High Touch!


 * If you were looking for the CD, see High Touch! / Surely Tomorrow or High Touch! 2009 (CD).

High Touch! (Japanese: ハイタッチ！ lit.  Hai Tatchi!) is the second opening theme of the. It debuted in DP096, replacing Together2008. A remixed version of the song, ''High Touch! 2009, debuted in DP134, which was also used as opening theme in Arceus: To a Conquering Spacetime''. It was replaced by The Greatest - Everyday! in DP158.

OP Text
! Japanese ! English ポケットモンスター・・・ ちぢめてポケモン！ 、サトシとヒカリと ポケモンたちの いとといの がはじまる！ Pocket Monsters... "Pokémon" for short! Now, the story of and , and Pokémon, Their meetings, adventures, and battles Are about to begin!
 * こののなき
 * こののなき
 * The mysterious creatures of this planet
 * }
 * }

Synopsis
The opening begins with multiple colors shown, as well as the faces of, , and. The title is then shown. The trio, with and, are now running across a grassy plain. After a close-up of Dawn, they are now on a sailboat, with all their and  above.

After a close-up of Brock, he is now seen cooking with Pikachu and nearby and then Pikachu and Piplup are seen playing while the other Pokémon, Ash, Dawn, and Brock are seen cheering them on. Dawn, with Piplup and, are then seen glaring at Zoey and her and  and his  while Ash, with Pikachu and , glare at Paul with his.

Dawn then slightly pushes Ash. Ash then gives her a thumbs-up as the sun rises. Close ups of Ash, Dawn and Brock and Pikachu and Piplup are seen. They are now seen running across a map of Sinnoh. Ash and Dawn then give each other a high-five. Then, from left to right,, , Max, , , , and are seen.

The Pokémon then are seen smiling in pairs; and Ambipom,  and,  and ,  and , Mamoswine and , Monferno and  and, finally, Pikachu and Piplup. are then seen blasting off with their Pokémon, one by one. Then Saturn is seen sending out his. He is then joined by Mars and Jupiter.

In the fiery background, Cyrus and Team Galactic's appear. J, riding her, then appears with her ship behind her. then appear and show off their moves; Buizel uses, Staraptor uses , Gliscor, and then Grotle, run off, Monferno uses and Pikachu uses. The gang once again run across the map. is then seen fighting, using. The opening closes with the trio, with Piplup and Pikachu, posing happily.

Humans

 * Jessie
 * James
 * Paul
 * Zoey
 * Max
 * Gary Oak
 * Tracey Sketchit
 * Delia Ketchum
 * Cyrus
 * Jupiter
 * Saturn
 * Mars
 * J
 * Delia Ketchum
 * Cyrus
 * Jupiter
 * Saturn
 * Mars
 * J
 * J

Pokémon

 * (DP096 - DP100)
 * (DP100 - DP157)
 * (DP096 - DP118)
 * (DP118 - DP157)
 * (DP096 - DP132)
 * (DP133 - DP157)
 * (DP096 - DP104)
 * (DP105 - DP106)
 * (DP107 - DP157)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (DP133 - DP157)
 * (DP096 - DP104)
 * (DP105 - DP106)
 * (DP107 - DP157)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)
 * (multiple) (background)

Lyrics

 * Both
 * Background chorus
 * Both
 * Background chorus

TV size
! Japanese ! English Hey Hey Hey!
 * lang="ja" | Hey Hey Hey!
 * lang="ja" | Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

GO GO GO! GO GO GO！ Hey Hey Hey!
 * ''Hey Hey Hey!

We fight, make up, and then we fight again There are a lot of things I want to say to you But foremost... "Thanks for being here for me!"

Companions in this journey, compassion in the world I pretend to understand those things, but The truth is... "I'm happy you're here for me!"

Nice Partner! Nice Rival! I'll push you forward I'll pull you along The sun seems so dazzling when I look up at it Hey Hey Hey!

If it all goes well, let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! If we're feeling down, we'll come right back! As long as we are together I will not give up so easily! GO GO GO!

Hey Hey Hey! It all went well, so let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! Shake hands with our opponent in battle As long as we're together We can go even further than before! GO GO GO! GO GO GO! GO GO GO!''
 * }
 * }

Full version
! Japanese ! English Hey Hey Hey! Hey Hey Hey! Hey Hey Hey!
 * lang="ja" | Hey Hey Hey!
 * lang="ja" | Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Yeah Yeah Yeah! Yeah Yeah Yeah!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey Hey Hey!

GO GO GO! GO GO GO！ Hey Hey Hey! Hey Hey Hey! Hey Hey Hey!
 * ''Hey Hey Hey!

