Pokemon Anime General Discussion

[Gabz Girl]

It must be the scars of the porygon episode that cause them to do this. I remember in johto the skipped an episode in the states where Brock got sick and the symptoms were similar to a major flu affecting the states

Actually, the main reason why that episode wasn't aired overseas was because of the way Jynx looked. Remember at the time there was that stupid controversy over Jynx looking like a stereotypical blackface (when she is in fact based on a Japanese mountain witch AND a popular fashion trend of the time called Yamanba). >__> This is also why in later games and the anime they changed her face to purple.

[Tails spin]

Well, then I guess we can take the chances of ever seeing that episode now and throw it out the window. Remember when a BW episode got delayed? Yeah it didn't matter how important it was to the plot (according to someone I know), they still ended up canning it. I honestly wonder why they bother delaying episodes if they end up never showing them. Sure, the incidents in the episode could coincidentally happen in real life, but that doesn't give them a reason to can it as a whole. If I do recall correctly, in the states they ended up delaying an episode because Tentacruel destroyed 2 towers similar to the Twin Towers in New York, but it was eventually aired. Don't see why they can't do the same in Japan.

The Tentacruel episode had already appeared years before the Twin Towers were attacked. it was after 9/11 happened that the Tentacruel episode and the Haunter episode called Tower of Terror were skipped over during reruns.  

 

And Gabz Girl, your right I forgot about that .

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

There were lot of episodes were TR was competent in Bw. But it was scattered. In the beginning, once or twice in the middle. Alot towards the end of unova and back to dp quality in the declora islands

they were more then comptitent in black and white. they were stupid villians in platium/pearl series and some in this new series.

[Big Panda]

Is anyone else concerned that Ash hasn't caught a single new Pokemon since Fletchling?

[Eitarou]

Not really, no.

 

Ash didn't catch his Corphish until 23 episodes in Hoenn, so it's not odd to have him only have three for a while.

 

There's a Hawlucha in an upcoming episode and one is seen in the Klefki special with the movie, so he might get that?

[Kuzu]

That's pretty par for the course, he doesn't usually start getting more Pokemon until about halfway in.

[Dantemustdie00]

Is anyone else concerned that Ash hasn't caught a single new Pokemon since Fletchling?

Eh...He only just got to the second gym, I wasn't expecting any other captures yet or for any of his Pokemon to evolve yet.

 

Might happen in towards the 3rd gym through, I at least picture Fletchling evolving soon. Froakie might take forever, that is if their willing to break the Water Pokemon curse. 

 

I do hope that Greninja in Smash would be a sign to the writers to finally let one of Ash's Water Pokemon reach their peak.

[Eitarou]

Speaking of new Pokemon, the manga adaptation of the new movie spoils it!

 

 

 

[Soniman]

Speaking of new Pokemon, the manga adaptation of the new movie spoils it!

 

 

 

 

And now that's TWO bird Pokemon under Ash's wing. though I can't even hate considering how fucking awesome Hawchula is.

[-Robin-]

Ash had Staraptor and Gliscor at once, so having two Flying-types isn't unique for him. Seems like Hawlucha will focus on Fighting techniques while Fletchling fills the "typical flyer" spot anyway.

I'm hoping the intro to the movie will have a montage scene of prior films like Movie 10 did. Be faithful to the continuity up to this point and all that.

[Johnny Boy]

So is anybody willing to bet that Ash will catch a Skiddo later on in order to fill the spot for the resident grass type? And I'm also wondering if he'll catch a fairy type.

[Soniman]

So is anybody willing to bet that Ash will catch a Skiddo later on in order to fill the spot for the resident grass type? And I'm also wondering if he'll catch a fairy type.

 

Im hoping for a break in tradition and see him catch Phantump instead, plus im sure the inevitable fairy capture will go to Serena.

[Johnny Boy]

Im hoping for a break in tradition and see him catch Phantump instead, plus im sure the inevitable fairy capture will go to Serena.

Or we could see him get one of the fossil poke- nah, forget it. My kind would probably be a bit too much for Ash to handle.

[Soniman]

Or we could see him get one of the fossil poke- nah, forget it. My kind would probably be a bit too much for Ash to handle.

Well he handled Krookidle which is kind of a distant cousin.

 

Either way fossil Pokemon are rare commodies in the anime that are preserved in their natureal habitats with few exceptoins so dont expect anyone in the main cast to actually catch one.

[JayRaR]

If Ash would have gotten a fossil pokemon, it would be right around that episode with the Amaura and Aurorus. Since that episode came to pass, I think it's safe to say Ash won't a fossil pokemon in Kalos. Not Tyrunt, not Amaura, not Aerodactyl, and so on.

 

Plus, I think it'd be weird if Ash got a Tyrunt and fought Grant with it. I dunno, Pokemon ditto fights just seem awkward to me. Plus that Gym battle is really not in tune in the games. With Onix replacing Amaura, Tyrunt using Draco Meteor, just these nitpicks really bother me. Not so much that I can't enjoy the fight however. 

