Why Yo-Kai Watch doesn't work in the U.S. Like Pokémon does.

Well, this has been a long time coming. I had previously contemplated doing an article like this in a different way last year, but I thought I would rework it given the upcoming release of Yo-Kai Watch Blasters, the release of Yo-Kai Watch 4 in Japan and the overall uncertainty of the future of the franchise. Moreover, I thought I would take the opportunity to analyze how the series didn't really live up to the lofty expectations of being "the next Pokémon" many had for it here. With no word as of this writing of Yo-Kai Watch 3 or any other games being brought stateside; I shall go over the difficulties the series has faced compared to its main competitor in this piece: "Why Yo-Kai Watch doesn't work in the U.S. Like Pokémon Does."

Courtesy: IGN.com

This has long been the subject of debate, and it definitely bears further examination with how both series has fared so far. I will do a follow up piece depending on how Blasters performs; but for now, I will be going over several points where Pokémon has been able to succeed outside Japan, where Yo-Kai Watch has struggled and offer some suggestions at how the latter franchise can improve their strategy based on the former's continued success. Let's get this started.

1. Release Timing

The first roadblock that the series faced was the timing of its domestic release. Even though neither they nor Pokémon had any new main games in their home country, the development of Generation VII had many expecting the series would fill the void; becoming a successful game with a new fandom in the process when it launched in November 2015. None of this happened, with the game selling just 71,000 units at launch and only selling 440,000 copies as of this writing. Despite being offered to players waiting for Sun and Moon, people instead went with the spinoff Super Mystery Dungeon. Despite the flak Activision gets, it can't be denied the success of Call of Duty: Black Ops III ended up putting the series on rocky ground right out of the gate. This is a lesson that was not heeded for the next games, and I will come back to this point later.

2. Media Landscape

With the media landscape of the 1990s, things were definitely ripe for the breakout of Pokémon in both Japan and the world as a whole. While many people within Nintendo believed in the games, virtually everyone in the industry at the time expected them to fail. To say they were wrong would be putting it mildly. The Game Boy was thought to be at the end of its life cycle, but Red and Blue gave it a second wind that was further compounded by Yellow not long after. The anime series also helped incubate many a youngster's fascination with the franchise and the medium, and the amount of merchandise at the time was simply unbelievable. I had numerous toys and apparel alone, such as a pair of velcro shoes that had the image above on them. While there was a decline after the initial wave of popularity; it definitely struck at the right time. By contrast, Yo-Kai Watch faced many more challenges when it was first localized in 2015.  In 1998, for the most part, most people still went to the same movies, watched the same TV shows and played a lot of the same games. In 2015, however, the niche markets in play were much more diverse and distinct; which made it much harder for a new series to stand out. There will be more details on these points further down the list, but long story short: by the time Yo-Kai Watch got a US release, Pokémon had already been around for more than a decade, and they knew how to give people what they wanted; certain segments of the fandom be damned.

3. Different Gaming Culture

Courtesy: YouTube user RGE

I know this point has come up before, but it definitely bears repeating to make absolutely sure people understand how the contrast between the two has made it easy for Pokémon to succeed outside Japan and how it's been much more difficult for Yo-Kai Watch to gain a foothold. While the relaxing atmosphere of Yo-Kai Watch has often been praised among fans and the press, general audiences and most JRPG players were not looking for that. Being used to the more adventurous world and battle action of the Pokémon series, I was among many who were unimpressed by how the series handled the concept of making the town itself an adventure. While not a bad premise, the execution definitely contributed to the troubles the series has had gaining a foothold outside Japan. This was further compounded by how myself and others found Level-5's previous RPG, Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch took a lot more risks in dealing with many of the same concepts. The sequel on PS4 also ended up getting the critical and commercial success that many expected Yo-Kai Watch to have. In short: the relaxing atmosphere of Yo-Kai Watch was a good fit for its home country, but it wasn't something that mainstream audiences in the US had much interest in. As I've pointed out before, the contrast can also be explained by how popular certain character designs are. In Japan, characters made by Square Enix tend to be more popular, since they resemble fashion models with pretty faces and silky hair. In the US, characters like Kratos from the God of War series tend to be more popular, who has a muscular build, a shaved head and a goatee, even as of the latest game this year.  Yet, differences in gaming culture are just one more piece of the puzzle that Yo-Kai Watch has had among its problems in the US.

