Who's That Pokémon?
Who's That Pokémon? (Japanese: だれだ？ Who is it?) was part of all Pokémon anime episodes from Pokémon, I Choose You! to Watts with Wattson? in the dub and Pokémon, I Choose You! to Hoenn Alone! in Japan. It occurred before the main commercial during the episode. A silhouette of a Pokémon is shown, then the name of the Pokémon is revealed after the commercial break.
Throughout the Japanese version, and from early to mid-Kanto in the dub, the Who's That Pokémon almost always featured a Pokémon that played a major role in that episode. Beginning in late Kanto, the Who's That Pokémon of the dub was usually one that was featured in the following episode. When Johto League Champions began, Who's That Pokémon became random, with no way to predict who the Pokémon would be. Starting with Season 4 in the dub, a short hint was added to the screen to aid in the identification of the Pokémon.
In the dub, Who's That Pokémon was eliminated in Pokémon Advanced Challenge and replaced with Pokémon Trainer's Choice but later returned in Pokémon: Black & White. In the Japanese version, it ended at the end of Pocket Monsters and was replaced in the Advanced Generation series with a generic eyecatch showing the main characters, which continued into the Diamond & Pearl series.
In the Japanese version of Beauty and the Beach, the Dare Da? was Brutella. In the Dare Da? for the Japanese version of The Bug Stops Here, Jessie was dressed as Venomoth. When the "Pokémon" was revealed, the narrator says "Venomoth", but the children shout "incorrect!".
On videos of the anime, the Who's That Pokémon is done like normal, but the answer is given just a few seconds after the question (lacking a commercial break).
In Mewtwo Strikes Back while the Pokémon are being put through the cloning machine, Jessie and James ask: "Who's that Pokémon?" as the Pokémon's images appear. This occurs in both the Japanese and US versions of the film. It is interesting to note that while trying to guess who each Pokémon is, they incorrectly refer to Scyther as Alakazam, among other mistakes.
In one episode, Mewtwo makes an appearance on "Who's That Pokemon", with the voiceover having it say its own name, while in another episode it says "Prepare to battle".
In Double Team Turnover!, when Jupiter's Skuntank appears to steal the Lustrous Orb, Ash asks "Who's that Pokémon?", an obvious reference.
In In the Shadow of Zekrom!, it seems as if the series has started it back up again. The background has black and white squares and the shadow of a Generation V Pokémon to the right. The Pokémon Black & White symbol is in the bottom left corner. When the commercial break is over, the Pokémon's name is shown in the center, right across from the revealed Pokémon's shadow. The very first Who's That Pokémon for the series was Pidove.
In other languages
- Arabic: احزروا من هذا البوكيمون!
- Bulgarian: Кой е този Покемон?
- Danish: Hvem er den Pokémon!?
- Dutch: Wie is deze Pokémon!?
- Finnish: Tunnetko tämän Pokémonin?
- French: Quel est ce Pokémon?
- Hindi: Ye Kaun Sa Pokémon Hai?
- Portuguese:
- European Portuguese: Quem é este Pokémon?
- Brazilian Portuguese: Quem é esse Pokémon?
- Russian: Это что за Покемон?
- Spanish:
- Iberian Spanish: ¿Cuál es este Pokémon?
- Latin American Spanish: ¿Quién es ese Pokémon?