Welcome back to another installment of Personal Nostalgia. Today, I'll be taking a look back at My personal experiences with Toonami, Cartoon Network's premier Action Cartoon and Anime Block.
Toonami introduced me to Anime, and while they only had 1 at the beginning (Voltron), they would eventually add more and more. I was hooked from day one, though stopped watching when Cartoon Network became crap in 2006..
Note. I'll only be covering Toonami's Original Run (1997 - 2008), since I'm most familiar with it. Plus, I'm Not a fan of it's Modern Run (2012 - Today). I hate it,actually.
Now, Before I go on to my personal nostalgia, here's a brief history of the Block itself. In Late 1992,Turner Broadcasting decided to make Cartoon Network more interesting. So they created an action cartoon block for weekday afternoons called Super Adventures. The block was an hour long. In Late 1995,Super Adventures was replaced with The Power Zone,an hour-and-a half block of action cartoons.
While those blocks had decent success,they wasn't the super hits that Turner Broadcasting wanted. So they decided to try something different.
On March 1997, Turner created Toonami. Toomami wasn't just a program block,it looked different,it felt different. It became an instant and huge success. Toonami lasted for an hour-and-a half (from 4 pm - 5:30 pm) and was hosted by Space Ghost villain-turned-producer Moltar at the Ghost Planet Industries building.
In The Fall of 1997,Toonami became a 2 hour block(from 4 pm - 6pm). In 1998, Toonami began airing Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z. In 1999, Cartoon Network relaunched Toonami with a new environment, the Ghost Planet Spaceship Absolution, and a new host named Tom (know known as Tom 1.0). The block soon expanded to 3 hours (from 4 pm -7 pm).
However in 2004, Toonami was moved from weekday afternoons to a Saturday evenings,where it aired for four hours (from 7 pm - 11 pm). Replacing Toonami was an adventure block called Miguzi. The Block started as an early evening block airing from 5 pm - 7 pm. Later the block would move back an hour from 4 pm - 6 pm. Miguzi ended in 2007.
In 2008, Toonami would air it's final batch of broadcasts. Due to low ratings, Toonami was eventually canceled.
!n 2012, Toonami was brought back, first as an April Fool's joke, then as a full-time sub-block on Adult Swim. But we at the Retro Resistance Never talk about That Reborn Abomination...Ever!!!
*clears throat* Anyway, with that said, It's time to to begin My Nostalgia Journey.
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It was February of 1997, I was in my room, in the Upstairs Apartment of my House, ready to play Video Games, my TV set to Cartoon Network, as it always was in the Afternoons during that time, When I see Moltar, from Space Ghost and Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, promoting a brand new action block that he was hosting, Toonami, which would debut on March 17th.
I was interested to say the least and although I'd miss the debut broadcast, I'd catch it the next day and loved it. I reconnected with 2 Shows that I haven't seen in years, that were part of the line-up, Thundercats and Voltron. I also became a fan of The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest, which was the 3rd show on the line up..
Besides those 3 shows for the starting line-up, there was also Cartoon Roulette, a segment that aired random Action/Adventure Cartoon shorts from Hannah-Barbara, as well as the 50's Superman shorts. Starting in 1998, the line-up would expand and Toonami would become a 2-hour program. Robotech would also air from time to time. And Superfriends replaced Thundercats. Plus, we had a Week of Beast Wars too (another good show!).
Moltar would also do monologues on various topics, such as Reruns, Heroes, and the Importance of Villains. Moltar would also begin reviewing Video Games, such as Beetle Adventure Racing for the N64 and Metal Gear Solid for the Sony Playstation.
These Monologues and Game Reviews would become the norm going forward for the Block. I gotta say, I was hooked and every afternoon I tuned into Toonami every afternoon at 4pm.
Toonami was the very thing that got me into Anime and made me a big fan of the Dragon Ball franchise. I was a fan of Sailor Moon before it aired on Toonami, but I'll talk more about that in a different post.
