Friday Night Nicktoons (temporarily known as Prime Time Nicktoons or Prime Time Friday on Nickelodeon) was a programming block that aired on Nickelodeon from January 5, 2001 to December 17, 2004. Its original time slot was 8-10 pm, before expanding from 7-10 pm towards the end of the block's run. The block was made to compete with Cartoon Network's Cartoon Cartoon Fridays (later Cartoon Network's Fridays).
History[]
Winter 2001 (Abstract era)[]
Friday Night Nicktoons premiered on January 5, 2001 at 8/7c. The block's branding was basically based on Nick's "Abstract" era at the time. On August 31, 2001, Friday Night Nicktoons was replaced by Totally Twisted Telly.
- Rocket Power
- Hey Arnold! (January 2001)
- The Wild Thornberrys (January-March 2001)
- Rugrats
- CatDog (January 2001)
- Invader Zim (March-August 2001)
- SpongeBob SquarePants (March 2001)
- The Fairly OddParents (April-August 2001)
2002-2004 (Nicktoons Animation Studio era)[]
On July 12, 2002, Friday Night Nicktoons returned to the network, replacing the Friday Night Party With The Nicktoons block. The block took place in a CGI-animated building loosely based on the Nicktoons Animation Studio in Hollywood. The branding featured characters from different series interacting with each other in the studio. Inside the building included sets for different Nicktoons, along with a giant sentient binocular, the block's logo, and mechanical arms.
Characters from most Nicktoons up to the block's creation could be spotted in the intro sequence and the bumpers, but only the following shows actually aired on the block during this era:
- SpongeBob SquarePants (2002-03)
- ChalkZone (2002; 2003-04)
- The Fairly OddParents (2002-04)
- Oh Yeah! Cartoons (2002-03)
- Invader Zim (2002)
- The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius (2002-04)
- My Life as a Teenage Robot (2003-04)
Winter 2004 (Prime Time Nicktoons era)[]
On March 12, 2004, Friday Night Nicktoons was temporarily replaced by Prime Time Nicktoons (also known as Prime Time Friday on Nickelodeon). Unlike FNN, the block used generic "We'll be right back" and "Now back to the show" bumpers from Nick's "Splat Is Real" era. The block was extended to an hour earlier, airing from 7-10pm. On May 28, 2004, the block was on hiatus due to the relaunch of "The Nicktoon Summer Film Festival" event.
- The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius
- ChalkZone
- Rugrats
- Danny Phantom (April-May 2004)
- The Fairly OddParents
- My Life as a Teenage Robot
- SpongeBob SquarePants
Fall 2004 (Splat era)[]
On September 24, 2004, Friday Night Nicktoons returned to the network for the second time. Nickelodeon got rid of the old FNN branding, and replaced it with bumpers based on the Nicktoons channel's branding at the time. On December 17, 2004, Friday Night Nicktoons was removed completely from the lineup. The following shows that aired during this era included:
- ChalkZone (September-November 2004)
- All Grown Up! (September-November 2004)
- Danny Phantom
- Hey Arnold! (October 2004)
- The Fairly OddParents (November-December 2004)
- My Life as a Teenage Robot
- SpongeBob SquarePants
- The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius (November-December 2004)
Trivia[]
- The 9:30pm timeslot originally included 15-minute segments of Oh Yeah! Cartoons and Invader Zim from July 12-August 30, 2002. While Invader Zim was removed completely, The Fairly OddParents shorts from Oh Yeah! continued airing until April 4, 2003.
- The commercials for the block's 2002-04 branding were animated by Curious Pictures, the same people who are known for their work on Team Umizoomi, Codename: Kids Next Door, and Little Einsteins.
Gallery[]
