The "Take Toonami Back" Movement has begun!

wow 500-something likes in one hour? 
I bet some famous singer could write "I'm so bored" and he/she would get 50.000 in 1 hour.  

I don't get why people are going crazy for this. We live in a time where you can watch any show you want at any time with just a few mouse clicks. Just download all those shows you like and make your own play list if they mean that much to you.

What's a Toonami?

Oh Steve Blum. I like him. He's Oghren.

Wait, it's just a time slot for watching anime? They have that now it's called the Internet. What the fuck?

@crusader8463 said:

I don't get why people are going crazy for this. We live in a time where you can watch any show you want at any time with just a few mouse clicks. Just download all those shows you like and make your own play list if they mean that much to you.

It isn't about the programming, at least not entirely.  Toonami was all about the atmosphere, all the stuff around the shows. They just handled that stuff so well, it made stuff like Dragon Ball Z cool, something that probably would have been very differently received outside that very specific context. Williams Street has always had this masterful ability to create a real setting for their blocks, something that keeps you watching even if the programming isn't always the best. It's just about being there. Maybe that is kind of dumb, but I guess you had to be there to get it.

@N7 I like your idea dude as I too LOVED Toonami. Television has changed greatly since I was young, especially Cartoon Network where I would watch all sorts of great programing. Dragon Ball Z, Gundam Wing, Reboot, etc.. were all great shows that Toonami showed that I would come racing home after school to watch.. But times have change for me duder. I don't have cable any more, I bought all Dragon Ball Z seasons (the orange boxes) and movies (metallic cases), all of GT (lime green box), and all of Gundam Wing. I have no reason to say I want this stuff back on TV because if I want to watch it now, I just throw it into my DVD player and away I go. But fight the power man. Yell on mountain high how much you care for Toonami. Change the world so future generations can watch good, decent programing instead of the bullshit that is on now.

@N7 said:

@LordXavierBritish said:

@crusader8463 said:

I don't get why people are going crazy for this. We live in a time where you can watch any show you want at any time with just a few mouse clicks. Just download all those shows you like and make your own play list if they mean that much to you.

It isn't about the programming, at least not entirely. Toonami was all about the atmosphere, all the stuff around the shows. They just handled that stuff so well, it made stuff like Dragon Ball Z cool, something that probably would have been very differently received outside that very specific context. Williams Street has always had this masterful ability to create a real setting for their blocks, something that keeps you watching even if the programming isn't always the best. It's just about being there. Maybe that is kind of dumb, but I guess you had to be there to get it.

This guy gets it.

It's like asking the question: Why hang out with friends when I can stay at home with my RealDoll? Well you can't get the same atmosphere from something that's not real. You need to be there and experience it first hand in order to get it.

I don't understand why adults play video games, isn't it time to grow up? Oh wait, video games are a medium that is wildly accepted by all walks of life. And that's where Toonami comes in. Breaking boundaries, building bridges, moving mountains. Toonami: Be there.

wait, are you saying toonami is the one that made watching anime okay..? I'm pretty sure that was Pokemon. Also if you really need to hear steve blum talking to you he is in like a million games, just go to crunchy roll, load up random steve blum game and pause it intermittently and listen to him talk.

Sorry dudes, I was there, I liked it when it was on, but it doesn't need to be brought back when we have PLENTY of other sources of anime out there.

Wasn't Toonami one of those pay-your-way initiatives where the owners of those shows simply paid for the airtime so that they could get their insidious marketing cartoons out there?

@N7 said:

@rebgav said:

Wasn't Toonami one of those pay-your-way initiatives where the owners of those shows simply paid for the airtime so that they could get their insidious marketing cartoons out there?

Toonami was the action block of programming than ran for most of the day that featured action shows like Dragonball Z, Mobile Suit Gundam, IGPX, Yu-Yu Hakushu and the like. Also Reboot and that one anime about those knights that fought some dude that looked like Skeletor.

Is that a yes or a no? :p

@Schatzy23 said:

Change the world so future generations can watch good, decent programing instead of the bullshit that is on now.

They can do that, it's called the internet!

