Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon Comes to Netflix

The newest season of the Pokemon anime is now available on Netflix.

Netflix quietly posted the first season of Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon on its streaming service yesterday. The 43 episode season covers Ash Ketchum's journey to the Alola region and his enrollment at a Pokemon school there.

The Alola region is a bit different than other regions seen in the Pokemon anime in that it doesn't have any gyms or even an official Pokemon league. Instead of badges, Ash spends his time learning about Z-Moves and battling the kahunas of the Alola region's main islands. By defeating a kahuna, Ash earns Z-Crystals that can be used to charge up different types of Pokemon moves.

While past seasons of the Pokemon anime have focused on Ash battling his way through different regions of the Pokemon world, Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon is much more of a "slice of life" type of show. Most episodes take place either at the Pokemon school or on Melemele Island, and there's more of an emphasis on comedy and what's it like to live in a Pokemon society than in past seasons. There's still lots of Pokemon battles, but this season is all about showing Ash as a normal kid for the first time ever.

Some of the other major characters in the new anime include Professor Kukui, Ash's teacher and surrogate father figure, a helpful Rotom that possesses a Pokedex and chronicles Ash's adventures, his classmates Lillie, Kiawe, Lana, Mallow, and Sophocles, and school principal Samson Oak. Team Rocket also makes frequent appearances on the show, usually accompanied by an over-friendly Bewear that's as much a help as a hindrance.

The first season of Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon covers Ash's initial journey to the Alola region all the way up to his return to Kanto for a class trip. The final two episodes feature the long awaited return of Brock and Misty, as they meet up with Ash and his friends during a trip to Professor Oak's lab. Several of Ash's older Pokemon also make cameo appearances in the episode.

You can watch episodes of Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon on Netflix at any time. New episodes of the series air in Japan on Thursdays, and dubbed episodes air on Disney XD after a several month delay.