Are you a big Pokemon fan but still don’t know if you call it Anime or cartoons? That is a common confusion to have. Let’s answer the question: Is Pokemon an Anime?
Pokemon is one of the biggest entertainment franchises in history. It might very well be the biggest. The variety of ways you can jump into Pokemon is overwhelming. From trading cards, video games, and TV shows, there is just so much content to get hooked on. You just have to choose where you want to start.
The world’s first introduction to Pokemon was in the form of a videogame back in 1996. Satoshi Tajiri developed this video game in Japan, later released for the rest of the world as Pokemon: Red and Green. Despite the enormity of the franchise, some questions need answering. Like, is Pokemon an Anime? Let’s find out.
Yes, Pokemon can be called an Anime according to the true definition of the world. Since Pokemon was first made in Japan and it was hand drawn. But there is still some ambiguity surrounding the question, which is natural considering the franchise’s big fan base.
What Is An Anime?
To decide whether a TV show is an Anime or not, you first have to completely understand what is considered Anime and what is not. So, let’s break that down.
In pure words, Anime means something that has a distinct Japanese style, and all of its animations are hand drawn. The word Anime comes from the word animation. Outside of Japan, it is used to describe a distinct Japanese style that has fictional and fantastical elements along with a Vibrant colour palette.
In Japan, every animation can be defined as an Anime. This means anything that uses animations, whether hand drawn or made on a computer, can be considered an Anime. Animes are an excellent form of entertainment, and the genre has mustered up a great fan base over the years.
While there is a dispute over which was the first Anime title to be ever made, there is still confirmation that the first ever Anime was made back in the year 1917.
Is Pokemon An Anime?
Now that we have gathered the true essence of the word Anime and what it really means, we can judge the Pokemon series and classify it as an Anime or a cartoon. While there is not much difference between the two terms, there is enough evidence to term Pokemon as an Anime.
Because Pokemon was first created in Japan, it inherits that distinct Japanese style of characters and animation. Moreover, it was also known to be drawn, which meets all the known criteria to be classified as an Anime.
The popularity surrounding Pokemon is such that even after 23 different series, a plethora of video games, and trading the cards, there are still new people being introduced to the franchise. Through new games that are released or the shows that continue to shine.
Now that we know that calling Pokemon an Anime is true, we can also rationalise the popularity and fan following that this medium of entertainment has. Apart from Pokemon, there are some incredibly good shows in Attack on Titan and Naruto, which are considered to be proper giants in terms of viewership.
Classifying something as an Anime is not a difficult thing to do. If you have watched any Anime before, you would know what the Japanese art style really is. Since it actually has a distinct look, and that is what we used to classify Pokemon as an Anime.
We hope this article helped clear any confusion you had regarding Pokemon being an Anime or not.
Looking for more Pokemon content? Check out these guides:
- All of Ash’s Pokemon in the Anime
- How Old Is Misty From Pokemon
- Pokemon Go: Failed to get game data from the server [SOLVED]
Visit Pokémon.com for the official website.