@N7 said:

@rebgav said:

Wasn't Toonami one of those pay-your-way initiatives where the owners of those shows simply paid for the airtime so that they could get their insidious marketing cartoons out there?

Toonami was the action block of programming than ran for most of the day that featured action shows like Dragonball Z, Mobile Suit Gundam, IGPX, Yu-Yu Hakushu and the like. Also Reboot and that one anime about those knights that fought some dude that looked like Skeletor.

Ronin Warriors is the show

@Brodehouse said:

@Schatzy23 said:

Change the world so future generations can watch good, decent programing instead of the bullshit that is on now.

They can do that, it's called the internet!

hey man, steve blum adds ATMOSPHERE

why you need atmosphere

WHO KNOWS

@Schatzy23 said:

Change the world so future generations can watch good, decent programing instead of the bullshit that is on now.

They can do that, it's called the internet!

@Animasta said:

wait, are you saying toonami is the one that made watching anime okay..? I'm pretty sure that was Pokemon. Also if you really need to hear steve blum talking to you he is in like a million games, just go to crunchy roll, load up random steve blum game and pause it intermittently and listen to him talk.

Sorry dudes, I was there, I liked it when it was on, but it doesn't need to be brought back when we have PLENTY of other sources of anime out there.

Yep, because the vast amount of game videos Crunchy Roll has will suffice.

You could've said Youtube or something, I'm sure that would've worked better.

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

It was cool when I was a kid, but then I, ya know, grew up. Keep fighting the good fight, though.

@Linkin10362 said:

@Animasta said:

wait, are you saying toonami is the one that made watching anime okay..? I'm pretty sure that was Pokemon. Also if you really need to hear steve blum talking to you he is in like a million games, just go to crunchy roll, load up random steve blum game and pause it intermittently and listen to him talk.

Sorry dudes, I was there, I liked it when it was on, but it doesn't need to be brought back when we have PLENTY of other sources of anime out there.

Yep, because the vast amount of game videos Crunchy Roll has will suffice.

You could've said Youtube or something, I'm sure that would've worked better.

you know what I meant don't get nitpicky :|

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

@LordXavierBritish said:

@crusader8463 said:

I don't get why people are going crazy for this. We live in a time where you can watch any show you want at any time with just a few mouse clicks. Just download all those shows you like and make your own play list if they mean that much to you.

It isn't about the programming, at least not entirely. Toonami was all about the atmosphere, all the stuff around the shows. They just handled that stuff so well, it made stuff like Dragon Ball Z cool, something that probably would have been very differently received outside that very specific context. Williams Street has always had this masterful ability to create a real setting for their blocks, something that keeps you watching even if the programming isn't always the best. It's just about being there. Maybe that is kind of dumb, but I guess you had to be there to get it.

Nah, I used to watch Dragonball Z and the only atmosphere was pretty much "some PS1-lookin 3D man hops around for a sec, and then it comes on".

Then it'd show that same video, 3 ads for Spider-Man toys, and Tenchi Muyo would come on. I really agree with the first guy in that what we have now is a lot better and people are being crazy.

@N7 said:

@betterboulder said:

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

No. That is incorrect. If it's so "easy" to get this stuff, then why does Cartoon Network even exist? Why watch it on TV when I can just download it?

That feeling in your head, you know, the explosion. Yeah, that was the result of a category five truth bomb.

because cartoon network is owned by TBS? and these anime shows are licensed by companies much smaller and they usually put them up on hulu or crunchyroll?

Like, sure, some are weirdly hard to find (Utena is impossible to find on the internet it pisses me off I don't wanna pay 40 bucks for the whole thing), but most can be easily found; Youtube even has a large amount of (free) anime

@N7 said:

@betterboulder said:

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

No. That is incorrect. If it's so "easy" to get this stuff, then why does Cartoon Network even exist? Why watch it on TV when I can just download it?

That feeling in your head, you know, the explosion. Yeah, that was the result of a category five truth bomb.

Cartoon Network was around before the internet hit its stride so it was just grandfathered into the new age of entertainment consumption rather than earned its spot.

