Towards the Sunny Horizon

The tears that we will shed

Flow along with the moments where we will laugh

Now and forevermore

We will go on and never stop

Chasing the sun

-- "Mengejar Matahari (Chasing the Sun)", Ari Lasso (adaptive lyrical translation)

After the previous four "musical tributes" for the "finale coverage", it's time to wrap things up, at least for now, with one more of these "tributes". This time, I've chosen a local song - local as in, where I am right now - in order to represent some local sentiments as well, as Pokémon is also big here, or at the least becoming bigger with time. Even so, as with some earlier times where I've quoted a local song, I've provided a translation of it as best as possible but also as creative as possible, in this case so non-local audiences can also sing along; here, it's the chorus of the song with its title.

The song itself, though, is a bit of a wonder. It shares its title with a movie (also local) about coming-of-age, and is in fact the theme song for that movie; I've never seen the movie, as it's from a time a little beyond my local dealings, but some of the movie is used in the official music video for it. Most importantly, though, the lyrics of the song tell about valiant people who are tackling life head-on, searching for the meaning of love, never letting anything break relationships, and putting everything together - yes, even laughter and tears - while still pursuing that golden orb in the sky into each passing new day and wherever it is they may go. That's a lot of themes, even for a song that's not lyrically dense but still of a decent length.

Of course, all of those themes tie into the last salvo of the Pokémon anime with Ash. He and Goh may be considered two of those valiant people, and the rest would be other Pokémon Trainers. All of them would do as the song suggests, albeit most likely with some differences according to their specific interests - battling, breeding, researching, and more. Certainly, the "go on and never stop" part will speak to the continuity of their journeys, in particular the one of Ash as the relevant character of the moment. 

Interestingly, as a side note, the related coming-of-age movie to this song can be seen to feature prominently four characters, specifically boys... not walking on a railroad as the TV in Pallet Town might suggest, but it's close enough. Thus, the movie and this song could be a Pokémon adjunct as well, perhaps in a parallel universe that's not too distant.

Now it's getting close to the time where I should wrap up this "finale coverage" and move on to discussing other Pokémon things, something that also continues as Ash's journey continues at least in spirit if not visually. What is visual, however, is him, Goh, and other Trainers making their way wherever the sun goes - perhaps also to the next horizon. The local song seems to be such a proper and fitting "tribute" to that situation, now and ever.

One year ago: How Many Main Orders to Complete?

Two years ago: YouTube Pokémon Highlights: Pokémon Unite Channels

Three years ago: Unity Power

Four years ago: Cosplay: Aishiteru Minna

Five years ago: SwitchCon

Six years ago: Private vs. Public Raids?

Seven years ago: The Times They Are a-Switchin'