‘Pokemon’ Anime Reveals New Designs for Ash, Misty, and Brock

Pokemon will enjoy a truly historic year in 2019. Not only is the franchise about to drop a new generation of Pokemon, but its anime is ready to revisit a favorite story on the big screen. However, Ash Ketchum will look pretty different, and fans got a close look at his new character design this week.

Not long ago, the team behind Pokemon‘s anime sent out a long-awaited trailer. The franchise will drop a new movie this summer that stars Ash and Pikachu, but Pokemon the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution will do up the leads in a rather unfamiliar art style.

Yes, welcome to the world of 3DCG. Ash is preparing to pop off the screen this summer, but his new design hasn’t made believers out of everyone.

As you can see above, a still from the next Pokemon movie has gone live thanks to its recent trailer. To celebrate the franchise’s anniversary, the anime team put out the first trailer for its 2019 feature film, and it ended with a look at Ash alongside Misty and Brock.

The trio have been given a complete 3DCG makeover which is a first for the heroes. While the anime has incorporate 3D animation techniques before, it seems all of Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution will be done in the style. This makeover is making waves in the anime and gaming communities with various success. While some have compared the lifeless rendering to that seen in Jump Force, others are holding out judgement until further trailers show more of these trainers in action.

At this point, there is no detailed synopsis out for Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution, but fans have a blueprint for the film already. The feature appears to be a remake of the original Pokemon film that premiered in 1999 under the same name. This means Ash and his friends will find themselves brought to New Island under the guise of a Pokemon tournament, but things will go south when the trainers learn Mewtwo has gathered them together to show mankind why Pokemon shouldn’t be enslaved.

So, what do you think of these new designs? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!

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