Pokémon

"Pokemon" redirects here. For the oncogene once called Pokemon, see [[:Zbtb7]].

File:Pokemon logo.jpg

The official Pokémon logo.

Pokémon (ポケモン, Pokemon, IPA: [ˈpoʊ.keɪ.mɑn], although frequently mispronounced [poʊ.kiˈmæn]), is a multi-billion dollar media franchise controlled by video game giant Nintendo, and created by Satoshi Tajiri at least by 1995 (it celebrated its tenth anniversary on February 27, 2006, although the franchise was copyrighted in the USA as Pokémon by 1995). The original Game Boy video games have since been merchandised into anime, manga, trading cards, toys, books, and other media. The name, Pokémon, is the romanized contraction of the Japanese brand, “Pocket Monsters” (ポケットモンスター, Poketto Monsutā), as such contractions are very common in Japan. Nintendo originally literally translated Poketto Monsutā – indeed, a "Pocket Monsters" game was created in early 1995. A naming conflict caused Nintendo to rebrand the franchise as "Pokémon" in early 1996. The game’s catchphrase, in the Japanese language versions of the franchise is "ポケモンGETだぜ!(Pokémon Getto Daze! - Let's Get Pokémon!)" ; in the English language versions of the franchise, it used to be “Gotta catch ’em all!”, although it is now no longer officially used (except by Hasbro and in the title sequence to Pokémon Chronicles).

The concept of the Pokémon saga stems from the hobby of insect collecting, a popular pastime in which Pokémon's creator Satoshi Tajiri had enjoyed as a child. Tajiri’s formula took off in Japan and was adapted (and translated) in 1998 for the American market, with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue. These games allowed players to catch, collect, and train hundreds of creatures, known as Pokémon; and battle them against each other to build their strength. These Pokémon could then “evolve” into more powerful Pokémon and learn new and stronger techniques. Pokémon never bleed or die in battle, only faint – this was a very touchy subject to Tajiri, as he didn’t want to further fill the gaming world with "pointless violence".

Pokémon is also the collective name for all of the fictional species within the Pokémon universe. To date, the franchise has a grand total of Template:Pokenum unique species that lie at the heart of the series, a figure which has grown substantially from the 150 monsters in the original Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue games. The word Pokémon remains unchanged whether referring to the singular or plural (as is the case with deer or sheep), and the same applies to each species name.

In December 2005, 4Kids Entertainment, which had managed the non-game related licensing of Pokémon, announced that it has agreed not to renew the Pokémon representation agreement. Pokémon USA Inc., a subsidiary of Japan's Pokémon Co., now oversees all Pokémon licensing outside of Asia.

Generations

Main article: Pokémon (video games)

The original Pokémon games were Japanese RPGs with an element of strategy, and were created by Satoshi Tajiri for the Game Boy. These role-playing games, and their sequels, remakes, and English language translations, are still considered the "main" Pokémon games, and the games which most fans of the series are referring to when they use the term "Pokémon games". Accumulative sold units (including home console versions) reach 143 million copies. This makes it the second biggest-selling games franchise ever, after Nintendo’s Mario series.

All of the licensed Pokémon properties overseen by The Pokémon Company are divided roughly by generation. There have been three generations, defined by the Pokémon which appear therein, and a fourth is in development. Each of these generations has been first introduced in a pair of Pokémon video games for the Game Boy or its successors (including the Nintendo DS), beginning (in most countries) with Pokémon Red and Blue and their remake, Pokémon Yellow, followed by Pokémon Gold and Pokémon Silver and their remake, Pokémon Crystal, which were later released. Then came Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, followed Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, the remakes of the first generation games, and Pokémon Emerald, the remake of the third generation games. The fourth generation games, Pokémon Pearl and Diamond, are to be released in Japan on September 28, 2006. In every generation, the last version to be released has a slightly different storyline from the preceding versions. Each generation introduces a slew of new Pokémon and a handful of new general concepts.