4. Unrealistic Expectations

This is one of the major issues that has dogged the series from day one even before it launched: many people in and out of the fandom had rather unrealistic expectations about how it would actually perform. It also doesn't help the line between what's a divisive statement and what isn't is so thin in this day and age. If more people had said "this is an interesting new series from Japan," that wouldn't have been a problem. Instead, many people claimed the series would be "the next Pokémon" based on the success it was having at the time; which only further compounded the problems of gaining a foothold outside Japan when the results were below these lofty expectations. It won't be the last time I will address this either, as it will definitely come up again, I must also reiterate that this was the exact opposite of how people expected Pokémon to perform in the 1990s, and it won't be the only time that analogy will come up either.

5. Market Saturation

While making tie-in merchandise for a TV show or video game is nothing new by any means, the amount of merchandise for Yo-Kai Watch and marketing that it had in its homeland was arguably some of the most successful that had been seen since Pokémon in its heyday. As I have mentioned before, Hasbro even handled the release of the toys in Western markets; with many expecting the series to reach a similar level of success with this in mind. It didn't. This will tie into the next point; but despite widespread marketing and distribution, the toys didn't sell as well as expected and became a staple of bargain bins and dollar stores everywhere. There is currently talk of having the licensing deals "reset," but since my closest retailers have all but cleared out the stock on hand; I have my doubts about how that will go. I know Pokémon went through something similar after the initial wave, but it's since rebounded with some of the most consistent popularity of any Nintendo IP I have ever seen.

6. Advertising Difficulty

Even though there was no shortage of advertising at first, there was always going to be some difficulty trying to convey the premise of the series to westerners. Though they definitely showed how goofy the series was, they didn't really get people to understand what a yokai was for the uninitiated. I still submit trying to divorce the series from its roots was a mistake: the companies involved have since walked back the infamous claim that yokai are not ghosts, monsters or spirits; when they are in fact all of those things. The infamous advertisements definitely explained how the yokai could cause things like forgetfulness, problems in the bathroom and passing gas in public; but it didn't really explain why potential players should care. For some, it did invoke memories of a lot of campy video game ads from the 1990s; but at the same time, there was a video game that did combine the sensibilities of Japanese media with 1990s pop culture and crossed a zeitgeist with a new IP: it was called Splatoon. This leads directly into my next point, for those of you playing at home.

7. Brand Recognition

While some commenters on the Reddit page for the series suggested the lack of "Brand nostalgia" is one advantage that Yo-Kai Watch has in its arsenal; I shall once again have to play Darkrai's advocate and state that it's actually one of the major detriments to the series outside its home country as a lack of brand recognition. While Level-5 is very well-known in Japan, they are not nearly as recognized here. To most audiences in the US, they are mainly known for Professor Layton, Ni no Kuni and the cult classic Dark Cloud games on PS2. Pokémon on the other hand, is among the most recognizable Nintendo series even among non-fans, alongside Super Mario Bros., Metroid, and The Legend of Zelda. This is vital to why the series has often struggled here, and something I will get into further in the next point. It's simple: if you're buying a game for yourself or someone you know, would you go for something that has a reliable, established brand or take a risk on something that's being so heavily-pushed despite not really being recognizable? It's an easy answer, folks; and one that's to the tune of millions of sales.

8. Misreading the Hype

As time went on, there were numerous hints that suggested that maybe the series wouldn't be "the next Pokémon" that many were hyping it as. Hype culture is not an exact science, nor is it something as simple as being "positive" or "negative." It's something that you either buy into, or you don't. Yet, despite concerns in and out of the fandom, Level-5 did not share these concerns and forged ahead anyway. Much like one of those campy old disaster films, this is the point where the vital information from scientific leaders is ignored; right before everything starts going downhill. Despite the news of how the first game sold, Hino still expected the sequels to kickstart the series in the US and help it "bloom like a flower" in the US. It didn't: Bony Spirits and Fleshy Souls sold significantly less than they did in Japan, and critical reception was much more mixed. By contrast, the 20th anniversary of Pokémon effectively eclipsed the series, with the success of Sun and Moon; Pokémon Go and the eShop releases of the original games getting the attention and success Yo-Kai Watch 2 was expected to have. It was particularly telling that not only did Hino forgo promoting Psychic Specters the following year in favor of promoting Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom for Namco Bandai instead; but was ultimately forced to admit the decline in popularity in its home country. While he did express interest in appealing to older players, that still convinced me to cancel the original plan for this article and rework it here instead. Even so, there are a couple more points that I need to address before I offer some suggestions of my own for the future.

