Dragon Ball AF is not exactly the name of a single work, but of a phenomenon in the Dragon Ball fanbase in the 2000's about a supposed sequel to Dragon Ball GT.
The picture that would open the rumors and even name this supposed series was an illustration of a Super Saiyan transformation with a logo spelling AF published in Spain's magazine Hobbyconsolas.
Fans, unaware that this supposed transformation was an Original Character Fan Art done by a guy named Tablos, thought the character was Goku as a Super Saiyan 5, and AF meant "After Future", supposedly the name of a new series. Despite the origins, a very active community in the Dragon Ball fanbase would open up and create more rumors, synopsis, transformations and characters (like Xicor), including works named after the non-existent series, that inspired more confusion in the fanbase.
Among these works, four doujinshis were notable enough:
- Dragon Ball AF by Daniel Montiel Franco, also known as Tablos, the creator of the original illustration. Being Spanish, Tablos never had that much luck outside his homeland.
- Dragon Ball AF by Youngjijii, a very prolific Japanese artist that drew multiple works. He is, however, infamous for tracing almost everything in his work.
- Dragon Ball AF by Toyble. Toyble was a Japanese aficionado who loved Dragon Ball since he was young, and during AF days, took all the multiple rumors and tried to make a story out of it. He didn't create Big Bad Xicor, for example, he merely adapted it. Toyble was the most successful of the four, directly working in the Dragon Ball franchise as Toyotarō.
- Dragon Ball New Age by Malik Torihane. Despite not sharing the name with the series, it follows the trend of being a Fan Sequel to Dragon Ball GT with similar ideas. Originally it had a series in the early 2010's, but was rebooted in 2018.
Compare Dragon Ball Multiverse.
Due to the rumors being too vast there aren't enough sources to state what they all have in common, we'll try our best to say what these rumors had in common:
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Ascended Fanon: Some ideas of the series, such as an Evil Counterpart to Goku, Gohan and the rest of the cast reaching power levels equivalent to Goku and Vegeta (which was seen as impossible by the time GT was on air), and the resurrection of old villains, were eventually used in canon. - Back from the Dead: Saiyans that were long dead would return stronger than before, and with Super Saiyan transformations.
- Evil Counterpart: Xicor (Or Zaiko, depending on who you ask.), Goku and Lyra's Child by Rape serves as a complete anti-thesis to his father. Essentially being identical to him in almost every aspect except for hair-style. This resemblence is such that people tend to erroneously label him as another of Goku's transformations.
- Took a Level in Badass:
- Fans tried to give every Saiyan in the main cast (and dead ones like Raditz and Broly) the same transformations as Goku, meaning Super Saiyan 4 Gohan, Trunks and Goten.
- By the same token, giving Pan and occasionally Bra Super Saiyan.
