Action Girl: Pan. Her power level has to be higher than Android 20, as she was able to beat Android 20 easily, and was shown to be physically stronger than him. The only reason she seems weak is because Rilldo was stronger than Buu and the first Big Bad was in Vegeta's body, and had several power-ups, making him stronger than Rilldo. All the big bads after that were even stronger than them, making her seem alot weaker than she would be against most everything in the galaxy.
Affably Evil: The Four-Star Dragon ("Nuova Shenron" in the FUNimation dub). He's nice, kind, polite, and even just knocks out Pan when he could have easily burn her to a crisp. He's also trying to turn the world into a desert and wants to kill Goku, and was born out of the wish that restored King Piccolo.
Always Second Best: Vegeta gets a whole episode (The Heart Of The Prince) lamenting this, before Bulma comes up with a plan to deal with it.
Amusement Park of Doom: the first half of the battle with Syn/Omega Shenron has place in a ruined park.
Anyone Can Die: Piccolo, Goku, Krillin, plus several cities.
Apocalypse How: Class 0 is standard for a minor villain to do, Baby wants to pull off an X-3 or X-4, and the Shadow Dragons are aiming for an X-5.
Artistic Age: An in-universe version is done with Goku's biological age. Goku's biological age is never stated, but Pan thinks he's gone to being 3 or 4. Others think he's about 10. Pan's age is officially 10, but due to this trope, nobody's completely sure, due to other sources giving different ages (but she's supposed to be 10). It is important to note that Goku is identical to how he looked age-wise in Dragon Ball, so it is likely he is the same age as he was when he fought Pilaf.
Attack Backfire: Goku tries to take down Super 17 with a variety of ki- based attacks, only to discover that he can increase his strength level by absorbing them.
Back for the Dead: Piccolo makes a brief appearance when Baby arrives on Earth, disappears after being blasted, and suddenly returns afterward only to die when Earth explodes to stop the Black Star Dragon Balls from ever being used again.
Krillin too, being killed by the Brainwashed and Crazy Android 17 after seeing only brief glimpses of him and 18 throughout the Baby saga. This being the series that it is, though, he gets better.
Nappa didn't have a chance against Vegeta after returning from Hell.
Back for the Finale: Almost every surviving character Goku, Pan, and Trunks encountered in space shows up and has a speaking part (or at least a grunt) in episode 63 where they help Goku take out the Big Bad. Goku Jr. and Puck from the TV special show up in the epilogue for episode 64.A video montage featuring all the character from the past Dragon Ball series shows while Goku is walking through the tournament halls in the last minutes of GT in episode 64.
Back from the Dead: Many villains from all 3 series during the Super 17 arc.
Backup from Otherworld: Piccolo talks to Dende and works with him to rip open Hell so Goku can escape.
Badass Adorable: Pan. She may be a bit emotional, and can't really take pain at first, but no matter where you are in the show, she can kick ass. She just doesn't really get a chance to do it too often because the villains all need to be on Goku's level. Her lightning fast domination of Android 20 is a good example, however.
Badass Automaton: Most of Planet M-2, and things that come from there, like Luud.
Badass Boast: Goku gets one after his energy is restored to full near the end of his fight with Baby:
Goku: All you can see is the light shining through the cracks around the edges of the door, Baby. And you just don't think that little bit of light can overcome your dark plans. But what you can't see is what's behind the door. That's what I am.
Badass Bookworm: Gohan, even more than before. He has brainy specs now.
Badass Family: While most of them are now retired from fighting, Goku's family still applies. Chi-Chi is still likely the second strongest pure human on Earth, Videl is the strongest pure human woman on Earth, Gohan could be the strongest anything on Earth if he applied himself, Goten could likely be just as strong as Gohan, Goku is the strongest non-fused character in the universe and is stronger than every single god in the universe, and even Pan has to be stronger than android 20. Vegeta's family is pretty badass as well, seeing as Bulma was actually a badass at one point, Trunks has always been a badass, as has Vegeta.
Badass Grandpa: Though he doesn't look it (and after Pilaf makes that idiotic wish, he REALLY doesn't look it), Goku.
Badass Moustache: Subverted with Vegeta. It's so bad that his own daughter scolds him for it and has it shaved off.
Bad Boss: Pan's ideas for getting the Capsule Corp. engineers to design new stuff is to cut their pay in half and take all their benefits. Because they said breaking the laws of physics was impossible, and they were wrong. Good thing she isn't in charge.
