November 9th.
Half a month had passed in the blink of an eye.
Liu Changqing had finally decided to officially launch the animation project for Pokémon.
Thanks to Chen Dafu’s connections—mainly his powerful father—securing investnt had been unexpectedly easy. With the funding sorted, Liu Changqing turned his focus to finding an animation studio.
Initially, he considered working with a foreign studio, but after so discussions with a Japanese production team, he imdiately abandoned the idea.
The attitude of the Japanese side wasn’t exactly friendly. They made it clear they weren’t eager to take on the project properly and only seed interested in inflating the budget as much as possible. After all, they already had several ani series lined up for production and would much rather funnel the money into improving their own projects instead.
Liu Changqing quickly realized that even if he handed the project to them, they would likely cut corners, which could damage the reputation of the Pokémon franchise before it even got off the ground.
To avoid that disaster, he decided to keep everything dostic.
After scouting around, his team found a decent animation studio, and a contract was signed. As part of the localization process, Pokémon was officially renad "Pet Monsters" (宠物小精灵)—a na that sounded more familiar and natural to the audience.
Unlike the manga serialized in magazines, the ani’s storyline had been significantly altered. Liu Changqing deliberately avoided following the manga’s plot, as he was targeting a younger audience.
In simple terms: the protagonist was different.
The ani wouldn't follow the manga’s main character, Wang Chi. Instead, the protagonist was changed to Wang Chi’s younger brother, Wang Zhi, who was two years his junior.
The story began after Wang Chi had won the championship and mysteriously disappeared. Wang Zhi, who had always idolized his brother, reached the age where he could receive his first Pokémon and embark on his own journey.
However, because there was an extra participant this year, the professor had to give out one additional Pokémon. The solution? Wang Zhi was handed a Pokéball that Wang Chi had sent back before vanishing.
When Wang Zhi opened it, he found a rather temperantal Pikachu.
Thus, his adventure began—rocky at first, but with ti, he and Pikachu developed a bond.
Wang Zhi had one goal: to find his missing brother.
Of course, his journey was filled with challenges, eting all sorts of Pokémon and trainers, until he eventually reached the championship.
Winning in his first year, it seed as though Wang Zhi was following in his brother’s footsteps, recreating the sa legend.
However, just as he was preparing to continue his search for Wang Chi, he discovered sothing shocking—there was a level beyond the championship.
After winning the league, a trainer wasn’t truly at the top. They had to challenge the Elite Four. And beyond them, an even greater challenge awaited.
Unfortunately, despite becoming the league champion, Wang Zhi was not strong enough to defeat the Elite Four. According to the competition rules, after failing the challenge, he would have to wait a full year before being eligible to challenge them again.
With that in mind, Wang Zhi decided to travel to a new region to train.
On his way ho, he bid farewell to his traveling companions and prepared for his next adventure.
But just as he was about to set off again—he was shocked to find his long-lost brother standing before him.
Wang Chi said nothing.
Instead, he simply threw a Pokéball.
A Charizard erged, and without a word, Wang Chi climbed onto its back and flew off into the distance.
Seeing his brother leave, Wang Zhi did the only thing he could—he released his own Charizard and chased after him.
After an intense pursuit, the two finally confronted each other in a vast open field.
Wang Zhi demanded answers—where had Wang Chi been all this ti?
But Wang Chi didn’t respond.
Instead, he simply threw out another Pokéball.
A battle was the only answer he would give.
Realizing words were useless, Wang Zhi also remained silent. He released Pikachu—the very Pokémon his brother had entrusted to him—and faced off against Wang Chi.
The result?
Wang Chi completely crushed him.
Defeated six-on-one, Wang Zhi was left kneeling in utter defeat.
Coldly recalling his Pokémon, Wang Chi turned away and left his younger brother with just one final sentence:
"My foolish little brother, I look forward to facing you at the very top."
With those words, he climbed onto Charizard and disappeared once more, leaving Wang Zhi behind, devastated.
For a week, Wang Zhi locked himself in his room, doubting his own abilities.
It was only thanks to his first companion—the Pikachu his brother had given him—that he was able to regain his confidence.
The final scene of the season showed Wang Zhi standing on a ship, his Pikachu perched on his shoulder, as he set out on a new journey—to find out where his brother had gone.
Liu Changqing personally wrote the script. God only knew how many different storylines he had mashed together, but sohow, he had managed to transform what was originally a kids' show into a full-blown shōnen battle ani.
Of course, because they had secured sponsorships from a major dostic electronics brand, they had to include so product placent.
Liu Changqing cleverly suggested placing the sponsor’s logo on the counters inside Pokémon Centers, ensuring a seamless yet obvious brand presence.
With everything finalized, production began.
For the voice acting, they partnered with a top-tier dostic studio—one that had previously dubbed international animated films.
And, naturally, Liu Changqing couldn’t resist making a guest appearance.
I an, co on—who wouldn’t want a chance to be in Pokémon?
However, because his voice acting skills were… questionable, he wasn’t given any major roles.
Instead, he was assigned the part of a fisherman NPC.
His character’s entire team consisted of six Magikarps.
His dialogue?
"Magikarp, use Splash!"
"Ah! One-hit KO?! Damn it! Fine, watch this—another Magikarp!"
"Magikarp, use Splash!"
"Damn… another loss…"
And that was pretty much it.
Originally, the studio had considered letting him voice a mber of the Elite Four, but after one test recording, they imdiately demoted him to Fisherman.
Still, Liu Changqing was excited about his small role. He eagerly awaited the day he could step into the recording booth.
Standing by the window, he took a sip of water to prepare his voice, then began practicing his lines.
"Magikarp, use Splash!"
Just as he was getting into it, the office door suddenly swung open.
Feng Qian walked in, holding a file, and was about to speak—when he heard Liu Changqing’s nasal, duck-like voice.
There was a long pause.
Then, with a deep sigh, Feng Qian muttered under his breath:
"Terrible skills… but an insatiable addiction."
Liu Changqing, who had zero talent for singing or voice work, was clearly struggling.
And that was precisely why the professionals had banished him to NPC status.
Originally, they had planned for him to voice an Elite Four mber, but after just one test recording…
Yeah. Magikarp Fisherman was the best he could get.
Still, Liu Changqing remained dead serious about his role, eagerly awaiting his recording session.
Noticing Feng Qian’s arrival, he turned around and imdiately noticed sothing… off.
Squinting, he asked,
"Why the hell are you wearing glasses?"
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