Predict Toonami in 2025

[Jman]

14 minutes ago, brianycpht said:

Demarco was not aware that Urusei was even out or dubbed. I had to let him know. He told me initially that he’d consider the show if it turned out good. I doubt he’s even looked at HiDive

HIDIVE is full of stuff that is to be frank, not up his alley.  Could anyone see DeMarco air Chained Soldier?

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, Sketch said:

The only way we’re getting back to 5 premieres is if Naruto or Kai leave or shift down and One Piece returns to 2am. I’m a for all of the above. But I’ll settle for 3 premieres that aren’t One Piece.

This is another one of their dirty little tricks. I agree, we probably aren’t going back to 5 premiers, even though that’s where we were at this time last year. We probably won’t even go back to 4 IMO. So how do they normalize this and make the audience accept this as the new normal? They make the block REALLY suck for a month or two, then “fix” it, and the idiot fanbase praises them for it. Right now, we have 2 premiers. By February, I expect us to be back up to 3. The fanbase and their collective handful of braincells will celebrate at how “Toonami is back” and we just had to be patient a little longer. They will be completely blind to the reality that the block is still running minus 2 on premiers. They only see a minor improvement and start popping the champagne. Two premiers will become the new bare minimum and three premiers will be the above average we shouldn’t expect year round. 
 

1 hour ago, brianycpht said:

Demarco was not aware that Urusei was even out or dubbed. I had to let him know. He told me initially that he’d consider the show if it turned out good. I doubt he’s even looked at HiDive

Yea, I don’t get it. I’m willing to humor the possibility that there is some kind of issue with Sentai preventing their shows from airing, but at the same time we hear things like that straight from Demarco which confirm he isn’t even looking at their catalog at all. 
 

1 hour ago, Jman said:

HIDIVE is full of stuff that is to be frank, not up his alley.  Could anyone see DeMarco air Chained Soldier?

We are long past the point where his own personal taste should be a factor. If it has action, it’s dubbed and it’s not ancient, it can at least pad out the schedule. 
 

Chained Soldier is something that wouldn’t air regardless because it’s got big ol anime tiddies bouncing around on full display, and they tend to not want to do censorship unless they are brief shots that don’t take don’t take much away from the show. CS would need way too much. 
 

That being said, Sentai has PLENTY of other options that would be fine picks for the block. Of all varieties as well. From just straight action titles, to action titles with big anime tiddies bouncing around, but appropriately covered for sensitive cable advertisers. 
 

Understandably, Friday Plans doesn’t want smoking hot anime tiddies airing because then you won’t have to order 100 milligrams, thank you very much. 

[brianycpht]

26 minutes ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Understandably, Friday Plans doesn’t want smoking hot anime tiddies airing because then you won’t have to order 100 milligrams, thank you very much. 

Should we be worried that this is the demo they are targeting now?

 

26 minutes ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

2 hours ago, Sketch said:

 

This is another one of their dirty little tricks. I agree, we probably aren’t going back to 5 premiers, even though that’s where we were at this time last year. We probably won’t even go back to 4 IMO. So how do they normalize this and make the audience accept this as the new normal? They make the block REALLY suck for a month or two, then “fix” it, and the idiot fanbase praises them for it. Right now, we have 2 premiers. By February, I expect us to be back up to 3. The fanbase and their collective handful of braincells will celebrate at how “Toonami is back” and we just had to be patient a little longer. They will be completely blind to the reality that the block is still running minus 2 on premiers. They only see a minor improvement and start popping the champagne. Two premiers will become the new bare minimum and three premiers will be the above average we shouldn’t expect year round. 
 

I was told it was completely normal to rerun an original high up in the block and it absolutely wasn’t a sign they were lacking in programming. Some of the fans are hopeless zombies 

Edited December 28, 2024 by brianycpht

[Toonamiguy321]

3 hours ago, brianycpht said:

Should we be worried that this is the demo they are targeting now?

It’s not new that the holiday months for Toonami are pretty advertising light. It does seem to be a little concerning that the only ads the block gets are for boner pills and AIDS medication. The adspace has to be borderline free if those pills are only 87 cents each. But like, is there really no one else at all who wants this ad time? There isn’t a single product out there that’s a little bit more in line with the demo? Because I can’t imagine many Toonami viewers have AIDS or a broken penis. 
 

Maybe Family Guy can revitalize the advertiser desirability later in the night. Even just a little bit would help. It wouldn’t surprise me if an internal issue the higher ups have with Toonami is its inability to sell adspace. Though, that’s a vicious cycle problem, as viewership drops as the blocks quality does, which discourages advertisers, which leads to less shows, and around we go again. 

[[classic swim]]

1 hour ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

I can’t imagine many Toonami viewers have AIDS or a broken penis. 

[KageRageX]

On 12/26/2024 at 6:16 PM, Toonamiguy321 said:

They actually can’t when you do an actual breakdown of those 3.5 hours. Not even close really.

12 - will spend most of the year occupied by an original. 

12:30 - flexible slot #1

1 - flexible slot #2

1:30 - permanently occupied 

2 - permanently occupied (rerun)

2:30 - permanently occupied (rerun)

3 - rotating rerun, more often that not an original 

So we are looking at a best case scenario, 2 slots to work with. A pickup like MHA S7 would occupy one of those slots for at least 6 months. Toonami airs normally about 45-47 weeks out of the year. Given the current state of things, I’d expect more delays than normal this year. 
 

