The Hoopa Movie: A Cultural Context 🇦🇪

[@ILoveAnime1121]

I have learned more about the UAE and Islamic culture in this 33 minute video than I did in 15 years of education

[@ianleather5699]

Makes me wish western education would teach us more about this culture

[@Kaihatsu]

Okay, I've had a lot of trouble trying to re-upload this but I think I've fixed the copyright problem now. So sorry for the other two upload notifications! Some company claimed part of the video and refused to acknowledge that it's fair use. I've used shorter clips and as little as possible so hopefully nothing bad happens again...

[@marcoasturias8520]

Oh man, so sorry to know they did you dirty. Gonna watch this again, it´s a great video!

[@legomaster1215]

I hope you don’t have to deal with that again, this is a great video

[@DarkPsychoMessiah]

That majorly sucked but at least you're back!

[@TesloGuy]

damn bro انت قلت الانترو بالفصحة

[@Obi-Wan_Kenobi]

This was a very interesting video. I especially loved how you took Hoopa's snuggle and related it to coming back to God. It's an interesting perspective I don't see much in the West even though it's so prevalent in media. If you take any good book, movie, or TV show, you can see characters trying to overcome some moral struggle to becoming better people. And in an Islamic context, all that really means said character is trying to fix their vices and get closer to God. And Hoopa is just on of those many characters trying to get back to the straight path, so good job on illuminating this theme in a media! Who says Pokemon can't be religious? Most anything is, if you really look at it! ;-) Also, I appreciate how you had the guts to flat out explain what Jihad actually means even though that requires going against decades of Western misunderstandings, preconceived notions, and reactionary anger. That's a lot of misinformation to battle back. Good man. And because you introducing the video with Asalamualykum I am legally obligated to reply. Walaykumassalam.

[@medots6194]

As an Arabian pokemon fan, this was both intriguing and informative. please continue your amazing work!

[@abrahamo2895]

i subbed to you today after watching you talk about this on lockstin & gnoggin

[@alphaz9188]

same

[@thechurchofdorime9769]

Bro same

[@Shayan98]

same

[@matheusjeo]

Late but same

[@walnuthead]

The fact that i did not know about this movies existence, being both a pokefan AND someone who has lived in the uae his whole life is crazy lol. This is right up my alley.

[@Kaihatsu]

I'm glad you enjoyed it! Certainly not the last video I'll be making about the UAE and Pokémon - got another few planned :)

[@persephonessong]

Ash is such a good person he could have taken the easy way to become a Pokemon Master but he has too much respect for that!

[@noivernblast3366]

I lived in Dubai for a few years before I moved, and I remember loving the Hoopa movie for feeling sorta like home.

[@soulslvr9562]

This stuff is really interesting it really makes me want to learn more about your home's history and culture keep up the good work :D

[@dm16178]

Who'd know that Pokemon would lead me to learn so much about the UAE? Great video!

[@kharlanhero4428]

I love arabian culture and Pokémon. Its amazing how the directors took a lot of time to learn from the culture of your country. Thank you for all this information. I hope more people get to know it

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you for watching! I hope that more positive depictions of Arabia and Arabian inspired settings will appear soon.

[@Poketom-ob1dl]

This is really cool! I didn’t even realize they went into that much detail! I’ll have to remember some of this when designing my own stuff

[@SLig-jt4ot]

Great video! Hoopa is a really cool Pokemon!

[@maximaldinotrap]

Deep fried bread balls with honey or syrup and cinnamon on them? PLEASE GIVE ME A RECIPE! The honey and cinnamon part are the deal maker for me XD

[@kadeng8085]

I came here from Gaijin Gumba and i'm so happy i did. This video is amazingly done and i learned so much about the Arab Emirates that i did not know before. You've got a new subscriber. I'll hhave to put the arab emirates of my bucklist.

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you for coming over and subscribing! And yeah you should totally visit sometime if you can.

