I Had an Unforgettable Pokémon Battle Aboard the S.S. Anne

You’re reading the seventh chapter of my eight-day travelog recounting my unbelievable trip to Japan to cover the 2023 Pokémon World Championships.

If you already haven't, be sure to check out the other chapters:

Pokemon Takes Over Yokohama

Day 7 - All Aboard the S.S. Anne

8:30 am - I wake up and eat the Pancake and Cheese Whipped Cream pastry leftover from last night's 7/11 run. It’s mildly sweet and has a pleasantly mushy mouth-feel. I think I’d like it more if the pancakes had some color. They’re pure white so it makes me feel like I’m eating styrofoam.

9:00 am - Today is the big finals day of the Pokémon World Championships, but before going to watch the finals, we’re taken over to a seaside dock and given a ticket to board a large cruise ship designed to look like the S.S. Anne.

Pokémon fans will recognize this vessel from Pokémon Red and Blue games where you went aboard and battled the many Pokémon Trainers throughout. I’m reminded of how, when I played the game as a kid, there was a widespread rumor that if you stood next to the truck on the S.S. Anne’s dock and pressed A, you’d find a Poké Ball with Mew in it. That ended up being completely false, but I remember trying it numerous times anyway, secretly hoping it would work and the rarest Pokémon of all would be mine. Before I enter the makeshift S.S. Anne I scan the dock for trucks. Nope. Dang.

The S.S. Anne, IRL. (Photo by Joshua Yehl)

9:10 am - We’re given a map that shows the ship’s many floors, each with their own Pokémon activity. I notice there’s a crowd lined up in front of a plain looking trash can, so I get in line to see what the big deal is about. When I open the lid, there’s a message that reads “Nope, there’s only trash in here.” I hope whoever came up with that idea gets a raise.

9:15 am - I go up a floor and enter the Pokémon TCG battle area. There are a bunch of tables marked with either “Let’s Battle!” or “Let’s Trade!” A tingle of electric excitement creeps up inside me. I see players sitting down and challenging others at random, a beautiful view of the water visible through the ship windows behind them. It truly captures what it’s like in the game to board the SS Anne and start battling Pokémon, and I could not be more giddy about it.

Time to battle. (Photo by Joshua Yehl, IGN)

9:20 am - I have a Pokémon deck in my bag so I decide to sit down at a table for battling and almost immediately a Japanese player sits down and asks if I want to play. He says he only speaks a little English and I say it’s no problem. I’ve played players who don’t speak the same language before and it’s never been a problem because the game itself is its own universal language. There was nothing that could have prepared me for the insanity that happened next.

9:22 am - We introduce ourselves and he tells me his name is Inuber Yo. We set up to play and he sets down a small Mr. Mime figure on the board. We start playing and have a laugh when we see we’re playing the same Gardevoir ex deck—or so I think.

Mr. Mime Trainer wants to battle! (Photo Joshua Yehl, IGN)

A devious look comes across his face and he plays a Mr. Mime card. He picks up his Mr. Mime figure to pose with it and grins from ear to ear. Now, I know what every competitively viable Pokémon card does without having to read it, which is how I can comfortably play against someone using Japanese cards, but Mr. Mime is not what you’d call a meta card, so I have no clue what it does. He powers up the Mr. Mime with Gardvoir ex’s Psychic Embrace ability and declares an attack, then gestures that we have to play rock-paper-scissors, and if he wins, then I can’t damage his Mr. Mime on the next turn. I’ve never been more pleasantly surprised (and a bit confused) in my life but I am so down for this. I throw paper and he beats me with scissors, then he lets out a maniacal laugh and applauds excitedly. (What is happening?)

On my turn, I’m able to get around the Mr. Mime barrier by playing Boss’s Orders to bring up a different Pokémon and knock it out. He promotes Mr. Mime and we throw again. Against all odds, we both throw scissors five times in a row, and his enthusiasm is so infectious that I join him in laughing more and more as it keeps happening again and again, until finally he throws rock and wins, then we both explode with giggles. He picks up his Mr. Mime figure and matches its miming pose in victory. I wipe the tears of laughter from my eyes and take a moment to catch my breath before starting my next turn.

Luckily, my Gardevoir deck is able to draw a ton of cards thanks to Kirlia and Gardevoir’s abilities, and I’m able to find my second copy of Boss’s Orders to get around his barrier again. He attacks with Mr. Mime once more, and I figure he’s feeling pretty confident with rock, so I throw paper – and finally win! That means I’m free to attack his Mr. Mime. After I knock it out, he melodramatically frowns and tips over his little Mr. Mime Figure, then bursts out in fake tears. On his turn, he plays Super Rod to shuffle his Mr. Mime back into the deck and follows it up with Ultra Ball to search it out and play it again. He stands his figure upright and smiles broadly. I take a moment to admire just how dedicated he is to his favorite Pokémon. He attacks, we throw again, and this time he wins with paper. Now I’m in a pickle.

My best counter to his Mr. Mime barrier is Boss’s Orders, but I’ve already played the only two copies in my deck. I’m forced to pass the turn back to him without doing any damage, then he finishes off my active Pokémon and wins the throw yet again with paper. He’s in my head! If I don’t knock out his Mr. Mime this turn, then I lose the game. I search my deck for an answer and realize I have just the thing. I play down Cresselia and use its Reverse Moonglow attack, which moves damage counters instead of dealing direct damage, which gets around Mr. Mime’s barrier – and wins me the game. He pays his respects to his fallen Mr. Mime, then gives me a big, two-handed handshake as I say well-played and thank him for the fun game.