The only way to break this gridlock would be letting either Naruto or Kai expire. But in that scenario, they don’t see value in paying for reruns, so if they do that it’s either to squeeze in another premier (unlikely) or cost cut by trimming up the schedule. 
 

The elephant in the room is still the Crunchyroll situation. MHA or Daima should have been on the 11th schedule. So either CR has slammed the door shut for good, which eliminates most of your show expectations, or we have to wait significantly longer than before. Which would probably eliminate Dr Stone and Fire Force for 2025. 

Damn.

We know the originals for this year is Lazaurs, Primal S3, Superman S3 and likely Get Jiro. I could also see Rooster Fighter make an appearance towards the end of the year.

At this point, I'd take the cut to a solid 3 hours.

Here's what I can see for this year:

12:00 - Original
12:30 - sequel/new anime
01:00 - new anime/sequel
01:30 - One Piece
02:00 - Dragon Ball Z ai
02:30 - reruns

[MasqueradeOverture]

8 hours ago, KageRageX said:

12:00 - Lazarus 
12:30 - Rick & Morty
01:00 - Rick & Morty
01:30 - Primal S1
02:00 - Family Guy
02:30 - Family Guy

Fixed.

[Mr. Idea Box]

23 minutes ago, MasqueradeOverture said:

Fixed.

If that's what you think the schedule will look like soon, then I don't think I can print my thoughts on it.

However, giving the benefit of the doubt, I'd at least bump Primal up an hour.

[OwlChemist81]

3 hours ago, MasqueradeOverture said:

Fixed.

Uh, no. One Piece and Naruto ain't going anywhere. Not even for 2 AM FG.

We're still getting them, Kai, and Exorcist for a while.

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, OwlChemist81 said:

Uh, no. One Piece and Naruto ain't going anywhere. Not even for 2 AM FG.

We're still getting them, Kai, and Exorcist for a while.

Eh, until we see Naruto exceed significantly beyond May, or go beyond episode 52, it’s time on the block should be considered finite. DBZ as well, but DBZ will probably go up to episode 98 so that isn’t a 2025 problem. Plus, we can still make his schedule work.

12 - Lazarus

12:30 - One Piece

1 - Blue Exorcist 

1:30 - DBZ Kai

2 - Naruto

2:30 - Family Guy

The fat man can patiently wait a few months for Naruto to expire and take 2. Not that I think any of this will happen, just saying, it’s possible. 

[Mr. Idea Box]

6 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Eh, until we see Naruto exceed significantly beyond May, or go beyond episode 52, it’s time on the block should be considered finite. DBZ as well, but DBZ will probably go up to episode 98 so that isn’t a 2025 problem. Plus, we can still make his schedule work.

12 - Lazarus

12:30 - One Piece

1 - Blue Exorcist 

1:30 - DBZ Kai

2 - Naruto

2:30 - Family Guy

The fat man can patiently wait a few months for Naruto to expire and take 2. Not that I think any of this will happen, just saying, it’s possible. 

If any Adult Swim comedy was becoming part of Toonami, I'd rather have The Venture Bros. over Family Guy. But in all fairness, this sounds like the best schedule to hope for right now.

[Jman]

26 minutes ago, Mr. Idea Box said:

If any Adult Swim comedy was becoming part of Toonami, I'd rather have The Venture Bros. over Family Guy. But in all fairness, this sounds like the best schedule to hope for right now.

A very long time ago Adult Swim did try to have VB as their lead off show instead of Family Guy, basically hoping to do what Rick and Morty did as an in-house cultural smash.

It was an absolute disaster.  Ratings tanked and Peter Griffin was moved back to lead off a month later.

[Mr. Idea Box]

18 minutes ago, Jman said:

A very long time ago Adult Swim did try to have VB as their lead off show instead of Family Guy, basically hoping to do what Rick and Morty did as an in-house cultural smash.

To be perfectly fair, it was a good idea to try it.

18 minutes ago, Jman said:

It was an absolute disaster.  Ratings tanked and Peter Griffin was moved back to lead off a month later.

And now, over the past four years, we can make the same conclusion regarding Family Guy as their lead-in show. Unfortunately.

[PokeNirvash]

2 hours ago, Jman said:

A very long time ago Adult Swim did try to have VB as their lead off show instead of Family Guy, basically hoping to do what Rick and Morty did as an in-house cultural smash.

It was an absolute disaster.  Ratings tanked and Peter Griffin was moved back to lead off a month later.

Was this the Season 2 premiere run? I remember it airing pretty early during that time (and even watched some of the premieres live). I also remember it leading the Saturday block when it was just starting out, lasting about two months before swapping places with Futurama.

Spoiler

Convincing my parents to let me watch it alongside Futurama at age 9, while under the pretense that it wasn't Family Guy (which my parents hated despite only one of them watching nine minutes of the pilot), was perhaps the most important turning point in my life.

The lowest common denominator has shit taste, btw.

[Jman]

Quote

The lowest common denominator has shit taste, btw.

Don't see anyone arguing that.  

I do still find it a bit amusing that the second VB finished, Warner started to get Johnny Quest moving again.  "It's over, green light!  Sim Sim Salabin, motherfuckers!"

