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Pokémon animated series

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This article is about the mainline animated series. For other Pokémon animated series, see Pokémon animation.
A cel from the 93rd episode of the series

The Pokémon animated series (Japanese: テレビアニメ「ポケットモンスター」シリーズ TV Anime "Pocket Monsters" Series) is the mainline animated TV series for the Pokémon franchise that airs on television in Japan. It is based on the core series Pokémon games originally created by Satoshi Tajiri.

The television series premiered with Pokémon - I Choose You! on April 1, 1997 on TV Tokyo in Japan, and has since aired nearly every week with the exception of a four-month hiatus after the Porygon incident and a seven-week hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. The English dub premiered with Battle Aboard the St. Anne on September 7, 1998 in syndication in the United States. The series has aired in 197 countries and regions in over 30 languages. Several movies and other related media have been produced as tie-ins to the series.

Terminology

In English, The Pokémon Company International (TPCi) generally describes the series as some variation of the "Pokémon animated TV series", depending on the context. The Pokémon Company (TPC) refers to it similarly, but does not avoid using the term "anime" to describe the series, unlike TPCi. Prior to Pokémon Horizons: The Series, most of these terms were synonymous with Pokémon the Series.

In Japanese, the Pokémon animated series is titled Pocket Monsters, but is typically called some variation of the TV Anime "Pocket Monsters" Series to distinguish it from the core series games or the movie series. The official abbreviation for the series is (Japanese: アニポケ Anipoké).[1] These terms may also be used to refer specifically to Pocket Monsters (1997), Pocket Monsters (2019), or Pocket Monsters (2023), depending on the context.

Some examples of how the series has been described are listed in the table below:

English (TPCi) English (TPC) Japanese
  • テレビアニメ「ポケットモンスター」シリーズ
    TV Anime "Pocket Monsters" Series[16][28]
  • TVアニメ「ポケットモンスター」シリーズ
    TV Anime "Pocket Monsters" Series[29]
  • アニメ「ポケットモンスター」シリーズ
    Anime "Pocket Monsters" Series[30]
  • テレビアニメ「ポケットモンスター」
    TV Anime "Pocket Monsters"[28]
  • TVアニメポケットモンスター
    TV Anime Pocket Monsters[31]
  • アニメ「ポケットモンスター」
    Anime "Pocket Monsters"[29]
  • TVアニメポケモン
    TV Anime Pokémon[31]
  • ポケモンTVアニメ
    Pokémon TV Anime[29]
  • アニメ「ポケモン」
    Anime "Pokémon"[32]
  • アニメポケモン
    Anime Pokémon[33]
  • ポケモンアニメ
    Pokémon Anime[28]
  • テレビアニメ
    TV anime[34][35]
  • TVアニメ
    TV anime[36]
  • アニメ
    anime[36]

Episodes

Main article: List of animated series episodes

In Japan and Asia, the Pokémon animated series consists of 1,313 episodes across eight series, with the first being Pocket Monsters (1997) and the newest being Pocket Monsters (2023).[37][38][35][21][39][22] In Asian regions that use season numbers, the seasons are numbered consecutively across all of the series, with the first season of Pokémon Horizons: The Series being numbered as season 26.[40][41][42][43]

In the West, the Pokémon animated series consists of two animated series: Pokémon the Series, which consists of 1,224 episodes across 25 seasons focusing on Ash Ketchum and Pikachu, and Pokémon Horizons: The Series, which focuses on Liko and Roy.[6][44][45] The seasons within each animated series are numbered separately, with the first season of Pokémon Horizons: The Series being numbered as season 1.[46] It was initially shown under the title Pokémon; the term Pokémon the Series was introduced in 2013 with the debut of Pokémon the Series: XY, with the episodes from the prior 16 seasons being retroactively grouped into five series in certain home video and video-on-demand releases.

Each episode is roughly 25 minutes long. Individual episodes generally follow the structure of a cold open, the opening theme, the title card, the first half of the episode, an eyecatch, a sponsor listing, the second half of the episode (ending with a "To Be Continued" message), the ending theme, a bonus segment, and a preview for the next episode. In the English dub, the sponsor listings, bonus segments, and next episode previews are typically removed, reducing the runtime of each episode to around 21 minutes long. Prior to Fear Factor Phony, the Japanese version did not use a cold open and instead had an introductory scene after the opening theme and before the title card; the English dub had already begun using a cold open since A Goldenrod Opportunity by moving the introductory scene to the beginning of the episode before the opening theme.