Before I forget, Toonami also had contests that gave out cool prizes. I never entered any, but Was tempted too. Contests would continue until Toonami's end.
The Summer of 1998 is where I had the most fond memories of the block. I used to watch TV in the Backroom of my Grandparent's downstairs apartment a lot and the summer of '98 was no different. Instead of watching Toonami in my room, I'd watch it on a bigger screen in the backroom. '98 was also when I started taping Dragon Ball Z.
'98 was a good year for Me and Entertainment. Besides Toonami, I also enjoyed the Rest of Cartoon Networks content, as well as The Sony Playstation. I'll talk more about those 2 topics another day and time.
Anyway, one day, in 1999, when my family went on Vacation, I was in the living room, enjoying the Family PC, while listening and watching Cartoon Network. What caught my attention was the announcement of Toonami's relaunch. Instead of being broadcast from Ghost Planet Industries and Hosted by Moltar, Toonami would be broadcast from The Absolution, a cool looking Space Ship and hosted by TOM 1.0,a Bomberman-looking Robot.
Personally, I was excited. As much as I loved the Moltar Era, the TOM Era was the beginning of Toonami's evolution and I was there for it. This was the Toonami Era that introduced me to some more favorites - Ronin Warriors, Gundam Wing, and Tenchi. The Best Batman Show, Batman - The Animated Series, also began airing on the Block.
It was during this time that I stated taping these shows..especially Dragon Ball Z. Also during this time, Toonami introduced a special late night Block called, The Midnight Run. And in the Summer of 2000, I stayed up and watched.
Toonami also created a Saturday Morning edition called, The Rising Sun. I rarely watched this block, as I usually watched Fox Kids, Kids WB, and Disney's One Saturday Morning instead. .
Then, in Late 2000, everything changed. During an event called The Intruder, Tom 1.0 was destroyed and replaced with the cooler TOM 2.0. It was also the introduction of his co-host SARA. More favorites were introduced like Mobile Suit Gundam and The Original Dragon Ball (which I look forward too the most. I even taped some eps.).
It was at this time when I moved from my parents Upstairs Apartment to the Backroom Downstairs in My Grandparent's Apartment. And I stayed there until 2007/2008. But That's a story for another day and time.
Anyway, This Era of Toonami had 2 more Events Lockdown and Trapped in Hyperspace. They didn't change the game, like with The Intruder, but they were entertaining. It was also at this time that I started taping other shows on the block, besides Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, such as Outlaw Star and Gundam 08th MS Team.
In 2001, Toonami began airing "Movies for the Masses" I enjoyed them, as well. Animated Movies would continue to air on Toonami until 2007.
Also in 2001, Toonami began broadcasting on Kids WB, I watched this on occasion, though I'd usually wait for the Main Block.
In 2003, Toonami got another revamp and awesome new looks for The Absolution and the Hosts. The Absolution became The Absolution 2 and TOM 2.0 became TOM 3.0. Even SARA got a redesign. Toonami came on a bit later, but that was fine by me, I still enjoyed it.
The following Year, Toonami would move from Weekday Afternoons to Saturday Evenings for 4 Hours (7pm - 11pm). I watched it the first 2 Years and enjoyed it, though deep down I knew it wasn't the same as it once was on Weekday Afternoons.
In Early-2006, I stopped watching Cartoon Network full time,due to feeling that the Network had lost all of its magic. It was this time that I turned to Boomerang, which became my replacement for Cartoon Network.
In 2007, Toonami got another relaunch, this time without the Absolution and SARA. TOM 3.0 was replaced with the really lame looking TOM 4.0. Replacing SARA was his 3 assistants (I forgot their names). And Replacing the Absolution was a Base on the Ghost Planet.
I had no experience with this version of Toonami when it aired, as I've since stopped watching Cartoon Network by Min-2006. My only experience with This Toonami comes from videos on Youtube.