I still maintain I would like the block to last long enough to adapt if nothing else, the Dynamite Space Ghost comics.  It'd be a very funny full-circle moment going from Tad Ghostal to a genuine Space Ghost story.

 

[Blatch]

On 12/28/2024 at 4:57 AM, Toonamiguy321 said:

Because I can’t imagine many Toonami viewers have AIDS or a broken penis.

Hey now, some of us are taking Zoloft. It's not an issue now, but if I ever want to become more romantically involved, I know who to call.

[Sketch]

Well anyway...

It's the last day of 2024 so here's my 2025 forecasts, there's several ranging from absolutely boring to getting everything I feel I can reasonably ask for as long as Crunchyroll keeps various shows out of reach. But of course this is just some shows I think they might be able to get and Wind Breaker is probably the least likely to be on their radar but maybe it's a Lycoris Recoil situation. Feel free to substitute that with any other feasible Aniplex of America license that can fill 12 weeks.

I didn't include any scenario where Blue Exorcist doesn't continue because I don't want to believe they are giving it the royal treatment right now for nothing but maybe I'm being too optimistic about that. I decided not to punt Fight Girl down to 3am when Rickdub ends but that is certainly a possibility if they have enough new things to fill earlier slots.

I do think DanDaDan is within reach so I include it several times. I'm banking on Dr. Stone Science Future for most of these builds but I made one where even Dr. Stone is off the table. I also made a version where they decide to prioritize getting Sailor Moon R even though I don't actually think that's the best use of money right now. I also have a scenario where they can get a bunch of fresh stuff and also include Sailor Moon R.

Optimistically they're back to 3 premieres by January 25th or mid February but with how they have built the January schedule it would take some abrupt changes to get back to 4 premieres before March.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HT_pmN_L3efCAbopFVuXh2rSJXK6rMqpOJekI54yRFg/edit?usp=sharing

[Mr. Idea Box]

1 hour ago, Sketch said:

Well anyway...

It's the last day of 2024 so here's my 2025 forecasts, there's several ranging from absolutely boring to getting everything I feel I can reasonably ask for as long as Crunchyroll keeps various shows out of reach. But of course this is just some shows I think they might be able to get and Wind Breaker is probably the least likely to be on their radar but maybe it's a Lycoris Recoil situation. Feel free to substitute that with any other feasible Aniplex of America license that can fill 12 weeks.

I didn't include any scenario where Blue Exorcist doesn't continue because I don't want to believe they are giving it the royal treatment right now for nothing but maybe I'm being too optimistic about that. I decided not to punt Fight Girl down to 3am when Rickdub ends but that is certainly a possibility if they have enough new things to fill earlier slots.

I do think DanDaDan is within reach so I include it several times. I'm banking on Dr. Stone Science Future for most of these builds but I made one where even Dr. Stone is off the table. I also made a version where they decide to prioritize getting Sailor Moon R even though I don't actually think that's the best use of money right now. I also have a scenario where they can get a bunch of fresh stuff and also include Sailor Moon R.

Optimistically they're back to 3 premieres by January 25th or mid February but with how they have built the January schedule it would take some abrupt changes to get back to 4 premieres before March.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HT_pmN_L3efCAbopFVuXh2rSJXK6rMqpOJekI54yRFg/edit?usp=sharing

Wow, seven takes on the upcoming year. Let's see what each variation brings us.

Scenario #1: Lazarus, Dr. Stone Science Future, Primal Season 3, Mashle Season 2, more Blue Exorcist, Rooster Fighter, Get Jiro, Swordsmith Village reruns, Toonami loses 3 AM in February.

Scenario #2: Dragon Ball Daima, Lazarus, Dr. Stone Science Future, Primal Season 3, more Blue Exorcist, DanDaDan, Mashle Season 2, Rooster Fighter, Get Jiro, Swordsmith Village reruns, Toonami keeps 3 AM until September.

Scenario #3: Mostly the same as Scenario #1, except Mashle premieres before Primal, they pick up DanDaDan as well, and they keep the 3 AM slot until the Naruto license runs dry.

Scenario #4: A mix between Scenarios #1 and #3, in terms of newer shows to license.

Scenario #5: Lazarus, more Mashle, Wind Breaker, Primal Season 3, DanDaDan, more Blue Exorcist, Rooster Fighter, Demon Slayer Hashira Training, Get Jiro.

Scenario #6: Sailor Moon R airs at 1 AM and bumps Blue Exorcist and One Piece down a slot. Plus Lazarus, Dr. Stone Science Future, Primal Season 3, Mashle Season 2, further Blue Exorcist, Rooster Fighter, and Get Jiro.

Scenario #7: Dragon Ball Daima, Lazarus, Dr. Stone Science Future, Sailor Moon R replacing Fight Girl, Primal Season 3, DanDaDan, more Blue Exorcist, more Mashle, Rooster Fighter, Get Jiro, Toonami gains 3:30 for half the year.

These scenarios are quite sound, and I agree that the last one would be the best way to spend their budget. However, there's one big setback to mention:

My Adventures with Superman is nowhere on this list.

My optimistic side would imagine WB would promote the upcoming theatrical film by releasing the announced third season on Toonami over the summer. Doubly so after Creature Commandos proved itself as a less likely contender for DC Comics in animated form.

But even still, don't be surprised of that show pops up in the Midnight circuit at any point next year. Just putting that out there.