Balance Between Good and Evil: The premise of the Shadow Dragons saga. The good wishes our heroes made with the Dragon Balls over the course of the saga were displaced by an equal amount of negative energy, which was stored in the Balls. Thanks to the Dragon Radar being able to track the Balls so easily, new wishes were made far sooner than they were meant to. So rather than allowing the negative energy time to dissipate, it instead accumulated over time, eventually leading to the creation of the Shadow Dragons.
Bash Brothers: Goku and Vegeta become this when they work together to fight the Super One-Star Dragon.
Battle Aura: It's Dragon Ball. What did you expect?
Bazaar of the Bizarre: The bazaar on Imecka sells everything from ammo (including huge bullets) to alien food and jewelry to living birds used as hats with red and white tail feathers and snakes for wearing around your neck.
Bilingual Bonus: Eis is German for ice. So "Eis Shenron" is literally "Ice Shenlong". The German version was likely used because of similar pronunciation, but with the right letter for the acronym.
The names of the evil Dragons are all based on the Dragon Ball they sprang from, which is written in Chinese in the original Japanese version. They're in the form of "_ Xīng Lóng" ("[#]-Star Dragon"), rather than "Shén Lóng" ("God Dragon").
Bittersweet Ending: Goku defeats the Dragons, then he has to leave with Shenlong to teach people to stop using the Dragon Balls for everything. The bittersweet part of this ending is that said mission will last for 100 years, and Goku will never see his family and friends again because, by the time he returns, they'll be dead by then. Well, except for Pan, her grandson, the Androids, and Master Roshi.
BLAM Episode: When Kaioshin drops Goku in Sugoroku Space. I mean, one minute Goku is in a fight for the Earth... And then he's playing some crazy board game.
Blood Knight: Goku and Vegeta. Pan takes it even farther than her grandfather at times.
Bratty Teenage Daughter: Bra/Bulla, even though she's actually only about 10. She bitches at her father, Vegeta, until he shaves his mustache, and he almost kills a group of guys who hit on her, destroying their car and running them off the road, into the ocean. Plus, as a half-saiyan, she's easily strong enough to do her own bag carrying, and can fly, but won't.
Break the Cutie: Pan, after her parents try to kill her while possessed by Baby.
Brick Joke: The warning about abusing the Dragon Balls.
Butt Monkey: Trunks and Krillin. Vegeta has his moments too.
Call Back: Goku's space suit has the typo "Gokuh". This was the same typo that was on his space suit while going to Namek.
Canon Discontinuity: Much of what occurs in this series has recently been contradicted by Dragon Ball Online, a MMO with significant input from Akira Toriyama himself.
A particular point often discussed is that Pilaf shouldn't be alive at all, he would have suffered the same fate as Captain Ginyu in Dragon Ball Z when the Earth was destroyed.
Plot Holes, numerous inconsistencies and almost paradoxical contradictions were what actually threw the series' Canon hopes out of the stadium. The most serious of these can be seen on the Headscratchers Page
Canon Immigrant: Some of the hell escapees are from the movies.
Can't Catch Up: Is your name Goku? No? Sorry. Vegeta is pretty annoyed when he discovers Goku has left him in the dust AGAIN, with Super Saiyan 4. "The Heart Of The Prince" really gives us a look into his mind. Everyone else is pretty much pointless. Trunks is useful at first, but by the time Goku gets SSJ4, he's been left behind again. Pan is the only other character to stay important.
Even when Vegeta acquires the means to transform to Super Saiyan 4, he's still completely outclassed by Omega and is forced to fuse with Goku for them to have any chance against him.
Cassandra Did It: One Monster of the Week actually manipulates this, using his power to predict earthquakes to make it seem like he causes them.
Combined Energy Attack: Played with by Baby Vegeta, gathering his followers' hatred of Goku in a massive energy attack appropriately named Revenge Death Ball.
Played universally straight by Goku, killing the Super One-Star Dragon with it.
Continuity Nod: Pan makes Trunks dress in drag so that he can defeat a monster demanding brides from a local village in order to obtain a Dragon Ball. Trunks' mother made Pan's grandfather do the exact same thing during their first Dragon Ball hunt.
Note: She actually tried to use Goku first (why she was so excited to dress her grandfather in drag is something we should never, ever examine). He actually brought up the previous incident, saying it (Pan's plan) won't work.
