Poketoon “Scraggy and Mimikyu” Review

Yo Ho! WeRCatz here!

On June 4th, the Pokemon Company released a cartoon short called “Chase The Beans” starring the two Pokemon Zuruggu (Scraggy) and Mimikkyu (Mimikyu).

The animation style is comparable to the classic Max Fleischer cartoons of Betty Boop, classic early Warner Brothers, and even some classic MGM cartoons. The sound effects were right on cue and the musical cues of the actions were timed right as well. One good example is the surreal Betty Boop cartoon Bimbo’s Invitation from 1931 where Bimbo receives an “invitation” to join a secret club.

The musical director, Kei Tsuda, did a fine job matching the music with the actions and tones displayed. The backgrounds by Tsutomu Ikeda are vibrant and resemble the old watercolor backgrounds that were used back in the day.

Unlike the Looney Tunes Cartoons being made with computer programs, “Chase The Beans” was made with traditional animation. This style will never die and it shows how much quality is put into creating traditional animation. With shows like Looney Tunes Cartoons premiering, the need for classic style animated shorts are on the rise. Perhaps we are looking at a proper animation renaissance or perhaps an animation equivalent of the punk rock genre? Either way, I hope that the Pokemon Company produces more of these shorts.