Many people know of the series called Pokemon, many people know of the TV show, as well as the games. The first Pokemon was released on February 27th 1996, originating from Japan. Many people know of the main character; Ash Ketchum, like most heroes in their story he is sent on a quest at the beginning of the story, to fill up the Pokedex. This is the quest in the part of the heroes journey. Like many other modern films the protagonist is not alone, relating back to my other blog talking about Lord of the Rings and how Frodo goes on his quest but was also not alone, he had the other loyal companions; his hobbits. In this case the archetype of the loyal companion holds true when he obtains Pikachu. Another similarity between this posting and my other is the influential role of the old wise man, in this case it's Professor Oak. He helps the hero on his journey by providing his vast intellectuality on the topic that is relevant.
The Quest, one of the biggest archetypes that many modern films behold. In this case the main character Ash Ketchum is told to go capture every Pokemon to fill up the Pokedex. A characteristic of this heroes journey is that the hero meets monsters, these are the other Pokemon or Pokemon trainers that withhold the same quest that the protagonist has, thus making the type of conflict Man vs Society. Like Ong Bak they were both born in a rural community and not used to the city, this being another characteristic of the Hero's Journey. Relating back to the Quest of Ash Ketchum involves many of the elements of the Hero's Journey including the Task. The Task of capturing over 150 Pokemon would be considered a superhuman feat that must be accomplished in order to fulfill the ultimate goal. Another archetype that falls into this hero's quest would be The Journey. The Journey includes series of trials and search for information or intellectual truths. The search for information would be when he catches a Pokemon a page in the Pokedex is completed, thus making him that much closer to the last stage of the Hero's Journey; Return and Reintegration with Society. The series of trials that stops the protagonist to completing his quest would be in Pokemon's case the gym leaders.
While the story of Pokemon still holds strong today with many releases of new TV episodes and video games for handheld systems, they all tend to follow the same skeletal structures as many other fantasy shows and movies. They all have the stages of the Hero's Journey, whether it be showed directly, or the viewer has to infer it. The stage of the Hero's Journey can be compared to a plot summary planner. Where the departure of the hero is the Initial Incident, the Initiation is the Rising Action, The Road of Trials and Innermost Cave share the climax and the falling action while the Conclusion is the Return and Reintegration with Society. Looking at 3 films so far they have all had a lot of similarities between characters and plots.
