Pokemon Advanced Generation

While Advanced Gen starts out looking like a carbon copy of Ash's journey's in Kanto and Johto, make no mistake - this is the pinnacle of the Pokemon franchise.

Half of the main cast remains, as Ash tackles the Hoenn league with a new team (and Pikachu), and his old pal Brock returns to cook the munchies and explain the bs of Ash's pokemon battles to us watching. But they are joined by two compadres who bring opposite value to series: May and Max. There isn't much good to say about Max. He's too young to have any pokemon, so he just causes problems for the ... crew and whines a bunch about how his older sister isn't a pokemon master immediately. That sister, May, however, is the brightest spot in the entire Pokemon franchise. While she has her struggles at first, her talent as a trainer and coordinator is undeniable. May brings renewed life to the series with her energy and hunger for coordinating. Despite being the trainer with the least experience in the series, she quickly becomes a focal point in helping the team overcome Team Rocket and any other obstacles that the crew faces in each episode. While she (unfortunately) takes a secondary role in some episodes (most notably the gym battles), May is frequently the star of the entire series. Her charm and wit provide the series with moment-to-moment energy to help flesh out each episode, while her food craving and frequent nervousness provide comedic relief as necessary during more intense moments. May grows to love her travel mates and creates multiple rivals in her coordinator contests, giving the show a much needed "oomph" and pizzaz that the series was previously lacking. It is impossible to understate May's importance to the Advanced Generation. Whether it is bravely battling Team Aqua to rescue her friends, or attempting to conquer a mighty pokemon contest, every single highlight in the series exists because of her incredible actions. She is also at the center of the most heartwarming moments of the series, as she shows her compassion for her brother Max (despite him not deserving it!).

The story is the one area of Pokemon Advanced Gen where the series stands on shaky ground. May joins Ash's adventure with the intention of winning pokemon contests to compete in the Hoenn Grand Festival. Episodes that focus on May and these contests are easily the best chunk of the series. Seeing her training with her Pokemon is a joy given how much she loves all of her Pokemon, and watching the training pay off in the contests is beyond tense as you find yourself rooting for May's victory. Unfortunately, the writers frequently push May aside to focus on Ash's attempt to conquer the Hoenn League. Ash lacks the interesting and fun that May possesses, and he's already had multiple shots at taking league titles, so why the writers decided to focus so heavily on Ash again is a conundrum I may never understand. That doesn't stop May from shining through, however. Her spirit is too strong and she is too wonderful a character for the writers to ignore completely. While she might not get her due every episode, May is still in the limelight frequently.

The art style is largely the same as the series before it. It ain't the prettiest thing on a whole, but they nail the shots when it counts. Newcomer Max's outfit puts the (pig) sty in style. Both Ash and Brock get a new snazzy get up, but May again takes the cake when it comes to character design. Easily the best in the Pokemon series and certainly a contender for the best in all of anime, May's standard outfit is beyond genius. The top is sporty red short-sleeved shirt with a navy accent, and a popped collar gives it the true flare that only she could make work. A white skirt and biker shorts make up the bottom half, with color-coordinated shoes, pouch, and gloves to give this ten year old the look of a pro. Her hair and bandana push her look into the "legendary" status, as no one else in anime - NO ONE - can look half as good wearing a bandana while combing their hair to resemble motorcycle handlebars. It may sound absurd, but it works so incredibly well that you'll be wishing for fewer pokemon battles and more shots of May doing anything.

The sound design also largely stays standard in Pokemon with two notable exceptions. Max's voice actor tries his heart out, but Max is such a one-note blob that he can't save Max despite his efforts. May (voiced by Kathleen McInerney) is on the opposite side of the spectrum, and makes sure May comes across as cool as she looks. Kathleen takes the road less traveled when voicing May, giving it her all for every single sound and helping May look like a star. Whether it is a scream of terror or a simple hum, Kathleen clearly worked hard to give May the performance she has earned.