Availability

In Japan, new episodes have been broadcast every Friday evening at 6:55 PM JST on TX Network stations since October 9, 2020, and is also broadcast in syndication on other channels. Episodes are also made available on demand on YouTube, Prime Video, Netflix, Hulu, NicoNico, and several other platforms,[47] and have been physically released on rental DVD by Shogakukan. The series premiered with Pokémon - I Choose You! on April 1, 1997 in a Tuesday evening time slot on TV Tokyo, and has only went on hiatus after the Porygon incident from 1997–1998 and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Previous timeslots for new episodes of the animated series are listed in the table below:

Episodes Dates Timeslot
EP001–EP038 April 1, 1997 – December 16, 1997 Tuesdays at 6:30 PM
EP039–XY113 April 16, 1998 – March 24, 2016 Thursdays at 7:00 PM
XY114–SM090 April 7, 2016 – September 13, 2018 Thursdays at 6:55 PM
SM091–JN039 October 7, 2018 – September 29, 2020 Sundays at 6:00 PM
JN040–present October 9, 2020 – present Fridays at 6:55 PM

In the United States, new episodes are made available exclusively on Netflix every few months. Episodes are also made available on demand or for purchase on Netflix, Prime Video, iTunes, Google Play, Hulu, and several other platforms, and have been physically released on DVD by VIZ Media.[48] The series premiered with the 15th episode Battle Aboard the St. Anne on September 7, 1998 in first-run syndication, with new episodes being aired every weekday starting from the first episode Pokémon - I Choose You! on the following day. Previous broadcasters for new episodes of the animated series are listed in the table below:

Episodes Dates Broadcaster Type
EP001–EP043 September 7, 1998 – October 30, 1998 Multiple Syndication
EP044–AG145 February 13, 1999 – July 8, 2006 The WB (Kids' WB) Network
AG146–XYS05 September 8, 2006 – January 28, 2017 Cartoon Network Cable
SM001–SM146 December 5, 2016 – March 7, 2020 Disney XD Premium cable
JN001–present June 12, 2020 – present Netflix Over-the-top

Internationally, the animated series is aired on various local broadcasters and available on various video-on-demand platforms, including Netflix. Pokémon.com publishes a guide on where to watch Pokémon animation in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Latin America, and Brazil. As of 2024, the series has aired in 197 countries and regions in over 30 languages.[17][11]

Music

Cover of the Pokémon TV Anime Theme Song BEST OF BEST OF BEST 1997-2023 CD

The music for the animated series is currently produced and distributed by Sony Music Japan. Prior to its acquisition by Kadokawa, the series' music was produced by the record label Pikachu Records under Media Factory. In the English dub, much of this music is replaced by original compositions.

Opening and ending themes

Main articles: List of Japanese opening themes, List of Japanese ending themes, List of English opening themes

Most episodes of the animated series feature an opening theme and an ending theme, with the first opening theme being Aim to Be a Pokémon Master performed by Rica Matsumoto and the first ending theme being One Hundred Fifty-One performed by Unshō Ishizuka. In the English dub, these songs are replaced with shorter, original opening themes, with the first being the Pokémon Theme performed by Jason Paige. Shortened or instrumental versions of these songs are typically used in place of the original ending theme. These English songs are subsequently dubbed into other languages for most of the dubs based on the English dub.

Background music

The background music for the animated series consists of both original compositions for the show and arrangements of tracks from the video games. The composer was Shinji Miyazaki until the end of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon, Yuki Hayashi for Pokémon Journeys: The Series, and Conisch for Pokémon Horizons: The Series. These tracks have been released in the following albums:

In the English dub and those based on it, the score is often replaced with new tracks by John Loeffler, John Siegler, Manny Corallo, John Lissauer, and Ralph Schuckett until the end of Pokémon the Series: Black & White, or by Ed Goldfarb, Akhil Gopal, Steve Mayer, and Geoff Li since Pokémon the Series: XY.

