Gephyrophillia | Watch This Space #169

Originally Posted onn 04/03/2008 by Jeff Harris

Toonami is dead, but people already knew that. They pretended not to, but, yeah, it's pretty much all but gone at this point.

The heartbeat that was once a vital part of Cartoon Network's success is no longer beating. Oh, there's going to be a Toonami or at least something closely resembling it on weekends, but if this year's upfronts is any indication, the line is crystal clear. Toonami means nothing to Cartoon Network anymore. It's not the premier action block for Cartoon Network. That honor belongs to the new, unnamed fantasy/adventure-oriented Friday night block coming this fall to the channel with Ben 10: Alien Force, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Secret Saturdays, and the much-anticipated Star Wars: Clone Wars as vital parts of the block.

Meanwhile, Toonami's presence at this year's upfronts was non-existant. Not one word about Naruto nor One Piece. The word Toonami wasn't even peeped. Instead, Cartoon Network seemed to hype up the new Friday night fantasy/adventure block.

So, if the new Friday night lineup, which isn't Fried Dynamite - - - wait a second, let me back up a minute and reel in what I just wrote. Fried Dynamite, the much-hyped rebranding of the Friday night lineup, is on the outs, and its Saturday morning sibling, Dynamite Action Squad, may have a similar fate. Master Control, another much-hyped endeavor from last year's upfronts, is also gone. Out of Jimmy's Head, a series that pretty much didn't aspire for much greatness on the word go, was absent from the presentation. The only real successes they had from last year's upfronts were Chowder, which was renewed, and the Ben 10 live-action movie, which was based on the animated series and will have a sequel next year. Instead, they focused on the Sunday night movie franchise, the new Friday night fantasy/adventure block, and the Cartoonstitute project, which will have over 100 animated shorts/pilots within 18 months, harkening back to the good old days when things made sense, and the shows they showed off last year, but didn't, Flapjack and The Secret Saturdays, which will be a part of the new Friday lineup. Santo es finito, sad to say. But back to what I was saying.

If the new Friday night is the face of fantasy/adventure animation, does that mean that Toonami is the face of action-animation? Yes, Toonami wasn't mentioned at all, but then again, they didn't have too much of a presentation for Toonami last year. I know, it's not exactly filling me with confidence either. They didn't really set up much of a plan for Saturday nights, or at least didn't present anything new for Saturday nights, meaning that perhaps Toonami isn't all the way gone. But I'm not that optimistic.

Saturday nights could be the outlet for the encore showings of the Friday night products in addition to airing any returning or new anime productions. Naruto, the network's biggest show, will continue to be a part of Cartoon Network, and they'd be foolish to let them go right now. Jetstream is also doing remarkably well. But one has to wonder. Will Saturday nights still belong to Toonami, or is this truly the end?

My gut tells me this is the end of Toonami as we know it. The brand will probably remain, but it'll become largely an all-anime affair. Some people will dig that concept. Others, like myself, won't. You see, this decision on their part, if true, confirms a sad fact once said by Bob Higgins of all people:

He said as long as he's there, "Anime will be on Toonami and Toonami isn't going anywhere." Bob's not at Cartoon Network anymore, anime has been on the decline in recent years, and Toonami isn't the center of the Cartoon Network universe anymore. It's almost non-existent, and anime has no place in the new Cartoon Network order. While the American fanboy side of me is thrilled that Cartoon Network is making an effort to air original Western action programming on a weekly basis, the Toonami fan in me is disappointed that it's not a part of a truly diverse Toonami lineup. Never thought I'd see Cartoon Network purposely split action programming by country of origin.

The whole belief of creating a cartoon show with the best action cartoons on the planet. Not just the best in the US nor the best in Japan. The best action cartoons on the planet. If Toonami's not a part of that tradition anymore, if Cartoon Network truly believes that there's no place for Toonami in the long scheme of things action-wise, then Toonami is, in the end, dead.

*end transmission*

Jeff Harris,
The X Bridge Creator/Webmaster
April 3, 2008