[@DerekTriForce]

As you know from our past conversations, I find culture fascinating and, I have to say you presented this extremely, well! It kept my attention throughout the entire video and I especially loved the rustic impressionist style used to visually present the brief history of the U.A.E. I've found Middle Eastern culture to be a trickier to learn about as an American, mainly due to the events at the start of this century. When the culture is discussed its seems to always be in a negative light. I try my best, with what little I know, to highlight the many important accomplishments and beauty this part of the globe has to offer with my preferred talking point being the Islamic Golden Age that essentially preserved and improved upon many Greco-Roman accomplishments and then re-introduced it all to Europe. The small details you mentioned that revolved around architecture and boat crafting was intriguing as well! During my frequent studies of world history, I developed a bit of interest in older boats, since they were so valuable to ancient peoples. The three that caught my interest the most was the Greek Trireme, Norse Drakkar, and Chinese Junk. I especially thought about the Junk and the Great Treasure Fleet of Ming China when you mentioned trade in this area. It makes me wonder if Zheng He ever docked in what is now the U.A.E which, I'll look up after posting this. Great Job on the video Kai! Long comment so apologies on the grammar corrected the largest stuff after re-reading it. Edit: Just checked and it doesn't seem like Admiral Zheng He docked in the area now know as the U.A.E. Though he did have his fourth to seventh voyage dock in and around the Hormuz area.

[@Kaihatsu]

Thanks for watching Derek! I'm glad you enjoyed the history segment at the start because that took me ages to get right haha

[@fraanz2.030]

This movie made me happy too, I'm Arab (from Morocco) and seeing all this little things that you pointed out as a teenager back then really made my day. I saw it again today just for having a fresh memory and I still loved it. Thank you for sharing your story and your knowledge. The mix between pokèmon, history and Arab culture is so refreshing and interesting, keep going

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you for watching! Gotta get myself to Morocco someday too~

[@fraanz2.030]

You’d be more than welcome @@Kaihatsu

[@M.Ghilas]

Are you though ?

[@PkmnMasterNeb]

Came here from Gnoggin yesterday and binged all of your videos!

[@al-anoudal-blooshi2910]

man I really liked ur video, although I'm a native from uae ( al-ain ) but I'm still clueless about Dubai I guess the Pokemon company has done a very well research and turned it to a master piece it really looked like a home to me not just a city named Dubai. I didn't expect someone to grow up in my country and present it this way, any ways thanks for the video.

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you for watching! Growing up in the UAE it's been like a home for me and I love sharing it with as many people as I can :) 🇦🇪

[@al-anoudal-blooshi2910]

@@Kaihatsu I am happy that people had a good experience in my home country u really made my day I really like your videos too

[@Bagel-rr1qb]

I really love how you formatted this video! It was fascinating to hear the perspective of someone who actually lived in the area where the film was based. Hope to see more from you in the future!

[@maximaldinotrap]

The boat is called an Abra? Pokemon and its love of puns didn't even take the opportunity to capitalize on that and make the boats Abra shaped for some reason it seems.

[@TheCaptainjuicy]

At the least have abra on the boats.

[@xenostar0]

Thanks, i really wanted to finish watching it yesterday ;-;♥️♥️♥️

[@DigiBrad]

Same!!

[@dracone4370]

Another movie you can look at to do a cultural breakdown of could be Song of the Sea, which is a film that is dripping with Irish culture (mostly lore and mythology), and another film that is in a similar state is The Secret of Kells. Irish and Celtic culture don't nearly get any real attention, which is a shame since Irish and Celtic cultures have a lot of interesting elements that could make for an interesting experience within the confines of a game, movie, or any other medium. Last I checked, the game Undertale draws quite heavily from Irish lore for its story, setting, and even some of its characters, but so few people are aware of Irish culture outside of Ireland that almost nobody noticed if they weren't trying to do some kind of cultural deep dive into the inspirations of the game. Halloween's oldest roots go all the way back to the Irish/Celtic holiday of Samhain (pronounced Saw-Wen), which was their New Years' celebration. They believed that the veils between the mortal realm and other worlds, mainly the realm of the dead, were at their weakest at the point where one year ended and another began. Children, and some adults, would dress up as faeries and goblins and dance around to distract faeries and goblins from the festivities, other people would wear scary masks to frighten away malicious spirits and other problematic supernatural creatures, and ceremonies to commune with visiting spirits of loved ones and family from generations past would be held to bring those spirits towards you and your kin so you could potentially spend the night with them doing things you might have missed out on when they passed or even after they had passed on. The closest most people get to an understanding of Irish culture is Lepurcauns and Banshee, and the occasional traditional Irish meal choices that crop up during Saint Patrick's Day (which is a far cry from the Irish holiday it is derived from, the Feast of Saint Patrick), and some of the things that go on during Halloween. Yeah, Halloween has deep roots in Irish and Celtic culture, more so than most people might think. Jack-o-Lanterns are an old Irish tradition, but the Irish carved Giant Beets into lanterns (the whole pumpkin thing happened when the practice was taken out of Ireland and the Irish that left their homeland found gourds, such as pumpkins, to be more commercially available for use than the traditional giant beets. You can still find absurdly large beets, Sugar Beets are giant beets but I'm sure how the farmer will feel about you buying just to try turning into a Halloween staple. There's even a story tied to how the Jack-o-lantern got its name, the tale of Jack of the Lantern, I recommend looking into the story when you get the chance. After all, it is the Halloween season. I'm far from an expert on the matter, but I did do all the research related to all I said here because I see all that as part of my cultural heritage, my grandmother on my dad's side was Irish and now that she is no longer with us I see all the research I did on Irish culture, mainly the lore, as touchstones to her and the culture she came from.

