Pokémon Adventures: Red & Blue, Vols. 1–3

Red, a boy from Pallet Town, gets a Pokédex from Professor Oak and sets out across Kanto for the eight Gyms and the Pokémon League. Along the way he runs into Blue, Oak's cocky grandson, and Green, a sharp thief who plays both sides. The three end up teaming against Team Rocket, which uses Pokémon for crime and experiments on rare ones. Red helps Blaine catch Mewtwo, rescues a child in Viridian Forest and storms Silph Co., where he faces Giovanni, Team Rocket's boss and the Viridian Gym Leader. With the Rockets beaten, the Pokémon League begins, and in the final Red defeats Blue to become Champion.

1. Behind the scenesMonthly comics came first

   In the US, VIZ ran the story as monthly issues starting in September 1999, before the first volume. That edition read left to right with flipped art; the 2009 second edition went back to the Japanese reading order.

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2. Behind the scenesBrazil got it in 2016

   Panini launched the arc in Brazil in October 2016, as 3 bimonthly volumes of 208 pages each, written by Hidenori Kusaka and drawn by Mato.

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3. ReferenceThe leader nobody fought

   Red and company go through almost every Kanto Gym, but Blaine is the only Gym Leader nobody battles for a badge in this arc.

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4. SetupThe kid in the forest

   Red saves a young child from wild Pokémon in Viridian Forest. It looks like a small moment, but remember it: it comes back later.

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