What Happened To Toonami

Toonami was a huge part of my childhood. Most likely part of yours as well. When it returned we were all grateful and tuned in faithfully. Then it all changed and now the ratings struggle. People are no longer excited about Toonami. So I ask, what happened to Toonami? I'll tell you, it's not a simple answer. There's a lot of things wrong. First lets take a look a the current lineup and all the problems the shows face.


1. Dragon Ball Z: Kai - What can I say, it's a legendary series that started the love of anime in a lot of fans. That's the problem. Kai is just a new more censored and nicer looking version of the classic Dragon Ball Z. Almost everyone has seen Dragon Ball Z before. There's no point for a lot of us to even watch the show. We've seen the show. We've read the manga. We've seen the movies. We even sat through GT. Why would we watch it still. There's a lot of people who are hardcore DBZ fans but most of us, just won't tune in to watch it.

2. Kill La Kill - This is a series that divides people. I'll keep it simple and blunt. Lolicons love this show more than anyone else. Some people find it funny. Most of us are just walking away from this. It's an off putting show and it markets to the lowest common denominator. You can say I'm being judgmental but you can't deny the fact that lolicons get hot and heavy over this show.

3. Sword Art Online II - The first series started off great and then things started turning fans away. First it was the tentacle monster that assaulted a child in something straight out of a hentai. Then there was the old man who wanted to marry Asuna. Then there was the incest with Kirito and his cousin. Sword Art Online is a good show that does everything it can to drive people away. Seriously, it would be a great show with a great story if they stopped towing the lines of incest and pedophilia.

4. Inuyasha: The Final Act - What can I say Inuyasha has been around almost as long as DBZ and it's a great show. Problem is it's so long and repetitive nobody ever sticks with it. But hey, they're in the final act now so maybe people will hold out. Maybe if this was 2005 it'd do incredible numbers.

5. Naruto: Shippuden - Hey, if we cut some of that filler it'd be a perfect adaptation of a really good manga. If someone says they hate the Naruto anime what they mean is they hate filler.

6. One Piece - Hey, if we cut some of that filler it'd be a perfect adaptation of a really good manga. If someone says they hate the One Piece anime what they mean is they hate filler.

7. Attack On Titan - Started out with a lot of hype. People called it the next great anime. That pacing slowed to a crawl and the story became incredibly predictable. Now the thrill of the show is gone and only the die hard fans won't admit it. Anyone else watching is just a completionist and they're sticking with it because they don't like to drop things.

There it is, the Toonami schedule 7 shows that either cater to a specific audience, past their primes, or lost the hype. But, that's not all that is missing. Where's the comedy? Toonami has always had comedy shows to break up the seriousness of the other shows so people aren't overexerted from watching action non stop. Where is the comedy here? You could say Kill La Kill is the comedy but most people aren't going to sit through the show filled with over the top lolicon or ecchi action, depending on who you ask.

Another problem is a lot of the shows are older. I get it, it's hard to get the rights to newer shows. Maybe try some shows that aren't as popular. Naruto, One Piece and Dragon Ball are always going to be big hitters for Toonami. That's the way it's always been, but maybe it's time to try something else with all the other slots. Maybe try some shows that aren't putting off certain demographics.

You can hear Darrell on the CP Time and Powerbomb Jutsu podcasts. He also plays classic arcade games on The Cabinet
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