Dragon Ball Daima Producer Suggests That the Multiple Timelines Theory Is True

After the end of Dragon Ball Daima, many fans feel a bit puzzled as to how this series and Dragon Ball Super would connect to each other, as there are a few contradictions or events that, although not entirely contradictory, don’t seem to add together.

Some answers may have been vaguely hinted at in an interview with Akio Iyuko, the executive producer of the anime. While Iyuko doesn’t mention anything concrete, it is worth taking a look at what he said when he addressed how Daima is connected to the broader Dragon Ball universe.

Related

Dragon Ball: What’s Next After the End of Daima?

Now that Akira Toriyama’s final send-off to the Dragon Ball franchise is over, what’s next? Will Daima continue or will Super take over from here on?

“You Can See The Connections”

In an interview with MantanWeb in February, producer Akio Iyuko answered a question about the connection between Daima and the original story. While his answer is a bit elusive (especially since Daima was still airing its final episodes), he confirms that the series is set after “the Buu saga of the original manga”, and later adds:

While this may not seem very significant, it is interesting to note that Iyuko and the article text in general seem to emphasize that Daima is a sequel to the manga. While it doesn’t exclude the possibility that Super takes place after Daima, it may suggest that the manga and the anime do not represent the same timeline.

Could Dragon Ball Have Multiple Timelines?

While there could be several timelines, there are no explicit mentions of this concept in the interview. It is only mentioned that there are “multiple stories” or “multiple storylines” in the franchise. He says that there are many “connections”, but it is not entirely clear if he meant “timelines” when using that word — but the vagueness could be intentional. When this interview was published, fans still didn’t know how Daima would end, and a good portion of them believed that there would be a link to Super.

But as Daima seemed to depart from trying to be congruent with the events of Super, other fans have been speculating that there are multiple timelines in the story. If that’s true, then Daima would be a sequel to the manga, and Super would be a sequel to the anime. But again, this is not confirmed, it just seems to be vaguely hinted at.

Some fans seem to agree that Iyuko’s answer is in line with the idea of multiple timelines, and in their opinion it could even make Dragon Ball GT canon:

Dispute Over Rights May Be Involved

It has been reported that the rights to Dragon Ball are the subject of a dispute between Shueisha and Capsule Corporation Tokyo (allegedly founded by Iyuko with Toriyama’s support). For example, if Shueisha has a strong claim to the rights to Super, it may have been a conscious decision not to make a direct connection to Super — since Daima is not based on a Dragon Ball manga, it may be easier for CC Tokyo to claim ownership.

However, Shueisha is credited on the Dragon Ball Daima official site, and the series was in development years before Toriyama’s death. For now, this is mostly speculation, as a “clash” between Iyuko and Shueisha over the series was also reported to be going on long before Toriyama’s death.

Dragon Ball DAIMA

Release Date

October 11, 2024

Writers

Akira Toriyama

Source: MantanWeb via X (formerly Twitter)