Of course, there's also Fire Force's third season, but I don't think they'll add it to Toonami in 2025 if their January schedule is anything to go by.

[Sketch]

I'm personally hoping MAWS season 3 is coming in 2025 but DC shows take their sweet time so I'm not counting on it to be ready for the movie hype. It can maybe show up for Fall depending on how far along production is right now.

[Jman]

1 hour ago, Sketch said:

I'm personally hoping MAWS season 3 is coming in 2025 but DC shows take their sweet time so I'm not counting on it to be ready for the movie hype. It can maybe show up for Fall depending on how far along production is right now.

We do know they're working on it and we've seen storyboards.  Contrast that with Get Jiro where we haven't seen hide or hair of anything, no designs, no voice actors being confirmed, no nothing.

[Toonamiguy321]

5 hours ago, Sketch said:

It's the last day of 2024 so here's my 2025 forecasts, there's several ranging from absolutely boring to getting everything I feel I can reasonably ask for as long as Crunchyroll keeps various shows out of reach.

Looking at these, is Get Jiro really only just 3 episodes? I know what it’s adapting isn’t that long but that seems like it still really cramming things. And in a contrasting question, is Rooster Fighter really 13? Cause that one sounds like an idea that exhausts its novelty very quickly. 
 

Anyway, among acquired shows, I think the safest bet for 2025 will be more Mashle. If I had more faith in their competence, Blue Exorcist would be too, but it’s not unlike Toonami to do something that looks like it’s leading to a new show, only for them to reveal that was never the plan and they just wanted to waste everyones time. 
 

A notable omission I think you made was Demon Slayer Hashira Training. It’s only 8 episodes so it will make for a good brief time filler, and if we could get Swordsmith in 2024, I think Hashira should be doable in 2025. 
 

Dandadan is probably gonna end up being too hot for them to land. It’s similar to Zom where everyone has it, but this time it’s one of the top shows of 2024, so it’s likely outside their budget to pull off. 
 

I have to wonder for MAWS, will we even get it? The first two seasons were obligated to air on cable. Now that it got a big boy renewal, is anything stopping it from become a Max exclusive? 
 

Whatever the case, it’s about to be a new year, so any announcement embargos will lift by morning. And we just so happen to need a schedule update by this Friday. Let’s hope it’s something. 

[Jman]

Get Jiro is one comic of 163 pages.  The only way it’d be longer than 3 episodes is if they use the prequel Blood and Sushi as additional content.

[Sketch]

2 minutes ago, Jman said:

Get Jiro is one comic of 163 pages.  The only way it’d be longer than 3 episodes is if they use the prequel Blood and Sushi as additional content.

I only had 3 episodes there because it’s 3 usable weeks left in the year. I was expecting 10 eps but now that you mention that, maybe it’s only 3 to 6 eps. And also they probably won’t start a show on AS in December anymore because they don’t take holiday weeks off on Max. They can save Get Jiro till early 2026 unless it ends up being 3-4 episodes total.

Well Guy, you’re not wrong about MAWS season 3 not being guaranteed for Adult Swim and Toonami but I’m remaining optimistic that it won’t be exclusive to Max.

I don’t really expect an announcement this Friday unless it’s for Lazarus coming in February but it sure would be nice to know something is joining on Jan 25th.

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, Sketch said:

I only had 3 episodes there because it’s 3 usable weeks left in the year. I was expecting 10 eps but now that you mention that, maybe it’s only 3 to 6 eps. And also they probably won’t start a show on AS in December anymore because they don’t take holiday weeks off on Max. They can save Get Jiro till early 2026 unless it ends up being 3-4 episodes total.

 

I just don’t see them letting an original suffer the typical holiday marathon delay. As we saw with IFG, they smashed the last 2 episodes into a standard marathon night just so the show would conclude in 2024. So if it does come in 2025, expect it to finish in 2025 as well. 
 

1 hour ago, Sketch said:

I don’t really expect an announcement this Friday unless it’s for Lazarus coming in February but it sure would be nice to know something is joining on Jan 25th.

Well, they have to announce something because R&M ends the week prior. Be it a new premier with IFG moving, a new rerun, or just cutting the slot, they gotta give us some kind of info. 
 

The typical build up time for any AS show is at minimum, 1 month. Common Side Effects is getting over 6 weeks. So if Lazarus is getting the bare minimum, and we assume it’s replacing Mashle, it should be announced by the 15th or so. And then promos for it will run accordingly up till its premier. 

[Sketch]

Or they blank the schedule for Jan 25th and wait another week to reveal anything…

[brianycpht]

6 minutes ago, Sketch said:

Or they blank the schedule for Jan 25th and wait another week to reveal anything…

I’ll believe that mostly because I don’t think people will seriously be back in the office until Monday. But they could’ve had a deal in place ready to go live after the calendar turned to 2025. But I’m not hopeful anything meaningful will be announced. They might just sub Rick in with another rerun or repeat it again 

 

[Sketch]

21 minutes ago, brianycpht said:

I’ll believe that mostly because I don’t think people will seriously be back in the office until Monday. But they could’ve had a deal in place ready to go live after the calendar turned to 2025. But I’m not hopeful anything meaningful will be announced. They might just sub Rick in with another rerun or repeat it again 

 

Yes they very well could repeat RickAniMorty again or maybe do 4 weeks of Uzumaki.

