Marcel Winatschek

Iza from Tokyo Has Already Caught the One That Matters

Pokémon GO had half the planet wandering into traffic in 2016, phones raised, hunting invisible creatures across real parks and actual supermarkets. I was doing it. You were probably doing it. None of us were doing it like Iza.

Photographer Marlen Stahlhuth spotted her on the streets of Tokyo—no last name offered, or at least none that came through—with a Pikachu perched on her head like the most committed accessory decision in the history of street fashion. Not a cap with a Pikachu print. Not a bag charm. A full Pikachu. On her head. In public.

While the rest of us were still arguing about whether Charizard was worth the data plan, Iza had already settled the whole debate. The Pokémon doesn’t live in your phone. It lives on your head.