Pokecember: Pokemon Heroes

   Okay, I thought I would be able to do all of the Pokemon movie this month. Eh, if I were to end it, this would be an appropriate place. The end of the original series, and the final film released in theaters. So,  the first Pokecember will end with the last film of the Golden Age of Pokemon, Pokemon Heroes. Let's not beat around the bush.
    Our film begins by telling us the story of Alto Mare, a city inspired by Venice. In particular, it tells the story of how a Latios and Latias (along with several other members of their species) saved the city from an evil monster. (In the American version, the entire backstory was cut and replaced with one about an evil trainer threatening the city.) The story is being read by Team Rocket (in the American version) operatives Annie and Oakley. They are looking for the Soul Dew, a mysterious gem implied to be the soul of a dead Latios. They set out for their journey. Meanwhile, in Alto Mare,  Ash and Misty are participating in a race led by water Pokemon. However, a mysterious force influences Ash into losing the race. After the race, Ash saves a girl being pursued by Annie and Oakley. Later, they visit a museum, and learn the history of Alto Mare. Ash find  the same girl from earlier, and follows her. However, she claims she had never seen him before. However, she appears again to led Ash to a mysterious garden. It is revealed that the girl was, in fact, Latias, impersonating a human who lives in the garden. The garden is the holding place of the Soul Dew. Of course, Annie and Oakley find the garden, and kidnap Latios, as well as steal the Soul Dew. Latias escapes and comes to Ash. She tells him that the two intend to use the Soul Dew to power the defense mechanism in Alto Mare, and this defense mechanism could corrupt the Soul Dew, leading to an even bigger disaster. Can Ash and Friends stop Annie and Oakley from carrying out their plans?
   Honestly, I have little to say about this film. It is very mediocre. It isn't great, but I'd hesitate to call it bad. What I enjoyed about it was the mythology, and the design of Alto Mare. It is very vivid and detailed as a background. The Aerodactyl and Kabotops also are a nice touch. Also, Misty and Brock, or at least their Pokemon play a role in the film, which was refreshing to see. And... Well, the race at the beginning was cool. Annie and Oakley are also somewhat enjoying. Also, allowing Latios to die, and not be resurrected was a good choice (to be revisited to greater effect in a later movie...)
   Bad.  The script is not particularly interesting or daring really, in any way. The details around the defense mechanism and even the Soul Dew are vague, and I didn't really know how either worked. Especially with the giant wave at the end. What exactly did the corrupted Soul Dew do to cause that. Also, this movie kind of drags a little. There is more that happen in the movie than I provide than in the little synopsis. However, none of it is particularly relevant, so I left it out.
   Once again, not much I could say about this one. I don't hate it. However, it is not among my favorites. If you just want to watch it just for the sake of watching all the movies, or you want to see it than watch it. Otherwise, I'd say skip it. While I watch on occasion for enjoyment, it really doesn't do anything for me. Anyway, thank you for reading these reviews, and Pokecember will continue next year, with the Silver Age (or the Advanced Generation). I will post the "Top Films of 2014 in the few days, so check that out.  Happy New Year. 

