Pokémon in Ireland

TheChrisD

Alright, so I got a message on Bulbapedia from one of the admin team asking me if I could help them in creating a "Pokémon in Ireland" article there - along the same lines as their articles already on Pokémon in Canada, Latin America etc.

http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/w/index.php?title=User_talk:TheChrisD&action=historysubmit&diff=1140048&oldid=733144

So I'm here asking if anyone has any useful information about the series in the country that could help. Anything really that's related to the games, anime or TCG. It would especially help if anyone could remember when they broadcast the anime on RTÉ2 (and on a lesser note, Sky One) and what series they showed :P

And yes, I've already got the clear so that things like our forum, the Dublin Pokéclub etc. will get a mention in the community section of the article :cool:

Atavan-Halen

Oh wow, emm... I can't remember when exactly it was broadcast on rté 2. I only have vague recollections of it being on the den. I had my gameboy colour at the time so it would have been when that was out at it was definitely the first series at the time. Sorry, that's all I can remember!

wobbles

Yep was on the den. Think it was on at 3 o clock mon0.-friday and some rediculous hour saterday morning (round 8-8.30). Definatly showed season 1 (Kanto), season 2 (Orange Islands) and season 3 (Johto). Also think master quest was there aswell. Started round 1997 i think.

Thomas-G

Not sure how relevant this is, but Gamestop were charging 50 quid for pokemon emerald new a year after DP came out, which were priced at 45 quid new.
Oh wait, it isn't relevant. Everyone already knows Gamestop are twats

Buzzthebatgirl

This is great, we'll have our own page on Bulbapedia and then get merged with the UK

Let's just be happy we are being recognised as separate for now. I know that Cartoon Network are showing Pokemon Advanced Battle at 7am weekdays at the moment. I think Disney XD is showing Pokemon Galatic Battles, but I'm not sure of the times and days. I'm sure that Cartoon Nerwork showed other series, but I can't remember which ones right now.

Manga wise, it is only found in highly specialist shops and quite pricey. To the best of my knowledge it is only found in Forbidden Prices in Dublin and costs between €8.50-€11.

Our games are in English and use the non-American spellings for the most part.

I'll edit in more as I think of it. Apologies if some of the text is messed up, I've been banging this out on the iPod

As for the films Pokemon 4ever has been shown on one of the flavours of BBC, and both Lucario and Manaphy movies have been shown on Cartoon Network.

TheChrisD

Right, I've got something up to begin with in the BP userspace, hopefully I can get some proper info soon, particularly with regards to what the hell RTE2 did with the anime, when the showed it etc.

I know for a fact they never got to Hoenn at least...

Atavan-Halen

Is there some sort of rte guide archive? Using that you could go back and see what times it was on at maybe. Unless it's just mentioned as the den in the guide.

Urizen

I might be getting confused, but I could swear TG4 tried dubbing it once... Could be getting mixed up with some other anime.

wobbles

i know they dubbed south park, but never heard of them doing pokemon

nitromaster

Just wondering..kinda ontopic...
My memory tells me the original Red/Blue games were released here the day after my 7th birthday...(best birthday present ever! only one i can remember ...then playing blue on my red classic gameboy so much cooler then everyone else with their colors :cool: )
so the 1st of october 1999.....Wikipedia lists them as "may 10 1999" though for europe? surely this is wrong?
And the first of october is a friday....

ashleymars

I remember comin home from primary and it was on so about half 3?? I also remember watchin it before school not sure what channel but would have bin before 8 at least!!

