Pokemon episode that caused more than 700 epilepsy attacks in Japan in 1997

On December 16, 1997, an unprecedented event shook JapanMore than 700 children were transferred to the hospital within hours due to similar symptoms – eye, nausea, seizures and loss of consciousness.

The reason was unlikely to be a real, an episode of the popular animation series Pokemon. Within minutes, hospitals were in cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, Naguia and Seburu. What seemed to be a viral outbreak that ended until it was one of the most controversial episodes in the history of TV.

The scene that changed everything

Episode 38 of PokemonElectric Soldier Porygon (Porygon Electric Soldier), broadcast on the afternoon on TOKYO TV.

In the middle of the chapter, a Bikcho explosion generated a series of white and blue lights. This combination, frequently in 54 panels for five seconds, was sufficient to operate the attacks Epilepsy In hundreds of children who looked at it in the actual time.

The medical reports that started access to hospitals were worried. Hundreds of minors had symptoms compatible with a rare form of epilepsy known as light -sensitive epilepsy. This condition affects a small percentage of people Epilepsy About 3 % – It is characterized by the crisis caused by visual stimuli, such as fast gifts or engineering patterns.

From the phenomenon of animation of the national crisis

Pokemon Then it was modern with tremendous success. Based on the video games created by the Satoshi Tajiri, which was developed by Game Freak, the series began to broadcast in Japan on April 1, 1997. Its conspiracy, which starred in Ash Ketchum and Pikachu, was inseparable, with the interest of millions of children.

On the day of the accident, popular Pokemon Play against him. The synchronization of time has caused the transmission of the transmission of thousands of minors throughout the country at the same time. The coincidence between the symptoms and the schedule was the starting point for the health investigation, which quickly rose at the state level.

A second wave caused by the news

On the night of December 16, most of the news decided to broadcast the episode part as part of its coverage of information. Without expecting the consequences, many chains repeated the exact scene of the explosion. The result: a second wave of cases, resulting from indirect exposure to the same sequence of lights. Official numbers moved from 687 patients to more than 700 patients in less than six hours.

Looking at the size of the problem, Hiroshi Awramoto, a spokesman for Tokyo TV, announced that the series was temporarily suspended until an investigation was conducted. Prime Minister at the time Japonés Ryutaro Hashimoto It announced that the state will bear the supervision of the case. The news had a global impact: Nintendo, the concession, decreased by 1.5 % in Osaka and Tokyo bags.

What revealed the science

The investigation concluded that the attacks were the result of the visual influence known as “Vertiginous”, which is produced by the caliphate of high -speed contrast images. The concerned scene on the red and blue lights is the rate of 12 Hz, which is a decisive frequency to stimulate episodes in the exposed people.

A study published later in the Science Daily magazine showed that these patterns accelerate the nerve electrical impulses and change the natural brain activity. In people Epilepsy This intoxication can stimulate light, it can stimulate a different level of gravity crisis, from consciousness to severe cramps.

The ring was immediately removed from the blood circulation and did not stem again. Today it can only be accessed in modified versions, with a decrease in speed to reduce risk.

The episode that never crossed the border

Chapter 38 of Pokemon He had already determined the English, French and Spanish language, and ready to broadcast in the United States and Europe. However, the powers of countries such as the United States, France and the United Kingdom prevented their deployment, based on the recommendations of experts in neuroscience and public health.

Despite this blow, the series survived. Pokemon It continued to produce and expand worldwide, and it becomes one of the most successful media privileges in all times, with more than twenty seasons, movies, promotional games and video games that are still valid today.

Before and after TV animation

As a preventive measure, TV TOKYO guarantees a message from then at the beginning of each episode: “When you watch anime on the TV, you don’t see in the dark and stay away from the screen.” This warning has become standard in many other mobile products.

In addition, the industry has adopted strict standards about the frequency and brightness of animation, especially in scenes with light effects. in JapanA protocol was created to review the visual security of each episode before its release, which is still valid.

The inheritance of a silence episode

Although the Porygon electric soldier is eliminated from the TV law, its effect continues. It is a case study in the universities of communication, medicine and popular culture. He was also forced to rethink the strength of the image of the movement and the moral responsibility of those who produce it.

The accident put urgent questions on the table: What are the limits that visual entertainment should enjoy? To what extent should the platforms expect the effects of their contents? While the science explained this phenomenon, it was the institutional and social reaction that ended with the transformation of the rules of the game.

More than 25 years of episode, Pokemon It is still synonymous with global success. But he also reminds us that, behind animation and imagination, there are aesthetic and technical decisions with real consequences. This electric soldier is, in this sense, a silent warning about the risks of excessive subjugation and the involuntary power of the screen.