Welcome to the Toon Zone Wiki Guide! The purpose of this document is to act as a straightforward, comprehensive, easy-to-understand guide about how to develop the TZ Wiki. From the basics of building an article to how information should be organized, this is the place to go for both newcomers and regular contributors.

An important point to know is that, like the Wiki itself, this guide is a work in progress. It is a living document that will develop as necessary. Therefore, if you have questions about something that isn’t covered here or you feel an explanation is confusing or lacking, please ask about it at Ask a Wiki Question, Get a Wiki Answer. Your question will be promptly answered, and the guide and/or FAQ will be updated for everyone’s reference.

Our goal is for the TZ Wiki’s articles to adhere to a standardized format for the sake of organization and consistency. This thread is locked so if you feel that a rule should be changed or could be improved, please talk about it in the Feedback Thread. There we will all discuss it, and ultimately a decision will be made one way or the other.

All feedback is strongly encouraged and very welcome. Your input helps us develop and refine the standards that will give structure and purpose to the Animation Wiki.

Learning the Basics

General Philosophy

A Wiki is essentially an online encyclopedia. Like any good encyclopedia, in its finished state it is a comprehensive reference for just about any topic. The goal is that we work toward that ideal at our own pace, hopefully having some fun in the process.

In an ideal TZ Wiki article, a reader with no prior knowledge of the topic can read it and, by the end, understand the fundamentals about the cartoon or the animation-related subject in question. Our #1 priority is to inform and to spread interest about the animation medium. So if someone reads an article about a cartoon he or she knows nothing about and is inspired to watch it (or to choose something else!), that’s success.

Creating An Article

There are two easy ways to get started. If you see a link in the Wiki that is colored red, that indicates an article that has yet to be created. Simply click on it and the edit screen will open up, allowing you to begin creating the page.

If you have a topic in mind, run a search to see if there is an existing article. If no article with that topic name exists, you will be given the option to create the page.

Finally, you can follow the links to the article index and the category index on the main page and see if there’s a subject out there that interests you.

Going forward, try to avoid creating an article with only a single sentence. At a minimum, please include the headlines for some of the sections that are discussed later on in this guide. This will leave a useful outline behind for other users to fill in.

Editing An Article

Articles will often be edited by users who are making corrections, adding information, or reorganizing the article. All users should feel free to contribute at will. The details of writing are discussed later on. If you have comments to make about recent changes or questions to ask about updates you are thinking of making, we encourage you to raise them in the discussion thread.

When you’re at the editing screen, there is a “summary” field at the bottom. If you are making major changes, it’s often a good idea briefly describe what you’ve done so that other users can be informed about what’s happened. Leaving a comment on your work is encouraged for the following:
  • When you are reorganizing an article in a significant way
  • When you are editing an article extensively, or filling out missing parts of an article
  • When you are adding at least an extra paragraph to an article. For our purposes, let’s define this as an edit that’s adding at least three new sentences of content.
There is also a checkbox for designating an edit as a minor one. In the article history, these get marked with a “m.” Please use this for very simple, very small-scale edits. This will help people know when changes are significant and meriting attention.

Important: Correcting a single mistaken fact is a minor edit, but in this case please always leave an editing comment. Ideally, the disputed fact should also be talked about in the article’s discussion thread.

The History Page

The Wiki keeps track of all changes made to an article, which are viewable by clicking the “history” link at the top. The time and date of every edit is shown in link form; you may click on these and view the status of that revision as it existed.

It’s also possible to compare two versions of the same article by selecting them and clicking the “compare selected versions” button at the top and bottom of the history page. The two versions of the article will be listed side by side, highlighting all differences.

Using Links

Creating links within the Wiki is very easy: simply include text within double brackets like so: [[sample link]]. On the edit screen, there is a shortcut button that will create this for you.

When an article mentions an animation character, a person, or other animated works for the first time, there should be a link. Links do not and should not need to be included afterward.

