The Dragon Ball Z Alternate Timeline Theory 

Yo Qaaman, let me run something by you lol If Raditz never came to earth, then Nappa and Vegeta wouldn’t have known about the dragonballs and they wouldn’t have come to earth. If Nappa and Vegeta never came to earth, Piccolo wouldn’t have died and they wouldn’t need to go to Namek. If they never went to Namek, they would’ve never met Frieza and Goku wouldn’t have turned into a super saiyan. If Goku wasn’t a super saiyan, he wouldn’t stand a chance against the androids…so that’s why Raditz is the savior of Earth. Thoughts?

Man, I feel bad for Bulma in Original timeline...she found Trunks dead and time machine was missing and then she lived life alone...so depressing

Disclaimer: the HOT timeline is where goku black arc takes place. Quaaman’s line saying the earth is doomed if someone who is stronger than trunks was far truer than he ever thought

Am I the only one who think that original timeline is kinda depresing...(no Z fighters, just Bulma) =/

Even after 8 years, this is one of the best videos to explain the complicated timelines of Dragon ball

Plot Twist: Dragon Ball GT is actually what happens in the unseen timeline...

I don't know if you are gonna see this! I'm watching this ALMOST 7 years later and I want to say that's is probably this best video I've seen in my life! That's an amazing video and your work you've put in is UNREAL! Thanks a lot man!

This is probably one of your greatest videos Quaaman.

Man, this video revolutionized the dbz fandom. This was the biggest video back then because it brought so much logic to a fandom that was.. logically challenged.

Krillin - "So you're saying I can't just take your time machine go back to the past and tell myself not to date marron?"

I kind of feel sorry for Trunks man, first the androids, then cell, then goku black. Give his world a break :(

Man, this got made even messier in Super

dude u put a lot of work in this god job

Man... time travel is so confusing sometimes. Lol.

I’ve always loved this video. The concept of Cell was great for a villain, but his backstory created a lot of plot holes for the show, which complicates the Android saga.

Get ready to update your charts because Trunks is coming back

This was so well done man. I've had similar general thoughts, so watching this video go in depth was amazing. Keep it up man.

it’s been 10 years since this video was released… wow! this was my first time ever trying to understand dragon ball logic like 5 youtube accounts ago😭 Qaaman is the GOAT

I think this is a strong theory. I'd consider this official.

20:30 Crazy how you predicted Dragon Ball Super lol

This is honestly one of my favorite topics on Dragon Ball lol, everyone be confused asf. It's honestly an easy concept to grasp for me but I see why others find it difficult.

this is really thought out and well done, I'm really enjoying it. great job

I can believe that the HoT androids killed the time traveling Cell. The HoT androids may have been weaker than the main androids, but they were much more vicious. They weren’t strangers to fighting dirty, often grouping up on opponents in a 2v1 battle, unlike the main androids that seemed to prefer 1v1 matchups. I can see imperfect cell having trouble subduing the both of them, even though they’re weaker.

long story short. Akira's writing style just hopes the audience doesn't think too much about it.

Am I the only one who understands the whole theory I found everything to make some sort of sense?

is anyone else scratching their heads while watching this video lol

What if Trunks just accidentaly typed 763 instead of another year ?

...my brain hurts...

Man, I would love to see an updated video on this with DBS' new timelines. This was one of my favorite videos of yours :)

"Multiverse Theory's a bitch."

And this all happened because some doctor got mad at goku

The second plothole you pointed could not be a plot hole. See, I think that trunks was setting the time in the timemachine, where he wanted to go but as he was navigating AGE 760....761....763....763 Cell showed up and trunks could not enter his intended timeline on the timemachine and got killed by cell. So cell entered the time machine and pressed the button and went to age 763. Does this make Sense?

In my honest opinion, this is Qaaman's best video even after 8 years. No disrespect to his current work AT ALL. This video is just THAT good and it holds nostalgic value to me as well. Now that Dragon Ball Super has happened this video could probably be redone and updated due to the retcons and changes Super introduced. Also on a side note: I cannot listen to Solid State Scouter and not hear Qaaman's voice explaining something in the background of it. I don't know if any Dragonball RU-vidr has made a song from the series as synonymous with their channel as Qaaman has with Solid State Scouter. Iconic.

Basically the androids would of been the true ending of dbz, if it weren’t for time travel. Pretty dark I say

The original timeline is so depressing. The earth is in ruins & all of the Z fighters are dead.

Me: What the hell is the HOT timeline? Oh, History of Trunks. (facepalm)

6 years later and still my favorite video on RU-vid!!! Clears things up so well!!!

