This article is about the seventh series of thePokémon animated series. For its eponymous first season, seeS23.

This article is about the animated TV series. For its eponymous manga adaptation, seePokémon Journeys (manga).

Pokémon Journeys: The Series (Japanese:ポケットモンスターPocket Monsters) is the seventhseries of thePokémon animated series in Asia (including Japan) and the eighth and final series ofPokémon the Series in the West. The series is based on all of thecore seriesgames, including theGeneration VIII gamesPokémon Sword and Shield. It followsPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon and was succeeded byPokémon Horizons: The Series. It premiered between November 17, 2019 and March 24, 2023 in Japan (although the first episode had a special screening two days earlier) and between June 12, 2020 and September 8, 2023 inthe United States. In South Korea, the series was released asPocket Monsters W (Korean:포켓몬스터WPocket Monsters W).

Similar to howPokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl featuredAsh Ketchum andDawn as dual protagonists,Pokémon Journeys: The Series introducesGoh as a protagonist alongside Ash. Additionally, much like howPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon established a home base for Ash onMelemele Island, this series establishes theCerise Laboratory inVermilion City as Ash and Goh's main base of operations, and together they travel around theworld—specifically, allregions that have appeared in thecore series fromKanto toGalar. Ash continues his pursuit of becoming aPokémon Master by entering theWorld Coronation Series, a competition used to decide the world's strongestPokémon Trainer, with the hopes of one day having an official match with the reigning Monarch,Leon. Goh, having had a fateful encounter withMew when he was six, dreams of one daycatching theMythical Pokémon, and aims to complete hisPokédex while participating in theProject Mew research project in the hopes that they will get him closer to his dream. The series also prominently features a young girl namedChloe and her fatherProfessor Cerise, who appoints Ash and Goh as research fellows for the Cerise Laboratory.

As with the previous three series, this series introduces a new art style. For instance, Ash's eyes (both the irises and the overall eyes) are drawn larger, andTeam Rocket's eyes are drawn sharper than inPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon. Overall, the characters are drawn more similarly based on Ken Sugimori's more recent character art. Characters are also consistently drawn with fingernails, like inPokémon the Series: XY. About halfway through the series, many of the Pokémon's colors have been changed to match the colorization in their models inPokémon HOME.

Pokémon Journeys: The Series features the return of many characters that have appeared over the course ofPokémon the Series, from main characters (likeBrock,Iris, and Dawn, for example) to recurring characters (likeGary,Korrina, andPaul, among others), far more than any of the previous series. In addition to this,Pokémon Journeys: The Series concludes several storylines created over the years withinPokémon the Series, such as the search forMohn,Butch andCassidy's rivalry withJessie andJames, and Ash's desire to challengeCynthia.

Pokémon Journeys: The Series is the first series to feature episodes split into two different story segments, something that started inSplash, Dash, and Smash for the Crown! / Slowking's Crowning! and continued withPikachu Translation Check... / Up to Your Neck! andA Rollicking Roll… / Eyes on the Goal!. These episodes have a more comical and "loose" plot from the main story. This is also the first series to have special episodes released directly for streaming, with a four-part arc related toPokémon Legends: Arceus, titledPokémon: The Arceus Chronicles, released directly on Japan'sPrime Video service.^[1]

After airing the first 136 episodes ofPokémon Journeys: The Series in Japan, on December 16, 2022, an eleven-episode epilogue miniseries focused on Ash and Pikachu calledPokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master was announced worldwide.^[2] In the dub, this miniseries was combined with the special episodeDistant Blue Sky! to form the final batch ofPokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series. In this miniseries, Ash reunites with his old friends Brock andMisty on a tour to see the world while making new friends and reuniting with old ones.

Episodes inPokémon Journeys: The Series are numbered withthe prefixJN onBulbapedia. For a complete episode listing, see thelist ofPokémon Journeys: The Series episodes.

Blurb

Pokémon Trainer Ash Ketchum has a new plan: see the world! But first, he and his partner Pikachu are headed to the opening of the Cerise Laboratory, a research facility dedicated to uncovering the mysteries of Pokémon in every region. Ash meets Goh, another boy with boundless curiosity about Pokémon, and both are overjoyed when Professor Cerise asks them to become official research fellows. With Ash as determined as ever to become a Pokémon Master, and Goh aiming to catch one of every Pokémon (including the Mythical Mew), our heroes are in for adventure and excitement as they explore the wide world of Pokémon!

Arcs and seasons

Pokémon Journeys: The Series has been divided into multiple arcs in the Japanese release. WhenPokémon Journeys: The Series came to be dubbed into English and other languages, it was divided into three seasons.