These generations are roughly chronological divisions by release; a handful of Pokémon from a subsequent generation appear in the anime, manga, or trading card game before the main Game Boy games which demarcate the generation are released, but the anime, manga, and even (of late) the card game divides itself into sagas or generations by the same scheme as the games.

First generation

File:Pokemon red box.jpg

Box art for the American version of Pokémon Red.

This first generation started with Pokémon Red and Blue. The first generation introduced the original 151 Pokémon (Bulbasaur to Mew), as well as the basic concepts of trading and battling Pokémon. In Japan, the first generation included Pokémon Red, Green, and later Blue (with changes to the artwork and dungeon layout), while other regions started with Red and Blue (both featuring the updated elements), but never got a Green.

A Bulbasaur involved in a battle with a Charmander in Pokémon Red (Played on a Super Game Boy).

This generation was completed by the game Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition, loosely based on the anime, in which the player started with a Pikachu who refused to go into its Poké Ball and instead followed the player’s character around. By turning around to face the Pikachu, players could get an approximate notion of how much their Pikachu “liked” them. This and other elements of Pokémon Yellow were similar to the anime. It also altered the progress of the game to more accurately reflect trainers and Pokémon seen in the animé, including the addition of Jessie and James, who are well-known members of Team Rocket to the storyline. Jessie and James bring along their signature Pokémon (Koffing, Ekans, and Meowth). Koffing and Ekans evolve later on, but Meowth does not.

These versions of the games revolved around the Kanto region, though it was not known as such until the second generation. This generation also introduced the idea of a rival trainer whom the player faced a number of times, as well as a team of evil Pokémon trainers.

These games were compatible with the N64 game Pokémon Stadium and its sequel, Pokémon Stadium 2. Remakes of the first two games, called Pokémon FireRed and Pokémon LeafGreen, were released in the third “Advance” generation.

Second generation

File:Pokemon gold.jpg

Box art for the American version of Pokémon Gold.

Beginning with Pokémon Gold and Silver, this second generation introduced the next one hundred Pokémon (Chikorita to Celebi) (making the total number 251) and the new region of Johto. Innovations included use of the Game Boy Color’s IR port for receiving a “Mystery Gift” item, a day and night system, and the concept of plants which actively grew and bore Berries (items with special healing properties) and Apricorns (for creating custom Poké Balls used to capture and store Pokémon). In these games, the protagonist could also customise his bedroom and breed Pokémon. Breeding is the only way to obtain baby Pokémon (a new class of Pokémon). Also, two new types of Pokémon, the Steel and Dark types were introduced. Even the Pokémon themselves had some different properties, most notably being assigned genders. Previously, the only Pokémon to be specifically gendered was Nidoran, which has an unusually high level of sexual dimorphism. Another notable, though minor change, is that NPCs were given names in addition to their basic title.

The games also featured a new tool, the Pokégear, a device which served as a mobile phone, a radio, a map, and a watch. The mobile phone function was used to communicate with in-game NPCs for conversation or a potential battle. The radio station chosen would influence the rate at which wild Pokémon could be found. There was also one station announcing which Pokémon could be found and where. The watch included the time and day of the week and the protagonist’s mother can change it from Standard (Winter) Time to Daylight Savings (Summer) Time (and vice versa). Knowing the time was important because different Pokémon appeared or evolved at different times of day, and some events revolved around the time and the day of the week. The sun would shine from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m., and the rest of the time it would be night.

This generation of the games was completed by Pokémon Crystal, which was most notably the only GBC-exclusive Pokémon RPG and the first which allowed the player to choose the protagonist’s gender. It was also the first to feature Pokémon animations (the Pokémon would do its animation when encountered or sent out) and on-screen text to announce when the protagonist entered a new location. Crystal version also featured a slight alteration of the encounter with the three Legendary Pokémon, in which the player would eventually encounter Suicune and be able to catch it. However, the other two still had to be found in the normal way (random wild encounters).

These games were compatible with Pokémon Stadium 2.

