With how easy it is to watch anime these days it's hard to believe there was ever a time fans couldn't get a hand on their favorite shows. Streaming services and lightning-fast internet speeds allow fans to have every anime series ever made at their fingertips.

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However, it wasn't always like that. Before the 2010s, watching anime was a niche and incredibly expensive hobby. Fans definitely don't miss how frustrating it was to watch their favorite series. That said, being an anime fan in the early 2000s wasn't all bad. There's a lot of nostalgia for anime of that decade and fans will tell you everything they miss about it.

10 Waking Up On Saturdays To Watch Anime

Anime Yami Plays His Turn In Yu Gi Oh

Companies like 4Kids weren't the best when it came to dubbing anime for U.S. fans. They often censored any violence and cultural differences. Most fans can remember when riceballs were called donuts in Pokemon. However, waking up to watch anime on Saturday mornings is still one of the best parts of being a fan in the early 2000s. Nearly every kids channel played episodes of anime including Kids WB, ABC Family, and Disney XD. For Yu-Gi-Oh!, Beyblade, and even Dragon Ball fans, there was no better excuse for getting up early on a Saturday morning.

9 Toonami All Day Every Day

Kenshin and Shishio from Rurouni Kenshin

Toonami has been on Cartoon Network for a few years, but it certainly isn't what it used to be. Anime fans from the 2000s will remember how great it was in its heyday. Fans were able to watch anime every day after school and are probably fans of anime because Toonami aired so frequently. Its lineup was also incredibly diverse with shows like Rurouni Kenshin, Hamtaro, and Sailor Moon airing back to back. No matter what kind of anime fans liked, they could find it airing on Toonami.

8 The Anime Abridged Boom

Ginyu Force from Dragon ball Z

Fan creations were at their height in the early 2000s. Anime was still an incredibly small community and because of how hard anime was to come by, fans often resorted to making their own art in order to get their anime fix. This includes anime fandubbing, which was comedic Abridged parodies of different anime series. Several series including Dragon Ball Z and Yu-Gi-Oh! had fandubs and many of the people behind those projects were able to find work in anime because of it.

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The Dragon Ball Z Abridged Series was so popular there are actually fans of the series who have never seen the original anime. The fact that these fandubs still hold up today shows how dedicated those anime fans were to contributing to the anime community.

7 The AMV Explosion

naruto chakra

Another way fans showed their appreciation for the anime community was by creating AMVs. These anime music videos were created by slicing anime clips with music. They were often created with the intention of being edgy and usually utilized music from heavy metal bands. Looking back, these music videos were cringy, but fans look back at this time with fondness. Fans were able to showcase their creativity in amazing ways and some AMVs were actually good. While it's unlikely fans today would enjoy something like this, it's still something a lot of fans miss about the early 2000s.

6 The Anime Community Came Together

Stra Hat pirates from One Piece showing off x marking

Unfortunately for fans of the early 2000s, being an anime fan meant being the weird kid. It was a hobby that many people didn't understand. The upside to this was that the community was incredibly close and supportive of each other. No matter how bad a fan's art was or how cringy their AMV was, fans cheered each other on and supported one another. This was also a time when Cosplaying became really popular. Just like every fandom, the anime community had its problems, but this was probably one of the best times to be a part of the community.

5 There Were No Expectations Before Watching Anime

Cast of Ouran High School Host Club posing together

Anime fans watched whatever anime they could get their hands on in the early 2000s. They couldn't rely on reviews or social media to tell them which shows were good and which ones weren't, so fans went in blind. Sitting down to watch an anime with zero expectations was more fun than one might think, and it also helped that anime wasn't getting overhyped.

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Anyone who watches anime can attest to how bad it is to go into a series that has tons of hype behind it. Most of the time the series can't live up to it, which leaves fans disappointed. With the spread of information, overhype is a lot more common than it used to be and fans are often left missing the times they were surprised by their anime.

4 The Age Of Anime Growth

Ichigo from Bleach

While the anime community was small initially, the early 2000s saw a lot of growth. The Big Three was dominating and anime aired on TV constantly. The introduction of Youtube also made it a lot easier for fans to find more content for them to watch. It may have been difficult to watch anime at the time but it was still a lot easier than ten years earlier, and because of that more people were becoming exposed to anime. It's thanks to early 2000s anime that the community is the way it is now.

3 Dedicated FanSub Community

Samurai Champloo main cast holding up peace signs

Anime comes out a lot faster today than it used to. Simulcast lets fans watch anime as soon as it airs in Japan and it only takes a few months for dubs to come out. In the early 2000s, it could take years for an anime to show up in the states and because of that a lot of fans dedicated themselves to subbing anime. Not only were these groups quick, but they were good at it. Sometimes the fansub was even better than the official one. The studios producing anime may not have enjoyed this period in anime history, but most fans look back at fansubs with a lot of nostalgia.

2 Watching Some Of The Best Anime For The First Time

Hamtaro and friends greet the world in Hamtaro anime

The early 2000s produced some of the best anime. Many of those series are still considered the best of all time. Avatar the Last Airbender, Naruto, Cowboy Bebop, and many more amazing classics aired in the early 2000s. While the anime released today can be just as amazing, there was definitely something special about early 2000s anime. The art was unique and the stories were experimental. While fans can easily watch these series over and over again, there's something special about that first watch and it's something a lot of fans miss.

1 The English Versions Of Intro Songs

Usagi Leads The Sailor Scouts In Sailor Moon

In the early 2000s, English studios had a tendency to "Americanize" anime. This led to some weird choices, like giving characters American names or renaming food items, but it also led to the creation of English theme songs. While some weren't the greatest, others are remembered fondly – more than the original Japanese themes. 2000s anime fans know the Pokemon and Sailor Moon theme songs by heart. Yu-Gi-Oh! fans probably remember the catchphrase "It's time to duel" more than the actual plot. While anime intros today can be incredibly catchy, the English themes of the 2000s were definitely something special.

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