The Rise, Fall and Rise Again of Toonami

Toonami is such an iconic programming block for Cartoon Network. Starting its legacy in the late 90's all the way to this very day, but it wasn't always easy for Toonami to stick around. In fact, there was a period of time where it was canceled by Cartoon Network as it would one day come back in a very unusual way. Today, let's take a look into the history of Toonami to see just how this programming block rose, fell and rose again!

Written By: Jordan Fringe
Edited By: Jordan Fringe & David Strickland
Channel Art By: Jerry Meehan

[JordanFringe]

Thanks so much for watching! Let me know some of your memories with Toonami in the comments!

[aiwash]

Toonami also was the birth of Lofi music without us even knowing, watching toonami around 2007 as a 7 year old I had no idea I was watching anime, it was just weird cartoons for me, thankfully I remember watching anime through toonami and it makes me cherish those memories even more

[TheBrez]

Tom from Toonami is the uncle who gave everyone cool anime to grow up with. Will never forget being introduced to FLCL, Evangelion, and other fantastic series through Toonami.

[SalsaConMesquite]

As a 95 baby, I cannot stress how much Toonami had an effect between CN and AS. I've grown up on so much anime introduced thru Toonami and I'm so glad you made this. Ty JF.

[chasonthedon]

The 90’s gave birth to such timeless classics, ourselves included

[Zero_]

Toonami is responsible for making me learn the difference between cartoons and anime. I love it

[rickeykoga]

Toonami was my entire childhood - the entire aesthetic, the esoteric cut scenes, and the content. The 90s and 2000s lineup was absolutely stacked

[ThatShadowSiren]

Toonami was CN to me as a kid. The heart and soul of the network. I still say Toonami's original cancelation was the moment the CN that I knew died and was very happy when Toonami reappeared on Adult Swim. I still try to have it in the background on Saturday Nights to this day. I'm very glad 11 years later, the Toonami we have now is still going strong.

[chriskennedy]

My god... TOONAMI... back in 1998 when I was 11 and remembering how eager I was to head home from Junior High School to watch everything it offered to make my day. How I wish I could go back and relieve those times again... Nostalgia can be quite powerful and THIS video dialed it up to 11....

Thank you Jordan... ✌😎

[Azelja]

Although I don't really watch it anymore, it almost brings a tear to my eye to know something so impactful from my childhood is still around and running strong.

[mattgiannecchini]

Toonami really changed my life when I was a tween entering HS. 12 years old I’d watch dragon ball, naruto, sailor moon, akame ga kill, assassination classroom, attack on titan, black lagoon, space dandy, parasyte, mobile suit gundam, samurai champloo and inuyasha. dont even get me started on the music like nujabes and DOOM. Im 24 and I remember those nights like they were yesterday

[darklife]

I'm 43 years old. I was 17 in 1997 when the Moltar era of Toonami kicked off. I would watch it occasionally. But, I didn't become a true Toonami fan until they introduced TOM. The bumps that came out around that time, the little music videos they'd show us between cartoons (Soul Coughing - Circles was a great one), the anime, the atmosphere. It was perfect for a late teen/early 20's guy.
And then there were the specials like Toonami Midnight Run: Special Edition which really introduced me to EDM with Daft Punk's music videos and I got to experience Gorillaz music videos for the first time, too! Clint Eastwood is crazy when you're tripping on acid. It was just an epic time for television and anime especially as it was really starting to take off in North America at that time.
Lots of good memories with the first iteration of Toonami. Thanks for the nostalgia.

[cheezyfish]

Toonami was truly a product of it's time and it was a master craft in creating and experiencing an event that kept you immersed going in and out of shows.

[MegaVidFan]

One of my oldest memories is recording the episode of Naruto, where he and Gaara fight in the forest, on VHS. I set the timer myself and was beyond proud.
Years later, in the 7th grade, I discover that Naruto is available in-full on Netlfix.
Without Toonami in those early days, I wouldn't be whi I am today.
Thanks for covering this, Jordan! I've never clicked on a notification so fast.

[SuperKamehameha]

Toonami exposed me to so many amazing anime in the early 2000s, Zoids, Yu Yu Hakusho, Gundam, Sailor Moon, Naruto, and my all time favorite series, DB/DBZ. Those Z promos back in the day with the Tom's Optimus Prime voice narrating them is still legendary. That final broadcast still stays with me. "Stay gold, bang." I'm glad it came back too. I dont really watch it anymore but its still really cool to have around

[PsRohrbaugh]

Man this has made me feel complicated feels. My parents didn't let me know watch TV. I didn't even learn about Toonami until college (2005). I watched it on occasion, but after graduating I haven't had cable TV. I feel like I missed out on some really important cultural phenomenon during both my childhood and young adult years. Ah well. At least I can experience it vicariously through documentaries like yours. Thank you.

[balance]

This video has made unimaginably happy and to hear that toonami came back and is going stronger then ever has made not only my day but my life. I stopped watching cartoon network around high school so i missed out all this AMAZING news. So happy to hear what was a major part of not only my childhood but so many others came back and bringing as much joy to others as it did me back then

[brocode]

Toonami is such a historical piece of pop culture that truly inspired and created a whole generation of anime watchers. Even now I bet if you ask most people who watch anime in the us where they started they would tell you Toonami

[Bndbha]

This video made me tear up. Remembering staying up late Saturday nights and watching cowboy bebop, michiko and hatchin, space dandy, kill la kill, bleach. It makes me want to go back and appreciate it more, appreciate everything the creators went through to bring such amazing shows to a new audience. All I can do is say thank for unlocking old memories that I wish I never forgot.

[fedoraking]

Two things about Toonami coming back:
1. I didn't know it was an April fool's day suprise thing when it came back.
2. I had a strict stepdad at the time, and I couldn't stay up late, so I missed almost all of the episodes they showed that night.