9. Driving Away Potential Fans

Courtesy: YouTube user JPRPokeTrainer98

In a year where there were no new main Pokémon games in the US, many hoped that the release of the original Yo-Kai Watch would fill the void and become a new series for Nintendo to take advantage of the success of. Unfortunately, outside of a few individuals; that didn't happen among mainstream audiences. The game was ultimately outsold by the spinoff title Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon; and the marketing push the game received ended up backfiring. The series being hailed as a "Pokémon Killer" by many media outlets did not sit well with the Pokémon fanbase, and a nasty rivalry has formed as a result. While I'm not totally against experimenting with other series (I did get into Digimon and Yu-Gi-Oh as time went on, for example), this initial push definitely contributed to a lot of my conflicting feelings about the series; and I will get into this more in my final point. Before I do, I will point out again that just because you want something to succeed, doesn't mean it will.

10. Target Audience Uncertainty

My last point before I offer suggestions on how to proceed is regarding the target audience. Despite the claims otherwise, the design of Generation VII was not as influenced by Yo-Kai Watch as others believed. In stark contrast to what others have claimed, this interview with Go Nintendo has Shigeru Ohmori outright say that the series had little to no impact on what they were doing compared to usual feedback from audiences.

Moreover, the biggest roadblock the series faced here was arguably its biggest benefit in its home country: its target audience. In Japan, the series was a blend of slice-of-life and Japanese mythology. Given how yokai are almost as ubiquitous there as vampires or zombies here, it was a natural fit. Still, that ended up being a big problem here: disregarding ESRB ratings, there was a much bigger difference between the audience of young children and one of enthusiasts of Japanese mythology. Generally, your average kid in this day and age here probably won't care about yokai; and your average enthusiast of Japanese mythology probably won't derive much pleasure of seeing a giant doughnut fly around their grandmother's house. I think there was a Simpsons line that put this uncertainty best: "So, you want a realistic, down-to-earth show that's totally off the wall and full of magic robots?"

Pokémon, by contrast, did not have this uncertainty: it knows who the target audience they want to reach are, and how to reach beyond that. It's why it's a foregone conclusion that Pokémon Let's Go will do well, as will Generation VIII; and why Yo-Kai Watch 4 will potentially be a make-or-break game for the series.

My suggestions for Yo-Kai Watch to continue are largely the same as before: market the series as an alternative type of anime/game series rather than a four-quadrant series; and let things try to grow from there. If possible, lock down the new voice cast for more episodes and other content. While you may be dubbing the second movie this Christmas if online murmurs are to be believed, maybe it might be best to skip the third film (due to the cost of reshooting the live-action scenes) and go straight to dubbing Shadowside instead. If you are localizing Yo-Kai Watch 3, you need to do so while the 3DS is still being supported. I do admit that last point will likely depend on how well Blasters does at retail in the US and Europe. Given how it's launching directly against the highly-anticipated PS4 Spider-Man game, however; I wish you good luck, you'll need it.

Though I am still mulling over several pieces regarding the series next, I am going to wait until after Blasters launches to determine my next course of action. I am also giving until September 29, one year after the launch of Psychic Specters before I determine how I will end my coverage of the series. My plan is still the same: no recaps of the third or fourth movies without an official confirmation of Yo-Kai Watch 3 getting localized. Otherwise, the end will be a recap of the final episode of the original anime and the first two episodes of Shadowside. That will be all for now. Bang.

Recap: The Ragnarok Connection

Hello everyone. I am finally almost done with my look at Code Geass R2; and I intend to finish the remaining five episodes over the course of four more recaps. I have much to do before the end of the year, so let's open up "The Ragnarok Connection!"

I must also point out that I have finally reintroduced screenshots for this recap (Hurrah!), but that still means I have to show all the details of this nonsensical story. (Hurroo.)


We open on not another introdump, but “Anya” stopping short of using a pen to doodle on Suzaku a la Jigglypuff; saying he “woke up too soon.” Not soon enough, more likely.

As for when CC asks them what they're doing: now I think they're deliberately messing with me by putting "Anya" in a revealing flight suit and CC in the same combo of a tank top, hot pants and big boots she's been wearing for a while now; but the fanservice is honestly the least of the problems I have right now.

Also, remember what I said last time? Well, now it turns out that "Marianne the Flash" is inside Anya; and I will get into how truly absurd this is very soon.

Once again, I am skipping the tonally-inappropriate theme song and putting something else on. I have much bigger fish to fry with this episode as the title card comes up.

As Kallen and the other Black Knights determine their next move; Lelouch finally confronts his father the Emperor about what happened to his mother and what he has planned to do next. Wait till you see: it's terrible.

Before that, we have this muddled dialog about "lying" and "common sense," and I will remind everyone that the events are following the activation of FLEIJA and untold casualties and property damage. Bottom line, it sounds like a political science paper written after a night of bong loads and shots of Jack. 

