Pokemon (2023)

In a world filled with strange yet majestic creatures known as Pokémon, a new adventure begins! Hailing from the pristine region of Paldea, the timid Liko travels to the Kanto region to attend the Indigo Academy and become a Pokémon trainer—a person who forms relationships with Pokémon and trains them to participate in battles. Soon, Liko acquires Nyahoja, a fickle Grass-type cat Pokémon, as her first partner.

Prior to Liko's transfer to Kanto, her grandmother gives her a uniquely patterned and gleaming pendant as a protective charm. However, an enigmatic organization—The Explorers—seems to know a secret about the pendant and nearly succeeds in stealing it from Liko. Fortunately, she is rescued by the Rising Volt Tacklers, a group of adventurers led by a Lizardon-riding trainer named Friede.

After a series of encounters with The Explorers, Liko decides to join Friede's team, accompanying him and his crew members on a grand journey across the regions. Along the way, they aim to unravel not only the mysteries of the world of Pokémon, but also the power that resides within her pendant.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Liko Main

Suzuki, Minori Japanese

Dot Main

Aoyama, Yoshino Japanese

Captain Pikachu Main

Ootani, Ikue Japanese

Friede Main

Yashiro, Taku Japanese

Nyahoja Main

Hayashibara, Megumi Japanese

Hogator Main

Yamashita, Daiki Japanese

Roy Main

Terasaki, Yuka Japanese

Masquernya Main

Hayashibara, Megumi Japanese

Nyarote Main

Hayashibara, Megumi Japanese

Achigator Main

Yamashita, Daiki Japanese

Katou, Hiroyuki Producer

Sekiguchi, Ayaka Producer

Kumemura, Makoto Producer

Kudou, Yuusuke Producer

Reviews

Apr 28, 2026

RedSinnoh

Recommended

Preliminary (135/? eps)

Now THIS is what Pokémon anime should have always been about.

There's definitely some room for improvement, specially when it comes to filler episodes/arcs, but the fact that an anime that is still for kids is so well executed for us Pokémon fans makes it so special too.
Animation has been improving as the anime advanced, characters have got their own developments and even some non-meta Pokémon got their chance to shine.
The new plot is really original, specially for a Pokémon anime, but even as a regular anime enjoyer I can say there's some really good moments that made me shiver. I came in ... out of curiosity, and stayed out of enjoyment.

All I ask is they keep making stories like this, and keep letting the world know what Pokémon ACTUALLY is about.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jan 23, 2026

Elso-chan

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (45/? eps)

If you like pokemon as a franchise and you also happen to be a fan of Eureka Seven, you'll probably enjoy this reboot to the Pokemon Anime. Pokemon Horizons takes a different approach to its predecessor in terms of its storytelling. There is very little filler, and the pacing makes for a very easy watching experience. The story follows Liko, who is going to Pokemon School, and is thrust unwillingly into adventure because she happens to possess this show's McGuffin, a pendent given to her my her Grandmother. The show's main antagonists called "The Explorers" Show up and attempt to kidnap Liko but She is ... rescued by and later joins a group of adventures that call themselves the Rising Volt Tacklers. They are led by Friede and his Pikachu "Captain Pikachu" and they travel around the world on an airship. The main cast is later rounded out by Roy, a loud and obnoxious boy with more heart than brains, and Dot, who spends most of the season in a supporting role because she locks herself in her room and hardly ever comes out. Her character development is most apparent in the series as she slowly battles her own social anxiety and eventually befriends Liko and Roy becoming a more active part of the cast along the way.

When I compare this show to Eureka Seven, I'm not exaggerating. Friede is just a carbon copy of Holland placed in the pokemon world (He's even voiced by Crispin Freeman in the Dub), while Roy and Liko serve as parallels to Renton and Eureka. Roaming around the world in an Air Ship drives home the point. Turns out, same writing team, go figure. The Explorers also all give off "Mecha Anime Antagonist" Vibes as well.

As for what this might do for older pokemon fans wondering if this show is worth a watch: It doesn't follow the same formula that its predecessor did. Liko isn't traveling around to collect Gym Badges to enter a pokemon league. The Explorers aren't in every episode and actually serve as proper antagonists, instead of comic relief that disrupts the plot per a consistent formula. Horizons feels more like a traditional Shonen anime like Naruto or Bleach. Some episodes are stand alone stories while others meld together but very few of the episodes felt like filler. Something impactful is happening in every episode. This would be a great gateway anime for younger children while still being entertaining for adults who grew up with or still have the pokemon franchise as a part of their lives.

