Pokemon has long been a generation-defying favorite. What started in 1996 as a game went on to become a multi-million dollar raking franchise. Despite originating in Japan, Pokemon as a game, series, and model is cherished all around the world. However, the devoted fanbase is well aware that the characters we love and adore were not meant to turn out the way they did in terms of animation. The genius behind the pen of this highly acclaimed entertainer is Ken Sugimori, and he carved the original looks of the characters through his very hands. And fans have finally been blessed with it.

For the longest time, distorted versions of what was claimed as the original artwork were shared around the community. However, none of them were clear, leading to a lot of confusion. For the first time, the original artwork by Ken Sugimori has been brought to the surface for appreciation by an archivist. And the difference makes us believe that even animated characters cannot break the curse of time.

Sugimori’s artwork was used first for Pokemon’s Game Boy entries. And ever since then, the animations have drastically changed, almost appearing unrecognizable from what they were originally designed to be. Although one character, that has managed to retain the magic of the original is Eevee and its evolutions, according to Lewtwo.

The archivist refers to the newly surfaced original artwork and points out how one can literally see the “way the watercolor bleeds in and around the lineart.” Moreover, this was surprisingly captured well as the characters jumped to Virtual Console. However, Eevee is an exception, as the other pocket monsters do not seem to hold any resemblance to the original.

Pokemon fandom is fascinated by the discovery

One of the crucial moments that made Pokemon an important part of pop culture history was the shocked Pikachu meme. And as fans witness the original work of Ken Sugimori in high quality, they have all turned into an embodiment of the ‘shocked Pikachu’ meme.

From speaking of their ‘insane glowup’ to speaking of the beautiful ‘colors’ of the original, the Pokemon fandom was delighted, to say the least.

The original had Pikachu’s fleck colored brown at the stem and several other differences. The color differences may have been a result of the games switching to DVDs. However, it is clear that there is an astonishing difference between the original work and the one that is popular.

Do you prefer the original pocket monsters or the upgraded versions? Let us know in the comments below.