Cool Starship: It has multiple rooms, a flatscreen TV, a game system and other things. Plus, it can break the laws of physics without being designed to do so.
Covers Always Lie: The season sets. SS4 Goku is on the first one, containing the first 34 episodes. He shows up in Episode 35.
Crapsack World: Just about every planet ever. The only ones to not be this had low-level civilization. Even the galaxy, and the universe, could be seen as this, with Hell opening up, a dimension that screws people over and kills them, an plenty more.
Curb-Stomp Battle: Most of the fights against the weaker Shadow Dragons.
SSJ3 Goku gets this treatment by Baby Vegeta, and then proceeds to give it back when he becomes SSJ4.
Omega Shenron is the most powerful villain in all three entire series and he still gets this by SSJ4 Gogeta. Yeah he's that good.
Cute Bruiser: Pan, and possibly Goku again, depending on your definition of cute.
Cycle of Revenge: Depending on who you believe, Vegeta or Baby, this either started with Baby's creation or the Saiyan-Tuffle War. According to Vegeta, the Saiyans were treated like slaves by the Tuffles. According to Baby, the Saiyans were unprovoked. Either way, the Saiyan-Tuffle War happened. The Tuffles then created Baby, who would later take over Vegeta's body, as well as most of humanity, and all the people with Saiyan blood on Earth besides for Goku and Pan. Because of this, Goku is forced to kill Baby. Luckily, Baby had no family, ending it.
Dark Is Not Evil: Super Saiyan 4 Goku. Longer, even blacker hair, a deadly serious voice and personality, covered in dark red fur, dark red eyeliner, and downright frightening to be against. However, it's still Goku.
Deliberate Injury Gambit: Majuub's plan to help beat Baby. He got himself turned into chocolate and eaten. Mind you, Baby chewed, so it doesn't make that much sense.
Demoted to Extra: ... So uh, wasn't Uub supposed to be Goku's successor or something? Trunks also qualifies for this. Heck, this really happens to pretty much everyone who isn't Goku or Pan. If their name is not Goku, then alas, they are to be pitied.
At least Trunks got a bit of time during the Black Star arc, Goten and Gohan barely got anything.
This is one major thing that puts GT' canon status in some serious controversy and is among the biggest criticisms at the series. Toriyama just created too many characters by the end of Z to manage.
Determinator: It's easier to list the people who AREN'T this.
Disc One Final Boss: This show loved this trope. Each "apparent" Big Bad really just made way for the next one all the way up until the Shadow Dragons.
Or, if you want the longer explanation, Pilaf shows up, but ceases to be important after the first episode. His wish causes the dragon balls to be flung all over the universe, where the "apparent" real Big Bad Dr. Myu and his minions start collecting them. However, he's eventually killed by Baby, who takes on the role (until he is in-turn killed by Goku). While in Hell, Myu joins forces with Gero and creates Super Android 17 seeming to reclaim his status as main villain... but then 17 kills both him and Gero. 17 kills a lot of people before being taken down. This forces Goku and company to use the Dragon Balls to try and undo the damage. Unfortunately, the overused balls summon the One-Star Dragon ("Syn Shenron") and the shadow dragons. In other words, with the exception of One-Star, every one of these villains was a Disc One Final Boss.
Largely caused by Executive Meddling. Baby was originally supposed to be the Final Boss (mostly why his final form was made so absurdly powerful). However, producers wanted the series to coincide with the release (and marketing) of Dragon Ball: Final Bout for the Playstation. So two more arcs were hurried out the door and into production, accounting for their much shorter length and continuity issues (i.e. movie villains appearing in the Super 17 saga).
General Rilldo was definitely one of these as well, and a disappointing one at that. At first, he's introduced as more powerful than Majin Buu (the strongest villain in DBZ), has multiple forms and actually DEFEATS and imprisons all three of the heroes at first. But then gets killed disappointingly easily two episodes later.
This may have had something to do with the fact that his Ultimate Form was flat out broken. He could turn any object into metal, and couldn't be killed if there was metal present.
Dub Induced Plot Hole: Quite a few in Funimation's dub, but the most egregarious example is Goku wondering whether he would have to go back to school after being turned into a child. Only he was raised in the mountains, lived in complete solitude and never even met another person besides his grandfather until he was 12, and he NEVER went to school.
Dub Name Change: This happened to the Shadow Dragons; in Japan they were simply referred to by their number (as in, "Six-Star Dragon"), while the US dub gave them descriptive names. The Canadian Blue Water dub kept the original names.