Third generation

File:PokemonRubyEUBoxart.jpg

Box art for the English version of Pokémon Ruby.

Starting over by harkening back to Red and Blue, Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire added another 135 Pokémon from the Hoenn region, as well as Pokémon natures (25 distinct Pokémon personality types), 76 Pokémon abilities (always-on special innate abilities), Pokéblocks and Pokémon Contests, and two-on-two Pokémon battles. However, this generation saw the loss of the overt night and day system and the calendar, although the time mechanic did exist to the extent that a clock appeared and that certain Pokémon would only evolve into certain Pokémon at specific times of the day or night. These versions also introduced the ability to grow berries in certain places, each which had set lengths of time for their flowering, and the ability to make “Secret Bases” in trees or caves in which dolls, tables, chairs, plants, and other objects could be placed.

These new Pokémon have been the subject of criticism, due to the fact that many are too similar to earlier creatures (examples being Butterfree and Beautifly, Seel and Spheal, or Kingler and Crawdaunt) or do not resemble "animals" as others do (such as Regirock, Regice, Registeel, and Mawile).

The third game in this series was Pokémon Emerald, which updated the PokéNAV’s Trainers Eyes feature for a return to the mobile phone system of the previous generation (but modified, allowing players to contact Pokémon Gym Leaders for rematches, but no longer allowing them to remove NPC trainers). Emerald version also saw a return of the Pokémon battle dance when encountering an enemy Pokémon. These 3 versions all appeared on the Game Boy Advance.

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A Pokémon Emerald screenshot featuring an enemy Pupitar and Solrock fighting in a double battle against a player's Aggron and Smeargle.

This generation was rounded out on handhelds by Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen for the GBA, enhanced remakes of the first two Pokémon games, including a playable female character (based on concept art for a playable female the original designers considered but were unable to implement), new items and regions, move tutors, and all the features of the 2nd and 3rd generations, excluding the day/night system and (except in Japan) e-reader compatibility. FireRed and LeafGreen also shipped with the GBA wireless adapter for wireless battles and trading.

All five GBA RPG games are compatible with the storage program Pokémon Box: Ruby & Sapphire for Nintendo GameCube, and also with Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness. The first Pokémon RPGs for home consoles, these titles introduced the desert country of Orre, as well as corrupted shadow Pokémon, and “Snagging”, the ability to steal/rescue them from their trainers and eventually “purify” them.

Unlike games in the second generation, third generation games cannot trade with previous games in the series, due to hardware limitations. This initially resulted in many Pokémon becoming unavailable, a situation rectified by the release of Pokémon Colosseum, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, and Pokémon Emerald. Pokémon such as Celebi and Mew, only obtained from Nintendo directly, had to be handed out again as well.

Fourth generation

Box art for the Japanese version of Pokémon Pearl.

Box art for the Japanese version of Pokémon Pearl.

The fourth generation is stated to be introduced in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl for the Nintendo DS. Leading up to the games' release are a couple of side games, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon and Pokémon Ranger, which are currently out for the DS in Japan since autumn of 2005 and early 2006 respectively, and are slated to be released in North America in the autumn. A handful of new Pokémon from this generation, such as Weavile and Munchlax, have made cameo appearances in the seventh and eighth Pokémon movies (Pokémon: Destiny Deoxys and Lucario and the Mystery of Mew, respectively), as well as Pokémon XD and the aforementioned side games.

File:Poke12.jpg

An in-game battle between Weavile and Munchlax.

The evil organization is called Team Galaxy. Recently, four additional new Pokémon (which will make appearances in the ninth movie, Pokémon Ranger and the Prince of the Sea: Manaphy) have been revealed by CoroCoro magazine and the Official Movie Website. As for Diamond and Pearl, the day and night system makes a return, with two new times (sunset and late-night), and genders are even more different, with slightly edited sprites depending on gender (female Butterfree have an extra black marking on their lower wings, female Wooper have shorter antennae than males, and female Scizor have larger abdomens compared to their male counterparts). They are also to be compatible with the Advance Generation and was released in Japan on September 28, 2006 and will be released in the USA in the spring of 2007.