[Jman]

They need to work with what they have.  And if that means kicking off 2025 with 2024's Worst Anime, then so be it.

[OwlChemist81]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Dr. Stone: Future World 1/25/25 at 12:30.

[Toonamiguy321]

2 hours ago, OwlChemist81 said:

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Dr. Stone: Future World 1/25/25 at 12:30.

You know, that’s not a bad guess. Episode 1 drops on 1/9, so that lets the dub get 2-3 episodes ahead which I believe is about where last season started. It’s also not really a lead material show, which would line up with them trusting Mashle there for a few weeks instead. Dr Stone also seems to have some outside influence that trumps Crunchyroll’s vice grip on everything since last season premiered with very little dub delay. And with 3 separate cours for this season, it will reliably come back two more times this year. 
 

If that does end up being the case, we won’t be getting a schedule update tomorrow. Maybe not even the following Friday. 

[Sketch]

3 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

You know, that’s not a bad guess. Episode 1 drops on 1/9, so that lets the dub get 2-3 episodes ahead which I believe is about where last season started. It’s also not really a lead material show, which would line up with them trusting Mashle there for a few weeks instead. Dr Stone also seems to have some outside influence that trumps Crunchyroll’s vice grip on everything since last season premiered with very little dub delay. And with 3 separate cours for this season, it will reliably come back two more times this year. 
 

If that does end up being the case, we won’t be getting a schedule update tomorrow. Maybe not even the following Friday. 

Yeah if it is Dr. Stone then you can bet CR won’t let Toonami say anything till 1-2 weeks before broadcast so they can start streaming episodes before Toonami even hints they will air the show. I suppose that’s the most desirable play the block can feasibly make to look like they have a leg to stand on in 2025.

[brianycpht]

5 minutes ago, Sketch said:

Yeah if it is Dr. Stone then you can bet CR won’t let Toonami say anything till 1-2 weeks before broadcast so they can start streaming episodes before Toonami even hints they will air the show. I suppose that’s the most desirable play the block can feasibly make to look like they have a leg to stand on in 2025.

It’s so weird that they are that worried about a tv block that gets 200k viewers  streaming episodes on a 2-3 week delay.

Do they think people will cancel their 9.99/month service to sign up for cable if they hear Toonami is airing something?

[Toonamiguy321]

3 hours ago, brianycpht said:

It’s so weird that they are that worried about a tv block that gets 200k viewers  streaming episodes on a 2-3 week delay.

Do they think people will cancel their 9.99/month service to sign up for cable if they hear Toonami is airing something?

I don’t think there is any business logic to it, it’s purely an ego thing. At a time long ago, Toonami truly was the king of anime in the west. Crunchyroll wants that title for themselves. And it’s not good enough that the old king is in a retirement home in a wheelchair, they want the old king dead. The Toonami name still carries a lot of respect among anime fans, even if the current schedule is anything but respectable. If one single person thinks “this is on CR, but oh it’s on Toonami too so I’ll watch it there”, that’s too much for them. 
 

Plus, even looking at it from a business standpoint, what does CR gain from working with Toonami? A paltry sum of money for each license? Hardly worth making a show less exclusive. Even looking at some of our allies, the only reason Aniplex works with Toonami is because the current top people at Aniplex like the block. It’s not a logical business choice, it’s just Toonami fans in the correct position of power. 
 

By blocking content CR was a large contributor to Rewind dying. And the current disastrous state of Saturday won’t be good for its longevity, even if this Dr Stone theory works out. It’s a grind, but killing Toonami is what CR wants. 

[brianycpht]

25 minutes ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

I don’t think there is any business logic to it, it’s purely an ego thing. At a time long ago, Toonami truly was the king of anime in the west. Crunchyroll wants that title for themselves. And it’s not good enough that the old king is in a retirement home in a wheelchair, they want the old king dead. The Toonami name still carries a lot of respect among anime fans, even if the current schedule is anything but respectable. If one single person thinks “this is on CR, but oh it’s on Toonami too so I’ll watch it there”, that’s too much for them. 
 

Plus, even looking at it from a business standpoint, what does CR gain from working with Toonami? A paltry sum of money for each license? Hardly worth making a show less exclusive. Even looking at some of our allies, the only reason Aniplex works with Toonami is because the current top people at Aniplex like the block. It’s not a logical business choice, it’s just Toonami fans in the correct position of power. 
 

By blocking content CR was a large contributor to Rewind dying. And the current disastrous state of Saturday won’t be good for its longevity, even if this Dr Stone theory works out. It’s a grind, but killing Toonami is what CR wants. 

Which probably is why they’ll work with Netflix and Hulu- they’ll get a lot more money and reach those streamers who probably wouldn’t sub to their service, but may be converted if they want to continue the binge of the show they started on another service. 

With Toonami, we are down to the faithful of the faithful , we’ll hang back and just wait for whenever the block gets around to airing something because we want the block to be interesting to us. We’ve all been burned by watching a show and then finding out the block picked it up. I think the blocks viewers are people like us and those who are so casual about anime that they’ll never sub to a dedicated service for it. CR doesn’t get much from the deal. 
 

The blocks now suffers from 2 issues 

- For years, they could get big shows  at bargain basement pricing out of goodwill. That’s no longer the case and AS will not allow them to spend anything more for those big shows

- which leads to problem 2, they won’t go after anything other than big shows because they only want something that they have prior data on or is such a big name that is a ratings slam dunk. Other than that, a familiar name will always beat out an unknown show. That’s why they will always go after a Lupin or Gundam over anything else. Those shows may be mild performers, but they have data that ensures they’ll get the mild ratings vs the chance of a bomb
 

The expectation of Cheap Price= Big Show= Big Ratings is still there despite reality changing. So until the attitude of programming changes, we’re stuck in this pattern of waiting for CR to go back to Funimation’s charity 

[Toonamiguy321]

2 hours ago, brianycpht said:

With Toonami, we are down to the faithful of the faithful , we’ll hang back and just wait for whenever the block gets around to airing something because we want the block to be interesting to us. We’ve all been burned by watching a show and then finding out the block picked it up. I think the blocks viewers are people like us and those who are so casual about anime that they’ll never sub to a dedicated service for it. CR doesn’t get much from the deal. 

Even the faithful have their limits. Every time we see the schedule hit a new low it’s a breaking point for some to finally make the call to drop the block. A lot of fence riders would have a “it’s bad now but will get better” mindset, but recently years make it incredibly obvious it will only just slowly get worse, and even many die hard casuals are waking up to this. We are here talking about a best case scenario where the block returns to 3 premiers, one of which is One Piece. It’s not hard for people to make the decision. And you just know the higher ups are eager to see a ratings dip so they can squeeze a little more Fox time on Saturdays. 
 

2 hours ago, brianycpht said:

The blocks now suffers from 2 issues 

- For years, they could get big shows  at bargain basement pricing out of goodwill. That’s no longer the case and AS will not allow them to spend anything more for those big shows

- which leads to problem 2, they won’t go after anything other than big shows because they only want something that they have prior data on or is such a big name that is a ratings slam dunk. Other than that, a familiar name will always beat out an unknown show. That’s why they will always go after a Lupin or Gundam over anything else. Those shows may be mild performers, but they have data that ensures they’ll get the mild ratings vs the chance of a bomb

The unfortunate thing is, Crunchyroll’s strategy of simply starving the block of content till it dies wouldn’t work at all if they were more open to lesser shows from Sentai, Aniplex, etc. If it’s new to Toonami and not a top 10 pile of shit, people will watch it. 

Instead we get to sit here and watch them fill it to the brim with reruns, which will cause a ratings nosedive, which will cause cuts. But I guess given the current situation, is a 2 hour Toonami really any different than the mess we have now? 

[Jman]

It does feel like an ego thing, on both ends.  We're all well aware of DeMarco's vision of a "bespoke" action block, free of fanservice and overly stereotypical elements (this only really became a thing after Adult Swim Action I find), but beggars can't be choosers, and with Cartoon Network, last I heard, in about half the homes it was pre-pandemic, on top of pretty much every single Toonami original anime either a critical failure or caught in an endless web of legal problems, it's just becoming stubborn.  DeMarco is not the type of person to want to air Ya Boi Komining, Is It Wrong to PIck Up Girls in a Dungeon? and especially not Chained Soldier.  But it's his block and he makes the rules.

Meanwhile, it's kind of understandable why Crunchyroll might be loathe to work with Toonami, they were sold off unceremoniously by Zaslav and gave Sony a near de-facto monopoly on anime in the US, with their only real competitors at this point Hulu and Netflix.  It's difficult to want to cross that divide that they put up.   

And it's not like Warner is helping either.  They could theoretically hand over some new programming to Toonami, but they've chosen to put all their chips on Max, since unlike cable, Max seemingly has potential for expansion, rather than the contraction that has faced their linear channels.  Remember, late last year, Zaslav began restructuring the company to possibly divest from their cable channels, and this year started with all of their sports programming now officially available on Max, even All Elite Wrestling.  

2025 is going to be a rough year, but I think the bigger question isn't if "Toonami dies", but rather "Does Adult Swim's primary focus remain a linear cable block, or does it become more of a brand for Max originals?"

[brianycpht]

3 hours ago, Jman said:

It does feel like an ego thing, on both ends.  We're all well aware of DeMarco's vision of a "bespoke" action block, free of fanservice and overly stereotypical elements (this only really became a thing after Adult Swim Action I find), but beggars can't be choosers, and with Cartoon Network, last I heard, in about half the homes it was pre-pandemic, on top of pretty much every single Toonami original anime either a critical failure or caught in an endless web of legal problems, it's just becoming stubborn.  DeMarco is not the type of person to want to air Ya Boi Komining, Is It Wrong to PIck Up Girls in a Dungeon? and especially not Chained Soldier.  But it's his block and he makes the rules.

Meanwhile, it's kind of understandable why Crunchyroll might be loathe to work with Toonami, they were sold off unceremoniously by Zaslav and gave Sony a near de-facto monopoly on anime in the US, with their only real competitors at this point Hulu and Netflix.  It's difficult to want to cross that divide that they put up.   

And it's not like Warner is helping either.  They could theoretically hand over some new programming to Toonami, but they've chosen to put all their chips on Max, since unlike cable, Max seemingly has potential for expansion, rather than the contraction that has faced their linear channels.  Remember, late last year, Zaslav began restructuring the company to possibly divest from their cable channels, and this year started with all of their sports programming now officially available on Max, even All Elite Wrestling.  

