The Pokemon story, in case you didn't know, isn't really a story at all. You'd be pardoned for thinking it was, with all the Pokemon goods for sale now. My son at the moment is absolutely mad for anything Pokemon Black and White, including Pokemon Plushies (those are Pokemon stuffed toys) and especially the Pokemon Black and White Game Cards (Holofoil cards being especially valuable). He definitely wants the Nintendo DS Pokemon Black and White game (I think he dreams about it, and he?ll just have to keep on dreaming because he's not getting that for a while).
With all the Pokemon goods, characters, and descriptions, you would think that there was a great Pokemon story behind it all. Actually there's not. Every merchandising spinoff you see from Pokemon, whether it's a plushie or full feature Pokemon movie comes from ideas and concepts that are developed by Nintendo for the game. Pokemon was never a story in other words- it was and remains an idea for a game.
If you're like me, that bothers you because I see in the Pokemon characters a rich potential for a great adventure story full of idyllic heroism and romance. It'S a bit like Harry Potter, a little bit like Star Trek, and a lot like dragon taming. The biggest thing that bothers me about Pokemon is their mysterious origin. They're just here and have always been here. It seems like something happened- a DNA mishap for example but it's not explained. There are no regular animals in the Pokemon world either but every Pokemon seems to have a regular animal's DNA. Humans are regular- why aren't they mutated too? The Pokeball is handy gadget to catch wild Pokemon with but it's never explained how it works. There are scientists and labs in the Pokemon world but the Pokeball is only the really significant piece of technology that we actually see.
Pokemon live in zones, and species of Pokemon are restricted to specific zones- they don't exist in other zones in other words. There are cities in the Pokemon world but the society and technology is minimally described. Above all, there is no overreaching goal in Pokemon. To become a Pokemon Master is about the only accomplishment that is mentioned in Pokemon.
All of these narrative shortcomings can be explained easily by the fact that all the spinoffs from Pokemon are limited to the game. Whatever is in the game will appear in a movie but nothing revolutionary will appear in a movie that is not in the game. This is because fans will expect to see in a game whatever they see in a movie- which would probably not be easy to do. Everything is dependent on the game. In a computer game the goal and the tools to reach that goal are usually simple and clear (even if hidden). There is no need for explaining and gamers are impatient with long narratives. They like scenarios. And that keeps Pokemon frozen in the now.
Dinah Jackson writes articles about Pokemon. For the newest Pokemon Black and White information on the web, check out the new Pokemon free online magazine called Pokezine. There are hundreds of magazine articles on all different Pokemon subjects for free. Get all the latest news, plus tons of information about upcoming great items like Pokemon shiny Raikou, Suicune, Entei, Serperior, Oshawott, Snivy, Tepig, Minccino and many more. Check it out. Its 100% free.
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