Earth-Shattering Kaboom: The side-effects of the Black Star Dragon Balls. You use them, and you get one year to retrieve them. Otherwise, boom. The first time they get used, they are retrieved. The second time, everyone is too busy stopping Baby after he uses them. The Earth explodes, but not before everyone who isn't Piccolo is saved. Then they wish Earth back.
Enemy Mine: The fight with Luud ultimately boils down to this.
Establishing Character Moment: Pan gets one that lasts from her first appearing to them going to space. First, her breaking up the bank robbery, and then her being treated like (and complaining about being treated like) a kid (she's 10, so it does make sense). Then, her stowing away and basically stealing the ship when Goku and Trunks discover her. Trunks gets one in the form of him abandoning Capsule Corp and flying off, changing in the clouds.
Everything's Worse With Bees: Averted. The giant bees are pretty much harmless, though they do mistake Pan for their queen. The baby bees are the cutest things ever, though.
Evil Costume Switch: Baby, in Vegeta's body. He alters it more and more over time.
Evil Is Deathly Cold: Played straight with the Three-Star and Four-Star Dragons. Three-Star has powers over ice, and Four-Star has powers over fire. Three-Star is bad, Four-Star is good. They're twin brothers, by the way.
Evil Knockoff: Dr. Gero and Dr. Myu create a new Android 17 in Hell and somehow use him to open a portal to Earth.
I think he overrides his circuits due to them being exact complements of each other and then forces him to sync their energies together and focus that right at the bridge between Earth and Hell.
Evil Sounds Deep: Played with. Baby is high-pitched, but some of the Shadow Dragons are extremely deep.
Evolving Credits: About halfway through the series, the opening credits, which originally ended with Goku, Pan, and Trunks beating up some mechanical giant, now ended with the three of them fighting Baby, even after the Baby arc ended.
The Blue Water Dub version of Dan Dan, but not the Funimation version.
The rap that Funimation used in the initial DVD release.
Facepalm: Vegeta's reaction after seeing Goku lose against an harmless boy in episode 41.
Fanservice/Fan Disservice: A close-up of Pan's butt and a fawn trying to breastfeed from her, as well as her shirt.
Fiction 500: Bulma, Trunks and Vegeta. Need a spaceship to save the Earth? Ok. Need an even bigger spaceship? Ok. Need a mobile Blutz Wave Generator within a day? Gotcha.
Forgot About His Powers: ... Honestly, how often do the characters seem to forget that they can fly? Or have super powers in the early episodes?
Or have the ability to turn their opponents into chocolate or other harmless objects?
Franchise Zombie: Z already had signs of this, but Toriyama no longer had any hand in the story outside of a basic outline.
Freeze Frame Bonus: At one point, Chichi slaps Baby-possessed Goten so hard that he goes careening past a shelf and knocks over two pictures. One of them is a generic picture of Bulma, Vegeta, and their kids, but the other is of tiny, DBZ-aged Bra being held by Vegeta and pulling his face into a really annoyed smile.
Gainax Ending: Clear proof that GT was a very rushed concept. What happens to Goku in the last 2 episodes is inexplicable and there's no official explanation. He's finished, then he's dead and he talks to the world, then suddenly he's alive again, then in base form he cannot be killed by Omega (there's not even a halo to give us any idea), then after the bomb's thrown, he's apparently dead again and brought back to life, then he leaves. Vegeta knows something's up, then suddenly we see Goku's clothes left on the ground (that shot is chronologically out of sequence and is shown at the end of the next couple of events). DBZ's version of No Body Left Behind doesn't leave clothes behind. But then he's off to visit Roshi and Piccolo still fully clothed, and both also know something's changed about him, but "Are you...?" is not very helpful. When they take their eyes off him for a second, there's suddenly no one there, which is almost creepy. Then for some reason the Dragonballs merge into Goku, then he disappears. Where does he go? What happened to him? He doesn't return for 100 years, and, if you leave aside what you saw in A Hero's legacy, it's not clear if he's alive or dead (and, if he's alive, why he's only aged about 30-40 years instead of the full 100). To top it all off, he doesn't even seem bothered by the fact that almost everyone he knew is dead.
Needless to add, forests of Epileptic Trees abound across the part of the Dragonball fandom who like GT.