TheChrisD

Despite the lack of much information, electabuzz (admin on BP who asked me to start this) has mainspaced it: http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_in_Ireland

Any info found would really help! I'm checking with him right now if something about the availability of the TCG should be put in - right now AFAIK, it's only available in Smyths, Argos and Forbidden Planet if I'm not mistaken?

dambarude

I found some articles in the Irish Independent article that may be of interest to you :
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/beware-the-pokemon-plague-386552.html,
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/move-over-furby-pokemons-about-to-take-over-399454.html,
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/smother-love-378755.html.
The Irish Times archive has loads from around 1999 as well, but you need a subscription to access them (I don't have one unfortunately). You might have seen these articles already but I thought I'd point them out anyways!

dambarude

Somehow (by just clicking on it) I managed to get into this article from the Irish Times. It confirms that pokémon was released in Ireland in early October 1999 as nitromaster said. I'll quote the relevant piece while I have the page open.

The PokeMon (abbreviation of "Pocket Monsters") sensation finally hit Ireland at the beginning of the month. Already huge in Japan and the US, it seems inevitable that the Gameboy game will be a huge success in Europe too. Over 180 million PokeMon game cartridges have already been sold worldwide and, with the array of other merchandise, cartoons and even a movie available, it has become a $5 billion industry. Even the official handbook is listed in the top 10 of USA Today's bestsellers.

The game itself is in some way comparable to the Tamagotchi phenomenon, except that PokeMon is more complex and the basic idea of training virtual pets is where the similarity ends.

In PokeMon there are 150 different types of monsters, and to become a master you must catch them all. By pitting your PokeMon against wild PokeMon your monster (if it wins) gains experience points and becomes a better fighter. Collecting all the PokeMon is a huge task.

This will take a lot of time and dedication, and even then some help from friends will be needed. Nintendo released two versions of the cartridge, red and blue, and because 10 PokeMon are unique to each, only by linking up two Gameboys with different versions can a player capture all the PokeMons. Aimed specifically at seven to 12-year-olds, PokeMon proves that if a game is extremely playable and addictive then fancy graphics and CD-quality music matter little. PokeMon cartridges cost about £25 and the colour version of the Gameboy costs about £70, although some combination packs work out considerably cheaper.

When I try to get into the page again it won't let me! The Irish Times need to increase the reliability of their security methinks:pac:.

Edit: lol at the reference to 'pokemons'

TheChrisD

Yea, I think I've managed to get into the IT archives randomly myself before. Their system is quite odd indeed

Anyway, cheers, I'll go throw some more stuff in the article

EDIT: Just managed to randomly get into the full article itself just there

Atavan-Halen

I managed to get into one of the articles too

Move over furby, pokemon's about to take over

Thursday August 12 1999
A new toy craze is sweeping Japan and the States and is set to top kiddies' wish lists here. John Meagher looks at the Pokemon phenomenon A new toy craze is sweeping Japan and the States and is set to top kiddies' wish lists here. John Meagher looks at the Pokemon phenomenon Thought Star Wars was going to dominate the Christmas toy market? Think again. Come January, eight-inch figurines of Obi Wan Kanobi could be making way for a series of toys far uglier than anything in The Phantom Menace.
Pokemons are the latest must-have toys for kids-in-the-know. Short for Pocket Monsters, they comprise a staggering 150 characters. They began life five years ago as tiny figures on Ninetendo's GameBoy, the object being to `collect' as many of these characters as possible. Toys based on the computer game will be available on these shores next month.
With each character having its very own super-cool name, you'll soon become accustomed to Pikachu, Jigglypuff and Snorlax. If Power Rangers and Cabbage Patch Dolls aren't at the back of the toy cupboard already, with this lot around they well and truly will be.
The toys come in a variety of forms. Electronic Pokemon (pronounced poh-kay-mon) are three-inch plastic character figures that `talk' when stroked or spoken to.
There is also a set of smaller `battle figures' two inches high that come with instructions on how to play a game involving exchanging the figures with friends, as well as a set of clear rubber balls containing one of the eight characters and a set of Beanie characters aimed at girls.
Besides the toys and GameBoy, there's a plethora of Pokemon merchandise available. A Pokemon television series has been syndicated to 90 stations worldwide. Videos and comics will be on the shelves soon. And the Pokemon film is a box office success in Japan - where it all originated.
And there's more. Japan's national airline, Nippon, has six aircraft within its fleet with full Pokemon liveries, flying non-stop from Tokyo to San Francisco. And for the over-17s, there is a bespoke Volkswagen Pokemon Beetle. Branded salads, lemonades and cookies are just some of the 1,000 products available in the US Pokemon has been phenomenally successful in Japan. Half of all five to 12-year-olds there have at least one Pokemon toy and Ninetendo has sold more than £4.5 billion in Pokemon products there.
Ireland will have its first batch of Pokemon toys on the shelves by October. ``It doesn't necessarily follow that if a toy is popular in the US or Britain that it will be just as popular here, but we really think it will be a big hit,'' says Toymaster's managing director, Ciaran Fitzpatrick.
``Simple toys like these are excellent for young children,'' says the Dublin-based child psychologist, Ella Lovett. ``Because the toys are limited in what they can do, the child needs to use his/her imagination much more. Some parents want their children to read avidly, but they forget how useful creative playing can be. Children can enter their own make-believe world.''
The key to Pokemon's global success is the clever way it cashes in on children's desire to compete and collect. By releasing just a few figures at a time children are expected to buy some, trade others and, if reports from America and Japan mean anything, resort to mugging in a quest for the whole set.

