Pokemon Anime Continuity Discussion Thread

[Silktree]

He could just keep those balls in his room. Professor Oak is supposed to take care of Ash's Pokemon in his ranch rather than having a montage of balls on his shelf.

 

[Sakuraa]

That is not even May's bandana. Just saying.

Yes it is. She wore it in Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. Just saying.

Spoiler

 

[Silktree]

That's certainly obscure. It goes to show that some animator cares about little tidbits from the past more than the rest of the staff care about the past in general.

 

[FANG-TAN]

The movie being a different continuity entirely, they could easily just have Bari-chan having been the family housekeeper since the beginning. Explaining how SM Hanako has it in SM if SM is in continuity with the movie.

The film's by no means confined by what we saw in the anime canon. Going by that logic, we should have seen OS Satoshi receive the Rainbow Wing in episode 1 for doing the exact same things M20 Satoshi does. Or M20 Satoshi meeting Kasumi by fleeing the Onisuzume the same way OS Satoshi did in episode 1.

It's not like the three routes in Fate/stay night or something, where deviations rely solely on alternate decisions made by the main protagonist in the same world, thus making certain story details, character abilities and background stories revealed in all routes canon and relevant because that's what remains constant in otherwise divergent timelines. The differences that we're aware of so far in I Choose You! seems to be arbitrary at best rather than being a legit divergent timeline from the main series anime, making it entirely different than just some world line theory. It's an entirely new world and canon built from the ground up that only has a passing resemblance to the first episode. Much like Batman Begins compared to any other origin story for the Batman franchise.

 

[Silktree]

Both Mimey and Wobbuffet being in the new continuity from the beginning seems likely.

 

[MarshiyanMisutaa]

Yes it is. She wore it in Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. Just saying.

Well, technically it's not her bandana because it's not a bandana at all, it's a ribbon.

Spoiler

It's also not a great proof for canonicity, because there is no possible in-canon explanation for a wig based on Haruka's hair and ribbon she barely wear in a movie to exist.

 

[Silktree]

I have a feeling that we won't get a conclusive answer for years, if ever. The staff are probably afraid to alienate old viewers (at least from the XY era), but at the same time they also want kids to think of the movie and SM as being directly connected.

As I see it, Rica's statement about Ash only traveling in Kanto before Alola is enough. She wouldn't make up something like that unless she had a very good reason to believe it.

 

[Mikuri]

As I see it, Rica's statement about Ash only traveling in Kanto before Alola is enough. She wouldn't make up something like that unless she had a very good reason to believe it.

Does that mean all of Ash's former traveling companions are doomed to never see the light of day again and Serena's undying love for Ash just died?

 

[Silktree]

Does that mean all of Ash's former traveling companions are doomed to never see the light of day again

Yes. Wake up and smell the roses: It's the 20th anniversary and none of them are getting anything.

and Serena's undying love for Ash just died?

At best, she will get a special about her Hoenn quest (in XY animation) where she might mention Ash.

She doesn't fit SM at all. And there is really nothing more they can do with the shipping angle; they ended it in such a way that Serena fans can assume (if they so choose) that she will eventually be with Ash way down the line.

 

[Mikuri]

Yes. Wake up and smell the roses: It's the 20th anniversary and none of them are getting anything.

I was thinking they would get to appear in the ending theme as a sort of homage. Like how the Diamond & Pearl series' recurring characters appeared in Zoroark: Master of Illusions, but after the fiasco that was SM020 I'm not sure.

It's nice to see that the fans who wanted the Best Wishes series to be retconned out of existence have finally had their wishes granted.

At best, she will get a special about her Hoenn quest (in XY animation) where she might mention Ash.

She doesn't fit SM at all. And there is really nothing more they can do with the shipping angle; they ended it in such a way that Serena fans can assume (if they so choose) that she will eventually be with Ash way down the line.

I was joking. I couldn't care less about Serena's whereabouts and if she will ever appear again. The only good thing that could come out of a special episode focusing on her is seeing a Pokémon Contest again. Or maybe show her obsessing with Lisia and thinking "who the hell is Aria, this girl right here is the real deal."

It's not like Cilan's most recent appearance was entertaining to watch. These special episodes are kinda boring. I like Dawn's though.

 

[Silktree]

I was thinking they would get to appear in the ending theme as a sort of homage. Like how the Diamond & Pearl series' recurring characters appeared in Zoroark: Master of Illusions, but after the fiasco that was SM020 I'm not sure.