[@Kaihatsu]

It's an interesting idea, but I only really covered this movie because it's a Pokémon one. Because of how strict movie companies are with copyright on KZbin (even for reviews and commentary) I don't plan on making a video about a movie again for a very, very long time.

[@damianthefreak666]

I came here from Lockstin's channel. You are a pretty cool dude and I'll make sure I check out some of your other content.

[@VixenLovelove]

Spectacular video! I’ve always wanted to learn more about Arabic culture. The architecture and clothing is so beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

[@walnuthead]

Ayyyy appreciate the quick lil Al Ain mention!!

[@jannfredryckmatias3545]

So glad I finally decided to watch Lockstin's Hoopa vid today 😁 and am now giving you another sub today 😁

[@Kaihatsu]

Welcome! And thanks for subscribing :)

[@maximaldinotrap]

@Kaihatsu, redundancy is something the world needs to work on. Michigan means Large Lake so Lake Michigan is well Lake Large Lake Ohio means big creek or river. You can probably see what I am getting to here. AND DON'T GET ME STARTED ON PEOPLE CALLING LOCHS AS LOCH (WHATEVER IT'S NAME IS) LAKE!

[@maxwellwahl9255]

Dude I found this video from lockstin. Theres so much info already I love it. Your channel is sick dude, I can't wait to learn more

[@enbytoon]

Thank you for this beautiful breakdown, it was delightful peeking at the background elements of the movie and their attention to detail and commitment to one time movie settings is always amazing to me

[@toadytown]

This is a great video, thanks for sharing!

[@Kaihatsu]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@SingingSealRiana]

I am not a fan of going to much over the top and to much going on at the same time fore the sake of action, but I can relate to you likeing the movie for its cultural representation. It is nice to get to see something different than always the same things and even nicer, to see something you can actualy relate too ^^

[@NintendoSegaGuys]

Its amazing the amount of research a went into the making of this movie.

[@diultimate5307]

Such a lovely video. Theres a lot of interesting fact and informative things about the U.A.E

[@Kaihatsu]

Thanks for watching the video! I’m glad you found it informative.

[@KaiCyreus]

Beautiful, need to visit the UAE as soon as I can

[@Kaihatsu]

If you've got a negative test they're one of the few places accepting tourists from the UK.

[@kingcrysanthos]

I love Pokemon, I love Geography and culture, I love Hoopa, and I love this movie! This video is so cool! I learned a lot and it was very enjoyable

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you for watching!!

[@psycologo121]

Here from Lockstan. Great video 👍

[@Syiepherze]

The algorithm blessed me with this vid again, it's probably the 2nd or 3rd time I've seen this? Still such a banger, well-researched video!! This is just a theory but I think another possible etymology for Dahara could be دهر, which is either the verb dahara (to overcome/subdue/master) or Dahr (an indefinite period of time, aeons, or fate?) The meaning of the verb could be related to Hoopa's lore as a jinn in servitude, or how the city was able to flourish in the harshness of the desert. The "time" meaning could again reference Hoopa's lore as it was sealed for 100 years, or the summoning of various familiar legendary Pokémon from previous gens during the climax of the film. I think the "fate" sense of the word has a negative connotation, as in a calamity or misfortune. This would also tie into the events of the film

[@Syiepherze]

Please do cmiiw, I don't know much Arabic lol Though it's also way more likely that the writers just slapped the D for Dubai in front of sahara lol

[@Kaihatsu]

Thanks for watching! It’s great to hear that people are re-watching my stuff. دهر usually means a long period of time like an epoch or eternity. Though in this case I don’t think it had much of an impact on the naming of Dahara, which is probably just a combination of Dubai and Sahara like you said.

