Pokemon: Two Infamous Unaired Episodes Have Surfaced at Last

When it comes to Pokemon, there are few things fans love more than a good mystery. From speculation about Mew’s origins to talks about Ash’s age, the chatter never stops. This goes doubly in the case of lost history as Pokemon has a number of MIA entries lost in this world. But now, a new report suggests two unaired episodes from the Pokemon anime may finally resurface in part thanks to a true Pokemon detective.

UPDATE: It’s official! The scripts for these two lost Pokemon episodes have surfaced. The update was shared by the fundraiser’s creator earlier today, so we’ll count this as a win for Pokemon detectives everywhere!

The whole thing came to light through Bulbagarden as user ObjectionMan made a post regarding a fundraiser. According to their post, they were able to track down an anonymous buyer of two Pokemon: Black and White scripts. These scripts covered episodes 23 and 24 which famously never aired as airtime in Japan was being reserved for tsunami relief coverage. So while the episodes may not surface in and of themselves, their scripts could go live with some help.

“In 2013, these scripts were purchased by [Identity Withheld for Privacy Reasons]. They scanned the pages and sent them to their friend [Identity Withheld for Privacy Reasons], whom I will now refer to as the Seller. For some reason or other, neither party chose to share what they had online,” the post reads. “A while back, I contacted the Seller and asked them if I could arrange a purchase of those scans. We talked and the price landed on $4,000. I thought I could pay it with my savings, then got the unpleasant reminder that I’d pre-pledged much of those savings on more important matters (family, business, etc.).”

Taking to social media, known Pokemon creators like Webmaster Archaic (Bulbagarden) and Dephender (Serebii) have verified the account. A GoFundMe page was made to fund the script purchases, but the page was since removed by its creator. Allegedly, the GFM was removed voluntarily, and the fundraiser creator says they have “great news” in store.

As for these lost episodes, well – Pokemon fans are eager to learn more about these forgotten relics. Pokemon: Black and White hyped up these episodes ahead of their release as they promised to pit Team Rocket against Team Plasma. However, the episodes were ultimately shelved because of natural disasters. After being hit by a major earthquake and tsunami, Pokemon chose to hold back the episodes as they depicted untold property damage. You can see why the episodes would have come off as insensitive then, and despite pleas, the two episodes never saw the light of day once their releases were postponed.

Now, it seems a piece of Pokemon’s past may come to light soon enough. If it does, we will be able to see how Team Plasma and Team Rocket would have fared in the battle against the other. And of course, you know Ash and Pikachu will get involved in the fight one way or another.

What do you make of this latest Pokemon discovery? Do you think these scripts will see the light of day or…? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.