Spin-offs

The series has also diversified into various spin-offs, such as pinball games, virtual pets, simulated photography, and racing. A handful of these spinoffs are remade in subsequent “generations”; for example, Pokémon Pinball: Ruby and Sapphire is very similar to Pokémon Pinball but with newer Pokémon, and Pokémon Stadium 2 is largely identical to Pokémon Stadium but for the compatibility with Pokémon Gold and Silver. Pokémon Dash is a Pokémon-based racing game for the Nintendo DS, featuring a Pokémon from the fourth generation, Munchlax. The most recent game to be released was Pokémon Trozei (also known as Pokémon Link!) for the Nintendo DS. It came out on March 6, 2006.

On the Wii

Nintendo produced a demo for Wii (exclusively for gaming news outlets such as GameSpot and IGN) known as “Big Pokémon Hunter”, wherein the goal was to zoom with the controller and find different Pokémon in a Where's Waldo?-esque scenario. The review of this demo is currently available at among many other sites. Nintendo President Satoru Iwata confirmed, on June 7, that the Wii installment in the Pokémon franchise will be sub-titled Pokémon Battle Revolution. This game will feature online chat provided by the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. It is expected to debut a few months after the release of DS installments, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.

Game mechanics

Main article: Pokémon game mechanics

File:FR&LG.GIF

A screenshot from Pokémon FireRed, a remake of the original Pokémon Red. The screenshot portrays the first battle between the player's Charmander and the opponent's Squirtle.

The original Pokémon games were Japanese RPGs with an element of strategy, and were created by Satoshi Tajiri for the Game Boy. These role-playing games (and their sequels, remakes, and English language translations) are still considered the "main" Pokémon games, and the games which most fans of the series are referring to when they use the term "Pokémon games". These games have sold over 100 million copies to date. Accumulative sold units (including home console versions) reach 143 million copies. This makes it the second biggest-selling games franchise ever, after Nintendo’s Super Mario series.

The first games in the series were Pokémon Red and Blue (Red and Green in Japan, followed by a Blue, and a special edition Yellow version). These games were nearly identical, save for the fact that each version had a select group of Pokémon that the other version did not. The ultimate goal of these games was to catch at least one member of all the 151 different species of Pokémon, though the 151st could only be caught through special promotions (or through a glitch in all first-generation games). While battling monsters is nothing new to RPGs, many players found themselves nearly addicted to finding, fighting, and capturing every Pokémon in the game. Another, perhaps easier, goal was to finish the game’s storyline by becoming the Pokémon League Champion. A few Pokémon, like Mewtwo, could only be caught after doing so. This was done by collecting eight gym badges by beating the eight gym leaders and then defeating the Elite Four, and the Champion.

Starter Pokémon

One of the consistent aspects of most Pokémon games – spanning from Pokémon Red and Blue on the Nintendo Game Boy to the un-released Nintendo DS game, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl – is the choice of three different Pokémon at the start of the player's adventures; these three are often labelled Starter Pokémon. Players can choose a Water-type, a Fire-type, or a Grass-type Pokémon indigenous to that particular region; an exception to this rule is Pokémon Yellow (a remake of the original games that follows the story of the Pokémon anime), where players are given a Pikachu, an Electric-type mouse, famous for being the mascot of the Pokémon media franchise.

In Pokémon Red and Blue, and their remakes Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, the three choices are Bulbasaur, the grass seed Pokémon, Charmander, the fire lizard Pokémon, and Squirtle, the tiny water turtle Pokémon while in the special edition Pokémon Yellow, the starter is Pikachu, a mouse Pokémon. In Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the choices are Chikorita, the Grass leaf Pokémon, Cyndaquil, the fire mouse Pokémon, and Totodile, the water big jaw Pokémon. In Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, the choices are Treecko, the wood gecko Pokémon, , Torchic, the fire chick Pokémon, and Mudkip, the mud fish Pokémon. . Meanwhile, the soon to be released Pokémon Diamond and Pearl's starters are (in their Japenese names) Naetle, the young leaf Pokémon, Hikozaru, the young monkey Pokémon, and Pochama, the penguin Pokémon.

