There is only 1 day left for the return on Netflix of one of the best series based on a video game

Pokémon came accompanied by an animated series almost from the very beginning. The first two games appeared in Japanese stores on February 27, 1996, and Ash Ketchum debuted on TXN a year later, on April 1, 1997. By that time, the Pokémon Adventures manga had already been serialized (which continues to be published with over 60 volumes), and the second one, The Electric Tale of Pikachu, was about to be published, surprisingly censored outside its country of origin. Almost three decades have passed since then, and the anime has already reached a good 1342 episodes, having changed protagonists along the way. But it is by no means the only mirror in which the saga reflects these days.

Concierge, I choose you!

If Pokémon had to change its protagonist (from Ash to Liko) to adapt to the new times, the series themselves also had to evolve, logically: the saga’s social media channels often present, from time to time, small shorts that give a glimpse of how vast this world is, and different experiments have appeared here and there. For example, over the years we have experienced things like Pokémon Chronicles, Pokémon Origins (a story more similar to the original game), Pokémon Generations, or the very curious Pokémon Evolutions. But nothing, ever, will be the same as the Netflix series that generated the most buzz in 2023 and is now returning after a year and a half of preparation.

I am, of course, talking about The Pokémon Concierge, which uses stop motion to tell wonderful and never-before-seen stories from the franchise, with Psyduck helping to run a summer resort for the creatures. It’s adorable, but there’s much more: each animator could only achieve 5 seconds of animation per day due to this technique, so the episodes took much longer to make than usual. Additionally, the series is filled with nods and tributes to the world of Pokémon, completely excluding battles: that’s what the original series is for. Here, even the most dangerous and powerful creatures deserve a spa day.

The first season had 4 episodes and was binge-worthy, and the second, which will premiere tomorrow on Netflix, will have another 4. Better little by little and make them good than at full speed and end up being a flop, right? The series shows that the saga has had to evolve out of necessity: no matter how much it continues to target children and the whole family, it’s no longer enough to use animation and the most basic and simple plots to reach all its audience. Now, Pokémon is also for adults, and they (we, to be honest) demand (demand) experiments as beautiful, fun, and charming as this one.

Season 1 is one of the few that has a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and for good reason: it was exactly what Pokémon needed: to realize that its audience doesn’t just need the same old story (I leave the town, catch creatures, win at the gyms, etc.), but that there is a world more than enough to create all kinds of installments. Why not a horror Pokémon? Or one of pure action? Or one where we control Team Rocket? Or one where we are the designers of a poke-resort for vacations?

The Pokémon Concierge is everything that continues to go well in a saga that, at times, shows signs of limping and repeating its own mistakes over and over again, and the arrival of its season 2 should be a cause for rejoicing. Come on, I’m off to grab the towel and the pokéballs right now: this needs to be celebrated.