Pokemon: Sun and Moon Finale Breaks Ratings Record

Pokemon will be ushering in a new era of the anime in just a few days in Japan, but this meant that fans had to say goodbye to Sun and Moon. This series initially took fans by surprise when it first debuted such a distinct shift in art style and character design, but by the end of everything it’s been such a huge hit that left fans quite emotional when the finale episode debuted. With the final episode of the series introducing a surprise pregnancy too, it’s no mystery as to why the finale broke a ratings record in Japan.

As noted by @sriram_chan_ on Twitter, Sun and Moon‘s final episode broke through to the Top 10 Weekly Anime‘s TV Viewership for the first time (a feat the series has not been able to accomplish often) with a rating of 2.2 percent.

The final episode of Pokemon’s Sun and Moon anime series was capping off weeks of build up for the series. Not only did Ash take home his very first Pokemon League Championship in Alola, but the final battle of the series is one of the most impressive in the series thus far. In the battle against Professor Kukui, Ash and Pikachu went all out against the surprisingly adamant Tapu Koko.

With such a successful final run in the series, Ash was left without a clear path moving forward. Now that he was successfully deemed a champion, and defeated a guardian, Ash decided to start his journey all over from the beginning in order to really get in touch with his roots as a Pokemon Trainer. It’s why the new series will be revisiting much of the past of the franchise by having Ash and new protagonist Gou explore past regions and battle familiar faces.

Pokemon: The Series will be officially making its debut November 17th in Japan, and the first episode of the new series is titled “Birth of Pikachu,” and the synopsis for it reads as such, “In a forest somewhere in Kanto, there once was a lonely Pichu. This Pichu – who was still quite young – had a certain encounter and farewell. This took place shortly before Ash and his partner Pikachu started travelling together. This is the beginning of the anime ‘Pocket Monster.’”