External links work similar to internal ones, making use of single brackets: [http://www.example.com link title]. The use of external links will be very important for “See Also” sections for articles, as well as for citations. Yet again, the edit screen has a shortcut button that will create the external link tag for you.

As you can see from the external link example, all links may be given any title as necessary. Just make sure there is a space between the source and the link title.

Using Lists

Sometimes, you may want to use a list in an article. This is particularly handy for character lists or for listing links in the “See Also” section of an article. This is as simple as placing asterisks in front of each item. For example:

*Item 1
*Item 2
*Item 3

When you type this and save the changes, your list will be saved and shown with bullet points.

If desired, you can make sub paragraphs by putting a colon in front of the asterisk. Example:

*Paragraph 1
:*Sub-Paragraph 1
*Paragraph 2

Vandalism

Vandalism is when the content of an article is intentionally replaced with obvious off-topic nonsense, inappropriate content that goes against the Toon Zone Terms of Service, or trolling comments insulting the subject of the article. Any such activity is against the TZ rules, and proper disciplinary action will be taken against the account responsible. Frankly we don’t expect this to be a problem, but the TZ Wiki is a product of a lot of hard work and we want it clear that we will preserve it. If you see a case of vandalism, report it via private message to a moderator or post about it in the article's discussion thread.

Vandalism can be dealt with by visiting the article’s history page, opening the last good version of the article, and saving that version of the article in place of the vandalized entry.

The Spoiler Policy

The TZ Wiki has a no-spoiler policy for primary articles. It is okay to explain the premise of a cartoon, but it is not okay to have a massively long story section that gives away everything that happens. The reason why is because the purpose of the TZ Wiki's existence is to inform and to foster interest in animation, and giving away the details of a story from beginning to end does not serve that mandate.

When you get down to it, doing that just isn’t user friendly to readers that are new to a cartoon and not in the know. We want an environment where anyone can look up an article out of curiosity and not have to worry about their enjoyment being ruined. For this reason, we need to make sure that main articles are kept spoiler-free.

Details about avoiding spoilers will be discussed later.

Organizing An Article

Introduction

Any article of decent size will inevitably be organized into different sections. The headlines for these should be given headline 2 sized text, like so: ==Sample headline== There is a shortcut button on the editing screen that will insert this for you. In addition to the headline 2 size, a line will be drawn to separate the article sections from each other. Headlines will be listed in the table of contents for the reader to use, interpreted as chapter 1, chapter 2, etc.

Sometimes, you may want to use subheaders within a particularly long section. In this situation, use the headline 4 size. You can do this by simply adding equal signs as shown: (====sample subheader====). In the table of contents these subheaders will be interpreted as chapter 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc.

It is possible to use level 3 (===sample subheader===) but this should be avoided, since that code has the Wiki create bolded text that is as large as a headline. This is inappropriate for a subheader. Do not use the maximum size, headline 1 (=sample headline=). That size is used for the article titles, which should be the largest text on the page.

Using Images

The essence of any Wiki is the writing, but who wants to just look at blocks of text all the time? The use of pictures can add visual appeal to a page and help the reader identify with the topic. Feel free to contribute images of your own!

The Wiki makes this process fairly simple. The first step is to upload the picture that you have in mind to the Wiki itself by visiting the upload file page. At this page, you'll see three fields.
  • Source filename: Fill it by clicking the "browse" button and selecting your file.
  • Destination filename: This will be the name of your file on the Wiki. It will be the same as the source filename by default.
  • Summary: A description of your picture. This can benefit the reader if there is some sort of context to be explained. It will also be displayed on the file list.
Once uploaded your file can be used for any TZ Wiki article, including the one you're working on. Inserting an image for your article works similar to a standard link, with some extra text: [[Image:filename.jpg|left or right alignment|image description]]

The file name should be exactly as it appears on the image list. The align field should say either "left" or "right". The description part is optional; it displays whatever text you choose when the reader places his or her ouse cursor over the picture. Using the same text that you used for the picture summary is recommended.