It doesn't add up to his fate in A Hero's Legacy, Goku is clearly no more and it makes it appear like the whole cast just passed on when their time was up. However "A Hero's legacy" was made earlier just after the Baby Saga and they intended Goku to be clearly dead by this point and be the Spirit Advisor to Goku Jr. At that time, no one had any idea how GT was going to end or just how they were going to get there. Seriously.
Half-Human Hybrid: And how! Bra, Trunks, Gohan and Goten. Pan is a 3/4ths human, and Goku Jr. is either 1/16 or maybe more Saiyan that that (you know, on the off chance the Pan/Trunks shippers are right).
Happy Flashback: Used to get Goku under control when he was giant, golden ape.
Happily Married: Vegeta and Bulma, Gohan and Videl, 18 and Krillin.
Heroic Sacrifice: Piccolo (twice, once after he's dead), Buu, 18 tries, possibly Earth Android 17, and others.
The Four-Star Dragon dies to save Goku. Fridge Brilliance kicks in when you remember he's created from the most evil wish, and comes from the Dragon Ball that belonged to Grandpa Gohan and later Goku. Therefore, he'd have the least negative energy (as it seems it builds up from being used for good), hence his similar opinion to Goku.
Also, Cell and Frieza have their own trap for Goku turned against them in Hell.
He Who Fights Monsters: The Tuffles. They were a peaceful people (according to Baby, at least), who were almost completely wiped out by the Saiyans (who may or may not have been previously enslaved). So they created Baby, who plans on turning the entire galaxy into Tuffles. Nice, you went from genocidees to genociders.
How Do I Shot Web?: Hey Goku, you got your tail back. Too bad nobody told you you need to use Earth to turn into a Giant Golden Ape, then get yourself under control to become a Super Saiyan 4.
Ineffectual Death Threats: Pan threatens to kill Giru all the time, to the point where it doesn't make any sense that he's even scared anymore.
In the End, You Are on Your Own: Each Big Bad was mainly taken out by Goku, with both him and them too powerful for anyone else. The best thing they could do was lend him their power and stand there.
Kid Appeal Character: Pan is a Type 3. Even if she'd get destroyed in the main fight, she still tends to try, and if she's not doing that, there's a good chance she's doing something else on her own, which tends to help out (pursuing Giru, finding and saving the kid who was possessed by Baby, and calming Goku down while he was a Golden Great Ape are all good examples).
Knight of Cerebus: General Rilldo. Up until he showed up, nobody other than Luud's high priest died, and the overall tone was still more silly than serious.
The Last Dance: Vegeta, Trunks, Goten, and Gohan all making one last attempt to kill Syn/Omega
LEGO Genetics: Baby's creation. Mixing the DNA of a synthetic organism with your leader? Sure, why not?
Like a Badass out of Hell: All the villains who have ever died break out of hell, kicking the asses of everyone who was supposed to stop this kind of thing. Then they realize that they forgot to level grind, and get their asses sent straight home.
Little Stowaway: Pan. The reason they don't take her home is because she takes the device that would let them go home and easily keeps it a away from the out of practice, not to mention larger, Trunks. Goku refuses to interfere with it, and she finally drops it down her shirt (which, when you think about it, shouldn't work), causing Trunks to give up.
Living Prop: Bra does about three things in GT. Get Vegeta to shave that awful facial hair, make Vegeta take her shopping, and give some power to Baby. About the only reason they introduced her seems to be to give Vegeta another kid, who's nothing like him. And perhaps someone for the Yuri Fans to ship Pan with.
Magic Pants : Super Saiyan 4, the form with its own instant tailor! Works both back and forth.
Vegeta even gets gloves and a leather belt to match.
Make Room For The New Plot: The last few Black Star Dragon Balls are found alot faster and easier so that the heroes will return to Earth, discovering Baby has taken it over.
Male Gaze: Pan has had at least one awkward close-up of her butt. The fact that she might be as young as ten didn't stop the crew.
The Man Behind the Man: Dr. Myuu to Doltaki and Mutchie, beginning the transition to the Baby Saga.
Mecha-Mooks: Dr. Myu's forces. Though, it turns out, at least some of them had souls (Like Rilldo).
