TV Tokyo, the Japanese network that has aired the Pokémon anime since 1997, has announced a new live-action drama series to begin airing later this year centred around the Pokémon franchise. But, Detective Pikachu 2, this ain’t. The series instead takes place in the ‘real’ world and focuses on its main character rediscovering their love for Pokémon after playing Pokémon Red for the first time in 20 years.

The drama’s main character, Madoka, is described as growing up in Japan’s real-life Kanto region, playing Pokémon Red with her older siblings and eventually moving to Tokyo after University to join a small advertising agency in search of her creative dreams. However, she finds reality to be less than she imagined. At a time of particular stress – with the fate of the company on the line for her upcoming presentation – she receives a package from her mother: her old Game Boy Pocket and the copy of Pokémon Red she used to play as a child.

The drama, titled “Pack Adventure in Your Pocket”, then follows Madoka’s story as she rekindles her love for Pokémon and how it goes on to affect the encounters and friends she makes throughout.

Madoka is played by Nanase Nishino, former member of the idol group Nogizaka46, a lifetime Pokémon fan herself, and who most recently starred in the movie Shin Kamen Rider as villain Hachi Augment-01.

Producer Shoto Hatanaka also describes himself as a Pokémon fan, having played Pokémon Green on release and still playing all the way to Pokémon Scarlet today. While the series takes place in the ‘real’ world, he describes the characters that surround Madoka throughout the series as being “layered with various Pokémon characters”.

The series begins airing on TV Tokyo from the 19th October. Although there’s almost no chance whatsoever of it being officially subtitled and released outside of Japan, it does represent a fascinating change in the impact of Pokémon on popular culture in general.