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Adult Swim Revamps; Removes Most Anime
E. Megas writes "According to a Collegiate Presswire story, Cartoon Network (Probably due to its recent acquisition of Futurama) is expanding its Adult Swim schedule to Monday through Thursday starting January 12th. The "Comedy" block on Sundays will stay, but except for Inu-Yasha and Cowboy Bebop (Which will replace the Toonami Midnight Run block on the weekday slots) the Saturday "Action" block will be gone. This means that the legendary series Mobile Suit Gundam will not be aired in full for the second time in a row on CN. Future airings of Yuu Yuu Hakusho and Outlaw Star-And the planned re-airing of Gundam 0080: War In the Pocket-Are thrown into doubt by this decision as well. More schedule details in the article. (Anyone else as frustrated by this as I am?)"
Futurama was the only thing worth reading about in that article. What is it with you god damn nerds and anime?
Exactly how is "Mobile Suit Gundam" legendary ? Let us not cheapen words. Its like the newspaper headlines which say that "this is an historic moment for America", for even the most commonplace events.
I really liked the Brak show. Hopefully I'll be able to get it on dvd some day! And NO I didn't read the article... Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80004005' [Microsoft][ODBC Microsoft Access 97 Driver] Too many client tasks. //global.asa, line 33
Not to be a troll or anything, but I'm glad to see the anime go. I prefer cartoons like Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law and The Oblongs
Hear hear. The name "Adult Swim" (kids out of the pool) never really fit, since besides Cowboy Bebop all the listed shows are for children.
(Maybe they're marginally more mature than the programming American kids get, but not by much. Gundam is still an extra-long toy ad)
To be honest, I'd take Futurama over Anime any day of the week. Openly, and readily. Without question. Yes.
I've learned recently that Anime rather annoys me. It's all too cliched these days, what with seeing it every which way you look in some way shape or form.
And then you have the people who know the names of every character from every series and can link every relationship in every way shape or form. And... yeah, that's migrane-inducing after about 10 minutes.
Informatus Technologicus
Cartoon Network may be one of the only places where you can get your anime fix on cable, but their overediting and bad dub jobs are notorious among hardcore fans. I'd much rather watch Futurama than that terrible edited version of Outlaw Star they air, or god forbid, more photoshopped Tenchi.
Maybe they could add a Saturday Action block that was subtitled. Adults can read, right?
If there is a God, you are an authorized representative. - Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
S/He isn't a troll, this is a valid point.
The legends of our times will be marked by those who come after us. To go around declaring things of our own legendary.. It's pointless. It's cheap. It's like calling Linus Torvalds or Bill Gates legendary.
Will they be remembered in five or ten generations? Maybe. That's not for us to decide, however.
If you want to call something legendary, go talk about Arthurian lore. Maybe Shakespeare's plays, even.
I disagree with the parent's explanitory use of historic, however. Certainly, Microsoft's monopoly is a historic thing, likewise is Linus' bringing open source to the masses. Mobile Suit Gundam, even, was a historic point for anime.
True anime may have showed up here and there in the mainstream, but it lacks the appeal of American we-want-to-sell-toys cartoons, save for a few lousy watered down anime-based shows such as Pokemon, etc.
It's no huge surprise that Cartoon Network is cancelling those shows, as the fanbase in mainstream America simply isn't large enough to support such a small group of Anime fans, as obsessive as they are.
Let me guess, the only TV series you've ever seen are those shown on CN. Its time for you to be introduced to Rurouni Kenshin, Evangelion, or a number of other excellent series (X is a new favorite). Not many movies can compare to the experience of following a series of 26+ episodes from beginning to end. Wings of Honneneise and Grave of Fireflies are possible exceptions, but they are true masterpieces.
This is the only reason to watch adult swim.
Save the World! Use a Quote!
I'm not paying $40 a month and then a few extra bucks per 'special bonus pack', of which I doubt the History Channel and various Food Networks are included in the same.
If Sci-Fi still had decent shows, and Cartoon Network didn't slaughter all anime, I'd consider picking up cable again. As it stands, Sci-Fi has degenerated into drek (Lexx? The Dune Mockery?), and Cartoon Network shows poor quality dubbing.
If you want to see how bad dubbing can be, just look at Shinseiki Evangelion. (Any Japanese speakers out there, native speakers? I can't find any reference for Shinseiki being translated to 'Neon Genesis'..)
The first episode, I believe, Misato, What's Her Face, and Shinji are on a lift, talking of an Eva activation test:
English: "It's Oni, a Japanese devil." This makes absolutely no sense.
