Recap: Yo-Kai Watch Episode 1

Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?

As I have stated multiple times before, I am not a fan of the Yo-Kai Watch franchise. I have long expressed my disdain for it coming stateside; to the point where I’ve already written at least two recaps on it. I had plans for a third to include among anime I’d actually enjoy recapping for Halloween, but Disney XD’s plans to air the dub a month ahead of the game launch forced my hand. In addition to Johnny Yong Bosch slumming it as Nate (changing the name didn’t make Maren from The Strongest Mega Evolution a better character either); there are numerous voice actors for whom this is their inaugural work. Ho boy, this is going to go over as well as casting white folk in The Last Airbender, isn’t it?

Despite having some damn good animation; the writing and characterization make the likes of Bakugan and B-Daman look like Studio Ghibli films. What Dentsu and Level-5 have are little more than flashing lights and toys. In spite of what others think; this isn’t sufficient enough to take on the longstanding juggernaut that is Pokémon here. So, let’s go over this bit by bit; in the vein of one of my influences in Red Letter Media’s “Plinkett” series. Don’t worry about me; I’ve been at this for almost four years. I am more than capable of doing bullet points to deconstruct the flaws of each episode, so let’s go. 

1. The theme song

The “Laugh out Loud” theme song was bad enough for my tastes; but this reversioned tune is by far a symbol of everything wrong with writing an alternate dub theme song. Normally, I try to take each dub on its own merit rather than harp on every little change; but given the circumstances, I’ll make an exception. It’s total noise; especially when stacked against any given entry in my top 13 anime openings or other kids’ show songs like Mighty Morphin Power Rangers or the 1987 version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (both of which have since been remixed for the newer incarnations of each respective franchise). Call me crazy, but even given its nature as an expository theme tune; the lyrics aren’t exactly “to catch them is my real test, to train them is my cause” or “change into digital champions to save the digital world.” For the sake of argument; I’m putting on music that doesn’t make me want to gouge out my eardrums with a dull pencil. 

2. Here my troubles began…

We open proper on Nate capturing insects when he comes upon an old tree. In something that’s surprisingly not edited; he actually puts a 100-yen coin inside this old capsule machine. Right off, the dubbing is much more chatty than the Japanese version; which is sadly a common problem with anime targeted at the 6-11 crowd. 

He opens the capsule, and out pops Whisper. The voice actor they’ve chosen is downright terrible; with a British accent that honestly makes me nostalgic for the subdued charm of Rik Mayall, bless his soul. 

Is it too early to hate this guy?

Regrettably, because of being freed, he is now Nate’s butler. Sadly, he’s no Alfred Pennyworth in any of his incarnations. While the aura of incompetence between these two bozos would have been amusing once or twice; to see it happen every single episode gets pretty damn tiring. 

3. It would be OK on any other day, even with Yokai.

One of the major selling points of the series is “Everyday life with Yokai,” which; despite its potentially creative setup; the anime hasn’t really done anything creative with it, which is a common criticism made by my associate, Mr. Enter. In fact, as Nate talks to his friends (including Kate, who I’m playing as if I do decide to play the games); the only real difference between their world and ours is that there are Yokai. With that on the table, does it even need to take place in our world? Why not have a world where there are Yokai and go from there? Why even have the story in our world at all if you’re not going to differentiate it all that much? 

4. Divorce Court: Yokai Edition

Nate returns home; and finds his parents in a fight. Right off the bat; I’m going to point out that this setup shouldn’t have played out the way it’s about to. As a man who’s been through the divorces of two father figures and is getting over a third committing suicide; I can’t stand it when an animated work tries to tackle a subject matter it’s not suited for. I mean, my word, Hino, you’re not making Kramer VS. Kramer! You’re making a merchandise-driven anime for kids under 10!

"What you complaining about, I'm putting food on the table for you and your child!" I had a life before this, I was a hero, god damn it!

It’s here the whole thing is revealed to be the work of a Yokai; as Whisper presents Nate with the eponymous Yo-Kai Watch, the first of many toy plugs that would make the Trans-Clown-O-Morphs scoff at its lack of subtlety.

Only $29.95! Medals sold separately, batteries not included!

5. Merchandising! Merchandising! Where the real money is made!

Yes, folks, while a TV series in any country tends to get some form of advertiser backing; this is a subgenre that essentially makes it mere gravy. As such, Bandai and Level-5 wasted no time in monetizing this piece of crap into a marketing machine; so much that Hasbro is handling it here. However; while that toymaker is well known for handling licenses such as Marvel Comics, Star Wars, Transformers; and GI Joe, they also took care to make each bauble an eclectic character of some kind; whether it’s a paramilitary combat garrison, an army of robotic warriors; or giving form to colorful superheroes or heroes in a space opera with a highly-anticipated new chapter in their saga.

While the bulk of the Yokai do have distinct personalities and designs; Nate and Whisper, if I may be so bold; are not characters in the way myself or anyone else would define the word. They are in obvious fact; marketable products. Even in their ‘verse, other characters bemoan their lack of interesting traits or notable skills; especially among each other. The preteen fanbase doesn’t care about that; as they are simply two commodities to be placed on anything you can find in a store. Yo-Kai Watch t-shirts; coloring books, dolls, lunch boxes, foodstuffs, placemats; and if they can pass safety tests, flamethrowers. 