The following table summarizes the Japanese titles, the English titles, and theJapanese andEnglish opening themes used during the series.

Japan				United States
Title	Opening theme	First episode		Title	Opening theme	First episode
Pocket Monsters	One, Two, Three (feat. After the Rain)	JN001		Pokémon Journeys: The Series	The Journey Starts Today	JN001
	One, Two, Three (feat. Nishikawa-kun and Kirishō)	JN032
	One, Two, Three (feat. Karaage Sisters)	JN050		Pokémon Master Journeys: The Series	Journey to Your Heart	JN049
	One, Two, Three (feat. Ash & Goh)	JN100		Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series	With You	JN091
Pocket Monsters: Aim to Be a Pokémon Master	Aim to Be a Pokémon Master -with my friends-	JN137		Pokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master	Gotta Catch Em All	JN137

Movies

Main article:Pokémon movie

• Secrets of the Jungle

Home video releases

Japanese DVD releases

• List of Japanese language new series home video releases

Gallery

For more images, please seeartwork from Pokémon Journeys: The Series on theBulbagarden Archives.

Posters

• 
  First Japanese poster
• 
  First Japanese main artwork
• 
  Second Japanese main artwork
• 
  Third Japanese main artwork
• 
  Second Japanese poster
• 
  Third Japanese poster
• 
  Fourth Japanese poster
• 
  Fifth Japanese poster
• 
  Sixth Japanese poster
• 
  Seventh Japanese poster
• 
  Eighth Japanese poster
• 
  Ninth Japanese poster
• 
  Tenth Japanese poster
• 
  Pocket Monsters: Arceus, the One Called God Japanese poster
• 
  Pocket Monsters: The Distant Blue Sky Japanese poster
• 
  Pocket Monsters: Aim to Be a Pokémon Master Japanese poster
• 
  Key visual
• 
  Golden Fridays poster
• 
  English poster for Pokémon Journeys: The Series
• 
  English poster for Pokémon Master Journeys: The Series
• 
  English poster for Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series
• 
  Pokémon: The Arceus Chronicles poster
• 
  English poster for Pokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master
• 
  English poster forDistant Blue Sky!

Characters

Protagonists

• 
  Ash
• 
  Goh

Antagonists

• 
  Jessie
• 
  James
• 
  Meowth
• 
  Wobbuffet

Rivals

• 
  Gary
• 
  Volkner
• 
  Raihan
• 
  Marnie

Masters Eight

• 
  Leon
• 
  Cynthia
• 
  Steven
• 
  Lance
• 
  Diantha
• 
  Alain
• 
  Iris

Supporting characters

• 
  Misty
• 
  Brock
• 
  Dawn
• 
  Professor Oak
• 
  Chloe
• 
  Professor Cerise
• 
  Chrysa
• 
  Ren
• 
  Danika
• 
  Quillon