The symbolism involving the masks also gets worse in this episode, with one of the few things Lelouch and the Emperor agreeing on is that neither of them can take another step without their "respective personas." That might actually be interesting, but I honestly don't think it will delve into the genius of those games at all.

You'll never see it COMING!

The Emperor continues his quasi-pretentious waffling like a doddering fool, ending on the oversimplified platitude "When we understand each other, conflict will disappear." I only wish it were that simple, but even then, it would be pretty fracking boring like that.

Even Lelouch isn't buying this garbage anymore, dismissing his father's words as "impractical metaphysical claptrap."

Lelouch would be great, if not a bit over-dramatic at Cinema Sins.

Anyway, it seems the titular "Ragnarok Connection" will grant the emperor control over every living being in the entire world; since he's apparently not satisfied with everyone he's already ruling over. I honestly hope that the remaster will spend less time on this faux-losophical BS and more time on actually making sure the concepts they're dealing with are internally consistent.

Want proof? When trying to determine their next move and how to proceed with CC's newly-restored "Code," Marianne is able to leave Anya's body and enter the Sword of Akasha. This is part of what I mentioned last time, and I will expand on how bad this is in a moment.

So, after all this time, it turns out that Marianne vi Britannia, Lelouch's mother and the whole reason for his conquest; is alive! If you've been following me this long, you'll know why I'm going to get very angry at this and what happens afterward.

Mother, do you think they'll try to break my balls?

This reveal not only COMPLETELY undermines the events of this season and most of the narrative up to this point; it's a poorly-done twist on its own in a series full of them! The same thing also apparently happened to the Emperor's own mother! For shit's sake, why is matricide always the go-to plot in these kind of stories?! 

Moreover, Charles' aim to "create a world without lies" is totally meaningless and ill-conceived when his entire conquest is built almost entirely on lies and deceit! Not only was VV the real architect of Marianne's assassination, it turns out that her consciousness was planted in Anya when she was a young transfer student! So, apparently her Geass worked the same way as Spock being able to put his consciousness into someone else, but way more nonsensical. 

It is here I managed to pinpoint the exact moment where this anime lost all chance of redemption. To say the franchise jumped the shark, to me; would be an affront to an act I find fun and a sea creature I find fascinating.

I mean, in the course of this one 22-minute episode alone; they've managed to render the events of the previous season and the preceding 20 episodes entirely pointless. It's a key reason why this season is so polarizing; and I'm not even halfway through this thing.

Moreover, while Lelouch is understandably livid about what his parents have done; he's more angry that they used him as a pawn in their sick games than the fact that, you know; they ended up causing untold amounts of damage and killed numerous people.

As the Emperor sets his plan in motion, it turns out one of the images that flashes onscreen translates to "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here." That should have been a disclaimer for every episode I've done so far, and it would have been more effective than the endless exposition and introdumps. 

What's done is done, it feels so bad, what once was happy now is sad, I'll never love again! My world is ending!

CC and Suzaku then enter the Sword of Akasha, and if you think that this is actually going to lead to a meaningful confrontation between everyone here, well; you definitely gave the suits too much credit. Honestly, it's like they ran the script for this teleplay through a shredder; then put the remains together and ran the show as-is.

So, not only does the Emperor try to just straight-up kill his son, it turns out that Lelouch has a second Geass at his disposal; which causes him to disintegrate his parents! I'm kind of used to things not being set up and just being pulled out of thin air, so I might as well start wrapping up while Lelouch pulls a Thanos on the Sword of Akasha.

You should have gone for the head. 

So, we close this messy car crash of a twist episode with Lelouch declaring himself the new Emperor. Three guesses to what comes next, and the first two don't count.

I'm so ronery, so ronery and sadry arone...

"The Ragnarok Connection" is essentially a microcosm of all the problems Code Geass R2 with its story in just one episode. While there were plot threads that didn't make sense before, the twists in this episode were just so poorly handled that they broke my willing suspension of disbelief, to the point they inspired me to write about it at length.

There are only a few more episodes of this dreck left, and I intend to finish them very soon, regardless of what happens with R3. Later.

Recap: Here Comes the Squirtle Squad

My look at the original three Kanto starter captures concludes with my look at "Here Comes the Squirtle Squad!" Let's open it up!

We start off with flashbacks to Bulbasaur and Charmander being captured, after which we see Ash walking with a spring in his step, humming the background music. Then, they fall in a hole in the ground!

The Squirtle Squad laughs at them, four of them wearing John Lennon glasses; and their leader wearing Kamina glasses a solid decade before anyone knew who Kamina was.

Pikachu stares down the leader of the Squirtle Squad as an oddly similar song to Ennio Morricone's theme from "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" plays in the background.

