Pokemon Adventures shouldn't work as well as it does. Pokemon tends to thrive best when the player takes the game's objectives (defeat gym leaders, stop terrorists, etc.) and creates their own narrative. Every player gets the same goal posts, but no one's story is the same.

So someone else's interpretation of Red's journey should technically feel kinda needless and not very vital. Because, from the outset of the franchise, Red's story has been your story.

The creators of Pokemon Adventures know this, and know the balancing act that they have to perform between turning Red into a lead character in a manga, and living up to the odyssey that we've already imagined as we played through the games.

And they somehow pull it off beautifully. There's a reason why Satoshi Tajiri said that the world of Adventures resembled the Pokemon world he imagined. Because rather than provide an alternative tale, Adventures almost works in tandem with the games.

Obviously, there are plenty of moments and subplots that aren't in the games. But rarely do they feel like unnatural extensions or recent inventions. Instead, they take existing bits and follow them to their conclusion. Personalities, pieces of lore, environments, etc.

I don't want to spoil anyone who hasn't read it, but those that have know that when certain characters are revealed to be villainous, it's not a shock. Rather, you look at their attitude from the games or what little hints you have from there and you think "Oh, that makes sense."

Pokemon Adventures is both standalone and a companion piece to the games. Its lead character is the best form of you - competent, kind, and outgoing. Its world is lush and full of danger.

Pokemon Adventures does not replace the story you invented for yourself when you played Red/Blue, but asks that you consider some (fairly logical) extensions.

And in that way, it feels like Pokemon, whatever you imagine that to be.