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Pre-order bonus revealed for Pocket Monsters The Movie "Everyone's Story"
March 16th, 2018

Dogasu @ 7:40 JST -- The bonus for pre-ordering a ticket for this year's film Pocket Monsters The Movie "Everyone's Story" has been revealed to be a special Lugia you can download to your Pocket Monsters Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, or Ultra Moon games the official site is calling "Lugia of the Wind" (風のルギア).



This Lugia has the Hidden Ability Multiscale and knows the move Hurricane, an attack it can't normally learn. The rest of this Lugia's stats are as follows:

	Lugia
	Level	100
	Ability	Multiscale
	Type	Psychic / Flying
	Techniques	Aeroblast Hurricane Defog Tailwind
	Hold Item	None
	Ball	Precious Ball
	Ribbon	Wish Ribbon
	O.T.	フウラ シティ ("Fuura City")

More details about how to obtain this Lugia and what limitations there are can be found on the Distributions page of the Everyone's Story section.

It has also been revealed that the first 300,000 fans who go see the movie in theaters this July will receive a "The Wind Goes Whoosh! Whoosh! Satoshi's Pikachu Mascot" (風ビュー！ビュー！サトシのピカチュウマスコット) charm at the door.


Pocket Monsters the Movie 2018 will be released on Friday, July 13th 2018 in Japan. An international release has not been announced at this time.


"Mirai Connection" CD Single Announced
March 13th, 2018

Dogasu @ 22:55 JST -- The CD single for the current opening theme of the Pocket Monsters Sun & Moon TV series, Mirai Connection (未来コネクション), or "Future Connection," has had its release date announced as May 2nd, 2018.


According to ЯeaL's official website, the CD single will come in two versions, a special limited edition that comes with a DVD with a creditless version of the current opening animation and a regular edition with just the CD by itself.

Limited Edition Version	Regular Version
Release Date:  May 2nd, 2018	Release Date:  May 2nd, 2018
Catalog Number:  SECL-2287~2288	Catalog Number:  SECL-2286
Price:  1,389 yen (plus tax)	Price:  1,204 yen (plus tax)
Extras:  1) A special Pocket Monsters Sun & Moon  cover, and 2) a DVD containing a creditless version of the current opening animation.	Extras:  None
Track Listing: 1)  Mirai Connection 2)  Hikari ni Narenai 3)  Risky Game 4)  Mirai Connection ~ TV Size ~ 5)  Mirai Connection ~ TV Size ~ Instrumental	Track Listing: 1)  Mirai Connection 2)  Hikari ni Narenai 3)  Risky Game 4)  Mirai Connection ~Instrumental~
Buy it on Amazon Japan | CD Japan | YESASIA	Buy it on Amazon Japan | CD Japan | YESASIA

As you can see, Sony Music Entertainment's being a little shady here; if you want the DVD you need to get the limited edition but if you want an instrumental of the full version of the song then you have to double dip and get the regular release as well.

The CD listings for this release contains the following background comments about the song:

シングル「カゲロウ」が配信チャートのTOP3を独占、関連動画の再 生回数が600万回を突破、3,000人キャパの大阪城野外音楽堂でのワンマンライブを大成功させるなど、ブレイクの兆しを見せている新人ガールズロック バンド“ЯeaL(リアル)”の、テレビアニメ『ポケットモンスター』の最新シリーズ『ポケットモンスター サン&ムーン』の新オープニングテーマを収録したシングル。もともと『ポケモン』の大ファンであったЯeaLのメンバーが、子供たちに向けて書き 下ろした新曲で、作詞・作曲を担当するRyoko(Vo&Gt)は、“暗闇から光に向かって飛び出す気持ち、ポケモンとトレーナーの絆、夢に向 かってがむしゃらに進んでいく時の輝き、そんな初々しくて、不安でもキラキラ輝く感情を詰め込んだ楽曲になりました”とコメントするなど、渾身の1曲と なっている。 (C)RS

Their single Kagerou ("Ant-Lion") has been hogging the Top 3 of the music charts, videos related to them have gotten over 6 million views, and their live show at the 3000 seat capacity Osaka Castle Band Shell was a huge success! This new breakout girls' rock band is ЯeaL, and this single release is of the new opening theme to the newest Pocket Monsters series, Pocket Monsters Sun & Moon. ЯeaL were always big fans of Pokemon and have written this new song for children and Ryoko (Voice and Guitar), who both composed and wrote the song, comments that "This song's composition is filled with the feeling of leaping out from the darkness toward the light, of the bond between Pokemon and Trainers, of the shine of recklessly charging toward your dreams, of innocence, and of that brightly sparkling look on your face no matter how uneasy you feel."