There are some notable flaws. Roy is insufferable for one. The relationship between Liko and her partner pokemon, Sprigatito, is as close or distant as the plot demands it to be. There are several episodes that follow the same premise of: Sprigatito gets jealous that Liko is paying attention to a pokemon that isn't them, gets pissed, they make up after something bad happens, and they are closer than ever. That was great once, but they have repeated that conflict a few times which undermines the character development. The battles involving the kids are also just not interesting to watch, which is contrast to the battles involving the adults, which are fun and engaging. I suppose that makes some semblance of sense because it lets us see the kids grow as trainers as their pokemon get stronger and they learn better strategies. It's also much more true to how the games play but watching it just isn't super engaging. The original anime got around this by taking more liberties with how pokemon battles, the attacks, type coverage, and abilities work, where as Horizons tries to be more true to the games. There was something to taking those liberties even if you sometimes got dumb stuff happening like "Aim for the horn".

Overall, if you're looking for a anime to watch with your young children, this is a great option. Visually it's pretty middle of the road in terms of character design and animation quality. It's not bad by any means but it's not great either. Battle choreography needs alot of work as well. If you're a pokemon fan who also enjoys the mecha genera, you'll probably get something out of this. That being said, it's still the pokemon anime, if you're over the age of 13 and have no relationship with pokemon as a franchise, this probably isn't going to get you into the franchise, nor will you enjoy it on its own as an anime.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Mar 5, 2024

Bobzi11a

Not Recommended

Preliminary (5/? eps)

Here's a unique review, coming from someone who genuinely doesn't care who the protag is. Ash was cookie cutter and the fact he got to star in like 20+ seasons is beyond me. It's a show about magical monsters, how did they manage to make it revolve around 1 person?!

So that's where I'm left with this. I went in thinking, "Oh nice! They're finally going to change the story formula and make use of the franchise" "We're finally going to get something like Scarlet Wings or Origins, fleshing out the world itself!"

And that's why I stopped watching, I got my hopes up.

It's just female ash, ... with weed cat, constantly making up her own emotional baggage to spend 15+ minutes an episode to "bravely push through". Writing gets a 1/10, all character personalities, ALL of them 1/10, the only positive I can give is the visuals. Show looks great but I have no idea who their target audience is or why they would even make this.

Reviewer’s Rating: 1

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Meaningful Names

by stefanoiulli1999

50 Entries · 10 Restacks

Pig anime

by JVskunkape

50 Entries · 2 Restacks

🎧Anime Thai Dubbed🇹🇭7｜🎧อนิเมะพากย์ไทย🇹🇭๗

by Adrena

35 Entries · 5 Restacks

New Series of 'Pokemon' Unveils Main Cast, Staff, First Promo [Update 3/10]

The official Twitter of the Pokemon television anime unveiled on Friday for its new anime series, the main cast, staff, a promotional video, and a key visual (pictur...read more

Mar 3, 2023 10:39 AM by Hyperion_PS | Discuss (23 comments)

'Pokemon' Gets New Anime Series in April 2023, Concludes 'Ultimate Journeys' in January 2023

The official website of the Pokemon anime series announced a new television anime on Friday, featuring two new main characters, Liko and Roy. The new anime will beg...read more

Dec 16, 2022 9:59 PM by Vindstot | Discuss (26 comments)

	Poll: Pokemon (2023) Episode 136 Discussion YuriEmpress - May 1	25 replies	by Floyd »» May 6, 11:24 PM
	Poll: Pokemon (2023) Episode 54 Discussion InfinityDude88 - Jun 14, 2024	15 replies	by Safrichh »» May 6, 8:52 PM
	Poll: Pokemon (2023) Episode 135 Discussion Soleks100000 - Apr 24	19 replies	by RioFS »» May 4, 7:54 AM
	make this as a complete series and a separate page for the the next arc ? LoliSenpai0x - May 3	3 replies	by Phantom_373 »» May 3, 5:36 AM
	Poll: Pokemon (2023) Episode 75 Discussion ChirekachiMizu - Nov 29, 2024	31 replies	by Petros_4 »» May 2, 6:23 AM