7/19/98
The Pokemon film, for which Pokemon fans could hardly wait to come since the
press release of the production, was released on July 18, '98 in Japan. The
movie consists of two episodes; one is Mewtwo Strikes Back (Mewtwo No
Gyakushu), describing the solitude of the strongest Pokemon Mewtwo and the
heated battle with him, and in another episode Pikachu's Vacation (Pikachu
No Natsu Yasumi), only monsters appear, and spend a day in a park for them.
I watched it on the first day of release, and was almost moved to tears the
former episode. The great story successfully tells us courage, love, and
what is the most valuable--life. Pikachu's Vacation is comical, and
enjoyable to see. As you might know, Monsters cannot speak human languages,
but their own ones. But we, of course, understand what they say!
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Pikachu's Vacation
In one summer day, Pikachu and the other monsters owned by Satoshi
and his friends comes to Pokemon Land, a park for only Pokemon, to
spend their holiday. They are all joyful. However, after a while of their
coming through the gate, Togepi starts to cry. He is now a baby, and hungry.
Startled, yet wanting him to stop crying, Pikachu pulls his cheeks to make a
funny face. Squirtle also tries, though in vain. Bulbsaur finds an apple
ripe on a branch of a tree then, and shoots leaves to cut it off. The fruit
drops, and rolls to stop right before Psyduck. He takes it, and then, to
Pikachu's surprise, eats it. Togepi weeps, his cry keener, until he fells
asleep. Pikachu is relieved, but Raichu, Orphan, Maril, a mouse monster, and
Blue, a bulldog one, pass near them, chatting loudly. Squirtle asks the
group to be quiet, making them angry. As Balbsaur joins, two groups glares
at each other, ready to fight. Pikachu tries hard to soothe them.
Togepi totters to a river valley, and onto a log over it. Pikachu turns
pale, and follows onto it, crying, "Pipipi (means 'Togepi')." The log moves
suddenly. Pikachu is startled, while Togepi is pleased. It rolls down the
valley in a high speed, throwing Pikachu into the river. He looks around
quickly for Togepi, finding him at a side of the valley. He sighs, relieved.
As he is back, carrying Togepi on his back, he gives another sigh to have
seen the two groups still quarrel.
They decide to have Squirtle and Maril have a swimming match. Obstructed by
some of other monsters, both swim with a great guts, and Maril wins. But
their fight doesn't finish, for they are not satisfied yet.
Raichu's electric sparks sparkles, hitting the ground near Togepi. Pikachu
dashes near him, shielding him.
A spark hits Pikachu. He stiffens his body, shocked. Raichu and other
momsters of his group laugh.
Pikachu looks back, his eyes lifted, and burning with rage. He goes close to
Raichu, glaring at him. Raichu stares back. A tense hash is between them for
all of a minute...
They dashes out suddenly. They runs and runs and runs, down pathes, through
a river, crashing against monsters on their way; Meowth, who dozes on a
grassland, and Charizard are included. Charizard flares up, and dashes after
them, but two naughty boys don't care. Charizard fails to capture them, as
his head is pushed into a small hole.
[Image] [Image]
By Chi-chan
Puzzlement are in minds of monsters, except for Raichu's group, including
Charizard. The hole is too small for his head, and he cannot pull it out no
matter how many times he tries to pull back. Monsters ties his leg tight
with the end of a long and thick rope, grips it and pulls it with all their
mights. They tries over and over, but Charizard's head is still in the hole.
Tears fills his eyes, as he is disappointed.
Raichu and his group members watch them, keeping a short distance. Pikachu
goes near them, and asks, "pika, pika pika chu. Pikachu. (Help us. Please)"
They agree with him, and goes to take the rope, except Orphan. They tries
harder, and Charizard's head is almost out, yet still in. Tears rolls down
his cheeks.
Orphan's hands grip at the point an inch before Pikachu's on the rope.
Pikachu is delighted. They tries once more, much harder. Finally, Charizard
are pulled back, his head out the hole.
