Pokémon and the Deception of the Devil
Still popular since its first appearance in 1995, the Pokemon franchise has sold hundreds of millions of video games, billions of Pokemon cards, many toys, and other merchandise. Now more than two decades old, Pokemon has a huge appeal to many people around the world.
- Over 260 million Pokemon video games have been purchased worldwide (as of 2014) [1].
- Over 21.5 billion Pokemon cards, in 10 languages, have been shipped to 74 countries [1].
- The Pokemon animated series has over 800 episodes [1].
- There are 17 Pokemon movie theater films [1].
- The Pokemon Go game became very popular (within a week of its release) and had up to 28.5 million uses in the United States, at its peak, before declining [2].
These numbers reveal just how popular Pokemon is. But, these numbers don't reveal why Pokemon has such enthusiastic fans worldwide. First, we will look at the basic story of Pokemon, which begins with a character called "Ash Ketchum" (a pun of the slogan "Gotta catch 'em all.").
The Basic Plot of Pokemon
Ash Ketchum (a 10 year old boy) wants to be a powerful Pokémon trainer. With his own Pokémon, "Pikachu," Ash joins some friends to help him obtain new Pokémon. At the same time, a group of rivals, called Team Rocket, and other "evil" organizations battle Ash and his friends. Members of Team Rocket want to take Pikachu for themselves. Also, throughout the series, Ash and his team compete in Pokémon championships [3]. This may seem "innocent," but we need to look at this closer, especially since your children might be playing with fire. Studies have shown that Pokemon and other video games and cartoon shows that portray violence have a negative effect on children [4]. Violence in TV shows, whether it is cartoon or live action violence, is harmful to adults and children, but especially children. Studies have found that violent scenes in children's cartoon shows (such as Pokemon) affect children's thoughts, behaviors, and feelings in the same way that violent TV shows do [4].
The Spiritual Side of Pokemon
The Pokemon cartoon series strongly promotes the Pokemon card game, which involves occultic and new age concepts and practices. For instance, in the Pokemon trading cards, there are cards with Pokemon characters that have "psychic" powers. These are "magical abilities" which allow unnatural things to happen, such as a "focus blast" to magically attack an opponent. The character focuses its mind on the enemy and "unleashes its power" [5].One magical and occultic feature of many Pokemon trading cards is called a "hex move [6]." A hex move gives the Pokemon creature the ability to place a very harmful spell on its opponent.
