Toonami

Funky rhythms not audible.

Toonami is a programming block on Cartoon Network that specializes in action cartoons. Toonami infrequently premiered numerous Transformers animated series during its first incarnation from March 17, 1997 to September 20, 2008.

Thought it was initially hosted by Moltar of Space Ghost fame (voiced by C. Martin Croker), the block has been hosted by a robot named TOM since 1999. Unlike many programming blocks, Toonami took occasional stabs at continuity, with narrative events happening between commercial breaks (and sometimes occurring in webcomics or online video games.) Often these are used to give reason for TOM to get an entirely new body, and on one occasion in 2000 even a new voice--the switch from Sonny Strait to Steve Blum happened in 2000, and Blum has held the role since. Peter Cullen also features as a disembodied trailer voice, referred to by TOM as "The Big Guy".

Toonami is also noted for its aesthetics. Music videos are often made for individual shows or to represent the block as a whole, set to techno-funk tracks. A 30-second intro video typically runs ahead of each show, before the proper title sequence.

Toonami ended its original run in 2008. It has since been revived as a Saturday block as part of [adult swim], with Cullen replaced by Howard Parker as the Big Guy. No new Transformers series have aired on the block since its revival.

Transformers series

Beast Wars

Beast Wars was Toonami's first Transformers series, replacing The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest for a special week of premieres from March 9th to 13th, 1998. The five episodes in question were "Code of Hero", "Transmutate", "The Agenda (Part 1)", "The Agenda (Part 2)" and "The Agenda (Part III)".

• Promo: Moltar introduces Beast Wars as Rattrap sends Jonny Quest to a gruesome fate. "Transformers, '90s-style!"
  • The original, uploaded at an image resolution of 240p.
  • A fan recreation using high definition Beast Wars footage.
• Promo: Moltar gives the block's lineup for the week, noting Beast Wars is "this week only." "My turn!"
• Sweepstakes: An unidentified female voiceover offers kids the chance to call a toll-free number and get a free Beast Wars toy if they watch Toonami from 4-6 PM.
  • The 30-second version of the ad.
  • The 15-second version of the ad.

Armada

Toonami wouldn't see any Transformers action again until 2002, when it premiered Transformers Armada. The first three episodes were combined and advertised as a "movie", premiering on the "all new" Friday night block. Reruns were then aired Monday through Thursday, with a new episode each Friday.

The Unicron Trilogy would be plagued by Cartoon Network's rather indecipherable scheduling logic, oftentimes being moved off of the block and back onto it without any warning, making following the series a chore at best.

• Promo: "Whoever can possess the Minicons will command their great power. Now, every Transformer in the universe will fight to claim them!" "Or die trying!"
  • A high-quality video recording of the promo, bundled with one for the 2002 He-Man series.
  • A fan recreation of the promo with high-definition Armada footage.
• Intro 1: "It is our destiny to take control of the Minicons and bring the Autobots to their knees!"
  • A video recording of the original promo.
  • A fan recreation of the promo with high-definition Armada footage.

Intro 2: "We can't let Megatron get hold of the Minicon!" "Get those Minicons, you fools!"

Marathon promo: "Everyone loves transforming robots, but sometimes 22 minutes isn't enough. We're here for ya." (Narrated by Blum.)

Energon

Beginning in 2004, Toonami moved to Saturday nights from its original weekday afternoon format and issued one new Transformers Energon episode a week.

Intro: "We gotta stop fighting each other." *punches*

Marathon promo: "He who controls the Energon... controls the universe." (Narrated by Blum.)

Cybertron

Transformers Cybertron would be Toonami's fourth Transformers series, premiering in 2005. In 2006, they cobbled several episodes together to create a TV special called "Primus Unleashed". On June 30, 2007, as a tie-in during the opening week of the live-action Transformers film, Toonami dedicated an entire night to a Cybertron marathon, followed by a sneak preview of the film.

Promo: "Beat it, Megatron!" "Oh, really?!" (Narrated by Blum.)

Intro: "These guys can rock!"

Marathon promo 1: "Hooking you up, 'VIP style'." (Narrated by Cullen.)

Marathon promo 2: "We're giving you four back-to-back episodes of Transformers: Cybertron! All you have to do is sit there on your couch." (Narrated by Cullen.)

Animated

While never airing on the block itself, Transformers Animated was one of the series featured on the short-lived Toonami Jetstream video-streaming service, which launched on July 17, 2006. A limited number of episodes were hosted on Jetstream at a time, with episodes each being added shortly after they first aired on Cartoon Network. The series premiered on Jetstream on February 18, 2008, and remained a part of the service until it was shut down on January 30, 2009, roughly half a year after the Toonami block was taken off the air.

External links

• Official Toonami website
• Toonami at Wikipedia