Pokemon Co. International and Hulu announced today that they'll be bringing animated cartoons based on the popular Japanese videogame franchise to these shores via Hulu.
Variety reports that if you're a subscriber you'll get all the Pokemon you could ever use, but some of it will also be available for free to visitors to hulu.com, such as the "Pokemon Origins" animated special and the first five episodes of the first season of the "Diamond & Pearl" story arc. Soon the first two episodes of "Pokemon the Series: XY" will join them in the free section, in the interests of hooking you in and making you pony up the $7.99 a month it costs to watch paid content on Hulu..
Right now subscribers can watch the entire first season of "Diamond & Pearl" (actually season 10 of the show) with three additional seasons coming soon (seasons 11-13) . The full four-part "Pokemon Origins" animated special and feature-length movie "Pokemon: The Rise of Darkrai" are available right now as well, with three more movies ("Pokémon: Giratina & the Sky Warrior," "Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life" and "Pokémon-Zoroark: Master of Illusions") on the way.
I'll be honest, I had no idea there were that many feature-length movies out right now. I remember when the first few hit theaters at the apex of the series' popularity in the latae 90s early 2000s, but it's been going strong ever since, with nearly a new movie a year being released.
This is a massive deal for Hulu, who has been on the constant struggle to continue updating its service with both original and exclusive content. Right now you can find the Pokemon content on Hulu and Hulu Plus at hulu.com/pokemon. Remember- if Pikachu's eyes start to flash red, run.
