Pokemon: Pikachu no Natsuyasumi

*Note: Spoilers will be riddled about. This review is coming from the perspective of a fan of the Pokémon games. I haven't watched much of the anime.*

*Also note: This is a review of the English version that came with Pokémon: The First Movie*

Are you ready for a short overloaded with cute Pokémon? Are you ready to see an episode where Pikachu becomes a babysitter? Are you ready to witness Ash's (probably lv 100) Charizard get helplessly stuck in a tube only to be saved by a Cubone??

Presenting: Pikachu's not-so-relaxing Vacation!!

Prepare yourself as we watch Pikachu and his friends spend a day away from their trainers ... only to find themselves using Surf to compete in swimming contests, Swagger to protect Togepi, and Strength to pull out a helpless Charizard. So basically, they set up the framework for the Pokémon Contests that happen in Gen III.

Watch Bulbasaur use Razor Leaf to pick an apple from a tree, Vine Whip to sing the first ever Bulbaby, and Confuse Ray to defeat a Snubbull while his counterpart Squirtle resorts to Scary Face instead of Attract to comfort Togepi and even loses a swimming competition to a bloody Marill. Thus, Bulbasaur proves that it deserves to be the first Pokémon in the Pokédex. After, witness Pikachu replay Jesus walking on water and then one-shotting a Weezing, Meowth, and Arbok with Extremespeed. Can Pikachu get anymore OP??

Finally, scream at an Onix that is incapable of pulling out a helpless Charizard that is less than half its own weight. Seriously, all that Onix needs to do is lift its entire body up and Charizard will be free. But it's probably thinking, "Bitch, please."

In all seriousness, I admit, despite all those Pokémon inconsistencies, this was one fun short. It successfully and humourously captures all the great things about Gen I Pokémon. Having not watched it for 10 years or so, I had a huge grin across my face all the way until the end. Gen I Pokémon gave me such a fantastic childhood. While not a must-watch (and overshadowed by the epic Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back), if you haven't seen it in a while, or anything Gen I for that matter, go back and take a look! It's just good ol' fun.

Who is your favourite Gen I Pokémon? Let me know!!

This brings me back. In fact, this might be the first piece of anime I ever had the pleasure of watching, and what started my life long obsession of everything Pokemon, which has now spanned over 20 years and into adulthood.

We have to be a little lenient on the judging right? I mean, it's fricking Pokemon. What sort of mad man would critique something this innocent in the same manner as he does with other more "mature" anime so to speak?

If you're not rating this solely based on the nostalgia effect, then there's the door! ;)

Of course the rules and physics in ... this little Pokemon short rarely make sense, even in the world of Pokemon, but you just can't help but smile throughout. The picture quality is fantastic for it's time and the music is as catchy as I remember it being. There's something about the first three Pokemon movies and their little respective Pikachu shorts episodes, it's very atmospheric and I don't think they managed to capture it again. Though maybe that's just my childhood speaking :)