The kids love this one.

6. Conflict? Damn near killed it.

So, it seems the Yokai Dismerella is bringing down the mood in the Adams household (Amano household in the Japanese version, no relation to a different dick sauce with that surname and an enchanted cell phone diary); and Nate decides to call in Honobono to deal with it. As such, when they reunite; so do Nate’s parents. While many praise this strategy as not being overly violent or scary; I shall offer a counterpoint that this method is a stupid way to compete with other “mons” series, and that can be just as bad for a child to experience. 

My point is; playing every bit of inconvenience for comedy essentially kills any real form of conflict. Without any danger or nightmare fuel for contrast; there’s no tension, and thus; no reason to care about the story at hand.

Before we enter the next segment, let me once again point out that I don’t hate Japanese culture being represented through the art they produce. You’d be hard-pressed to find someone in my social circle that’s more enthusiastic about the dark use of their mythology in the works of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli; as well as paranormal series like YuYu Hakusho and by proxy, Bleach. Even more idealistic specters such as Banette and Brook from One Piece have tragic backstories that still attract fans to this day. I thought that would be important to see before you decide to read the rest of this; even if you’ve got this far.

7. Death and chocolate

Now comes the part where I address the initial introduction of the series’ mascot; Jibanyan. His backstory stems from the fact that he was hit by a car and killed; then abandoned by his master on his deathbed. Since I already recapped a later and better version of this backstory, I think I shall paraphrase Plinkett’s good friend Amazon user Kathy in relation to how this backstory shouldn’t have played out in what’s ostensibly a show meant for young children.

"Heartwarming...yeah right. My daughter who is 10 freaked out when she saw Jibanyan get hit by a car and killed - especially since that happened to one of our cats a few years ago. THEN the cat is a ghost and there's some sort of time limit before something bad happens? Now she's freaking out again afraid she'll have nightmares. I didn't read very far into the plot synopsis so I didn't realize the cat got killed... Had I known that I would have never rented it. PG doesn't necessarily mean "good sense" or actually appropriate for sensitive kids! Motherfucker!"

Yet, the anime proceeds to present this as excuse for Nate to take Jibanyan in; instead of explore right off how this brush with death affects him. Also, for some reason; Jibanyan seems to enjoy chocolate bars. While there is some logic to having Pikachu enjoy fresh fruit with some occasional ketchup on the side, I personally wouldn’t recommend giving chocolate to your cat. I’m no veterinarian, but much like the franchise itself; to one group, it’s poison; to another, it’s Betty Crocker.

8. Untapped potential rushing and rushing around

So, in spite of all the praise lavished on the franchise; I’m instead going to be the odd man out and state there is endless untapped potential for Yo-Kai Watch as a whole. I know full well that I’m angering a considerable amount of people; but if I didn’t make these recaps to show that I’m an individual with my own thoughts and opinions, I’d be deluding myself, or a Kotaku writer. 

Yet, despite the fact that all these Yokai can introduce children to a whole new world of mythology and legend; the anime would rather spend 8 minutes on getting Nate and his family lost in the boondocks on their way to a pickle farm. No, seriously. 

None of the characters, human or Yokai, have developed outside a single dimension as of this writing; to the point where showing the backstory for Jibanyan and Whisper seems like an afterthought. 

What lets me down most; however, is the fact that the line between mere apathy towards the series to outright disdain was so quickly crossed. If people had said “this is an interesting game/anime/manga/franchise,” that wouldn’t have been a big deal. 

Instead; everyone, least of which Nintendo and Disney XD are trying to shotgun it into “the next Pokémon;” which seems, if I may tactfully suggest, not entirely stable.  While Pokémon is still a force to be reckoned with; to the point where the 20th anniversary in 2016 is sure to be a media frenzy; the initial craze for Yo-Kai Watch already seems to be waning in Japan. Whether or not this is temporary or permanent to how kids are is unclear; as is the chance for success in the US. With Star Wars Rebels entering a successful second season as I type this; as well as Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy being granted an animated series, Dentsu has an uphill battle on their hands; given how fellow Level-5 property Inazuma Eleven ended up being an acclaimed flop despite being a massive juggernaut in Japan. This also applies for the game; as I mentioned before, it’s being launched against Call of Duty: Black Ops III, and “masculine” fare has had a habit of killing “cute” fare in its cradle. Grand Theft Auto V just cracked 54 million copies sold; while Rayman Legends had to be ported to other platforms to recoup its losses against it. Unless Nintendo can help distinguish the came from a competitive market of RPGs (including its biggest competitor in Pokémon), Activision’s controversial  yet bestselling FPS franchise will likely add to the growing number of “mons” series that have fallen before Pikachu’s feet. While Pikachu has earned his place alongside Mario, Samus; and Link, Jibanyan is another new kid on the block with something to prove. 

We will get more into this once I look at the next episode of Yo-Kai Watch. For the sake of argument, I will not be looking at the fourth episode’s dub, as I already recapped it subbed and have been stretched thin with this year as it is. See you, space cowboy.