The Shocking and Risky Move by Pokémon That Nearly Destroyed the Franchise

Fans of the English dub of Pokémon, whether they have been following the series for a long time or have revisited it recently, will notice a significant change in the voices of Ash and the rest of the cast. This change may seem like a natural progression over the past 25 years, but in reality, the show made a controversial decision to replace its entire voice actors cast at one point.

Initially, the Pokémon anime was dubbed by 4Kids Entertainment, a now-defunct company that localized numerous anime series for a younger audience. While many fans had their criticisms of 4Kids, they had grown accustomed to the existing voice cast. Therefore, there was widespread discontent in 2006 when it was revealed that 4Kids was losing the license to Pokémon and a plan was underway to recast almost every voice actor in the series. Recasting is typically a contentious decision, even for individual characters, so completely replacing the entire voice cast at once was highly unusual. This left fans questioning why The Pokémon Company International (then known as Pokémon USA) had made this decision.

The Murky Truth Behind Pokémon's Recasting

The news of Pokémon USA replacing voice actors with "sound-a-likes" due to cost-cutting upset many existing voice actors. Rumor had it that this decision was made because the anime's popularity was declining and the 4Kids license had expired. TAJ Productions took over and released the special "Mastermind of the Mirage Pokémon" to test the new voice actors. However, fans strongly reacted against the recasting, resulting in Ash being recast again with Sarah Natochenny for the rest of the series. Despite fan campaigns, the new voice actors remained, although it took them some time to find their footing, leading to awkward episodes after the change. TAJ Productions went bankrupt in 2008 and the show was passed to another studio that was more willing to bring back some of the original voice actors. While most did not return, some like the original narrator Rodger Parsons did. The series was receiving better ratings at the time on Cartoon Network, which justified a larger budget and allowed for the return of certain actors.

The decision to replace the voice cast that had garnered immense popularity for the Pokémon anime from 1998 to 2006 was undoubtedly a misstep. Not only did it betray the loyal actors, but it also left fans upset and created the perception that the series was merely a cheap promotional tool for Pokémon USA, despite their claims to the contrary. This unfortunate choice could have spelled disaster for the dub, but luckily, the series managed to avoid such a fate. However, there are still many fans who harbor resentment towards the recasting, resulting in a lasting and significant change in the voices of the Pokémon anime.