Cartoon Network, Scheduling, and You.

[bluelucied]

(AKA just more reasons that Cartoon Network is trying to prove that kids only want stupid humor by inundating their network with TTG.)

So, this has been a bit of a 'it was going to happen eventually'. I, a mostly-functioning adult watch Cartoon Network. I'm nostalgic, what can I say? Doesn't hurt that Steven Universe is actually pretty awesome, and Adventure Time is still fun to watch. Overall it's not that painful. But then you have things like Teen Titans Go, which if you've ever flipped to the channel, seems to be on ALL THE TIME.

After a little while I finally exclaimed to my online friends that I was pretty sure that it made up at least 70% of their daytime programming. Obviously I was wrong. On a normal day (for all purposes of this post, I used the schedule for Monday, July 6th) it actually only makes up about 35% of their daily programming, or at least 5 hours out of a 14 hour air day. Still pretty extreme, considering the next cartoon that comes close to that is Nickelodeon's Spongebob at 32%, or 4.5 hours out of a 14 hour air day, and that's the closest one.

For the below chart, I split the air time for Mon, July 6th up into 28 half-hour segments, then recorded the shows that aired on that day for Cartoon Network, Disney and DisneyXD, Nickelodeon, and the HUB.

https://40.media.tumblr.com/a6a2ad990ad69ba1e8b698ebac896ebb/tumblr_nqx1ul0rap1rypoe0o1_1280.png

The shows that air the most during the day I looked at from most to least-

Teen Titans Go- 10 Segments (5 hours)
Spongebob- 9 Segments (4.5 hours)
My Little Pony- 7 Segments (3.5 hours)
The Amazing World of Gumball- 7 Segments (3.5 hours)
Littlest Pet Shop- 5 Segments (2.5 hours)

Why did I do this? Because it hurts my 90's kid heart to see this. Cartoon network has EIGHT shows on a regular air day. EIGHT. The Hub has the same amount, but their programming isn't so massively dominated by just two shows (Teen Titans Go and Gumball together take up a whopping 8.5 hours of CN's 14 hour schedule, while My Little Pony and Pet Shop only take up 6 hours out of HUB's 14.)

It's hard to believe that someone looked at this schedule and said 'Hey, this is fine, no worries.' I have to point out that there's no scheduled Adventure Time (which has been their most popular for a good while) or Regular Show. On a summer day. For a few weeks they at least had a half-hour slot each at the end of the night. They've even axed their mid-morning Looney Tunes block. I can guess that was a school-time thing but it's kind of sad to see it gone, even if it might be temporary.

I know this is likely subject to change, as is the nature of television, especially with the new shows premiering at the end of the month, but I can't be the only one disappointed in this.

 

[Mr.Mattress]

That's business for you; whatever is getting the most views (Or whatever you want to get the most views), you play that the most. To Cartoon Networks credit, Gumball and TTG are the only productions their respective companies (CN Europe and WB Animation) have right now, so giving them more air time probably gives them more views and money. Plus, Regular Show and Adventure Time are getting Long in the tooth (I remember being told that CN limits the number of seasons for all of their original shows to 7-8 seasons) and probably will be ended in a year or two, so airing them less to make way for new productions is probably for the best.

Also, you should have divided Disney and Nick even more; you've included Nick Jr. and Nick-at-night in Nick and Disney's Playhouse with Disney, while ignoring Adult Swim with CN. Either break up Nick and Disney or add Adult Swim to CN to make things more balanced.

 

[FalloutJack]

I'm sorry, but I dropped CN like a bad habit a long time ago. I don't think I'll ever be back. The things they did alienated alot of watchers and I am one of them.

 

[Axelotus07]

A very inquisitive thread, and a very depressingly accurate one to say the least.

While I don't watch CN on a regular basis anymore (living the Netflix/Hulu life) I have noticed that TTG is pretty much ALWAYS on whenever I'm visiting friends. It's not the worst show, but definitely not worth that amount of air time.

You would think that having a more diverse line up of shows (both old and new) would net better results. It's more than obvious that lifelong fans of the channel are slipping away (myself included) over the redundant mess that is TTG. Hell, I even think Gumball is actually decent most of the time, but it wears out its welcome too fast because it's literally the only other show that is on.

It's a problem when they're only giving you two choices, especially given the channel's colorful and diverse history of sweet shows.

