Toonami Exec Confirms Program is a “Network Priority”

Toonami faithful have watched the programming block grow to an immense size in recent years after its successful revival on Adult Swim, and the future of the block seems to be even brighter.

Vice President and Creative Director for on-air at Adult Swim and co-creator of Toonami Jason DeMarco recently remarked on Toonami’s future as well, and confirmed that it’s a major priority for the network.

When asked about the fact that Toonami seems to be taking over Saturday nights again, DeMarco remarked on ask.fm that it “Look[ed] that way doesn’t it!” and that he could “say with confidence that Toonami is definitely a network priority.” It really seems just as DeMarco says as Adult Swim has made great strides in presenting Toonami over the last few years.

In just the last few months, the Toonami block has seen major expansions of its schedule. Anime has had a greater presence on Adult Swim, with the Dragon Ball franchise back to a prime time weeknight time slot as well, Toonami’s cool April Fool’s Day joke airing anime in their original Japanese with English subtitles, and has even ventured into original programming with the revivals of cult classics like FLCL.

The schedule’s about to expand even more as the Toonami block will soon dominate Saturday nights. Starting September 29, the block will be expanded to 9PM EST with the premiere of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations (the major Naruto sequel) joining the line-up. Here’s the upcoming schedule for block as of September 29 (in EST):

• 9:00 — Dragon Ball Z: Kai
  9:30 — My Hero Academia
  10:00 — Naruto: Shippuden
  10:30 — Boruto: Naruto Next Generations
  11:00 — Dragon Ball Super
  11:30 — FLCL: Alternative
  12:00 — Attack on Titan
  12:30 — JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable
  1:00 — Black Clover
  1:30 — Hunter x Hunter
  2:00 — One-Punch Man
  2:30 — Lupin the 3rd
  3:00 – Cowboy Bebop
  3:30 — Samurai Jack

The current line-up of Toonami is undoubtedly one of the strongest line-ups in the block’s history. It’s the strongest since the block returned in 2012. With brand new series making their English dub premiere on broadcast television, it’s the place to be for anime fans even with strong followings for streaming services.

The block boasts current anime favorites like Attack on Titan, new episodes of Dragon Ball Super, the hottest new anime of the moment with My Hero Academia, classics like Naruto: Shippuden and Dragon Ball Z Kai, and strange original projects like FLCL: Alternative, Toonami is quickly becoming as must-watch every week as it was when it first launched on Cartoon Network. And now Toonami will only get stronger.