Officer Jenny comes in, and Ash says she looks familiar. That's because they're a whole bunch of relatives that are all named Jenny. Jenny says the Squirtle Squad don't have trainers, and they like to cause trouble.

Team Rocket looks at Ash's Pikachu, and James and Meowth are hungry, which gets them a fan to the face. Jessie asks if she's the only one that thinks conquest is more important than lunchtime, Jessie does admit she is hungry, but the Squirtle Squad confronts Team Rocket and Meowth says they want their food. Team Rocket steps forward to battle and they fall into another hole!

Jessie offers them to help catch Pikachu, but Meowth says they won't trust humans. Meowth says that Jessie and James belong to him. Meowth insists they need to keep up the act until they have their trust.

We cut to Misty fishing by the riverbank while Ash and Brock rest. She says she caught something, and Squirtle squirts them all with Water Gun! Pikachu tries to shock Squirtle, but since everyone is still all wet, he gets them instead! Squirtle then ducks into its shell and knocks Pikachu into the water! Goldeen starts bouncing in the water, and Pikachu tries to swim away, but he isn't fast enough and gets a Horn Attack to the rear! 

As we get to the Who's That Pokémon segment, I will note that Squirtle was the first Pokémon I ever started with in Pokémon Blue.

Everyone is taken to a cave and tied to a rock, Meowth teases Ash with his tail, and Ash, not amused, bites Meowth's tail! Ash then tries to tell the Squirtle Squad that Meowth is deceiving them, but Meowth says that humans can't be trusted! Brock says that Pikachu is in critical condition, and they have to do something! Brock says they need to treat Pikachu with a Super Potion, and Ash pleads to go into town to get it from the Poké Mart, saying Pikachu will be in big trouble if he doesn't!

Squirtle refuses, with Meowth saying they're only trying to escape. Ash gives them his word that he will return once he gets the medicine, but Meowth and the Squirtle still aren't convinced. Eventually, they are convinced. Meowth gives him till high noon tomorrow, or they'll dye Misty's hair purple. Decidedly tamer than the Japanese version, where they threatened to kill her. Next!

Ash dashes off to get the medicine, and crossing an old bridge, his leg goes right through one of the boards! The bridge breaks and he falls into the river below! This is really breaking out all the adventure film cliches, isn't it? Then, a Goldeen gives him a Horn Attack to the rear! Ash reaches the shop, and Gary then hits him with the door! That's actually become a minor internet meme, with that scene getting used often in fan videos and .gif pictures.

Misty and Brock encourage Pikachu to hang in there as night falls, and Meowth wonders where Jessie and James are. The next day, Jessie and James are robbing the store with ice guns! Now let's Schumacher this puppy!

Ash gets the Super Potion, and Officer Jenny gives him a lift back to the cave, but the broken bridge costs them some time. Elsewhere, Team Rocket is preparing flash bombs to scare the Squirtle Squad and take Pikachu in the confusion. Ash reaches the spot, but everyone is gone! Ash rushes outside the cave where everyone is, and takes the Super Potion, spraying Pikachu with it.

Team Rocket starts throwing bombs from the balloon, and Meowth takes Pikachu up the ladder! Everyone heads back to the cave, but the lead Squirtle has fallen over! Ash asks Squirtle if he's all right, and Squirtle nods in approval. Squirtle then hoists Ash overhead and gets him to safety as more bombs fall!

Ash then tells Squirtle to use Water Gun, which pops their balloon, and Ash rescues Pikachu as he falls and catches him! The Squirtle Squad put out the fire together, and they are appointed the town firefighters! We close on the head Squirte following Ash and joining him on his journey.

"Here Comes the Squirtle Squad" was a solid episode to end this arc. While it has aged, it does offer good animation and a good story. It definitely helped incubate my liking for Squirtle, and it's still fascinating to revisit older parts of the franchise as we get closer to Pokémon Let's Go and Generation VIII on the Switch. I definitely recommend watching it. I still have much planned for the remainder of the year, and what I have in mind next is going to be interesting to say the least. That's all for now. Later.

Recap: Charmander The Stray Pokémon

My look at the original trilogy of Kanto Pokémon starter captures continues with “Charmander the Stray Pokémon!” Let’s open it up!

Ash, Brock and Misty are still on their way to Vermilion City, and are lost. Brock points out a bug on Misty’s leg, and Misty leaps onto Ash’s back as if they were playing a game of leapfrog! Brock is actually teasing her with a reed, Misty; not amused, kicks him in the face for it. They notice Route 24 leads to Vermilion City, but it actually leads away from it in the games. They decide to head off again. Little side note: this was one of the first episodes I watched as a kid. They then notice a Pokémon sitting on a rock: Charmander!

