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It’s the dawn of a new era for Adult Swim at they look to compete against other stations on Saturdays. This move could very well be a starting point to help Toonami expand to an earlier start time (such as 11 p.m. as those at the Toonami Faithful Podcast have speculated). However, instead of trying to only take the full 11 o’clock hour, I’m wondering if Adult Swim might feel adventurous enough to expand right after 8:30 p.m. Adding the big acquisition of Dragon Ball Super is a monumental occasion considering how popular the Dragon Ball Z franchise has been in the U.S. Starting Jan. 14, Adult Swim will add another program to help boost that hour’s viewing numbers, and become a deadlier threat to other stations at that time with some spectacular programming.

Starting at 8:30 p.m. Adult Swim will air old episodes of Samurai Jack following a premiere of Dragon Ball Super. This change should be viewed as a way to tease fans of the upcoming season of Samurai Jack that Toonami is producing. As well as get them reacquainted with the world Jack was transported to. Fans are unsure as to when it will air, but many believe that it will happen this year.

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People have been waiting for the new Samurai Jack season to air ever since we learned a new season would be produced. When news broke, blog websites and social media went into a frenzy. It occurred again when fans were given sneak peaks at the Annecy 2016 Festival. People cannot wait to see how the story will conclude for those who watched the previous four seasons. Being a critically acclaimed cartoon that’s beloved by the masses makes rerunning the previous seasons an easy move for Adult Swim. Now they can build intrigue even higher. I know I’m excited to see it premiere, and adding Jack back to T.V. makes me crave the new season more.

So it looks as if Adult Swim (and to a lesser extent Toonami) are going to make a strong push during the prime time hours of Saturday night, and that’s not a move to take lightly. The higher ups feel as if they have the firepower to go up against other programming that usually grabs viewers in droves. Right now that means Adult Swim is going up against the NFL, which is a tough obstacle to overcome when it comes to attracting an audience. However, the show that will air at 8 p.m. should be enough to grab viewers. Even to this day, many athletes, celebrities, and public figures enjoy remembering Dragon Ball Z back when it aired weekly on Toonami. Airing the next installment should catch on with that large fan base soon.

I’m thrilled at the fact that Dragon Ball Super was able to top over a million viewers at 8 p.m. For me, I rarely saw any advertising about the 8 p.m. premiere (I know they were out there but I never saw any of it). In fact, a few friends I’ve talked to didn’t even know it was playing at 11:30 p.m. (not knowing the block was pushed up), as well as 8 p.m. (to which I told them always to ask me questions about Toonami if they are unsure). So to pull out over a million total viewers and an 18-49 rating of 0.4 is something that should put a smile on your face. I do hope that means that will see more promotion of both Dragon Ball Super and Samurai Jack once that kicks off, which would require both Adult Swim broadcasts and Toonami broadcasts to acknowledge each other.

It’s imperative that both airings succeed to help both Adult Swim and Toonami down the road. The fact that there was little cross promotion had me puzzled. I get that you want to keep eyes on Toonami, but with the golden goose that is Dragon Ball Super, I think an exception should be made for some cross promotion (maybe even go on a little promoting binge). I’d promote this series like crazy because a lot of people will be interested. Whether it be at 8 p.m. where the demographic might be younger or to the Toonami veterans that show up at 11:30 p.m., promotion is needed to help grab as many viewers as they can. Then word of mouth can spread to where consistently a lot of people tune in. Maybe just at 8 p.m., 11:30 p.m., or both it doesn’t matter so much as it’s being watched.

This could also be the change needed to help build up Adult Swim viewing numbers which probably aren’t as bad as I’m making them out to be. I’m not the biggest fan of Nielsen ratings since there are many factors left off the table. Still, it has been noted as to the decline of viewers Adult Swim has had which is something that the Editor and Chief at Toonami Faithful (Sketch) has noticed as well. So adding the premiere of Dragon Ball Super as well as rerunning Samurai Jack could help ease the decline of viewers or create a surplus. It’s not dire to the point where I think Adult Swim needs to do anything desperate. I believe that adding these two shows can only be viewed as a benefit than things staying as they are.

It will be tough for Adult Swim at the starting point, going against programming that usually takes the crown on Saturdays. Especially now with the NFL having playoff games on Saturday night as well, which is ridiculous (they should all be Sunday). However, it’s important that Adult Swim takes this chance with a series that could bolster viewership. With the money they spent (speculation, I have no clue how the deal went) to air Dragon Ball Super at 8 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. I’m not saying that after the first week something needs to be changed or there should be a sense of urgency either. I think these moves will be considered brilliant as time moves on. I’m just hoping that Adult Swim can continue the momentum they gained by adding all the new series they have on Toonami. If it succeeds, that could lead to more Toonami shows airing earlier.

C.J Maffris is an editorial writer for Toonamifaithful.com. If it wasn’t for his work, he’d watch both Dragon Ball Super and Samurai Jack in the 8 o’clock hour. He’s sad he’ll miss out. Feel free to talk all things anime and Toonami with C.J on Twitter @SeaJayMaffris