would occur after the death of Frieza by the spirit bomb. This is the first Goku goes Super Saiyan instead of the fight with Frieza. 

Then, we have the Android Saga with Future Trunks returning to defeat King Cold (who is on his own and wants to get revenge for the deaths of both Cooler and Frieza). The events play out similarly up until Trunks leaves for the future. In the 3-year time skip, Vegeta decides to go train in space and so does Goku. Goku, however, lands on Yardrat due to lack of fuel and this is when he'd learn the Shunkan Ido (Instantaneous Movement or Instant Transmission) because if the battle against Cooler occurs on Earth, Goku would never have needed to have learned the technique. 

Upon Goku's return from space, Dende senses a great disturbance from New Namek and asks Goku to check it out leading to movie 6, Return of Cooler. Here, we see the first time Vegeta turns Super Saiyan. 

Then we return to Earth and continue with the Android/Cell Saga. With both Goku and Vegeta as Super Saiyans in the fight against Android 19 and Dr. Gero (Android 20), they breeze by a little easier, but Gero gets away and lays low for a while. He waits a few months before awakening 17 and 18. In which 17 kills Gero, privately. In this few months of "quietness", Trunks stays because he knows something is fishy while the rest take advantage have little "fun". 

Then, Androids 14 and 15 attack leading to movie 7, Super Android 13. Those events have no real effect on the main timeline. However, Goku still succumbs to Heart Virus while the Androids rampage around the Earth looking for him. The events from then on stay the same. (Yes, Piccolo fuses with Kami here because Kami would've decided to train Dende to be Guardian since Dende arrived ahead of time.) 

In that 10 days prior to the Cell Games, the events of movie 8, Broly: The Legendary Super Saiyan occurs. Then, instead of Cell regenerating after exploding, he stays dead. This leads to events of movie 9, Bojack Unbound where Bojack is unleashed because of Cell exploding on King Kai's planet. 

Then during the 7-year time skip, we have movie 10, Broly: Second Coming. Those events don't really change much of the storyline. Then, movie 11, Bio-Broly occurs with, again, no real impact on the main story. 

Then Babidi arrives and the events of the Buu Saga stays the same up until the fight between Buu and Ultimate Gohan in which Gohan actually wins and we move on into movie 12 (my favorite movie), Fusion Reborn. The events of this movie are the cause for Goku and Vegeta regaining their lives. However, a little after that Mr. Satan misses the Good Buu and wishes him back with Goku using the other wish for Uub's birth. 

Then, we get the events of movie 13, Wrath of the Dragon which really doesn't change anything. Then we move to the end of Z and the beginning of GT. Nothing really changes from here on out and the movie timeline really explains why movie characters appear in GT during the Super 17 arc. 

Well, this is what I believe are the events of the movie timeline. What do y'all think? is it good? Is it bad? Do you think the movies and GT are canon because of this timeline? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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