Pokémon Pikachu's Summer Festival: What's the appeal of Pikachu enjoying the summer festival?

Pokémon Pikachu's Summer Festival - A tale of summer adventure and friendship

■ Public Media

event

■ Original Media

game

■ Release date

August 1, 2004 - August 31, 2004

■ How it first appeared

ANA In-Flight Screening

■Frequencies

23 min

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 1

■Original Story

Original story: Satoshi Tajiri, Junichi Masuda, Ken Sugimori

■ Director

・Director: Kunihiko Yuyama

■ Production

Animation Production: OLM Production: Shogakukan Productions Production: Pikachu Project

■Works

©Nintendo, Creatures, GAME FREAK, TV Tokyo, ShoPro, JR Kikaku ©Pokémon ©Pikachu Project 2004

■ Story

Pokémon: Pikachu's Summer Festival depicts the adventures of Pikachu and friends at a summer festival. The story begins with the showtime of the diva Marill. During the show, which Pikachu and friends have been looking forward to, an incident occurs in which Marill is suddenly kidnapped. Screaming, "Oh no! We have to help her quickly!", Pikachu and friends rush to the danger-filled "Steel Island" to save Marill. A thrilling adventure begins on Steel Island, where Pikachu and friends' friendship and courage will be put to the test. Will Pikachu and friends be able to save Marill?

■Cast

Pikachu/Ikue Otani Marill/Yumi Touma Plusle/Akiko Kawase Minan/Kumiko Higa Meowth/Inuyama Inukoboss Godora/Koichi Sakaguchi Giant Swallow/Unsho Ishizuka Bayleef/Yuji Ueda Coalossal/Shinichiro Miki

■ Main staff

・Screenplay/Shinzo Fujita ・Storyboard/Yuji Asada ・Direction/Yuji Asada ・Chief animation director/Eikichi Takahashi ・Chief animation director/Toshiya Yamada ・Sound director/Masafumi Mima

■ Theme songs and music

・Ending theme: Flying Pokémon Kids ・Lyrics: Shogo Toda ・Music: Hirokazu Tanaka ・Arrangement: Hirokazu Takana ・Singer: Becky

■Detailed evaluation and recommendation

■ Story and Theme

Pokémon Pikachu's Summer Festival begins in the bright and cheerful atmosphere of a summer festival. Diva Marill's showtime is an event Pikachu and his friends have been looking forward to. However, one day their fun takes a turn for the worse. Marill is kidnapped. This sudden incident marks the beginning of a new adventure for Pikachu and his friends.

Pikachu and his friends head to the dangerous "Steel Island" to rescue their friend. As its name suggests, this island is as hard and cold as steel, and is unknown territory to Pikachu and his friends. The story depicts the various difficulties that Pikachu and his friends face on the island, and the friendship and courage they must use to overcome them. In particular, the scene where Pikachu and his friends work together to rescue Azumarill is very moving to the viewer.

The theme of this work is friendship and courage. Watching Pikachu and friends join forces to help their friends teaches children the importance of friends and cooperation. The film also depicts the courage to face difficulties as an important theme, making it an inspiring work for viewers.

■ Characters

Pikachu is the main character of this work, and he shows leadership and leads his friends. Ikue Otani's voice acting perfectly expresses Pikachu's bravery and kindness. Azumarill appears as a diva and inspires Pikachu and his friends on their adventure. Yumi Touma's voice brings out Azumarill's cuteness and purity.

Plusle and Minun are good friends of Pikachu. Akiko Kawase and Kumiko Higa's voice acting express the cheerfulness and energy of their characters. Meowth is a character who helps Pikachu and friends on their adventure, and Inuko Inuyama's voice brings out Meowth's humorous side.

Bossgodra appears as the boss of Steel Island and stands in the way of Pikachu and his friends. Koichi Sakaguchi's voice expresses Bossgodra's strength and dignity. Swarm, Bayleef, and Torchic also play their respective roles and liven up the story. The voice acting of Unsho Ishizuka, Yuji Ueda, and Shinichiro Miki brings out the individuality of each character.

■ Production and direction

The director of this film is Kunihiko Yuyama. Yuyama has worked on many of the Pokémon series, and his experience and skills are put to good use in this film. The screenplay was written by Shinzo Fujita, who skillfully constructed a story depicting the adventures of Pikachu and friends. Yuji Asada, who was in charge of storyboards and direction, created a visually appealing depiction of Pikachu and friends' adventures.

The animation director is Eikichi Takahashi, and the chief animation director is Toshiya Yamada, who carefully draw the movements and expressions of Pikachu and friends in great detail. The sound director is Masafumi Mima, who selected the sound effects and music that liven up Pikachu and friends' adventure. In particular, the music in the scene where Pikachu and friends work together to rescue Azumarill touches the hearts of viewers.

■ Theme songs and music

The ending theme "Flying Pokémon Kids" was written by Shogo Toda, composed and arranged by Hirokazu Tanaka, and sung by Becky. It is a song that symbolizes Pikachu and his friends' adventure. The song features lyrics that praise the friendship and courage of Pikachu and his friends, and a bright and cheerful melody. This song, which plays as the ending theme, gives viewers inspiration and hope.

■Recommendation

Pokémon Pikachu's Summer Festival is a film that can be enjoyed by both children and adults. It is a must-see for fans of the Pokémon series in particular. The story of friendship and courage between Pikachu and friends will move viewers. In addition, the story begins in the bright and fun atmosphere of a summer festival, evoking summer memories in viewers.

This film was shown on ANA flights, but is also available on DVD and online. Be sure to watch it with your family and friends and enjoy Pikachu's adventure. Pokémon: Pikachu's Summer Festival is a wonderful film that teaches us the importance of friendship and courage. Why not join Pikachu's adventure?