ЯeaL is a three girl group based out of Osaka whose members are Ryoko (リョウコ), Fumiha (フミハ), and Aika (アイカ). The three most recently provided the voices of Ilima's fangirls in last week's episode.

Mirai Connection is the second opening theme to Pocket Monsters Sun & Moon and will be ЯeaL's fourth single release. The song debuted on Sun & Moon on the February 8th, 2018 episode. That same day the TV size version of the song was made available on various streaming platforms throughout Japan.

I've added the lyrics to Mirai Connection (and, just because I could, Jari Boy, Jari Girl) to the Lyrics Archive.


Controversy causes the March 2018 issue of CoroCoro Comics to be pulled from shelves
March 10th, 2018

Dogasu @ 22:18 JST -- If you follow Pocket Monsters you'll have probably at least heard of CoroCoro Comics, a manga anthology / kids' magazine that comes out on the 15th of every month.


The magazine covers popular kids' franchises such as Yokai Watch, Inazuma Eleven, Duel Masters, and Nintendo properties such as Super Mario and Splatoon. And, of course, Pocket Monsters. CoroCoro Comics usually dedicates anywhere from ten to fifteen pages of its nearly 800 pagecount to delivering the latest Pocket Monsters news, be it video game, movie, TCG, or toy related. Manga related to the franchise, such as Kousaku Anakubo's long-running Pocket Monsters manga and the yearly movie adaptations, are also featured from time to time. You've probably seen photos posted online from the most recent issue, which went on sale February 15th, featuring the then-new stories about the shiny Bebenom distribution in the Japan and the revelation that Lugia will be in this year's movie.

A small sample of the Pocket Monsters content in the March 2018 issue.

That same issue is currently involved in a scandal thanks to this month's chapter of Yarisugi!!! Itazura-kun (やりすぎ!!! イタズラくん), or "That's Too Much!!! Lil' Prankster." The manga is about a little fox boy named Itazura-kun who, as his rival Koikeda puts it, is "someone who goofs off 24 hours a day 365 days a year." In this month's chapter, Itazura-kun and Koikeda-kun are taking a history test in which they're shown a photograph of a historical figure and are asked to correctly fill in that person's name. The gag of this particular chapter is that while Koikeda-kun is a good student who answers each question seriously, Itazura-kun just scribbles all over the photos and writes in jokey answers. He draws over a picture of Albert Einstein to make him look like a dog, Napoleon Bonaparte to look like he's playing Duel Masters, and Yoshimitsu Ashikaga to look like the Kewpie Mayonnaise mascot.

Yarisugi!!! Itazura-kun

The part that got the manga in hot water is when it gets to a question asking Itazura-kun to identify the Mongolian emperor Genghis Khan. The hint given on the test in the magna is Chi _________ n and what you're supposed to do is write in Chingisu Haan (チンギス・ハーン), which is how you write Genghis Khan's name in Japanese. Itazura-kun, however, fills in the blanks to identify the emperor as chin-chin, or "Penis" and then doodles a little dick on the Mongolian emperor's forehead.

Mongolians living in Japan, after seeing a figure they hold with such great respect being defiled this way, were pissed. A protest was held outside the offices of the magazine's publisher, Shogakukan, with people holding up signs demanding that Shogakukan apologize. Mongolian sumo wrestler Asashoryu Akinori tweeted  out "What the hell are you doing!! You assholes are making fun of our ancestor!! Don't you have any dignity!! This is unforgivable!! Apologize!! Apologize!! What the hell kind of shit company made this!?" The Mongolian Embassy in Japan has also weighed in, denouncing the image as vulgar and inappropriate for children.

Left:  Photograph of the protest, courtesy of Asahi Shinbun Right:  The tweet by Asashoryu Akinori. It has since been deleted.

