Fox Box Update....

[Duelist]

http://www.foxbox.tv/emailers/newsflash030222.html

What a cheesy way to say no more Ultraman......ugh...Pirate Islands.........

[Rabi~en~Rose]

whhaaaaattt?? no more Ultraman?? :( :(

but I was liking that series! http://members.aol.com/kimminakochan/chicken.gif

[Hades]

well crap, i like Ultraman Tiga...somewhat. Pirates are cool but i have a feeling this will be a very poor quality show. back yard style even.

[DianaGohan]

Well, that's kind of bad news. At least Tiga's brand of self parody humor made a lot better show then most any other animated crap heap dumped into the FOXbox (Except for Kirby). Personally, if FOX thinks that changing the rooster will help their Saturday Morining Cartoon Block get any ratings boost, they are obviously on some sort of strong medication.

Oh and 300th post! Woohoo!

Anoyomous Stranger: Isn't it 302?

Hush!

[Pilmedium]

Originally posted by Duelist Goku
http://www.foxbox.tv/emailers/newsflash030222.html

What a cheesy way to say no more Ultraman......ugh...Pirate Islands.........

From that link
Due to secret developments at the Citagon, information about Ultraman has been "Classified" by the Global Unlimited Task Squad until further notice. In the meantime, the Fox Box will be bringing you exclusive special reports on Ultraman, so stay tuned!

Yes, that is a cheesy way to indicate it. As for Pirate Islands, that idea is not entirely original. There was a children's book with a similar theme.

[Burgundy Ranger]

At least it's mentioned, which bodes well for its return (or so you would hope).

This is just part 1 of the schedule tweaking.

This Saturday (March 8) is the last for Stargate Infinity. The 10-year-old Back to the Future cartoon starts next week.

[Parallax]

I don't really mind if they take off Ultraman, since I think Tokyo Pig's on at the time. I just hope they don't take off TMNT or Ultimate Muscle. :harley: :moon2:

[Tommy Lawson]

More changes to the Fox Box:

http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=69719

Not only are they changing the premiere time for Back to the Future (it's actually on 3/22 Steve), but they are altering the first two hours of the Fox Box as well. It much reminds me of good old Fox Kids in 2002- schedule changes without much warning whatsoever. It's an absolutely crazy strategy IMO that just will confuse viewers more.

All this scheduling changing is taking place while ABC Kids ratings continue to go up, creating a wider gap among kids 6-11 between the two networks. I don't think Fox Box can get much higher ratings if they keep altering the schedule every other week. There's no chance for an audience to get familiar with a show.

[Anyone00]

Pirate Islands: Must... resist.... making... "That's the second biggest ________ I've ever seen." jokes.

[Brainatra]

Hmph, looks like they replaced one cheesy-looking low-budget live-action show with another one... wonder if it's an Australian import a la their airing "Round the Twist" on Fox Kids some years back...

-B.

[Duelist]

CRAMP TWINS NEEDS TO DIE
RERUN OF TMNT UNEEDED
BACK TO THE FUTURE RULES
THE SHOULD STICK DIGIMON BACK ON
AND MON COLLE KNIGHTS

[Donato]

UltraMan Tiga is soooo lame. It could be very funny, but they try to treat it seriously! They should have made it more campy.

Turtles reruns at 9AM? Thank goodness. I get to sleep an extra half hour.

[Obi]

Originally posted by Donato
They should have made it more campy.



MORE campy?!

As for the Fox Box... *smashes head against desk*

For a while I actually liked this block, but it seems they're trying to sabotage it. Pirate Islands replaces Ultraman? CRAMP TWINS?! WHY?!

Geez, if they want ratings, bring Pokemon and Yugioh over to the block. Or does their contract with the WB block that? Even so, there's still better ways to get higher ratings then bringing over a show that even CN rejected, a cancelled show from the 90s, and...Pirate Island. *cough* *gag*

[TruthSayer]

4Kids is doing with the Fox Box the same thing that Warner Brothers does with Kids WB!, introduce new shows to refresh the programming half-way through the season (ala Static Shock, Cubix, The Mummy, etc.). In fact it's been very successful for Kids WB! so I think 4Kids is just taking a cue from that. Plus it allows them to display more programs. Ultraman is not canceled, in fact there's a big return scheduled for the fall with action figures planned for release plus VHS and DVD videos. 4Kids bought all 600 episodes of Ultraman, which probably includes Ultraman COSMOS which is currently airing in Japan, it's not going to die that quickly. However, 4Kids has canceled Fighting Foodons. It's possible they may release it on video, but that's not certain.

