The thought of a live-action Pokèmon movie had us skeptical, to say the least. Renditions of Pokèmon as they would appear in real life have often been disturbing and freaky, so seeing Psyducks, Gyradoses and Caterpees alongside people doesn’t have us super pumped.
Welp, the trailer for Detective Pikachu just changed all that. This movie looks…funny? Awesome? Endearing? All of the above.
Ryan Reynolds is voicing the titular monster, and dang it if he’s not doing an awesome job. Pikachu comes off as snarky, but not mean, which is vital to preserving his cuteness and practicality as a companion. We’re excited, too, to see how the world of Pokèmon will be portrayed in this movie given the brand’s weird undertones of possible enslavement (the Pokèmon are kept in little balls, after all, until they’re commanded to fight). No Pokè Balls in sight in the trailer though, so maybe this is a progressive Pokè-Society?
We’ll have our answers when Detective Pikachu arrives on May 11.
