The Death of Toonami and Anime on Cartoon Networks

Yi Xing Long · Post by **Yi Xing Long** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 2:43 am

This is definitely a sad day indeed. I started watching Toonami in 1998 due to Dragon Ball Z, but it introduced me to so many amazing shows such as Ronin Warriors, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Gundam, Big O, Outlaw Star, Blue Submarine #6, Rurouni Kenshin, and many, many others. Watching as Tom was killed in that elevator was heart-wrenching. I really felt a connection with all of the Toms, but I sadly stopped watching Toonami in 2007. Even when it was moved to a Saturday night timeslot I would always anticipate curling up on the couch for an evening of DBGT, Yu Yu Hakusho, IGPX, Zatch Bell, and whatever other shows that were on at the time. Then of course Adult Swim with Paranoia Agent, Samurai Champloo, Full Metal Alchemist, Ghost in the Shell, etc.

Watching Tom's final farewell was almost unbearable, making me want to scream out in despair, hoping that he would not leave. I have to agree that Cartoon Network is not what it used to be and has become rather dull, but Toonami always kept it fresh and exciting with its plethora of programs. Nothing else on television in over the last decade can even begin to compare to Toonami in any way, shape, or form.

I wish they never created Miguzi to replace Toonami's timeslot during that one point in time. I hated miguzi, it sucked! It had some of the crappiest shows I have ever seen. I am glad they realized that it sucked and pulled it soon thereafter.

The Midnight Run brings back a lot of memories. Staying up at my friend's house to watch Dragon Ball Z, endless conversations about DBZ, sharing drawings, etc. I must also mention Reboot, the first ground-breaking fully 3-D Computer Animated TV series. That show was just as much of a reason for me to tune in to Toonami as Dragon Ball Z was.

I am saddened by this farewell, but I am also overjoyous for the amount of good times this programming block has allowed me to experience. I will always be able to reminisce about and look back on those times and smile. Tom's farewell was touching.

The Time Traveller · Post by **The Time Traveller** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 5:03 am

You're lucky it stayed on so long. Toonami in the UK wasn't even half of what it was in the US, the only Gundam show we got was Wing. And then it died and they tried changing it's edgy sci-fi look to a "School sux" paper cut outs and doodles kind of channel, turning it into Nickelodeon with bad sitcoms that make you cringe with every bad joke and some "Kidz science" things. Not only that but they showed all the bad shows that they took off of Cartoon Network before the brand new bad shows started.

Back before Toonami was it's own channel it was a block on Cartoon Network, then CNX came along and rocked the shit out of everyone, with it's Triple A movies (Asian, Action, Anime) hardcore adult/violent cartoons like Spawn, and a few funny ass shows like home Movies, Harvey Birdman and Aqua Teen Hunger Force, I was too young to watch it, but still did and it made a MAN out of me. Plus at night it had Swimsuit photo shoots. Goddamn Cartoon Network!

All Toonami did was show Batman Beyond, Edited Gundam Wing, Tenchi Muyo, and the Dragon Ball series.

I eventually stopped watching Dragon Ball Z in favour of the late night line ups and because of the dub.

Captain Awesome · Post by **Captain Awesome** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 5:48 am

I live in Australia..where the vast majority of people watch free to air television, Pay tv never took off here like it did in the US, thats not to say it's a small time buisness, it's just not the juggernaught it is in the US.

I came across DBZ on a cartoon show airing daily at 7 am called "Cheez tv" even though I can't stand the FUNimation dub anymore, when the show that introduced Dragonball to me was cancelled I was sad to see it go, so I can kind of relate.

saiyanprincess · Post by **saiyanprincess** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 10:31 am

I can imagine the reactions of all the little Naruto fan kids... The ones that can't afford to buy the DVD's.

I know exactly how they feel, but I still stand by that they should never have axed DB and Z

I kind of knew it was coming, and its a little sad but I have not had that channel in a long time anyway we scrapped our pay channels and opted for a different digital service we have in the UK.

