Gephyrophillia | Page One #14

Originally Posted on 07/10/2002 by Jeff Harris

On July 10, 1998, a small fansite, one of the first dedicated to the popular Cartoon Network lineup known as Toonami, was launched. CN2 Toonami Realm, the cornerstone site of the CN2 Toonami Inner Circle campaign, began broadcasting the world of the Revolution to an unsuspecting crowd. Almost immediately, the site began evolution. In the summer of 1999, the site evolved into CNX: Toonami Revolution. In August 2000, the site moved to its current host at Toon Zone. Last year, the site got an official sounding domain (GREETINGS FROM THE FUTURE . . . the domain no longer points to this site, as you now know - jh). Months after that special day, the year kind of soured, partially because of the events on that cold September morning, but overall because of the perceived deterioration of Toonami by the new regime.

Toonami was extended beyond Cartoon Network to a less-received edition on Kids' WB. Yeah, it could have been nice, but instead of implementing the Toonami attitude and persona, the broadcast network basically used the brand name as a candy coating for their regular lineup. Not to mention airing non-action shows like Detention, Generation O, and Scooby-Doo and not even mentioning the existence of a cable version over at Cartoon Network. While all of this was going on, the cable edition was deteriorating to long time viewers. Gundam had been scrapped from weekdays, reruns of Dragonball Z took over the block in a big way, and there hadn't been anything really new to premiere on Toonami (aside from new episodes of Dragonball and the Toonami debut of Batman Beyond) for almost a year. To make matters worse, people decided that Toonami just wasn't good anymore, and became more driven towards the Adult Swim blocks (the Sunday block and the recently-implemented Saturday action block). Toonami was on the brink of obsolescence.

Nany Toonami fansites began to go by the wayside, rarely updating and just being disgusted by the way of the world. CNX wasn't immune from that, but unlike other sites, the Inner Circle never lost faith. Afterall, many of us has seen a period when the block was very, very lackluster.

We just looked on the bright side of life (*whistles an upbeat tune*)

Though some of our own fellow members left their established sites for bigger, better things (Mark and Brady are putting the Revolutionary face at ADV Films while Jon's a big-time superhero at Toon Zone creating sites), other Toonami-based sites either closed down shop or just shifted focus from Toonami to anime in general, basically abandoning the block in their time of need. Only fellow Circle sites Toonami Digital Arsenal and CNX stayed true to the cause of the Revolution. As expected, the negative times are ending. We got the third hour back. New shows are premiering in a matter of weeks like G Gundam, Masters of the Universe, and Transformers: Armada. And as of July 1, 2002, the Kids' WB edition of the popular Cartoon Network block known as Toonami is no more. It is all but a memory. The Toonami that remains on Cartoon Network, airing from 4 - 7 PM EST/PST Mondays through Fridays, Midnight to 1 AM Mondays through Thursdays, Saturday afternoons 1 to 4 PM, and Saturday nights (er, um, Sunday mornings) 2 to 3 AM, is the real deal.

Always and forever.

Kinda like CNX, I guess. Today, CNX's fourth anniversary, it's time to appreciate what you got, remember the past, and look forward to the future. Sure, there will always be ups and downs at Toonami, but you should never give up hope. Part of the testament that CNX's still standing is that there are a lot of fans that believe in the spirit of the Revolution, and they never let that faith waiver. Not even for a millisecond.

To all of those that stood up for me and the site in spite of the critics, I would like to thank you personally for sticking with me.

To the numerous friends and allies I've made and the countless fans that have visited CNX these last four years, I want to thank you, and I have much love for you guys and gals.

To Eileen, Brian, Vince, Jimmy, Craig, Matt, James, and the rest of Toon Zone crew, thanks for housing me when I came out of the uncertain city and thanks for supporting everything I do and helping out everytime.

To Mark, Jon, Tyler, Ryan, Brady, and Josh, my Inner Circle brothers, gosh, I don't know where I'd be without you guys. Thanks for watching my back all these years.

To Sean, Jason, Luca, and the rest of the guys and gals at Williams Street, as long as you keep fighting the good fight, I'll be doing likewise. Oh, and tell TOM happy 3rd birthday from the Bridge.

These next couple of days, you will see some changes around here. Some new sections, the return of some older sections, and the return of the traditional revolutionary values to CNX. Things are about to change here. Evolution begins right now.

Until tomorrow, later.

Jeff Harris
CNX Creator/Webmaster
July 10, 2002