Netflix Is Losing Some Big Pokemon Anime Series (Update)

Update: Netflix has since stricken the expiration dates for Pokemon Journeys: The Series, Pokemon Master Journeys: The Series, Pokemon Ultimate Journeys: The Series, Pokemon: To Be A Pokemon Masters: Ultimate Journeys The Series

Pokemon is easily one of the biggest anime franchises of all time. The series has been a juggernaut in terms of merchandising, video games, and of course, television series. Taking this fact into account, Netflix has attempted to become the premiere spot for many of Pokemon’s past episodes while also being the exclusive platform for the latest series, Pokemon Horizons. Unfortunately, it looks like pocket monster fans are going to need to dive into recent series as soon as possible as the streaming service has listed “expiration dates” for the anime adaptation’s projects. 

The Pokemon anime has well over one thousand episodes to its name, the vast majority of them focusing on Ash Ketchum’s journey of becoming the world’s greatest Pokemon trainer. The most recent series, Pokemon Journeys, made the surprising decision to retire Ash and Pikachu as the stars of the anime. After decades in the driver’s seat, Ketchum was able toa achieve his dream of becoming the Pokemon World Champion but in doing so, realized that he still has a long journey ahead of him to become a “Pokemon Master”. If you haven’t caught up on Ash’s final episodes, you might want to get started to “beat the clock”.

Pokemon’s Expiration Date

According to Netflix’s website, a handful of recent Pokemon anime series will be leaving the platform on September 7th next month. The list includes:

• Pokemon Journeys: The Series
• Pokemon Master Journeys: The Series
• Pokemon Ultimate Journeys: The Series
• Pokemon: To Be A Pokemon Masters: Ultimate Journeys The Series

Luckily, Pokemon Horizons does not appear to be expiring on the same date as its predecessors. Earlier this year, Netflix had listed these series as expiring in March but then removed the “expiration dates” associated with the anime adaptations. Many past Pokemon series are scattered across various streaming services and some aren’t even available to watch anywhere in North America. Hopefully, Pokemon fans will receive some good news when it comes to Journeys.

If you have yet to dive into Pokemon Horizons, here’s how Netflix describes the series, “Two young adventurers on a thrilling quest visit new lands, unravel ancient mysteries and encounter Pokémon — and Poké Balls — they’ve never seen before!”

Want to see what the future holds for your favorite pocket monsters and their trainers? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook for all the latest updates on Pokemon.