Gauntlet's Guide to The Pokemon Anime

You may have read my earlier guide to monster anime shows. This is sort of a continuation of that thought. Of course times have changed since then. Those shows were evaluated in their first seasons, when they all came out. Time has passed and now several of the shows have changed. Monster Rancher, for one, has ended. It was a pretty good ending. It was replaced by "Medabots". The crap animation totally ruins the show for me. Some people argue that the Japanese animation style is wholly supirior to American animation, but those people have never seen Medabots! Digimon has also changed. Running two entire seasons it has run into, what I call, the "Tenchi effect" named so because it is most evident in the Tenchi anime series. The mass duplication of an idea over multiple universes. Like what's happened to Megaman and Power Rangers. However, the animation on that show has done nothing but improve. While I can't say I like what the Tenchi effect does to it, it still has a pretty good story.

And Pokemon. Well, what can I say? It hasn't changed a bit.

No, really. A few seasons later and it's pretty much the same show it was when it first started. Ash is still on a journey to a Pokemon league. He is still being stalked by Team Rocket. He is still acompanied by Misty and Brock. Affections are still hinted at between Misty and Ash. I think you get the idea here.

"Shurely," you ask, "not EVERYTHING everything is the same?"
Well, okay. Strictly speaking, Ash often throws away his Pokemon when they become too powerfull so he has a different lineup. Skill is hard to judge on the show. People on the show say he's really improved, but he still relies on Dexter alot. Basically, he's as improved as the plot lets him be. If he needs to be a great fighter, he is. And a rank amature? Without missing a beat!

Which is one thing that really irritates the show for me. There are very few origional plots on Pokemon. It's all Ash on his way to some league. Finds some worthless Pokemon and they make a show about the selfsame worthless Pokemon learning a lesson in some obvious moral garbage.

Which brings me to my next point. There is no conflict in Pokemon. The battles with Team Rocket are pretty predictable. Run-onm gags are nice, but run on gags that run for every episode for over two years are down right awful! The early shows had Misty being rather bitchy to Ash. But, not she's very much a "girly-girl". She is *so* feminine now it gets very, very irritating. With everyone acting so nice to each other, the last thing the show needs is a mom! There are no villains in the show. Team Rocket makes gratuitous appearances which, if cut out, would have absolutely no bearing on the plot of the episode at all. The 250 Pokeomon that exist in the show really blurr in my mind now. After so many episodes centering around specific Pokemon, they all seen to suck! What's the real difference between Pikachu (who shoots electricity) and Jolteon (who also shoots electricity)? Neither seem especially faster than the other. Neither seem to have much specific traits that are worth a damn when battleing. The battles themselves are more menotenous and repetative than those of Digimon ...... and Digimon endlessly reuses the same animation sequence for the one attack each monster does!! Everyone and everythign they meet in the bloody show is a nice friend whi is always helpfull with the bad guys being pretty damn obvious to everyone EXCEPT Ash and co.

And, Togepi. Togepi is really irratating and needs to be put in it's freakin' Pokeball before it walks itself off a cliff! How many "Togepi is in trouble" episodes do they need before they put that stuid, chatty little egg in a ball where it belongs!? I don't know if I have ever been as tired of a line as "Topei Toeppppppprrrrrri!" Geex! At least Pikachu keeps his yap shut alot of the time, Togepi talks while he walks, while he eats, while he's resting, while he's being "cute" ........ It does not end. Whatever reedeeming features the spore once had to me are long gone - IT MUST DIE!!!! There's a developing "Togepi is super powerfull" sub plot that will .... inevetably .... NOT be showin in the TV show, but another new movie. Heaven forbit anythin interesting should happen in the TV show! Togepi just walks around saying "Topei Toeppppppprrrrrri!" all the time until he drived me insane! What's even more irritating is that Team Rocket seems to think that Togepi is a rare Pokemon. My ass! They think every single Pokemon on the show has SOME stupid rare quality. I even remember one episode where they were trying to steal bloody Magicarp! Can we stop ascribing the tirte cliche of the little guy being the most powerfull already? Well, considering Pokemon's poor excuse for a plot already, I suppose that little bit of triteness adds what little development to the series as it is.

If 252 Pokemon weren't enough, the new Pokemon Advance game (3 guesses which system it's for) offers up MORE new Pokemon (THIS webmaster guesses 101 new ones). Can you imagine? Let's face it - the ran out of ideas a long time ago. They have Pokemon that are rats, ordinary birds, cows, and trees. While some Pokemon looks bas ass (Mewtwo) others are not the beacon of origionality (Muk, anyone?). Aside from what the show will have you beleive, there's no real need to "catch them all" and if you thought catching 150 was irritating imagine 353!

However, you really can't blame me for forming such a dislike for the show. While many tout anime's maturity one fact is for certain: when they make a kid's show it is *REALLY* for kids! Pokemon has the same flaws as Flint: Time Detective and Monokole Knights. Monokole Knights has SUPERB animation, but the plot is kinda ....... nill. And the villains ...... nonthreatening, really. Has it's moments though. While American cartoons can at least be tollerated by adults most of the time (Batman Beyond and X-men are good examples). Certainly I wouldn't feel a brain tumor forming watching a Batman cartoon as I do while watching Pokemon.

I am Gauntlet and this has been Gauntlet's guides.

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