May Toonami remain in our hearts.... I still remember those ancient Z commercials... Coming soon Cell saga....

SSj_Rambo · Post by **SSj_Rambo** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 1:13 pm

It's cool how Fuji TV (who had a better viewing audience) who was the first to show the series was only able to keep it on the air for 9 years and Toonami (which was being viewed by a much less anime oriented audience) was able to keep the show on the air for pretty much the same amount of time.

saiyanprincess wrote:I still remember those ancient Z commercials... Coming soon Cell saga....

I really enjoy having those on my computer and watching them every once in a while, since I never got to see them when they were on TV.

sangofe · Post by **sangofe** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 1:36 pm

Chuquita wrote:
sangofe wrote:Cartoon network's really not gonna show anymore anime?

Well, I hear they're going to show the remaining 15 or so Naruto episodes they have; but CN hasn't decided yet if they even want to buy Shippuuden.
(Truthfully I don't care what happens to Shippuuden; that show lost its bite for me after the first arc finished up.)

They are planning to bring over that Powerpuff Girls Z anime series though.

Which networks/channels in USA broadcasts anime now?

Tsukento · Post by **Tsukento** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 2:59 pm

sangofe wrote:Which networks/channels in USA broadcasts anime now?

Just Cartoon Network, and maybe Sci-Fi Channel.

That's...really about it.

Super Ghost Kamikaze · Post by **Super Ghost Kamikaze** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 3:10 pm

Tsukento wrote:
sangofe wrote:Which networks/channels in USA broadcasts anime now?
Just Cartoon Network, and maybe Sci-Fi Channel.

That's...really about it.

Sci-Fi is doing Gurren Lagann now.

TechTV had an excellent Anime Unleashed block before it got taken over by G4. I suggest almost every series they aired during that block, it had amazing taste.

jjgp1112 · Post by **jjgp1112** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 4:59 pm

How sad. If it weren't for Toonami, I wouldn't be a DBZ fan. As someone else mentioned, Toonami got me into anime before I even knew I was watching anime.

The Time Traveller · Post by **The Time Traveller** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 5:21 pm

Kid Trunks wrote:Just to go off topic for a second; theres a Powerpuff Girls Z now? And its an anime? I thought the Powerpuff Girls was an American show.

It's like if Dragon Ball was remade in America. It's just awful...

Chuquita · Post by **Chuquita** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 5:26 pm

The Time Traveller wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:Just to go off topic for a second; theres a Powerpuff Girls Z now? And its an anime? I thought the Powerpuff Girls was an American show.
It's like if Dragon Ball was remade in America. It's just awful...

It's a generic mahou shoujo show with a Powerpuff Girls foil on it. The songs are cute, but that's about it.

If I remember correctly, the Amoeba boys are a family now (husband, wife, and son), the mayor is intelligent, an Mojo's a bland shell of his original self.

Him is voiced by Freeza's Japanese VA though; I thought that was pretty cool.

Super Ghost Kamikaze · Post by **Super Ghost Kamikaze** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:17 pm

Chuquita wrote:
The Time Traveller wrote:
Kid Trunks wrote:Just to go off topic for a second; theres a Powerpuff Girls Z now? And its an anime? I thought the Powerpuff Girls was an American show.
It's like if Dragon Ball was remade in America. It's just awful...

It's a generic mahou shoujo show with a Powerpuff Girls foil on it. The songs are cute, but that's about it.

If I remember correctly, the Amoeba boys are a family now (husband, wife, and son), the mayor is intelligent, an Mojo's a bland shell of his original self.

Him is voiced by Freeza's Japanese VA though; I thought that was pretty cool.

Having watched the entirety of it, it seems to me that it is VERY much more a parody of the magial girl genre anyway.