Example: [[Image:Gundamwlogo.jpg|right|insert standard description]]

You can place your image at any point in the article by putting it near the desired area of text. However, please use the left alignment with caution, as it can displace headlines or subheaders if misused.

Also, please show judgement for image size. If an image is so large that it a huge percentage of your screen when used, please resize the image with your preferred image program.

Organizing Article Content

Every article should begin with a simple description briefly introducing the topic, as shown below.

Example 1: Mobile Suit Gundam Wing is a 1995 Japanese anime mecha series. It was the second Gundam series to take place in an alternate universe independent of Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, and the first to air on television outside of Japan. Gundam Wing premiered on March 6, 2000 on Cartoon Network's Toonami block.
Example 2: Princess Mononoke (Mononoke-hime) is a 1997 anime film directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli.

After that, all other detail should be saved for the main body of the article. Always begin with the subject of the article, highlighted in bold text.

There is room for flexibility in structure when it comes to the body of the article, but there is basic information that is essential for any article to be informative about its topic. This chapter will be devoted to discussing the fundamental sections that give structure to a TZ Wiki article. These should be included in any new article. Some suggested, optional sections will also be mentioned. Please feel free to use your own ideas in addition to them.

The basic sections can be considered to be the minimum standards for a complete article. If any section is incomplete or empty, the article in question should be marked with the {{stub}} tag.

Animation Series and Shorts

The introductory paragraph should ideally discuss the year of the show’s premiere, briefly mention its essential facts (usually its creator, the genre, and its significance), and when possible where it is or used to air.

Basic sections should include the following, in this order:

Plot Synopsis

A summary of what the series or short is about. Discuss the premise, the key characters, and so on. Treat it like an unbiased introduction to a review.

Characters

Here, the characters of the series can be listed and described. Specific details be limited, in keeping with the spoiler policy. A character listing in the main article should be no longer than a single, good-sized paragraph. Anything longer belongs in an article page for that character.

Voice Cast (optional)

Sometimes, an animated series will be adapted from another language. For instance, this is commonplace for most anime licensed for release in North America. In this scenario, you can create a character list and include the English voice talent.

If desired, the original voice talent may also be listed. In this scenario, create two subheaders: one for the English cast, and one for the foreign cast. Ideally, it should look like this:

English Casting
  • Character 1: Actor A
  • Character 2: Actor B
  • Character 3: Actor C
Japanese Casting
  • Character 1: Actor X
  • Character 2: Actor Y
  • Character 3: Actor Z
Reception

This section discusses the success of the series (or lack thereof), such as ratings and the length of its TV run. If the series has won or been nominated for any special awards, this is the place to cite them. If sequels have been created, these should also be mentioned. Reviews can be cited here also.

Animated Films

This should begin much like an article for an animated series or short. Theatrical dates or DVD street dates should be mentioned as necessary.

Plot Synopsis

The approach for this section is similar to how it should be for an animated series or short.

Characters (optional)

If desired, characters can be talked about just like in an animated series. If a film features celebrity voice talent, this is a good place to mention it.

Notable Staff

Ideally, this section lists all essential staff. Director, writers, animators, actors, the whole thing.

Production History

Usually, there are records of when production on a film began as well as interviews and commentaries that offer insight on the process. This section should talk about them. Emphasis should be given to the vision of the director and/or creator, when possible.

Reception

This is where theatrical success and box office numbers should be talked about. There’s also no shortage of movie reviews in newspapers and online that should be cited. Try to keep the standard for this similar to citations—official sources and reputable sources.

Animation Studios

A good introductory paragraph would probably mention the founders of the studio, the location of that studio, and the date it was founded.

Basic headlines should include the following, in this order:

The History of (Name)

Exactly as described. This is the place for all information relevant to the growth and development of the studio.

Notable Staff

All significant names associated with this studio. Directors, writers, producers, etc.