The fuck is a Toonami?

@betterboulder said:

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

No. That is incorrect. If it's so "easy" to get this stuff, then why does Cartoon Network even exist? Why watch it on TV when I can just download it?
 
That feeling in your head, you know, the explosion. Yeah, that was the result of a category five truth bomb.

@N7 said:

@rebgav said:

@N7 said:

@rebgav said:

Wasn't Toonami one of those pay-your-way initiatives where the owners of those shows simply paid for the airtime so that they could get their insidious marketing cartoons out there?

Toonami was the action block of programming than ran for most of the day that featured action shows like Dragonball Z, Mobile Suit Gundam, IGPX, Yu-Yu Hakushu and the like. Also Reboot and that one anime about those knights that fought some dude that looked like Skeletor.

Is that a yes or a no? :p

Well, I find it highly unlikely that most of those dudes would have paid to have those shows featured on there simply for marketing, so I will say no. Also, I have never even heard of what you are describing, but I'm interested in hearing what kind of shitstorm that fell into.

I don't know much about it but I remembered this "article" from the recent death of Bandai Ent;

"Bandai Japan demanded that Bandai Entertainment get the original '70s Mobile Suit Gundam series on Cartoon Network, despite the fact it was 20 years old, looked 20 years old, and was waaaaaaaay too boring for young American audiences. Cartoon Network, not being insane, refused. Bandai Japan then paid CN to run the originalGundam anime, thus fucking up the Toonami block for years -- because once CN got paid to run an anime, the CN executives weren't going to run any anime without getting a check for it first. If you've ever wondered why an anime that would seemingly have been perfect for Toonami never, chances are it's because the licensor couldn't afford CN's asking price."

There were other, more in-depth, articles about it floating around after the Bandai thing but I can't figure out how to conjure them in google without a bunch of CN or anime spam diluting the results.

I hate the current line-up of shows just as much as anyone else but I wouldn't dream of pushing them off the mainstream network.

By the time the late 90's rolled around, every older person I knew just had to throw in "what ever happened to the good stuff like Mickey Mouse, Tom & Jerry, Flinstones, Jetsons, Spiderman, Hulk, etc. This new programming is horrible!". As much as I enjoyed re-runs of the oldies I would have never traded in my DBZ, Pokemon, Beast Wars, Power Rangers and what have you because I loved them way too much. The same thing applies to all the TV shows that are currently on with the newer generation of children. You and I might think the current programming doesn't hold a candle to what we watched as kids but that doesn't matter one bit when the current generation of kids are enjoying themselves and creating their own sweet memories just like we did. If anything there needs to be more channels like Teletoon Retro (Canadian Channel that only plays oldies).

Speaking as a guy who grew up and loved, LOVED Toonami.... I agree with the general consensus that this is dumb as hell.

@Animasta said:

@N7 said:

@betterboulder said:

@Abyssfull: Correct. This is the major flaw in all this "Take Toonami Back" stuff. It wasn't as easy to access anime back then. But now you can download/stream/or get HD copies of the entire run of a series at your lleisure without batting an eye. Putting it on TV will just make it commercial-interrupted.

No. That is incorrect. If it's so "easy" to get this stuff, then why does Cartoon Network even exist? Why watch it on TV when I can just download it?

That feeling in your head, you know, the explosion. Yeah, that was the result of a category five truth bomb.

because cartoon network is owned by TBS? and these anime shows are licensed by companies much smaller and they usually put them up on hulu or crunchyroll?

Like, sure, some are weirdly hard to find (Utena is impossible to find on the internet it pisses me off I don't wanna pay 40 bucks for the whole thing), but most can be easily found; Youtube even has a large amount of (free) anime

Yes, like this:

@Alpha1 said:

What is toonami????

obviously it's a cartoon tsunami. how can you not know that

@GreggD: and full metal alchemist (and brotherhood), gurran legann, eden of the east...

I've signed this. For the greater good of the children. And me.

Well I sent in my feedback. I know that many of these shows can be found online but for me there is something special about the whole format of the toonami block of anime, I'm sure that's nostalgia but there are plenty of shows on cartoon network that play on nostalgia, why can't toonami be part of it.