The two Pokémon Gamecube games, Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness are another exception to the Grass-Fire-Water rule. In Colosseum, the player starts with an Espeon and an Umbreon, which have already been trained to some degree and cannot really be considered "Starters". In Gale of Darkness, the player starts with an Eevee and, a short while into the game, is given a choice of items which will allow them to evolve their Eevee to one of its five evolutions: Flareon, Jolteon, Vaporeon, Espeon or Umbreon.

Pokédex

The Pokédex is a fictional electronic device featured in the popular Pokémon video game and anime series. In the games, whenever a Pokémon is first captured, its data will be added to a player's Pokédex, but in the anime or manga, the Pokédex is a comprehensive electronic reference encyclopedia, usually referred to in order to deliver exposition. Of the fictional Pokémon world, Pokédex is used to refer to a list of Pokémon, usually a list of Pokémon by number.

ANA Boeing 747 with Pokémon colour scheme

In the video games, a Pokémon Trainer is issued a blank device at the start of their journey. A trainer must then attempt to fill the Pokédex by encountering and at least briefly obtaining (by capture, trading, or evolution) each of the various different species of Pokémon. A player will receive the name and image of a Pokémon after encountering one that was not previously in the Pokédex. More detailed information is typically available after the player obtains a member of the species, either through capturing Pokémon, evolving Pokémon, or through a trade. This detailed information includes height, weight, species type, and a short description of the Pokémon.

Trading and Battling

In all of the Pokémon games, including the upcoming games for the Nintendo DS and the Nintendo Wii, trading Pokémon and battling other trainers is an important part of the game. These trades and battles can take place solely in the single-player game or as an aspect of the multiplayer game. In order to trade a Pokémon, both trainers have to agree on which Pokémon will be traded. This can backfire, as some unscrupulous will claim to be sending one Pokémon and send another, more common one instead. Once the Pokémon are decided upon, both trainers enter a "trading hall" (in the multiplayer trading; in single player, the trade happens where ever the player initiates contact with the NPC who is interested in trading). The transfer is made shortly and both trainers are shown their new Pokémon. Once a Pokémon has been traded, it will gain additional battle experience.

Another common aspect of every Pokémon game is battling. As a rule of thumb, when two trainers make eye contact, they must battle Pokémon. In the single player game, this "eye contact" rule is strictly enforced, but some NPC trainers have very poor eyesight, meaning the player has to be right next to them before they challenge him/her, while some others will challenge the player as soon as they appear on the screen. The battles in the games are turn-based, concurrent. This means that both players are telling their Pokémon which move to use or are using an item at the same time, but the actual attacks take place in turns, depending on which Pokémon is the faster of the two. A new battle-type added in the GBA games, Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, is the two-on-two battle. In a two-on-two battle, each side of the battle has two Pokémon out. This can be two players with one each against two players with one each or one player with two against one player with two or a combination of those.

Trading and battling between the original Gameboy games was accomplished with a Gameboy link cable between to two Gameboys. The two players would each go to a Pokémon center and select to make a trade or to battle. This also held true for the Gameboy Advance games with the exception that the Gameboy Advance games could not connect to the original Gameboy games. Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen also introduced the ability to use a Wireless Link device to make connections wirelessly across a small room. This removed the need for the link cable but was only applicable to Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. The upcomingPokémon Diamond and Pearl game will take advantage of Nintendo's Wi-Fi connection inside the Nintendo DS to allow trading and battling against other players anywhere through the Internet.

Appearances in Super Smash Bros.

File:SSBM-SelectScreen.png

The completed character select screen of Super Smash Bros. Melee, with Pichu, Pikachu, Jigglypuff and Mewtwo in the bottom row, left to right, respectively.

