Pokemon Adventures Chapters 1 & 2 Review

While it never really went away, with the recent release of the incredibly popular Pokemon Go mobile game and the hype surrounding the upcoming seventh installment in the franchise, Pokemon Sun & Moon, the Pokemon franchise has seen a resurgence of mainstream popularity in recent years. I’d assume that the majority of my readers are at least familiar with the basic idea of Pokemon, but just in case, here’s a quick rundown. Pokemon are animal like creatures with incredible powers that people are able to capture in devices called pokeballs and train so that they may battle against other pokemon trainers, the ultimate objective being to collect eight badges from the pokemon gyms in various towns in order to qualify for the pokemon league tournament and become a pokemon master. While I personally am not as into the series as I used to be, I still appreciate it as a fun game and a nostalgic part of my childhood. Most people are familiar with the video games and the anime, but I’m willing to bet not as many of you are familiar with the Pokemon Adventures Manga, which is where I come in. Today, we’ll be looking at the first two chapters of Pokemon Adventures.

We open in Pallet Town, the hometown of the player character from the video games where some little kids are trying to capture a Nidorino by throwing pokeballs at it to no avail. Enter our Protagonist, Red, who tells the children that they’ll never be able to catch Nidorino that way. To catch a pokemon, first, you need to weaken it. To that end, Red sends out his own pokemon. Interestingly enough, instead of a Pikachu like Ash, the main character from the anime or even one of the Kanto region starter pokemon like in the games, Red’s first pokemon is actually a Poliwhirl, that frog with the swirl on its belly that you see on the cover. Using its water-type attacks, Red’s Poliwhirl weakens the Nidorino just enough so that he’s able to capture it. As Red basks in the admiration of his peers, Red gives a brief explanation about what pokemon are and proclaims that he doesn’t know how many kinds of pokemon there are, but he knows he’s going to catch them all. For the record, as I’m writing this, there are seven hundred plus known species of pokemon, which isn’t even taking into account the ones that have been announced for the upcoming seventh installment in the franchise, so you better get cracking kid. The others ask Red if he knows Professor Oak, an old man who lives on the edge of town who’s said to be the world’s foremost expert on Pokemon. It’s also said that the professor has a grandson who’s supposed to be an incredibly skilled Pokemon trainer. Red dismisses Oak as a nut and says that his grandson doesn’t stand a chance against him and walks off, secretly intrigued by what the kids said.

While deep in the woods, Red runs into Team Rocket, the main antagonists of first two video games. Essentially, Team Rocket is a mafia-like organization that aspires to use pokemon for evil purposes. Red eavesdrops on the Rocket grunts’ conversation and overhears something about a “phantom pokemon.” Red has never heard of any phantom pokemon, but if it’s in this forest, he’s going to capture it for himself and goes on the hunt. Red comes to a clearing and finds a spiky haired boy who readers would recognize as Blue (or Gary for fans of the anime), Professor Oak’s Grandson and rival to the main character, staring down a Mew, the rarest and one of the most powerful of the original one hundred and fifty-one pokemon. Blue sends out his Charmander to battle the Mew, but withdraws before the battle even gets started. Red takes this opportunity to send out Poliwhirl but Mew makes quick work of it before fleeing. As Red rushes to his injured Poliwhirl’s side, Blue condescendingly explains why he withdrew his Charmander. Blue could tell right away that Mew was vastly stronger than his pokemon, so he stopped the fight. Before departing, Blue tells Red that he needs to know his limits, otherwise he’ll only defeat himself. Team Rocket goes after Mew, leaving Red to tend to his Poliwhirl.

Later, Red walks by Professor Oak’s lab. Humbled by his defeat at the hands of Mew and thinking that Oak’s advice may do him some good, Red decides to ring Oak’s doorbell, ending chapter one.

Chapter two opens with Red dscovering that Professor Oak’s door is unlocked. Red wanders in and is in awe of all the pokemon he sees, taking a particular interest in the Bulbasaur. However, Red gets caught by Professor Oak himself who thinks he’s a Pokemon thief. Surprised, Red stumbles backward, inadvertently releasing all of Oak’s pokemon from their pokeballs, one of which (and I’m not kidding) actually takes a sh*t on Oak’s face. Justifiably pissed off, Oak demands that Red round them all up again.

Much later, Red has successfully gotten all of Oak’s pokemon back in their balls. The only one left is the Bulbasaur from earlier, which Red and Oak have chased all the way to the abandoned pokemon gym in Viridian City. Oak tries to get the little plant lizard to get back in it’s pokeball, but gets gut-checked by the scared Bulbasaur for his trouble. However, Red by showing the frightened pokemon kindness manages it to calm it down. However, things soon go south when the group is attacked by a wild Machoke. Bulbasaur tries to protect its new friend, but is outclassed against the much larger and more powerful pokemon. Thinking quickly, Red opens the window, allowing the bulb on Bulbasaur’s back to absorb sunlight and unleash a solar beam attack, incapacitating the Machoke.

Recognizing that Bulbasaur has taken a liking to Red, Oak allows him to keep it, much to Red’s excitement. Red tells Oak that why he came to his lab in the first place, to learn what it takes to be a great trainer. Oak says if Red thinks that clever tricks and power are the keys to being a great trainer, he’s wrong. Rather, it’s one’s connection to their pokemon, like Red’s connection with Bulbasaur, that’s what a trainer really needs to succeed. Our chapter ends with Oak giving Red a Pokedex (essentially a digital Pokemon encyclopedia) and wishes him the best of luck. With a newfound sense of determination, Red sets out on his journey to be the best like no one ever was.

What Works: I like Red as a character. He’s clever, quick thinking, compassionate, and clearly no novice when it comes to pokemon battling, but it’s still clear he has a lot to learn. I also appreciate that his main pokemon is actually Poliwhirl, a Pokemon not often associated with a Pokemon main character. It’s actually unique and rather refreshing. I also rather liked some of the slapstick humor with Professor Oak.

What Doesn’t: Nothing specific, this manga is actually an enjoyable read.

Overall: 4/5

While I wouldn’t say it’s anything that’s going to knock your socks off exactly, it is still a fun read. I’d recommending checking it out if you have the time.