Pokémon in the Philippines

The Pokémon franchise first arrived in the around 1999, with the first broadcast of Pokémon - I Choose You! in English on . It was then later carried over to to air the entire .
==Pokémon video games==
All internationally released core series games have been available in the Philippines, beginning with .The games have been sold by Maxsoft for a long time.http://www.maxsoftonline.com/
Ever since , the games have been released during the same day as their release in . Like most video games sold in this country, they are the American versions due to most people in country owning home and hand-held consoles imported from the United States. As of 2023, Vstec Phils took over distribution from Maxsoft.https://vstecs.com.ph/News/Pressroom/VSTECS%20PHILS%20crowned%20as%20the%20Nintendo%20Switch%20official%20distributor%20in%20the%20Philippines/1053#:~:text=VSTECS%20PHILS%20crowned%20as%20the%20Nintendo%20Switch%20official%20distributor%20in%20the%20Philippines,-by%20Fanboy%20SEO&text=Manila%2C%20Philippines%2C%2028%20November%202023,Nintendo%20Switch%20in%20the%20Philippines.
All that are released in the United States have been also released in the Philippines. These games are available within weeks after their American releases.
Many pirated copies of ROM hacks, as well as official games, are also sold in the Philippines. Examples of these pirated games include Shiny Gold, ChaosBlack, Darkcry and Naranja Versions. Pirated copies of official games come in a variety of ways. One would be in fan translations of the original Japanese game. For example, a copy of once sold only allowed Pokémon to have a maximum of five letters in their names (i.e. A Typhlosion is named Typhl.) due to certain limitations. The names of locations and people are also translated from Japanese, such as Azalea Town being called Hiwada Town and Jasmine being called Mikan. Pirated games may also just be the games placed in different cartridges and sold at a different price. These cartridges would just be black, not the color the official games' cartridges come in. These types of pirated games were prevalent for the Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance games. Nintendo DS games are usually sold legitimately, although pirated versions sold for the same price as official ones have been spotted.
In 2016, Pokémon Tretta machines was released in the Philippines in English.Find a Store - Philippines - Pokémon TRETTA official website
===Event Pokémon===
To celebrate the premiere of Genesect and the Legend Awakened in Philippine cinemas, a level 100 was distributed in at the between November 16 and 17, 2013.
===Pokémon titles officially released in Southeast Asia===
Sword EN boxart.png| 
Shield EN boxart.png|
Brilliant Diamond EN boxart.png|
Shining Pearl EN boxart.png|
Scarlet EN boxart.png|
Violet EN boxart.png|
MD Rescue Team DX EN boxart.png|Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX
New Pokémon Snap EN boxart.png|New Pokémon Snap
Legends Arceus EN boxart.png|Pokémon Legends: Arceus
Detective Pikachu Returns EN Boxart.jpg|Detective Pikachu Returns
==Pokémon animation==
The Pokémon animated series is currently releasing into two different languages: the English dub and the Filipino dub.
===English dub===
The English dub of the animated series aired on different cable and satellite channels in the Philippines.
 in the Philippines airs the English dub of the Pokémon animated series in the Philippines. Cartoon Network has currently aired seventeen seasons and twelve movies related to the animated series (including specials and shorts).
 was a major commercial television network in the Philippines. The channel is owned by , which has an airtime agreement as the main content provider of the . 9TV is the replacement of the Solar News Channel who have retired the "Solar" branding. 9TV ceased its broadcasts on March 15, 2015 and was replaced by (now known as RPTV) on March 16, 2015. During its run, 9tv had only aired the seventeenth season of the animated series.
 and in the Philippines air the English dub of the Pokémon animated series in the Philippines. Disney XD expanded their broadcast to the Philippines starting on May 31, 2014 after their successful broadcasts in other Southeast Asian countries. The fourteenth season of the animated series first aired on Disney XD before moving to Disney Channel which also aired the fifteenth season. On October 1, 2021, Disney Channel ceased all operations in Asia due to Disney transitioned to streaming business via in Asia.
====Original series====
The first episode of the animated series first aired on Philippine television on October 1, 1999. GMA aired the English dub every Friday night to compete against that aired the Filipino dub of at the same time. They continuously aired episodes until the episode Charizard Chills when they suddenly stopped airing the animated series.
Years later, Cartoon Network aired the English dub of the animated series starting with the first episode on weekdays at 12 PM and 7:30 PM. It ended after the channel finished airing reruns of the fourth season on January 30, 2008.
