Headscratchers / Pokémon Evolutions

• How do Trainers command their Pokémon if not through verbal communication? Is it some kind of limited telepathy?
  • "The Rival" shows Trainers commanding their Pokémon, so it's possible we, the audience, didn't hear the Trainers say any attack names.
• Meta, but... what language was this series originally made in? Most sources on the internet say the original language is Japanese, but the credits say "Written by Benjamin Townsend", which implies the original language is English, though later on there are credits for "English Translation Team" so... Not to mention most of the time the characters' mouth movements seem to match the English dialogue more than the Japanese dialogue. There isn't really any clear information on whether this series was originally made in Japanese or English.

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