Staff

Main article: Staff of the Pokémon animated series

The series, along with the tie-in movies and specials, are primarily produced by the Japanese animation studio OLM. Episodes of the series have been animated by OLM Team Ota from EP001–AG170 and AG173, OLM Team Iguchi from AG171–AG172 and from AG174–DP136, OLM from DP137–DP163, OLM Team Kato from DP164–HZ045, and OLM Team Kumemura from HZ046–present. Until the fifth season episode A Crowning Achievement, the series was animated using cel animation; from Here's Lookin' at You Elekid! onwards, all episodes are digitally animated. While much of the series and movies' production takes place in Japan, some parts of the production have been performed by OLM Asia in Malaysia, or outsourced to other studios in Korea or China.

Over the course of the series, Masamitsu Hidaka, Norihiko Sudō, Yūji Asada, Tetsuo Yajima, Daiki Tomiyasu, Maki Kodaira, Jun Ōwada, and Saori Den have served as directors. TV Tokyo, MEDIANET, and ShoPro are the executive producers for the series, while the Pikachu Project is the production committee for the movies. The copyright for the series and movies are held jointly by Nintendo, Creatures, Game Freak, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, and JR Kikaku.

While the staff working on the animated series has changed over time, a few individuals and entities have been credited on the series across its entire run:

Created By
原案
  • 田尻智
Production Supervisor
スーパーバイザー
  • 石原恒和
Published by
掲載
  • 小学館
    • ちゃお
    • コロコロコミック
    • 小学一年生
    • 幼稚園
Color Keys
色彩設計
  • Noriyuki Yoshino
  • 吉野記通
Sound Recording Director
音響監督
  • Masafumi Mima
  • 三間雅文
Music Assistance
音楽協力
  • テレビ東京ミュージック
Production Assistance
協力
  • ジェイアール東日本企画
Casting Assistance
キャスティング協力
  • 81プロデュース
Backgrounds
背景
  • スタジオじゃっく
Sound Recording Producer
音響プロデューサー
  • Michiyoshi Minamisawa
  • 南沢道義
Recording Coordination
サウンドミキサー
  • Nobuhira Hirano
  • 平野延平
Sound Effects Supervisor
音響効果技師
  • Daisuke Jinbo
  • 神保大介
Music & Sound Effects Production
音響制作
  • HALF H・P STUDIO
Executive Production
製作
  • テレビ東京
  • MEDIANET
  • ShoPro

In the West, The Pokémon Company International (TPCi) currently oversees production and distribution of the series in partnership with Iyuno, with lines for the English dub also being recorded at Goldcrest Post and Okratron 5000.[49] 4Kids Entertainment initially licensed the series in the United States,[50] producing the English dub in conjunction with TAJ Productions from seasons one to five. 4Kids was then the sole producer from seasons six to eight, after which the show was produced by TPCi (then known as Pokémon USA) and TAJ Productions for seasons nine and ten. From seasons eleven through twenty-two, the dub was produced by TPCi with DuArt Film and Video. Since the beginning of the twenty-third season, the dub is produced by TPCi with Iyuno.

Adaptations

Main article: Pokémon manga → Anime adaptations

The Pokémon animated series has spawned a wide variety of adaptations into many manga and other books: these include the manga series The Electric Tale of Pikachu, Ash & Pikachu, and Pokémon Journeys: The Series; manga adaptations of the movies; guide books; novelizations; and activity books. There have also been tie-ins featuring characters from the animated series in video games, TCG cards, and other merchandise: these include the games Pokémon Yellow, Pokémon Puzzle League, and Pokémon Masters EX; a number of Promotional cards; and lines of figures and clothing.

Trivia

  • Animator Masaaki Iwane once stated that the animated series was originally slated for a 1½-year run, which corresponds approximately to the length of the Kanto region saga (had it not been delayed due to the Porygon incident).[51] Due to its popularity during the run, however, the show was extended and continues to be one of the longest running video game-based anime series.
  • In 2001, an average episode of the series cost approximately US$100,000 to produce.[52]
  • During the early episodes of the original series, Japanese text was seen quite frequently on signs and buildings as well as objects. This usually resulted in the English dubbed version (and thus, foreign dubs based on it) painting out the text or converting it to English.
    • During the Johto saga, the animators acknowledged the practice of painting out the Japanese text in the English dub. As a result, they used made-up symbols slightly similar to the Latin script instead of Japanese text, so it would be universal to all languages and would not have to be edited for the English localization.
    • During Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire and Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, the animators used a new style of symbols that appear to be blocky letters without a resemblance to any alphabet. However, most of these were still edited out for the English dub until Pokémon: Battle Frontier.
    • From Pokémon the Series: Black & White and onward, a full writing system was specifically created for the animated series. This language consists of three different fonts: a font used for titles, big signboards, etc.; another font used as less remarkable text accompanying the title font; and another font used only occasionally as a minor text filler. Each font has 26 unique symbols, and each one of those symbols represents a letter from the modern Latin script.
      • This text usually has meanings, as the symbols converted from the Latin script are written as romanized Japanese; sometimes its meanings are related to the context in which it is used, but sometimes the text contains hidden messages, like mentioning Wobbuffet in a magazine seen in BW001.
      • This writing system would start being used occasionally in the games as part of the scenario, starting from Pokémon Sun and Moon.