This makes so much sense. I was racking my brain trying to figure out how the hell did cell make his way to the main timeline from a completely different set of timelines that didn't really interact. But you pieced it together and explained it pretty well. This is very digestible too tbh. Your timeline map really helped alot otherwise these explanations would be just too abstract to grasp.

i always gotta rewatch this video once a year when I get back into my dragon ball phase.

With Future trunks coming to super. You will probably have to do a uodate video. lol

Anybody agrees Future Gohan should've lived?

10 years later and still watching this video here and then , fantastic work ✨

this needs an update now with DBS and Goku Black/Future Trunks

Are you eventually going to update this to include the black Goku events in the HOT timeline?

I haven't been back to this video in a looong time, it definitely deserves more viewers with the amount of work in this video. I know this video is 8 years old, but I believe there is a way to fix the whole Cell problem in this video down below. Cell goes back into the past of the alternate timeline that was already created by Trunks from Timeline 1, thus creating an alternate timeline that branches from it. And of course, Future Trunks would also arrive 3 years later because he is a part of its history.

i think you're giving this more thought than toriyama

There ARE 5 cells #1. Killed by gohan during cell games #2. Possibly killed by trunks in larva form after finding artificial human's blueprints. #3. Possibly killed by artificial humans in attempt to absorb them. #4. Killed by trunks in failed ambush. #5. Killed by trunks and kuririn while destroying dr. gero's lab.

Why can't dbz be on netflix😩

Turns out the Blue Timeline turned out to be almost exactly like the Present timeline. Now we know the ''Future?'' :D

This actually made a lot of sense. It's a really good video and cleared things up. Thanks for the video.

Coming back to watch this in 2024, the different alternative timelines are really well explained

I wonder if the unseen timeline is the timeline Zamasu used to take goku's body....?

Am I alone in that I understand his explanation perfectly? After his explanation I can wrap four timelines and five Cells around in my head and admit that the time travel cell in the H.o.T. timeline is a problem. The way I see it is that either he was too weak when he fought 17 and 18 and was killed by their combined efforts or 16 existed in this timeline and he defeated Cell but was destroyed/too badly damaged afterwards.

i’m not gonna lie i’ve watched this vid every night for like 3 weeks now. i learn something new each time and helps me sleep 😭 wake up and hear something new crazy how old this is. if we get a super-updated version this will be three hours long

20:25 black goku / goku black

Let me offer an "Occams Razor" explanation for why the Time Machine was set to 763 when Cell stole it from Trunks: We can see that Trunks was just preparing to climb into the machine as Cell came up on him. It's entirely possible (and the simplest answer) that Trunks hadn't yet punched in his intended destination of 767. It might just be the case that each digit is entered manually (push a button to increase number, 1 -> 2 -> 3 -> 5 -> 6 -> 7 etc.) and Trunks had only reached the age "763," when Cell ambushed him and killed him. And not knowing how to program the machine, himself, Cell just hopped in the machine and let it do its thing.

I would just like to say this was the first video I found from you and I’m glad I’ve stuck with you since then

You made a mistake the cell that returned from the original timeline didnt go back to the HoT timeline, (he is also never seen there anyway which further proves my point), but he only returned to our known timeline which we are currently in (where the cell games and stuff happens) .

I don't think cell ever went to the hot timeline. He just went directly to the main timeline. In the hot timeline he was just born years later and killed by trunks.

25:00 First plothole means there is FIVE timlines not four. there is one more timeline before oryginal timeline in vid. 1. First lane - goku died, trunks back in time but failed (maybe go without medicine?) and created line with same history as his, didnt find out how defeat androids who killed him. cell didnt use timemachine but stay in future without trunks, reaching his perfect form - everybody died. 2. Failed line (oryginal in vid but with timetraveler) - goku died, trunks back in time and created unseen line in vid, ending killed by cell who knows about timtraveler and cell go back in time to 4th timeline - almost everybody died. 3. Unseen timeline in vid - trunks know about cell and destroy lab with him. So there is no cell - happy timeline until buu who kiled everybody because goku didnt achive ssj3 - everybody died. 4. Future trunks line we know from dbs (HOT in vid) - almost everybody died. 5. Changed time line from dbz - the golden winner - everybody live! This is only explanation. And there is no first plothole then! And there is even 4 rings in dbs. All created by timemachine. :p No wonder zamasu was furious at trunks for messing with time and chronoa from dbh punished him :p trunks you bad boy...

Over the years I’ve watched this a bunch of times and always find this video so interesting. Would love to see a remastered version where you include super into the timelines!