Pokecember: Pokemon 4-Ever

   The Fourth one. Just, I actually do like this one. I know some people don't. I know Linkara (of Atop the Fourth Wall) didn't quite take to the film. However, I think it is decent enough. However, I think this film also signifies the ending of an era. That is, the end of Pokemania. This was one of the last film to be released to theaters in the United States, and the reception just got colder and colder. Pokemon's mainstream popularity was the downspiral. (I'd be sadden by this, but I hate the first generation passionately, so seeing it constantly would not be satisfying. I like Generation 2, so maybe I would tolerate that.) This film was one of the last vestiges of the old Pokemania. After that, it becomes the Pokemon franchise I grew up with. I think that Pokemon historians (and there will be those, a franchise like Pokemon will likely last a long time, and a history has to be documented) will see this film or the era around it as the end of the Elementary or Golden Age of Pokemon (I'll perhaps adopt the Kokatu timeline I saw a few days, or the terminology used by the Greeks. Which would work better? Please comment.) Anyway, on to the actual film.... (Can you guess a recurring joke in the review based off the title?)
        The film begins with the legendary time Pokemon Celebi being chased by a Pokemon hunter, and his Scyther and Houndoom, some time in the distant past. Celebi is almost captured if not 4 the intervention of a young traveling Pokemon trainer named Sam. Sam saves Celebi, and later, is taken by Celebi to a time unknown. In the present, the now aged Pokemon Hunter is being interrogated by a Team Rocket operative named "The Iron Masked Marauder" (subtle). Mr. Marauder wants in4mation on Celebi. The Marauder proceeds to demonstrate his "dark balls", which increase the aggressiveness of a Pokemon, and makes them indisputable loyal. Meanwhile, Ash and buddies are travelling through the Johto region. They meet with a man named Mr. White on a ferry, and on that same ferry, see the legendary Pokemon Suicune. When in a different town, Professor Oak explains the legend of Suicune to them, and mentions that he had seen one before. When they leave, he ominously ponders whether he should have told them about a series of events that is to occur. Mr. White takes them to Arborville, a city much like 4tree City in Hoenn, in that the people live in tree houses. Our intrepid heroes set out to a patch of 4est. However, they are stopped by an old woman, who warns them that people disappear in this 4est. This was the same area of 4est in which Sam disappeared. The old woman appeared in the distant past, having a brief conversation with Sam. They enter the 4est, and experience tumultuous weather. This is due to Celebi bringing Sam to this era. Celebi deposits Sam, and meanders off. Our heroes find Sam, and bring him back to the old woman's  house. The old woman recognizes him from years gone by, and she explains that Celebi brought Sam to the present. Sam, along with our heroes, go to find Celebi, who is hiding in a cave in the 4est. They coax the legendary out of the cave, and they set out to send Sam back to his own time. However, soon, they find themselves on the run from the Iron Marauder, who now seeks out Celebi. Can our heroes allow Celebi to escape his reach, and get Sam back to the present?
      First and 4emost (I'll stop that now), I will talk about the twist. Now, I said that I would put unmarked spoilers. However, I feel that this twist actually warrants a spoiler for anyone who hasn't seen it. Sam is a young Professor Oak.    This was a surprising twist, which, if you watch the movie again, actually makes a lot of sense, and actually strengthens Sam and Ash's bond.  The dub once again actually serves the movie well. They actually animated scenes specifically for the American dub. I believe this is unprecedented. The three scenes created for the dub are: Oak explaining Suicune to Ash and Friends, a comic relief scene with Team Rocket grabbing a fruit, and, at the very end, Oak reading Sammy's old notebook. Once again, this was a nice twist, and having it at the end, (rather than them haphazardly place the reveal during the credits, like in the Japanese version) enhances the effect. You honestly realize the twist, when you remember that Oak's first name is Samuel . Other than that, there are several nice scenes with Ash and Sam, some beautiful animation, some very good action at the end with the Dark Celebi, and an emotional death scene withe Celebi.
    Don't get me wrong, though. There are several problems with the film. The Marauder is not a particularly interesting villain. He's not terrible, like Lawrence III was, but he's not compelling. He's not suavely evil, or just enjoys being evil. He's just boring. I can't honestly recall any good moments from him. I remember his scenes, but they don't stand out. Suicune seems somewhat pointless, in the grand scheme of things. His real purpose seems to be just getting Sam and Ash to Celebi. Also, how was Celebi resurrected? I think that all of Celebi's past forms come and bring him to life, but I honestly don't know. Maybe Dialga gave him back life. The scene is just vague on that. Also, I think they could have dealt with Sam's whole dilemma in more detail, but they do give it time, and do note some ramifications.
     Once again, I don't hate this movie. I do enjoy it immensely. However, it isn't the best, with its flaws holding it back from true greatness. Still, it is good, and I do recommend it to Pokemon, if only for the ending. Non-fans might not enjoy it, but it does explain the world of Pokemon, so if you want to check it out, that's fine. Marry Christmas, and next review, we look at Pokemon Heroes. Also, I will be listing the Top Ten Films I watched in 2014 sometime during the New Year.