Also, since the original Powerpuff Girls aired in Japan before Z, there really shouldn't be much a problem with this version. It doesn't REPLACE the original in Japan. Rather, it ran as a fun "alternate version" there.

TheMajinRedComet · Post by **TheMajinRedComet** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:17 pm

Adult Swim seems to be trying to clean out it anime block also, I think its down to like 4 shows. To be blunt we need a new DBZ or Gundam Wing like show, that would invigorate the American anime market.

Chuquita · Post by **Chuquita** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:27 pm

TheMajinRedComet wrote:Adult Swim seems to be trying to clean out it anime block also, I think its down to like 4 shows. To be blunt we need a new DBZ or Gundam Wing like show, that would invigorate the American anime market.

I've heard of AS kicking out some of the anime; but I don't really watch that block much anymore to begin with.

I would love a show like that. But does one exist?

Chrono Trigger · Post by **Chrono Trigger** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:29 pm

Chuquita said : I would love a show like that. But does one exist?

That show should have been One Piece. If it wasn't for 4kids botching it, One Piece could have been the next Dragon Ball Z. If Funimation had gotten it from the start and put it on Toonami, it would have been a lot more popular than Naruto.

Chuquita · Post by **Chuquita** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:40 pm

Chrono Trigger wrote:
Chuquita said : I would love a show like that. But does one exist?
That show should have been One Piece. If it wasn't for 4kids botching it, One Piece could have been the next Dragon Ball Z. If Funimation had gotten it from the start and put it on Toonami, it would have been a lot more popular than Naruto.

One Piece is addictive. I haven't read it all (I've been skipping around to various arcs; and I've seen most of the movies) but the characters are so real and empathetic, the humor is sharp and witty, the comedy and action are perfectly balanced, and the story itself is a delight. <3

My heart nearly broke on Chapter 513 watching Luffy desperately trying to save his friends. Where with Naruto, I couldn't give a fly's rump where Sasuke disappeared to, but I was terribly worried about the Straw Hats' fates because I felt so attached to the crew.
(I'm still worried about them; all we've seen so far is where Luffy landed. Him and his 'balls of gold'. XD )

It's like Oda took what he learned from Dragon Ball and Rurouni Kenshin, added his own spices to it, and came out with something equally as amazing. X3

And the best part is he loves his job, knows where his story is going, and even has the ending all planned out.

I agree, if the U.S. had been introduced ala Funi's dub from the start, One Piece would have had the potential to be HUGE.
But you know what they say about "first impressions".

*Remembers reading the Toon Zone thread that first announced 4Kids eating OP and how horrified everyone was*.

Chrono Trigger · Post by **Chrono Trigger** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:48 pm

I agree with all of that. One Piece is the true successor to Dragon Ball. It's just a shame that things had to play out the way they did. One Piece has a good dub now but now that Toonami is gone it'll probably never get shown on television. I try to get people to watch/read it and they always say "One Piece ? Isn't that the stupid kids show?" and I'll just be like "

"

SSJmole · Post by **SSJmole** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:51 pm

There's always 4kids .........

P.R.P. · Post by **P.R.P.** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 7:00 pm

I clearly remember the first day I had Toonami (or Cartoon Network). I came home from school and surprise, a brand new channel. I remember hearing about Dragon Ball and how great it was from my cousins who had satellite, at the time Vegeta had just sacrificed himself and there was a long break between seasons. Anyways, I'll never forget my first episode of Dragonball when they're in Pilaf's castle getting chased by the ball. I also remember looking forward to 5:00 everyday to watch the episodes of the Freeza Saga, back when I thought Dragonball Z was an American show. Even though I haven't watched Toonami in two years I'm still really going to miss it.

Also does anyone else remember Zoids.

SSJ2bardock · Post by **SSJ2bardock** » Wed Sep 24, 2008 7:02 pm

SSJmole wrote:There's always 4kids .........

We still have Sonic X starring Ryan Drummond! Wait a minute...