TOM the Toonami robot host sitting inside the Absolution spaceship cockpit

Toonami

1997programming block / fandomactive

Published October 3, 2026

Toonami is a long-running action animation programming block that launched on Cartoon Network in March 1997 and introduced a generation of American viewers to anime like Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon and Gundam. After Cartoon Network cancelled it in September 2008, a 2012 April Fools stunt and the viral #BringBackToonami fan campaign forced its revival on Adult Swim, where it still airs late nights.

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Overview

Toonami started as an afternoon action animation block aimed at teens, mixing American cartoons with imported anime and tying everything together with high-budget CGI bumpers, host segments and story-driven event weeks3. Its robot host T.O.M. piloting the Ghost Planet Spaceship Absolution, voiced by Steve Blum, became the block's face from 1999 onward and gave the block an in-universe continuity most TV programming blocks skipped3.

The block is credited by fans with being the gateway to anime for a huge chunk of American millennials, airing Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon, Mobile Suit Gundam, Yu Yu Hakusho, Rurouni Kenshin and Thundercats, plus the late-night Midnight Run that showed edgier titles1. When Cartoon Network cancelled it in 2008, the online grief eventually turned into a coordinated fan campaign that forced the network to bring it back, which is the second life of the Toonami story2.

Origin & Background

Platform
Cartoon Network (TV origin) / Twitter (viral revival campaign)
Creator
Sean Akins and Jason DeMarco
Date
1997

Toonami was created by Sean Akins and Jason DeMarco and produced by Williams Street for Cartoon Network, launching on March 17, 1997 after programming head Mike Lazzo asked for a new teen action block in the mold of earlier blocks like Power Zone3. The first version aired weekdays and was hosted by Moltar, the villain from Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, voiced by C. Martin Croker3. On July 10, 1999, the block relaunched with a new host, the Toonami Operations Module (T.O.M.), voiced by Steve Blum3.

Cartoon Network announced on September 20, 2008 that Toonami would end that same evening due to low ratings, with T.O.M. 4 giving a farewell speech scored to Tycho's "Cascade"3. Fans immediately started petitions begging for its return, including a GoPetition thread posted the night of the cancellation that listed Rising Sun, Midnight Run, Dragon Ball Z and Yu Yu Hakusho as what viewers were about to lose4.

How It Spread

After the 2008 cancellation, Toonami lived mostly as a nostalgia memory on forums, YouTube rip uploads and petition sites, including a Change.org petition that argued ratings would skyrocket if Cartoon Network reversed course5. The real revival moment came on April 1, 2012, when Adult Swim interrupted its annual April Fools airing of Tommy Wiseau's The Room with a one-off Toonami broadcast featuring Bleach, Yu Yu Hakusho, The Big O and Blue Submarine No. 6, plus a Mass Effect 3 review3.

The next day, Adult Swim's Twitter account posted "Want it back? Let us know. #BringBackToonami," turning the stunt into a measurable fan referendum3. The hashtag ran for weeks, picking up a tribute song by rapper Richie Branson, and Adult Swim followed up on April 4 with "We've heard you. Thank you for your passion and interest, stay tuned"3. Bumps airing "[we're looking into it]" and "[we're listening]" kept the pressure visible on the network itself3.

On May 16, 2012, Adult Swim confirmed that Toonami would return as a Saturday late-night block starting May 26, 2012, tweeting "Attention Toonami Faithful: We heard you. On 05.26.12 #ToonamisBackBitches"3. The block is still airing on Adult Swim more than a decade later, making it one of the few fan-pressure campaigns that actually got a cancelled TV property reinstated1.

Timeline

1997-03-17

Toonami launches on Cartoon Network as a weekday afternoon action block, hosted by Moltar from Space Ghost: Coast to Coast.

1999-07-10

Block relaunches with new host T.O.M., the Toonami Operations Module, voiced by Steve Blum.

2008-09-20

Cartoon Network ends Toonami after 11 years; T.O.M. 4 delivers a farewell set to Tycho's 'Cascade.'

2008-09-21

A GoPetition thread 'Bring Back Toonami' is posted the morning after the cancellation.

2012-04-01

Adult Swim airs a one-off Toonami broadcast during its annual April Fools showing of The Room.

2012-04-02

Adult Swim tweets 'Want it back? Let us know. #BringBackToonami,' kicking off the fan campaign.

2012-05-16

Adult Swim announces Toonami's official return starting May 26, 2012.

2012-05-26

Toonami returns to Adult Swim as a Saturday late-night block from midnight to 6 a.m.

How to Use This Meme

In meme form, Toonami functions as nostalgia shorthand: fans post the CGI bumpers, T.O.M. monologues, or the "Cascade" cancellation sign-off to signal a specific era of 1997 to 2008 anime fandom. The #BringBackToonami hashtag is still used ironically whenever a beloved block or show gets cancelled, modeled on the April 2012 Twitter campaign that actually worked2.

Frequently Asked Questions