Filmography

A list of all animated works produced by this studio. This section should include article links for each work, and ideally the year of production. Filmography lists should feature internal links for all works.

Animation Creators

A good introductory paragraph would probably mention the person’s nationality, profession, employment, and most significant work(s).

Basic headlines should include the following, in this order:

Biography (optional)

A detailed biography isn’t necessarily doable for all staff involved in a studio or production, but most of the big names of animation have very well documented lives. This section should be included for all of the major greats at a minimum. For some, this section could get very long. Use subheaders as necessary.

Animation Career

An overview of the animated works this person was involved in as well as his or her involvement in them. Focus on the highlights.

Legacy (optional)

Some people have had a tremendous impact on the world of animation. This section is the place for the final word on why the person in question was or is so important. Interviews, news articles, books, documentaries, and obituaries are all things could work very well as sources for this section.

Filmography

A list of all animated works this person was involved in, as well as his role in the project. Director, producer, head writer, etc.

Animation Characters

Begin by describing what animated work the character appears in. If there is more than one, highlight the most recent production and/or the most famous one. Use your best judgment.

Basic headlines should include the following, in this order:

Biography

Here, the fundamental information about the character should be discussed. Personality, job, dreams, hopes, ambitions, goals, and so on. Write what is necessary to help the reader fully understand the character.

Make sure to avoid spoilers: do not discuss every single thing that happens to the character in the series. An example: In an article about Superman you can say that Darkseid is a recurring nemesis, but you should not describe each of their encounters in detail.

Powers and Abilities

Many characters have special super powers and abilities that make them unique. These may be talked about here. However, show judgment for spoilers. If you can’t discuss a character’s ability without giving away a critical plot point, don’t list it.

History (optional)

Some characters, like Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny, were created long ago. Others are new, original concepts. Some are adapted from comics and manga. Use this section to discuss the development of a character. This is a good place to reference the character’s creator, when possible.

(Character) In Animation (optional)

Some characters have been portrayed in several different animated works over the years, and sometimes in dramatically different ways. This section should describe every such context, from the original to the present.

The See Also Section

All articles of any type should have a section titled “See Also” included at the very end. This is the section for links to online content that is relevant to the subject of the article. Please be sure to display them as a list. For this section, the following are appropriate:

Links to Toon Zone Reviews or Interviews

These should be displayed as follows: Toon Zone Review: [external link]. For the link title, include the entire title of the TZ review in question.

Citing TZ reviews should be common practice and done early on when possible. What better way to discover more about a cartoon than to read an informed review? This also ties the TZ Wiki into the mainstream Toon Zone website while highlighting Toon Zone content from the past. The Wiki is an extension of Toon Zone – let’s make it look that way.

Links to TZ-hosted websites

For example, an article on Toonami naturally ought to have a link to The X Bridge. Something about a DC superhero cartoon most likely has a reason to be linking to something at World’s Finest.

Links to other TZ Wiki articles

Often, a topic will be closely related to many others. Include other TZ Wiki articles as appropriate.

Links to official websites

This one is obvious; going to the source is always a good thing.

Links to reputable fansites

There’s a lot of information out there on the internet, and we’re going to try keeping the Wiki open to it. Please use discretion: link to websites that contain actual facts, reports, or interviews. This does not include amateur blogs posting rumors or opinions. It does include sites that have legitimate, accurate information. If you have doubts about whether linking to a certain external site is appropriate for an article, just visit the discussion thread and ask.

Writing An Article

Originality

Ultimately, what will separate the TZ Wiki from the rest is user-generated content. Many websites say things the same way, repeat the same information, and often copy material from other sites to spread it around. We want to avoid that, and plagiarism is something we want to keep out of the Wiki entirely. For that reason, when contributing to the Wiki, please write the content yourself.

It is perfectly okay to incorporate outside resources into the article, but they should be cited and they should be discussed in your own words. It’s also fine to quote a source if you feel it’s the best thing to do. If you feel like you aren’t the best writer in the world, don’t worry. That’s why this is a community project; we’re all doing our part to make it better. Do what you can when you can, and others will get involved and do their part to help things along too.