There has been a shift in the western anime publishing lately (well, it's been coming for a while). Anime are getting less and less viewers in a lot of western countries, so much so that many major networks don't deem it viable to purchase rights from the creators for a lacklustre return. With less anime being bought from Japan, Japan have less funds to create new anime that are popular with a wider western fanbase like you would get in the 90s and early 2000's, which in true circular motion means that western publishers have less material to buy, get less returns, etc etc, and has lead to recent Japanese anime seasons being filled with moe garbage. When you combine it with the disaster in Japan, the declining western interest in anime DVD and Bluray, and the popularity and ease of access of fansubbing groups and experimental 'official sub' streaming options like crunchyroll it's only natural that major networks will start pulling back a lot of their dubbed anime-centric programming because there simply will not be enough new content being dubbed to make it a viable network viewing experience, apart from running reruns of the most popular franchises ad infinitum (or at least until the rights expire).

Toonami is only a brand name for a block of shows, that has since been rendered obsolete. Only difference it would make is nostalgia.

hasn't adults wim taken the baton from toonami, what would this accomplish a nostalgia block of programming on boomarang ro something

@makari said:

There has been a shift in the western anime publishing lately (well, it's been coming for a while). Anime are getting less and less viewers in a lot of western countries, so much so that many major networks don't deem it viable to purchase rights from the creators for a lacklustre return. With less anime being bought from Japan, Japan have less funds to create new anime that are popular with a wider western fanbase like you would get in the 90s and early 2000's, which in true circular motion means that western publishers have less material to buy, get less returns, etc etc, and has lead to recent Japanese anime seasons being filled with moe garbage. When you combine it with the disaster in Japan, the declining western interest in anime DVD and Bluray, and the popularity and ease of access of fansubbing groups and experimental 'official sub' streaming options like crunchyroll it's only natural that major networks will start pulling back a lot of their dubbed anime-centric programming because there simply will not be enough new content being dubbed to make it a viable network viewing experience, apart from running reruns of the most popular franchises ad infinitum (or at least until the rights expire).

But DVD sales and such have been getting far better recently what with Funimation doing so much. The fact of the matter is that CN is most likely culturely racist beyond belief and the main reason there isn't much anime on TV anymore is DUE to the fact that some racist twat is most likely causing it. (probably the same people preventing Earthbound from being rereleased.)

Stuff has been still selling well from even the 90's. It just isn't talked about much due to the fact that TV execs are dumber than a box of rocks and culturely inept.

@Jay444111: rofl are you serious, if they were racist they wouldn't bother running anime at all, including the stuff on adult swim and pokemon.

also the thing preventing earthbound from being rereleased here is the multitude of very blatant references to music and stuff that flies in Japan, but not here, because our copyright laws are stricter.

@N7: you need to chillax, it was just a 2 hour block of TV shows dude. no one's super crazy about fucking noitiminA or anything, and that's had way better shows than toonami ever did

@Animasta: Not that noitiminA is good anymore.

Alright that's not fair, their line-up this year looks pretty decent.

@Animasta said:

@Jay444111: rofl are you serious, if they were racist they wouldn't bother running anime at all, including the stuff on adult swim and pokemon.

also the thing preventing earthbound from being rereleased here is the multitude of very blatant references to music and stuff that flies in Japan, but not here, because our copyright laws are stricter.

@N7: you need to chillax, it was just a 2 hour block of TV shows dude. no one's super crazy about fucking noitiminA or anything, and that's had way better shows than toonami ever did

Honestly, with the way Adult Swim treats current anime. Yes, they most certainly are racist in some ways. Tonight may have been due to a single employee finally getting his day in the sunlight and finally able to usurp control that the dumbass execs have on the station.

Also, that excuse does not work with Earthbound considering the fact they could easily switch around music and or just make more new ones. Seriously, it is the exact same thing in a way with the Toonami situation. However Nintendo still are bigger dumbasses than even AS and CN and even MTV.

@Cloudenvy said:

@Animasta: Not that noitiminA is good anymore.