Staff

Trivia

• The Japanese name for thisseries retains itsoriginal title:Pocket Monsters.
• The design for the Japanese logo of the series is shared withM20 andM21, which are notcanon with the main series.
  • This also makes it the first series logo to not be colored in any shade of green, being completely blue instead. It is also the first one without any 3D perspective, having a flat 2D design.
• Netflix provides an epilepsy warning at the beginning of each episode after the TV rating chyron, thus marking the second time that the warning has been used outside of Japan, the first time beingMewtwo Strikes Back—Evolution.
• This is the first series:
  • To be dubbed byIyuno (formerly known as Iyuno Media Group) and Goldcrest Post.
  • To be set in more than two game-originalregions.
  • Since:
    • Theoriginal series:
      • To be put on an extended hiatus; in this case, it was brought on by a production shutdown due to concerns from theCOVID-19 pandemic.
      • To not have the names of the generation's firstcore series games in its title.
      • WhereAsh travels with more than one main group of traveling companions, traveling withGoh during thePocket Monsters arc, then withMisty andBrock duringPokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master.
    • Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire
      • Where Ash's outfit is not directly influenced by the male player character's outfit for the currentgeneration.
      • Where Ash has won more than oneFull Battle.
    • Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl
      • Where Ash recalls any of the Pokémon atProfessor Oak's Laboratory to hisparty.
      • Where Ash travels with traveling companions from previous series outside of temporary instances.
      • WhereTeam Rocket uses Pokémon they had caught in previous series aside fromWobbuffet.
      • To featureregular broadcasting clip shows.
      • To feature more than threeEnglish opening themes.
    • Pokémon the Series: Black & White
      • Where Pokémon have rejoined Ash's regular rotation after leaving it in a prior series.
      • In which the final episode ends with the message "Next Time... A New Beginning!"
        • However, this message was removed in the English dub.
      • To feature a generic eyecatch rather than a guessing segment.
  • In whicha main character other than Ash catches allfirst partner Pokémon of the current generation.
  • In which the current generation in the animated series concludes after the release of the following generation's initial games.
  • To feature main series episodes where none of the main characters make a physical appearance.
    • It is also the first series to feature main series episodes where Ash andPikachu are completely absent.
  • To featurea movie that is released outside of July. This was due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • In which a main character catches aLegendary Pokémon.
  • In which two protagonists catch the same Pokémon; with Ash and Goh each catching aFarfetch'd, though Goh catches the Kantonian form, while Ash catches the Galarian form.
  • In which a main character owns both a Pokémon's regular form and its regional form.
  • To have aJapanese opening theme with more than two different versions.
  • In whichPokémon Eggs are given generic designs, contradicting their designs from previous series.
  • In which the current generation's regionalProfessor does not debut in the first two episodes.
  • In which theWho's That Pokémon? segments from the original Japanese version are retained in the dub.
  • In which the "To Be Continued" text is removed in the dub; it is only maintained in the official YouTube upload of thefirst episode, but was retained onThis Could be the Start of Something Big!.
  • In which an event-only location in the games is visited by the protagonists.
• This is the only series ofPokémon the Series in which:
  • The first Pokémon Ashcaught was fully evolved, apseudo-legendary Pokémon, and not introduced in the current generation.
  • Ash catches aGhost-type,baby,regional form, andFossil Pokémon.
  • Ash does not acquire anyFire-type Pokémon.
  • Ash hasMega Evolved one of his Pokémon.
  • Ash does not have a new traveling companion that originates from the games.
  • One of Ash's friends catches a Pokémon before Ash does.
  • One of Ash's male traveling companions owns aPokédex.
  • Ash does not catch any first partner Pokémon.
  • Ash does not participate in aPokémon League.
  • Ash wins more than oneFull Battle (of the series where he participates in more than one Full Battle).
  • Ash's journey is not an adaptation of the current generation ofcore series games.
  • Jessie does not catch any new Pokémon.
  • Team Rocket owns a Pokédex.
  • Ash reunites with his traveling companions from more than one previous series.
  • Released Pokémon of Ash's appear outside of the series they were released in.
  • A released Pokémon re-joins Ash's ownership permanently.
  • Previousrivals of Ash besidesGary make appearances outside of the series they were introduced in.
  • Ash defeats anElite Four member or aChampion in an official battle.
• This is the only series featuring eyecatches where the eyecatches remain the same throughout without any variations.
• Thefirst Japanese ending theme of this series was used for 70 episodes, longer than any other Japanese ending.

• Ash obtains less Pokémon that debuted in the generation that the animated series covers than any other series, obtaining two individual species fromGeneration VIII.
  • Additionally, Ash obtains more Pokémon species that debuted in previous generations than he did fromGeneration VIII.
• This series features the most of Ash's former traveling companions from previous series out of any series, with all the previous companions making a physical appearance.
• This series contains the least amount ofmovies out of any series, with only one.
  • This series also contains the least amount ofendings introduced in a single series, with only two.
  • This is also the only series where the number of Pokémon movies is not equal to the number of seasons of the series.
• This series has the most regular broadcasting clip shows out of any series, at four.
  • It also has the shortest gap between clip shows, with only two weeks betweenJN119 andJN121.
• The last 12 episodes of this series were released in the United States on the 25th anniversary of the original airing of the animated series'sfirst episode.
• This is the final series to feature Ash and Pikachu as main protagonists and theTeam Rocket trio as main antagonists.
  • With the end of Ash's saga in the Pokémon animated series, the official Pokémon page on Twitter revealed an art containing the beginning of Ash's journey and his last scene inThe Rainbow and the Pokémon Master! signed byKunihiko Yuyama.^[3] The tweet was later retweeted bySarah Natochenny herself.^[4][5]
  • On October 6, 2023, the official Pokémon YouTube channel released a video calledA Timeless Journey that recalls some of the moments of Ash andhis friends' journey.

• On November 7, 2023 (approximately a year afterPartners in Time! aired in Japan), they released a compilation of Ash's first battles and the climax of the battle againstLeon in the aforementioned episode, and Ash's first and last interactions withMisty,Brock,Gary, and theSquirtle Squad.

In other languages

External links

• Pokémon Journeys: The Series at the Pokémon official site for Asia
• Official site (Japanese)

References

Related articles

This article is part ofProject Anime, aBulbapedia project that covers all aspects ofPokémon animation.

• Articles with accompanying video
• Series of the Pokémon animated series