von Braun's Mission to Mars

  ( I promised myself that I wouldn't do this particular topic until I finished my extended essay, which was all about Mars. Incidentally, von Braun gets a single sentence mention in the final version, so I suppose it wouldn't have had such an effect, but I still made sure I finished it.)
         The man known as Wernher Magnus Maximilian, Freiherr von Braun has a polarizing reaction amongst people. Some see him as a visionary whose innovative rocket, the Saturn family, helped put a human on moon, an achievement that has essentially suppressed any other in human history. Others see him as a Nazi ideologue, whose V-2 rockets killed thousands of slaves making it, and whose crimes were covered up by the US to allow him to work on the rockets. I myself have a mixed opinion on him. On the one hand, he did meet higher ups in the Nazi government, and despite his claim, he probably did know about the horrid conditions at Mettelwerk (the factory where the V-2 was made). Isaac Asimov once expressed horror that he had shaken a hand that shook Adolph Hitler's hand, and I sympathize. On the other hand, could he actually have done anything about it? Remember that the Nazi government was ruthless, and von Braun's job could be held by anyone else, so he couldn't complain, or he might be killed, at best. If you were in that position, would you ever complain?  Further, I don't think he worked for the government willingly. If the communist won in Germany during the early 1930's, rather than the Nazis , he'd likely work for them to get funding for rocketry.
       If you don't know, Werhner von Braun was a German rocket scientist who created the V-2 rocket in 1942, and then, was brought to the US at the end of World War II, to work on their missile program. After the 1957 launch of Sputnik, and the failure of the Navy's attempted space program, von Braun and his fellow rocket engineers were recruited to work for NASA. There, he built the Jupiter and Saturn family of rockets, the latter of which was used in the Apollo program, However, I'm here to talk about something a little more fanciful. Between his arrival in the United States, and the 1958 founding of NASA, von Braun, and several other German expatriate scientists tried to promote the idea of Space exploration to the American populace. Their first attempt was in the magazine Collier's, in the popular column "MAN WILL CONQUER SPACE SOON." These ideas were also translated into three episodes of Disney's "Tomorrowland" in 1955-1957. This proposed an optimistic view of a future, where man has managed to have a strong Space based infrastructure. This vision of the future had influenced many future visions of Space exploration, and even a school of space advocacy has been named"von Braunist" if it supports a government funded missions available to few at first (the other two are the "O'Neill" after Princeton experimental physicist Gerard K. O'Neill, and the "Sagan" after science popularizer Carl Sagan.). One of many concepts for the exploration of Space was a manned Mars mission. von Braun first detailed his plans in a 1948 science fiction novel (later published as Project Mars: a Technical Tale. When that was rejected, he instead posted a more straight-forward speculation in Das Marsprojkect (The Mars Project) in 1953. Later, he worked with science writer Wily Ley and illustrator Chesley Bonestall to write an even more refined version in 1956, under the name The Exploration of Mars. This mission is fascinating, to say the very least.

     Von Braun's primary objectives was to create a mission using the technology at the time.  Despite this, there was also a small number of objectives that needed to be achieved. A manned space station was established. After that event happened, a circumnavigation of the moon would occur, and a manned mission would occur.  There was also the assumption that nuclear powered rockets were to be available for the Mars mission. That said, they also noted that chemical rockets would still be in use.  The mission to Mars itself  included 70 men and ten ships. These ships would be assembled in Earth’s orbit. A fleet of 46 reusable vehicles would bring 25 tons of cargo (plus 14.5 tons of propellant for the Mars mission) to assemble these ships. 950 launches were needed to assemble this flotilla. Once completed in orbit, each of the ten ship would weigh 3720 tons. ) This fleet would have seven passenger ships, and 3 cargo ships. In the cargo ship, there is a 250 ton lander and supplies for the Mars missions. They would launch from Earth orbit, use the “minimum-energy transfer between circular orbits is an elliptical trajectory called the Hohmann trajectory” begin a 260 day journey to Mars. They would use a propellant of nitric acid and hydrazine. Once they arrive, they ease themselves into orbit, and begin to survey for a landing spot. Once they find one, they send their first glider to the surface. The glider heads to the poles, and deploys skis to land. After landing, the crew on that lander would proceed to travel to the equator, where they would set up a base and landing strip for two other landers. Two landers with the remaining crew would arrive, and the reunited crew would set up living quarters, and beginning a 400 day stay on the planet. After that, the crew will leave on two ascent vehicles, where they will return to the seven passenger ships. The ships will return to Earth orbit, and crash back to the planet. The mission would 963 days (260 days for going to and returning from Mars, and staying 400 days on the planet.) The Launch date was in 1965, though after a space station and a moon base were established. In Exploration, the mission was scaled down slightly to two ships with twelve men. 963 days were required for the trip in the original plan, 969 in the later version. A variation on aspects of the plan appeared in Conquest of Space. 

