Pokémon says goodbye to Ash and Pikachu and launches a new animated series

End clap for Sacha and Pikachu after 25 seasons of adventures. The Pokémon Company announced on Friday the launch in 2023 of a “new series” with “never seen before” characters, including the duo Liko and Roy.

“The new series will debut in multiple countries in 2023,” said the Pokémon Company, which is partly owned by Japanese video game giant Nintendo and which handles brand rights ranging from the TV series to the trading card game. “The new series will be released after the current season” in which Sacha Ketchum, protagonist of the series with his faithful companion Pikachu, is crowned best “trainer in the world” after 25 seasons of adventures, she completed.

One of the most popular cultural franchises

Special episodes will be the “final chapter in the adventures of Ash and Pikachu” and “give a glimpse of what the future holds” for the two iconic characters. These episodes will be broadcast in France on Gulli on Wednesday mornings. “Fans will watch with as much pleasure the new series, which will take up all the codes specific to the Pokémon cartoons dear to their hearts: action, adventure, friendship, and Pokémon”, further indicated the Pokemon Company.

First released in Japan in 1996 as a video game for the Game Boy console, Pokémon has spawned one of the most popular cultural franchises worldwide, alongside “Star Wars” and “Harry Potter.” .

Available in countless forms, collectible card game, objects, stuffed animals or cinematographic adaptations, the successful saga of capturing monsters also revolutionized mobile games with “Pokémon Go”, which introduced geolocation and reality mechanisms increased. The new video games in the Pokémon franchise “Scarlet” and “Violet” on the Nintendo Switch system got off to a flying start with ten million sales in just a few days after their release in late November.

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