Affiliates that showed DBZ in Syndication+Ratings! (Now with ACTUAL INFO)

[Cure Dragon 255]

Much Love and thanks to Robo4900! You rock!

Currently syndicated in the US by Saban Domestic Distribution in its Saban’s Kids Block, DRAGON BALL Z is being broadcast in over 85% of the country with top ratings for a weekly syndicated series (especially in they [sic] key boys 6-11 demographic). It posted impressive ratings during November sweeps (between 4 and 11 for Kids and Teens) in key markets such as New York’s WPIX (Sun. 8:30 AM), Baltimore’s WNUV (Sat. 8:00 AM), and Dallas’ KTXA (Sun. 9:30 AM). For next season, Saban Kids Network came out of NATPE having been cleared in 75% of the US. Participating stations includes: New York’s WPIX and WABC, Los Angeles’ KCOP & KCAL, Chicago’s WPWR & WCIU, Philadelphia’s WPHL, Cleveland’s WBNX, Tampa’s WTTA and Miami’s WDZL.

THIS IS SUPER AWESOME DATA! I always wanted to see this stuff!

[sangofe]

The Saban dub is being broadcasted currently, in november 2018?

[Cure Dragon 255]

Oui!

...just kidding. Its not. But this info has never been mainstream knowledge. Many people think "Oh Dragon Ball Z sucked in rating on syndication!" Which apparently isnt true. I know its way too old info to be of interest to many. But this actually raises many questions. Like


...If Funimation was doing so well on Syndication, why did they leave Saban? The Toonami deal killed that alliance? Why? And so on.

[sangofe]

Why did you write "currently" in your original post?

[MasenkoHA]

Why did you write "currently" in your original post?

He didn’t he was reposting an old article from 97/98

[ABED]

Oui!

...just kidding. Its not. But this info has never been mainstream knowledge. Many people think "Oh Dragon Ball Z sucked in rating on syndication!" Which apparently isnt true. I know its way too old info to be of interest to many. But this actually raises many questions. Like


...If Funimation was doing so well on Syndication, why did they leave Saban? The Toonami deal killed that alliance? Why? And so on.

Probably wanted a wider audience and fewer restrictions, like not having to put stars over punches to the face.

[VegettoEX]

This thread seems like it spun out of something else somewhere since there's very little context for how it starts and seemingly was replaced with "new" information...

But anyway, yeah, this information is a copy/paste from a February/March 1997 Protoculture Addicts column sidebar that we have transcribed right here on the website in our "Press Archive" section.

While that's basically advertiorial content there, it's not wrong, and it does back up what I've been saying for a while about a little bit of revisionist history how DBZ didn't get popular "at all" until Toonami came around, which is absolutely not true. In a time (slightly) before Pokemon, the Dragon Ball Z TV series was upgraded to a one-hour block in its second season, and received better time slots across all of its affiliates. Shows, particularly "anime" at that time, don't just get handed something like that if it's not growing into a phenomenon.

[MasenkoHA]

I think it just people, particularly those born in the 90s, like the narrative that Toonami started the modern anime boom in spite of the fact that anime has been around in America with heavily popular shows since at least the 60s. Sci fi channel even had its own anime block before Toonami, right?

Same thing with Sailor Moon there’s the whole “did poorly in syndication but then Toonami saved it” which may be partially true in the states ? I’m not one hundred percent sure) but as far as I am aware it did well in Canada in 1995 and only stopped the first time due to lack of funds/the licensing company not seeing a point in doing more episodes after completing the requires 65 episodes for syndication

[G1Ravage]

Yep. For me in Las Vegas in 1996, Dragon Ball Z aired in a one-hour block on a local channel. I want to say from 6:00 AM to 7:00 AM. It may have been 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM. I used to set my clock radio to wake me up early so I could watch it.

[Robo4900]

...If Funimation was doing so well on Syndication, why did they leave Saban? The Toonami deal killed that alliance? Why? And so on.

Pretty sure they didn't leave Saban. Most likely, Saban wanted to refocus into other things, and decided to drop Dragon Ball.

[TheBigBoy]

I remember an EGM of all things circa 1997, in their preview of Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout claiming that Dragon Ball Z, that is, the syndicated Saban dub got higher ratings in certain markets than the freaking X-files. I thought it was sort of a dubious claim at the time...In my area (Indianapolis), DBZ aired from 6AM-7AM on Saturdays and NOBODY I knew talked about it.

I sorta liked it that way, it made me feel like DBZ was *my* show and no one else's.