In other languages

Language Title
Chinese Cantonese 寶可夢電視動畫系列 Bóuhómuhng Dihnsih Duhngwá Haihliht
Mandarin 寶可夢電視動畫系列 / 宝可梦电视动画系列 Bǎokěmèng Diànshì Dònghuà Xìliè
France Flag.png French Série animée Pokémon
Germany Flag.png German Pokémon-Zeichentrickserie
Italy Flag.png Italian Serie animata Pokémon
South Korea Flag.png Korean TV애니메이션 “포켓몬스터” TV Animation "Pocket Monsters"
Brazil Flag.png Brazilian Portuguese Série animada de Pokémon
Spain Flag.png Spanish Serie de dibujos animados Pokémon

See also

References

  1. ↑ アニメ「ポケットモンスター」公式 (@anipoke_PR) on Twitter
  2. ↑ About Us - The Pokémon Company International
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 WATCH POKÉMON ANIMATION ANYTIME, ANYWHERE WITH FREE POKÉMON TV APP - The Pokémon Company International Official Press Site
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Creator Profile: The Creators of Pikachu | Pokemon.com
  5. ↑ Meet the Director and Assistant Director behind Pokémon: Twilight Wings | Pokemon.com
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Pokémon Brand Sheet (August 2023) (archived)
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Pokémon Offers Sneak Peek of First ‘Pokémon Horizons: The Series’ Episode and Behind-the-Scenes Look at Production During Comic-Con International Panel - The Pokémon Company North America Official Press Site
  8. ↑ Pokémon Horizons: The Series influencer gift box, excerpt: "Liko is a girl from the Paldea region and the first female protagonist in the Pokémon animated series."
  9. ↑ THE POKÉMON COMPANY INTERNATIONAL AND NETFLIX TEAM UP FOR U.S. PREMIERE OF “POKÉMON JOURNEYS: THE SERIES” - The Pokémon Company North America Official Press Site
  10. ↑ POKÉMON REVEALS NEW ANIMATED SERIES AND STORYLINE - The Pokémon Company North America Official Press Site
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "THE POKÉMON COMPANY INTERNATIONAL SEES SALES SOAR IN 25TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR FOR POKÉMON TRADING CARD GAME AND TOYS IN EUROPE" - The Pokémon Company International Official Press Site
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Ash Ketchum’s 10 Most Iconic Traveling Companions | Pokemon.com
  13. ↑ POKÉMON REVEALS MORE CHARACTERS FOR NEW ANIMATED SERIES - The Pokémon Company North America Official Press Site
  14. ↑ Pokémon Content Guidelines for Online Streaming Platforms – Pokémon Support
  15. ↑ Meet Sou Kinoshita, the Screenwriter behind Pokémon: Twilight Wings | Pokemon.com
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 TV Tokyo: To all fans of the Pokémon TV animated series
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 Videos | The Pokémon Company
  18. ↑ Why We Created “Pokémon Sleep” | The Pokémon Company
  19. ↑ Pokémon in Figures | The Pokémon Company (archived)
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 What is Pokémon? | The official Pokémon Website in Singapore
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 TV Anime Series | The official Pokémon Website in Singapore
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Pokemon TV Anime series - YouTube
  23. ↑ Pokémon Singapore on Facebook
  24. ↑ Pokémon Asia ENG on YouTube
  25. ↑ Encounter special Pikachu wearing Ash's cap during Pokémon GO Spotlight Hour! | Apps | The official Pokémon Website in Singapore
