The Pokémon anime shocked fans in 2022 by officially retiring Ash Ketchum's character after nearly 25 years as the lead protagonist of the series, launching into a rebooted story starring new characters in Pokémon Horizons. However, the series had attempted a reboot several years before, and it wasn't nearly as successful as Horizons.

The Pokémon anime has always been reinventing itself every few years, trading off Ash's Pokémon party and traveling companions to make room for new Pokémon and new friends as he made his way around the world. By far the most dramatic of these was Black and White, which saw Ash parting ways with Brock after over a decade of traveling together, as well as some resets for Ash and Pikachu's characters. However, there was also a complete reboot which the series attempted in 2017, starting with the film Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You!

Pokémon's Big Reboot Launched An Alternate Continuity

The Special Film Began an Alternate Continuity Trilogy

Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! was created to celebrate the Pokémon anime's 20th anniversary in Japan, and as such took things back to the very beginning to give fans a chance to get to know Ash Ketchum all over again. While the film draws heavily from the original continuity, reusing major events like Ash and Pikachu's meeting, Butterfree's goodbye, and Charmander's discovery, it also differed significantly, as Brock and Misty are absent from the film, replaced with two new temporary companions, Verity and Sorrel.

This put the focus of the film squarely on Ash and Pikachu's relationship, and the altered continuity was justified by having Ho-Oh give Ash a Rainbow Wing during his early sighting of it, a special item that shows a trainer is destined for greatness. The film also included the Alola Pokémon Marshadow in a prominent role, following Ash around and causing no small degree of trouble for the young trainer. The film culminates in Ash and Pikachu finally getting to challenge Ho-Oh, although the conclusion of their match with the Rainbow Pokémon isn't shown.

I Choose You! wasn't the only movie in this continuity, however. The next two main Pokémon films, The Power of Us and Secrets of the Jungle, are also set in this continuity, and follow this version of Ash, who is shown traveling without any permanent human companions. When Ash was retired from the main anime, it was decided that he would be retired from the films as well, and so a special episode, entitled "The Distant Blue Sky," was released to act as an epilogue to this alternate continuity.

The Legacy of Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You!

The Reboot Movie Wasn't Well Received And Failed to Make a Splash

As the first Pokémon movie to hit US theaters for a while, I Choose You! was met with seriously negative reviews from critics, who didn't really understand the film and felt it childish and unoriginal. Many fans were displeased with the film as well for excluding Brock and Misty, wondering how the film could really be a celebration of the anime if two of its most prominent characters were inexplicably cut. Verity and Sorrel didn't really endear themselves to fans, having little-to-no backstory or goals of their own they were actively working towards.

The biggest controversy surrounds the film's climax. While Ash is near death, he hears Pikachu speak to him, explaining that it won't go into a Poké Ball because it always wants to be together. Having Pikachu speak in clear language was met with laughs by many, killing the mood of the scene and essentially ruining the entire ending. Others just found it strange and uncomfortable, and it was particularly egregious in English, since Ikue Ohtani was used for all Pikachu dialog except for the English sentence, causing the voice to suddenly shift in a jarring manner.

Ultimately, despite being aimed at long-time fans of the series, the movie managed to please almost no one. The follow-up film, The Power of Us, was better received, scoring substantially higher on Rotten Tomatoes (71% versus 33% for I Choose You), and Secrets of the Jungle finished the trilogy off slightly weaker (60%). The films did alright at the Japanese box office, but weren't particularly successful internationally, perhaps explaining why the alternate continuity was brought to an end alongside the main series.

Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! was in some ways an experiment, but in other ways firmly rooted in the past, and that may explain why this Pokémon movie failed to find success with anyone.