Mainichi Anime Yume

Art by 密原诺诺 on pixiv

It never ceases to amaze me how practically everyone I’ve encountered from my generation who’s into anime, video games, or other branches of so-called “nerd” culture have, or at least did at one point, an affinity for Pokemon. It usually wasn’t just the Game Boy games that were a part of their childhood, but the Pokemon anime as well. A lot of them have played all the main series Pokemon games that have come out over the years, perhaps missing one or two due to temporary waning interest, but the Pokemon games have a way of bringing people back with new updates and features they add to each generation of games. But unfortunately the same cannot be said for the Pokemon anime series. Unlike the games that get more innovative while maintaining the same beloved premise, the Pokemon anime has stagnated over the years with the same unchanging characters, the same episodic style, and the same formulaic stories. While it has gotten a bit better recently, it still pales in comparison to other long-running kids anime in terms of storytelling quality. So why has the Pokemon anime remained so resistant to change, which has infuriated adult Pokemon players who want a decent show to go along with the games they love? Today I want to examine the reasons behind this…

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