2025 is going to be a rough year, but I think the bigger question isn't if "Toonami dies", but rather "Does Adult Swim's primary focus remain a linear cable block, or does it become more of a brand for Max originals?"

I blame Kim Manning and her programming department for being too close minded to “what can get the ratings”

They only want the “big popular” shows and they are too expensive, hard to get, and if they can get them- too late to the party

They need a new mindset 

[Jman]

In Kim's (MINOR) defense, Netflix, Crunchyroll, and Hulu don't have to deal with Standards and Practices.

And that's ultimately what it boils down to.  This isn't exactly a fair fight.  I know I live in New York and New York is weird, but I can't explain a deli by me showing random things from Hulu during the lunch rush, including of all things, My Hero Academia.  Linear television does not have that option.  If they're going to air niche products, they need to air them at the ass crack of midnight lest they get an angry email because a parent complained about dem Japanese cartoons being watched by an impressionable child.  

It's one thing if they didn't have those restrictions, but they do, and they're pretty notable in what they allow and prohibit.  And we rag on this block A TON, but it is held together by duct tape and dreams at this point.  Putting together something coherent with the refried leftovers from Cartoon Network and old licensing contracts before streaming took over is commendable.  Reality hits a lot of the desires for the block hard, and while there's no need to fanboy over the block, it is relatively impressive.

Edited Friday at 05:27 PM by Jman

[Toonamiguy321]

1 hour ago, Jman said:

In Kim's (MINOR) defense, Netflix, Crunchyroll, and Hulu don't have to deal with Standards and Practices.

And that's ultimately what it boils down to.  This isn't exactly a fair fight.  I know I live in New York and New York is weird, but I can't explain a deli by me showing random things from Hulu during the lunch rush, including of all things, My Hero Academia.  Linear television does not have that option.  If they're going to air niche products, they need to air them at the ass crack of midnight lest they get an angry email because a parent complained about dem Japanese cartoons being watched by an impressionable child.  

It's one thing if they didn't have those restrictions, but they do, and they're pretty notable in what they allow and prohibit.  And we rag on this block A TON, but it is held together by duct tape and dreams at this point.  Putting together something coherent with the refried leftovers from Cartoon Network and old licensing contracts before streaming took over is commendable.  Reality hits a lot of the desires for the block hard, and while there's no need to fanboy over the block, it is relatively impressive.

I don’t think we can really blame S&P here. Let’s gauge out the vague upper limits for content from things we had in the past. Kill la Kill was about as sexy as things have ever gotten, so things can be extremely close to nudity, just so long as there are no nipples. As we heard about the Fujiko Mine special, if there are too many nipples, they don’t want to do the work needed to blur them. Fair enough. 
 

So looking at your previous examples, Chained Soldier would be a no go, not because of the content, but because we get to see boobs too often over the course of the show. But something like Danmachi should be fair game, because despite its fanservice levels, we never actually see any nipples. There are significantly more action titles in the Sentai catalog with Danmachi levels of acceptable fanservice than there are Chained Soldier full nudity shows. 
 

Other factors don’t matter much to AS. I don’t think there is any upper limit for violence, and Black Lagoon is one of the harshest dialog dubs on the market which they seemed fine with just bleeping hundreds of times. 

[Sketch]

Dr. Stone on January 25th is plenty likely enough but come to think of it so is Daima for January 25th. In both case they'd be 2 weeks behind CR (if Dr. Stone is a same-day dub).

What I'm pondering is how they might shift things around to make room for either of those before Mashle season 1 ends. I honestly don't want them to bury IFG at 3am if they have nothing else to air ahead of it but Dressrosa One Piece and other reruns.

I think this would be a good compromise...

12:00 AM - Dr. Stone Science Future / Dragon Ball Daima
12:30 AM - Mashle
01:00 AM - Invincible Fight Girl
01:30 AM - Blue Exorcist
02:00 AM - One Piece
02:30 AM - Dragon Ball Z Kai
03:00 AM - Naruto

And on February 22nd Lazarus replaces Mashle causing this shift

12:00 AM - Lazarus
12:30 AM - Dr. Stone Science Future / Dragon Ball Daima
01:00 AM - Invincible Fight Girl
01:30 AM - Blue Exorcist
02:00 AM - One Piece
02:30 AM - Dragon Ball Z Kai
03:00 AM - Naruto

But preferably they have this when Lazarus joins (option A)

12:00 AM - Lazarus
12:30 AM - Dragon Ball Daima
01:00 AM - Dr. Stone Science Future
01:30 AM - Invincible Fight Girl (will be replaced with a premiere on March 22nd)
02:00 AM - Blue Exorcist
02:30 AM - One Piece
03:00 AM - Dragon Ball Z Kai
03:30 AM - Naruto

Or this (option B)

12:00 AM - Lazarus
12:30 AM - Dragon Ball Daima
01:00 AM - Dr. Stone Science Future
01:30 AM - Blue Exorcist
02:00 AM - One Piece
02:30 AM - Invincible Fight Girl (maybe replaced by Sailor Moon on March 22nd)
03:00 AM - Dragon Ball Z Kai
03:30 AM - Naruto

I have also been rethinking my year projections with regards to Get Jiro and My Adventures with Superman.

I think Get Jiro has to start earlier than December unless it's just 4 episodes because Max won't take a break. Lack of concrete information has me leaning toward a late 2025 broadcast if its not in 2026 so it's basically November or nothing without a break for Thanksgiving.

