The appeal and reviews of "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness": A story of adventure and friendship

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness - A fascinating world of adventure

■ Public Media

TV Special

■ Original Media

game

■ Broadcast period

September 9, 2007 - January 1, 0000 TV Tokyo series September 9, 2007 (1 episode)

*Broadcast on TV Tokyo's "Pokémon ☆ Sunday."

■Broadcasting station

TV Tokyo

■Frequencies

half an hour

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 1

■Original Story

Original story: Satoshi Tajiri, Junichi Masuda, Ken Sugimori

■ Director

Kunihiko Yuyama

■ Production

Animation production: OLM Production: TV Tokyo, MEDIA NET, Shogakukan Shueisha Productions

■Works

©2007 Pokemon/CHUNSOFT/ShoPro.

■ Story

Piplup, who has lost his memory and turned from a human into a Pokémon, and Hikozaru, who aspires to be an explorer. The two meet and join the "Pukulin Guild" to form the explorer team "Pokédancers"!
And what awaited PokéDance at the depths of the dungeon they headed to at the request of the Colink siblings...?

This story brings out the charm of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series to the fullest. The adventure that begins with Piplup and Hikozaru's first encounter has the power to draw viewers in. In particular, the intertwining of Piplup's human past, who has lost his memory, and Hikozaru's growth as he aspires to join an explorer team is particularly moving. Additionally, the scene in which they challenge the dungeon at the request of the Plink siblings depicts tension and friendship, leaving a strong impression on viewers.

■Explanation

This animation depicts the world of "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Explorers of Darkness," which was released in 2007. It faithfully reproduces the world of the game, while bringing out new charms with the expressiveness that only animation can offer. In particular, it delves deeply into the personalities and relationships of the Pokémon, making it enjoyable even for viewers who have never played the game. Also, the storytelling is superb, condensing the thrill and excitement of the adventure into a short 30-minute length.

■Cast

・Pippama / Kurumi Mamiya・Hikozaru / Kappei Yamaguchi・Dragonfly / Hiroko Emori・Heigani / Nobutoshi Kanna・Pelipper / Daisuke Sakaguchi・Diglett / Akio Suyama・Chirin / Kimiko Koyama・Pukulin / Yuu Kobayashi・Bottleneck / Masaki Terasoma・Gabbit, Dogam / Kenta Miyake・Kecleon (older brother) / Kiyotaka Furushima・Kecleon (younger brother) / Daisuke Sakaguchi・Zangoose, Biplap / Tsutomu Densaka・Strike, Grookey / Youhei Nishina・Sandslash, Dugtrio / Chikara Osaka・Golbat / Akio Suyama, Kiyotaka Furushima, Chikara Osaka・Syndrome (older brother) / Yuka Nishigaki・Syndrome (younger sister) / Hinako Sasaki

The selection of the cast plays an important role in bringing out the individuality of the Pokemon to the fullest. In particular, the acting of Kurumi Mamiya as Piplup and Kappei Yamaguchi as Hikozaru realistically expresses the emotions of the characters, eliciting deep empathy from the viewers. Additionally, the voice of Yu Kobayashi as Jigglypuff combines the dignity and kindness of a guild leader, adding depth to the story. The voice actors of each Pokemon perform their characters' unique personalities, allowing the viewers to become immersed in the story.

■ Main staff

・Original story: Satoshi Tajiri, Junichi Masuda, Ken Sugimori・Executive producers: Tsunekazu Ishihara, Koichi Nakamura・Planning: Takaaki Kii, Kenjiro Ito・Producers: Gen Moritake, Kunimi Kawamura・Director: Kunihiko Yuyama・Screenplay: Aya Matsui・Storyboard: Kunihiko Yuyama・Direction: Yuji Asada・Animation director: Akihiro Tamagawa・Editing: J Film・Music: Moririn Tada・Sound director: Masafumi Mima・Production manager: Shoji Ota・Production desk: Hiroyuki Kato・Animation production: OLM TEAM OTA
・Production: Shogakukan Shueisha Productions ・Production, copyright: Shogakukan Shueisha Productions, Chunsoft Co., Ltd., The Pokémon Company

Looking at the lineup of staff, we see that they are all members who have been deeply involved in the production of the Pokémon series. In particular, director Kunihiko Yuyama has worked on many Pokémon series works, and his experience and skills are utilized in this work. In addition, screenwriter Aya Matsui has a deep understanding of the worldview of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon and has written a story that moves the viewer. The background music by Moririn Tada is also an important element in enhancing the atmosphere of the adventure.

■ Related works

・Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky: The Final Adventure Through Time and Darkness

The Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series depicts the world of Pokémon from a different perspective than the main Pocket Monsters series. In particular, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness has gained many fans with its unique setting of humans transforming into Pokémon. In addition, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky is a sequel to Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness, offering an even deeper story and excitement. Enjoying these works will allow you to gain a deeper understanding of the world of Pokémon.

■ Evaluation and recommendation

The TV special "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Explorers of Darkness" is a work that can be recommended not only to fans of the Pokémon series, but also to viewers experiencing the world of Pokémon for the first time. In a short 30-minute story, the fun and excitement of the adventure is condensed into a story that leaves a strong impression on viewers. In addition, the character portrayals that delve deeply into the personalities and relationships of the Pokémon will surely impress and move viewers.

In particular, the story of Piplup and Hikozaru's growth and friendship will deeply move viewers. The sight of Piplup, who has lost his memories, remembering his past as a human but starting a new life as an explorer will give viewers courage and hope. Furthermore, the story of Hikozaru's admiration for and growth as a member of the explorer will give viewers hope and dreams.

Furthermore, this work brings out the charm of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series to the fullest. It is highly rated for faithfully recreating the worldview of the game while bringing out new charms with the expressiveness that only anime can offer. In addition, the character portrayal that delves deeply into the personalities and relationships of the Pokémon will surely resonate deeply with viewers.

To enjoy this work, we also recommend playing the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series of games. By playing the games, you can gain a deeper understanding of the world of Pokemon and enjoy the story of the anime even more. Also, by enjoying the main Pokemon series, you can experience the world of Pokemon more widely and deeply.

Overall, the TV special "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Explorers of Darkness" is a work that can be recommended not only to fans of the Pokémon series, but also to viewers experiencing the world of Pokémon for the first time. The story condenses the fun and excitement of the adventure, the character portrayals delving deeply into the personalities and relationships of the Pokémon, and the expressiveness that brings out the charm of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series to the fullest will leave a strong impression on viewers. Please enjoy this work.