I ask him why he loves Mr. Mime so much and he says it's his hero because it's so cute. I’ve always thought Mr. Mime looked like pure nightmare fuel, especially in the live-action Detective Pikachu movie, but after this match, maybe the little weirdo isn’t so bad.

Battling on the boat. (Photo by Joshua Yehl)

10:05 am - I do a lap around the boat and see others battling, and I notice that the Mr. Mime trainer wasn't one of a kind. I see several other players also following a theme based around a specific Pokémon, and I appreciate how Japanese players take so much pride in their unique, off-meta decks, putting fun and style before anything else.

Eeveelution Trainer. (Photo by Joshua Yehl, IGN)

12:05 pm - “I feel like I would cry if Tord didn’t win,” I hear a woman in a Rayquaza hat say as I find a seat back in the tournament hall and settle in for the TCG Masters finals. The winner will take home the biggest cash prize of the tournament, a cool $25,000, not to mention a one-of-kind 1st place Pokémon card, an automatic invite to next year’s Worlds, and a super adorable Pikachu trophy.

It’s Norway’s Tord Reklev playing Gardevoir ex with Mirage Step versus Kansas City’s Vance Kelley piloting a Fusion Mew VMAX deck. Tord has one of the most formidable records in the game, whereas Vance has a more modest list of achievements but is a virtual unknown. It’s the fan-favorite champ against the underdog in a best of three match.

I see Isiah in the row behind me and move to join him to ask his thoughts on the match. He tells me everyone in this section of the crowd is here to cheer on Vance. They’re a small group, all wearing pink team shirts, and they excitedly clap and cheer for their friend as he walks out on stage. Isiah tells me not to underestimate Vance – that he’s an incredible player but has never had much time for the game because he’s in law school.

The game starts. Vance wins the opening flip and decides to go first. He does a Prize check and diligently jots them down on his notepad to keep track of what’s missing from his deck. I get why this dude is a lawyer. Vance’s Mew VMAX deck hits fast and hard, whereas Tord’s Gardevoir takes a while to set up – a factor that would become crucial later in the match. Vance takes the first game with a little help from an obscure card I’d never seen before called Box of Disaster. Isiah tells me it’s a special tech card for the Gardevoir matchup, because Gardevoir must damage itself to use its ability and Box of Disaster does enough damage to finish it off and score a cheeky KO. It’s definitely paying off big time.

The next game goes long, with Tord taking the win in the end. But with only seven minutes left on the clock, the players are sent into sudden death! The crowd is buzzing with anticipation. Whoever takes the most Prize cards by the final turn of time will be crowned the winner. Tord has an opportunity to knock out a Mew VMAX and secure the victory but can’t piece it together. Vance takes his turn and effortlessly knocks out Tord’s Zacian V to end the game and become the new Pokémon TCG World Champion! It’s a huge upset but a well-earned one. Vance’s friends in the pink shirts absolutely lose their minds.

I hope that woman in the Rayquaza hat is okay.

2:04 pm - Usually the champions of each game are given their trophies all together in a big ceremony, but this time they get them right after all age divisions of each game are done. All of the finalists and winners are called out to the stage to collect their Pikachu trophies, their friends, families, and teams all applauding and cheering in front of the stage.

3:00 pm - I head over to the area for player interviews to chat with Vance after his big win. He’s super chill. Watch the interview below:

4:35 pm - On my way to the closing ceremony, I see Tord is signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. The line to meet him stretches down the length of half the tournament hall. He may have lost in the finals, but I imagine getting to meet so many enthusiastic fans helps cheer him up, at least a little bit.

4:58 pm - It’s time for the closing ceremony. It’s full of reveals for all of the Pokémon games. Normally I’d watch these kinds of reveals at home on my computer, alone in the dark, so it feels special to watch them in an arena full of fellow Pokemaniacs all cheering and screaming with glee.

7:00 pm - We drag our tired feet over to dinner. Tonight it’s a cook-it-yourself savory Japanese pancakes. The “cook it yourself” part ends up backfiring for me, but I do enjoy the fried cheese and a ginger ale I ordered.

Hard to go wrong with fried cheese. (Photo by Joshua Yehl, IGN)

10:00 pm - The media team decides to get together and play Pokémon cards together. I wasn’t exactly filled up at dinner so I snack on a steamed cheesecake bun from 7/11 and it brings me back to life. Christian from ComicBook says he plays Pokémon with his kids at home but he’s never hung out with other adults and played before. He says he’s having a great time hanging out with everyone. He beats me and some others and goes to bed. Yeah, real fun playing with you, too.

12:00 am - I get to packing up my many, many souvenirs. I have sooo much stuff that it’s a miracle I’m able to fit it all into my luggage. Last year I had a huge problem with this so I came prepared with an empty duffle bag, which ended up being a lifesaver. With the hard part out of the way, I fall asleep for the last time on my trip to Japan.

That's all for Day 7. Be sure to check back tomorrow for my final travelogue for my trip to Japan!

Check out our other coverage on Pokémon Worlds: