Like many, I grew up on Pokémon. I collected the cards, played the video games, and watched the TV show. What kept me coming back to the franchise wasn't Ash, Brock, or whatever anime thot they were traveling with at the time. It was the delightfully imaginative creatures that made up the world around them. The humans were more of a nuisance than anything and that hasn't changed with this movie. I'm not convinced Justice Smith has leading man potential. He can definitely act, but lacks the charisma or flair necessary for real star power. Better to save him for those inconsequential supporting roles like the one he had in Fallen Kingdom. Kathryn Newton's character is just flat out annoying. An assemblage of all the trite intern-wannabe-reporter tropes in desperate need of an actual personality behind them. The only other cast member to show up in flesh and blood and get any sort of real screen time is Bill Nighy. He's fantastic. But like I said, it's the Pokémon themselves that are the real draw of Detective Pikachu and on that front it succeeds marvelously. I can't get over how well they brought the franchise to life in live-action. The Pokémon look incredible and it adheres to the lore in such a way that will make you forget this didn't come straight from Japan. I stared at the screen transfixed as I witnessed my childhood dream of pocket monsters existing in the real world become as close to a reality as possible. It's great wish-fullfilment and luckily a pretty good adventure to boot. The plot will hold no surprises for anyone with it's incredibly obvious twists, but plays out in a way that makes it more accessible to a wider audience than any of the animated movies ever did. Even my mother who couldn't tell a Jigglypuff from a Togepi had a good time. This is thanks to a solid sense of humor and exciting set-pieces. Ryan Reynolds voice acting, which I was admittedly worried about, makes the already amusing shenanigans all the more humorous. Although, you really mean to tell me he couldn't clean up his pottymouth for one kids movie? It's so uncomfortable hearing Pikachu cuss. Detective Pikachu is held back a bit by its predictable plot and unlikable human leads. Yet ultimately manages to rise above its faults thanks to spectacular action, a lot of love and care, a healthy amount of laughs, and the always endearing Pokémon themselves. Not bad for the franchise's first Western outing.