           Could any of this actually work? (snorts) It is greatly grandiose in both scale and cost. This plan will definitely not work in any sort of capacity today. However, one must admire the engineering demonstrated. Von Braun was able to create the first detailed exploration of a manned Mars mission using only modern technology. It was also the first study into what a Mars mission would require, later becoming the prototype to many Mars missions to come. The idea that modern technology could allow for a Martian mission would be used in many other mission concepts, such as Mars Direct.

     Sources:

 Wernher von Braun’s Martian Chronicles
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/wernher-von-brauns-martian-chronicles-9845747/

 Encyclopedia Astronautica- Entry: Von Braun Mars Project:
http://www.astronautix.com/craft/vonn1952.htm

3The Exploration of Mars/ Wernher Von Braun, Willey Ley, with illustrations by Chesley Bonestall
New York; Viking Press, 1960

3Horizons: The Newsletter of AIAA Houston Section: The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, September/October 2013 issue
http://www.aiaahouston.org/Horizons/Horizons_2013_09_and_10.pdf

Pokecember: Pokemon 3 the Movie

   The 3rd one. The first one I have distinct memories of watching, and enjoying. It had all the Pokemon I actually enjoyed watching (the Gen 2 Pokemon), and had the best battles of all the Pokemon movies I had seen thus far. It was my favorite of the four Pokemon movies growing up. And, now that I'm grown up, It surprisingly holds up, and I think it is the first legitimately good Pokemon movie.
       Our film begins with an archeologist named Professor Hale, and his daughter Molly, at their vast estate somewhere in Johto. They are reading an old book of legends, when one of Hale's colleagues calls with news: apparently they had found mysterious ruins.When Hale and his assistant head to those ruins, Hale is pulled into a mysterious dimension. The assistant returns to tell Molly the tragic news. Devastated by her father's death, she begins to take several seals with symbols, similar to the ones in the ruins. Sure, she summons the Unown. They proceed to make Molly's desires true. In particular, they conjure an Entei, with the voice of Professor Hale (Oh, sorry, forgot to mention that, At the beginning of the film, Hale began to imitate Entei, and played with Molly). The Unown proceed to create a crystal fortress around the mansion to seal Molly off. The crystal is ever expanding, sealing all from the mansion, and destroying the beauty of the area around. Meanwhile, our intrepid heroes, Ash, Misty and Brock, are traveling through Johto, when they meet another trainer with an Aipom, named Lisa, who Ash battles during the opening credits. After the battle, Lisa proceeds to note a local area of interest called Greenfield, full of lovely flowers. However, they instead find a field of crystals. A news team interviews Ash and Friends. Back in Pallet Town, Delia, Ash's mother, sees the report, and heads to Professor Oak, who goes to Johto to investigate. It turns out Hale was a former colleague of Oak, and also an old family friend of the Ketchums.  They meet up with Ash and friends, and together they have lunch. Little do they realize that Molly, still at the center of this, is also watching the coverage. She sees Delia, and wants a mother (her own mother having either left Professor (okay, his first name is Spencer) Hale due to his obsession with the Unown in the Japanese version or simply went missing studying the Unown in the American version.) Entei accepts this, and kidnaps Ash's mother. This is once again covered on the news, and is shown in the Charific Valley, where Ash's Charzard (left for training in the area) sees the report. Meanwhile, as people (including Team Rocket) try to infiltrate the fortress, Entei or the crystals prevent them from entering. Molly sends Oak an email, stating that she was with her mother and father, and she would like to be left alone. This leaves Oak and others confused. Ash and Friends decide to infiltrate the palace and save Ash's mother, all the while dealing with Molly's illusions, brought to life by the Unown.
      First and foremost, this film, particularly the backgrounds, looks gorgeous. The crystal palace is uniquely designed, and has very intricate facets, such as various illusions with Molly as an older Pokemon trainer, who battles Brock and Misty. It is a very beautiful setting, yet, it is also actually quite dangerous, symbolizing Molly and the forces she now commands.  I think the best thing about the movie is the fact that the antagonist is not ill-meaning. Molly is not malicious or trying to be destructive. She is just confused, and distraught, because now both her parents are now gone, and the Unown are merely bringing those feelings out in physical form. They grant her desire (her mother and father are back, she can be a Pokemon Trainer with her very own Pokemon, she can be alone etc.) However, she doesn't actively desire that these activities happened. She is going through grief, and she can't even comprehend the power of the Unown that she now wields. However, she still tries to reap the benefits, not out of selfishness, but of childhood innocence. Another thing about this film I really like is how the Pokemon are utilized. Not just as battle tools, but they are used to infiltrate the palace. For instance, Bulbasaur and Chikorita use their vines, for Ash to climb a water fall. When they learn that the crystal could retreat when hit by a water or fire attack, they actually use their fire pokemon to open the crystal, and use the water pokemon to actually get in. The battles also seem more active and realistic, unlike many of the Pokemon episodes. Also, this is one of the few times where the dub edits actually work. In the Japanese version, Spencer Hale comes back during the end credits. In the American version, he comes back near the very end, so that the audience is assured that Molly is not left an orphan. Also, Charzard comes at the ends, and battles Entei. That's awesome.
  If I could point out flaws, the power of the Unown isn't well defined. It tends to be very nebulous, and the power it actually has tends to vary from scene to scene. The crisis at the end is unclear. I'm not sure what is happening to the Unown. Also, Team Rocket is useless in the plot, which is common for most Pokemon movies, but here is somewhat more apparent.It also has a tendancy to pad some scenes, such as the battle between Molly and Brock and Misty, as well as the very end.
     This is my second favorite Pokemon film of all time. It's simply very, very good. The plot, the character, the Pokemon, the elements combine to make a perfect Pokemon movie. And it's a legitimately good film on its own, with a good story, good characters, an explanation of the world of Pokemon, all that nice stuff. If you're a fan, or even if not, I highly recommend this film. See you next time, with Pokemon 4-Ever.