The Pokédex tells of the flame on its tail, and says that it dies if it goes out. Ash says that he was disappointed that he couldn't get Charmander as his starter. I must also note the character's voice seems to be loosening up from the initial husky voice to the more gravelly one the character is known for. I admire Veronica Taylor for that. Misty points out this Charmander seems weak, and Brock says to capture it and take it to the Pokémon Center. Charmander swats the Poké Ball away with its tail, Brock points out it's too weak to battle, looking at the flame on its tail. Charmander again refuses to be captured, and Brock admires its spunk. Pikachu tells everyone with a game of charades that someone else is coming for it. More on that later.

The gang reaches the Pokémon Center as it starts to rain. Brock muses if someone got Charmander. Just then, he overhears someone at another table marveling at all his Pokémon. The boy's name is Damian: I think it's fitting, and you're about to find out why. Damian, when asked about Charmander, snidely remarks at its weakness. Damian then reveals he's the one that left Charmander alone on that rock! Ash and Misty are both disgusted with him as Brock rises from his chair! At moment, Brock grabs Damian by the collar and says exactly what I want to this piece of trash. He demands he get Charmander before its flame goes out and dies! You know, it's weird watching these older episodes before 4Kids would not allow any mention of death at all. I bet if you gave them Star Wars after a certain point, they'd probably say that Owen and Beru were buying groceries when the Empire attacked their home.

Ash, Brock and Misty then rush into the storm to save Charmander! Ash and Brock shield Charmander with their raincoats as they rush back to the Pokémon Center. Ash informs Nurse Joy of Damian's lie, and she then gets to work on healing Charmander.

Charmander has healed, and Nurse Joy says all it needs now is a good night's rest. The next morning, Brock wakes everyone up and says Charmander is no longer in the ER! Ash deduces it went back to the rock to wait for Damian. Misty says that's its decision, even if he is a lying creep. No: that goes beyond "lying creep" and straight into the demonic spawn of his namesake. 

Charmander heads down the road, as does the gang. Team Rocket drills a hole for the "twerps," and they fall in! Team Rocket, dressed in rubberized hazmat suits; then try to take Pikachu! They do this with a bazooka that fires rubber balloons. In other words: Rover from The Prisoner.

Charmander then steps in Team Rocket's path. Team Rocket tells Charmander to move, and Charmander responds by burning them to a crisp!

Everyone gets out of the hole, and Misty says she always knew Charmander cared! Ash offers for Charmander to come with them right as Damian comes back! Charmander then faces a decision: go back with Damian, or join Ash and his friends? 

Ash then calls out Damian for his misdeeds, but Damian will not admit he was wrong! Misty and Brock are outraged at how Damian wants Charmander back, but wants no part in training it! Charmander then realizes how little Damian cares, and swats the Poké Ball away when he tries to call it back! Damian tries to use his other Pokémon, and Charmander roasts him in one of the funniest and most awesome moments of the series.

Damian then runs away as Ash congratulates Charmander, and the audience applauds at how this scum bucket got his much-deserved comeuppance!

Brock encourages Ash to catch Charmander, saying he'll train it into a great Pokémon. So, Ash gets Charmander, and that's the end of the episode.

"Charmander the Stray Pokémon" has a surprisingly dark story for a series that's known for being lighter than the games on which it's based; and it definitely shows that aspect with the character of Damian. The early battles are quite good, and Charmander's bond with Ash is one of the most recognizable partnerships of the series to this day. As I said before, the Charizard it grows into is one of the most recognizable monsters in the series history, so I definitely recommend watching it. I still have one more of these episodes left to go, so check back next time for my look at it. Later.

RIP Unsho Ishizuka 1951-2018

It is with great sadness that I report the passing of Unsho Ishizuka, who has died of esophageal cancer at age 67. Ishizuka played many roles in his life; notably the voice of the narrator and Professor Oak in the Japanese version of Pokémon since it began in 1997. Other roles include the voice of Hercule Satan in Dragon Ball and Heihachi Mishima in the Tekken series.

As a longtime fan of the series, I wish the best for Ishizuka’s family; friends and coworkers at this difficult time. May he rest in peace.

Recap: Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village

With the release of Pokémon Let's Go getting ever closer, I thought I would cover the "original trilogy" of Kanto starter captures, because why not? To get started, let's open up "Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village!"

So, Ash, Misty and Brock are lost again. They decide to take a break, and Ash sees an Oddish. Misty tries to catch it, but her Poké Ball is blocked by Bulbasaur! Ash is really excited to see Bulbasaur.

