Monday, October 28, 2019
Cosmic Eclipse Prerelease Recap-Loves Park, IL
I recently attended a Pokemon TCG Cosmic Eclipse Prerelease in Loves Park, IL. Find out what I got, and what the experience was like:
Monday, October 21, 2019
Why It Works: Happy Together
A late-60’s pop hit might have seemed like an unusual choice for the first Detective Pikachu trailer, but “Happy Together” does have some interesting connections to the movie, albeit mostly in tone:
Transcript:
As far as I can tell, “Happy Together”’s use in the first Detective Pikachu trailer wasn’t because of any super-specific lyrical parallel with the plot of the film. Sure, Tim whips out his phone a few times, and occasionally acts a little crazy, but really, it seems like the song was meant to highlight the “buddy cop” aspect of the movie, and perhaps to suggest that Tim and Detective Pikachu might have wound up with each other for a reason. Musically, the song’s melancholic verses and incredibly bright chorus parallel the film’s “darker but not too dark” tone and to a certain extent, the personalities of the main characters, with Tim being more low-key and Detective Pikachu more energetic. With all that said, however, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that this isn’t the first time the song has come into Pokémon’s orbit-fans of the original N64 Smash Bros. will remember that ads for that game also used this tune, adding another level of nostalgia to the mix. Anyway, do you have your own thoughts on any of this? Feel free to let us know. Thanks.
Transcript:
As far as I can tell, “Happy Together”’s use in the first Detective Pikachu trailer wasn’t because of any super-specific lyrical parallel with the plot of the film. Sure, Tim whips out his phone a few times, and occasionally acts a little crazy, but really, it seems like the song was meant to highlight the “buddy cop” aspect of the movie, and perhaps to suggest that Tim and Detective Pikachu might have wound up with each other for a reason. Musically, the song’s melancholic verses and incredibly bright chorus parallel the film’s “darker but not too dark” tone and to a certain extent, the personalities of the main characters, with Tim being more low-key and Detective Pikachu more energetic. With all that said, however, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that this isn’t the first time the song has come into Pokémon’s orbit-fans of the original N64 Smash Bros. will remember that ads for that game also used this tune, adding another level of nostalgia to the mix. Anyway, do you have your own thoughts on any of this? Feel free to let us know. Thanks.
Monday, October 14, 2019
October 2019 Pokemon Go Community Day + Channel Updates
This month's community day featured Trapinch, a vaguely pumpkin-looking Pokemon that can be evolved into a Flygon. The weather wasn't great, but I did manage to get out and catch a few things:
Monday, October 7, 2019
New Pokemon Anime Composer In Japan
Turns out the Pokemon anime is getting a new composer in Japan, as Shinji Miyazaki is being replaced by Yuki Hayashi in the next season. Here's some more information and analysis:
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 29-Diancie Movie Music/John Loeffler Part 2
In the first segment (1:10-39:10), Anne from Pikapi Podcast drops by to help me discuss the music of the initial X&Y Pokémon movie, "Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction". Scandal's "Daybreak Meteor Shower" gets compared to Dani Marcus's "Open My Eyes", as do the opening themes and scores from each version. For our thoughts on the movie itself, be sure to listen after the outro.
The second segment (40:27-50:31) is an archival interview with John Loeffler. In this follow-up to an earlier discussion, we talk about his role working on music for the first two Pokémon movies, including both the pop soundtracks and the scores. You'll find out about the genesis of "Brother My Brother", and how the music for these films came together overall.
Links:
Pikapi Podcast
Pam Sheyne Interview
The second segment (40:27-50:31) is an archival interview with John Loeffler. In this follow-up to an earlier discussion, we talk about his role working on music for the first two Pokémon movies, including both the pop soundtracks and the scores. You'll find out about the genesis of "Brother My Brother", and how the music for these films came together overall.
Links:
Pikapi Podcast
Pam Sheyne Interview
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