Pokecember: Pokemon the Movie 2000

  So we have our next film, Pokemon: The Movie 2000. (Yeah, they could not think of a better name for it). Yet again released at the height of Pokemania, and another film I watched on home video a decade ago. However, I have more memories of watching this film, than the First movie. Nevertheless, I don't feel nostalgic for this, and hence my opinion is unhindered by the that. So, here we go,
        We start with the film's antagonist, Lawrence III, a Pokemon "collector", who seeks to capture the Three Legendary Birds from their homes in the Orange Islands. He also wants their leader, Lugia. He manages to capture Moltres, the Fire bird Pokemon, (the one before Ho-oh) Meanwhile,during their journeys in the Orange Islands, Ash, and his friends Misty and Tracy, come across an island during a storm. They are celebrating a festival honoring a hero foretold in a prophecy. They choose Ash as their hero. However, soon, mysterious events begin to occur, as the weather all over Kanto has begun to become sour. Pokemon are acting very strangely, and began to gather around. Soon, Ash and Friends realize that Lawrence III's plot is causing the three birds to lock in conflict, causing the bad weather (Where's Rayquaza in this? Who knows.) They realize that Ash is actually the hero who was foretold in the prophecy. Now, Ash, with the help of Lugia, and even Team Rocket, must stop the three legendary birds from destroying the world.
          First, I'd be remiss, if I didn't admit I felt this should have been the first movie. It has a more epic feel to it than the First movie. It had a slightly more interesting plot, which actually does invest you in what is happening. There is also no tears resurrecting people, so there's that. It is a better movie than the first film. Also, the animation is still very goods, the voice acting is top-notch, and it was interesting to see Lugia (a favorite legendary, though I like Ho-oh more) in a movie.
    That said, it's still not very good. Lawrence is not a very interesting villain. He is like one of those bounty hunter the show occasionally shows. Also, there are several things about that don't make any lick of sense. Like, if he really wanted the legendary birds, why not capture through normal means (i.e. a Pokeball or a Masterball)? He'll still have control over them, and he can even store them. Also, How could that ship of his fly. It looks too large. Also, "The World will turn to Ash." That's really the way you are going to shoehorn Ash as hero? Really? Pokemon fan Dragonfree complained about this particular phenomenon, and I'll also complain about it. Ash is so often shoehorned in as the hero, (even in stories where he is not supposed to be a hero.) I'll probably get into this in later reviews. Also, if the Pokemon were arriving en masse to help, why don't they ever actually help? The plot, whilst epic, is still somewhat bland, with no real surprises.  Ash is once again the epic hero who just saves the world all by... Okay that's not completely true: He has help from an Islander named Melody, from a talking Slowking, and his friends, but he single handedly saves the day. I think you see my complaint fairly well.
    Honestly, I don't really have anything else to say about this film. Whilst better than the first one, it still suffers from a bland, uninteresting script which is unable to support the epic tone of the film as well as . Still, I would be lying in saying I don't enjoy watching this film. It is enjoyable, and unlike the First Movie, there is no real problems or morals that makes it irritating to watch as an adult. So, if you're a fan, you will enjoy this, as I do. Non-fans might enjoy just a fun kid's film, and the mythology is easy to grasp. I say give it a watch. Next time, I gush over my second favorite Pokemon of all time.