And those are my memories with the Awesome Action Animation Block, known as Toonami. I will never forget what excitement and joy it brought me every Weekday Afternoons. And even though I also watched it when it moved to Saturday Evenings, I just couldn't feel the same emotions, the same..magic as I once did.
Anyway, before I close things out, just for fun, here is a list of Most of the Shows that aired on the Original Toonami, done in chronological order.
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Moltar Era (1997-1999)
Thundercats (1997-1998 [first run]; 2001-2002 [second run])
Voltron: Defender of the Universe (1997-1998)
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (1997-1999)
Cartoon Roulette (1997-1998)
Robotech (1998)
Beast Wars: Transformers (1998)
The Superfriends (1998)
Sailor Moon (1998-2001)
Dragon Ball Z (1998-2003)
Reboot (1999-2001)
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TOM 1.0 Era (1999-2000)
The Powerpuff Girls [the original and best series] (1999-2000)
Ronin Warriors (1999-2000)
G-Force (2000)
Gundam Wing (2000-2001)
Batman: The Animated Series (2000-2002)
Tenchi Muyo (2000)
Tenchi Universe (2000-2001)
Tenchi in Tokyo (2000-2001)
Blue Submarine No.6 (2000)
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TOM 2.0 Era (2000-2003)
Superman: The Animated Series (2000-2001)
Outlaw Star (2001-2002)
The Big O (2001)
Cardcaptors (2001)
Mobile Suit Gundam (2001-2002)
Gundam: 08th MS Team (2001-2002)
Dragon Ball (2001-2004)
Batman Beyond (2001-2002)
Zoids (2001-2002)
Gundam 0080 (2001)
Hamtaro (2002)
Zoids: Chaotic Century (2002-2003)
G Gundam (2002-2003)
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe [2k2 series] (2002-2003)
Transformers: Armada (2002-2003)
G.I.Joe: Real American Hero [midnight run only] (2002)
Samurai Jack [original series] (2002-2003)
.Hack//Sign (2003-2004)
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TOM 3.0 Era (2003-2007)
Yu Yu Hakusho (2003-2004)
Rurouni Kenshin (2003-2004)
Justice League (2003-2004)
Cyborg 009 (2003)
SD Gundam (2003)
Dragon Ball GT (2003-2004)
Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003-2004)
Bionicle (2004)
Duel Masters (2004 - 2005)
Megas XLR (2004 - 2006)
Astro Boy (2004)
Rave Master (2004 - 2005)
Transformers: Energon (2004 - 2005)
Teen Titans (2004 - 2007)
Jackie Chan Adventures (2004 - 2005)
Justice League Unlimited (2004 - 2006)
Gundam SEED (2004 - 2005)
D.I.C.E (2005)
Yu-Gi-Oh! (2005)
Zatch Bell! (2005 - 2007)
Naruto (2005 - 2007) [I hate this overrated show!!!!]
The Batman (2005 - 2006)
Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (2005 - 2006)
One Piece (2005 - 2007)
Dragon Ball Z - Uncut (2005 - 2006)
Transformers Cybertron (2005 - 2007)
IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix (2005 - 2006)
Wulin Warriors (2006)
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX (2006)
Pokemon Chronicles (2006)
MAR (2006 - 2007)
The Prince of Tennis (2006 - 2007)
Fantastic 4: Worlds Greatest Heroes (2006)
Pokemon Battle Frontier (2006)
Mega Man Star Force (2007)
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TOM 4.0 Era (2007 - 2008)
Storm Hawks (2007)
Bakugan Battle Brawlers (2008)
Ben 10 Alien Force (2008)
Blue Dragon (2008)
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Toonami, at least during it's days as a Weekday Afternoon Block, delivered great shows and great memories for me (as well as many others too). It also turned me into an Anime fan. So, Thank you Cartoon Network, before you were garbage, You were Awesome.
Until Next Time, Punch Nazis, Kick Commies, Resist Modern Attitudes, and Stay Gold.
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