Toonami, 1997-2008
There was a lot of news this weekend, but none more sad than the sudden demise of Cartoon Network’s Toonami block. I know it ended up stuck on Saturday evenings showing the interminable Naruto fillers and repeats, but back in its heyday, it introduced America to Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, Outlaw Star, Tenchi Muyo, Zoids, .hack, and more. Hell, it’s single-handedly responsible for Dragonball Z‘s popularity in America, which makes it partially responsible for anime’s popularity in America. And more than any of that, it was cool as hell?watch the above promo for proof.
I’m absolutely certain I’ve watched more Toonami than any other TV channel or show; it was essential viewing for me in college (mostly as I waiting for the interminable fight between Goku and Frieza to end). TV won’t be the same with Tom. I’ll honestly miss the hell out of it, and I hope the guys at Cartoon Network responsible for it have something else lined up.
About The Author
Robert Bricken is one of the original co-founders of the site formerly known as Topless Robot, and its first editor-in-chief, serving from 2008-12. He brought the site to prominence with “nerd news, humor and self-loathing” as its motto, raising it from total internet obscurity to a readership in the millions, with help from his savage “FAQ” movie reviews and Fan Fiction Fridays. Under his tenure Topless Robot was covered by Gawker, Wired, Defamer, New York magazine, ABC News, and others, and his articles have been praised by Roger Ebert, Avengers actor Clark Gregg, comedian and The Daily Show correspondent John Hodgman, the stars of Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Rifftrax, and others. He is currently the managing editor of io9.com. Despite decades as both an amateur and professional nerd, he continues to be completely unprepared for either the zombie apocalypse or the robot uprising.