Admit it. you wish the anime looked This Cool.

anyway, the images are from the manga Pokemon Special, Known as Pokemon Adventures outside of Japan. where it differs from the anime is that the characters tend to travel without human company. Notably, Misty even mocks the notion of abandoning her gym to travel with Red.

that once a character's story arc ends or they accomplish what they set out to do, the story switches to a New protagonist and game region.

it's emphasis on Characterization and Continuity along with somewhat Darker content,  has many convinced that it's designed for an older audience than the Anime. whether this is true or not is... Debatable.

As the series has 42 volumes, and nearly 70 characters, seperated across various Arcs, i'll be reviewing them by arc