Japanese, with Subbing: "It's 0.9, not zero." Hey, a percentage of success - now that makes sense.
Look at Gundam Wing. "Self Detonation this, Self Detonation that!" The subs seem to refer to something called 'self destruction', however, which seems to be the proper term for exploding oneself.
Now, I'm no moronic fanboy. I don't sit around whining at ADV for translating various bits of Kanji into English, when I can't even read Kanji. But such blatant mistranslation of the dialogue in anime can totally warp the story into something it isn't.
The reason the action block is being removed is that Cartoon Network found that a large number of kids were watching the block. The purpose of 'Adult Swim' was to have animated programming on the air that was aimed at adults. The ratings they were getting said that a lot larger block of kids were watching the Saturday night programming, thus the change to the 'school night' lineup. Granted, they have those unnecessarily long warning, but they have to show this because otherwise stupid parents would complain (and probably did anyway), and because Cartoon Network is still filed under a kids programming station.
The purpose of Adult Swim is to help Cartoon Network transition from kid's programming to an over-all entertainment network. The expansion of the Adult Swim franchise should be seen as a good thing, especially seeing that Futurama will be added to the weekly block. I think there's a lot more of us that will appreciate Futurama having a regular home than those who cared about the animes listed above.
I know I'll sure enjoy seeing Futurama every weeknight, and as long as the Sunday block is left alone, I'll be alright. The real issue with the new schedule that I have is whether Space Ghost is still on the Sunday block or not.
You're only as smart as your brain.
Can anyone find an email address to contact these people at? I can't seem to find one on their web site.
Not that I'm deluded enough to think that they'll actually care about what I have to say, but the anime geeks at my college were the ones largely responsible for having the campus subscribe to CN, and I have a funny feeling that then the next channel survey comes up, I'm guessing they're going to be rated rather lowly.
And yeah, American cartoons are so much better: Filled with ego-maniacs, stuttering pigs, slurring cats, gender-ambiguous birds, etc., etc. I'm really not a wannabe asian, and saying that anime is a gateway to pedophilia is a little like saying drinking mountain dew is a gateway to cocaine; I do however appreciate a good story ark, and producing shows that are more than degenerate collections of insipid one-liners is something that Americans absolutely suck at.
So anyway, does anyone actually have a contact email address for these guys?
You could have gotten it back if you didn't waste another 20+ seconds to post that.
Does it effect the hardcore? No, they've probably got the DVDs, videos, or DiVX copies.
... Why should that be frustrating?
Does it effect the casual fan? No, if you're a casual fan and they stop showing them then it just fades away in your memory. If you really miss it, buy the DVDs or whatever, otherwise just forget it.
The only people I can see this really effecting is the average non-fan whom the anime geeks of the world wish would get wise to anime. The only "frustrating" thing is that anime is no longer as extensively offered to those who don't care for it enough to seek it out.
Just because you LOVE anime, and think anyone with any sense whatsoever SHOULD LOVE anime doesn't mean it's Cartoon Network's duty to expose it to them, and frankly a large segment of western culture will never get into anime, and would much rather watch the Oblongs, Futurama, Undergrads, or whatever. All I'm saying is - Let them.
...Also, I didn't know Buggalo could fly.
Like calling every woman entertainer a "diva". No, Britney Spears is not a "diva".
... So I wouldn't have to be subjected to this foolishness?
I mean "Anime in the US Market", but let me clarify: It's singlehandedly the biggest growth market of home video (my local suncoast devotes 2 ENTIRE shelves to it, only 1 to sci-fi...), but there's a huge amount of saturation going on, and the new stuff doesn't seem to be resonating with the average US viewer. (In my personal opinion) I've got a group of friends and for about the past 3 years, we've been watching whole anime series at the rate of 2 a week. We went through Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop, Lodoss War, and a whole TON of Ranma. But I can't get them interested in the new stuff like Love Hina, His and Her Cicrumstances, and I was told in no uncertain terms to never show FLCL again. But we all went out to see Spirited Away together last week. So obviously we're not tired of it, but we're becoming more finicky about what we watch.
I think Anime has established itself as a viable medium here in the US, and its not going to go away anytime soon, but I also think its audience growth has plateaued and the marketplace is looking for the next "big thing". Just like the SciFi channel is doing by moving to supernatural stories and dropping the "Science" from their station, because for some reason, the geek audience isn't enough...
(Maybe because we're not slaves to advertising...)
I was unfamiliar with anime, and jumped at the oportunity to use Adult Swim as a starting point. Taped and watched it for a month or so.
