On its initial release, the series found a rather large success in the United States. When it was first released in North America, the series was seen as an attempt to imitate the success of Nintendo's "Pokémon" franchise. "Entertainment Weekly" magazine named "Digimon" as the "Worst "Pokémon"/Net Crossbreeding Attempt" in 2000. Initially, many American viewers were quick to dismiss "Digimon" as a "Pokémon" rip-off meant to cash in on that show's success. However, audiences eventually noticed that compared to "Pokémon", the characters interacted and developed realistically, as well as the integration of more complicated science fiction stories and societal themes. The English dub gradually improved as well, making fewer and fewer alterations to the Japanese original by later episodes. As a result, many young viewers quickly outgrew "Pokémon" and migrated to "Digimon" instead.