Two groups are now friends. They repair places which have been destroyed by
their fight, and play together the rest of the day. In evening, Sastoshi and
his friends come to take Pikachu. As he calls Pikachu, a big smile is on
Pikachu's face. "Pikapi! (Satoshi)" Pikachu runs straight into his chest.
[Image] [Image]
By Bunbun
[Image]
By Bunbun
Mewtwo Strikes Back
Who am I-- Where am I--
Mewtwo, who is newborn, opens his eyes in a laboratory, finding a dozen
people in white clothes. They are scientists, who have given a birth to him,
by genetically processing cells of Mew, the rarest monster on the earth, to
creat the stronget monster, able to speak a human language. Mewtwo's birth
is not natural, but artificial. He recognizes that, and is confused, and
destroys the laboratory. Sakaki, the boss of the Rocket gang, takes him and
makes him help with them capturing monsters. (A petty idea, I think) The
mystery of his life is always in his mind, and he destroys the base of the
gang, too, to be alone.
Overlooking the sea in a grassland on a cliff, Satoshi waits Takeshi's stew
ready at a table. Kasumi helps Takeshi. Pikachu finds Togepi totter to the
edge of the cliff, and panicked, rushes to help him. Togepi stops an inch
from the edge, while Pikachu drops from it. The cliff is not deep at the
side, to Pikachu's relief. Togepi chuckles to see him crawl up. A man
challenges Satoshi. Satoshi cheers up, fights him to send Balbsaur, squirtle
and Pikachu, and wins. Then a invitation card he receives, the message told
by a beautiful woman in holography. The sender is unknown, who is just
introduced by her the strongest Pokemon trainer, and is to have a Pokemon
league in the Pokemon castle in New Island. Satoshi decides to accept the
invitation.
A storm outrages waves of the sea, so that it is impossible to launch a
ship, as his party arrives at a port. They learn that there are many other
trainers who were invited by the stranger, and that a female doctor of a
Pokemon center is missing. Trainers try the raged see, with the help of
their monsters that can move in the water or fly. Anyone of Satoshi's party
doesn't own those types of monster, and they don't know what to do. But a
boat appears, and the two sailors offer a ride. Relieved, Satoshi accespts
it. (He doesn't note Meowth at the head of the boat.) Satoshi is in high
sprits in the boat, while Pikachu is scared of pitching. As a huge wave
assaults it, the helmets which the sailors wore low over their eyes were
swept away, revealing their faces. They are the couple of the Rocket gang,
Musashi and Kojiro. Satoshi is astonished. At that time another wave comes,
and they are all thrown out of the boat into water. Kasumi sends Stermie,
while Satoshi Squirtle, and Satoshi and his friends hug either of them,
letting themselves totally in the stream. Then they finally reach New Island
they were invited to. So do the gang a moment later.
Only three trainers they find there; Sweet, Sorao, and Umio. The woman who
appeared in the invitation card tell them to send their monsters from balls,
and they obey her. They are astonished when the host appears; he is Mewtwo,
the monster who is unknown to them yet. It is out of question that a monster
is a trainer, which outrages trainers there. The woman's condition suddenly
changes, and she collapses. Takeshi raises her in his arms, finding her a
femal doctor who they learned is missing.
Trainers send some of their monsters to fight Mewtwo, but he beats them
easily. Then he takes the trainers and monsters to a league field he made.
The gang steals into the building in the castle, and happans to enter a
laboratory. They find many huge tube there; some of them have a monster. As
they wonder what is done there, Meowth is captured by a belt conveyer. He
struggles to escape, while magic arms pulls his three hair out. Meowth
manages to escape, seeing the computer beside the conveyer starts to work,
and a copy of his is formed in a tube. Mewtwo, highly inteligent, studies
there and successfully creats copies of Pokemon, that are stronger than the
original. And they are not just copies; They have lives. Venusaur,
Charizard, and Blastoise come out of tubes, then go to the league field,
called by Mewtwo by telepathy.
