Top 10 Things You Missed In Pokémon: Detective Pikachu

The casting of Justice Smith as Tim Goodman is more ingenious than you may realize. Smith’s first mainstream film role was in the 2015 mystery dramedy “Paper Towns.” In one scene, Smith and two others start spontaneously singing the theme song from first season of the “Pokémon” anime series. It’s beyond ironic that Smith would go on to star in another mystery film where his partner is a talking Pikachu. Bringing things full circle, the “Pokémon” theme song pops up a couple times in “Detective Pikachu.” Similar music can be heard during a news interview with Bill Nighy’s Howard Clifford and Chris Geere’s Roger Clifford. Later, a depressed Pikachu starts belting out the iconic lyrics in the saddest rendition of the song we’ve ever heard.

From its opening scene, “Detective Pikachu” brings back memories of seeing “Pokémon: The First Movie” almost 20 years ago. Both films kick things off with Mewtwo, a clone of the Pokémon Mew, being experimented on in a remote lab. Mewtwo is even more powerful than his creators anticipated, using his psychic abilities to break free from captivity. Unlike some other video game movies that clearly have no respect for their source material, this scene establishes upfront that “Detective Pikachu” is going to be a loving adaptation full of fun callbacks.

One of the most memorable reoccurring jokes from the Pokémon anime series centers on a Jigglypuf trying to find someone who’ll listen to it sing. Every time the Jigglypuf breaks out the microphone, however, its audience is immediately put to sleep. Each performance seems to end with Jigglypuf letting out a frustrated pout at the sight of a slumbering crowd. This running gag makes its way into “Detective Pikachu” where Jigglypuf is once again upset to see somebody sleeping through a song. Adding insult to injury, the person appeared to have been drinking a caffeinated beverage before snoozing off.

Magikarp has a reputation for being one of the most useless Pokémon, something that Tim is quick to point out. As Pikachu reminds Tim, however, it’s worth putting up with Magikarp to get Gyarados. It only takes a couple mild attacks from Pikachu to make the orange fish evolve into a massive sea monster. This mirrors a scene from the anime series where James kicks his newly acquired Magikarp in a fit of rage. Magikarp is thus prompted to evolve into Gyarados, who shows James the full extent of its powers. Too bad Magikarp was never this easy to evolve in any of the “Pokémon” games.

Rather than being confined to Poké Balls, Pokémon are functioning members of society in Ryme City. When Tim first arrives in the city, we’re given an idea of how people and Pokémon manage to live together. On a television screen, a group of Squirtles are seen putting out flames alongside firefighters. This is a nice throwback to the anime series in which the Squirtle Squad become local firefighters after saving a town from burning down. It would appear Ryme City found a similar use for its Squirtle population, although they’re missing the uniforms and sunglasses that made the Squirtle Squad stand out.

The climax of “Detective Pikachu” takes place during a Pokémon parade in which the villain releases an infectious gas from the giant balloons up above. Gee, and we thought it was bad when Pikachu’s ear deflated at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. As much fun as this action sequence is, we’d be lying if we said it didn’t remind us of a climax from another movie. In Tim Burton’s original “Batman,” the Joker lures the citizens of Gotham in with a parade where his balloons are filled with a deadly toxin. We’re not sure if the similarities were intentional, but it’d certainly be fitting if Pikachu borrowed a page from another world-class detective like Batman.

If you think a “Batman” reference seems obscure for “Detective Pikachu,” the film also gives a shout-out to “Seinfeld.” In one of the most quotable episodes, Frank Costanza tries to keep his blood pressure under control by exclaiming, “serenity now!” As everyone comes to realize, however, “serenity now” only builds up one’s anger, resulting in “insanity later.” Nevertheless, Pikachu uses the same tactic to calm down Lucy’s Psyduck. As was the case with Kramer though, “serenity now” is unable to completely neutralize Psyduck, who eventually flips out during a chase. Maybe he should’ve tried “Hoochie mama.” We honestly never expected “Seinfeld” to become part of the “Pokémon” mythos, but then again, we also never expected to hear Ryan Reynold’s voice coming out of Pikachu’s mouth.

It appears Macaulay Culkin is also part of the official “Pokémon” canon now. Wanding into his dad’s office, Tim discovers a black and white detective movie playing on the TV… at least Tim thinks it’s an old detective movie. This is actually “Angels with Filthy Souls,” the violent fake film noir that Kevin McCallister rebelliously watches in “Home Alone.” So basically, it’s a movie within a movie that’s now within another movie. Of course, Tim turns off the TV before Johnny pumps Snakes with lead. This reference is made even funnier when you consider that Ryan Reynolds reportedly has a comedy in development entitled “Stoned Alone,” in which a loner stoner thinks burglars are trying to break into his house during the holidays.

Although he may deny it, you can tell that Tim still has a soft spot for Pokémon judging from the Unown letter O symbol on his shirt. Tim’s childhood bedroom is also a love letter to everything Pokémon. While the bed with Pikachu ears is obvious, diehard fans will notice the posters eluding to Pokémon battles, such as Articuno vs Steelix and Dragonite vs Hypno. We can also spot images of Rayquaza and Charizard decorated on the wall. Another poster references the Battle Tower in the Sinnoh region from “Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum.” Tim even has a poster of the Legendary Pokémon Reshiram and Zekrom from Pokémon Black & White going at it. Basically, this is the bedroom every 90s kid wishes they had growing up.

Ryme City is essentially an Easter egg in and of itself. There are so many Pokémon traversing through this urban playground that a pause button is necessary to catch em all. Much like Toontown in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” the backgrounds are every bit as detailed as the inhabitants. Upon arriving, Tim passes by a series of Poké-themed establishments. A Wooper logo sits atop one business named “Day Dream” while an image of image of Swirlix can be seen next to an established called “Swirlix Puffed.” The Hi-Hat Café from the “Detective Pikachu” video game even makes an appearance with a neon sign modeled after Noctowl. All of these little details help to create an immersive world where Pokémon are part of everyday life.