Misplaced Retribution: Baby's attack on Goku, Trunks, Pan, Vegeta and the other people with Saiyan blood, as well as all of humanity, and he plans to attack the entire galaxy. This is all revenge for what the Saiyans did to the Tuffles. Vegeta and Goku were not even born yet (and Vegeta would have been a baby if he was), the others were certainly not born yet, the rest of the galaxy wasn't involved, and Frieza killed all the Saiyans who could have been there in a combat role (as in, not babies). Basically, he's taking out his anger over what King Vegeta and Bardock's generation did on their kids, grandkids, great grandkids, friends, family members, fellow inhabitants of the Earth and fellow inhabitants of the universe.
Both Goku and Pan flat out tell this to Baby. He doesn't care.
Missed Moment of Awesome: While all the bad guys escape from Hell, there is no confrontation between Raditz and Gohan or Pan. Who wouldn't have loved to see Gohan say something like, "Hey, Uncle Raditz!"- just like Goku did to Tao, dismissing him as no threat whatsoever?
Missing Episode: The Funimation dub initially skipped straight to the action part of the series on television, but later dubbed and released the other episodes on DVD as The Lost Episodes.
Mr. Fanservice: Trunks is an in-universe example with all the women (And Otokosuki) of Capsule Corp. lusting after him as he walks the halls of the company.
The Mole: After arriving on Planet M2, it's revealed that Giru was working for the bad guys all along. Except it turns out he wasn't and that he was working for the good guys, by deceiving Rilldo and the Machine Mutants. So he was actually a Reverse Mole.
Monster of the Week: In an interesting display of symmetry, the show used this format in the Black Star Saga (the first arc) and the Shadow Dragon Saga (the final arc).
Mood Whiplash: Often caused by trying to accommodate both early Dragon Ball's comedic tone and the more serious action of Z. The worst offender is by far the Shadow Dragon Saga.
Nice Hat: Pan's fisherman's hat in episode 64 and A Hero's Legacy.
Never My Fault: Bulma manages to blame Goku for starting the cycle of searching for the Dragon Balls, when he didn't even know what they did until he met her.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: The constant overuse of the Dragon Balls over the course of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z is what causes the creation of the Shadow Dragons.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Baby does this, having used the Black Star Dragon Balls to bring back Planet Plant. Because of this, and the year long (well, just about) reign afterwards, by the time he's dead, Earth has two weeks left. Luckily, there's still a planet just sitting there, as well as a giant spacecraft and Super Saiyan 4 Goku, who can use instant transmission. So, had Baby used that wish for something like immortality or even just Planet Plant in it's old place, Earth would have been screwed.
No Endor Holocaust: Earth is so lucky this universe ignores physics. For one thing, it would be bombarded with the remnants of... itself, from the last two times it exploded. For another thing, if a planet were as close as the restored Planet Plant in real life, the gravity of the two would first pull them to the point where they'd be slightly elongated. Second, their gravity would pull them towards each other. The two would then collide, doing massive damage to both. A very popular theory these days is that Earth used to be a Superearth, a giant Earthlike planet almost completely covered in oceans. Then it hit a Earth-sized planet. The chunks left over from the two gave us the moon, and the Earth became what it is today (after millions of years of pulling itself together).
Fridge Brilliance: When the Earth was wished back, it was restored using the fragments left over from the explosion.
No Guy Wants An Amazon: Pan's date in the first episode. He's not exactly a fan of her kicking the asses of a group of bank robbers and saving (what she thinks is a) small child.
No One Should Survive That: At one point, Pan, Goku and Trunks get so close to a sun that, by all scientific information available, their ship should have melted and they should have instantly been burnt to a crisp.
No Saving Throw: Earth Android 17 vs. Hell Fighter 17, when Earth 17 attacks Krillin and 18.
In the FUNimation dub, Goku is played by Stephanie Naldony in his kid form, Sean Schemmel in his SSJ4 transformation and Shane Ray in his Golden Ape transformation
In the same dub, Syn Shenron is initially voiced by Bob Carter, but his VA switches to Christopher Sabat when he transforms into Omega Shenron.
Oddly Common Rarity: In Dragon Ball Z, the need for a spaceship was something really, really bad. Not even Capsule Corp could pull that off. Now, Capsule Corp can build spacecraft within the week, complete with extras like a flatscreen TV. And that's when it takes off before it's even ready.
Justified. It's been at least twenty years since Capsule Corp built their first spaceship, and Bulma and her dad could have only gotten more efficient. That plus the series' general adherence to reality makes it easier to rationalize.
Off Model: Less common than in Z, but still there.