We fight, make up, and then we fight again There are a lot of things I want to say to you But foremost... "Thanks for being here for me!"

Companions in this journey, compassion in the world I pretend to understand those things, but The truth is... "I'm happy you're here for me!"

Nice Partner! Nice Rival! I'll push you forward I'll pull you along The sun seems so dazzling when I look up at it Hey Hey Hey!

If it all goes well, let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! If we're feeling down, we'll come right back! As long as we are together I will not give up so easily! GO GO GO!

Take aim with ! I've come to rely on, but Sometimes... I'll find myself in a mega pinch!

I let out a cry of "!" is my pride and joy, but To put it simply... That doesn't mean I'll win!

Nice Partner! Nice Rival! We may argue But as long as we follow each other I think we'll find a way to compromise! Hey Hey Hey!

It all went well, so let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! I won't ever forget today's victory! As long as we're together We'll escape from any kind of pinch! Hey Hey Hey!

Extending our arms, let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! Smiling this much is so heartwarming! As long as we're together Strong opponents are also welcome! GO GO GO!

Yeah Yeah Yeah! Yeah Yeah Yeah!

Through today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow This journey goes forever on, but Always... Your smile is with me!

To the north, to the south, east and west The scenery goes on changing, but No matter where I go... Your smile is always there!

Nice Partner! Nice Rival! Protecting me Saving me Our road goes on through and ever expanding wasteland Hey Hey Hey!

Underneath the sky, let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! We can understand that more easily than words! As long as we're together We can fly away, facing our dreams! Hey Hey Hey!

If it all goes well, let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! If we're feeling down, we'll come right back! As long as we're together I will not give up so easily! GO GO GO! Hey Hey Hey!

It all went well, so let's high five! Hey Hey Hey! Shake hands with our opponent in battle As long as we're together We can go even further than before! GO GO GO! GO GO GO! GO GO GO!''
 * }
 * }

Variants

 * 1) DP096 - DP100: The original animation.
 * 2) DP101 - DP104: replaces.
 * 3) DP105 - DP106: replaces.
 * 4) DP107 - DP118: replaces.
 * 5) DP119 - DP132: replaces.
 * 6) DP133 - DP157: replaces.

In addition to these variants:
 * In DP119, the entire sequence is rendered for the upcoming HD format. Some elements are rearranged, while backgrounds are slightly moved or stretched, in order to fit a widescreen 16:9 ratio.
 * Despite all this, the anime would not switch to HD until two episodes later, which means the newly rearranged sequence is still cropped for the standard 4:3 ratio in the meantime. The reason the changes were made early is likely because they were made alongside the updating of Ash's Staravia to Staraptor.
 * From DP121 onwards, the presentation actually switches to the high definition, 16:9 ratio.
 * From DP134 onwards, the song is changed to its remixed version, High Touch! 2009.

Gallery
Note that images are taken from the high definition format whenever possible. Some variants were carried over from the standard definition format and slightly rearranged for the HD widescreen ratio. Those differences are minimal, and thus not showcased on this gallery.

Boat scene

This scene features a camera effect that zooms out from 's eye, moves to an upper view while rotating in 360° around the boat, then ends with a zoom in to 's eye. The following images are taken from one of the few frames in which all the characters are visible at the same time. Click on each picture for a larger view.

Trivia

 * This song is performed by Rica Matsumoto and Megumi Toyoguchi, who are singing as the characters they voice (Satoshi and Hikari, respectively).
 * This is the only opening song of the not sung by Fumie Akiyoshi.
 * This is the only opening featuring since Ready Go!, the final original series opening, as well as the only one featuring  and Max since their departure at the end of the.
 * Saturn's imitates its battle animation in  after being released.
 * In the instrumental version of the song, Aim to Be a Pokémon Master can be heard.
 * Despite being released, Dawn's Ambipom and Ash's Gliscor were not removed from the opening animation. Dawn's Cyndaquil was not included into the opening either, despite being updated to include Ash's Monferno.
 * Due to this opening carrying over into the Pokémon anime's production into, this is the first opening theme to air in an HDTV format.
 * High Touch! is a playable song in the Wii game .
 * This is the first Japanese opening to feature a duet (the first one in English being, and the first one in the world being in ).

Errors

 * While opening updates usually occur in the episode following the one where a team change takes place, Dawn's Swinub was replaced in DP104, the very same episode in which it evolved into . Furthermore, it was shown as a in the opening rather than a Piloswine. This was corrected for all subsequent airings and releases.

OPJ12 ハイタッチ! 擊掌！