Alright that's not fair, their line-up this year looks pretty decent.

I was just saying it's had much better stuff in the past than toonami ever did and it was the only other block of programming I could think of :|

@Jay444111: yeah just take out music and stuff from a game it's sooooo simple

@Animasta said:

@Cloudenvy said:

@Animasta: Not that noitiminA is good anymore.

Alright that's not fair, their line-up this year looks pretty decent.

I was just saying it's had much better stuff in the past than toonami ever did and it was the only other block of programming I could think of :|

And you are certainly correct about that!

My only memory of Toonami was watching old Thundercat cartoons and realizing I kinda hate anime.

hell if we're petitioning CN for stuff I would like more megas XLR episodes but that's a fools dream

hell if we're petitioning CN for stuff I would like more megas XLR episodes but that's a fools dream

hell if we're petitioning CN for stuff I would like more megas XLR episodes but that's a fools dream

@Jay444111: I don't think that there is any proof that Cartoon Network is racist because of they way that "anime is treated" on the network.

@N7: I don't think there is a problem with bringing back toonami. I was saying that the need for one isn't as great as it was in the 90's. Youtube is popular and you can be exposed to thousands of anime/animes by accident. Netflix has ton's of anime, Hulu has ton's of anime, crunchyrole has ton's of anime, etc. If 14 year old Americans have seen Jon Pertwee episodes of Doctor Who by exploring the internet anime shouldn't be that hard to find. I did like the fact that Tom's segments sometimes had story elements like when his ship was under attack and he died but later stages of the block had so little of that that it might not even be worth watching.

@Levio said:

@Alpha1 said:

What is toonami????

obviously it's a cartoon tsunami. how can you not know that

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH SHIT. I'm mad I'm like one of the biggest Toonami fans ever and the name hasn't made sense until literally right now lol

@makari said:

There has been a shift in the western anime publishing lately (well, it's been coming for a while). Anime are getting less and less viewers in a lot of western countries, so much so that many major networks don't deem it viable to purchase rights from the creators for a lacklustre return. With less anime being bought from Japan, Japan have less funds to create new anime that are popular with a wider western fanbase like you would get in the 90s and early 2000's, which in true circular motion means that western publishers have less material to buy, get less returns, etc etc, and has lead to recent Japanese anime seasons being filled with moe garbage. When you combine it with the disaster in Japan, the declining western interest in anime DVD and Bluray, and the popularity and ease of access of fansubbing groups and experimental 'official sub' streaming options like crunchyroll it's only natural that major networks will start pulling back a lot of their dubbed anime-centric programming because there simply will not be enough new content being dubbed to make it a viable network viewing experience, apart from running reruns of the most popular franchises ad infinitum (or at least until the rights expire).

I think there is a lot of truth in what you say, but, in my opinion, the problem is more piracy than anything else. No one is making any money because pirating anime is often easier than tracking it down here in the west. And the whole "who owns the license to what" problem isn't helping anything because it just means distribution takes longer because there's soooo much redtape everywhere and no one wants to wait when it's available right now for free. It also doesn't help that fansub groups often to a better job than official groups anyway.

I think the second biggest problem is something you touched on though and that's the whole 'moe' epidemic, as I like to call it. Because no one is making any money anymore, a ton of studios have fallen back on cliche work after cliche work and it's all shit. 75% of the shows that come out each season are just complete shit we've practically seen before (I mean how many fucking scantily-clad preteens do we need to see piloting mechs or turning into witches and shit. Oh and don't forget the whole "naked girl falling out the sky" thing. For fucks sake. And this is coming a very, very huge anime fan by the way). You could literally take the synopsis of some of these shows, change the names, and it would perfectly summarize a show (or shows) that came out x number of years ago.

@jakob187 said:

Toonami was dumb...

...just like anime.

But you have a Viewiful Joe icon. He is pretty anime.

That's like saying anime is dumb but you really like God Hand or a anything else made by platinum/ clover or most other japanese games with any sort of story.

Only if they show Ghost in the Shell 20 hours and for the last 4 Paranoia Agent.