Two of the most popular Pokémon, Pikachu and Jigglypuff, were picked to appear as two of the 12 characters in Nintendo’s fighter game Super Smash Bros., The popular Nintendo fighting game which was released in 1999 for the Nintendo 64. Pikachu appeared as an initially available character while Jigglypuff was an unlockable one. The pair returned in the 2001 GameCube sequel, Super Smash Bros. Melee. They kept their positions, Pikachu was still an initial character while Jigglypuff was still an unlockable character, but two new Pokémon also appeared, joining Jigglypuff as unlockable characters: Mewtwo and Pichu.

In both games, many different Pokémon can be used in a match by throwing the Pokéball item. A randomly-chosen Pokémon is released from the Pokéball, using one of its attacks to affect other players.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee, the player can collect many different trophies of a variety of characters from numerous Nintendo games, including several Pokémon characters. Nintendo has also announced that a version of Super Smash Bros. will appear on their forthcoming Wii console, Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The only Pokémon character that has been explicitly confirmed so far is Pikachu.

In other media

Main article: Pokémon in other media

Anime series

Main article: Pokémon (anime)

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The main characters of the Advanced Generation anime. Humans from left to right: Brock, Ash, May and Max. Pokémon from left to right: Mudkip, Pikachu, Treecko and Torchic.

The Pokémon anime series and films are a set of adventures separate from most other versions of Pokémon, featuring Ash Ketchum as the main character, and following his quest to become a Pokémon Master – though what constitutes a Master is somewhat ambiguous. He and his companions travel around the Pokémon world battling other Pokémon trainers.

The first, and the most familiar, is Pocket Monsters or simply Pokémon (often referred to as Pokémon: Gotta Catch Em All to distinguish it from the later series), which details the adventures of Ash Ketchum as he travels through Kanto. Pokémon World followed his adventures in the Orange Islands, a place not accessible in the games, and Pokémon: Johto journeys, Pokémon: Johto league champions, and Pokémon: Master Quest following him in Johto. These series are based on the first and second generation games. Accompanying Ash on his journeys were Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader; Misty, the youngest of the Gym Leaders sisters from Cerulean City; and later on, Tracey Sketchit, an artist and “Pokémon watcher” who accompanied them in the Orange Islands in the second saga.

In the original series Ash’s main rival was another trainer from Pallet Town, Gary Oak. Gary (whose grandfather was none other than Professor Oak, the man in charge of giving new trainers their first Pokémon) was well known and accompanied by a squad of cheerleaders. The names of Ash and Gary were derived from the characters’ Japanese names, Satoshi and Shigeru. These names, in turn, were taken from the two people who produced the franchise – Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri and gaming legend Shigeru Miyamoto, who helped Tajiri to launch the series.

File:ScreenshotPokemonEpi1.gif

Ash Ketchum and Pikachu together in the pilot episode, Pokémon, I Choose You!

The saga continues into Pokémon: Advanced, Pokémon:Advanced Generation, and Pokémon:Advanced Battle where Ash and company travel to Hoenn, a southern region in the Pokémon World. Ash takes on the role of a teacher and mentor for a novice Pokémon trainer in this series named May. Her brother Max accompanies them, and though he isn’t a trainer, he knows massive amounts of handy information. Brock (from the original series) soon catches up with Ash, but Misty has returned to Cerulean City to tend to her duties as a gym leader. This series is based on the third generation games.

Afterward, Ash returns to his home region of Kanto and visits the Battle Frontier while May competes in Kanto Contests. Misty joins them for a part of the journey, on the way to Cerulean City. This part of the series is loosely based upon Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Currently, Ash is on his way to the new region of Shin'ou.

Trading Card Game

Main article: Pokémon Trading Card Game

File:Pokemoncard.gif

A holographic Pokémon Trading Card Game card. (Dragonite) shown.

The Pokémon Trading Card Game is a collectible card game similar in goal to a Pokémon battle in the video game series; players must use cards (with individual strengths and weaknesses) in an attempt to defeat their opponent by "knocking out" all of his cards. The game was first published in North America by Wizards of the Coast in 1999.

