Yo-Kai Watch is a franchise that has taken the world by storm… at least in Japan. Outside of its country of origin the franchise has yet to make as big as an impression. In the United States the series has gained a cult following of maybe dozens if not a baker’s dozen worth of people. As with any semi-popular franchise with a half-hour toy commercial disguised as an animated series, some kind of movie was bound to happen.  This one happens to have an odd amount of Star Wars references. 

Originally the Yo-Kai Watch movie only had a one day theatrical release. The showing was quite good because not only was there a movie but a “free” plastic disc was being handed out to anyone who saw the movie! Thankfully I and the other 13 Yo-Kai fans got to the theater before supplies dwindled.  Nothing was mentioned about a possible DVD release or even a television premiere. However, as of last Saturday and Sunday, Disney XD has shown the movie at least two times.

The story is the same as the recently released Yo-Kai Watch 2 games. The movie attempts to tell the story in a much better way than the games did. The evil Yo-Kai Dame Deadtime sends her minions into Nate Adams room one night to steal the Yo-Kai watch to prevent humans and Yo-Kai from being friends. Nate then goes back in time to meet his grandfather Nathaniel Adams- the creator of the Yo-Kai watch. All while meeting new friends.  Although the writing isn’t exactly Shakespearean in quality it can come pretty close to it. The film conveys a wide range of emotions effectively. The above average animation is also worth mentioning. As a weekly watcher of the show I can safely say that the animation on display here is leagues above what is in the average episode of Yo-Kai Watch.  In fact, I was initially disappointed when after the movie a brand new (at the time) episode was shown and I could clearly see the drop in fluidity. However since that was a bonus and not actually apart of the film itself it will have no impact on my rating.

It can get quite emotional. I and many others where crying when the character Nathaniel does not want any friends because of the day were he let his friend get beaten up by the bullies. From that day onward he decided that he was unworthy of experiencing the joys of friendship.  Later in the film when Nathaniel says “come out my Yo-Kai friends!” my eyes were filled with tears. He learned to deal with his demons by becoming friends with demons. Touching.

Cry every time

My rating:

+100 movie points for Hovernyan Metal

-10000 points for painful opening theme song

+1 MILLION MOVIE POINTS for memorable lyrics in both the OPENING AND ENDING CREDITS.

+10 Points for B O D A C I O U S  ANIMATION

-2 MILLION MOVIE POINTS for the drop in animation quality in the bonus features.

+500 Movie Points for an EXCELLENT ENGLISH DUB

OVERALL RATING: Legit

This movie checks out by me and has therefore earned the prestigious title of ‘Legit’. I highly recommend this to fans of Yo-Kai Watch. I also recommend it to people who are not fans yet as they will be converted shortly after viewing this masterpiece of cinema.