In , the Philippines, and , two episodes of Pokémon: Indigo League were uploaded daily to the official YouTube channel for a limited time beginning on April 17, 2020. This was part of a "Home Fun for Pokémon Fans" campaign due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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On April 29, 2008, the sixth season of the animated series premiered after the final episode of the fifth season. However, the afternoon time slot was changed to 2 PM instead. The channel continually showed the animated series until the final episode of the seventh season. Reruns of the fifth through the seventh season were shown again in early 2009.
In early 2009, Cartoon Network continued to air the animated series with two new episodes starting with the eighth and ninth seasons, so schedule changed to 2-3 PM and 7:30-8:30 PM. The show was later replaced by .
The animated series returned to Cartoon Network on January 29, 2010 with the airing of Address Unown! and Mother of All Battles. The channel once again reran the entire Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire after they had finished airing the fifth season rerun.
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The tenth season of the animated series premiered on April 26, 2010 with the episode Following A Maiden's Voyage!. On June 26, reruns of the tenth season were aired once again on weekend mornings. The final episode of the tenth season premiered on July 5.
A few months later, the first episode of the eleventh season premiered on September 6, 2010. After a month, reruns of the sixth season began to air once more on weekend mornings.
The twelfth season of the animated series premiered on April 29, 2011. Starting with the episode The Lonely Snover! instead of the episode Classroom Training!. unexpectedly, episodes are shown in letterbox format. Starting June 5, Cartoon Network aired reruns of the ninth season once again every Sunday with four episodes consecutively.
As part of Cartoon Network's major overhaul two days prior, the thirteenth season premiered on October 3, 2011 with new episodes aired on Mondays to Thursdays. It aired alongside with and on the same days.
Early on, Cartoon Network aired the episodes as they first aired in the United States, so mistakes, such as the title "Hooked on Onyx", are retained.
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Cartoon Network premiered the fourteenth season of the animated series on November 12, 2012 and ended on February 27, 2013. The fifteenth and sixteenth seasons of the animated series did not premiere on Cartoon Network.
On June 4, 2016, Disney XD started airing the fourteenth season of the animated series on weekdays at 7:00 PM and on weekends at 6:00 PM.
On April 3, 2017, Disney Channel started airing the fourteenth season of the animated series weekdays at 3:00 PM. The fifteenth season started airing on May 29, 2017 weekdays at 3:00 PM and ended on October 20, 2017. The sixteenth season was announced to air on 2018.
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The seventeenth season premiered on August 23, 2014 as part of the 'Kids Weekend on 9TV' lineup of the newly rebranded network but under the title Pokémon: XY. The animated series airs every weekends at 8:30 AM and 5:30 PM.Get a double dose of Kids Weekend on 9TV this September The series ended on March 14, 2015 with the channel's rebranding to CNN Philippines.
The seventeenth season premiered on January 12, 2015 at 7:00 PM on Cartoon Network, though the first five episodes were first aired as a preview on December 22-26, 2014 at 6:00 PM. Like 9TV, the season is promoted under the title Pokémon: XY. 
The eighteenth season premiered on April 18, 2016 at 6:45 PM on Cartoon Network under the title Pokémon XY: Kalos Quest. A trailer for nineteenth season first aired on March 28, 2017. The season premiered on April 3, weeknights at 6:15 PM under the title Pokémon XYZ.
The last episode of XYZ, The Legend of X, Y, and Z!, aired on June 7, 2017, which brought the series to a close. Although the nineteenth season ended, the previous two seasons never shown completely as the channel only aired reruns of early episodes of the respective season.
Cartoon Network is currently airing reruns of the nineteenth season starting June 12, 2017 at 9:15 AM.
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On Disney Channel (or Disney XD in some cable providers), the twentieth season premiered on July 18, 2018. New episodes airs daily at 7:00 PM.
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Pokémon Journeys: The Series debuted on Netflix on November 21, 2020. In Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore, episodes were uploaded to the official Pokémon Asia ENG YouTube channel beginning with the first four episodes on February 19.https://www.facebook.com/OfficialPokemonPH/posts/877598632783324
====PokéMania====
PokéMania was a special segment created by Cartoon Network to air past seasons of the Pokémon animated series every weekend mornings. The segment, however, did not air continuously. Every time the segment changes season, a number is added to the title that corresponds to that season number (e.g. PokéMania 5). The segment aired all of the show's seasons up until the seventh. Later on, Cartoon Network aired the reruns of the eighth to nineteenth season but not under the segment's name.
