The Pokemon anime series is no stranger to censorship, with some episodes outright banned in certain regions of the world. One of the most recent examples comes from Pokemon the Series: Sun & Moon, based on the games of the same name, where an odd bit of censorship was spotted in the Indonesian dub of the program.
In most cases, censorship happens due to excessive violence, situations deemed too sexualized, or for cultural differences that don't mesh well with where it's airing. Indonesia, however, has chosen to protect viewers from seeing something that doesn't really fit any of those examples. In one episode, Jessie, of Team Rocket, has her midriff blurred. Strangest of all, it only appears to be from her front and not her back.
Anime can often be gratuitous when showing flesh of female characters, and it is common to color in portions of the body to "lengthen" clothing. For this dub, though, her body is simply blurred, and it isn't clear why. Perhaps Indonesia thinks belly buttons are too risqué. Whatever the reason, it's there and it has Pokemon fans baffled.
The latest installment in the long-running anime series, based on the Sword and Shield games, released last month. If the past is any indication, it will surely be subject to its share of censorship. The series stars Ash once again, this time touring the Galar region alongside a second protagonist. It hasn't gotten too deep into the story yet, but fans have ideas of what Pokemon they'd like to see Ash catch along his journey.
As for the games the series is based on, which also released last month, players have much more control of what Pokemon they'll see and catch. There are quite a few popular Pokemon missing from the Pokedex this time around, however. This has been a major gripe players have had with Pokemon Sword and Shield, and one of the things they wish they could change. Hopefully, Nintendo is listening and will take note of everything that needs to change for the next installment after Sword and Sword.
Pokemon Sword and Shield are available now exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.