And -- it sucks! Why do people love this stuff? With the exception of Cowboy Bebop, which has a nice style and tone, I can't for the life of me see the appeal of it.
And a couple of nights ago, DragonballZ turned up on Cartoon Network. And that's even worse!
I'm a Japanophile, taught English there for a while, still love Godzilla, Ultraman and Shonen Knife and still cook Japanese food. But anime? Just not for me, I guess.
Maybe some network will pick up Nelton Club or Gilgamesh...
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
Seriously, everything that has been cut was nearing its natural end of life; Gundam is the only one that hasn't been on that long. Also, try to remember that Cartoon Network is going from showing 3 hours of Adult Swim anime to 5. It's pretty likely that Cowboy Bebop will be replaced by another new acquision soon, given the fact that the 26 episodes will be repeating every 5 weeks on the new shedule.
"Reality is just a convenient measure of complexity" -Alvy Ray Smith
children's shows?
sealab 2021, home movies, oblongs, and now futurama are among the only watchable things on television.
most of the anime on tv is uninspired shite.
Adult swim isnt just anime. Shows like harvey birdman: attorney at law, and Sealab 2021 are hilarious shows with many adult only jokes, and many jokes that only adults would get.
Moderation Totals: Flamebait=2, Troll=1, Redundant=1, Insightful=6, Overrated=1, Underrated=1, Total=12. (not mine)
Indeed they are. It's about time they get rid of more anime crap. Maybe there can be some other channel that shows "we worked for three year on just this frame and still only managed a half-arsed representation of a huma" cartoons, saving time on cartoon network for cartoons that focus on entertaining plots. :)
Not that animated semi-nudity or three-day fight sequences are bad, but I sure don't like having to think to enjoy TV...
true dat,
I can see some of the sex scene cuts just because the channel is otherwise child oriented (and not likely to be on the parental block list) But for goodness sakes, editing the blood out of scenes! cripes even the simpsons show a little blood from time time to time.
I'd pay access fees for a varied all anime network.
Gundam Wing is on par with Ender's Game. I wish they still showed it here in America.
Personally, I don't believe that Cartoon Network has enough cartoons under their belt that they can avoid to cut any from their lineup. They can't show DBZ 24 hours a day, no matter how much they'd like to. If they were really on the ball, they'd fire up a new channel and show everything they can get their hands on.
A channel devoted to nothing but cartoons was risky at best, because the target audience has so little spending money of their own, and there's only so many action figures Mommy will buy for Junior. Despite that, Cartoon Network has been a success. They draw a much larger audience than they probably ever would've imagined, and the fact that they ever had a block called "Adult Swim" shows that they recognize this fact.
I'll paraphrase what a friend said, back when Cartoon Network fired up Adult Swim. He said, "they're probably just doing a test to see if there's enough draw to start a new channel." I'd be willing to bet that he was right. The various Anime series range from silly (Hamtaro) to action packed (DBZ) to very deep and artful (Tenchi), and those examples are chosen from series that Cartoon Network has already shown. There are many more series that the average new Anime viewer doesn't even know about yet and that would be great to put on American TV.
Even better, they wouldn't have to restrict the new channel to Cartoons, which means there's no fear of it being labeled a "kid's" network, which means they can market edgier shows with less editing. Niche channels can do very well, especially when there's a larger, more established sister channel to depend on (see SciFi/USA). Some shows they could try for have already been mentioned, such as Dr. Katz. They have Futurama. They could try and pick up the old Upright Citizen's Brigade episodes, pick up Red Dwarf, MST3K, and the list goes on and on. At the very least, it'd be a better idea than Boomerang.
most of it does suck, and most people like it because they think there image requires them to like it.
However, some of it is just fantastic. I highly recommend watching Cowboy Bepop with subtitles. Once you get the hang of it, it become pretty seemless. The Cowboy Bebop dubbing is pretty good, but the original voice tones are more suited to the series.
In short, its just like any other genre, most sucks, some is good.
I also recommend Vampire Hunter D and Project A-ko(which is pretty funny, but you need to pay attention to the details.)
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Please don't judge anime by what gets shown on Cartoon Network! While I enjoy watching DBZ for comic relief, it's not quality anything.
/. and AnimeFu.
For good anime watch Cowboy Bebop (space/western/music), Trigun (space/western), Kenshin (samurai/swordfighting), Macross Plus (space/music), Slayers (fantasy/humor), Love Hina (romance), Spirited Away (in theaters now!), or others advocated on
Also, watch shows that are subtitled. I'm no purest (I already said that I watch DBZ!), but (a) it sounds like you already know Japanese, and (b) american voice acting sounds fake. Maybe Japanese voices sound fake to Japanese audiences, but the emotions conveyed by the original voice actors are infinitely more believable than their low-cost dubbing counterparts.
