Hello Gamers!
This is Gian, host of VGATW.
We all love Pokemon, it has been iconic since
1996 with all these cute creatures with special
powers.
Of course, some people use Pokemon for raising
others use it for friendly battles.
It spawned so many merchandises and even an
anime series that has lasted for 20 long years
even if people are tired of Ash never winning
a league, or they just gave it up.
Of course, I enjoyed watching the anime but
I got tired of it after Johto Journeys, so
I stuck to playing the games.
I still remember how it was 151 Pokemon, then
their numbers grew and we saw more badass
legendary Pokemon such as Lugia, Ho-Oh, Lucario
and many more.
However, despite the popularity of the series
with kids, it has been the subject of controversy
various times by some level of experience
with the show or some who are so fanatical
with their beliefs.
Let us now talk about the controversies of
Pokemon and debunk them as well.
The first Pokemon game was released in 1996
on the Game Boy.
And since then it has become a worldwide phenomenon
that spawned an anime, toys, trading card
games and tons of other merchandise as well.
The game of Pokemon is about a young Pokemon
trainer who journeys all over Kanto to catch
all the Pokemon and become a master.
He or she duels with gym leaders from different
towns and earn badges in order to enter the
Pokemon League and duel the Elite Four and
finally he or she can take on the rival.
The more games there were, newer species of
Pokemon appear with the following types: Normal,
Water, Fire, Grass, Earth, Ice, Lightning,
Flying, Ice, Steel, Insect, Psychic, Dragon,
Ghost, Fairy, Ground, Fighting and Legendary.
Despite it's popularity, Pokemon has come
under a lot of fire various times by the public
which led to censorship and changes which
led to the list of controversies.
Very well known controversies of Pokemon are
the episodes Electric Soldier Porygon and
Beauty and the Beach.
Electric Soldier Porygon was the Pokemon episode
that sent over 700 children to the hospital
in Japan due to use of a flashing strobe effect
upon its first and only airing.
Because of that, this episode was never commercially
released or re-broadcast anywhere in the world,
and the show went on hiatus for four months.
The frames which caused the seizures are a
four-second section in which Pikachu uses
an Electric attack on a group of vaccine missiles.
The explosion—which occupies a significant
portion of the frame—flashes brightly and
alternates rapidly between red and blue.
The seizures caused by this episode resulted
in OLM dropping strobe effects from Pikachu's
electric attacks.
For years following the incident, a disclaimer
was broadcast at the beginning of all Japanese
television shows, cautioning viewers not to
sit too close to the television screen and
to watch only in a brightly-lit room.
The episode Beauty and the Beach was banned
outside of Japan due to an infamous scene
where James (Kojiro in Japan) crossdresses
and wears inflatable breasts for a beauty
contest.
First time I saw that I was like "whoa", they
never showed this in America because of that
scene?
There were other banned episodes in the anime
such as episode 35 due to the use of handguns.
And even the episode Holiday Hi-Jynx was banned
due to stereotypes and allegations of racism
by activist Carole Boston Weatherford.
But the controversies were not just in the
anime but also in the games as well and these
are the following
Now we know that the Swastika was a charm
of good will in the past that was used in
various religions, until the day that evil
scumbag took it and turned it into a symbol
of hatred, intolerance and bigotry.
The swastika was shown in the Trading Card
Game in Japan which is Koga's Ninja Trick,
which was meant to be a shuriken.
However in the USA it was changed.
Although here in America and in Germany, the
symbol is seen as one of hatred.
But in the East, some cultures and religions
still use it.
As a good luck charm and a symbol of peace
As said in Season 1 about the Swastika in
the episode of Video Games and Religion, or
the Manji, in Sanskrit it means "Well Being
of the Soul".
In the anime Team Rocket's salute resemble
the Bellamy salute, but of course 4Kids made
it look like two arms were lifted instead.
Why?
Because Nazi Germany would use that salute
and shout "Heil Hitler" or "Sieg Heil" which
means Hail to Victory.
In the video games the Pokemon Registeel had
it's arm lifted in the Japanese version, but
in both European and US versions the arms
are down.
However, that salute in which for years was
used by the Nazis, here's a factual statement
about it.
That salute is not called the Nazi salute,
it's called the Bellamy salute which was used
by the armies of the Roman Empire.
Of course, the Nazis appropriated that salute
for their use, which means, they stole it.
The Pokemon Jynx was controversial and accused
of racial stereotypes by Carole Boston Weatherford,
an African American activist and cultural
critic.
Weatherford is also known for accusing the
character of Mr. Popo from the Dragon Ball
series of racial stereotypes.
