In a small, chaotic office known as the PokéSun Company, a team of comedians and costumed Pokémon work as the world’s most eccentric researchers. The show blends reruns of the animated adventures of Ash and Pikachu with original live-action segments featuring this live-action crew. The central conflict of the live-action portions is rarely about saving the world; instead, it is the company’s ongoing, often absurd struggle to produce content, solve trivial problems, and promote the latest Pokémon games, cards, and merchandise.

The main cast is an ensemble of Japanese television personalities and suit actors. The human hosts include the energetic personality Shoko Nakagawa, the comedy duo TIM, and the comedy trio Robert. They are joined by a group of silent but expressive costumed Pokémon: the self-important Director Lucario, who communicates through signboards; the chipper News Reporter Chimchar; and a trickster Sableye who causes chaos. Later episodes also feature a bumbling Professor Red, who invents bizarre machines for the crew to test. The show’s setting is a mix of a brightly colored studio and various real-world locations across Japan, where the hosts embark on missions.

The narrative unfolds through recurring weekly segments rather than a single continuous plot. In the Pokémon Daisuki Project, Robert and Lucario are sent on vague, Pokémon-themed errands, such as learning to use Aura powers from the Lucario movie or cosplaying as game characters to participate in local events. The Pokémon Game Arena invites child guests to compete against the hosts in official video game battles using competitive rules; if the child wins, they can trade Pokémon with the adult. A memorable narrative arc involved Director Lucario becoming depressed because he could not use Aura abilities like a real Lucario, leading the team on a sentimental journey to the Pokémon Card Laboratory to beg them to create a trading card based on him. The show was also the first broadcast source for major game announcements, notably for Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, though it delivered this news within a framework of slapstick comedy and soap-opera style melodrama. The series concluded in September 2010, after which it was rebranded as Pokémon Smash! with a new cast and mascots.