For those of you who are not convinced that there are 5 Cells, consider the following: You have a machine that can duplicate anything that you want to. You have 3 baskets, each one containing an orange. You take one orange from basket no.1 and put it in no.2. So, basket no.1 is empty, no.2 has two oranges, and no.3 has one. Now, you duplicate basket no.2. Now we have 4 baskets. No.1 is empty, no.2 has two oranges, no.3 has one, and the new no.4 has two. Think of basket no.1 as the Original Timeline. The Cell (orange) from this timeline (basket) traveled to the HoT Timeline (basket no.2), where there is already another Cell (the orange that was already there). The HoT Timeline (basket no.2) was duplicated when Trunks traveled to this timeline, creating the Main Timeline (basket no.4), where, just like HoT Timeline (basket no.2) is two Cells (oranges). Basket no.3 is just the Unseen Timeline. So, there are now 5 Cells....or oranges...whatever...

This needs to be redone bc of dbs black goku saga

Your Theory seems solid to me.

Boy does this video bring back memories

I did mi research and you were right all along waoo I thought it was three time lines but is four and it makes sense to me now

you must add another rule: "The cell who will ambush trunks is always the orignal cell of that respective timeline"

Man, everything and anything about time travel in any context is always such a dark topic

still thinking about this video 6 years later

Cell: How much do you know about time travel? Trunks: Less than I should...

ADJUSTMENT TO TIMELINES // PLOT HOLES EXPLAINED First, before getting into my timelines explanation, I want to thank you largely for this video, as it helped me greatly in piecing together the puzzle My timelines are essentially the same as yours, but with a little twist to take care of the plot holes ... First, Cell in the “main timeline” said to Piccolo that Trunks killed Frieza ... so that means the Cell from the “main timeline” came from the “unseen Timeline”, NOT the “original Timeline” How this happened? While all is speculation, the most obvious answer is that a Time Machine can just as easily be made in the “unseen Timeline”, especially since Bulma and the others already know it can be done from seeing Future Trunks ... then the Trunks that is killed by Cell is the Trunks that grew up from a baby, NOT Future Trunks from the “original Timeline” The beauty of all the above is that we can actually scrap the term “unseen Timeline” and instead have 1) the original Timeline, 2) Cell’s timeline (beforehand thought to be “unseen”), 3) History of Trunks [HOT] Timeline, and 4) The main Timeline The coordinates were set to Age 763, as Cell claimed to just push the button ... perhaps there was a good reason for the all-grown-up-Trunks from the “unseen Timeline” (...known in my theory as Cell’s Timeline) to make a trip back to 763, whether it was a new threat or whatever Finally, one may say there is one glaring error in this theory, which is what happens to Future Trunks from the “original Timeline” in regards to Cell showing up ... 1) either Trunks defeats him, which is highly unlikely from all we know, or 2) Cell kills Future Trunks also in the “original Timeline”, wants to go find the androids to become “perfect” and just “presses the button” in the Time Machine, but this Time Machine would be set to Age 767 or sometime thereafter, perhaps with Future Trunks actually planning to tell the Z Fighters that he deactivated the androids in his time, and this Cell would just be going to the “unseen Timeline” just as Future Trunks would have ... given the Cell larval stage and approximate 4 years needed to mature, the Z Fighters could have defeated this Cell in the “unseen Timeline” (AKA my “Cell Timeline”) around Age 771, as they would have been far stronger than his “Imperfect” self and the androids would have been long gone ... the assumption here though is that the Z Fighters would have killed him without getting a backstory from him, perhaps right after he sucked up an entire city (Piccolo did try to eliminate Cell in the “main Timeline” before he was able to get the backstory) ... without knowing the backstory, then the all-grown-up-Trunks would still be susceptible to being attacked and killed by the Cell still growing in Dr Gero’s underground lab in Age 788 ... Let me know thoughts or if anything in the show directly conflicts with my theory above ... One more cool thing from all the above in terms of what the futures look like in the 4 different timelines ... one timeline would have no heroes left (original Timeline) ... one timeline would have all the heroes left minus Trunks (“unseen Timeline” which is my Cell Timeline) ... one timeline would have no heroes left except for Trunks (HOT Timeline) ... and one timeline would have all the heroes left (main Timeline)

As an engineer, i really think this is the only explanation that doesn't have logic flaws, reason for which i want to congratulate you. Not even Toriyama knew how the system worked, and that's why there are some plot holes. The only plot hole i consider relevant and can't find solution for is the fact that Imperfect Cell (from Original TL) in Main TL states that Frieza cells were extracted just prior to being killed by Trunks in age 764, and that if Dr Gero wanted he could have used Trunks' Cells (although he didn't want). The thing is that Cell (from the Original TL) couldn't ever possibly be created with Trunks' Cells even if Dr. Gero wanted, because Trunks wasn't even born in year 764 (fight with Mecha Frieza) and no Trunks arrived to that Original TL. Besides, in that timeline, as you well said, Goku was the one who killed Mecha Frieza due to Trunks non-existence. The other 2 are easy to vaguely justify (in HOT timeline, Original TL Cell was killed by the Androids) and the year 763 time-travelling set up could simply be due to the time machine not being yet set up correcly as Cell interrumpted the operation.