  26. ↑ Links: Official Pokémon content in India | The official Pokémon Website in India
  27. ↑ International Business | The Pokémon Company
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 「テレビアニメ放送1000回!!ゼンリョク!ポケモンスクール」イベントリポートを更新！ | テレビアニメ「ポケットモンスター」1000回放送記念！
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 アニポケ25周年記念ベストアルバム「ポケモンTVアニメ主題歌 BEST OF BEST OF BEST 1997-2023」商品概要（2023年2月1日(水)発売） | アニメ「ポケットモンスター」 | ソニーミュージックオフィシャルサイト
  30. ↑ Amazon Prime Videoで、アニメ「ポケットモンスター」シリーズ全話配信中！｜ポケットモンスターオフィシャルサイト
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 新オープニング＆新エンディングテーマソングマキシシングルＣＤ発売!!｜ポケットモンスター ADVANCED GENERATION
  32. ↑ 松丸亮吾が作詞、思わずラップに挑戦したくなる！アニメ「ポケモン」新ED曲 | テレビ東京・ＢＳテレ東の読んで見て感じるメディア テレ東プラス
  33. ↑ あにてれ：ポケモン☆サンデー
  34. ↑ ピカチュウ誕生秘話（1ページ目）｜株式会社ポケモン ｜ The Pokémon Company (archived)
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 ポケモン、最新アニメシリーズの「テレビアニメ　ポケットモンスター　オリジナル・サウンドトラック」収録曲58曲の全曲配信が決定！本日より全曲試聴トレイラーも公開！ | 株式会社ソニー・ミュージックレーベルズ レガシープラスのプレスリリース
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 アニメ｜ポケットモンスターオフィシャルサイト
  37. ↑ ポケモン第１話！全部見せますスペシャル！！(テレビ東京、2013/12/31 05:40 OA)の番組情報ページ | テレビ東京・ＢＳテレ東 7ch(公式)
  38. ↑ ポケモンアニメがついに！放送1000回を迎えます！！ | テレ東 リリ速（テレ東リリース最速情報） | テレビ東京・ＢＳテレ東 7ch(公式)
  39. ↑ 電視動畫系列 | 台灣寶可夢官方網站
  40. ↑ The Pendant That Starts It All: Part One | Pokémon Horizons | S26 EP1 | @disneyindia (archived)
  41. ↑ Mentari TV on Facebook
  42. ↑ 寶可夢地平線：系列
  43. ↑ Pokémon Horizons The Series - mewatch
  44. ↑ Pokémon Parents Official Website | Pokémon Animation
  45. ↑ Celebrate the Best of Pokémon the Series on Pokémon TV | Pokemon.com
  46. ↑ Cover artwork for digital home video releases of Pokémon Horizons: The Series
  47. ↑ 放送・配信情報｜ポケットモンスター　テレビ東京アニメ公式
  48. ↑ Where to Watch Pokémon Episodes & Movies | Pokemon.com
  49. ↑ Ortiz, Lisa (June 12, 2020). "Enter Pikachu!". Pokémon Journeys: The Series. Season 23. Episode 1. Netflix. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  50. ↑ "10-K". Yahoo. March 31, 1999. p. 6. Archived from the original on October 5, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  51. ↑ ポケモンアニメは当初1年半の予定だった？ - ぽけあに
  52. ↑ Rutenberg, Jim (January 28, 2001). "Violence Finds a Niche in Children's Cartoons". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved January 22, 2024.

External links

Original series (list) Indigo League • Adventures in the Orange Islands
The Johto Journeys • Johto League Champions • Master Quest
Ruby and Sapphire (list) Advanced • Advanced Challenge • Advanced Battle • Battle Frontier
Diamond and Pearl (list) Diamond and Pearl • Battle Dimension • Galactic Battles • Sinnoh League Victors
Black & White (list) Black & White • Rival Destinies • Adventures in Unova and Beyond
XY (list) XY • Kalos Quest • XYZ (Mega Evolution Specials)
Sun & Moon (list) Sun & Moon • Ultra Adventures‎ • Ultra Legends
Journeys (list) Journeys • Master Journeys • Ultimate Journeys (The Arceus Chronicles)
Horizons (list) Horizons
Specials (list) Pikachu's Winter Vacation • Side Stories • Pokémon Chronicles
Planetarium specials • Pikachu shorts
Mewtwo Returns • The Legend of Thunder! • Pichu Bros. in Party Panic
The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon • A Ripple in Time
Complete list • Movies
Project Anime logo.png This episode article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation.
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