Pokémon Origins
Pokémon Origins
| 02 October 2013 (USA)
Pokémon Origins Trailers

Serving as a more faithful adaptation of the Pokémon Red and Blue games, the story follows a young boy named Red who begins a journey with his Pokémon partner, Charmander, as he seeks to capture all the known Pokémon in the Kanto region and become the Pokémon League champion.

Reviews
lilithen

I actually didn't know about origins until I saw it lately, When I watched it, it was amazing. To me, they should have made this a full anime, and stopped the other main series anime (that anime isn't the best, for those of you out there). Anyways, I still believe this anime deserved it's rating. Because its really, really good. For starters, the animation looks gorgeous, and the way they added in the modern use of mega evolution sealed it. It makes this anime great, just how true it is to the original games. Sure, they made obvious changes, but other than that, it stay pretty true. So, to recap, this short anime was great and true to its roots. I give this movie, a 10.10.

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hayashimegumi

This is a shorter version of my review as there is word limit so.... Here's some why you will love Pokémon Origins (2013) and have a great time watching it! Firstly, there are so much references to the game which is quite unusual and unexpected. Secondly, it feels like playing a Gameboy Color by Nintendo which is creative. Then, a lot of the music, dialogues and scenes are adapted from the games; they are just so priceless! Most of all, it is entertaining to watch the rivalry and friendship between the main characters Red and Blue as each have their own distinctive personality and boyish charm!Since the animated special is split into four parts and directed by four different anime directors, I have four mini review for each of these too!The first part, File 1: Red, is about the beginning of Red's and Blue's Pokémon journey. My first impression was a wow as the games are seemingly coming to life! However as the animated special progresses, I realised that it isn't just that. This is seriously a comedy aimed to entertain, it is full of inside joke that Pokémon fans would find them damn funny most of the time but humorous or not, Pokémon Origins (2013) is certainly a tribute to all Pokémon fans!The second part, File 2: Cubone, is about Red's adventure in one of the towns he visited. Many days have passed since the first part but it does follows the storyline or gameplay. Fortunately, it is still as funny but what's more is that this part is quite heartwarming; there are some aww moments and the relationships between people and Pokémon shown here are just so sentimental. Thus, if you wanted to watch something uplifting with a hilarious plot, this is it!The third part, File 3: Giovanni, is an interesting arc featuring the Team Rocket's Boss. It is a dramatic one. Although this part also means Pokémon Origins (2013) is coming to an end soon, it is quite satisfying because there are intense actions and a plenty of wise words. You can't help but to feel happy to learn that these characters are moving on, forward!The fourth and last part, File 4: Charizard, is about Red challenging the Elite Four and the Champion, who happens to be his rival! I find most of the characters adorable and these two rivals especially are good-natured boys after all. Although the plot progresses pretty fast, Pokémon Origins (2013) is never boring. Like all of us who played the Pokémon games, there will always be more Pokémon, mysteries and never-ending surprises!Nonetheless, it would be a huge lie if I mention that there are no flaws in Pokémon Origins (2013). As I have mentioned in one of my previous movie review before; let it be a common knowledge that there is no one film that is perfect and that all of the people in the world would love it. What is perfect to me might not be perfect to you but for this one, you can trust me that it is extremely different than all of existing Pokémon films and TV anime series out there and it might just be your new favorite anime!Of course, I won't deny that there could be some flaws such as too little screen time for each gym leaders, all 151 original Pokémon does not appear on screen and that there are certainly plenty of other towns from Kanto which it obviously does not cover but it is about 90 minutes only after all. However, Pokémon Origins (2013) truly does not disappoint because the plot is entertaining and every moment in this animated special is epic!One note on the directors of Pokémon Origins (2013), I believe each of the directors from the different animation studio have performed well and collaborated perfectly. I did not know that it was a co- production until I read about it as everything is well thought out and the continuity is seamless! The evident is this animated special; it is not difficult to tell that their creativity and efforts have paid off! Kudos to all four of you, if you are reading this by any chance!Ending this post, Pokémon Origins (2013) is an admirable work. It is a true video games to film kind of movie and it is so awesome and epic that we certainly needed more of these! Please create... for every generation... Arigatougozaimasu!

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arorashadow_2003

Pokemon Origins is getting a lot of praise mostly because of the comparison to the ongoing anime, Pokemon. Unlike the ongoing series which follows the adventures of Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and his Pikachu, Pokemon Origins is a direct adaptation of the original Pokemon games, Red, Green and Blue and follows the adventures of Red from Pallet Town and his rival, Blue.What this mini-series show case has going for it is a great cast, great animation by an assortment of great animators including OLM, the company that's long been apart of the Pokemon anime franchise, and it's direct telling of the games as opposed to the loose inspiration seen in the running series. If you played the originals or the remakes you can get an appreciation for this somewhat but a lot of the appreciation is riding high on nostalgic value and how night and day it compares to the ongoing TV series.No doubt Origins is or would be superior however it's unfortunately severely limited by it's short length. With only four episodes at less than half-an-hour a piece it crams a 20 hour game into roughly 100 minutes which doesn't leave much of the game to be seen and mostly adds to being a glorified recap than an actual telling. A series like this would have benefited from a slightly longer running set of video projects or better yet a full half season for television. Gyms are skipped over and most of the story is quickly told through quick narration bytes with only some small key events left in for good measure. We get to see the haunting Lavender Town in full glory and are treated to a full proper battle with Boss Rocket Giovanni. The sudden introduction of Mega Charizard X Evolution from Pokemon X cheapens the old time feel of the original games and seems tacked on so unnecessarily to promote the latest game.Pokemon Origins will give you a quick nostalgia binge if you played the original games but will leave you wanting more even though we likely never will. For those who didn't play Generation I or the subsequent remakes and for strangers of Pokemon they'll likely not be engaged by the choppy plot line.

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Emphinix

The very first time I played Pokemon I was about 13 years old and the first game I played was Pokemon Blue, then I played the Special Pikachu Edition which was a tribute to the anime, but had little in common with it. The character of Red is very similar to his gaming counterpart, but he is not as stupid and idiotic as Ash is in the anime. Blue is similar in the games as well, but he doesn't have that jackass personality as Gary Oak in the anime, and has no cheerleaders cheering him on.At first I thought that it was gonna be as boring as the anime. Truth is, the anime WAS boring after Johto Journeys and Ash has barely won any tournaments except for one in the anime. An interesting thing in this mini-series is that the Pokemon don't talk unlike in the anime when Pikachu says "Pika pika".The Team Rocket of this short is faithful to the team in the games and have absolutely nothing to do with the two bumbling morons from the anime. Professor Oak sounds a lot better than in the anime as well. Most battles were awesome especially the one at the end which I will NOT mention. That is for all of you to see, not for me to tell.This is EXACTLY what the anime should have been like, because unlike Ash, Red was more determined and smarter. For old Pokemon fans, this is the BEST thing to see.

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