Pokecember: The First Movie

   This month, I decided to something a little different. Pokemon is my favorite franchise. The world-building, the creativity, the imagination, the sheer possibilities you could do with this concept is marvelous. Now, with Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire upon us, I've decided to create a theme month. Here, on Pokecember, I will review all of the Pokemon movies, from the first to the last. I will do these in the style of my normal reviews. However, this will be an analysis of both the film on its own, and as a Pokemon film. If I haven't seen it, (I only haven't seen the most recent), I will try watch it. Note that this largely a fan's perspective, so certain terms might not be familiar if you don't know the source material. Also, there will be unmarked spoilers. This might bleed into January due to time restraints. So, sit back, and enjoy my review of Pokemon: The First Movie. Yes, the very first. Got released at the height of Pokemania in 1998 (1999 in the US. Drew in crowds, and the ire of film critics, who clearly only saw a marketing tool for an inexplicably popular franchise with esoteric character names and jargon that had adults up in arms, and savaged it. They saw this as epitome of cultural decline that Pokemon as a whole symbolized (Now that Pokemon is beloved, I could safely say that never happened)Me? I was too young ( just got out of diapers) to watch it in theaters, so my memories of this film come from watching it on home video during early 2000's. (I'll get to that) How does it hold up?
     The film starts sometime in the recent past. A scientist named Dr. Fuji and his team have cloned the legendary first Pokemon, Mew, on a laboratory on a distant island. They decide to call this clone Pokemon, "Mewtwo." Fuji is attempting to study cloning in order to clone his dead daughter. During the embryonic stage, Fuji's daughter and Mewtwo bond telepathically. However, the daughter dies, causing Mewtwo to go into a rage upon awakening, killing most of the scientists, including Fuji, and destroying the lab. Upon this killing, however, he is approached by Fuji benefactor: Giovanni, head of the nefarious Team Rocket. Giovanni states that Mewtwo and him could create a partnership. Mewtwo joins forces with Giovanni, become his personal war machine, and also fighting in his gym. However, Giovanni tells Mewtwo (for no apparent reason) that he is little more than Giovanni's weapon. Mewtwo, obviously enraged, releases himself from Giovanni, and flees, returning to the island of his birth, there, he swears that he will take his vengeance. Later, in the Kanto Region, Ash, along with his loyal Pokemon Pikachu, and his friends, Gym Leaders Misty and Brock, are enjoying some quiet time during their journey, when a Dragonite brings a message from a mysterious source. A very powerful trainer seeks to battle the best and the brightest, and asks them to arrive on his fortress on New Island (yes, that is what it's called). Ash, jumping at the chance, takes the group to a port, but a storm has blocked passage. Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Misty, along with several other trainers, brave the storm to reach the island. They arrive, and find that their challenger is none other than Mewtwo. Mewtwo, driven by a radical misanthropic ideology, wants to eliminate humans, as well as the Pokemon who serve them (viewing them as traitors). He challenges the trainers to a battle, where he reveals clone versions of the Kanto starters. His clones demolish the originals. He proceeds to capture their Pokemon using special Pokeballs. Pikachu holds out, but is eventually captured. Ash tries to free his friend. Meanwhile, the clones are sent to a special facility, where they are processed, and cloned. Team Rocket stumbled on it earlier in the film.Ash frees Pikachu and the others, but the clones have been made. Now, a battle begins between clone and Pokemon, and soon, another challenger arrives. Mew, the original that Mewtwo was born from.
