Published Feb 2, 2026, 6:11 PM EST
Evan Mullicane is the senior editor and founder of Screen Rant's anime section. Having started as a writer for the Comics Team at the beginning of the Pandemic, Evan was swiftly promoted from writer to editor, and then from editor to lead of Screen Rant's newly established anime vertical.
Throughout his time with Screen Rant, Evan has made a handful of appearances at conventions such as Anime Expo and San Diego Comic-Con, and has interviewed some of the biggest names in Anime and Comics history.
In addition to editing anime and manga articles for Screen Rant, Evan is also a science fiction and fantasy author. In 2018 and 2019, his short story "The Demon's Mother" won honorable mentions from the Writers of the Future contest.
You can find Evan on Twitter @EvanDM and BlueSky @evandmu.bsky.socia
The Dragon Ball franchise is roaring back to life with Dragon Ball Super: The Galactic Patrol, and it has the potential to retcon a major piece of series lore that was only recently established. While the anime hasn't been released yet, it could offer several big shake-ups to the franchise's established canon.
The Galactic Patrol Is Finally Bringing a Beloved Arc To Life
Revealed as part of the Genkidamatsuri festival, The Galactic Patrol is the long-awaited Dragon Ball Super anime continuation. Set as a sequel to Dragon Ball Super's Tournament of Power Arc, The Galactic Patrol will see Goku and Vegeta face the powerful new threat of Moro.
While the arc is destined to include many hype moments that will have fans across the world losing their mind, it's what's absent from the manga's version of events that will change Dragon Ball. Notably, there's no natural way for Galactic Patrol to work in Goku's Super Saiyan 4 from Daima.
Dragon Ball Super's New Anime Will Essentially Retcon Daima Out Of Existence
Released in 2024, Dragon Ball Daima was notable for how it constantly shook up classic Dragon Ball lore. Namekians were back to being demons, the Demon Realm was explored, and Goku had discovered a way to unlock Super Saiyan 4.
While the first two points could be easily ignored in Dragon Ball Super's next anime, the last one is a much bigger issue. The Dragon Ball Super manga's Galactic Patrol arc sees Goku developing his Ultra Instinct form, leaving little room for the existence of Super Saiyan 4.
The bigger problem is that, timeline-wise, Daima is a prequel to Dragon Ball Super and supposedly takes place directly after Buu's defeat in Dragon Ball Z.
While it might feel weird in retrospect that Daima doesn't connect to Super beyond mentions of the multiverse, that's simply because Super was made long before Daima. Now that The Galactic Patrol is being made after Daima, it does not have the same excuse.
Dragon Ball's Continuity Has Always Been a Big Mess
While Akira Toriyama's original Dragon Ball manga series is mostly consistent in terms of canon, every attempt at continuing the franchise past that point has only tied the franchise in an increasingly large and complex knot.
Quality aside, GT makes perfect sense as a continuation, but is seemingly contradicted by both Super and Daima. Super also seems to ignore some aspects of Z's finale, making it unclear if that series is even in continuity with the series' original epilogue.
It's all a mess, and Dragon Ball Super: The Galactic Patrol certainly won't help matters. Even if it's just a throwaway line, Goku explaining why he's never gone Super Saiyan 4 in Dragon Ball Super would go a long way to smoothing out some of the bumps in Dragon Ball's timeline.
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