====Home media====
Pokémon episodes and movies are also sold unofficially on pirated DVDs in certain parts of the Philippines. The quality of these DVDs is below normal standards due to compression. For example, a whole season is fit onto one 7.4GB DVD.
===Filipino dub===
====GMA-7====
The Pokémon animated series is dubbed in the Philippines by Alta Productions and broadcasted on the . Pokémon episodes are broadcasted on weekdays at 8:40 AM (originally, it was at 9:30 AM). Pokémon Specials, a collection of s and Pikachu shorts, also air on weekends. Also, Pokémon retain their English voices, with the exception of talking Pokémon such as .
Pokémon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened was the first Pokémon movie to premier in the Philippines in November 13, 2013 (although this was in English dub). Movies before this were aired on the GMA Network on Saturdays and Sundays, along with some Pikachu shorts.
The animated series did not continuously air and took several breaks until 2008, when GMA started airing the Filipino dub of the original series. In 2009, the channel finally aired the last episode of the Johto series, Hoenn Alone! last June 19, 2009 and began the next series, Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire, which ended after some time.
Since April 17, 2011, the series started airing only on Sunday mornings. However, last May 9, 2011, the series re-aired during weekday mornings as part of GMA's morning block but was later removed.
On November 2, 2015, the animated series returned as part of the network's morning block with . Like the English dub, the animated series is not referenced like its other international counterpart Pokémon the Series: XY.
On October 21, 2019, premiered on GMA Network. 
=====Cast and crew=====
The dub director, script writer, and translator for the Pokémon animated series is Arlene Bacay, who also voiced minor characters such as . She is also a dub director of the series and a voice actress of various characters in the Filipino dub of .
*Klariz Magboo voices Ash Ketchum until 2018.
She also voices Ash's mother, Delia Ketchum and several other characters of the day, including Dr. Abby and Sophocles. She also dubs in other animated series, such as in and Yoko Nakagawa in . Other than providing her voice, she is also a professional singer and a model. She is also a disc jockey on , a known radio station in the Philippines.
*Jefferson Utanes voices the Narrator, and Professor Oak
He also gives voices to James, Giovanni, Professor Birch, Drew and also the Pokédex. He also dubbed supporting characters such as , Mr. Shellby, and Nicholai and the movie characters and Spencer Hale. Jefferson is a well-known voice actor, voicing numerous role in the Filipino animated series including the main roles of in , in , in , and . He lives with his wife and twin children.
*Charmaine Cordoviz voices Gary Oak, Jessie, and 
She also dubs Kanto Gym Leaders Erika, , Sabrina and Lt. Surge, and the Elite Four Prima. She voiced the movie characters Maren and . Other characters Charmaine Cordoviz voiced are Lara Laramie, Giselle, , Juliet, Ramona, , Marissa, , Jeanette Fisher, , , Sandra, Millie and Timmy Grimm.
*Candice Arellano voices , and Officer Jenny
She also voices several one-time characters, like . She is famous for voicing different major characters in the series including , and .
*Julius Figueroa voices , and of Team Rocket.
In , he started dubbing other characters such as Joshua and Clemont. His most famous non-Pokémon role is in as .
*Ahlee Reyes voices Nurse Joy
She also gave her voice to other characters such as Carol, Shelly and Princess Sara. Amongst her non-Pokémon role are Natsui Mahana in , Gundamusai in , and various characters in and Doraemon.
*Ely Martin voices Tracey Sketchit, and Butch, Cassidy's partner and the rival of Jessie and James
He also gave voices to in The Power of One. In Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire, he voices Dewford Gym Leader Brawly, Shane, and Forrest and Forrester Franklin.
*Mailes Kanapi voices Cassidy, Butch's partner and the rival of Jessie and James
*Rona Aguilar voices Max, and Caroline, May's little brother, and mother
She also voices various one-time characters such as Alanna, Alyssa, Andi, , Julie, , Michelle, Mrs. Grimm, Natasha, Nicole, and and also to two Hoenn Gym Leader Winona and Roxanne, and the female variation of the Pokédex's voice. Rona Aguilar's only known male character he dubbed is Max.