 

I'm all for Ash catching a Ghost pokemon, preferably Honedge. Phantump works too I guess.

 

I hope at some point, Serena would catch a Goomy. It's too cute not to ignore, catch, evolve, and kick ass with!

[-Mark-]

I find it almost amusing that in one episode (the one that aired in Japan on Thursday), Bonnie/ Eureka managed to get deeper characterisation and development than Serena has in the entire series so far.

 

I don't have anything against Serena, but I find her to be an almost offensively useless, borderline sexist character. I don't think the Pokémon anime has ever had a female companion who is so painfully and blatantly 'the girl'. Sure, past female companions have had a few 'typical girl character' traits, but the fact that Serena seems to have pretty much every single cliched girl character trope piled onto her at once just makes it a bit much, in my opinion. 

 

The only real screentime she really gets so far is when there's a typical 'girly' episode about fashion or cooking, or to be the damsel in distress. In nearly thirty episodes, she hasn't caught a single Pokémon outside of the Fennekin that she started with. Moreover, this is the first time that the anime has overtly pushed the 'girl companion has a crush on Ash' angle, and on top of that has made Ash completely oblivious and the interest completely one-sided.

 

Also, maybe it's just me, but I'm pretty certain that Serena's design is going out of its way to be a tad more moe/ pandering than the Pokémon girls usually are. I mean, not only dat zettai ryouiki , but they've already had episodes with her dressing in your typical 'cutesy moe girl' outfits with cat ears/ tails and what have you.  They seem to be going out of their way to subtly semi-sexualise her, on top of her already being completely useless as a character and embodying almost every other 'girl' trope imaginable.

 

Do many other people see this in Serena, or am I just being overzealous? I don't normally make much of a fuss about this sort of stuff (because hey, let's face it; the 'cutesy sexualised useless girl character' is common as all hell in a lot of anime, especially Shonen- not that makes it right of course, but you can't help but build up something of a resistance to it), but it just seems to stand out more in Pokémon, a series that's meant to apppeal equally to both genders and has never really done that before. Maybe it seems worse coming off the back of Iris, who was actually a really strong character in her own right, and never really played the gender card. Iris would have been more or less the same whether she had been a boy or a girl, but Serena is the most cookie-cutter token girl character the series has ever had.

 

Since they dropped Pokémon contests, there's been less for the girl characters to do. They managed to flesh out Iris well enough despite that, but Serena seems to just sort of 'be there'.

[Soniman]

Dont worry Mark, most of the fanbase feels this way about Serena, myself included to an extent.

 

Pokemon has been pretty good with the female representation in the show, with characters like Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny representing the closest thing to established law, and having mother figures being way more influential then the fathers. All the main female character have had decently done development arcs, probably the best seen in the show. From Misty learning to become more loving and patient thanks to her parental feeling toward Togepi on top of being a pro-active tomboy figure, to May learning to be more independent and less of a clueless girl who doesnt know what to do, to Dawn wrestling with frequent bouts of depression and confidence issues and learning how to overcome them, and finally to Iris who had to learn how to speak to the heart of all Dragon Types and learn general empathy and patience towards them.

 

Serena has nothing like that so far, she is kinda meandering around as a character with no real established direction. The crush on Ash would be fine if that wasnt her one defined trait, and when you're defining trait is how you behave towards ANOTHER character and not as a character on your own, that's pretty bad.

 

On the flip side though I dont think the outfits are that shocking, I mean, I think all the females are guilty of this to some extent (heck even the males are given how many time Ash cross-dresses), I just think it's more notable for Serena because as explained, she doesnt have much to her character

 

Heck Bonnie is more then proving herself to be the main female then Serena is, she's active, has a nice dynamic with most of the group (she slightly elevates Serena because of this and their relationship) and is actually doing important stuff, as seen in the latest episode.

 

I almost want to make the gambit that maybe the writers are doing this on purpose since this has NEVER been done with a female before, as all of them had clear goal this far into a series and they do seem to make note of that. But really, when she hasnt even caught a Pokemon yet after nearly 30 episodes it's going to raise some flags. I really want to like Serena more then I do because I was really looking forward to seeing what she would bring to the table after being kinda meh towards Iris, and given how long a Pokemon series tends to be im willing to wait a bit longer for her to come around and finally find her groove.

[-Mark-]

For Serena, they seem to be loosely adapting the 'character arc' (if it can be called that) of Shauna (I think it was her?) in X and Y, the whole "I don't really know what I want to do with my life yet" thing. The problem is, that's a really flaky 'moral', because if I remember correctly, ultimately they kind of decided "Oh, it doesn't matter if I don't know what I want to do just yet, as long as I'm having fun".

 

It's worth pointing out that they've never had a female character (or even another travelling companion, full stop) who has been collecting badges alongside Ash. I get that it could cause some issues with repetition, since it would mean that every gym would have to be challenged twice, so that's probably why they've not done it. 