In Pokemon, Jynx was criticized for it's black
skin, oversized facial features, and resemblance
to drag performers, who were typical in minstrel
shows.
She chiefly compared Jynx to the racist characters
in The Story of Little Black Sambo, and further
compared Jynx to Mr. Popo of the Dragon Ball
franchise, a character who is also potentially
offensive in his design.
After these accusations, the franchise had
faced several repercussions.
In later games such as Pokemon Gold, Silver
and Crystal, the skin color was changed such
as turning it's skin purple and all episodes
featuring Jynx's original design were cut
from international airings of the anime, including
a sequence depicting Jynx in its original
design in All Things Bright and Beautifly!
In the anime and games, the character of Lenora
brought also concerns of racism.
And speaking of racism...
Ramon Salazar: Isn't that a popular word these
days?
...yep, pretty much.
In the English dub version, her clothing was
changed but in the Japanese version she was
seen wearing an apron and a handkerchief on
her head, which alludes the Mammy stereotype.
Despite this, Lenora's in-game sprites were
not altered in the international releases
of Pokémon Black and White or Pokémon Black
2 and White 2.
Pokemon was also the target of animal rights
activists and groups such as PETA (People
Eating Tasty Animals), excuse me, People for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Several of these activists have tried to ban
the franchise believing that Pokemon duels
resemble cockfights.
While the so-called detective of Pop Culture
compared it to dog fighting.
Yep, I'm talking about the guy who quoted
about Osama Bin Laden saying: "I'm not going
to celebrate the killing of another human
being, regardless of how reprehensible they
have been."
And then he later quoted about Christopher
Hitchens saying: "He was a despicable, vile,
warmongering hateful human being.
Good riddance!"
Dude!
You can't have it both ways.
And one of the most hated people on the Internet
called him a sexist.
Uh, how was he a sexist when he advocated
the empowerment and independence of women?
But enough of that real life Team Rocket,
back to Pokemon.
The aspect of the PETA controversy was touched
when Pokemon Black and White.
Upon the release of Pokémon Black 2 and White
2, PETA released a mock game named Pokémon
Black and Blue.
In the game, the player controls the Pokémon
to attack the opposing human.
PETA claims that the way the Pokémon are
"stuffed" into the Poké Ball is similar to
how circus elephants are chained inside railroad
carts.
Nintendo responded to this by simply stating,
"Nintendo and The Pokémon Company take the
inappropriate use of our products and intellectual
property seriously."
Around the release of Pokémon X and Y, PETA
released another mock game called Pokémon
Red, White, and Blue that features Nintendo's
claimed association with McDonald's and also
makes fun of the frequent release of sister
games.
PETA doesn't understand that Pokemon duels
are not ones to the death, but friendly duels.
Pokemon aren't even real and comparing them
to cock fights and dog fights is just idiotic
and ludicrous.
We all know PETA attacked other video games
aside from Pokemon such as Super Mario Bros
for the Tanooki Suit.
Grand Theft Auto San Andreas over the dog
Chop and Warhammer 40k for fur.
I mean, seriously, do people take this company
seriously or something?
I don't think so.
Uri Geller is a worldwide known spoonbender,
illusionist and a self-proclaimed psychic.
You can see a biopic of his on his official
website, it's called Mindbender.
Now I know lots of you people watching this
who know about Uri Geller will say that the
magician James Randi exposed him as a fake
and a fraud long ago.
Uri Geller filed a lawsuit against the series
due to a Pokemon called Kadabra.
He said that it was an unauthorized parody
of him.
Besides Kadabra's use of bent spoons to enhance
its psychic powers, the katakana for its name
(ユンゲラー) is visually similar to the
transliteration of his own name into Japanese
(ユリゲラー).
Another claim was that Kadabra's design is
antisemitic in nature due to the star on its
forehead and the lightning bolts resembling
the logo of the Waffen-SS.
He is quoted as saying "Nintendo turned me
into an evil, occult Pokémon character.
Nintendo stole my identity by using my name
and my signature image."
The symbols themselves are taken from those
used on Zener cards, which have been used
to conduct research into psychic abilities.
I mean like, dude, I don't think that Satoshi
Tajiri intended to make it that way.
Besides, you're not the only magician in the
world who can bend a spoon.
Anyways, in the TV Show Magician's Greatest
Secrets revealed it has been show how they
bend a spoon.
Maybe Mr. Geller you can learn a thing or
two from them.
As a result, there has not been a Kadabra
card in the Trading Card Game since Skyridge
in 2003 and Kadabra has not appeared in the
Pokémon anime since Fear Factor Phony, perhaps
as a precaution against Geller's history of
lawsuits.
This is further hinted at by Masamitsu Hidaka's
interview with PokéBeach in July 2008, where
he claims that usage of Kadabra on a card
is not allowed until an agreement was reached
and that the case would not be settled anytime
soon.
Sorry Mr. Geller, but whining like a child
over a Pokemon is not going to help.
Pokemon was also the target of various religious
groups such as Islam.
Muslims accused Pokemon of Jewish conspiracy
and it was banned in multiple Islamic countries
such as Qatar and Egypt.
Even the Jewish Anti-Defamation League accused
it of anti-semitism due to use of the manji
or the swastika.
Nintendo ceased manufacturing the card, a
decision that was positively received by the
group, which also understood that the symbol
was not intended to offend and acknowledged
the sensitivity that Nintendo had shown by
removing the product.
However, the religious demographic that would
constantly attack Pokemon would be Christianity.
Does anyone remember this preacher attacking
Pokemon?
Well, here's a video 
of him.
Whoa!
He really wanted Pokemon banned and his flock
are just caving in to what he says.
Now, I'm not an atheist, I'm a non-denominational
and I gotta say that what he said doesn't
make any sense at all.
But Pokemon was attacked by Christians by
the following.
One.
Pokémon are like demons.
They are captured and must be called upon
to perform tasks.
Two.
Magical talismans (supposedly a reference
to Gym Badges) are needed to control them.
No!
First of all Pokemon are not like demons,
I mean, do they have horns or bat-like wings?
Dude!
And Gym Badges are not talismans, they're
badges!
Sure, they'll give Pokemon abilities according
to the games but, when a trainer earns a badge
it means that, they have succeeded in proving
how they're synced with the Pokemon they are
to their trainers and their bond.
Three.
Pokémon evolution has often been criticized
due to sharing the name with the scientific
theory of evolution which fundamentalist creationists
usually reject, although the phenomenon in
Pokémon is closer to metamorphosis.
Whoa!
No wonder why Thunderf00t's "Why People Laugh
At Creationists?" still continues.
Four.
Certain Pokémon evolutions require evolutionary
stones, which are often seen as magical.
Five.
Many Pokémon have extraordinary paranormal
powers, notably Psychic-types and Ghost-types.
True, they have special powers, because they
are born with those powers and they represent
these powers.
Also, many Pokémon inherently involve East
Asian spiritualism or mysticism, due to the
franchise originating in Japan.
Some Christian groups denounce these as pagan
rituals.
Some claim that if one were to play backwards
the Kanto Pokérap, "Gotta Catch 'em All!"
can be heard as "I love you, Satan".
What?!
The Picard facepalm ladies and gentlemen that's
what I gotta do right now.
And finally to them they say, Pokémon causes
homosexuality, the close relationship between
the characters Ash and Brock was "a sign of
the cartoon’s gay agenda".
WHAT?!
OH REALLY?
You know?
We all know that in many Christian groups
do not support gay marriage or anything like
that.
Now I did support marriage equality, I started
supporting it back in 2013 during a turning
point with my views on LGBT people.
Now, LGBT people...let me tell you one thing.
As a fellow believer of God, LGBT people are
God's children too!
They don't have it easy!
No one has it easy in this world!
In response to these claims, the Vatican City-based
Sat 2000 broadcast public approval of Pokémon
in April 2000, stating that the games did
not have "any harmful moral side effects"
and was based on "ties of intense friendship"
At least, the Vatican was more understanding
of the games and the anime.
Because Pokemon is not just about a journey
to duel the best trainers and catch all the
Pokemon.
Pokemon is about a bond between the trainers
and their Pokemon as well as friendship and
love.
Ash and Misty at first didn't get along so
good due to destroying her bike by accident.
He and Brock were good friends.
Ash made great friends and companions in every
anime series from the Kanto League to the
current series.
And finally in conclusion.
All I gotta say is that there are so many
people who do not understand the series.
What's really sad about not only Pokemon but
other forms of entertainment in general is
that instead of trying to see the positive,
many people only focus on something to be
offended by or the negative of it.
Of course, the thing of accusing Pokemon of
being Satanic is so asinine that these Christian
groups said the same thing about disco during
the KISS era and rock n'roll as well.
People need to learn to stop focusing only
on what's negative and try to see the positive
of things.
So to those watching this episode, I urge
you to not be like those people.
And that's all ladies and gentlemen, comment,
rate, subscribe, follow me on social media
and support me on Patreon as this will help
me since YouTube is not in a good position
due to the adpocalypse.
So until next time gamers.
This is Gian, host of VGATW.
Play Hard Gamers and have a good one.