Despite the story focusing too much on the Pokemon League over the Grand Festival, Pokemon Advanced is still far and away the best portion of the Pokemon series and among the best anime ever. Pokemon struck gold with May as she shines even when the story attempts to push her aside. May single-handily pulls the franchise to amazing new heights not just with her solid battling skills and incredible coordinating abilities, but with her bubbly personality, intense passion, and her beautiful smile. May is so unbelievably well written that Pokemon Advanced Generation is an absolute must watch for all anime fans. It will be a long, long time before anime sees someone half as MAYgnificant as her, so be sure to give this portion of the Pokemon franchise a watch.

Pros:
- 95% of this anime is really interesting,
- character development is enjoyable,
- this generation we got 2 more characters,
- we got 2 new evil teams,
- the game story adaptation is acceptable
- the best part of this generation are Battle Frontier fights,
- introduction of pokemon contests,

Cons:
... - The remaining 5% Ash doesn't win Hoen League,
- Some battles are ridiculous,
- Team Rocket appearance can get more annoying,
- The story development is being held up by corporations policy,
- some fans dislike Max character in this generation,

The story takes now in both regions Hoen and Kanto, however best part in my opinin was Battle Frontier arc. The cast shifts to permanent 7 characters in this generation.

Pokemon Advanced Generation is the second series of the Pokemon anime, including episodes 277 to 468 and featuring the Third Generation Pokemon. Objectively, this sequel is better than the first series. Many of the issues I criticized in the first series have been improved or even resolved. For example, I previously mentioned that the episodes had no connection to each other, giving us an unpleasant generic feeling, which has slightly improved. There are more links between the episodes, giving us more of a sense of continuity rather than watching random episodes.

This second series is marked by the departure of Misty (Kasumi), who is replaced by ... May (Haruka) and her younger brother Max (Masato). Like many, I was quite nervous about Misty disappearing from the story’s center. After so many episodes with her, you feel attached to the character. Additionally, there was a hint of romance between Ash and Misty that disappeared with Misty's departure, which I found quite odd. However, introducing May turned out to be an incredible idea and, for me, the best decision of Pokemon Advanced Gen. They also introduced Pokemon Coordinators; now, instead of only following Ash in his Pokemon battles, we also follow May in her Pokemon Coordinator contests, which combine battles and artistic performances!

It’s great because it gives us more variety in the content, and we have less of a feeling that all the episodes are alike (though it is still present). As for Max, I feel like he never really found his place in the series. He adds a few jokes, but even if he wasn’t there, it would have been the same.

One major disappointment was that there was almost NO visual improvement between the first and the second series. For reference, the first series began in 1997, while this second series ended in 2006. Nearly 10 years separate the first episode of Pokemon and the last of Pokemon Advanced, so how can there be so little improvement? They clearly have the means, as the movies remind us (I’ll also note the correct chronological order to watch the movies during this second series):

Movie 6: Between episodes 36 and 37 of Pokemon Advanced Gen
Movie 7: Between episodes 86 and 87 of Pokemon Advanced Gen
Movie 8: Between episodes 134 and 135 of Pokemon Advanced Gen
Movie 9: Between episodes 182 and 183 of Pokemon Advanced Gen
Certainly, we can’t really compare the animation of a movie with that of an episode from such a long series, but still, when you watch one of the movies and then return to the series, it makes you cry blood.

In conclusion, this second series is like the first, but better. The problems remain the same: too many generic episodes give us a constant sense of déjà vu and unclear objectives. The strategic aspect of the trainers intensifies slightly, but I still struggle to find significance in the trainers during battles. In the end, if they weren't there, the Pokemon would probably fight the same way, maybe even better, acting more instinctively, right? Perhaps I have too much of an adult perspective on this point. It’s always good to remember that the Pokemon anime primarily aims to reach a broad audience, so they must appeal to younger viewers. This is, in fact, my main criticism of Pokemon. If they hadn’t targeted this audience, Pokemon might not have the same success it has today. Still, I can't help but think that by targeting this young audience, Pokemon has squandered its universe's potential. The anime limits itself too much—no complex stories or plots, no scenes that are too gory, sad, or moving. It sticks to childlike morals and life lessons, like the importance of friendship, determination, and self-reflection. Everything that allows people to experience strong emotions through a series doesn't exist and never will in Pokemon, leaving us with only one feeling: nostalgia, reminding us how much we enjoyed watching Pokemon through a child's eyes.