Widely distributed, free of charge, and omnipresent in noughties Japan. Yet despite all this, the onetime periodical Pokémon Scoop has sunk into such obscurity that mentions of it are rarer than an eh, Daisuki Magikarp. To borrow a popular term: We might even consider Scoop lost media.
So, what was Pokémon Scoop? A Daisuki Club publication printed twice or thrice yearly, Scoop (ポケモンスクープ) was effectively a Pokémon-themed pocket infozine. As mini-booklets each numbering no more than thirty-ish pages, these easily digestible mini-mags were given out at PokeCenters, in-life events such as Festa (see here and here) and even at McDonalds, Scoop was jam-packed with eye-catching information on the latest developments in the world of Pokémon. It covered franchise pillars such as the video games, films, anime, manga, and TCG, but also gave updates about PokeCenters, the Daisuki Club, and in-life events. On top of that, it included puzzles to solve, contests to participate in, and giveaways to enter for rare and exclusive Pokémon merchandise. Goodies would occasionally be enclosed, such as a CD full of Daisuki Club minigames (Winter 2004), the flashy Shadow Lugia TCG card (Summer 2005 Festa issue) or now-rare and desirable Pokemon Colosseum e-Cards (Collector Hidehiko and Cool Trainer Yufu in the Summer 2003 issue, and Hunter Bit in Winter 2004). In its heyday, Scoop was a pocket-sized paper bundle of joy. Nowadays, to us archivists, it is a splendid window into the Pokeverse of ages past.
Scoop’s reign lasted from 2002 (issue #1) to sometime around 2012, by which time it had devolved into no more than a flyer.
Now that you’ve had a crash-course introduction to Scoop, you might be wondering, where can I read these little gems? Well, you couldn’t. Although Scoop issues come up occasionally on Japanese auction site Mercari, no digital archive existed. Until now.
With the combined efforts purchasing frenzy of myself (PokemonHistorian) and ICanSnake, the majority of Scoop’s issues are now available in full on the internet for the first time, right here on PokémonHistorian. Enjoy!
Presently available on this website:
Winter 2004
Summer 2004 Festa (6/19/2004)
Summer 2004 (07/17/2004)
Winter 2005 (12/10/2004)
Summer 2005 (06/25/2005)
Summer 2005 Extra (06/25/2005)
Winter 2006 (11/25/2006)
Summer 2006
Summer 2007
Summer 2008
Summer 2009
McDonalds 2010
Unova Book 2010
McDonalds New Year 2010/11
Print dates given in parentheses.
Missing issues:
2002 (Groudon / Kyogre cover)
Winter 2003 (Ash & Pikachu cover)
Summer 2003 (Jirachi cover)
Autumn 2003 (Colosseum cover)
Autumn 2005 (Mystery Dungeon cover)
Special thanks to ICanSnake for providing scans of the following issues: Summer 2004 Festa, Summer 2004, Winter 2005, Summer 2005, Winter 2006, Summer 2007, Unova Book 2010. Summer 2009 via the blog of pokemonemperorenvoy.
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Winter
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Winter
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Festa Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Festa Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2004 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2005 Winter
Pokemon Scoop – 2005 Winter
Pokemon Scoop – 2005 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – Summer 2005
Pokemon Scoop – 2005 Summer Extra
Pokemon Scoop – 2005 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2006 Winter
Pokemon Scoop – Winter 2006
Pokemon Scoop – 2006 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – Summer 2006
Pokemon Scoop – 2007 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2007 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – 2008 Summer
Pokemon Scoop – Summer 2008
Pokemon Scoop – Summer 2009
Pokemon Scoop – Summer 2009
Pokemon Scoop – 2010 McDonalds
Pokemon Scoop – McDonalds 2010
Pokemon Scoop – 2010 Unova Special Book
Pokemon Scoop – 2010 Unova Book
Pokemon Scoop – 2010/11 New Year McDonalds
Pokemon Scoop – 2010/11 New Year McDonalds
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