I watched Pirate Islands this morning to see what it is all about and I'm pretty impressed. The special effects are excellent and I'm glad they left the original Australian dialog rather than dubbing it. It's supposedly a big hit in Australia and is part of a resurgence in Pirate themes for this year that 4Kids wanted to take advantage of, since Disney will also be releasing a new "Pirates of the Carribean" movie at theaters this year.

Ultraman is cool, perhaps too cool for many here to get him.

[Gary L Thompson]

Originally posted by Tommy Lawson
More changes to the Fox Box:

http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=69719

Not only are they changing the premiere time for Back to the Future (it's actually on 3/22 Steve), but they are altering the first two hours of the Fox Box as well. It much reminds me of good old Fox Kids in 2002- schedule changes without much warning whatsoever. It's an absolutely crazy strategy IMO that just will confuse viewers more.

All this scheduling changing is taking place while ABC Kids ratings continue to go up, creating a wider gap among kids 6-11 between the two networks. I don't think Fox Box can get much higher ratings if they keep altering the schedule every other week. There's no chance for an audience to get familiar with a show.

Originally posted by Obi
MORE campy?!

As for the Fox Box... *smashes head against desk*

For a while I actually liked this block, but it seems they're trying to sabotage it. Pirate Islands replaces Ultraman? CRAMP TWINS?! WHY?!

Geez, if they want ratings, bring Pokemon and Yugioh over to the block. Or does their contract with the WB block that? Even so, there's still better ways to get higher ratings then bringing over a show that even CN rejected, a cancelled show from the 90s, and...Pirate Island. *cough* *gag*

Originally posted by TruthSayer
4Kids is doing with the Fox Box the same thing that Warner Brothers does with Kids WB!, introduce new shows to refresh the programming half-way through the season (ala Static Shock, Cubix, The Mummy, etc.). In fact it's been very successful for Kids WB! so I think 4Kids is just taking a cue from that. Plus it allows them to display more programs. Ultraman is not canceled, in fact there's a big return scheduled for the fall with action figures planned for release plus VHS and DVD videos. 4Kids bought all 600 episodes of Ultraman, which probably includes Ultraman COSMOS which is currently airing in Japan, it's not going to die that quickly. However, 4Kids has canceled Fighting Foodons. It's possible they may release it on video, but that's not certain.

I watched Pirate Islands this morning to see what it is all about and I'm pretty impressed. The special effects are excellent and I'm glad they left the original Australian dialog rather than dubbing it. It's supposedly a big hit in Australia and is part of a resurgence in Pirate themes for this year that 4Kids wanted to take advantage of, since Disney will also be releasing a new "Pirates of the Carribean" movie at theaters this year.

Ultraman is cool, perhaps too cool for many here to get him.


I can see 4Kids always having a couple shows in reserve, to replace weak links in their schedule. I also realize that with only four hours weekly to play with, finding a spot for a hot new show they want to try out can be a problem unless their schedule happens to be weak from top to bottom.

However, I tend to side mainly with Tommy Lawson and Obi. 4Kids is not replacing a failing show with a new show, they are juggling their lineup willy-nilly from top to bottom, which makes it difficult for their current shows to keep an audience. Actually, their debuting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles should have eliminated the need to call on Ash or Yugi for now. (As for old Fox shows, forget them, even if 4Kids wasn't down on them--they've always considered Digimon a rip-off on Pokemon, which I think is unfair, but that's their view--do you seriously think Disney would allow them to air on a rival network?)

From my understanding, ratings wasn't supposed to be the key to Fox Box anyway. Fox is happy as long as it gets its money from selling off the time period, 4Kids was counting on getting its money back by getting a cut in the merchandizing from the shows. Which makes their latest moves puzzling. It wouldn't seem "Back to the Future" would present any possibilities, unless 4Kids followed up by making their own episodes (and even then, considering the cartoon is just made to promote the movies, I doubt the right-holders would allow 4Kids much of a cut). Pirates Island would not seem to promise much in this area either. I can see either or both being ratings hits (Back to the Future movies get continually played on cable, remember)--but how is that really supposed to help 4Kids in the long run? However, "Fighting Foodons" would seem to promise a great deal in merchandizing possibilities.

