Demarco is fishing for Sentai titles people are interested in

[Toonamiguy321]

https://twitter.com/Clarknova1/status/1632886517830959106?cxt=HHwWhIC23d7olqktAAAA

 

Not that I expect this to amount to anything in the near future, but maybe this is a sign they are finally going to start taking the Sentai catalog more seriously later in the year. So if there is a Sentai show you are passionate about, now would be a good time to bring it up. 

[PokeNirvash]

If anything, it shows we've come a long way from the strained relations with ADV post-Giant Robot Week and only being able to air the alternate dubs that weren't good enough for Anime Network.

[Jman]

It's more surprising that Warner is able to do business with AMC, but other than that first-run deal with MBS they signed last week, AMC has been incredibly hands off in Sentai's day-to-day operations.

https://www.sentaifilmworks.com/a/catalog

That's their catalog.  Problem is a good amount is sub-only and then there's also stuff they act as a home video distributor for Netflix which naturally DeMarco can't air.  Most of it isn't even action.  The rest meanwhile has long since outlived its shelf life, like the Fate shows.

Unless DeMarco seriously wants to go archive binging (which he has said previously doesn't happen for numerous reasons on the distributor side), this is likely a pre-requisite to trying to air the Uruesi Yatsura remake, which would be a really bad idea if Pop Team Epic's ratings were any indication.

[Toonamiguy321]

5 hours ago, Jman said:

It's more surprising that Warner is able to do business with AMC, but other than that first-run deal with MBS they signed last week, AMC has been incredibly hands off in Sentai's day-to-day operations.

https://www.sentaifilmworks.com/a/catalog

That's their catalog.  Problem is a good amount is sub-only and then there's also stuff they act as a home video distributor for Netflix which naturally DeMarco can't air.  Most of it isn't even action.  The rest meanwhile has long since outlived its shelf life, like the Fate shows.

Unless DeMarco seriously wants to go archive binging (which he has said previously doesn't happen for numerous reasons on the distributor side), this is likely a pre-requisite to trying to air the Uruesi Yatsura remake, which would be a really bad idea if Pop Team Epic's ratings were any indication.

IMO from a Toonami potential perspective, it’s better to look through the Hidive catalog as it has a filter for dubbed content. 

https://www.hidive.com/dubs

You bring up some hurdles they need to learn to get over. I wouldn’t say “most” isn’t action. There is a healthy amount of action shows here to choose from. At least enough to keep 3 timeslots stocked for a year or two. Same for archive binging, if they can get Sentai on board, just do it. Maybe years ago they weren’t willing, but that’s no excuse not to try again. 
 

Even if Urusei is on their radar, that’s one show. That would only be with us for 6 months, they need to be thinking about what happens after + what happens with the other timeslots. Having a rotating B tier Sentai slot at 1am would be great for morale. I think most fans of the block would rather see it air something, rather than nothing and have the schedule uncertain every other week. Cause these days that’s the only two options, Crunchyroll gets all the top shelf stuff and won’t let us have it. 

 

[Top Gun]

USHIO. AND. TORA.

[3ngag3]

I mean, Danmachi is literally right there...

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, 3ngag3 said:

I mean, Danmachi is literally right there...

With 4 seasons and a theater movie, im kinda surprised it never naturally got on their radar. 

[Jman]

1 hour ago, 3ngag3 said:

I mean, Danmachi is literally right there...

Yeah, but doesn’t Crunchyroll still own a portion of it and stream it there?

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, Jman said:

Yeah, but doesn’t Crunchyroll still own a portion of it and stream it there?

Not anymore. It was one of many Sentai titles to be pulled from CR after the merger. 

[Jman]

46 minutes ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Not anymore. It was one of many Sentai titles to be pulled from CR after the merger. 

Ok, then that’s definitely one for the maybe pile.

There’s a lot of stuff in that pile I would personally love to air, and stuff that I would have wanted to air on ASA if that block wasn’t in full on hoighty-toighty mode near the end of its lifespan.  Ah well.

[Toonamiguy321]

33 minutes ago, Jman said:

Ok, then that’s definitely one for the maybe pile.

There’s a lot of stuff in that pile I would personally love to air, and stuff that I would have wanted to air on ASA if that block wasn’t in full on hoighty-toighty mode near the end of its lifespan.  Ah well.

Here’s the full list if you are interested. Couple decent things in there that would fit the block. I’d love to see BTOOOM, GATE, No Game No Life, and School Live. 

https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2022/03/24/food-wars-is-it-wrong-to-pick-up-girls-in-a-dungeon-and-more-are-leaving-crunchyroll

 

[Daos]

Whoa whoa are those all Sentai?