Shogakukan has since issued an apology to the Mongolian Embassy:

On behalf of SHOGAKUKAN Inc., we extend our sincerest apologies for the use of inappropriate expressions concerning Genghis Khan in the comic "Yarisugi!!! Itazura-kun" in the March issue of our monthly magazine "CoroCoro Comic." We recognize that the expressions regarding the founder of the Mongol Empire were disrespectful and offensive to the people of Mongolia and all who love and respect the Great Khan. We are grateful that this issue was brought to our attention and humbly ask your forgiveness. In the future, we will further our knowledge of the history and culture of your country and make our utmost efforts to prevent the recurrence of such improper expressions. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

CoroCoro Comic's official website has also posted some apologies.

Apology over content in the comic "Yarisugi!!! Itazura-kun" featured in the March 2018 issue of CoroCoro Comics We extend our sincerest apologies to the Mongolian people for the use of inappropriate content related to the Mongolian hero Genghis Khan in the comic "Yarisugi!!! Itazura-kun" featured in the March issue of our monthly magazine "CoroCoro Comic" that went on sale February 15th. In the future, we will further our knowledge of the history and culture of your country and make our utmost efforts to prevent the recurrence of such improper expressions. In addition, we would like to report that on February 23rd we sent the above apology directly to Mr. Dambadarjaa Batjargal, Chargé d'affaires ad interim of the Embassy of Mongolia in Japan. To our readers The March CoroCoro Comics "Itazura Doodle Contest" has been canceled Because of the aforementioned incident, the "Itazura Doodle Contest" that was in the March issue of CoroCoro Comics has been canceled. We apologize again for the trouble and will be refunding the cost of postage to those of who who have already sent in entries. Shogakukan From the author I apologize unreservedly for the grossly inappropriate content that I put in my comic in regards to the Mongolian hero Genghis Khan. I apologize to all those who respect Genghis Khan. I am deeply reflecting on my lack of understanding of Mongolian history and culture will endeavor to gain a deeper understanding and respect for countries' histories and cultures. Asumi Yoshino

The contest they're referring to in that second comment up there is one where kids are encouraged to doodle on the faces of historical figures, just like Itazura-kun does, and then mail them in to Shogakukan. The winning entries were originally scheduled to be published in the May 2018 issue of CoroCoro Comics. One of the figures kids are encouraged to draw on is Genghis Khan, and an example they give is drawing him like a baby with word balloons that include "goo goo ga ga" and "I wanna drink from your breasts."


On Tuesday, Shogakukan announced that they have pulled the issue off shelves and will be offering refunds to customers' who request them.

I've noticed over the years that CoroCoro Comics isn't getting as many Pocket Monsters-related exclusives as it used to and it's making me wonder if The Pokémon Company is starting to reconsider its usefulness as a promotional tool. It only comes out once a month and everything it puts out just gets posted online anyway so what's the point of continuing to rely on it? And now the magazine's gone and gotten itself take off stores altogether! I don't think we'll ever see a day where CoroCoro Comics is no longer used to promote Pocket Monsters (I'm sure there are just too many old relationships around that nobody's looking to sever) but I do think we'll see the focus continue to be shifted toward Nintendo Directs and other online venues moving ahead.

The April issue of CoroCoro Comics is scheduled to go on sale on March 15th, 2018.


Full title, story outline, character bios, new trailer etc. released for Pocket Monsters The Movie 2018
March 8th, 2018

Dogasu @ 23:05 JST -- This is all old news by now but I wanted to cover it anyway.


On February 27th, 2017, it was revealed that full title of the movie is going to be Pocket Monsters The Movie "Everyone's Story" (劇場版ポケットモンスターみんなの物語). The title could also be translated as "Everyone's Stories" since there is some ambiguity in regards to singular vs. plural in Japanese but for now I'll just translate it as Everyone's Story.


Along with the title came a brand new trailer that debuted on the kids' show Oha! Suta. The trailer shows off new characters, gives a (very) general outline of what's going to happen, and teases just enough without really giving anything away.

