- Joined
- Feb 11, 2010
- Messages
- 1,193
- Reaction score
- 5,243
First episodes of a new series always get me really hyped up! I always eventually fall off the train of watching non-dubbed episodes as a series wears on, so it's nice to get back in that mode again. And I'm willing to admit that I quite enjoyed this episode. It wasn't Earth shattering or flawless by any means, but I definitely feel that I liked it more than a lot of other reviews I'm seeing of it here.
I'm very much a proponent of showing rather than telling, especially if it's done well. In terms of Pikachu's backstory, I think it was done relatively well. Truthfully, I don't feel any need to know exactly what happened to Pikachu's family. Pichu was so young, he likely didn't even know himself. I don't mind that being left open to interpretation; it was just enough to know that he was totally alone until meeting Kangaskhan. That relationship was very sweet, and I loved watching it evolve, but I do agree that the reason for parting felt a bit forced. I'm not entirely sure what else they could've done, however (sure, I guess poaching, but honestly that's a little too grim) so I can live with it. The one thing I did want to know, however, was how Pikachu ended up with Professor Oak. I would've really liked to see him catching Pikachu. That was the singular aspect of this whole backstory where I genuinely felt I was missing out on an important detail...to just go from Pikachu leaving his "family" to being given to Ash four years later. What happened in those four years? Was Pikachu with Professor Oak the whole time? How did they first meet? So that I didn't love, because that is ultimately a big part of Pikachu's story as well that I would've liked to see.
The young protags were super adorable! I will be the outlier to say I absolutely loved having Ash in the episode; not only was he so freaking cute, but it was hysterical to see Gou call him out (without even knowing him!) and hitting the nail on the head. I think it's really cool that they were so close to meeting as kids! Also, Ash sleeping in and missing out on something Pokemon related even as a little kid was hysterical...poor baby. It was also nice to see that there's a specific reason why Gou is so interested in Mew, and not just based off of myth or lore he was told.
Overall, I thought the episode was very cute and overall enjoyable. Would I personally have made it the first episode of a brand new series? Probably not. It was fun to watch, but didn't get me as revved up for the start of the series which, like I said, the first episodes normally do. I think episode 2 will do a better job of that.
I'm very much a proponent of showing rather than telling, especially if it's done well. In terms of Pikachu's backstory, I think it was done relatively well. Truthfully, I don't feel any need to know exactly what happened to Pikachu's family. Pichu was so young, he likely didn't even know himself. I don't mind that being left open to interpretation; it was just enough to know that he was totally alone until meeting Kangaskhan. That relationship was very sweet, and I loved watching it evolve, but I do agree that the reason for parting felt a bit forced. I'm not entirely sure what else they could've done, however (sure, I guess poaching, but honestly that's a little too grim) so I can live with it. The one thing I did want to know, however, was how Pikachu ended up with Professor Oak. I would've really liked to see him catching Pikachu. That was the singular aspect of this whole backstory where I genuinely felt I was missing out on an important detail...to just go from Pikachu leaving his "family" to being given to Ash four years later. What happened in those four years? Was Pikachu with Professor Oak the whole time? How did they first meet? So that I didn't love, because that is ultimately a big part of Pikachu's story as well that I would've liked to see.
The young protags were super adorable! I will be the outlier to say I absolutely loved having Ash in the episode; not only was he so freaking cute, but it was hysterical to see Gou call him out (without even knowing him!) and hitting the nail on the head. I think it's really cool that they were so close to meeting as kids! Also, Ash sleeping in and missing out on something Pokemon related even as a little kid was hysterical...poor baby. It was also nice to see that there's a specific reason why Gou is so interested in Mew, and not just based off of myth or lore he was told.
Overall, I thought the episode was very cute and overall enjoyable. Would I personally have made it the first episode of a brand new series? Probably not. It was fun to watch, but didn't get me as revved up for the start of the series which, like I said, the first episodes normally do. I think episode 2 will do a better job of that.