Pokémon Movie Collection 1-3
Released By: Manga Entertainment
Rating: PG
Running Time: 218.2 Mins
Audio: English DD 5.1 Japanese DD 2.0
Release Date: Out Now!
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes
It's the first time ever the three Pokémon movies can be collected in a special three disc DVD edition. For those of you who remember when these movies first came out, it will be a special moment, however, for those who are young right now, you have some fun to catch-up on.
From the moment someone screamed "Gotta catch them all!", Pokémon fever would grasp the world and its kids would have something new to watch and collect. Back in the 90s whenever anyone thought of anime and manga, it was either Akira or Gatchaman (Western version was Battle of the Planets syndicated by Sandy Frank). There were others, but those were considered for the older teen market. Thankfully, after the release of Dragonball, the rise of anime's popularity has grown, though the idea of creating a collectible card game and making plushie versions of the Pokémon characters around about the same time was a genius idea. It set the franchise off that also makes it hard to forget. I remember how kids went crazy to collect the cards and the plushies; they came in different sizes and weren't cheap either. I still adore my Poliwhirl and Mewtwo toys.
The Pokémon craze brought about three movies between 1998 and 2000, the first starring Mewtwo a new Pokémon.
Pokémon The First Movie:
Mewto is a bio-engineered Pokemon who escaped from its lab facility to a new and interesting adventure, all the time wanting to prove how superior it was to other Pokemon. Gathering a few Pokémon around him, he sets up a tournament no one can refuse. Many anime series feature monsters in laboratories held and experimented on against their will (Saiyuki Reload, Guyver and Towanokwon) and inside the monster wants to be released back into the wild even though they may cause havoc. This is pretty much what happens here with Mewtwo. And like other characters he has a need to prove himself right that they are the stronger ones, spending their lives fighting for others, being used, yet again by ruthless humans. Mewtwo constantly asks why he is on the planet and why humans have only used and betrayed his trust. Ash and his friends end up being invited to an island of Pokémon trainers for a competition which leads them on their first long term adventure, and as in One Piece, perilous seas.
Pokémon The Movie 2000:
Lawrence, a Pokémon trainer is on his own mission to capture three legendary Pokémon in order to awaken Lugia, a sea guardian. On the Orange Islands, Ash and his friends are asked to get three elemental orbs from other islands if they want to restore order and balance to the world. After the first movie, we get to see a much more sophisticated and flashy introduction to Ash and co's well-earned break from training. Odd happenings, missing Pokémon and a new adventure are the ingredients for a fun and memorable movie. Ash and co should be happy, but a man going around stealing Pokémon from their natural habitats alerts them to help out before the whole world is turned to ice. This movie is slicker and more colorful than the previous one.
Pokémon 3: The Movie:
Legend becomes reality when Ash's mother is captured by Entei, a powerful Pokémon thought only fiction. Ash, in turn has to rescue her, but at least he has a friend in Pikachu to help him out. A secondary story is of a young girl who has her dream world invaded by Unown. If you thought these movies couldn't get any better, this will prove otherwise when Professor Hale gets sucked into a strange world no one has seen beyond the realm of children's stories. His daughter Molly is worried about him and comes across a puzzle he had worked on, solved it and brought his father back, or so she thinks. This movie by far is the most modern looking in terms of animation, showing its quality with amazing visuals and CGI with a story that shows the true magic of Pokémon as if it has just been discovered.
Bonus Material: None.
Summary: Be prepared for three amazing movies many of us have been waiting a long time for!
