Pokémon (TV series)
A boy and his Pikachu journey to become Pokémon Master.
Pokémon is a Japanese anime television series that premiered on TV Tokyo in April 1997, part of The Pokémon Company's media franchise. The show originally followed Ash Ketchum, a young trainer of fictional creatures called Pokémon, on his journey to become a Pokémon Master. It is regarded as one of the first anime series to achieve mainstream success with Western and Asian audiences and is considered the most successful video game adaptation of all time.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Adventure, Fantasy comedy
- Based on
- Pokémon, Satoshi Tajiri
- Director
- Kunihiko Yuyama (1997–2019, 2023), Daiki Tomiyasu (2019–present)
- Voices
- Rica Matsumoto
- Ikue Ōtani
- Megumi Hayashibara
- Shin-ichiro Miki
- Inuko Inuyama
- Minori Suzuki
- Yuka Terasaki
- Music
- Shinji Miyazaki (1997–2019)
- Yuki Hayashi (2019–2023)
- Conisch (2023–present)
- Country
- Japan
- Language
- Japanese
- Episodes
- 1,381
Facts from the source article.
Characters
Ash Ketchum is the main protagonist for the first twenty-five seasons. A 10-year-old Pokémon Trainer from Pallet Town in the Kanto Region, he travels with many companions, dreaming of becoming a Pokémon Master. He eventually became the first Alola Regional Champion and later defeated Leon in the World Coronation Series Masters Eight Tournament to become the World Champion, referred to as Monarch. Team Rocket members Jessie, James, and Meowth act as primary antagonists for the first twenty-five seasons, often trying to capture Ash's Pikachu. They primarily serve as comic relief, though they have been serious antagonists on several occasions. Jessie owns a Wobbuffet that pops out of its Poké Ball at strange times. James was part of a noble family but wanted to escape that life. Meowth can speak human speech, having learned to woo a female Meowth named Meowzie, and often translates for Team Rocket and sometimes for Ash. Misty is a 10-year-old Water-type Pokémon Trainer who traveled with Ash, first appearing in Pokémon: Indigo League. She was one of four Cerulean City Gym Leaders and later became the sole Gym Leader. Brock is the 15-year-old former Pewter City Gym Leader and a ladies' man. He initially dreamed of being the world's best Pokémon Breeder, later aspiring to be a Pokémon Doctor. A running gag involves Brock falling in love with every girl he meets and being pulled away by Misty or Max or hit by his Croagunk's Poison Jab. Brock was a mainstay for several seasons, leaving at the end of the Diamond and Pearl series.
Japanese variety shows
Pocket Monsters Encore aired on TV Tokyo from October 19, 1999, to September 17, 2002, during the second part of the original series. It was a variety show featuring reruns of old episodes with Japanese and English audio tracks, except for EP035 and EP018 which were broadcast in stereo. EP022 and EP023 were broadcast together. EP018 was taken out of sequence and inserted between Holiday Hi-Jynx and Snow Way Out!, which aired in place of EP038 and EP039. The ending song was the English version of Type: Wild performed by Robbie Danzie. A segment called Pokémon de English at the end taught Japanese children simple English words and phrases; these segments were later compiled into three volumes and released. Pokémon de English used a mixture of unedited Japanese and painted-over English video, with new English lines recorded by original voice actors from Japan and the United States. It was released as rental-only VHS and DVDs in 2002 and 2007. On September 17, 2002, it was replaced by Weekly Pokémon Broadcasting Station, which aired during the final part of the original series and the beginning of Pokémon: Advanced Generation. This show presented clip shows, reruns, movie airings, cast interviews, and live-action footage, hosted by Mayumi Iizuka as Misty and Yūji Ueda as Brock, joined by a comedy team and other voice actors. It ran until September 28, 2004, when it was replaced by Pokémon Sunday.
Airing and production
Pokémon premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo on April 1, 1997, airing on the TX Network family of stations on Thursday evenings, then syndicated to other major broadcasters and satellite networks. Production in Japan is handled by TV Tokyo, MediaNet, and ShoPro. Kunihiko Yuyama served as chief director until the 2023 episode To Be a Pokémon Master. An average episode costs about $100,000 to make. Internationally, The Pokémon Company handles production and distribution with Iyuno Media Group and Goldcrest Post, published by VIZ Media. The anime airs in 192 countries. In the United States, it aired on Kids' WB starting in February 1999, reaching a 3.9 rating in its first week and 3.1 million viewers by September. Beginning in 2020, Netflix gained exclusive rights to stream new episodes in the United States, starting with the twenty-third season Pokémon Journeys: The Series on June 12, 2020. The series has previously aired in syndication on Kids' WB, Cartoon Network, and Disney XD, with library episodes also airing on Cartoon Network and Boomerang.
Reception
In a February 2008 IGN review, Jeffrey Harris gave the Indigo League series a score of 2 out of 10, calling the story boring, repetitive, and formulaic, and stating that the franchise felt more like crass marketing than teaching friendship. Common Sense Media gave the series 3 out of 5 stars in April 2008, noting its energetic, imagination-filled fantasy crossed cultural and age barriers to captivate a global audience, but also found its massive commercial appeal disturbing. Carl Kimlinger, in an August 2008 Anime News Network review of the Diamond and Pearl series, gave the dubbed series a C grade, describing the formula as set in stone with Ash and buddies meeting new Pokémon, fighting, making friends, and using the Power of Friendship to fend off Team Rocket. He stated the series would be enjoyed by its target audience, being colorful, silly, and lively, and praised the lack of objectionable content and the message of friendship, cooperation, and acceptance, but criticized the soundtrack as tin-eared bad video game music. Kevin McFarland, in a 2016 Wired binge-watching guide of the Indigo League series, described it as a kids program emphasizing hard work, family, friendship, love, trust, and honor, while also being a largely silly show with slapstick comedy and colorful battles.
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