Everyone loves Pokémon. Well, at least a lot of people do. Since 1995, kids have been lining up to give Nintendo their money for that RPG with all of the awesome creatures that you could capture, train, and trade with your friends. It's fun, and it works. So, Nintendo decided to make an anime based on the game. And it was awesome (well, to me at least the first couple of seasons. I still watch it every now and then.). And if you asked anyone, they'd be sure to know that Ash's primary Pokémon was Pikachu.

It still is today. That being said, when most people think Pokémon, they think of Pikachu. Pikachu has become the face of the series, and decorates everything from the anime to t-shirts to slippers (I used to have some when I was a kid. They were awesome.). But I've noticed something about everyone's favorite ‘sparky’ yellow mouse over the years. Doesn't it seem that he's gotten a lot, well, you know...thinner? I mean, he went from this:

To this:

And it's not just the anime, it's the game sprites as well. Pikachu in the games went from this:  

 To this:

To be fair, I left out the Red and Blue sprite, because I believe most Pokemon were still going through cosmetic development at that point. But if I did show that, it'd be even worse.

So, what does Pikachu getting slimmer over the years mean? Well, I didn't think much of it, until this little baby here came out.

Enter the Pokéwalker, and the plan comes full circle. With Pikachu getting slimmer over the years, it made kids who watched the show and played the games subconscious about their own weight problems (if they had them). Finally when the Pokéwalker came out, it gave kids a "fun and easy" way to get exercise , lose weight, and level up their Pokémon all at the same time.

Well, that's what its intended use is. However, people often abuse it, or neglect it all together. But it does bring the plan full circle, even if it didn't really work. Really, Nintendo has been trying to be exercise friendly since their start, with add-ons from the Power Pad to the more recent Wii fit. Heck, the whole premise around the Wii is to play games and stay active at the same time.

So, does Nintendo want to get kids fit using Pokémon and other games? Well, you also have to take account that this is the same company that made Pokémon Pop-Tarts. Which were delicious, by the way…

I'm pretty sure it's more healthy to eat the cardboard box that they came in than to eat these. At least you'd get some good fiber.

Nintendo was probably approached by some organization which pressured them to change Pikachu's look to get kids to think about their weight, and promote fitness. "So you can be just like Pikachu!", or something. If given the chance, I'm sure Nintendo wouldn't budge on the subject. But hey, these nutjobs  turned Jynx purple, and got rid of Porygon in the anime, so these crazy overprotective parents could probably do anything.

Really, I think that Nintendo tries to appeal to all markets, and in turn, cashes in. "Nintendo is fit friendly! Look at the Wii!" "Nintendo is safe for kids, and can be fun for the whole family." "Nintendo is here with the new best after school snack! Super Mario Bros. Gummy Snacks!" You get the idea.

It's just one big gimmick, which is fine by me, because I’ll kick back in my Pikachu slippers, and play some Soul Silver until my eyes bleed (just like they did on the original Silver). So, take this theory with a grain of salt, as it goes way deeper than I'd like to get into. I've already been in deep trouble with the big N questioning the Zelda timeline, and I don't want to get back on their bad side. Maybe Miyamoto himself gave the order to put Pikachu on Weight Watchers. Who knows?

Well, that's my blog. Hope I gave you a good read. That's all I got to say.

Until next time, Excelsior! (Comment if you remember Pokemon Pop-Tarts).