The iconic Adult Swim programming block Toonami celebrates its 25th anniversary today. For this milestone occasion, Adult Swim has announced that brand-new programming and special events will be coming to the block. These new programs include two new seasons of FLCL as well as greenlighting the original series, Housing Complex C.
Both new seasons of FLCL, titled FLCL: Grunge and FLCL: Shoegaze, are currently in production. FLCL: Grunge is directed by Hitoshi Takekiyo and animated by MontBlanc Pictures and FLCL: Shoegaze is directed by 2018's FLCL: Alternative director Yutaka Uemura and animated by Production I.G x NUT, who also worked on Alternative. Both of these new seasons are scheduled to release in 2023. As for Housing Complex C, the official description says that it is a series that follows Kimi who lives in a small, housing complex located in Kurosaki, a seaside town "where trouble seems to follow her wherever she goes, and horrific incidents begin to occur…is an ancient evil stalking the residents of Housing Complex C?"
The series is directed by Yuji Nara with the animation studio for the series being Akatsuki. Housing Complex C is set to come out later this year. “I can’t believe that somehow, against all odds, our little cartoon block has survived for 25 years on television,” said Jason DeMarco, creative director of Toonami, and senior vice president, action and anime for WarnerMedia. “We’ve made it this far with support from our fans and our network, and we are truly grateful for both. Here’s to more adventures to come.” Both FLCL series and Housing Complex C are all executive produced by DeMarco and are produced by Maki Terashima-Furuta of Production IG USA.
Toonami first launched on Cartoon Network on March 17, 1997, and provided many viewers across the 25 years access to the world of anime. Toonami was canceled in 2008 and was brought back as an Adult Swim block in 2012. Toonami has become the late-night destination for anime fans, with the block airing every Saturday night. This wouldn't be a celebration for Toonami without long-time animated Toonami: Countdown hosts TOM (voiced by Steve Blum), who became the face of the block since his first appearance in 2000. TOM was joined by SARA (voiced by Dana Swanson) in 2013. These two will be at the center of the festivities, featuring in both Cosmo Samurai Part 2, a 4-part anime short along with The Return, an all-new 2-part special premiering Saturday, March 19, and concluding Saturday, March 26. There will also be classic Toonami specials that will be shown on-air, online, and on Adult Swim’s social platforms that look back at key moments in Toonami’s celebrated history.
The Toonami programming block runs every Saturday from midnight to 4 am ET on Adult Swim.