      I will start, as usual, with the good things, because there are a few. Mewtwo is a compelling villain. He's somewhat sympathetic, or at the very least, you understand why he does what he does. I haven't seen the Japanese version, but I've heard that it made Mewtwo even more sympathetic. He also seems quite the menance in this story (though compared with the god-like Pokemon of the other generations, his power does diminish), and he is a legitimate threat. Also, it doesn't feel like an hour and a half episode of the show. It does feel grander and larger in scale.Also, Ash's dedication to Pikachu is a nice symbol of their friendship (this is expanded upon in a later movie, but I'll get to that later (and boy, am I excited when I get there).  The look of the island is also very unique, unlike the rest of the series, and the cloning apparatus is very creative. The battles are also very detailed, once again, unlike the tv show.
       Now, you might think I like this movie. Well, I don't dislike it. A lot of people do, but personally, I always felt it was okay. Not good, not bad, just mediocre. And I still feel that way. The bad stuff is largely what this movie is teaching. Yes, this is a lesson film. Okay, fine, but I don't agree with either message. First, there is the "fighting is bad" message. Yes, a Pokemon movie has that message, wrap your head around that. You see, we see the clones and the regular Pokemon duke it out, and it is brutal, and there are scars, and there's music. Nurse Joy (Mewtwo's hypnotized servant) proclaims "Pokemon shouldn't fight; not like this." Yeah, they shouldn't fight with their fists. They should fight with energy beams, fire punchs, high velocity water pumps, cuts, and leaching their energy... A lot of people have said this "This is unbelievably hypocritical," and they are absolutely right. Also, the resurrection scene. Bear with me, folks. During the end, Mew and Mewtwo are about to release these high energy beams at each other, and Ash move in their path. The attack causes him to turn to stone (as opposed to vaporizing him). The Pokemon see this, and they shed tears. Their tears are enough to bring Ash back to life. Yes, you did just read that. Tears were about to bring someone back to life. Seriously. Do I have to tell you this is stupid? I mean, what is this teaching kids? Urgh, and you have minor 4-Kids hiccups, like misidentifying Pokemon, and leaving out plot details.
       The question I ask myself is "Why was this released to theaters?" Perhaps, I'm biased in that I never saw it in theaters (or really any other Pokemon movie), but enjoyed it on home video. I feel that the latter was a better place for it. This, along with most other pokemon movies, are direct to video or DVD fare. I don't think this was good enough to warrant a theater release. Maybe, it was really Pokemania that brought this to the theaters, but really, this should have been released to video. Does this make it terrible? No. I don't hate this movie, as much as other people do. I just feel it isn't very good. As a stand-alone film, it barely explains anything, and thus the situation has no meaning to those who aren't already familiar with the franchise. It also has messages that are either hypocritical or simply are too fantastic and whimsical to teach children. As a Pokemon movie, it's decent enough. The Battles are detailed, Mewtwo is powerful, the animation is slick, and it does have an intensity to it. Overall, if you want to watch the first one, watch it. If you want to get into the franchise, this film is not the place to start. If you just want to show a child this, there are far better childrens films, or hell, far better Pokemon movies, you could show them. Anyway, Join me next week for Pokemon:2000.