 

Still, they kind of need to do something with Serena. She's embarrassingly useless to the point where she's sexist, and nearly thirty episodes in, it's getting kind of ridiculous now.

[Soniman]

For Serena, they seem to be loosely adapting the 'character arc' (if it can be called that) of Shauna (I think it was her?) in X and Y, the whole "I don't really know what I want to do with my life yet" thing. The problem is, that's a really flaky 'moral', because if I remember correctly, ultimately they kind of decided "Oh, it doesn't matter if I don't know what I want to do just yet, as long as I'm having fun".

 

It's worth pointing out that they've never had a female character (or even another travelling companion, full stop) who has been collecting badges alongside Ash. I get that it could cause some issues with repetition, since it would mean that every gym would have to be challenged twice, so that's probably why they've not done it. 

 

Still, they kind of need to do something with Serena. She's embarrassingly useless to the point where she's sexist, and nearly thirty episodes in, it's getting kind of ridiculous now.

 

Wellll in BW there was Bianca, who was like the only female rival Ash has ever had so that counts..

 

Also Serena's goal of finding a goal can be good in concept, but the problem is that she's not actively LOOKING for one. If she was trying out diffrent kinds of things to do in the Pokemon world (and there are A LOT of things) then she would be totally fine, but she's not. She says she doesnt have a goal and she seems fine with that, tagging along with Ash and the gang because she likes Ash and wants to get away from the responsibility of Ryhorn Racing (the closest thing she had to a goal). But at least she's finally starting to become more active in fighting, using Fennekin more and more and she at least has gotten a rival of sorts, and rivals usually help in speeding along character development, as shown with Paul and Drew previously

 

Sigh oh well, time will tell where they take her character. At least we have Clemont to have development for in the meantime, who's being all kinds of awesome.

[Kuzu]

This is what happens when you pander to the lowest common denominator of your demographic :V

 

 

 

But yea, I don't really care about Serena but I guess that's the problem in and of itself; she's just there, and while you can say that about companions Ash has had in the past, Serena stands out because she's the "second protagonist". It almost makes you wish Ash had just traveled with Clemont and Bonnie instead, but I guess the writers have to shoehorn a girl there for something. 

 

I think what hurts Serena more is what Soniman said, she's almost completely defined by her crush on Ash, which would be alright if it led to character development for both characters, but since we all know how girls who have feelings for Ash end up, we know damn well nothing will come from it and it'll be forgotten by the next season. Even worse, being Ash, he doesn't have a damn clue. 

 

 

She's probably the weakest companion along with Brock and Misty.....yea I said it, come at me; Brock and Misty were useless after the first season, and all of you know it.

[Big Panda]

So the sort of viewers who love perving to moe girls are elementary school kids? Ya know, the anime's target age group? are the interests of Japanese children really that drastically different or are the anime's producers just...eww xD

It's worth noting that one of the show runners (can't remember who) gave a pretty sexist reason for the constant female change in each series: that reason being that the boys "need some new eye-candy every once in a while".

[-Mark-]

It's worth noting that one of the show runners (can't remember who) gave a pretty sexist reason for the constant female change in each series: that reason being that the boys "need some new eye-candy every once in a while".

 

So how are they explaining Cilan and Clemont? *shot*

[Soniman]

This is what happens when you pander to the lowest common denominator of your demographic :V

She's probably the weakest companion along with Brock and Misty.....yea I said it, come at me; Brock and Misty were useless after the first season, and all of you know it.

 

I think people are forgetting that we are only 20 something episodes into XY, a series that will probably be DP levels of length considering BW was so short, there's PLENTY of room for her character to develop. Heck Iris didnt have her big development episode until the 30+ episode mark with Excadrill, so im not really tossing her out this early in. It's not like this is some 52 episode anime, this is Pokemon whose episodes shoot into the 100s

 

 

 

So the sort of viewers who love perving to moe girls are elementary school kids? Ya know, the anime's target age group? are the interests of Japanese children really that drastically different or are the anime's producers just...eww xD

It's worth noting that one of the show runners (can't remember who) gave a pretty sexist reason for the constant female change in each series: that reason being that the boys "need some new eye-candy every once in a while".

 

That was way back in like 2008, and while it was sexist as all hell that didnt effect the then character Dawn, who was touted as the god damn CO STAR right alongside Ash, having a journey just as relevant as him.

 

it's why I dont completely buy this sexist thing. There's a difference between what's being said and what actually is being shown. While Serena may be kind of naff in the development department I dont think it's sexist. Being badly written doesnt mean it's sexist, and just because Serena likes feminine things doesnt mean it's sexist. Pokemon is a kids anime and it has never been some fanservice shlock like most other anime for older viewers are, there's not tit bounces, panty shots or nosebleeds or anything like that, so how Serena is pandering to those kinds of people is beyond me

[Kuzu]

I never said it's sexist btw, I just don't really care for her.

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[-Mark-]

I really wish the version of V (Volt) that they used in the Mega Evolution special (actually titled MegaV (MegaVolt)) would hurry up and release soon, but there's still no word on a full version. D: