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Preview SM126: Pikachu's Exciting Expedition!

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S&M has basically been 60-70% lighthearted fluff.
So... Like every other series?

Development that happens off-screen is meaningless and unimpactful. Showing the characters training, struggling and persevering is far more effective than just saying "Yeah, they had some problems at first, but now they got better".

It's a simple case "Show, don't tell".
When it comes to Pokémon in particular, and from my personal perspective, I can't really see the training itself as an appealing aspect, at least one that can be used for more than 5 minutes before it becomes repetitive. Only exception is when you have some form of special/unorthodox training, which then again, loses its charm if it overstays its welcome. Regular training in Pokémon has always been mock battles and practicing particular moves against some equivalent of a dummy. There's a point at which it feels just too mundane to waste actual screentime showing the training itself.
 
When it comes to Pokémon in particular, and from my personal perspective, I can't really see the training itself as an appealing aspect, at least one that can be used for more than 5 minutes before it becomes repetitive. Only exception is when you have some form of special/unorthodox training, which then again, loses its charm if it overstays its welcome. Regular training in Pokémon has always been mock battles and practicing particular moves against some equivalent of a dummy. There's a point at which it feels just too mundane to waste actual screentime showing the training itself.

I strongly disagree. While you may find training to be boring because you find it repetitive, that doesn't change the fact that it's important and it should be shown, especially in the case of the SM cast. Outside of Kiawe, all of the other classmates have done diddly-squat in terms of training and have shown little to no interest in competitive battling, yet we are supposed to believe that not only are they strong enough battlers that they could fight in a Pokémon League (even one that's shaping up to be a poor, overglorified Pokémon-style Fortnite tournament), but that they could possibly even be considered a threat to other participants (to the point that some are even speculating that all of the classmates will make it to Top 16 somehow). Showing them train would at least give some credence to the idea that they might be better than one would expect, while also allowing the audience to assess for themselves whether that's believable or not. Not to mention that training usually shows the growth of a Pokémon and its trainer (basically, it's part of their character development) and to have that relegated to off-screen material is just bad writing. Character development that happens off-screen is the same as having no development at all.

And there's also the fact that showing the characters train would make the audience more invested in their journey. Heck, you can see that with Sophocles, who recently had some episodes showing him struggling to prepare for the League and overcoming that struggle, which has made a couple of people root for him.
 
I strongly disagree. While you may find training to be boring because you find it repetitive, that doesn't change the fact that it's important and it should be shown, especially in the case of the SM cast. Outside of Kiawe, all of the other classmates have done diddly-squat in terms of training and have shown little to no interest in competitive battling, yet we are supposed to believe that not only are they strong enough battlers that they could fight in a Pokémon League (even one that's shaping up to be a poor, overglorified Pokémon-style Fortnite tournament), but that they could possibly even be considered a threat to other participants (to the point that some are even speculating that all of the classmates will make it to Top 16 somehow). Showing them train would at least give some credence to the idea that they might be better than one would expect, while also allowing the audience to assess for themselves whether that's believable or not. Not to mention that training usually shows the growth of a Pokémon and its trainer (basically, it's part of their character development) and to have that relegated to off-screen material is just bad writing. Character development that happens off-screen is the same as having no development at all.

And there's also the fact that showing the characters train would make the audience more invested in their journey. Heck, you can see that with Sophocles, who recently had some episodes showing him struggling to prepare for the League and overcoming that struggle, which has made a couple of people root for him.
Uhm... I can't deny I partially agree with what you're saying, but at the same time I don't think I'd enjoy putting so much focus on the training itself. Not saying they shouldn't show it, but it's definitely something that for most of the cast is kinda trivial in their overall character arcs. The league for (most of) them, imo, should represent the growth they've had through their experiences (especially the non-battle ones), as it would tie better with their own themes.

And we're still not sure whether all of them are going to make it to the top 16. I think it's far too early to tell.
 
So... Like every other series?
S&M doesn’t even compare to previous series. Previous series had filler but they at least felt like it was part of the journey and you could see character development. S&M has basically been full of episodes of the characters just dicking around doing nothing, remained in a static location for the majority of the series and has repeated the same variation of a filler basis multiple times and barely developed its cast instead waiting until the tail end and rushing it to the point of cutting corners.
 
I’m excited for this episode. It looks really fun and it’s good to have a “fun” episode before the league starts. These types of episodes are always my favorites given how well SM produces them. As a kid I loved Pikachu Shorts and my favorite episode of all time is “Island of the Giant Pokémon”. If this episode is anything similar it will already be ranked upon my favorites. I understand people’s disappointment with this title, especially during the final stretch of the series, but for me Pokémon has always been a fun, playful, and lighthearted anime and it’s these types of episodes that give it that charm. Maybe I’m overly optimistic or am easily satisfied, but SM has been one of my favorite series to date and it’s given me plenty of laughs — and I feel like this episode will give me some more.
 
Looking at Bulbapedia, we'll be seeing a nice variety of Pokemon including Barboach, Chinchou, Slowpoke, Finneon, Poliwag, Poliwhirl, Dratini, Tentacruel, Wailord, Wailmer, Carvanha, Shellos, Slowbro, Goldeen, Seaking and Cloyster
 
Y'all better say goodbye to most of those older Water types from the new episode pictures, because this is probably the last time we'll see most of them if the anime takes notes from the recent Pokemon exclusion decision in the Shield & Sword games and decides to exile a bunch of Pokemon in the next saga(s).
 
Y'all better say goodbye to most of those older Water types from the new episode pictures, because this is probably the last time we'll see most of them if the anime takes notes from the recent Pokemon exclusion decision in the Shield & Sword games and decides to exile a bunch of Pokemon in the next saga(s).

BW, XY and SM all focused on Pokemon from the regional Dex on their first year, I think the same will happen with its series. Also, those Pokémon will still be alive in the TCG, Go and other spin-offs so they have an excuse to appear. This will not impact the anime at all.
 
This thing can dig, run, fly and, according to SM, swim too.

I feel sorry for whatever species it preys upon.
I mean, it can learn Surf in the games.

Surprisingly enough, it cannot learn Fly even though half of its Pokédex entries talk about it flying at high speeds.
 
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