He sends out Butterfree against Bulbasaur, but Bulbasaur blows Butterfree's Sleep Powder back at him! Ash whines about it, but cheers right back up as they're crossing a bridge. The bridge breaks, and Brock falls in the water! Ash and Misty climb back up, and Misty then falls in a hole! They then get caught in a net when they're trying to look for Bulbasaur.

Team Rocket is also searching for the village, which is said to be full of Pokémon. Brock meets up with Ash and Misty, and frees them from the net. He then says that we was rescued by a beautiful girl! Her name is Melanie. She then takes everyone to a sanctuary for abandoned and injured Pokémon.

Meanwhile, Team Rocket crosses the bridge and gets swept downstream, and they fall into the other traps. Their plan this time involves a flying baseball stadium to steal all the Pokémon!

Everyone then defends the preserve, and Ash's Pidgeotto uses Gust to send the stadium and Team Rocket blasting off! So, Melanie encourages Ash to take Bulbasaur with him so he can grow. Ash agrees to give Bulbasaur a place on his team, and after battling him, Ash catches Bulbasaur.

We then end on a joke that's very peculiar: after spending the last episode cooing over Giselle, Ash is apparently oblivious to Misty teasing Brock about Melanie.

"Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village" may be a bit dated in a way, but very silly as well. I definitely like the idea of a Pokémon sanctuary, and there's some great interplay between everyone here. People having engaging conversations between each other is much more interesting to me than just a one-liner. The dialogue definitely helps humanize the show, and I definitely recommend watching it. I am going to do the other two episodes of the original starter captures next, not sure what I will do after that. Later.

Recap: Emperor Dismissed

This time, our previously on Code Geass R2  segment is done by Suzaku, yet again rehashing the whole story up to the point he activated the FLEIJA weapon, leading to the intro sequence. I am so glad that I am almost done with this; so let's open up "Emperor Dismissed" and keep this momentum going!

I do agree with Nina that she had “no idea it would be this awful.” You and me both, Nina.

Meeting up with Lelouch at Rolo’s grave, he realizes the sickening truth about where the Emperor is and what he plans to do next; and decides to confront his father. (Sighs) Thank goodness there are only only a few episodes left, including this one.

So, as the Emperor tries to use something called "Ragnarok" to take control of the world; CC regains her memories after crossing paths with the Knights of Round. On top of being another pointless story thread; the Emperor has now officially devolved into another generic doomsday villain.

As for who is really trying to recruit CC: we will get to that next time. Trust me when I say I have some choice words for it. I will just say it's not a good sign when even CC isn't buying this crap anymore.

Even with Anya being left behind, just listening to the other Black Knights pondering their next move further illustrates the problem with how much the story was ruined by executive meddling. I honestly don't care about the fireworks so much as I do a coherent script an consistent characters.

While everyone else debates what happened to Zero, Suzaku is apparently getting an upgrade known as Lancelot Albion, and I honestly don't care about this anymore. We're barely halfway through this thing too.

Again with the whole "being prepared not to use FLEIJA?" That was a moronic assumption before, Cecile, and it's even worse now. So fuck you and your garbage husband Lloyd too.

Everyone else tries to talk Suzaku out of his plan, but he will have none of it; forcing them to go along with overthrowing the Emperor. Another coup: just what this bloated story needs! To think people are so down on the subplots in The Last Jedi.

With ten minutes left in this episode; I honestly don't know what to expect from the remaster or R3; I just hope it's better than this.

Suzaku goes to confront the Emperor, which leads to what is actually a pretty good sword fight between him and Bismarck as Lelouch goes into the Sword of Akasha. At least everything else going on isn't as busy this time. Either that, or I've built up an immunity to all the bullshit I've covered in six years with this anime; and it's almost over.

So, after Anya and CC bluff their way past Waldstein somehow (I don't know, six years since I first saw this, it still makes no sense to me), we close on Lelouch confronting his father the Emperor in the Sword of Akasha. I am so glad there are only four episodes of this left to go.


Even if this isn't the worst episode of R2 I've done here, "Emperor Dismissed" just feels like it's going through the motions as this anime further limps to a royally absurd conclusion. I know there are parts of the story and characters that I haven't mention; but I'm deliberately saving them for next time; so you will know how much they truly screwed this up. At least the animation is once again the lone positive I can mention here.


My plan is to do the remaining four episodes before this year is out, since I'm finally getting my computer repaired and upgraded soon. I will do the last two as one recap, and I also have other material planned before the year is out that I have been wanting to do for ages. That will be all for now. Later.

