Pokémon Horizons isn't Just a Great Reboot, It's Saving the Entire Anime Franchise (2024)

Every anime fan is aware that the Pokémon anime is one of the longest-running series in the history of the medium, with over 1,200 episodes featuring Ash Ketchum and his trusty Pikachu. A series just doesn't reach those kinds of numbers without being a success, but that many stories featuring the same character is bound to start repeating itself.

That's why there was both excitement and hesitation when it was announced that a new Pokémon series with brand-new protagonists would be debuting in 2023. While there have always been vocal components of the fan base in favor of removing Ash, believing it would shake up the anime for the better, there are just as many fans who were afraid of losing the hero they'd known for over 20 years. After all, what would Pokémon even be without Ash and Pikachu at the helm?

Pokémon Tried to Shake Things Up Even Before Ash Left

The Series Experimented With Various Retools Over the Years

The Pokémon anime is rather unique in that it reinvented itself every few years in order to better align with the current Pokémon video game era. Each time a new game came out, Ash would set off to that new region, finding new companions and most importantly, new Pokémon to catch. Sometimes these involved revamps to the style; while the Kanto era through the Sinnoh era all look pretty similar, , and was entirely in widescreen (which was introduced part-way through Sinnoh).

As the series continued, it became clear that more than just the art style needed to change, however. XY took a more Shonen-like approach, focusing a bit more heavily on battles and action. Sun & Moon mixed things up further with not only a radical shift in the art style, but also by having Ash stay in one location (a school) rather than travel about with a group of friends. Finally, Journeys did away with a lot of the old standby tropes, such as Pokémon Gym badges, and had Ash galavanting around the globe instead of being tied to just one region at a time.

These efforts did help to refresh the series and keep things from growing too stale, but there were other limitations that they couldn't really do anything about. Ash, for example, certainly undergoes a lot of character growth over the series, but much of his character growth takes place in the earlier seasons, making him a fairly static character in some later seasons. And, of course, there was always the problem of Pikachu's power level, which could fluctuate wildly from season to season. Additionally, as Ash achieved more and more, there was less left for him to achieve.

Pokémon Horizons Solved The Series' Problems By Starting Fresh

New Characters and New Stories Await

Even among Pokémon's refreshes, there were many aspects which stayed the same across seasons: Ash would travel around the new region, collecting 8 badges while encountering the local evil Team, who would inevitably be up to some world-dominating scheme involving the legendary Pokémon. It all started to become formulaic after a while, even if it was an accurate reflection of the games. That's why Sun & Moon and Journeys opted to try something new--the old formula was just too stale.

Still, keeping Ash and Pikachu was a bit too limiting, and finally, the time had come to say goodbye. As world champion, there was no where left for Ash's story to go. At last, the series could start over from scratch, giving it a chance to change some core elements of the series and update them for a more modern era.

Pokémon Horizons did just that. Firstly, it opted to have two protagonists--a boy and a girl, Roy and Liko. While Ash's companions had their own storylines sometimes, they couldn't help but feel like secondary characters, since everyone knew they wouldn't be sticking around, while Ash would. By having two protagonists from the start, their stories (theoretically) carried equal weight. Pokémon Horizons also ditched the old formula entirely; Roy and Liko have shown no interest in collecting Gym badges or becoming champion, like Ash. They have goals of their own, even if it takes a while to figure them out.

The Rising Volt Tacklers Completely Change the Series' Dynamic

A Larger Cast Helps Set Pokémon Horizons Apart

Most importantly, though, Liko and Roy wouldn't be two lone children traveling about at random. Pokémon Horizons introduced a group of adventurers, the Rising Volt Tacklers, made up of adult characters who Liko and Roy can count on in times of trouble. Chief among them is Friede, their mentor and guardian. Friede and the Rising Volt Tacklers reflect the older audience of Pokémon fans, and have more realistic problems. This also comes with the airship, the Brave Olivine, giving Liko and Roy a home that Ash never really had.

While Ash never worried about money, and the very concept was rarely brought up outside of Team Rocket being broke, the Rising Volt Tacklers often need money for food reserves, ship maintenance, and other expenses. Suddenly, Pokémon has a new formula with new motivations, traveling the world in their ship and performing jobs for people along the way, offering new opportunities for storytelling.

Better still, Pokémon Horizons was conceived with a long-running plot in mind, opening with a mysterious pendant that propels Liko into the story. Rather than being the ongoing (and perhaps never-ending) adventures of Ash, Pokémon Horizons feels like it has a specific story it wants to tell. While there's nothing wrong with the more episodic Ash era, the anime medium has evolved a lot since Pokémon debuted back in the 1990s. Having an ongoing story arc feels almost mandatory these days, and it feels as if Horizons' story arc is fairly well-planned and well paced.

While much of this could've been done with Ash, starting over with new characters was a great way to signal that things were changing in a major way. Liko and Roy have much more room for character growth than Ash did by Journeys, and the series' larger cast allows it to develop other characters like Friede and the other Rising Volt Tacklers as well. Even its villains, like Amethio, have had some major development already.

By radically changing the series' formula, incorporating an ongoing plot from the first episode, and changing up the protagonists to offer better opportunities for character growth and development, Pokémon Horizons has firmly established itself as a brand-new era for the Pokémon anime.

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Pokémon Horizons (2023)

TV-Y7

Action

Adventure

Animation

Pokémon Horizons is the sequel series to the 1997 original series. It follows the adventures of Liko and Roy, two aspiring Pokémon trainers from different backgrounds, as they explore the Paldea region. Equipped with new gadgets and strategies, they encounter a variety of Pokémon and face challenges that test their skills and courage. With each discovery and battle, Liko and Roy learn about the vast world of Pokémon and strive to make their mark in the Pokémon leagues.

Cast

Alejandra Reynoso , Crispin Freeman , Anjali Kunapaneni , Mara Junot , Michael Allan Schneider

Release Date

April 14, 2023

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Netflix

Franchise(s)

Pokemon

Main Genre

Adventure