I'm happy when you're happy.
Pokémon Concierge is a 2023 Stop Motion Slice of Life anime series based around the Pokémon franchise. It is produced by Dwarf Studio (Rilakkuma and Kaoru), written by Doki Harumi, and directed by Ogawa Iku. Mariya Takeuchi composes the theme music.
The series centers on Haru, a young woman who gives up an unsatisfying career for a new job at an island resort catering to weary Pokémon and their trainers. Alongside her co-workers, including her newfound partner Pokémon Psyduck, she'll discover a bit of happiness in helping others. The first four episodes of the series launched on Netflix on December 28, 2023.
In February 2024, Netflix announced more episodes for the show, set to be streamed at an unannounced date.
Pokémon Concierge includes examples of the following:
- 2D Visuals, 3D Effects: The show is largely stop-motion with specially-made dolls and toys, but mixed with certain CGI elements where necessary (such as Pidgeot flying or whenever water gets involved).
- The Ace: Alisa. She can paint, rock climb, is respected by even the bigger Pokémon, and has a generally confident and mentor-like attitude.
- All Animals Are Dogs: Alisa's Mudkip acts like a playful puppy, wagging its tail and yipping when it's happy.
- Benevolent Boss: Miss Watanabe is the senior concierge on staff, and she's shown to be a kindly older woman who encourages her staff to have fun and be their best selves, encouraging Haru in particular to drop her neurotic Office Lady habits and loosen up on site.
- Birds of a Feather: Puns aside, Psyduck's nature as a Pokémon who can show off and display incredible psychic and mental abilities, but only when it's suffering from an extreme headache that can cause their powers to become overwhelmed, make it a perfect Pokémon for Haru, someone who is often trapped inside of her own head with how much she worries and stresses over her anxiety-induced thoughts.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: The trio of resort workers of Tyler (blond), Alisa (brunette) and Haru (redhead).
- Foreshadowing: The Psyduck can be seen early on watching Haru starting in Episode 1 before becoming her partner in the next episode. In the same episode, Haru tries to paint a Pikachu, but Alisa mistakes it for a Psyduck, hinting at Haru's future companion and her love of Pikachus which becomes relevant in Episode 4.
- Genre Shift: Pokémon Concierge is a laid back Slice of Life series based around a resort where humans and Pokémon alike can come to rest and relax in peace, compared to the games and other shows which are a Role-Playing Game and action series respectively.
- Hawaiian-Shirted Tourist: Inverted- while there are a few examples of guests in floral shirts, Haru, a staff member of the resort, wears such a shirt as part of her uniform.
- I Just Want to Be Badass: Haru helps Nao making his Pikachu scream because to him, it's too quiet, to no avail. When they decide that the Pikachu is good as it is and doesn't have to follow the iconic image, it screams goodbyes on the boat.
- Ink-Suit Actor: The animators filmed Non's facial expressions during recording to use as references for Haru.
- Magic Feather: The water floaty for the Magikarp with a star on it. Though they needed it to swim at first, during the afternoon it no longer had it, it swam all the way to Haru's camp site and evolved into Gyarados.
- Nervous Wreck:
- Haru arrives at the resort tightly wound and always trying to put on a professional front. Frequently the scene goes greyscale to focus on her panicked inner monolouges.
- In the final episode, we're introduced to Nao's Pikachu who is equally nervous and not very social, Haru uses what she's learned on the island to try and help Pikachu break out of its shell.
- Non-Uniform Uniform: The only "uniform" the hotel staff wear is a bandana, which everyone wears however they like.
- Miss Watanabe and Haru wear it as a neckerchief.
- Alisa uses it on her head to keep her hair in place.
- Tyler tied it to his belt like a touch football flag.
- Painting the Medium: Most of the Pokémon models are made of felt, but the heavier Rock and Steel types are made of more solid materials.
- Power Floats: Psyduck inadvertently causes a bunch of candies, berries, and a few Pokémon to float about from its psychic headache in Episode 2. Haru teaches him how to better control it as the two bond.
- Power Incontinence: Psyduck's problem is that its frequent headache cause its psychic powers to go haywire, levitating people, Pokémon, and objects to the inconvenience of others around it. Thanks to Haru's help, it learns to better regulate its powers when around others.
- Scenery Porn: The island and resort are gorgeous, and there are many scenic shots of the sunbathed beaches and lovely greenery. It's quite the feat for a Stop Motion miniseries.
- Shrinking Violet: Nao's Pikachu is a very shy and timid Pokémon to the point even his voice is small.
- The Stinger: Stay after the credits at the end of the first season, and you'll be treated to a little Bellsprout with a flower on its head dancing in front of a mirror.
- Stop Motion: The show is animated in this style, though unusual among its peers is that the shows' aesthetic is very toy-like, with plastic toys and soft felt playsets being used for the characters. It's essentially animated like Robot Chicken is, albeit with a higher-budget to allow for CGI.
- Surfer Dude: Tyler, having the accent, looks, and the job as the resort's fitness instructor (and chef!)
- Sweet Tooth: Haru loves candy, and uses the multicolored candies she likes to bond with Psyduck as she works to help it control its psychic headaches.
- Team Chef: Among his many jobs in the resort, Tyler is not just cook, but his cooking is "better than you would expect". And judging by the bento box we see Haru eating later, he's quite skilled.
- Terrible Artist: Haru at one point paints a Pikachu on the outside of a tent, which Alisa compliments as a lovely Psyduck, much to Haru's chagrin. That said, the terrible but heartfelt drawing she makes of Nao's sleeping Pikachu and her Psyduck is part of what motivates Nao's Pikachu to break out of its shell and overcome its shyness.
- Trauma Conga Line: A "mild" case is what drove Haru to the Resort in the first place: her long-term boyfriend breaks up with her in a text message, she steps in gum while wearing her favorite shoes, she was late to an important presentation at work, her workplace bestie quit, she trimmed her eyebrows all wrong, she spent three hours making curry that ended up tasting terrible, she works her butt off on another major presentation only to lose the project to someone else, she steps in gum again, and all of this happens on a day-to-day basis in the span of just a little over one week.
- Unaffected by Spice: Haru asks Tyler for a very spicy soup or compote to surprise a Pikachu into crying out, which causes everyone else visible shock. A later scene shows Mrs. Watanabe eating the same and commenting it's delicious.
- Workaholic: Haru is a former office worker, so despite being told numerous times that not much is required from her (and it being her first day, she's treated as a guest), she spends the entire day feeling ashamed for being relaxed, second-guessing if she's doing enough, and pulls an all-nighter making a flowchart report about supposed work ethics. She grows out of this mindset in the first two episodes.
