Yo-kai Watch Episode 1
| Yo-kai Watch Episode 1 | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Season | 1 |
| Number | 1 |
| English titles | Yo-Kai Are Real!, The Spooky Intersection |
| Japanese titles | Yōkai ga Iru! (妖怪がいる!), Kyōfu no Kōsaten (恐怖の交差点) |
| Original air date | January 8 2014 |
| English air date | October 5 2015 |
| Channel | Disney XD |
| Next | Yo-kai Watch Episode 2 |
| Discussion | Episode 1 Forum Post |
Yo-Kai Are Real!
At the start of the very first episode of Yo-kai Watch, Nate, the protagonist, is hunting for bugs with a large net. Nate is an average looking boy, thin, energetic, and full of determination. Nate finds a stag beetle and, impressed with himself, he rushes off to tell his friends, Bear and Eddie. One of his friends reveals that he's caught an even bigger beetled than Nate. Before Nate has time to get upset, a young girl, Katie, arrives.
Katie takes a look at the beetle that Nate has caught, and seems overjoyed. Katie says that the bug Nate caught suits him, as it's very “normal”. Nate is upset, needless to say. After that, he vows he'll find a huge bug. This comedic bit is adorable, and endears us to Nate – it lets us know that he's desperate to prove himself to Katie, and is willing to try his hardest to impress her and his friends. It's clear that he has a crush on Katie!
Nate goes into a forbidden areas in search of a big bug, ignoring warning signs that caution him away. Chases rare bug into brush, crawling into a bush to go after it. When emerging, finds a giant tree. Having lost the bug, he heads for the large and ominous tree.
He finds a toy vending machine, with ominous-looking toy capsules inside. He approaches cautiously. A voice calls out to insert a coin into the machine, to which Nate initially hesitates. He insists that he doesn't even know why he should, he doesn't know what the capsules hold, but the voice insists until he finally puts in the coin.
Upon opening the capsule, Nate is surprised to find he releases a Yo-kai! The Yo-kai immediately (and enthusiastically) introduces itself as Whisper. He explains that he was trapped in the toy capsule because a monk decided that “all Yo-kais were evil”, and sealed him away. Whisper thanks Nate for releasing him, but Nate has already lost interest and goes to search for his bug again... but not before demanding back the 100 yen he used to buy the toy capsule from the machine, which he “needs for juice”.
Whisper won't leave Nate alone, however, and insists that he will now work as Nate's servant forever. Once Whisper realizes that Nate is searching for bugs, he summons a whole pile of them. Nate, buried in a pile of bugs, demands Whisper take them away, which he does... but releases a stinking cloud in order to fend them off, which disgusts poor Nate. Whisper is immediately recognizable as a comedic character, despite his slightly menacing smile. Audiences are clued-in that, while Whisper is hilarious, he is still a Yo-kai and potentially unpredictable in natural... maybe even malicious.
Nate and Whisper head back to Nate's home, while Whisper explains that no one but Nate can see him. Nate explains that he's glad, since he's not allowed to have any pets. (Being referenced as a pet drives Whisper crazy, of course.)
When Nate gets home, his parents are in the middle of a vicious argument. Nate discovers the argument is about something incredibly ridiculous – his father ate his mother's food! Nate remarks how his parents never get into fights, and that he's worried. Whisper mentions that there's a Yo-kai in the room causing the fight that Nate can't see.
This is where Nate is gifted the Yo-kai Watch – a magical device that allows humans to see Yo-kais they would otherwise be unable to perceive. Shining the light from the watch into the world will reveal Yo-kais that Nate couldn't otherwise see.
Using the watch, Nate shines the light between his parents, and uncovers a huge, hulking, pink creature who looks remarkably depressed. Whisper announces that this is Damperina, a Yo-kai whose energy causes people to argue or even get divorces!
Nate is frightened that the Yo-kai will cause a rift between his loving parents, so he concludes that he has to force Damperina to leave. Whisper tries to talk with the giant pink Yo-kai, but she ignores him. When Nate approaches her, she reveals that she had a fight with her husband, and she's afraid that he no longer loves her.
Thankfully, right on cue, Damperina's husband arrives – Honobono, a brilliant, yellow Yo-kai that exudes positive energy. Whisper explains that the two Yo-kais cancel out each other's energy, so they are often found together. Almost immediately, Nate's parents have their moods lifted, and they apologize to each other for the argument.
Whisper promises that Nate can keep the watch, and that he will work to protect Nate from any “spooky” disturbances from other Yo-kais. Whispers gets a bit creepy himself when he wonders how Nate will respond to seeing and knowing that Yo-kais truly exist. Nate starts to realize the responsibility that comes with wearing the Yo-kai Watch, but he continues to wear it all the same.
The Spooky Intersection
Next, the story branches off to a run-in with a new Yo-kai. Nate and Whisper are walking along the road-side, when Nate explains that an intersection near them has had strange occurrences: cars nearly running over pedestrians on the crosswalk, but the pedestrian always makes it out alright just at the last moment.
Whisper insists that these strange occurrences are definitely the workings of a Yo-kai. When Nate scans the area, he's incredibly surprised when they discover... not a frightening or terrifying Yo-kai... but the Yo-kai of a cat!
The Yo-kai introduces itself as Jibanyan – the spirit of a kitty that died when it was hit by a car, in that very same intersection. The cat was owned by a young girl named Amy, who the cat loved very much. When the cat was hit by the car, Amy commented that the cat was a “loser” for having died from just a “tiny bump” from an oncoming car. Ever since then, Jibanyan has dedicated itself to “beating up” oncoming cars by possessing pedestrians in the crosswalk.
It's important to note here that Jibanyan is adorable – while he tells the story of his death and Amy's cruel response, he tears up and cries repeatedly, while staying determined to “win a battle” over the cars.
Things take a surprise turn when Nate offers to “adopt” the cat-spirit, because he admires it's determination. Nate asks Jibanyan to be his friend, and Jibanyan tearfully accepts, giving Nate a Yo-kai Medal – proof of a bond between a Yo-kai and a human.
This episode is a fantastic introduction to the lighthearted fanciful nature of the series.