The third Best Wishes movie did the same thing. The critical difference is that those movies directly tied into the respective series, while the upcoming movie is all about being removed from the old continuity.

Beyond short clip shows to promote the Pikachu distributions, I doubt we're getting any nods to the past.

It's nice to see that the fans who wanted the Best Wishes series to be retconned out of existence have finally had their wishes granted.

I have a feeling that this is not what they had in mind, lol.

 

[SinnohEevee]

I was thinking they would get to appear in the ending theme as a sort of homage. Like how the Diamond & Pearl series' recurring characters appeared in Zoroark: Master of Illusions, but after the fiasco that was SM020 I'm not sure.

It's nice to see that the fans who wanted the Best Wishes series to be retconned out of existence have finally had their wishes granted.



I was joking. I couldn't care less about Serena's whereabouts and if she will ever appear again. The only good thing that could come out of a special episode focusing on her is seeing a Pokémon Contest again. Or maybe show her obsessing with Lisia and thinking "who the hell is Aria, this girl right here is the real deal."

It's not like Cilan's most recent appearance was entertaining to watch. These special episodes are kinda boring. I like Dawn's though.

We only wanted BW to get retconned, not the other series.
OK, they don't need to erase BW, they can just retcon some parts of it that fans really hated.

 

[PkmnTrainerV]

Well, they retconned AG, DP, BW and XY together...

Now I can see fans arguing why BW is not canon but XY and DP are.

 

[MarshiyanMisutaa]

It's nice to see that the fans who wanted the Best Wishes series to be retconned out of existence have finally had their wishes granted.

In a Literal Genie way.

Does that mean all of Ash's former traveling companions are doomed to never see the light of day again and Serena's undying love for Ash just died?

No, it does mean that they're living in another universe with original Satoshi.

 

[Tepig in a BBQ]

Best Wishes!, XY and Sun & Moon each had some kind of small bits that would showcase that it is, indeed, a continuetation of the show.

- In Best Wishes!, we saw in the first episode that Satoshi had his gifts and prizes from the Sinnoh region. Best Wishes! also had more flashbacks to previous series (Lizardon, Caterpie, etc.)
- I don't think the 20th movie was in the works during the time that Satoshi mentioned a Pochama, which was an obvious reference to Hikari's Pochama. Also Satoshi wanted to recall one of his Pokemon back from Okido-Hakase's lab before he approached Numelgon.
- In Sun & Moon, there was a small flashback where you saw Satoshi giving Okido-Hakase 5 Monster Balls. Two of them empty and presumably to keep them save just incase Numelgon and Gekkouga come back. Satoshi also mentioned his Kentauros.

However, that doesn't mean I don't think the movie is a retcon. I think it's an AU aimed at new viewers. What they potentially could do is if Sun & Moon decide to bring flashbacks back, to give us both flashbacks from OS and the AU so viewers will think both could be canon. Ofcourse this would leave a whole lot of plotholes.

I guess we'll have to wait and see.

 

[Silktree]

What they potentially could do is if Sun & Moon decide to bring flashbacks back, to give us both flashbacks from OS and the AU so viewers will think both could be canon. Ofcourse this would leave a whole lot of plotholes.

That would be hilarious.

 

[Mikuri]

The third Best Wishes movie did the same thing. The critical difference is that those movies directly tied into the respective series, while the upcoming movie is all about being removed from the old continuity.

Oh, the one starred by Mega Mewtwo. It was so lame I closed the player the minute the movie finished and thus I missed the ending.

The new movie might be an alternate universe where Ash never met Dawn and the others but they still exist right? They don't need to show Ash interacting with past main cast members, they could just show them doing their own thing. Short scenes like Tracey paying a visit to Misty, May returning home to see Max, things like that.

I know it probably won't happen, but it's not impossible.

Wait till Ash says "I once traveled with a short-tempered Piplup" and everything is proved to be in the same continuity.

 

[Silktree]

I guess that's possible, but...

Still hoping to see Brock and Misty, but mostly for the game implications if they end up being adults here. Ash interacting with them briefly would actually be painful to see.

 

[FANG-TAN]

Short scenes like Tracey paying a visit to Misty

Kenji would in the Orange Islands sketching Pokemon or rewritten as Orchid's assistant since the very beginning. Both instances, he would have no reason to personally know or visit Kasumi since their friendship was only ever defined by being Satoshi's old Orange Islands traveling companions anyway.

 

[Silktree]

Well, anything could happen in this continuity.