No Game No Life and Gate would be top of the list. So would Amagi Brilliant Park.

Black Bullet was entertaining enough.

Infinite Stratos is one of the best examples of a dumb Harem anime that keeps you entertained through the stupidity. It's absolutely shameless.

Familiar of Zero is a classic and really popularized the Isekai genre.

Is it Wrong to Pick up girls in a dungeon would be good.

All that stuff is wayyyyy way better than anything Toonami is airing now. Except for MHA.

See? Shameless

 

[Jman]

Going through the Sentai catalog of dubs...they have a lot of shows that Adult Swim would have rejected on principle back in the day for excessive fanservice or being too Japanese.

I mean, they have Godannar.

As much as I would want Godannar to air, it's probably a complete no-no.

[PokeNirvash]

Demarco would probably have a coronary from all the jiggle physics.

[Jman]

1 hour ago, PokeNirvash said:

Demarco would probably have a coronary from all the jiggle physics.

Yeah, when the show first came out, this was the GIF that made the rounds, less so that it was a homage to 70s super robots and the female supporting casts (as well as a lesson on the abject issues with marrying your boss's daughter), but this was also the era where boob-tastic shows (and anything OVERLY Japanese) was shunned by the media.

 

 

(Good Lord X-Play was racist).

My point is that stuff like that was just not going to air in an era where everyone with power was openly hostile towards those kinds of shows, and now they're too old.  Even now DeMarco still has something of a "that's overly childish" mentality when rejecting overly fanservicy shows (although he didn't have much of a choice beforehand), which I kind of get given the goal of being more mature and bespoke than the Netflix approach of "blood, boobs, and punching" for their shows.  

So when looking at the Sentai catalog, keep that in mind.  It probably means Damachi is a no go.  Same with Akhiaba Maid Wars.

Or maybe DeMarco is just an ass man and that's why Space Dandy spoke to him.

Edited March 8, 2023 by Jman

[Daos]

Except we just got another round of Foodwars, where girls end up naked and fake orgasming from rice.

[Toonamiguy321]

8 hours ago, Daos said:

No Game No Life and Gate would be top of the list. So would Amagi Brilliant Park.

Black Bullet was entertaining enough.

Infinite Stratos is one of the best examples of a dumb Harem anime that keeps you entertained through the stupidity. It's absolutely shameless.

Familiar of Zero is a classic and really popularized the Isekai genre.

I actually really like Amagi Brilliant Park, but it’s not really action so I didn’t list it. If Demarco is willing to go back to his 2018 promise of a more diverse lineup I’d love to see it. Another non action on there I thought was great is Haven’t you Heard Im Sakamoto. 
 

Id also love to see a battle harem like Infinite Stratos on the block. It’s a great entry step into the genre. The BD did add nipples, but the TV cut is tame enough for TV run.

I enjoyed Familiar of Zero too. It even got a second spinoff season. 
 

4 hours ago, Jman said:

Even now DeMarco still has something of a "that's overly childish" mentality when rejecting overly fanservicy shows (although he didn't have much of a choice beforehand), which I kind of get given the goal of being more mature and bespoke than the Netflix approach of "blood, boobs, and punching" for their shows.  

So when looking at the Sentai catalog, keep that in mind.  It probably means Damachi is a no go.  Same with Akhiaba Maid Wars.

They were able to have that attitude pre 2019 when the entire anime market was their oyster and they could casually grab any show when they needed it. That’s not their situation anymore. Demarco is at least pretending to listen here, so it’s a good time to shoot your shot on a show you like even if years prior you know they wouldn’t touch it. Maybe if they see adequate demand for something they will get over themselves and air it just to fill a slot in. 

[PokeNirvash]

8 hours ago, Jman said:

but this was also the era where boob-tastic shows (and anything OVERLY Japanese) was shunned by the media.

 

 

(Good Lord X-Play was racist).

I would not be surprised if it turned out G4 got rid of their anime selection because of Adam Sessler. So hateable a guy, the network even had a commercial for X-Play focusing on a viewer who absolutely despised him, while at the same time simping hard for Morgan Webb (who wasn't really much better).

Ah, the ads that stick in your mind when you channel-surf.

EDIT: I have since read the comments sections (and regrettably skimmed through the videos) of those Tweets. "Ye Gods" doesn't begin to cover how much I want Sessler and Webb to die.

Edited March 8, 2023 by PokeNirvash

[MasqueradeOverture]

They practically said "2 nukes weren't enough" on TV holy shit

2006 was a different time.

[PokeNirvash]

Unfotunately, not different enough for Adam Sessler.