Goku. It's apparently a Saiyan trait. Even before turning into a kid, he's supposedly in his 40s-50s, and yet barely looks any older than in the Cell saga of Z. Immediately after being reverted to child size, he makes a reference to Compulsory School Age in the Funimation dub.
Vegeta, for the same reason (as he's the only other full-blooded Saiyan left). He's 5 years older than Goku, meaning he's mid to late 50s by now.
Despite looking like a little kid, Pan might actually be somewhere in her early teens. It depends on how long you think the Time Skip between Z and GT is (according to the original Japanese, it's 5 years after the end of DBZ, which was 10 years after the Buu Saga).
The Omnipotent: The Dragon of the Black-Star Dragon Balls. He lacks the limits of the other Dragons, even.
One True Sequence: The first time Goku and the others meet the Para Para Brothers. Of all the Dragon Balls for them to find, they find the only one that the heroes just found at the same time.
Overprotective Dad: Possibly Vegeta. It's up to the viewer whether he attacked the teenage punks because they made fun of him or whether he didn't like them hitting on his daughter... or both.
Overshadowed by Awesome: Anyone who isn't SS4 Goku or Vegeta is pretty much helpless as your average innocent bystander by the end.
Person of Mass Destruction: Think of it like this: The weakest Z-Fighter, Pan, is stronger than Frieza (as she was stronger than Android 20 (Dr. Gero), who was stronger than Frieza). Frieza could blow up a world with one attack. That's the weakest person who still shows up and fights.
Power Glows: The Four-Star Dragon, in his red form.
Power Limiter: Goku's power drops along with his size. Not to the same level he was at when he was actually a kid, also he loses his ability to Teleport.
Punny Name: Don Kee. (It makes more sense in Japanese, where he's "Don Kia", a pun on akindo, meaning "merchant".)
Put on a Bus to Hell: Piccolo, quite literally. After he's already dead. But on the other hand he went himself there on purpose, actually prefers being there and uses his newfound position to guard the Hell as seen at the end.
Actually kinda makes sense, considering the fact that some of the folks being kept down there are exponentially more powerful than the gods of the universe. And Piccolo's stronger (or at least more tactically brilliant) than them.
Real Song Theme Tune: In marked contrast to earlier series, GT used random pop songs from popular Japanese artists of The Nineties, including the late Izumi Sakai (a.k.a. ZARD), idol Shizuka Kudou, and pop staples DEEN, WANDS, and Field of View. They're fairly memorable, but they really have absolutely nothing to do with the series in terms of lyrical content.
Serial Escalation: All of the villains are much stronger than Freezer. Super Saiyan 4 Gogeta stands out the most; he has been named as the single most powerful character in the Dragon Ball universe.
Series Continuity Error: After Gohan was given the ultimate power-up by the Elder Kaioshin in Dragon Ball Z, he was told that he no longer needed the Super Saiyan transformation. Yet here he uses it.
Of course, one has to remember he didn't lose his Super Saiyan transformation, and was explicitly stated to not have been training at all in the period between Z and GT. So it only makes sense he would need it again after getting soft all those years.
Shoo Out the Clowns: Giru has a tendency to become incapacitated whenever the Big Bad rears their ugly head.
Shoot the Hostage: in an attempt to stop Super 17's rampage, Pan and Giru manage to block Dr. Gero and threaten him with death. Sadly, because Dr. Myuu secretly modified Hell Fighter 17 in order to make him respond to his and his only orders, Super 17 doesn't recognize Gero as his boss no more. Which leads to Gero's nth death at the hand of one of his creations.
Significant Acrostic: The American names for the Shadow Dragons start with the letters S-H-E-N-R-O-N.
Specifically note that the letters are in Dragon Ball order too (for example The 1 star dragon being "Syn Shenron" and the 7 star dragon being "Naturon Shenron").
Sins of Our Fathers: Baby is out for revenge against the Saiyans, of whom Goku and Vegeta are the only full blooded survivors.
And he willingly states this word by word when he's telling Vegeta his backstory.
Sissy Villain: Lord Don Key of Imecka, and Master Doltaki the "Oracle" of Lord Luud.
Super Mode: While Z only went to level 3 of the transformation, GT in particular is notable for introducing Super Saiyan 4, which is so powerful that a Saiyan must become a Golden Great Ape before attaining this form, and unlike all others, this form involves a Saiyan keeping their hair dark but having a copious amount of it as well as growing red fur all over their body and regrowing their Saiyan tail if it's missing. Needless to say, it's awesome.
