>>53431775>Because it was unironically made by a guy who was high or drunk 90% of the timeEmotionally damaged lead writer reflects that in his work, even though it's disguised as a kid's cartoon. I was thinking about some of the more adult elements that I missed as a kid, but now recognize now looking back.
Brock was stuck as a surrogate parent to 10 siblings as a teenager, saddled with the responsibilities that his parents couldn't be bothered to handle. The scene where his siblings all jump on Ash because they don't want their brother to lose is actually kind of sad/sweet, looking back at it. Him getting the opportunity to travel with Ash frees him from a burden that he never should have had placed on him in the first place.
Misty's tendency to point out how good she looks indicating low self-esteem and insecurity as a result of how she views herself compared to her older sisters, who bully her, but also seem to have been responsible for raising her.
People I think rightfully have made fun of Shudo's bizarre inability to recognize some of the emotional and romantic undercurrents of his own work. But man, those are some fairly traumatic back stories for a couple of characters in a kid's story. Makes it feel a little more grounded than what's come after, perhaps?
But coming back to watch this finale after 20 years of not regularly engaging with Pokemon, the most glaring change to me is the characterization of Ash. I was thinking of how I'd describe OS Ash as a character - brash, overconfident, silly, brave, sarcastic, selfish, but always cares and does the right thing at the end of the day.
And then I think of this MPM version and the only things that come to mind are that he's kind hearted and I guess is now some sort of...Pokemon empath? The stuff folks say about his character being neutered are absolutely correct.