 

[harrisongrimms]

I dont watch cable because I dont believe in paying to watch ads (that, and ads break immersion)

And I do miss Cartoon Network, History, Scify, and Discovery...all other channels can screw off

But as a 90s' kid myself, I feel you, thats pretty lame. I gotta ask, are they all repeat episodes? I might understand it if they had like an hour of new episodes or something.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Geez it's no wonder why they no longer get what kids/ audience want with a schedule like that. They pratically forcing them to like a specific show (which explain why TTG is getting the attention).

 

[bluelucied]

Plus, Regular Show and Adventure Time are getting Long in the tooth (I remember being told that CN limits the number of seasons for all of their original shows to 7-8 seasons) and probably will be ended in a year or two, so airing them less to make way for new productions is probably for the best.

Also, you should have divided Disney and Nick even more; you've included Nick Jr. and Nick-at-night in Nick and Disney's Playhouse with Disney, while ignoring Adult Swim with CN. Either break up Nick and Disney or add Adult Swim to CN to make things more balanced.

But it's funny, AT and RS are the only shows that CN had (or least that I saw, it's been a while) serious in-store merchandise for, though CN isn't like the HUB and doesn't follow a 'shows to sell toys' model. At least I think so, I heard it somewhere but I can't remember the source.

I'm not familiar enough with Disney and Nick to know what ends when. The shows I looked at were from 6AM to 8PM, to compare with when CN airs it's kid oriented stuff. Adult Swim is flippin' weird enough (honestly might as well call it the Seth Mcfarlane power hours). The only thing that CN seems to have going for it is to be the only Network besides Comedy Central to have a night time block aimed at adult viewers.

But as a 90s' kid myself, I feel you, thats pretty lame. I gotta ask, are they all repeat episodes? I might understand it if they had like an hour of new episodes or something.

They are, the only thing I can figure is that the week in question is for new Gumball and Ninjago episodes. CN's new premiere model is to do a whole week of new episodes, I think since the first Stevenbomb was so succesful.

 

[Muspelheim]

I'm an adult, I haven't really sat down to watch CN (well, the local variant I get) in years. But it looks pretty shite from what little I've glimpsed of it these days.

But then again, I really liked Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy. What do I know of good taste? Maybe it's what the viewership wants? It's a channel for children's programs, and I haven't got a clue what they like these days.

 

[Scarim Coral]

I'm an adult, I haven't really sat down to watch CN (well, the local variant I get) in years. But it looks pretty shite from what little I've glimpsed of it these days.

But then again, I really liked Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy. What do I know of good taste? Maybe it's what the viewership wants? It's a channel for children's programs, and I haven't got a clue what they like these days.

I believed you got good taste.
http://ultrafactsblog.com/post/123128079006/source-for-more-facts-follow-ultrafacts

 

[twistedmic]

Since 'Young Justice' got axed, the only thing I watch on Cartoon Network is 'Regular Show' and about half of the reason that I still watch it is that I haven't taken 'Regular Show' off my DVR schedule.

 

[CrazyGirl17]

Nice to know I'm not the only one who's seen this. It feels like all kids-based TV channels wanna do nowadays is pander to stupid children and the tween demographic, which pisses me off.

I'm not saying cartoons in the 90's were better, because there were some stinkers, but it's disheartening to see current good cartoons (like Gravity Falls, Steven Universe, The Amazing World of Gumball, Star Wars: Rebels, Regular Show, and the sadly canceled before its time Motorcity) be pushed aside for subpar crap. ESPECIALLY Teen Titans Go (or "Toddler Titans" as one of my favorite internet reviewers has dubbed it), a braindead bastardization of a good show.

It's like TV stations care more about money than the quality of their work anymore, which removes any incentive I have to keep watching them.

CAPTCHA: foregone conclusion - Yes, yes it is. *SIGH*

 

[FPLOON]

"Teen Titans GO! Your new favorite show!" say the female narrator to my face... I reply back with the phrase "That's a fucked-up way of saying Steven Universe!"

Anyway, at this point, I'm only watching CN for both Adventure Time, Steven Universe, Regular Show, and the underdog Clarence to an extent... Gumball, despite its subversive humor, rarely has episodes I would re-watch as a rerun and it's too little too late for TTG to finally find that "sweet spot", yet still make me watch its reruns only with cast Q&As sprinkled in-between commercial breaks... As far as The Hub Discovery Family's concern, I've been watching that more than CN and Nick combined right now... Speaking of Nick, damn you for bringing back the creator of Johnny Test to make another middle school show a la Ned's Declassified, only this one co-stars Sokka from Avatar: The Last Airbender... You win this cold war battle, Nick! *shakes fist*

Overall, I am disappointed with CN's scheduling to the point that even Disney XD is doing slightly better than them... I just hope We Bare Bears and Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! are worth the wait...

