Ash may be leaving the Pokemon anime, but Captain Pikachu will be joining

Ash and Pikachu may leave Pokémon anime, but the new nautical action will be joined by a new main cast.

It’s been a long journey, but the Pokemon anime is finally ready to say goodbye to everyone’s favorite trainer, Ash Ketchum. In Japan, where the anime is currently wrapping up, Satoshi rejoices with his old pair of friends, Brock and Misty, and many old loves are reunited. But with Ash no longer being the main character in the Pokemon anime, Pikachu’s role in the main story has also remained. As it turns out, The Pokemon Company has solved this problem by introducing a new Pikachu: Captain Pikachu.

Pikachu is the main mascot of the series, so an anime without him would be weird. But as revealed on the official Pokemon Twitter account, a new character is being introduced, Captain Pikachu as Pokemon’s sidekick. The trainer, named Friede, will travel with new protagonists Liko and Roy, but no further information has been revealed beyond that.

“Pikachu has been synonymous with the Pokémon series for 27 years, and we look forward to seeing this beloved Pokémon continue to feature prominently in the animated series and continue to be an icon for the brand,” said Taito Okiura, vice president of marketing. Pokémon International, in a statement (thanks to Polygon).

Keeping Pikachu in the anime feels like a smart move to keep people watching because he’s one of the best parts of the series because of how honest and likable he is.

It’s also possible that we’ll learn more about the new Pokemon anime series soon, because tomorrow (February 27), a Pokemon Gifts broadcast will be held in celebration of Pokemon Day. We probably won’t see a new major game series announcement, but maybe we’ll finally see Detective Pikachu 2 or Pokemon Sleep in there? Or better yet, a new Mystery Dungeon game.