*Jenny Bituin voices the Lavaridge Gym Leader Flannery
She is also known to have replaced the dubbers of Officer Jenny and Caroline. Aside from them, she have also voiced minor characters like Anita, Janet, Natalie, and . She also voiced Molly Hale in the Spell of the Unown: Entei. Other than lending her voice to the animated series, she is also a teenage mother and Julius Figueroa's wife.
*Hazel Hernan
Her only known roles are as Domino and . She has not voiced any character in the animated series as of yet.
*Other Dubbers
Two other dubbers started dubbing in Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire are Mark Aspiras who voiced Elijah, , , Sullivan, Tommy Grimm, and Vito Winstrate and Rachel Cordoviz, Charmaine's relative, voices Eliza, and Bonnie. Young stars, Will Ashley who voices Ash Ketchum and Sophia Pablo who voiced and who appeared starting from Pokémon the Series: XYZ. When Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon premiered on GMA-7 additional voices of the program were young stars, Althea Ablan who voiced Lana and Bruce Roeland who voiced Kiawe.
===Pokémon movies, shorts, and specials===
Cartoon Network do not normally air specials or movies but this changed with the premiere of Mewtwo Returns in the middle of 2009. Also, Pikachu shorts, such as Gotta Dance, started to air, though not necessarily before or after their corresponding movie.
Last December 12, 2009, Jirachi: Wish Maker was the first Pokémon movie to premiere on Cartoon Network to commemorate the season. On the other hand, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew premiered on September 10.
A year after first showing the sixth Pokémon movie, Destiny Deoxys later premiered on December 25. Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea was later premiered on February 11, 2011 followed by the premieres of The Rise of Darkrai on March 25 and Giratina and the Sky Warrior on April 22.
The twelfth movie, Arceus and the Jewel of Life, premiered on July 9, 2011, just in time for the final episode of the twelfth season on July 11.
On November 2013, it was announced that the sixteenth movie would receive a theatrical release accompanied by the Pikachu short Eevee & Friends in selected nationwide, making it the first Pokémon movie to appear in Philippine cinemas.
The fourteenth movie, Pokémon the Movie: Black—Victini and Reshiram, premiered on GMA-7 dubbed in Filipino. It later premiered on Disney Channel on March 11, 2018. Pokémon the Movie: White-Victini and Zekrom premiered on Disney Channel on July 23, 2018.
The fifteenth movie, Pokémon the Movie: Kyurem VS. The Sword of Justice, premiered on Disney Channel on November 25, 2018.
The Power of Us premiered in cinemas on December 5, 2018.
 premiered in cinemas on May 9, 2019.
==Pokémon manga==
Both Chuang Yi and VIZ Media distribute many of its Pokémon manga translations, including Pokémon Adventures, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl Adventure!, and several manga adaptations of the Pokémon movies, in the Philippines. However, copies from VIZ Media are comparatively more expensive than the ones from Chuang Yi. These Pokémon manga can be found at bookstores such as and Fully Booked. After the closure of Chuang Yi, Shogakukan Asia took over.
==Pokémon Trading Card Game==
Many card sets of Pokémon Trading Card Game are sold in convenience stores, bookstores, toy stores and variety stores, mainly in shopping malls, starting with the very first TCG set, . Neutral Grounds is a popular place to find Pokémon trading cards. Tournaments are held within the stores' locations.
==Pokémon merchandise==
Several Pokémon toys, plush toys, and collectibles are available in the Philippines. Toys and other merchandise can be found in many malls, National Bookstore, and at Comic Alley stores. The magazine sometimes gives updates with news about the franchise. Occasionally, the magazine also comes with promotional items. McDonald's and Jollibee have also distributed Pokémon toys along with their respective kid meals in the Philippines. These merchandises are licensed by Top Insight International Co., Ltd.
==Trivia==
* Similar to Veronica Taylor and Sarah Natochenny, Klariz Magboo voices as well as .
* On Cartoon Network, an eyecatch of throwing a during her Piplup fantasy in Following a Maiden's Voyage! and an eyecatch of Alan's were shown before had premiered in the Philippines.
==External links==
* The Pokémon Company official site (Philippines)
** Pokémon Philippines on Facebook
** Pokémon Philippines on YouTube
* Nintendo's official website in the Philippines
** Nintendo SEA on Facebook
** Nintendo SEA on YouTube
* Cartoon Network Philippines
* Top-Insight International
* Official GMA network Facebook page
* Neutral Grounds Philippines
* PKMN-ph: Pokémon Philippines, an unofficial Pokémon site for the Philippines
==References==
==Related articles==