Interestingly, the mechanics allow one to skip levels, as Vegeta manages 4 without ever having become a Super Saiyan 3.
Superpowered Evil Side: SS4 Goku, and Golden Great Ape Goku. GGA is just plain destructive, but SS4, at least the first time it's used, is like the first time Goku went Super Saiyan, only even more serious.
In both English dubs, Goku's actor changes as he shifts between his child and adult/SSJ4 bodies.
In the Funimation dub, Pan's actress changes during the flashbacks from when she was a toddler. Oddly, this is averted with old lady Pan, who has the same VA as 10-year-old Pan.
Time to Unlock More True Potential: The Kais think Goku's in for this after his first defeat by Baby Vegeta. Played with in a sense, as all Goku needs to unlock his potential is to have his tail grow, in a particularly painful manner involving a pair of pliers.
Underestimating Badassery: The bank robbers(?) in the first episode. They had no clue that Pan was more badass than all of them combined.
Unholy Nuke: The Revenge Death ball, powered by the hate of Baby's followers. Also Omega Shenron's negative energy ball, made from all the bad karma left over from all the sins on Earth.
Unreliable Narrator: When Baby gives us the history of the interaction of his people, it's clear that he's slightly biased.
Vague Age: Pretty much everyone since it's never entirely established how many years have passed between Z and GT. For example, fan sites have placed Pan anywhere from 10 to 14.
Verbal Tic Name: Giru. He initially introduces himself as T2006, which prompt them to rename him after his verbal tic simply because it's easier.
Victoria's Secret Compartment: Pan does this with the spaceship's keys, though it seems unlikely that she would be able to pull this off.
Villain Forgot To Level Grind: Painfully apparent when the old villains escape from Hell. Vegeta defeats Nappa without even trying, and Goku beats Freeza and Cell effortlessly in spite of the trap they set for him.
Wax On, Wax Off: Old Kai has Goku unlock his hidden power by making him operate a giant coffee grinder. Somewhat subverted as the actual goal was simply to regrow Goku's tail, and the training is quickly abandoned for the faster solution of simply forcing the tail out with a pair of pliers.
Wham Episode: "The Greatest Surprise" and "The Shadow Dragons".
What Happened to the Mouse?: What happened to Planet Plant/Vegeta? Is it just following Earth around? Did they blow it up? Seriously, there's a planet right next to Earth, in Earth's orbit. What happened to it?
What Measure Is a Mook?: Giru is treated like a full character, having started out as a good guy. However, he's still a Machine Mutant. The rest of the Machine Mutants are killed without any moral problems, despite the fact that the are clearly sentient.
What Measure Is a Non-Human?: The Machine Mutants are treated like your standard mooks. That is to say, slaughtered. Fridge Horror sets in when you remember that they're all sentient, and at least some, like Rilldo, have souls.
This is also evoked when Giru first joins the team. Pan starts threatening Giru after he assimilated their Dragon Radar, when Trunks stops her. She tries to say he's Just a Machine, but Trunks explains that because the little robot is clearly experiencing fear, it must be sentient, and should be treated as such.
With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: Baby Vegeta worries he'll become this in exchange for the power to match SSJ4 Goku, and it is subverted when he reveals he still can talk and reason....but not for long, as he slowly but surely begins to lose his grip on sanity, as a result of both his unnaturally enhanced power and his maniacal obssession to kill Goku at the expense of everything else, even his own planet.
Xanatos Gambit: Uub allowing Baby to eat him, which allowed him to launch a surprise attack from inside Baby's stomach.
An earlier example on M2; Giru pretended to be The Mole for General Rilldo, allowing the others to be able to infiltrate Dr. Myuu's operations more easilly.
Identical Grandson: Goku Jr.. Technically, he's Goku's Great Great Great Great Grandson (according to the final episode of GT, anyway; he just calls Pan "grandma" in the special). However, while looking exactly like Goku, he has a completely different personality.
Something Completely Different: Aired shortly after the Baby arc was finished. Minus the presence of Pan and a minor connection to GT's final episode, it really doesn't have the feel of the series.
That's because at the time it was made, no one had planned on GT's actual ending. However as the fandom suffered from Ending Fatigue and ratings plummeted by Super 17 Saga, Toei rushed to end it somehow.
Spirit Advisor: The original Goku is briefly this to Goku Jr. after he finds the Dragon Ball.
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