Objectivity

Articles should be factual and informative, but point-of-view entries are out of the question. All opinions, from praise to negative comments, should be checked at the door. It is valid to cite critical acclaim or negative reviews under the “Reception” header, and it is also valid to discuss the factual legacy or influence of a given cartoon or character. But the core substance of an article should never pass judgment.

Here are some examples:

Right Way: Produced in 1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was profoundly influential as the first animated feature film in American history, paving the way for many more animated feature films to be produced.
Wrong Way: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was both the first and the best animated Disney movie, putting its successors to shame.

Right Way: Bugs Bunny is the corporate mascot for Warner Bros and is one of the most iconic, well-recognized cartoon characters in animation.
Wrong Way: Bugs Bunny is the greatest Looney Toon, and is obviously more funny than Daffy Duck.

Another pitfall to avoid are the use of so-called "weasel words." These are when an editor doesn't outright state a point of view in an article, but advocates it through his or her choice of words.

Example 1: Afro Samurai enjoyed great TV ratings and DVD sales. This led to the creation of the superior sequel Afro Samurai: Resurrection, which premiered on Spike TV on Janurary 24, 2009.
Example 2: Despite a disappointing first season, Justice League won the acclaim of many fans with the three-part episode "The Savage Time."

Simply put: do not substitute opinion for fact, even if you think it's a majority opinion.

Avoiding Spoilers

We understand that it can be difficult to write substantial information about an animated program and its characters without revealing minor details that take place. However, users should not contribute any information that reveals plot points and key events that would ruin the experience for those who read it. There is a distinct difference between explaining the story and revealing the story. When in doubt, behave as if you were writing a post anywhere else on Toon Zone.

For an example, let’s look at the right way and the wrong way to write about Beauty and the Beast.

Right Way:

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is about an independent young woman named Belle who becomes a resident of an enchanted castle inhabited by talking household objects and the monstrous Beast. The Beast was once a prince, but he and his home were cursed by an enchantress when she appeared to him in the guise of an old woman and he refused to offer her shelter from the cold winter. The enchantress gave the selfish prince until his 21st birthday to grow out of his selfishness and learn to love, or else he would be cursed for all time. During her stay in the Beast’s castle, Belle befriends the enchanted servants and begins to teach the Beast to love. But will his heart change in time?

Wrong Way:

Belle’s relationship with the Beast improves when _____________
The film ends with a _________ when Gaston _____________

See the difference? The right way entices the reader to find out more. The wrong way just gives it away. Let’s do our best to encourage folks to experience the wonderful world of animation for themselves.

Citations

Citations are lines of text used to identify a source that supports factual claims made in an article. These are the method by which articles are made factually based and verifiable. If you say, for instance, that a character has had a significant impact on the animation medium or that a certain animation production is very well acclaimed, it should ideally be backed up with something concrete.

Citations should not include other TZ Wiki articles, or mainstream Wikipedia. Stick to original sources.

Unfortunately, the code for citations is currently not working, stalling the use of proper Wiki citations. This is a known issue and work is being done to solve it. This section will be updated once citations are enabled.

For the moment, if you have a source for a fact, please place it inside parentheses after the fact in question. Example: Gundam 00 is airing on the Sci-Fi channel in November (www.samplelinktoapressrelease.com).

When citations are working right, we will update things to display them the way that they ought to be.

Organizing The Wiki

Getting Started: The Top-Down Structure

If you need advice on getting started with contributions, some articles have greater degrees of importance that we would welcome help on. An organized effort would work in this order:

1. Article(s) concerning animation creators and distributors (i.e. animation studios, TV channels or a specific block on a channel)
2. Below that would be articles on the cartoons made by each creator
3. Then, beneath specific cartoons, there are articles on the details. Characters, episode lists, etc

If you look at the original source for a cartoon and work your way down, you will cover a lot of material and will very likely learn a few things in the course of your research. If there are gaps along the way, don't worry--others will help fill in the blanks. None of this is required, but organizing one's writing in this way does help the TZ Wiki become a progressively more comprehensive source of information.

