Pokémon in France
| Pokémon in France | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Language | French | |||
| Continent | Europe | |||
| Original anime airdates | ||||
| EP001 | ||||
| AG001 | ||||
| DP001 | ||||
| BW001 | ||||
| XY001 | ||||
| SM001 | ||||
| JN001 | ||||
| HZ001 | ||||
The Pokémon franchise first reached France on October 9, 1999 with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue Versions in the French language.
Pokémon video games
All of the main series and spin-off Pokémon games have been translated into French for sale in France. As in the rest of Europe, Pokémon Trozei! is sold under the title Pokémon Link!.
With some exceptions such as Pikachu, most of the Pokémon names are completely localized into the French language. For more information on these translated names, see list of French Pokémon names.
Pokémon anime
The French dub of the Pokémon anime has been recorded and produced by two different companies. Studio La Dame Blanche recorded the original series and the Advanced Generation series, while the Diamond & Pearl series is currently recorded and produced by Sunstudio.
Pokémon currently airs on Disney XD France (formerly Fox Kids France and then Jetix France) and Gulli. Previously, the anime also aired on TF1.
Music
All theme songs used in the French dub of the Pokémon anime are translated versions of the English themes used by 4Kids Entertainment and The Pokémon Company International.
Three Pokémon soundtracks have been released in France. The first, Pokémon - Bande originale de la série TV, is a translation of Pokémon 2.B.A. Master. A special edition version of this soundtrack was released with a five-track bonus disc containing two remixes of Pokédance, a rerecorded version of La Chanson d'Ondine sung by Barbi Schiller, and two bonus songs: Double Head vs Pikachu remix and Pikachu vs Double Head.
The other two soundtracks that have been released in France are Un Monde Pokémon, a translated version of the Pokémon World single, and Voyage à Johto, a translated version of Totally Pokémon.
Cast and Crew
Many voice actors and actresses have contributed to the production of the French dub of the Pokémon anime.
The director of the dub is Jean-Daniel Nicodème, who also provides the voice of the Narrator, Voltère and Lovis. Jean-Marc Anthony Kabeya performs the vocals for many of the theme songs.
Sacha Ketchum is voiced by Aurélien Ringelheim. Ondine is voiced by Fanny Roy, who also provides the voice for Tatia. Jacky Léon was voiced by Bruno Mullenaerts.
Pierre was voiced by Laurent Chauvet from the EP005-AG145. Starting from AG146, he has been voiced by Antoni Lo Presti.
Flora is voiced by Maia Baran. Her brother, Max, is voiced by Guylaine Gibert, who also provides the voice of Agent Jenny. Lydia Cherton provides the voice of Infirmière Joëlle.
Aurore is voiced by Alexandra Corréa. Her rival, Zoé, is voiced by Claire Tefnin.
Jessie is voiced by Catherine Conet, who also provides the voice of Delia Ketchum. James has been voiced for the entire series by David Manet. Miaouss was voiced by Nessym Guetat from EP002-AG145. Starting from AG146, he has been voiced by Philippe Tasquin. The boss of Team Rocket, Giovanni, is voiced by Patrick Deschamps.
Régis Chen has been voiced by Jean-Marc Delhausse and Lionel Bourguet. Régis's grandfather, Professeur Chen, is also voiced by Delhausse. One of Sacha's other rivals, Paul, has been voiced by Alessandro Bevilacqua (DP002-DP052) and Gauthier De Fauconval (DP053-Present).
Other notable voice actors from the French dub of the Pokémon anime include Marie Van Renterghem, the voice of Cassidi, Romain Barbieux, the voice of Harley, and Gregory Praet, the voice of Barry.
Pokémon Trading Card Game
The Pokémon Trading Card Game reached France on July 1, 2000 with the release of the Base Set. As in North America, the Pokémon Trading Card Game was originally distributed by Wizards of the Coast and later by The Pokémon Company International after Wizards lost their license to distribute the TCG.
France has recieved all of the same expansion sets that have been released in North America except for Gym Heroes, Gym Challenge, Skyridge, Base Set 2, Legendary Collection, Southern Islands and EX Team Rocket Returns. The most recent expansion set to be released in French is Rising Rivals.
French-language cards are recognised as tournament legal for Pokémon Organized Play. Despite the differences in Pokémon and character names, cards from France are exported to Canada for sale in the province of Québec and other French-speaking regions.
Pokémon merchandise
Pokémon manga
Many Pokémon manga have been translated into French for sale in France by Glénat. Notably, France is one of only two countries outside of Japan to publish a translation of Pokémon Get da ze! (translated as Pokémon: Attrapez-les tous!), although only the first two volumes were published in French. Other Pokémon manga titles available in France include Pokémon Adventures (Pokémon: La Grande Adventure!), Magical Pokémon Journey (Pikachu Adventures!) and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Ginji's Rescue Team (Pokémon Donjon Mystère: Les secouristes de Ginji). Unlike the Japanese and English releases, Pokémon Donjon Mystère: Les secouristes de Ginji was published as two mini-books of three chapters each rather than one six-chapter volume.
External links
- Pokémon.fr (in French)
- Pokémon on Gulli's website (in French)
