Sequels always face uphill battles to their predecessors. Whether it’s the first iteration or if it’s many others down the road. Usually, being able to stand on its own is hard to do. So far, the Pokémon series has been on average okay but nothing that is overwhelmingly groundbreaking. Really there’s only been one horrible entry and that was Pokémon 2000. The rest have been serviceable. Now four entries in, this sequel believe it or not manages to make itself feel very much the same to that of the original film that came out. Of course there are issues with it like all others that came before it, but there’s something else to it that allows it to stand out. Unfortunately, not much detail can be given in order to keep it spoiler free but that should be all more of a reason why to see this entry for fans of the show.
The plot takes place after season 4 of the show where Ash & company find themselves in a forest where they spot the legendary Pokémon Suicune. However, what they don’t know is that they’ll also come across Celebi another mystical Pokémon which has the ability to travel through time. Of which the gang will cross paths with a boy named Sam (Tara Sands). Together they seek to protect Celebi from an aggressive hunter known as the Iron Masked Marauder (Dan Green) looking to capture it. The film crew working behind the scenes on this movie hasn’t changed for the most part. Hideki Sonoda is now heading the script writing and English adaptation is still being handled by Michael Haigney. Kunihiko Yuyama is credited as the director and Jim Malone did the English version.
Acting again is as credible as its going to get. All the main actors reprise their role and it all works well. Dan Green who’s now been taking part in three Pokémon features should no longer be a surprise either. What is different though is Green playing a confident villain as oppose to a misunderstood one. Green as the evil Iron Masked Marauder certainly plays up his masculine voice to be as dangerous sounding as possible. Tara Sands who’s also a franchise veteran playing Sam does a good job. It’s an obvious Mokuba clone from Yu-Gi-Oh however, but that’s okay. What makes the story to this entry unique though is how it plays into the history of Pokémon. Normally time travel is a risky element to use in a story that isn’t in the science fiction genre…but it doesn’t go to crazy into detail either.
Thankfully, that’s to its benefit because the time travel aspect is left ambiguous due to the mysteriousness surrounding the legendary Pokémon. That’s the wiggle room of the script. However, what doesn’t work in its favor is a blatant plot hole that was clearly shown in the original film that doesn’t occur here. Consistency is key when rules are made about how a certain universe works. That doesn’t mean the story itself isn’t interesting to watch. In fact, it’s safe bet that this film had a much more emotional punch to the gut than that of any other sequel. This factors into the rating and why it’s getting more credit than the last couple features. It does beg the question though about the people who travel through time, does that make them all knowing? Is it possible they have a deeper connection with certain characters more than the audience or other characters know? The film kind of answers that but also doesn’t.
And until there’s clarity as to why cinematography was needed, it’s just not going to make sense. It’s very likely Hisao Shirai’s skill was used somewhere for the film….but it’s not clear how cinematography works into animation. That’s where things get interesting. The animation is a much more even mix of CGI and regular animation and it looks good. Also the action isn’t completely based on Pokémon battles which is a change in pace. Lastly the original music composed by Hirokazu Tanaka and Shinji Miyazaki was used this time as opposed to it being rescored. While it’s not all catchy tunes, it definitely works for the scenes at hand and does bring in that recognizable battle theme. Sadly, there’s no domestic score available for this so it’s not as easy to hear the tracks separately. Maybe someday, but only in Japan.
There’s an obvious plot hole and the ending raises questions how much and what some characters really know. Besides this though the voice acting, animation and story have more to offer than the last few outings which makes it more at the level of the first movie.
Points Earned --> 6:10
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