Pokémon The Power of Us Coming to US Theaters this Holiday Season.

Well, I wasn't sure what would happen here, but I was still on vacation when I found out about this. It seems this year's Pokémon movie is coming to the US this holiday season as Pokémon The Power of Us. It will be screened via Fathom Events on November 24, 26, 28 and December 1. Other territories remain to be announced.

While there is currently no air date for Disney XD or any dubbed  names for the cast , my plan is still the same: I will make the movie my final Pokémon recap, and my goal is to have it done and posted by Christmas Eve.

Regardless of what happens, I will be eager to talk about the movie no matter what I think of it. Later.

P.S. Go see Mission: Impossible Fallout, it really is that good.

Recap: Betrayal

Picking up where we left off, the Emperor dispatches Schneizel to deal with the aftermath of the detonation of FLEIJA, and all Hell has officially broken loose. That is the first minute, and in the absence of my "previously on Code Geass R2" running gag, it doesn't get better from there. So, let's open up "Betrayal" and talk about it.

Not only is Lelouch shocked to find Nunally is alive, but now a ceasefire is being called! Really not a good sign when I am just four minutes in and I have no idea what the Hell is going on.

As for his outburst towards Rolo: like with Shirley, I won't make too much of that, knowing what is about to happen.

Also, I really hate this line Lloyd says to Nina, saying he was "self-aware enough to abandon his heart from the start " of his research. Fuck you dude: that callous assessment proves you have no self-awareness at all given what just happened. I still don't understand why Nina gets so much hate, yet Lloyd gets off Scot-free. I honestly hope he gets killed  in the remaster or R3.

So, with Ougi being MIA, Jeremiah searching for Nunnally and Lelouch staying behind, the rest of the Black Knights go to meet with Schneizel. I have something planned, trust me when I say what happens next is awful. Even my dislike of Rivalz won't be enough to deter me from frying bigger fish.

Schneizel then proceeds to out Lelouch as Zero, but also oversimplifies the Geass as “extremely powerful hypnosis” and its effects as “shams.” ... How do you function?

Ougi and Villetta then enter to effectively sell Lelouch out further. I can understand how others were unhappy about that, but this is honestly the LEAST contrived part about all this.


I do find it ironic how willingly everyone believes the bullshit Schneizel is giving them about being in Zero’s control. From the real 2017 onwards, they would have the opposite problem nowadays. It will be interesting to see how the remaster handles this plot thread.

Furthering this, Schneizel then plays the recording he forged a couple episodes before! ... That’s stupid! You’re stupid! Stop being stupid!


Everyone is then presented with documentation that holds Zero responsible for everyone that has died so far in the story, and not just ones he actually did kill! Oh. My! God!



I mean, Kris Kringle; this crap at the halfway point makes the Chewbacca defense seem sane by comparison! Gaspen Payne would be aghast at this!

Ten minutes left, and I honestly don’t care what is going on anymore. Once again, the bad news is I have no idea who’s fighting who or why. The good news is I don’t care!

As if the series itself realizes this, a talk between Zero and Kallen is then interrupted by a standoff in the hangar! It’s like they said: “Character development? We can’t have that! Let’s just hold the leads at gunpoint and see what happens!”

With few options left, Lelouch just decides to accept his fate. (Sighs) Knowing what happens next, I honestly can’t joke about the next parts.

Rolo then absconds with Lelouch in the Shinikiro, using his Geass as a way to stall for time to escape, even at great physical strain on his body! Even though I don't have the same feelings towards Rolo many others do, this is a moment that plays similarly to Shirley's end, and I shall wrap this up quickly as the Shinikiro continues its escape attempt.


Taking heavy enemy fire, Rolo uses his Geass again and again as we flashback to previous episodes and his condition weakens further. Much like Shirley, even of the circumstances of Rolo's final moments may be contrived as all get-out, the actual death itself is one of the few moments that actually leaves an emotional impact.


We then close on the Emperor vowing to use something called "The Ragnarok Connection" to reshape the world in his image, and Lelouch vowing to finally confront his father. Thank goodness we're finally on the homestretch with only five episodes left to go.

"Betrayal" is obviously not a great episode, and it's made worse with numerous pacing problems; and so much contrived bullshit that I could fertilize my garden with it. However, I do admit the animation itself is well-done, as was Rolo's death. With roughly four months left until I retire, I definitely think I can finish these last few ones before too long so I can free up my energy for other material I have on the slate. 

I have not yet decided I will recap to follow this up, but I am glad to have this up now that I'm back from vacation at my father's. I have plenty in mind, thankfully; so that will give me something to do in this absurd heat wave. That will be all for now. Later.