Finally, be willing to accept a little weirdness. Anime has a rich visual lexicon, and it takes a while to get used to the conventions (especially the tendency switch between high- and low-quality drawing styles).
Also, and I say this in all seriousness, a lot of anime contains suggestive humor or situations. Be prepared for panty flashes and that sort of thing, and don't let it ruin the show for you. It sort of goes with the territory. ^_^;
(You forgot to mention transgenderism!)
Sailor Moon will always be a kid's show. The uncensored version had some occasional bits that conventional American families found objectionable- their loss.
Nudity and sexuality aren't evil, twisting choice pieces of a religion into entertainment is commonplace, and large scale violence (99% consequence free!) is an accepted staple of Saturday morning cartoons. Adult fans like to cling to those elements as proof that they're not really watching 24 minutes of commericals for pink plastic jewlery, but they're in denial.
The only part of Sailor Moon that I would hesitate to show to American youngsters is something you didn't mention- because of drastically different firearms ownership laws in Japan and the US, portrayl of kids playing with a real-looking toy gun might be a safety-hazard in America. (Or an invitation for a lawsuit)
Although I'm sad to see the Anime go from adult swim, I believe it's going for a reason.
The big problem that I saw with it was that CN appeared to take the easiest and safest way out when it came to the shows they selected. They looked for shows that were pretty much dubbed already and threw them into a sat. night block. MGS has been translated (badly) for years now. Yu Yu Hakusho, although translated pretty well, is nowhere near as harsh as the actual show Was.
I would like to see Trigun, Bezerk, Slayers, Lodoss War or Hellsing here, but I know it would never happen and what would happen to it if it did. For Example Trigun has too many guns so you risk some kid blowing his head off cause he thinks he's Vash (Or as I like to refer to it, SKS - Stupid Kid Syndrome). Hellsing Would make the Christian Coailation go Insane, Would be edited to death because of all the Violence, blood and raw gore, and again back to SKS.
Like Cowboy Bebop? Good. There's a boatload of anime that is similar to it. maybe not with the same amount of charm or style, but identical when it comes to the action, gunfighting and the like. The American Viewer Seems to like the "Gunfighting, Die-Hard/Dirty Harry like, action packed, one man killing Spree" genre so give it to them instead of stuff the're not interested in at this time.
Oh. And finally, I know that almost all Recent anime anymore is either a CardCaptor Anime, (YuGiOh, Fighting Foodons, Cardcaptors, ETC) or a Pocket Monster Anime (Transformers Armada, Pokemon, Digimon, ETC). Unfortunatly this stuff is coming over here because it puts SKS to a good use when it comes to getting the Kid To spend their Parents money. Don't Judge anime based on these. There is a Lot of stuff out there that will appeal to just about anyone. You just have to go looking for it.
In Soviet Russia, Trojan exploits YOU!
and i hate to say it, but the addition of inu yasha to the lineup makes the disclusion of gundam (or most other big robot series) seem like a HOLY BOLT FROM THE HAND OF JESUS, as far as i'm concerned (and i've watched quite a bit of anime).
anybody who posts "well, the only one i liked was cowboy bebop" has their head in the right place, but inu yasha will change your mind-- unless, of course, it's dubbed so terribly that all the characters are somehow dull and obnoxious at the same time.
as for those who say they "don't like" anime... to somebody who knows what they're talking about, that's like saying "i don't like fruit"... you've obviously only tried the bad ones.
grizzo: totally insecure, but very convenient.
The humor in AS Sunday is better described as absurdist than adolescent. Lamenting the comparison to South Park is kind of elitest; I'm a pretty smart guy and I really enjoy Aqua Team Hunger Force, SeaLab 2021, and Home Movie. Sure, they finance this kind of humor because of South Park's success, but it's still a lot better than Friends, the Simpsons, or any other shit on network TV.
-Brian
"Faith strikes me as intellectual laziness." -Robert A. Heinlen
I get enough 'soap operas' on daytime TV and switching past the SOAP channel. Anime seems so similar to me; I just don't enjoy it- there's so much backstory...and all the flashy radiants that occur when someone says something profound cheapens it for me.
Now, if Neil Gaiman does Sandman in Anime, I'm buying the CD set!