Mewtwo knows that Sorao owns Venusaur, Sweet Blastoise, and Satoshi
Charizard. He is proving copies are superior to the originals. It is
his revenge for human beings who have given a birth to him, making use of
him. And copies are strong. They conquers originals easily, disappointing
the invited trainers. Mewtwo's revenge doesn't finish. Weird balls he made
flies across the field, each aiming at original monsters there. Mewtwo's
balls capture them one after another, now leaving Pikachu. A dozen balls are
sent to him. He runs, sometimes shooting an electric beam. Satoshi is
irreated to be near him to help him. Finally, Pikachu is captured by a ball.
Panicked, he runs after it which flies away.
In the laboratory the gang is, Mewtwo's balls which includes the trainers'
monsters are carried on the belt conveyer. As magic hand takes one, the
computer analyzes the gene, and creats the copy. Pikachu's ball arrives, and
Satoshi follows. Those hands are stretching toward it--
Satoshi seizes it tight in both his hands, as the hands reach it, too.
Satoshi pulls, with all his might, and some magic hands grabbed him, too.
Satoshi gives another strong pull. Magic hands which on the ball and him are
torn, sparking. The computer also breaks, and Mewtwo's balls spits monsters
out. Pikachu is saved, too, and Saotshi hugs him tight in his arms.
Copies are summoned by Mewtwo and go to the league field. Satoshi and
Pikachu follow them with originals. Then they see a small, white monster
there. It was Mew. Mewtwo shakes his whole body with mixed feelings, dread
and delight that he would fight his original to prove HE is superior. As
they fight, monsters also battle with their copies hand-to-hand. The doctor
says sadly, watching them fight, "They are copies, which have been created
artificially, yet have lives, which are valuable equal to originals'."
Pikachu's copy appears, too. He glares at original Pikachu, and beats him
hard. Pikachu doesn't resist, is hit by the copy's blow, and thrown away--
Monsters, both originals and copies, fight, collapse, and fight... Only
Pikachu doesn't fight, though harshly beated by his copy. The copy shouts at
him, "pika, pikachu! (Fight me!)" Pikachu shakes his head, refusing to
counter. Tears well up to the copy's eyes, but he cannot stop himself while
Mew fights Mewtwo. Crying, the copy continues to beat Pikachu. Finally the
copy is exhausted and collapses. Pikachu takes to hold him tenderly.
Satoshi cannot stand to see them battle any longer. He dashes toward the
spot Mew and Mewtwo fight, crying, "Don't! Don't fight any longer!" Two
monsters shoot sparks then, and they hit Satoshi. Screaming, he collapses to
the ground. Monsters, including Mew and Mewtwo, freeze and just watch him.
"Pikapi!" Pikachu goes close to him, looking into his face. His body starts
to stiff, and got rocky in a moment right before Pikachu's eyes. Pikachu
wonders at first what is going on, sees his friend doesn't move, and shoot
an electric beam at him, as he does instictively for fainted creatures. But
Satoshi is still. Pikachu tries once more, then over and over. While he is
too tired to shoot a beam anymore, Satoshi doesn't recover. Tears well up to
Pikachu's eyes, roll down his cheeks, and drop to the ground, quickly
filtered into the soil.
Other original and copy monsters begin to weep. Their tears wet the ground,
and are conveyed to Satoshi through the soil. His body softens slowly, and
he recovers finally. Pikachu hugs him, and Satoshi hugs back.
Mewtwo calls copy monsters by telepathy, and they floats up. He can now
believe in his life, which is valuable, and is leaving to look for the place
they can live. Satoshi, Pikachu, their party and other people and monsters
see them flying away, now feeling for them.
When Satoshi is aware, he is at the port with his friends. Other trainers
are there, too. Now one remembers what happened in the island. The storm is
over a moment later, and the sea recovers the peace, its surface brightening
in the sunlight.
Copyright(c)1998 Shou Tsurugi All rights reserved.
