THE Pokemon Today's anime is very clearly defined, so fans know exactly what to expect when watching the series. While of course it can still surprise at plot points from time to time, the anime as it stands today is much less wild and gratuitous than the original series, and that could be part of the problem.
That doesn't mean Pokémon Horizons it's bad or something; quite the contrary, the focus of the series is tighter than ever, ensuring a clean and easy-to-follow narrative. But because it's so well-defined, it seems to lack much of the mystery and wonder that made the original series stand out. There's something about the first few seasons of Pokemon this really captures what the franchise is about, despite all the weirdness at the start of the installment. In fact, in some ways, it's specifically because of how strange the first few installments are.
The Pokémon world was less known back then
The original series had few restrictions
During the development and writing of the original seasons of Pokemonthere were far fewer rules about what could and could not be shown in a Pokemon series. Think about how many times Ash tries to solve things with his fists in the first few seasons, for example. Initially, Ash was easily angered and could end up in a fight, but this trait of his slowly disappeared as the series progressed.. Ash and his companions (especially Misty) could also be masters of sarcasm, being openly rude to Team Rocket and other evil characters, but that has also disappeared. And while Ash has a reputation for insane battle tactics, it all really started with his battle with Brock.
The creators of the Pokémon anime seemed to have a lot more freedom about what they could write. The episodes will involve concepts that wouldn't have been seen in games for years, such as Giant Pokémon like the Giant Dragonite in the episode “Mystery at the Lighthouse”, the pink Butterfree, or the preview of Pokémon like Ho-Oh in the first episode. The frequent appearance of real-world animals is also a fairly unusual element of the early seasons, with fish being particularly common to see. While you never see real animals in modern anime, the original simply didn't have as defined a world.
This lack of a defined world gave the series some blurred boundaries about what was okay and what wasn't, which led to the series developing the unique tone that these first few episodes have. It felt like the audience was learning about this world alongside Ash, experiencing it for the first time.. This is something that both later iterations of Ash (the Ruby and Sapphire was and later), as well as Horizons I would struggle to do it Pokemon The world became more concrete and there was less space to explore.
The Orange Islands exemplify the creative freedom of the original
The anime's exclusive region allowed for great freedom
No part of the original series can better showcase the creative freedom that the anime's early writers had than Orange Islands. Built as “filler” to occupy time until Pokémon Gold and Silver were released, the Orange Islands allowed writers to do things differently than they had done. They were allowed to create this new region, occupied by unique Pokémon (like the Valencia Island Butterfree), where things happened differently than in Kanto.
Gym battles in the Orange Islands, for example, included a non-battle element, often a race or challenge of some kind, which helped add some dynamic elements to the episodes where Ash challenges these leaders. Many of these elements pioneered in the Orange Islands would end up being used in the games, such as the Orange League challenges being similar to the Alola trials or the unique Pokémon being rebranded as “regional variants” seen in Alola, Galar, and other areas. Although this took decades to implement, the anime effectively paved the way for these features.
However, the idea of creating an entirely new region for anime like the Orange Islands seems absurd today. With the Pokémon world already so big, there's not necessarily a reason to invent something new when you can always return to a familiar place. The anime tries to stay faithful to the games nowadays, so only areas that are canon to the games are seen. While Pokémon Horizons teased his Pokémon paradise of Laqua isn't really the same thing as an entire region with its own culture around Pokémon and unique Pokémon variants.
Pokémon Horizons should also have freedom
Horizons would benefit from the same freedom as the original series
Pokémon Horizons did a good job establishing its story and wasn't afraid to use some of the original series' tricks, like arbitrarily giant Pokémon. Lucius and the Six Heroes is a great way to develop a unique story for the anime, but there's so much more that can be done. The series would definitely benefit from more creative freedom and less concern about following the rigid canon of the series. Pokemon world.
Playing fast and loose with the canon might seem like a crazy request, but it is clear that Pokemon the canon has become a bit restrictive at times when it comes to storytelling. If the series is to live up to its past, then the chains of that canon may need to be broken. Let Roy use wild strategies like Ash's infamous water sprinkler on Brock's Onix. Leave it to Liko to come up with a crazy plan like Ash's scheme to sneak into the Celadon Gym. Anime is not a game and should not necessarily be tied to the logic of video games.
By giving the anime the creative freedom it deserves, fans will have a more exciting experience that carries with it the spirit of adventure that the original series did so well. This will do Pokemon less predictable for its longtime fans and restores the sense of wonder that has always been at the heart of the series.