And some of the cartoons on AS are kinda dumb...even if they have hilarious dialog. A couple of nights ago I saw a meatball set fire to the neighbor's yard...and a milkshake get abducted by Germanic aliens. It's ugly, but it's funny and absurd....and most importantly: Not been done to death!
And as boring as it might sound, I like the Katz-esque cartoon a lot. I could watch it like we did Seinfeld when it first came out. What's it called? The one with Coach Mc Gurk...
"I don't know, Brandon...it never came up..."
Of course, I'm probably in the minority...AND I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING FUTURAMA FOR A CHANGE! I kept missing it when it was on mainstream TV somehow...
--- For a good time mail uce@ftc.gov
glut of content
Cartoon Network needs to spin the anime to a new Anime Network. They could run pokecrap and hamstertron and such during the day, then more action and adult type stuff later at night.
One thing to remember is that what people tend to call "Anime" is made up of shows with a wide veriety of target audiences. With american cartoons (and, unfortunately, most american dubs of anime) the target audience is almost always children. Anime is a style that isn't culturally limited to kids, so you will find anime aimed at many different groups, ranging from kids (DragonballZ, Pokemon) to teens (Inu-Yasha), to adults (Cowboy Bebop), to... err... other adults (anything described as Hentai). You need to find something that isn't targeted at young children in order to fully enjoy it. The problem with Cartoon Network Anime is that they don't seem to grasp this concept when they're editing and dubbing the non-kiddie anime (or, perhaps, they grasp too well what their likely audience will end up being instead of what it was intended to be), so they try to dumb it down so that a child can understand it. This includes childlike intonation and voice acting with absolutely no depth, some of the more complex sub-plots removed, and just generally sucking all the life and joy out of a series. They didn't quite succeed with Cowboy Bebop, but they came close enough that I just can't stand to watch their version.
My advice to people who are wondering about Anime is this:
1) Try to get advice from someone who's taste you trust on what series are good. Failing that, get advice from several people whos age and interests are known. (For me, 22 and comedy/scifi/fantasy)
2) 90% of anything is crap, and Anime is no exception. Unless you're one of those strange people who are obsessed with the drawing style, you may end up finding several bad series before you find one good one.
3) A good dub is better than a sub, but a bad dub is a horror that will completely ruin a show. Considering I've only seen one show with what I would consider a good dub (Ranma 1/2), stick to subs.
4) Not all Anime is suitable for young children. If something is described as Hentai, its esentially an animated porn film.
For the record, I'd tend to recommend Cowboy Bebop (sci-fi), Trigun (western/comedy), or Slayers (comedy) as series, and Mononoke Hime (Fantasy) for a movie. If you get hooked, you can explore from there, but don't expect that you'll love all anime you find.
I've been a big anime fan since '95, and I'm just floored by how much commercial anime is out there, and by how quickly new series are licensed. For example, Chobits was licensed before the first season even finished in Japan. .Hack//Sign had similar timing.
New anime companies are springing up out of the woodwork these days. I remember when you bought your tapes from AnimEigo, Manga Video, ADVision, Viz, Pioneer, and U.S. Manga Corps. There were a couple of smaller companies out there who existed largely to publish one or two shows, but that was about it. Now there are some 15 or so companies all buying up anime as fast as they can negotiate deals, and all hoping to get serious money off a single consumer-base.
It's not going to happen. Anime fandom has grown exponentially in the last two years, but I can't see it being anywhere near big enough to support all the companies out there. A lot of them are going to crash and burn, because their little money-making ventures didn't pan out. Anime as it currently stands is a fad. Sure, to us, its devoted followers, it represents pretty drawings, real plots, and disproportionately good musical scores. But to the people who are generating the most money for these companies, it's just a fad.
Cartoon Network seems to have noticed that you can't just slap the word "anime" on something and expect people to watch it, and I have a feeling that when all the things that were licensed at Anime Expo this year hit the streets, we're going to see similar behavior from the DVD distributors.
The anime market in America is going to crash in a big way in the next year or so, and honestly, I'm not going to miss it. I'd miss it if I had some faith that the two-dozen or so companies translating anime and manga (the 15 quoted was just for anime) actually cared about the quality of their work. I'd care if I could actually afford to buy even a tenth of what is put out commercially. If 80% of these companies went out of business tomorrow, I probably wouldn't notice. The hard-core fans would just go back to their fansubs, and that would be that.
Ten years later, we'll all have nostalgia for those funky Japanese cartoons we all used to watch. The real anime boom won't come until all cultural barriers are broken down, and we can watch Japanese, Chinese, French and Israeli TV just as easily as we watch Fox and NBC. By then there will be nothing strange about it.