 

[Jman]

16 minutes ago, PokeNirvash said:

Unfotunately, not different enough for Adam Sessler.

 

Sessler’s an alleged coke head who admitted he hates gamers as a whole and seems pissed G4 flopped…again.

G4 was fucked up.  Behold, Kingdom Hearts being re-enacted…with blackface.

 

They also apparently did some racist Naruto skits at well bagging on that franchise…which outlasted the original G4 and the reboot.  Now that’s some schadenfreude.  

[Toonamiguy321]

G4 is bizarre to look at in the modern day. It doesn’t matter if the clip is good or bad, it all seems like it came from an early era YouTube channel, one that after it’s small relevance faded, could have been quietly deleted and taken all these questionable bits to the grave where only a handful of people would remember them, but not be able to find the proof they happened. But nope, it was a real deal network on TV and almost all of it is preserved. 
 

The attempted reboot felt like it should have been a YouTube channel, because cable is dying, and there is no market for its content on cable. I don’t think there is anything they could have done to make G4 work in 2022. 

[Daos]

Sessler strikes me as mentally ill. If he's using coke it's probably an attempt to self medicate.

[ben0119]

Demarco should have been doing this a long time ago, instead of trying to get stuff he can't get.  Crunchyroll is ice cold.  They'll let Demarco take in the smells from outside the bakery, but they aren't going to let him buy anything.  They won't even let him have any samples!

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/company.php?id=8102

Here is the list of all the shows Sentai have licensed on ANN.  I went through it and clicked on some shows.  I never would have thought to go on Hidive and check there.  And I had already been going through this list when I saw that post.  I didn't know Hidive was exclusively Sentai stuff, either.  At any rate, I don't feel like going through another list, and Sentai has a lot more shows than I thought.

There's also some shows they dubbed but didn't license, so it's kind of confusing.

I recently watched Familiar of Zero and enjoyed it quite a lot.  Unfortunately only the first season is dubbed, and only the final season is on streaming platforms.  I can't believe it is so unpopular in the U.S.  It predates the modern glut of isekai series and is probably a lot better than most of those series too.  But, the first season tells a complete story, so it's possible to air it.  I suppose it is pretty far-fetched to expect Toonami to get Sentai to dub the other 3 seasons.

Some of the Fate series are under Sentai, but not all, oddly enough.  I don't know why Toonami never went after that franchise, but I can't remember it being highly requested either.  I have yet to see any of it.

I watched a few episodes of Danmachi and it seemed pretty dull, and Hestia was annoying.  Maybe it would be better now, dubbed, and under a different frame of mind.  The person who urged me to watch it was swearing it's way better than SAO and it didn't seem that way to me.

Log Horizon is another one I've heard good things about, and it being better than SAO.  I never watched it, and a show about political drama in a game world didn't sound appealing to me.  It looks like the author is reduced to self-publishing after his tax evasion incident.  His artist and publisher aren't working with him anymore.  Is tax evasion really considered more scandalous than sex crimes in Japan?  On the other hand, a new anime season same out in 2021, so maybe we will see the ending of this animated after all?

Besides what was mentioned here, I saw a couple shows that looked appealing that might work for the block.  Princess Principal and Tears to Tiara.  But, there's not a lot of shows that are action that I've seen, that could fit on Toonami.  And I won't have time to watch these two in time to recommend to Demarco, so I'll just put Familiar of Zero.  Sadly, no one has suggested it yet. 

By the way, I barely use it, but Twitter is really annoying now.  It makes you constantly push "see more tweets," and it's got a ton of ads and promoted tweets now.

Edited March 13, 2023 by ben0119

[Daos]

Don't believe the Log Horizon hype. Everyone at the time s aid "It's SAO but better!" So I check it out andddd....

It isn't. It's dullllll. There's a reason SAO became a massive global success and Log Horizon didn't.

There's another one like that also.. .hack I think?

[EmpressAngel]

Air Princess Principal, you cowards.

[Jman]

Feels like we all want something to air from the Sentai catalog but the odds of any of them airing (Ushio and Tora, Godannar, Princess Principal) are low I would gather.  Still, it all boils down to what Sentai wants to promote as well as what DeMarco wants to air.

[Toonamiguy321]

45 minutes ago, Jman said:

Feels like we all want something to air from the Sentai catalog but the odds of any of them airing (Ushio and Tora, Godannar, Princess Principal) are low I would gather.  Still, it all boils down to what Sentai wants to promote as well as what DeMarco wants to air.

They are gonna have to start making some choices pretty soon, I think MHA can only double up 2 more times before being completely aired. Even if they don’t, 4 weeks goes by pretty quick. 
 

