Pikachu is loved across the world as one of the cutest and most loyal creatures to ever come out of a tiny ball. He’s the face of a gaming generation, he’s every kid’s dream best pal, but he also seems to have fallen on hard times and looks to collaborate with Tom Waits if his gravelly new Detective Pikachu voice is any indication.
After months of hype and speculation around the latest ultra-popular Pokemon offering, fans are simultaneously thrilled that the game finally has an official trailer, but more than a little disturbed at Pikachu’s possible side-gig as a voiceover artist and/or grizzled veteran of the private investigation world. Listen to that growl. That’s a Pikachu that has seen some sh*t.
So not only are fans shocked to finally hear Pikachu with a human voice saying more than “Pikachu,” but we have this man inside Pikachu’s body who seemingly at any moment is going to tell his family that he’s going for a cigarette run. It’s truly bizarre, this stylistic choice. We get that Detective Pikachu is supposed to turn the corner from kids game into something even older fans can get into, but did they really need to go full-Blade Runner to pull off a Detective Pikachu?
And will this be what Ryan Reynolds sounds like in the upcoming movie?
You’ve never seen a detective quite like this Pikachu! 🔍⚡️ But wait—is that Mewtwo? Let’s investigate in #DetectivePikachu: https://t.co/eBVblXBzWJ pic.twitter.com/ByqNM72aAY
— Pokémon UK (@PokemonNewsUK) February 23, 2018
https://twitter.com/ArylideSuleth/status/966925922837307392
Omg 😲 I don’t know what I’ve just watched but for some reason I love it. Didn’t expect #DetectivePikachu to have that deep a voice. Story looks sick too.
— Ian Wolfski (@KidWolfski) February 23, 2018
https://twitter.com/sworceresss/status/966845608102330368
https://twitter.com/ministired/status/966861300600012800
https://twitter.com/QuilJ1/status/966842057842200577
Theres something amazing and weird about Detective Pikachu having voice acting. I only wish it was rated M for more grisly mysteries to solve.
— Ro Panuganti 🔜 VGMCon 2024 (@RoPanuganti) February 19, 2018
How is it possible that the voice acting that DOESN'T hurt my ears in this trailer is Pikachu sounding like a gravely detective? Man, the other voice acting is pretty terrible. I guess what else should we expect from a multi-million dollar company, right? https://t.co/uw0qfsIh71
— Jools Watsham (@JoolsWatsham) February 23, 2018
https://twitter.com/hashy209/status/966854050556862466
who the fucks idea was it to make this? and why isn't Ryan Reynolds the voice of detective pikachu? https://t.co/hHHuu7lnyO
— ᵃˣᵉˡ 🐉 (@FavIfBae) February 19, 2018
Hi, I am just learning that Pikachu speaks English in the new Pokemon movie and, yes, it is extremely fucking weird pic.twitter.com/k5hm5lyW7Y
— Ryan Broderick (@broderick) November 13, 2017