Just imagine how long of a video it would take to go into this kind of depth with the DBS Zamasu saga timeline LOL.

Seeing this 8 Years later, im surprised that we had not considered the battle of gods movie to be the cannon continuation of the storyline.

Despite how late I'm watching this, this made it really easy to understand how all the different Cells, and all the timelines work.

20:35 Funny you said Earth is doomed because That's what eventually Happened in DBS

Wow amazing this video surely required a big effort.

That would also explain why would Cell be extra careful in the dbz timelime. Once he realizes he's sharing a timeline with future trunks, he would know he had failed at least once already. Of course he got careless when he achieved his perfect form as his objective had been already accomplished.

2022 and I hear rumblings of Qaaman making an updated timeline video? HFIL YEAH.

20:27 basically predicted goku black

Good job!!!! I was puzzled by all the timeline shits when I selectively picked fight scenes to watch. However, I understood the 4 timelines in cell arc now thanks to you!

we are now in the "original" timeline where the Z Fighters and Cell were all gone.

So if yajirobe was killed by the androids in the history of trunks how is he alive in the goku black arc of DragonBall super ( sorry just typed out my thoughts)

Even that fan theory doesn’t hold up, because (at least in the anime) Trunks remarks that the androids they were facing were somehow stronger than the ones in his timeline. And cell was far above them both, so there is no way that they could’ve defeated him in an ambush. It’s bound to happen when you mess with time travel narratively, it’s really hard to avoid inconsistencies Great vid, definitely cleared some things up!

Wow, that was a lot of stuff, but I can agree with it, never though it would be that complicated. I guess Toriyama never though of that much.

This timeline, adds up with the extra 4 green Time Rings in super.... and this video is before that episode Good stuff

Not gonna lie I'm here after endgame I love Dragonball tho

This is before DBS came along. DBS is cool in some parts for me but it really messed this is up. I'll just consider this as the pre DBS timeline theory and I'm sticking with this theory. 👊

I'm sitting here thinking, "Damn, what a nerd to have made a 43 minute video on Dragon Ball timelines." But then I realize, I'm watching a 43 minute video on Dragon Ball timelines. Haha I'm a nerd too.

one mistake,cell never went into the HOT timeline,it was that timeline's version of cell,it was so far in the future that he finished developing,cell went to the main timeline only,and not the HOT timeline

No wonder Zamasu was really mad at Trunks... He created many different timelines.

What a throwback. I think this is the first video of yours that I watched.

timeline 1 cell 1 dead timeline 2 cell 2 dead timeline 3 cell 3&4 fantheory dead dead timeline 4 cell 5 dead that sums it up

Absolutely great. It makes sense now why there is two time machines.

its crazy how this video is almost 10 years old. man time flys. this brought back alot of memories rewatching some of your old videos.

Uhhh excuse me... Why does future trunks have tapion's sword XD

Quaaman/Quinn, idk if you've seen the other video from another YT'er, BUT he says there's over 25 other timelines in DB and using it's own rules, I agree

My theory for the 763 discrepancy is Trunks was either going back to kill Gero and destroy his lab to guarantee ANOTHER alternate future without androids. Another theory I thought of was if Bulma had told him about the Dragonballs in the future, then he got the brilliant idea to either try wishing Goku wouldn't get the heart disease, or to preemptively wish for the Z fighters to be resurrected if killed by the androids or just made immortal. Cell just so happened to creep up on him when he was about to travel farther in the past, didn't feel like bothering reprogramming the machine, and just went to where the coordinates were set.

What if: Rule #2 doesn't exist? Rule #2 Once a time traveler has established a link between two alternate timelines, he can move back and forward between those timelines without creating a new timeline. Trunks made it clear that he and Bulma were not sure about the effects of time traveling. That means Trunks wouldn't find out about this until he goes back a second time to help the Z fighters against the Androids.

This has so much theories that I loved ! Great job ! 😎 👍 👍