Gephyrophillia #235

Originally Posted on 03/29/2011 by Jeff Harris

You never wish ill-will on another person. You never wish ill-will on a company. That's just good karma and good sense. We're not monsters. Even though we dislike certain actions people and companies make, we rarely wish them bad luck. Personally, while I'm not a fan of what Stewie Snyder and "Mad Man" Rob Sorcher do at Cartoon Network, I don't wish them harm. I want them both completely gone and will wish them well on their future endeavors, but I don't hate the guys.

That said, 4Kids should get everything they have coming to them, including its total destruction.

Why do I feel so harshly towards 4Kids Entertainment? Sit down, it's going to take a while.

4Kids largely was responsible for the downfall and demise of two broadcast programming blocks, Fox Kids and Kids' WB. 4Kids' popular Pokemon series became a mainstay on Kids' WB for what was supposed to be a limited spring run in 1999. Instead, it became the cornerstone of the entire block for the first half of the 2000s pushing all other programming aside. Some days, Kids' WB put on marathons of Pokemon for no reason. While it dominated the ratings, they lost respect from viewers for relying so much on the one franchise. Meanwhile, Fox Kids spent its remaining years trying to cash in on the Pokemon craze by airing any small-creature-fighter series they could get their hands on, including Monster Rancher, Dinozoars, and Digimon. By 2001, Fox Kids was finished, selling its properties, including Power Rangers, to Disney and the channel space to 4Kids Entertainmenr, the entity that created the atmosphere that destroyed the block in the first place. Meanwhile, with no real rival anymore, Kids' WB cut back on their programming. They got rid of their weekday morning block in 2001, their weekday afternoon block in 2006 around the same time 4Kids lost Pokemon, and the Saturday morning block on May 17, 2008. The CW sold the rights to the channel space to 4Kids Entertainment.

From May 17 to December 27. 2008, 4Kids operated two broadcast blocks, filling up both of them with mostly repeats. When 4Kids got rid of 4KidsTV on December 27, 2008, it killed Saturday mornings on Fox forever. Throughout the next two years, 4Kids' luck changed for the worst. Chaotic was considered to be a failure. They ended Winx Club, although the franchise's owner revived it thanks to Nickelodeon. Nickelodeon also took 4Kids' biggest non-Japanese property, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, creating a critical blow to the company, which now largely had one franchise, Yu-Gi-Oh.

On March 29, 2011, TV Tokyo and Nihon Ad Systems publicly revealed that they terminated 4Kids' contract for marketing, distributing, airing, and producing anything with the Yu-Gi-Oh brand. The series that is a cornerstone of the Toonzai block is done in the US. Apparently, 4Kids pocketed some funds they weren't supposed to, not to mention making secret deals with many entities to exploit the show, including Cartoon Network, Funimation, and Majesco. 4Kids also licensed several series they didn't own. It's a rather ugly affair that could doom 4Kids Entertainment. When Al Kahn left in January 2011, people wondered why the head left unexpectedly. Now, I think we have an answer, and if what TV Tokyo and Nihon are claiming is true, it's going to be real ugly and will have dire consequences for all involved.

I don't feel sorry of 4Kids because they're getting everything they're due. They're a greedy, manipulative company that treats its viewers as illiterate idiots, disrespects the medium of animation, and destroyed two broadcasting blocks. Al Kahn has been accused of many things from the anime community, but this is the first time two content providers have called him and the company he created as liars, thieves, and tax cheats. The Yu-Gi-Oh! episode will likely lead to 4Kids' inevitable, long-awaited destruction, and while I don't want to be petty or wish ill-will on people outside the management, but 4Kids is getting what they deserve, and I hope other studios are paying attention to it all.

Never bite the hand that feeds you, especially if it's the only one providing you food. Or, at least, holding all the cards.

Keep creating.

Jeff Harris,
Creator/Webmaster, The X Bridge.