[@CyberSoulgem]

This was an amazing video, I can’t believe I only just discovered your channel, it’s honestly super underrated, best of luck you!

[@Kaihatsu]

Thank you!

[@UltraTaco]

I hope one day Nintendo (and other companies) would localize their games to the Middle Eastern Market...

[@Kaihatsu]

I hope they do that too.

[@giratina1012]

Or made a game about them

[@romajimamulo]

@Gaigaborn can you translate what this is, or is it just a thing too specific to there?

[@romajimamulo]

@Gaigaborn oh so it would be a bit like "olleh" being in a game translated from arabic to english?

[@UltraTaco]

@Gaigaborn the fact that hebrew is right to left makes translating a game a lot more difficult, im literally using a Text inversion program

[@Moonsong227]

Oh my GOSH this was wonderful!

[@سلمانقتل]

👍 good video

[@joshuasinclair1154]

I really enjoyed this movie when I got to see it.

[@ianleather5699]

This is super interesting! Makes me love Hoopa and the Middle east even more

[@Kaihatsu]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!

[@madnessarcade7447]

Preach it’s fun and the battles are incredible

[@urnan1978]

Dope shit my guy

[@bibarel5097]

Cool!!..

[@TheGatrGamr]

Alright take three, will it stay up? We will see

[@dannyblanco8544]

I liked it a lot especially since the legendaries appeared

[@Missing-Peace]

This is a really cool deep dive.

[@Kaihatsu]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@ramonsanchez2545]

You're mascot looks like electric monster from the Legend of Zelda games

[@maximaldinotrap]

My take? Everyone in the pokemon universe somehow manages to worship the same Arceus based religion. Differences in worship architecture are regional/cultural. At least that is my take on it.

[@awesomeperson5150]

Although many pokemon world people appear to worship RKS, different people from different regions, like people in alola worshipping the tapu, or people in sinnoh worshiping the dragons of creation

[@maximaldinotrap]

@@awesomeperson5150 I mean they worship those pokemon while also worshipping Arceus in some capacity.

[@rho-starmkl4483]

Except Galar...

[@al-anoudal-blooshi2910]

wishing and praying for an Arabian themed Pokemon region esp after this movie and the pretty scenes it could have a big bridges theme like unova as an example with a connection of the past and present at the same time because this is how we live here in between the past and future with the creek splitting the dahara city as an example.

[@XerxesTexasToast]

"Jihad means striving, and can relate to personal struggles of self-betterment" Me: Oh so like becoming a Pokemon Master? "You could even say that Ash trying to become a Pokemon Master is a form of personal jihad" nice

[@LuigisFridge4797]

Yay I can watch this

[@davidmartin5483]

To be quite honest I would like to hear a conjoined concert between spanish Flamenco and Arabian music (sorry I do not know what it is called) Since spain was occupied as an arabian colony a lot of it's architechture and music was also influenced by them. Especially flamenco. Listening to the background music in this video one could almoast also confuse it for flamenco that's why I think a conjoined concert with both types of music would actuqlly sound quite good

[@superstorm393]

Learning about all this history and culture of the arab emirates is amazing. It's a beautiful place. I wish I could go there but sadly it would be dangerous for someone like me

[@saxooo9967]

Why?

[@superstorm393]

@@saxooo9967 Because I'm gay 🏳️‍🌈

[@Epic_Amir_Hamza]

You should do a video on Rashid from Street Fighter 5 and his stage. I wouldnt be surprised if his spinning attack were visually influenced by the whirling dervishes from Tasawwuf.

[@Kaihatsu]

That's a good idea! I'll make a not of it for a future video.

[@giratina1012]

When you say Islam is canon in Pokémon maybe they’re worship Arceus

[@lolaseiss]

Arceus is meant to parallel the monotheistic deity in Abrahamic religions like the Christian god and YHWH so it isn’t a stretch to say it could represent Allāh.

[@pickleridge5656]

Dammit, you made me stop being indifferent to Hoopa and that movie

[@madnessarcade7447]

Underrated movie hot take it was fun

[@1984moment]

Dahara tower reminds me of atlantis in dubai

[@Soul-rs9tv]

waaliakum salam

[@jessegartung294]

I always thought Hoopa unbound was based off of Kal-le.

[@parkersandahl3949]

As they say be careful what you wish for

[@Zistheone2]

"For some reason it seems to be glossed over a lot & I'm not sure why." Watch Anime America's review of the film to get a general understanding of why

[@Kiirabu197]

15:20 That's kinda funny, "2 Uhr" means "two o' clock" in German.

