Anime

Wait a second, is this week's episode of Pokémon Horizons the first time that Friede hasn’t shown up in an episode? Wow! I just realized this when his seminar came up right at the end. Anyways, this was actually a really great episode! Liko gets to battle Katy, and terastalizes Floragato for the first time too!

What I like most about this week's episode of Pokémon Horizons is that so much is given out, and that it's all explained so thoroughly. Instead of having the kids go on a Treasure Hunt like in the game, Liko, Roy and Dot enroll in Naranja Academy’s Terastal Course. It turns out that the school allows students from all over the world to enroll in the course to learn more about the Terastal phenomenon, as permitted by Director Clavell and Chairwoman Geeta.

What a great way to end the second chapter of Pokémon Horizons! The raid battle against the Black Rayquaza in this week's episode was intense! Liko, Roy and Dot all show off their improved battling tactics alongside Friede and Amethio, who shows up unexpectedly after his colleagues retreated. Just seeing the fruits of their hard work, from Amethio mastering Terastal, to Liko and Roy battling so competently without the need of Friede’s handholding, to Liko’s Sprigatito evolving into Floragato, a rare occurrence for Grass-type starters.

Things are getting intense now, with the Brave Olivine sustaining major damage in this week's episode from the Black Rayquaza crashing into it. I think the third arc of Pokémon Horizons being a school arc makes a lot of sense now, as the kids can spend time at school while they wait for the airship to be fully repaired, which you have to imagine could take a long while.

When the Explorers start showing up, you know it’s getting to the end of an arc. With the third chapter of Pokémon Horizons announced, and with two of the Explorers showing up in this episode, it’s inevitable that a big battle is going to happen. I’m excited for the next two weeks. I also enjoyed this week's episode a lot too! It was surprisingly fun.

A limited-time distribution of a Sprigatito has been announced for Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet. This Pokémon is based off of Liko's Sprigatito from Pokémon Horizons: The Series, which recently made its US debut on Netflix. This distribution will remain available until September 30th, at 11:59pm (UTC) / 4:59pm (PDT).

What did I just watch? Was this a Pokémon Horizons episode or a superhero flick? Whatever it was, I want to see more! I think this week's episode was really fun, and I feel like they should make something similar in the future! This was definitely an interesting way to write a beach episode for a Pokémon anime show!

Why are Dot-focused episodes of Pokémon Horizons so good? Episode 15, which was a mix of Dot and Liko-focus, was good; Episode 39, the first true Dot-focused episode, was really good; and this week's episode focusing on Dot’s backstory, was really really good!

A cluster of near-simultaneous posts to the official accounts of Netflix, The Pokémon Company, and The Pokémon Company International on X (formerly known as Twitter) have confirmed that new episodes of Pokémon Concierge are currently in production. No details have been given yet as to when we can expect these episodes to be released, though given the time involved in stop-motion animation, it may be a while before these episodes actually grace our screens.

This week's episode of Pokémon Horizons reveals the origins of Liko's Sprigatito! It’s interesting how Sprigatito knew where she came from, and even came back to visit. It’s also nice to learn how these starters come to be, and how they get sent off to schools and labs for beginning trainers. In Sprigatito’s case, it seems she came from a breeder who specializes in breeding feline Pokémon.

Australian Pokémon fans will soon be getting their first official taste of Pokémon Horizons, with confirmation today that the series will be making its premiere in Australia with a four hour long marathon on Pokémon Day, Tuesday February 27th.

The Pokêmon Company International (TPCi), their long-term charitable partner The Toy Foundation™, and the Empire State Building in New York City have teamed up to celebrate Pokémon Day 2024 by illuminating the iconic tower in yellow and blue, inspired by the colors of the Pokémon logo. TPCi says the lighting is also in anticipation of the U.S. premiere of Pokémon Horizons: The Series, which the company describes as the first new mainline Pokémon anime to premiere since the original Pokémon the Series over 25 years ago. The Empire State Building will be lit in Pokémon’s colors on February 27th from sunset until 2 a.m., along with hosting Pokémon GO activities for visitors. Catch the U.S. premiere of Pokémon Horizons: The Series on March 7th, exclusively on Netflix.

Like I mentioned back in my Episode 37 review, I think it's good when episodes focus on just the kids without adult interference. This week's episode of Pokémon Horizons is no exception. Not only is this is a really good episode, it also focuses on Dot! Dot episodes have been rare, so it’s best to savor this one as much as possible!

Since last week's episode of Pokémon Horizons was Roy-focused, it makes sense that this week's episode would be Liko-focused. What’s even better is that it’s also a Hatenna-focused episode too! I think this is the first time she's had focus since her debut. And what's even better than a Hatenna-focused episode? The adult accompanying Liko for this episode isn’t Friede, but Mollie! She’s one of my favorites in Horizons, so I’m glad that she gets to have some of thee spotlight again!

On the third part of the odd jobs saga in Pokémon Horizons, the Rising Volt Tacklers are given a task to move a giant rock as requested by Friede’s archaeologist friend. Although the episode doesn’t explicitly mention it, the group seems to have gone to the Unova region for this task, specifically the Relic Castle located in the middle of the Desert Resort. With this series of odd jobs looking to cointinue for a while, it’s nice to see that they're not just going to be restricted to Paldea, and could potentially be anywhere in the Pokémon world.

The odd jobs saga continues in Pokémon Horizons this week as Liko and Roy are tasked to help one of Nidothing’s viewers with a problem. The viewer, who goes by the username Yunorin, wants to join the Tag Battle Tournament being held in Pigton Town, but her Oinkologne isn’t too thrilled about partnering up with another Pokémon. What could be the issue? It’s nice that the kids are the main focus of this week's episode without adults interfering this time around.

Pokémon Horizons has finally returned after taking a few weeks off due to the holidays. Now that the festivities are over, we’re back to our weekly schedule for Horizons until the series takes its next scheduled break. This week's episode happens to be a fun, relaxing episode about the group working odd jobs.

Originally scheduled for release on Netflix in the United States ahead of Pokémon Day, The Pokémon Company International have announced that Pokémon Horizons: The Series will now be making its debut on March 7th, two weeks later than originally scheduled.

The Pokémon Company International have announced today that Pokémon TV, TPCI's free video service that provides select episodes of the Pokémon anime to viewers, amongst other Pokémon content, will be ceasing operation completely as of March 28th this year, with downloads for the app being removed as of today, January 8th.

While this week's episode of Pokémon Horizons was mainly a straightforward episode with the gang holding a party for Diana’s departure, I actually liked the subtle hints of foreshadowing for the future they snuck in. This episode has hints of the Rising Volt Tacklers going to find the Scarlet/Violet Book that harbors details about Terapagos, Dot going into battle, and Spinel and Agate hinting on usurping Amethio’s chances of finding the Black Rayquaza. This episode has done a lot to help build my excitement for what's coming in future episodes.