Idk if a month is enough time to pull something together with Sentai, but from when Demarco first asked this to either end date of MHA would be roughly a month to see if any of the more requested titles were viable for the block. One slot could, and likely will go to Grunge, but something else needs to take 12:30 or 1.

[Daos]

The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is another great one.

But what Toonami really needs is a Funimation title....  PING PONG THE ANIMATION!

[Top Gun]

Ping Pong was goddamn incredible.

[Blatch]

Woah, this thread briefly went Type II. I wanted to contribute earlier, but I have nothing to offer about the whole G4 mess.

It's too bad Bakuon!! isn't dubbed and probably never will at this point, because if it was, you know I'd be going hard in the paint for it. It's got action, though not what most Toonami fans would expect, though the presence of moe and fanservice probably makes it radioactive relative to DeMarco.

21 hours ago, Daos said:

Don't believe the Log Horizon hype. Everyone at the time s aid "It's SAO but better!" So I check it out andddd....

It isn't. It's dullllll. There's a reason SAO became a massive global success and Log Horizon didn't.

There's another one like that also.. .hack I think?

I've made my peace about Log Horizon never airing on Toonami, but you have a bit of a point. I wouldn't call it dull, but cerebral, and shows like that aren't for everyone. I'm expecting to finally get around to my rewatch of it at some point and find out it hasn't held up, assuming it ever did.

So what is there that I would like to see Toonami get from Sentai that has a realistic chance? All I can think of is Season 1 of The Big O. Maybe cut a deal with them to finally get an HD version of Season 2 out there on top of that.

[Toonamiguy321]

25 minutes ago, Blatch said:

I've made my peace about Log Horizon never airing on Toonami, but you have a bit of a point. I wouldn't call it dull, but cerebral, and shows like that aren't for everyone. I'm expecting to finally get around to my rewatch of it at some point and find out it hasn't held up, assuming it ever did.

 

I just don’t think it’s a fair comparison outside of the video game aspect. SAO is more focused on the combat and action element, while Log Horizon is more, as you put it, cerebral. If you go into LH with a mindset that it’s going to be similar to SAO, yea you are going to be very let down. I don’t dislike LH, but I don’t think it’s right fit for holding the average Toonami viewers attention, especially since a lot of them are going to go into it with that wrong mindset. 

Big O would just be a waste. With their funding troubles as bad as they are, they can’t spare a penny for a rerun. If Sentai has their catalog open for Toonami to look at, it would be foolish to waste that opportunity getting something they already aired. 

[PokeNirvash]

Hey, remember that time Sentai licensed the half of Bandai's old Sunrise releases that FUNimation didn't get? And aside from Big O, they did jack shit with them and let them expire?

Fun times, living in a world where Angel Links got a 2010s re-release but Overman King Gainer didn't.

[Sketch]

On 3/16/2023 at 5:32 PM, PokeNirvash said:

Hey, remember that time Sentai licensed the half of Bandai's old Sunrise releases that FUNimation didn't get? And aside from Big O, they did jack shit with them and let them expire?

Fun times, living in a world where Angel Links got a 2010s re-release but Overman King Gainer didn't.

Still annoys me to this day that Sentai only released The Big O but I suppose if it was only gonna be one, it was the right one. Thankfully, Discotek is getting around to picking up some of those.

[Jman]

It’s a shame Discotek doesn’t have broadcast rights.  Considering all the old head stuff they have, you could create an amazing block with their materials.  Hell, even regular Adult Swim could air Street Sharks as a joke.

Edited March 18, 2023 by Jman

[PokeNirvash]

I think the term you're looking for is "broadcast rights". If they didn't have home media rights, they wouldn't be putting out DVDs and Blu-Rays every month!

[ben0119]

On 3/15/2023 at 7:58 PM, Daos said:

Don't believe the Log Horizon hype. Everyone at the time s aid "It's SAO but better!" So I check it out andddd....

It isn't. It's dullllll. There's a reason SAO became a massive global success and Log Horizon didn't.

There's another one like that also.. .hack I think?

Yeah I heard that Log Horizon is about political machinations and people hashing out how to live in a game world.  Not sure if they even try to get out of it or if they even can.

.hack was good, and cerebral is definitely a good description for that one, too.  Not action heavy, though it does have some.  I only saw the first series, as I don't think the others are related to each other.  But Demarco said he hates .hack so I won't expect the original series or any others to air on the block.

On 3/15/2023 at 8:12 PM, EmpressAngel said:

Air Princess Principal, you cowards.

I mean, looking into it, Princess Principal seems like a legitimate fit for Toonami.