I wasn't expecting to like Fighting Foodons, but...the creators seem to recognize how wacky the premise was and cheerfully acknowleged it. I especially liked that absurd romance of our hero, like his miffed sister said, anybody who wears a pot for a hat....a mask may lend an air of mystery, but it doesn't go well with the need to uncover your mouth to taste your cooking! I'd much rather have this any day over "Cramp Twins," the very title sounding difficult to stomach--where did animators get the idea that gross and smarmy is in hot demand?

[Mister Intensity]

I'm going to miss the 8:30 rerun of TMNT since that is the time I first catch the episodes since Static Shock airs in the Turtle's first-run time period. I could understand the move and in fact like the Back to the Future series but now I have to make a choice between Static and the Turtles.

Mister Intensity

[Duelist]

Guys......there's such things as VCRs.....i tape both WB and FoxBox....

About Fighting Foodons.......I like it.....But they REALLY need to air the awesome original opening or get a new one....i hope it isn't cancelled

[Obi]

I'm really wondering why they would cancel Fighting Foodons - didn't it get some of the best ratings on the block? That's what I had heard about it.

I really think if they want to get better ratings what they have to do is "Toonami-ize" the look of the block. Fox Kids (in the later part) and ABC Family did/do this to an extent, and it really made/makes me, personally, want to check out the block just because of its style. Now, I'll tell you right off the bat that the only shows I liked on Fox Kids last year were RID and Digimon and there's no shows I particularly like on ABC Family this year, but just because of the styles of the blocks I'd find myself tuning into them. But that's just me of course...

On a side note, does anyone know what the ratings for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are?

[Tommy Lawson]

Originally posted by Obi
On a side note, does anyone know what the ratings for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are?

You don't check out the main news page for the universal ratings report? Try here:

http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=69683

All ratings for the Fox Box for kids 6-11 on Saturday 3/1 are up there. The second airing is down though from the previous week of 3.4/12.

[Obi]

Originally posted by Tommy Lawson
You don't check out the main news page for the universal ratings report? Try here:



Nope, I usually just head right to the forums. Thanks for the link though.

[TruthSayer]

Word from 4Kids is that they will be airing 3 new Anime programs (boys, of course) on the Fox Box this Fall. They are supposedly hits in Japan. Anyone have any clue what they could be?

TS

[Duelist]

Originally posted by TruthSayer
Word from 4Kids is that they will be airing 3 new Anime programs (boys, of course) on the Fox Box this Fall. They are supposedly hits in Japan. Anyone have any clue what they could be?

TS

hmmmm......interesting

[Gary L Thompson]

I wonder about that myself. If you're reviving Strawberry Shortcake, wouldn't it make sense to obtain a shojo anime aimed at the 6-11 demographic as a companion series?

In fact, I can think of a series that would be ideal: Ground Defense Force Mao Chan. Why? Simple, it has the same basic appeal as the Power Puff Girls, people just find something charming and a trifle absurd about depending on elementary school age girls to save the world. However, apparently it doesn't have the rough elements that caused a fatal backlash against the PPG movie. The three girls don't use weapons to fight the invaders, the villians are cute rather than grosteque (well that's why the military enlisted the girls, they were afraid if they fought the invaders, their popularity rating would plumment faster than hunters of baby seals!), and even one of the aliens attending school as a spy is at heart really a friend of the main heroine. As an odd mix between alien invasion and the cute and gentle, I can't think of a better transition between Strawberry Shortcake and other shows like Kirby, TMNT or Ultraman. To say nothing of the potential for videogames, dolls, etc. that is supposedly Just4Kids genuine interest in this block....

[Supernovametalstar]

Originally posted by TruthSayer
Ultraman is not canceled, in fact there's a big return scheduled for the fall with action figures planned for release plus VHS and DVD videos. 4Kids bought all 600 episodes of Ultraman, which probably includes Ultraman COSMOS which is currently airing in Japan, it's not going to die that quickly. However, 4Kids has canceled Fighting Foodons. It's possible they may release it on video, but that's not certain.
Ultraman is cool, perhaps too cool for many here to get him.

Wait a minute. 600 episodes? Why in the world would they take the show off then? If they had that many episodes, there was no reason for reruns even. 4Kids sure likes to gamble a lot don't they. Buying the rights to Pokemon when no one else would touch it (after the seizure incident) was risky in itself. Then spending $425mil for Fox's old slots, and now this. At least their gambles pay off.

But I want more Ultraman!

[Supernovametalstar]

I'm glad they canceled Foodons. That had to be the stupidest concept for a show if I ever saw one. It didn't help that they used their most annoying VA's either.