Champion Gold

NO WAY

I discovered boards.ie this morning after reading the article 'Pokemon In Ireland'[/COLOR]
Freaky
The article isn't that great BTW (no offence). It could use more dates etc so I will try and find out more.[/COLOR]

SamIAmNot

Champion Gold wrote: »

NO WAY

I discovered boards.ie this morning after reading the article 'Pokemon In Ireland'

haha, that was the Idea really hopefully we'll get more members :P

Champion Gold

Well the idea worked but this place doesn't seem like a dedicated pokemon forum TBH. there's not much activity but i'll do my bit

Atavan-Halen

This Pokémon forum is just a very very small section on boards.ie :P

Champion Gold

Well we could make it a bigger part

Atavan-Halen

Hey the more the merrier!

Buzzthebatgirl

Champion Gold wrote: »

Well the idea worked but this place doesn't seem like a dedicated pokemon forum TBH. there's not much activity but i'll do my bit

We are deicated to the cause with several of our members competed in the VGC this year and pre-ordered Japanese copies of B/W. We also have real life meet up, which is more than can be said for other sites. Just keep in mind where we are and the small community we have that are willing to admit they play this game as it has a stigma attached to it. Not all of us are 15 year old teenage boys...

mulciber

Buzzthebatgirl wrote: »

We are deicated to the cause with several of our members competed in the VGC this year and pre-ordered Japanese copies of B/W. We also have real life meet up, which is more than can be said for other sites. Just keep in mind where we are and the small community we have that are willing to admit they play this game as it has a stigma attached to it. Not all of us are 15 year old teenage boys...

I'm a 15 year old teenage boy... xD

Champion Gold

Buzzthebatgirl wrote: »

We are deicated to the cause with several of our members competed in the VGC this year and pre-ordered Japanese copies of B/W. We also have real life meet up, which is more than can be said for other sites. Just keep in mind where we are and the small community we have that are willing to admit they play this game as it has a stigma attached to it. Not all of us are 15 year old teenage boys...

hmmmmm........ i posted a big long reply to this but the internet went and it didnt post. im not typing it all out again but i will summarise. i do not disrespect this forum, i actually like it, excpt for one memeber i will not name. i also explained my reason for not pre-ordering B/W and congratulating those who attended the VGC.

Oh, and obviously everyone isn't a 15 year old boy:rolleyes:

popzmaster

Yo Champion Gold thats how i found this place too delighted!!!
And yea i also seem to remember am irish dubbed pokemon on TG4...
As for the anime on the den it was either 3 or half because i remember going into secondary school open days and thinking i'd have to run home to watch it when they told us the time that we'd finish at each day:D