If you’ve been on Twitter at all over the last 24 hours you’ve probably noticed a handful of Pokémon taking over your feed. If you’re like me, you’ve probably even noticed it’s a little bit more than what you’d usually see. But as it turns out, this wasn’t just Twitter waking up to the fact that, at least officially, they don’t show enough love to the franchise. Instead, it was a pretty big promotion on behalf of the upcoming Detective Pikachu film which is set to hit cinemas on May 9. Encompassing all three of the original starter Pokémon, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Charmander, the campaign also includes Mewtwo. Oh, and though they somehow forgot to mention him, it also includes a playful little Detective Pikachu.
Want Pokémon emojis? You got ‘em. #Squirtle #Bulbasaur #Charmander #Mewtwo pic.twitter.com/bWHUJncYhb
— POKÉMON Detective Pikachu (@DetPikachuMovie) April 10, 2019
Activated on Twitter earlier today, the new Pokémon “emoji” make the most of Twitter’s built-in brand support in a pretty adorable way. It’s not uncommon for brands to activate something like this, we’ve seen it used for a number of other films including Avengers and the likes. But with the inclusion of all three starters, we did see a bit of friendly competition as the timeless argument of “best starter” came back in full force. I can’t speak for the rest of the world, but I know in Japan it was Bulbasaur that remained on top throughout the day, and I’m pretty okay with that.
These #Pokemon hashtags are so cute!#Bulbasaur #Charmander #Squirtle #Mewtwo #DetectivePikachu
They also work in Japanese!#フシギダネ #ゼニガメ #ヒトカゲ #ミュウツー
— MAHA AL-HAMAD🎓 (@Mahaw_JH) April 11, 2019
Set to hit theaters worldwide on May 4, 2019, there’s definitely a lot of anticipation leading up to Detective Pikachu, largely fueled by the sheer curiosity of just how it’ll play out. It never really crossed my mind growing up that a live-action Hollywood film would even be on the roadmap for the 23-year-old franchise. With that being said, now that it’s on the horizon, you’ve just gotta see it through. Besides, from all the trailers we’ve seen so far I’m honestly of the opinion that it looks like a good time if nothing else. We’ll just have to see as we get closer to the film’s release date. For those interested in checking out further information on the upcoming live-action film, be sure to check out Detective Pikachu’s official website.