\u201cWell, this is the end, beautiful friends. After more than 11 years, this is Toonami’s final broadcast. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’d like to thank each and every one of you who have made this journey with us. Toonami wouldn’t be the same without you. Hopefully, we’ve left you with some good memories. So, until we meet again, stay gold. Bang.\u201d<\/p>\n
And with that, the greatest action block in the world has just ended it\u2019s run and it\u2018s leading show runner has drifted off to the rising sun. Thousands of fan boys all over the US are crying as their gateway to one of Japan\u2019s most well-beloved-yet-most-niche exports closes it\u2019s doors for future otakus to worship, and fans of great action cartoons are perplexed on whether or not if You Are Here will live up to the block name. You know, with the fans being there? Get it? It\u2019s a joke.<\/p>\n
Sorry\u2026<\/p>\n
I shouldn\u2019t be joking right now. Although I stopped paying attention to Toonami once Justice League<\/em> left and I realized that we\u2019re never getting a good interpretation of the Fantastic Four outside of the comics, I kind of stopped caring. Caught a Samurai Jack<\/em> every now and then when they brought it back, but never made a habit out of it. I was kind of done with generic Shonen around the time Naruto<\/em> started airing, so I never could get into it. So, after hearing the news that Toonami was showing it\u2019s final broadcast, I decided that it was worth checking into, at least for Jack<\/em>. After watching TOM\u2019s powerful closing, and adored the Cowboy Bebop<\/em> reference, I remembered all of the good times the block gave me.<\/p>\n Earlier today, I watched an episode of Batman: The Animated Series<\/em>, which is easily my favorite show to ever air on the block, as well as an episode of Dragon Ball Z<\/em>, which\u2026 I can\u2018t say I\u2018m still into. I also want to watch some Sailor Moon<\/em> and Tenchi Muyo!<\/em>, but never got around to it. I had to rewatch what made Toonami so grand for me and the kids of my generation back in the day. Toonami was more than just an action bock, it was a way of life, and a step into the future of animation. Without it, there wouldn\u2019t be anywhere near as big of an anime market in the US, or anywhere outside of Japan, for that matter. There\u2019s a lot for me to share, and I\u2019ll give you some of my favorite memories.<\/p>\n One thing that stands out in the minds of everyone is the Intruder, which is still one of the coolest things the network has ever done. In it, TOM has to deal with an Intruder on the ship. What it was, he had no clue, but as the series continued, the Intruder became more and more involving, until it turned out to be a form of plasma that sucks him up. During this process, we get a new TOM who\u2019s now out to take care of this Intruder once and for all. Ring a bell? This proves how the block and the network in general was ahead of it\u2019s time, how the network wasn\u2018t afraid to add more to itself and not pull punches. You\u2019d never see something like this on Nickelodeon. We eventually got more events like these with Lockdown and Trapped in Hyperspace, and while they\u2019re both equally epic, I\u2019d believe the Intruder to remain high above all else.<\/p>\n Looking on now, Toonami gave me and many geeks a lot of great memories, and built us up on how we are now. While at this point I prefer Western cartoons to Japanese, I\u2019ll never forget the time I had with the block and how it helped me to respect not just anime, but geeks all over the world.<\/p>\n Gentlemen, it\u2019s been an honor.<\/p>\n Avaitor out.<\/p>\n Originally posted on Sunday, September 21, 2008.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cWell, this is the end, beautiful friends. After more than 11 years, this is Toonami’s final broadcast. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’d like to thank each and every one of you who have made this journey with us. Toonami wouldn’t be the same without you. Hopefully, we’ve left you with some good memories. So, until we meet again, stay gold. Bang.\u201d And with that, the greatest action block in the world has just ended it\u2019s run and…<\/p>\n\n
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