Over the weekend, the city of Songdo in South Korea hosted the annual Pokémon World Festival, where an army of 15 Pikachus performed a perfectly choreographed dance to a medley of pop hits.
But there was one moment that captivated — and then quickly destroyed — people around the world. About a minute into the performance, the Pikachu in the very front began deflating. It sent staff members into a panic. FOUR MEN in suits tried to escort the deflating Pikachu offstage as the rest of the Pika troop danced on tirelessly.
This Pikachu dancer's costume started to deflate and it looked like the dancer was urgently bundled off by governme… https://t.co/zalhSCZnQZ
The clip has sent the world into a whirlwind of emotions.
This clip caused me to feel every possible emotion simultaneously. https://t.co/JUEJoFSaga
FIRST: The deflating Pikachu that optimistically kept dancing as all its life and air was *literally* sucked out of it.
Current feeling: deflated Pikachu.
raise your hand if you're the deflated pikachu of your friend group
THEN: Very vigilant team of security men quickly grab him and drag him out of sight.
When I'm trying to have a positive outlook and a sad thought starts entering my mind https://t.co/slvJhj03go
Pikachu knew too much https://t.co/Kg8RPAKQS1
RETRIEVE THE PACKAGE! PROTECT THE PRESIDENT! PACKAGE ACQUIRED, DISPERSE THE PREMISES! THREAT NEUTRALIZED! https://t.co/UQQisvlsQ7
Distopian nightmare as defective pikachu kinapped by secret agents in broad daylight!
AND FINALLY: The rest of the Pikachus look on, confused and jarred, but they must continue dancing happily. Because it's all they (we) know to do.
When Spicer has a meltdown explaining why a bunch of white men just made being a woman an uninsurable pre-existing… https://t.co/Kgpn39rHRL
Pikachu as state propaganda https://t.co/TItqfGSlD7
Actual tears of laughter. My favorite part is at the end, the other Pikachus pretending their companion hasn’t been… https://t.co/pnHpeWBwKU
@verge @claire_mcnear I like how the expressions on the other Pikachus look like true horror.
ALL OF IT: A wild ride of amusement, puzzlement, horror that could reveal something about the human condition and its fragility in the current climate.
1. The fact that it's the lead Pikachu 2. THE FACT THAT PIKACHUS ARE STEPPING 3. The removal 4. The way they keep g… https://t.co/BaRMyus8a0
Or just a very standard and responsible safety measure.
@paul_haine @SwiftOnSecurity I think they ran towards him because the dude inside the costume was getting suffocated.
Probably that. But Pikakchu also probably did know too much.
Pikachu suddently grabs the mic "9/11 was an inside job! Chemtrails! False Flag! Russian interf...." *government… https://t.co/fUKrSDvKFq
Watch the whole video here:
View this video on YouTube
(The deflated Pikachu makes another appearance — and attempt at rejoining the performance — before it was ushered off again.)