However, with the release of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Game Boy Advance video games, Nintendo USA took back the card game from Wizards of the Coast and started publishing the cards themselves. The Expedition expansion introduced the Pokémon-e Trading Card Game, the cards in which (for the most part) were compatible with the Nintendo e-Reader. Nintendo discontinued its production of e-Reader compatible cards with the release of EX FireRed & LeafGreen. In 1998, Nintendo released a Game Boy Color version of the trading card game in Japan. It was also released in the US and Europe in 2000. This game included digital versions cards from the original set of cards and the first two expansion (Jungle and Fossil), but also included several cards exclusive to the game. A sequel to this game exists, but was not released outside of Japan.

Cultural Influence

Main articles: Pokémon Live! and List of Pokémon references or spoofs

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The assembled cast of Pokémon Live!.

A live action show called Pokémon Live! toured the United States in late 2000. It was based on the popular Pokémon anime, but had some continuity errors relating to it. In late 2002, it was scheduled to tour Europe, but was canceled for unknown reasons, possibly due to lack of interest.

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The Pokémon cover of Time Magazine.

Pokémon, being a popular franchise, has undoubtedly left its mark on pop-culture. The Pokémon characters themselves have become pop-culture icons; examples include the Pikachu balloon at a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, a Pokémon-styled Boeing 747-400, thousands of merchandise items, and a theme park in Nagoya, Japan in 2005 and Taipei in 2006. Pokémon also appeared on the cover of Time Magazine in 1999. The Comedy Central show Drawn Together has a character named Ling-Ling which is a direct parody of Pikachu. Several other shows such as ReBoot, The Simpsons, South Park and All Grown Up! have made references and spoofs of Pokémon, among other series.

Controversy and criticism

Main article: Controversy and criticism of Pokémon

Racism

Main article: Jynx (Pokémon)

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The original black-skinned Jynx design and source of the controversy.

This original design of the Pokémon Jynx (seen to the left) bore a striking, but possibly coincidental, resemblance to entertainers in blackface. A strong case can be made for Jynx being a parody of or homage to the Japanese Ganguro and Yamanba fashion trends, which were extremely popular when Pokémon was first released, but it can't be denied that blackface-influenced characters have appeared elsewhere in anime and manga - examples can be found near the beginning of Osamu Tezuka's early graphic novel, Metropolis and also can be found with Dragon Ball Z's Mr. Popo.

As Pokémon became more popular in the US, this perceived similarity to a racist image from America's past offended some. In particular, it had offended children's book author Carole Boston Weatherford, who accused Jynx of being a racist stereotype in an article titled Politically Incorrect Pokémon in the magazine Black World Today, shortly after the anime episode Holiday Hi-Jynx aired. Episodes later on are also either banned or cut in USA. (see anime)

In response to this controversy, in 2002, Nintendo changed Jynx's face from black to purple and its hands from blue to purple in Pokémon games, a change which would be reflected in the anime three years later in Advanced Generation.

Animal cruelty

Some have compared the primary mechanism of Pokémon to the generally-outlawed practice of cockfighting. Seen from this point of view, the game consists primarily of Pokémon trainers capturing and bartering in wild animals, coercing them to fight one another. It also sees various performance-enhancing drugs to give them an edge in the fight. Some people believe that this may encourage children towards acts of animal cruelty and illegal gambling.

However, most fans view Pokémon battling as a friendly competition between two teams of Pokémon and their trainers. Seen in this light, Pokémon are not being coerced to battle by their trainers. There are references to some Pokémon being territorial (e.g. Pidgeotto), but it is vastly different to the aggressively territorial nature of roosters, who will maim the 'enemy' rooster until it or the other dies. Furthermore, trainers do not relish the idea of allowing two animals (or in this case Pokémon) to fight to the death, while they merely view from the edge of the ‘ring’. In both the games and the television show, the audience is taught that fighting is not necessarily a means to an end. In addition to all of the above, Pokémon do not actually die from battle; they either faint or are in other ways unable to battle. It is also brought up in the animated series that Pokémon trainers are fighting alongside their Pokémon, as opposed to simply issuing commands for them to follow.

Health

Main article: Banned episodes of Pokémon § Computer Soldier Porygon

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Screenshot of "Computer Soldier Porygon", an episode notable for causing mass seizures in Japan.

On December 16, 1997, more than 635 Japanese children were admitted to hospitals with convulsive epileptic seizures. It was determined that the seizures were caused by watching an episode of Pokémon, "Dennō Senshi Porygon", or "Computer Soldier Porygon" (known as Electric Soldier Porygon in the United States, season 1, episode 43) and subsequently this episode has not been aired since. In this particular episode, there were bright explosions with rapidly-alternating blue and red color patterns. It was determined in subsequent research that these strobing light effects cause some individuals to have epileptic seizures, even if they haven’t had any previous history of epilepsy. As a consequence, many video game makers (including Nintendo) added warning labels to their video game products (or made pre-existing labels more prominent), warning that exposure to video games may trigger seizures in individuals vulnerable to photosensitive epilepsy. Detailed research of the alleged incident is detailed at http://www.csicop.org/si/2001-05/pokemon.html and attributes it to mass hysteria. The incident was also parodied by the Simpsons. In the episode "Thirty Minutes over Tokyo" (Season 10 - Episode 20) Marge, Bart, and Lisa are seen having seizures after watching a show called "Battling Seizure Robots". Homer then enters the room and, apparently not wanting to be left out, proceeds to roll around on the floor in a similar fashion, of his own will. This incident was also spoofed in the South Park episode "Chimpokomon", an obvious satire of the Pokémon craze that hit the United States . Kenny has a seizure while playing an intense round of the Chimpokimon video game.

Americanization

Both critics and fans of the Pokémon franchise have criticized the apparent Americanization of the franchise, claiming that American companies use Pokémon as a tool to exploit children of their (or their parents’) money. 4Kids Entertainment faced criticism for apparently Americanizing its translated Japanese anime programs. One of the main examples of this is when the names of American food are put in place of the Japanese food, such as calling rice cakes doughnuts when it is clear that they are something else. Several episodes were edited or removed from the American run completely for potential objectional content including "Beauty and the Beach" which was severely cut in America due to the portrayal of a male character with breasts, and "The Legend of Dratini" which never aired outisde Japan because of an overuse of guns in the episode.

See also

Sub-articles

• Pokémon game mechanics
• Pokémon in other media
• Criticism of Pokémon

Pokémon general

• List of Pokémon characters
• List of Pokémon items
• Pokémon regions
• Poké Ball
• Pokédex

Pokémon (creatures)

• List of Pokémon
• Pokémon types
• Pokémon evolution

Games

• List of Pokémon video games
• Pokémon Trading Card Game

Television

• Pokémon (anime)
• List of Pokémon episodes
• Banned episodes of Pokémon
• Pokémon Chronicles

Manga

• The Electric Tale of Pikachu
• Pokémon Adventures
• Magical Pokémon Journey
• Ash & Pikachu
• Pokémon Gold & Silver: Golden Boys
• Pokémon Ruby-Sapphire
• Pokémon Pocket Monsters
• Pokémon Zensho
• Pokémon Chamo-Chamo Pretty
• Pikachu Meets the Press

Miscellaneous

• List of Pokémon References or Spoofs
• Pokémon NetBattle

References

Books

• Tobin, Joseph, ed. Pikachu’s Global Adventure: The Rise and Fall of Pokémon. Duke University Press., February, 2004. ISBN 0-8223-3287-6.

Notes

External links

Websites

• Pokémon Japan
• Pokémon TCG Game
• Pokémon.com
• Pokémon Games
• Official Pokémon Merchandise Site
• Pokémon PokéPark, to be in Taipei, Taiwan in 2006.