[@fencer0Z]

0:23 aaand it has Shiny Mega Rayquaza in it

[@logansmith2703]

Insert comment from the previous video here

[@Grendallmayo]

insert reply from previous video here

[@garglediggs6255]

You need more subs

[@BBWahoo]

OKAY YOU'RE DIGGING INTO SOME VERY SPECIFIC ICEBERGS. Do you want me to talk about Zinnia's sephardic heritage? Just look at rayquaza and it'll make more sense. I felt a connection to the character on how they presented her, but it fell apart when she was a mary sue but that's irrelevant.

[@Kaihatsu]

Oh I already know about Zinnia's whole thing. The Draconids, Rayquaza and the other two. Zinnia's anklet... A friend of mine called RuinManiacFiles has talked about it a bit in one of his videos I think. There's a lot of that stuff in Pokémon I want to discuss at somepoint but there's so much of it that it deserves a series to itself.

[@BBWahoo]

@@Kaihatsu !!!!!!! I HAVE FOUND MY PEOPLE!

[@helpmereach10ksubswithnovi59]

Im from Philippines but im a Arabic im a half arab and Filipino ya

[@Deedeedoodad]

Wow your Arabic is really good

[@Kaihatsu]

~شكرا

[@starrymohannad]

أنا أيضا أتكلم العربة بطلاقة

[@wannabehistorian371]

In terms of story the movie is kinda meh. It came across as “oops, all legendaries!” and when there’s so many they lose their impact (was also an issue in the games at the times too though coughORAScough). But with your analysis I can appreciate it a bit.

[@dennisthegreat1]

I thought a jihad was a Muslim equivalent to the crusades, but now i know

[@BattleSeriesXTheMulitVerse1975]

hoopa vs hmhs britannic pokepon vs white star line

[@mrraptor8262]

Man I live in UAE IN FUJIRAH

[@Kaihatsu]

Eyyyy Fujairah! A lot of my favourite places are there 🇦🇪

[@mrraptor8262]

Thanks

[@mdasjad8222]

Is pokemon banned in arabia?, how can there be a region on it

[@Kaihatsu]

Pokémon isn't banned in Arabia. The UAE actually hosted the first Pokémon symphonic concert in the Middle East.

[@jeffreyseamons5514]

I'll tell you why I don't like this movie. The trailers I saw made it seem like it was going to be an epic battle royal of legendary Pokemon, but all the legendaries ended up being sidekicks for the evil Hoopa.

[@werewook]

finally a gaijin goobah that isn't cringe

[@emtiyazyoosoof1776]

Asalmu alyakum i would love to ask u a question witch is muslim like me

[@maganhassan2627]

Just curious are you a muslim? If so, asalamu alakum

[@Kaihatsu]

Wa alaykumu salam! I am not, though I would say that I'm pretty familiar with Islam and its practices regardless.

[@yudhaka5092]

First signt i think you are muslim or live in middle east.

[@hafizhafamurab156]

If you want to explain it easily to non-muslim what jihad is... I think the easiest is just same like you awake in morning for learning and so on. But explain it by word seems more easy

[@REXZero00]

NO DUH

[@inotaishu1]

Sorry, but no. You chose the sugarcoated definition of jihad. The more violent version exists as well. You can't just dismiss that because you don't like that aspect of Islam.

[@Kaihatsu]

I didn't "choose " anything over anything else, nor did I deny that it exists. What I spoke about is what the term means spiritually to normal, everyday people who practice Islam.

[@inotaishu1]

@@Kaihatsu That was still a choice. But thats ok, we all make our own reality.

[@maganhassan2627]

Didn't he mention that in the video?? yes jihad does involve fighting but it's not just that it's striving for the sake of god really just like what the guy said in the video Actually... the reason we should fight is get rid of oppression we face in our lives what these extremists/terrorists do isn't part of Islam they interpreted the religion wrong I ain't bothered to debate about this lol

[@inotaishu1]

@@maganhassan2627 Do they interpret it wrong? How are you so sure?

[@maganhassan2627]

@@inotaishu1 killing innocent people? You think that's right? There's verse in the quran which compares killing innocent people as killing the whole of mankind. How about capturing girls like from schools which boko haram did making them slaves, having sex with them or getting married to them when those girls had no choice? How is this acceptable in islam? It's not lol Do you have a problem with Islam by any chance? Like I said I ain't bothered debating this