ESC

The ‘Detective Pikachu’ Trailer Has Arrived. It Is As Confusing and Disturbing As You Would Imagine

I had no idea this was going to be an actual movie until today. Yes, there is a new Pokémon movie coming out next year, but it won’t be in the same vein as the ones from years past.

This movie will be a combination of live-action and CGI. There are no signs of Ash, Brock, or Misty, but fear not, because there will still be Pikachu (and let’s face it, that’s the only character we really care about, anyway)!

But this won’t feature just any Pikachu; in this film, he’s a detective! And he talks! And he sounds just like Ryan Reynolds! Wait, what?

I don’t think I need to elaborate further on how completely jarring it is to hear Deadpool’s voice coming out of cute, yellow, electric cartoon rodent. I’m pretty sure jaws collectively dropped after listening to this trailer. It’s weird enough to hear Pikachu speaking English; fans already went through that trauma following last year’s animated Pokémon movie. It’s even more disconcerting to hear a foul-mouthed, tough-talking Ryan Reynolds voice coming from the mouth of the world’s most beloved pokémon.

Getting more into what we know based on this trailer, it seems that in this world, humans and pokémon coexist and live collectively in peace. This is emphasized by showing people and pokémon wandering the streets together.

I have so many questions about this set-up. In the original series/game, pokémon were wild animals. At least they were unless they were caught and trained. Technically, humans and pokémon were already coexisting; it was just like how people coexist with birds and squirrels in real life. What exactly has changed? If Pikachu is a detective (and I did see a shot of a Jigglypuff in a nightclub), does that mean pokémon are capable of holding down jobs? Do they earn wages and pay taxes? Are they held accountable to human laws?

Watching this trailer just left me feeling confused. Bojack Horseman can pull off a scenario like this where animal people and regular people can live together (even though that hasn’t been without some questions), but the Pokémon universe has been well-established for years. I’m not quite sure where this story is going, but we have until May 2019 to theorize. However, in the meantime, I’m pretty sure that Mr. Mime will be haunting my nightmares in the months to come:

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