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I'm sorry, but I dropped CN like a bad habit a long time ago. I don't think I'll ever be back. The things they did alienated alot of watchers and I am one of them.

Pretty much this. I'll add to that Adult Swim also because I consider them fairly independent of each other despite airing on the same channel. I used to love AS and CN but over the years the quality of product declined sharply to the point I lost any interest. Cutting my teeth on Dexter's Lab and Samurai Jack and many of the other cartoons of that era, as well as Space Ghost CTC, Aqua Teens, Sealab 2021, and later (one of the last of the greats) Venture Bros. plus others, I loved that time. But the quality of show dipped sharply on both sides of the coin and I ended up leaving what was one of the last channels on TV I watched with any regularity. I now exclusively watch Netflix, Hulu+ and WWE Network as well as my own digital and physical library. I make my own TV, mostly without commercial interruption, though I'd love to have the option of paying a bit more monthly to cut out all commercials on Hulu+.
I still have basic cable but rarely use it, only because it cuts the price on internet service.

 

[bluelucied]

Nice to know I'm not the only one who's seen this. It feels like all kids-based TV channels wanna do nowadays is pander to stupid children and the tween demographic, which pisses me off.

... and the sadly canceled before its time Motorcity)

I've only seen bits of it, but yes, MotorCity being canceled was a horrible loss.

Overall, I am disappointed with CN's scheduling to the point that even Disney XD is doing slightly better than them... I just hope We Bare Bears and Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! are worth the wait...

From the Promos, We Bare Bears looks like it's going to fall into the Regular Show category of shows, so it could go either way. Also someone needs to just STOP with Scooby-Doo. Poor dog. It feels like there's always someone doing a SD SOMEWHERE. Blergh.

OK your chart is pretty confusing for several reasons, but to be fair I don't even watch any of those channels (Except Nick when TMNT is on). So how come you have the Hub's name on their when that channel became Discovery Family? And isn't Transformers airing on CN?

You know Robots in Disguise? Feel free to correct me here because I'm kinda confused by your charts.

I only watch CN, so yeah, it's pretty confusing. I believe they do air Transformers, but I only think they air it on Satudays.

The day I used for comparisons was today (Mon, July 6th). I split the 14 hours of time that Cartoon Network airs it's usual programming (note: Not Adult Swim, their 'kid' stuff) into 28 half-hour blocks, then recorded what shows were scheduled when. The numbers on the chart are for each half-hour block that the show runs. So for say, Gumball, that 7 means there are 7 half-hour segments of Gumball aired during CN's 14 hours of regular air time.

 

[FPLOON]

Nice to know I'm not the only one who's seen this. It feels like all kids-based TV channels wanna do nowadays is pander to stupid children and the tween demographic, which pisses me off.

... and the sadly canceled before its time Motorcity)

I've only seen bits of it, but yes, MotorCity being canceled was a horrible loss.

I remember hearing that it was the person formally in charge of the Disney XD division (I forget their name) that wanted both MotorCity and Tron: Uprising cancelled in some way, shape, or form... Not sure how true that possibility is, though...

Overall, I am disappointed with CN's scheduling to the point that even Disney XD is doing slightly better than them... I just hope We Bare Bears and Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! are worth the wait...

From the Promos, We Bare Bears looks like it's going to fall into the Regular Show category of shows, so it could go either way. Also someone needs to just STOP with Scooby-Doo. Poor dog. It feels like there's always someone doing a SD SOMEWHERE. Blergh.

I can agree with you about the We Bare Bears first impressions (even though I can't seem to see the full connection between the show's promos and the #BearStack promos) but as someone who loves the Scooby-Doo franchise in general, I'm just hoping the quality's as good as Mystery Incorporated (considering who's working on it), at least... Too bad both those new shows would probably get a better timeslot than Sonic Boom and Transformers: Robots in Disguise...

 

[crazygameguy4ever]

99% of US cartoons these day are cheaply written, cheaply animated, cheaply designed and badly done in virtually every way.. if you want quality animation you have to turn to anime

 

[crimsonspear4D]

99% of US cartoons these day are cheaply written, cheaply animated, cheaply designed and badly done in virtually every way.. if you want quality animation you have to turn to anime

Yeah, but then you'd still have to deal with cheap writing, bad character design/development, and other bullshit current anime is notorious for. Don't get me wrong, there are legitmately good shows out there (even these past few seasons depending on your tastes), but Japan produces a lot of fetid garbage too, just in greater quantities.