Trailer 1a

The trailer's in Japanese, obviously, so here's an English translation:

Narration / on-screen text:  "This is a town where people live together with the wind." On-screen text:  Original Story - Satoshi Tajiri Narration / on-screen text:  "Once a year we make a promise with Lugia to receive the wind." On-screen text:  Toho Co., Ltd. On-screen text:  Director - Tetsuo Yajima, Animation Supervisor - Kunihiko Yuyama Lisa:  "Whoa~!  Oh, come on~ I don't even know anything about pokemon!" On-screen text:  Lisa, a Pokemon novice On-screen text:  Screenplay - Eiji Umehara & Aya Takaha, Character Design - Shizue Kaneko Kagachi:  "Come one, come all! You know, it seems like there are some su~per rare pokemon around here!" Usokki:  "Uso~!" (= "you're lying!") Kagachi:  "I ain't lyin'!" On-screen text:  Kagachi, a man full of hot air On-screen text:  Animation Production - OLM, WIT STUDIO Trito:  "(sighs) If only I could talk like that in front of other people..." On-screen text:  Trito, a timid researcher Hisui:  "Stop following me! I don't want anything to do with pokemon!" On-screen text:  Hisui, an odd old woman Largo:  "It'll be OK! I'll protect you no matter what!" On-screen text:  Largo, a mysterious girl (Lugia flies past, causing everyone to stop what they're doing and look up. Lugia's theme plays) Pikachu:  "Pikachu!" Satoshi:  "Now that we're all here there's nothing we can't do!" Narrator:  "Pocket Monsters the Movie "Everyone's Story."

No official announcement has been made about who will be voicing the new movie characters yet (that probably won't come until later this month) but that hasn't stopped Japanese fans from speculating about who they all sound like. Lisa sounds like Mao, Kagachi sounds like Dr. Kukui, and Largo sounds like Lillie from Pocket Monsters Sun & Moon; Trito sounds a lot like Dent from Pocket Monsters Best Wishes!, etc. It is worth pointing out that the movie trailers have used stand-ins for characters who haven't been cast yet (I think back to Balza from that first Pokémon the movie XY "The Archdjinn of the Rings, Hoopa" trailer) so it's not unlikely that the voices we hear in this trailer will change when the movie actually comes out.

After the above trailer aired, the official website updated with its first story synopsis.

After "I Choose You!" comes the explosive birth of "Everyone's Story" this summer! In Fuura City, a town where people live together with the wind, there's a "Wind Festival" that takes place only once a year. It has been passed down throughout the ages that on the final day of this festival, the legendary pokemon Lugia appears and bears the blessing of the wind. And so, with this in mind, the people in town participate in this festival. Lisa, a female high school student and pokemon novice. Kagachi, a man filled with hot air who can't stop telling lies. Trito, a timid researcher who doesn't have faith in himself. Hisui, a strange old woman who loathes pokemon. Largo, a mysterious young girl lingering about in the forest all by herself. Satoshi and Pikachu will meet them and get everyone's story moving.

I think it's important to stress that the official site is not outright saying that Everyone's Story is a direct sequel to I Choose You! It's not saying that it isn't, either. All it's saying is that one movie comes after the other; how you interpret that is entirely up to you.

Character bios have also been added to the movie's official website but they're pretty much verbatim from what's written in the plot synopsis so I won't bother to repost them here. Still, you can click on an icon below to read what little's been revealed about each character.


The final thing revealed in last week's information dump is a better look at the crew of the film. The screenplay this time around is being provided by two people, Eiji Umehara (梅原映司) and Aya Takaha (高羽彩). Neither one of them has ever worked on Pocket Monsters before; Mr. Umehara's worked on shows like Appleseed XIII and Lagrange - The Flower of Rin-ne while Ms. Takaha has provided scripts for Psyco-Pass and The Ancient Magus' Bride. Other than that there's the confirmation that Shinji Miyazaki and Mima Masafumi are returning to provide the music / sound editing, respectively, so that's nice to have. The rest of the staff list are producer credits (a lot of which are basically unchanged from I Choose You!) and some new Chief Animation Directors.

And that's pretty much it for this time's information dump! If this movie's promotion cycle is anything like the last one that means we'll probably get the voice actor and theme song information in early April or so.

Pocket Monsters the Movie 2018 will be released on Friday, July 13th 2018 in Japan. An international release has not been announced at this time.