An Introduction to Categories

Categories are essential to the organization of the Wiki. If an article lacks categories, that usually means something isn't right. It’s like a book in a library being put away in the completely wrong place. Categories benefit the reader by making articles easier to find, and by showing the reader what a given article has in common with others. The Wiki has a list of uncategorized pages, which is useful for checking to see if there are articles in need of organization.

To add an article to a category, open the article that you want to include. On the edit screen, scroll to the bottom and insert the following: [[Category:Sample Category Name]]

If this is a new category, it will appear in the category index. Just like articles, category pages have to be created. Simply click on the link for the new category and save the changes, and other users will be able to visit the category page.

Existing categories will update automatically, organizing articles alphabetically. Adding a category link to an article will automatically add that article to the corresponding category page.

Using Categories

Whenever an article is created, it should be associated with at least one category. For any animated series or feature film, at a minimum please associate it with the category for its appropriate decade. These are listed as “1990s animated features,” “1990s animated series,” and so on for every other decade. For people, there is a category for “Animation creators.” Use the “Animation studios” category for any producer of animation.

The {{Stub}} Tag

An article may be tagged as a stub by editing it and placing {{stub}} in the body text. A stub is any article that has a bare minimum of information, contains a blank section, or is otherwise obviously incomplete or unfinished. If you have doubts about whether an article is a stub or still is a stub, visit the article’s discussion thread and ask.

The stub category is very important. It lets us know what articles need work and attention. Without it, unfinished articles can be harder for users to pinpoint and work on. If you encounter an unfinished article that isn’t tagged as a stub, please update it with the {{stub}} tag. Likewise, new articles should always be tagged as a stub unless they are very well filled out from the start.

Article Titles and Redirection Pages

Obviously, the search engine is essential to any online resource. People expect to be able to type in search terms and find what they’re looking for.

Sometimes though, cartoons will have more than one correct title. For example, the anime Mobile Suit Gundam Wing would be known as New Mobile Report Gundam Wing in Japan. In addition, any foreign cartoon would obviously have a spelling in the language of whatever country it comes from.

Other times, a user will often be searching for an article using a narrow search term. The search feature is very specific, so if you type two words from a title like “Endless Waltz” you wouldn’t be sent to the article Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, even though that’s what you’re looking for. Instead, the user is usually sent to a search results page that shows similar matches.

Finally, on occasion, a cartoon’s name can be dramatically changed after it is localized. For example, the Japanese detective series Detective Conan was renamed Case Closed when it was released in the United States. Normally a reader searching with “Detective Conan” wouldn’t be sent to the article on “Case Closed,” and vice versa.

All of these issues can be a nuisance and a barrier to finding information. Thankfully, they can be easily solved by creating a redirection page. Simply create a page with the desired search terms and insert the following and only the following:

#REDIRECT [[Main Article Title]]

After the page is saved, a user who searches for the title of the redirect page will be sent directly to the page you linked to.

Example: I create a page titled “Gundam Wing” and type #REDIRECT [[Mobile Suit Gundam Wing]]. From now on, when the user searches for “Gundam Wing” he or she automatically ends up at the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing article.

The title of a main article for a cartoon should always be the complete, official name. In other words “Avatar” would be wrong, whereas “Avatar: The Last Airbender” would be correct. What’s more, because this is an English website, localized names should take priority over the original name. So Case Closed should have an article titled Case Closed, not Detective Conan. Original names should be acknowledged in the beginning of the article.

Conclusion

We hope this guide has been informative, useful, and comprehensible for you. Once again, if you have any comments or suggestions, don’t hesitate to leave us feedback. All this was written for your benefit, so your input matters and will be heard. Thanks for reading!