Prince George, Princess Charlotte, & Prince Louis Are Fans Of This Kid-Favorite Franchise

King Charles rarely talks about his grandchildren. It’s just not his way to tell cute little grandkid stories. Maybe the monarch is worried that he won’t be able to stop once he gets started. The stories about 6-year-old Prince Louis alone would probably keep him occupied at every official royal event ever as far as I’m concerned. So when King Charles made a rare joke about his grandchildren in a speech that also somehow managed to include a Pokémon reference, everyone was shook. Including his son Prince William.

During a state banquet held in honor of the arrival of the Emperor and Empress of Japan on their first day of a U.K. state visit on Tuesday, King Charles delivered a surprisingly personal speech where he talked about his longstanding relationship with Emperor Naruhito. The two men have apparently gone fly fishing together in the past, and King Charles is not exactly great at it.

“I am only sorry to report that I haven’t had any better luck with more recent attempts at fishing,” King Charles said and then went on to share a little tidbit about his grandchildren and their affinity for the beloved Japanese cartoon, Pokémon. “The Pokémon phrase ‘gotta catch ‘em all’ may resonate with my grandchildren, but for me, it is, perhaps, aspirational.”

It was a surreal moment, met with appreciative titters from the audience and an awkward smirk of possible discomfort from Prince William, father to alleged Pokémon aficionados Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6. Although it could have been a surprised smirk, to be fair. Perhaps Prince William was shocked to discover his father knew about his grandchildren’s love of Pokémon or even shock that he knew about the catchphrase from the show’s theme song.

While King Charles rarely comments on his grandchildren, he certainly appears to have a close relationship with them. Prince William and Kate Middleton’s youngest son Prince Louis seems to be especially close to his grandfather, even asking to sit on his knee when he was feeling restless during Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022. Maybe Prince Louis let his grandfather in on the Pokémon intel. Or maybe the two of them like to enjoy breakfast together and watch old episodes in the morning. King Charles eating his favorite breakfast of one perfect boiled egg while Prince Louis snacks on his beetroots, watching Pikachu battle Squirtle.

Although they knew Pikachu would win against Squirtle because lightning beats water, obviously.