It may be overly ambitious to expect it, but Superman potentially could return by June. Fall is a more reasonable expectation but we really have no idea how far along that is. But if it is coming in by Summer then maybe RickAniMorty will get replaced by reruns of the first two seasons. It's not the most optimal place to rerun the show leading up to a season 3 premiere but it is somewhere they could toss it on without much concern. I'm sure none of us would prefer that over getting a premiere earlier in the block but it is none the less an option.

And regarding Lazarus, while February 22nd certainly seems feasible, international PR tipped us off on Ninja Kamui and so far nothing has been said about Lazarus airing in February, reports from international network only mention Common Side Effects will air in February. That said, it only takes a week of buying time to make March the month Lazarus premieres and they have various ways of stalling a week. I fully expect them to finish Lazarus by May 24th and it could have either a 2 episode premiere or a 2 episode finale between March 1st and May 24th. I doubtt they can resist the urge to marathon all 13 episodes over 2 weeks much like Ninja Kamui last year. They'll probably do the same with Rooster Fighter later in the year.

[Jman]

Hehe…oops.

They’re definitely using Blood and Sushi to pad the run time.

[brianycpht]

7 minutes ago, Jman said:

Hehe…oops.

They’re definitely using Blood and Sushi to pad the run time.

Jiro might be ready very soon then 

 

is that mutant show Toonami material or a comedy show?

[Toonamiguy321]

2 hours ago, Sketch said:

Dr. Stone on January 25th is plenty likely enough but come to think of it so is Daima for January 25th. In both case they'd be 2 weeks behind CR (if Dr. Stone is a same-day dub).

 

I think we can confidently write of Daima, at least for this schedule cycle. Why? Because if that was the show, Mashle would not have moved to midnight. They would have gladly torpedoed viewership for a few weeks with IFG reruns at midnight if Daima was in the wings. Mashle moving up is one of our biggest hints here. 
 

2 hours ago, Sketch said:

I honestly don't want them to bury IFG at 3am if they have nothing else to air ahead of it but Dressrosa One Piece and other reruns.

It’s hardly “being buried” beyond an optics standpoint. It literally just aired to completion at midnight. No other rerun has been given the luxury of a full rerun that early, 3am is where it belongs. I don’t care much for One Piece but IFG scaring the audience off (because they just watched the show) isn’t fair to it. OP barely is surviving BE reruns, and that’s been off for 10 years. 
 

We shouldn’t rely on leaks as a consistent source of info. Odds are when Ninja Kamui leaked, AS patched up that hole so it wouldn’t happen again. We are still in the first days of January, so any original still has a little bit of time left to be revealed in the typical window. 
 

57 minutes ago, brianycpht said:

Jiro might be ready very soon then 

 

is that mutant show Toonami material or a comedy show?

For lack of a better comparison, it’s Mashle without Mash kicking people’s teeth in. Same vague Harry Potter parody but it’s exclusively comedy. Mostly PG comedy, I’m really surprised it’s an AS thing at all. It would be incredibly out of place on Toonami, but I don’t put it past them shoving it on there just so they have to license one less show. 

Edited Sunday at 12:49 AM by Toonamiguy321
Tweet was from June and not new

[Jman]

I get having Boring Kinnikuman since Kinnikuman wasn’t really an option, but why do we need Boring Mashle when we have Mashle?

[PokeNirvash]

Because when it comes down to it, at least it's not Annoying Mashle.

 

[brianycpht]

1 hour ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Get Jiro was apparently a “grind in silence” deal cause we haven’t heard a peep about it, but now it looks like it’s close to completion, if not fully ready to air. I still think Lazarus will be first, but it looks like Get Jiro has the potential to take that Mashle slot. 

Do we even know that THAT is even coming to Toonami? Or is it another thing that’s “too cool” for the block?

[Jman]

43 minutes ago, PokeNirvash said:

Because when it comes down to it, at least it's not Annoying Mashle.

 

Yeah but to be fair the Black Clover movie was also the second most popular movie in the world on Netflix the week it came out.  That is quite the feat.

[Sketch]

5 hours ago, brianycpht said:

Do we even know that THAT is even coming to Toonami? Or is it another thing that’s “too cool” for the block?

They might not get the premieres but it will probably air on the block.

If it’s really ready soon then it will probably wait till Common Side Effects has been on for at least a month or end up as that show’s replacement.

I don’t see it pushing Lazarus till later in the year but I suppose it is possible if it’s ready to air now.

[brianycpht]

5 minutes ago, Sketch said:

They might not get the premieres but it will probably air on the block.

If it’s really ready soon then it will probably wait till Common Side Effects has been on for at least a month or end up as that show’s replacement.

I don’t see it pushing Lazarus till later in the year but I suppose it is possible if it’s ready to air now.

It’s bad enough when you have distributors starve the block of content, but I really font like it when its own network doesn’t give the block premieres when it REALLY needs premiere content. They should be doing everything they can to help it out 

[Toonamiguy321]

8 hours ago, brianycpht said:

Do we even know that THAT is even coming to Toonami? Or is it another thing that’s “too cool” for the block?

I suppose we don’t. I know nothing at all about the series, but from the assumptions I gather from the cover art, I assumed the getting of Jiro was action oriented.