The Pokemon Controversy

Like Facebook, the Pokemon franchise has garnered an immense amount of followers, fans, and the like. However, with such a large fanbase comes those who wish to prosecute it with charges of subliminal messages involving race, religion, the law, and other issues that wreak havoc in the controversial world. Pokemon has become a battered victim of controversy. Unfair some say, or just? Let us find out, shall we?

If you are current a fan\collector of the seemingly ancient Pokemon TCG cards, excitement awaits you with this tale of misunderstanding. "Koga's Ninja Trick" featured an image of the omote manji, a mirrored version of the Swastika, a symbol prominently used during Adolf Hitler's reign. Members of the Jewish community accused Nintendo of using this 'hate symbol' in the card purposely, which was false on Nintendo's part, for it was used as a symbol of good fortune by many other groups of people far before Hitler's grandparents were ever conceived. The company soon removed the symbol from the cards, to prevent any further disputes from occurring.

Even more counts of Nazi symbolism has surfaced over the years. In the anime episode "All Things Bright and Beautifly!", Jessie, James, Meowth, and a crowd of generic Team Rocket Grunts were all collectively raising their hands in a fashion similar to the Hitler salute in a fantasy by our own trio of bumbling Team Rocket goons. This was prevented from appearing in the dubbed English version by way of editing, in which the grunts have ceased raising their hands.

Registeel was also involved in an incident of similar proportions. In the international releases for Pokemon Diamond and Pearl versions (excluding non-English European versions), Registeel's arm is extended in a position that seems to be extremely similar to the infamous Hitler salute. This position is no longer in use for any other games, but instead uses the non-English European version's Registeel sprite for all international Pokemon HeartGold, SoulSilver, and Platinum versions.

Several Fundamentalist Christian groups have accused Pokemon of embracing Satanism. Many of their 'reasons' following the accusation of ties to Satanism include demons and paranormal powers, yet the powers that Pokemon possess are used specifically for non-satanic purposes, such as for battling and manual assistance in certain jobs or activities.

They feel that Pokemon are similar to demons, for they must be called on to perform certain moves & tasks, and that they must have 'magical' talismans in order to make them obey your commands. This may be a reference to gym badges, which are needed to make Pokemon of certain levels obey your battling commands. Psychic type Pokemon are especially noted in the Christian community for being linked to Satan himself, as are many other Pocket Monsters with 'spectacular and\or extraordinary powers.'

Aside from the aspect of the possession of mystical powers, the franchise has been widely criticized for the alleged involvement of real-world evolution, a reference to Pokemon evolution in the television series, games, and manga. Even though the process possesses more similarities to metamorphosis than anything else, the groups stay true to their opinions about the entire process, even criticizing the use of evolutionary stones to complete a transformation.

Some even complain that if the Kanto Pokerap is played backwards, then you may hear the phrase, "I love Satan" being uttered. If you would like to hear this ridiculousness for yourself, there is a video of such an accusation included at the bottom of the page.

Some animal rights groups have persisted on the subject of banning Pokemon, for the fact that they believe Pokemon battles resemble cockfights. The fact of Pokemon being 'kidnapped' in the wild in Poke Balls seems to upset these groups, saying it resembles poaching in some manners. And still, the ever reliable Pokemon fan-site "The Cave of Dragonflies" boasts a large article about the conflicts & disputes that have been resulting from the worldwide phenomenon itself. To read this magnificent post, scroll to the bottom of this page to find a link containing the story.

In Japan, what they would deem acceptable in children's television & merchandise would prove to be rather undesirable here in the Western world. For instance, rather small moments of violence have been edited from American Pokemon programming, including instances of a Carvahna hitting Ash on the back of his head, Misty hitting Brock with a log, Misty slapping Ash, and more reasonably, Kaiser, the Safari Zone Warden, pointing a revolver at the gang, leading to the episode being banned.

And there's still more to come!

Several counts of racism in the Pokemon franchise have been filed by the public and professionals alike. Jynx was intensely criticized by the cultural critic Carole Boston Weatherford, commenting that Jynx was a negative racial stereotype of the African-American community, with its large, blonde mane, bulbous 'breasts', enormous pink lips and especially its pitch black skin. Weatherford also compared said Pokemon to the characters of The Story of Little Black Sambo, and Mr. Popo of the Dragon Ball series, who has also been subjected to racial accusation.

Actually, Jynx is based on the Japanese Ganguro fashion, in which young women tan their skin, dye their hair an incredibly light blonde, and apply heaps of makeup to match the widely perceived conception of beauty showcased in most of today's modern societies. Still, Nintendo changed the Pokemon's appearance, toning down some of Jynx's most notable racial features to a steady, neutral racial norm.

Lenora, the Nacrene City Gym Leader, also attracted quite a bit of attention for her depiction of the stereotypical 'Mammy archetype'. Actions were taken to alter her clothing from her original Japanese appearance to the English dubbing, yet no one filed claims of racism against Nintendo. The 'Mammy' is a dark-toned woman that wears an apron & a handkerchief on her head, is usually good-hearted, is somewhat rotund or obese, and is perceived to be the opposite of the generally erotic figure of the common white woman in the days of the 1940's. She eventually had the apron slung over her shoulder, but she was not changed in the international releases of Pokemon Black & White Versions.

Uri Geller, a seemingly magical entertainer & 'mystifier', held a case in court against Nintendo of America over a claim that Kadabra was produced as a negative image of himself, with their spoons serving as fine 'evidence' for his case. Other evidence includes the fact that Kadabra's Japanese name, Katakana, appears visually similar to his own in Japanese text.

Geller tried to sue Nintendo of America for 100 million U.S. dollars, but the entire incident was thrown out of court before Uri could obtain a penny. However, no TCG Kadabra cards have appeared since Skyridge in 2003, and has not appeared in the anime as well, to be sure not to arouse Geller's desire to sue the company. He also claims that the Pokemon in question is anti-semistic in nature, with its star & lightning bolts resembling the Nazi SS, saying: "Nintendo turned me into an evil, occult Pokémon character. Nintendo stole my identity by using my name and my signature image."

It's been proven that he's not real in terms of his tricks, so Ha! to you, Uri Geller.

A parents group persisted, but eventually failed, in their quest to sue manufacturers of trading card games (including Nintendo & Wizards of the Coast) claiming that the games constitute illegal gambling through their random pack distribution and collectible nature.

The Game Corner also raised gambling awareness, thus making the European releases of Pokemon Platinum feature no playable Game Corner games, angering many fans that say this change defeated the point of the Game Corner. International releases of Pokemon HeartGold & SoulSilver changed the regular games with a new game called "Voltorb Flip", which excited and pleased some but annoyed and displeased others. All Pokemon Black & White Versions featured no game corner at all.

Well, it seems that The Pokemon Company has garnered quite a bit of complaints surrounding tense issues such as these. Is it just, or not? I shall let my fantastic fans & the curious public decide for themselves. In my professional opinion, I believe that most of these claims are arrogant, ignorant, pointless, and otherwise not very well thought out if you want to make a quick million dollars suing a video game company. Be sure to comment your views in the comments section below, and as always, have a bright & Pikachusif tomorrow!

-The Yellow Blur, Pikachusif