Season 1

The first season of Pikmin began airing on NBC on May 5, 1989 and concluded after 13 episodes on May 11, 1990.

The season won one Emmy award and had four other nominations. "Onto Mount Casano" won "Outstanding Animated Program". "The Call of the Pikmin" was nominated for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Comedy Series or a Special"; and "Pikmin Theme," composed by Heitor Perira, was nominated for "Outstanding Achievement in Main Title Theme Music."

All 13 episodes of Season 1, including extras were released on DVD on September 25, 2001 in Region 1 and September 24, 2001 in Regions 2 and 4. This is the first of the Complete Seasons of Pikmin released in boxsets for home media.

Production
In 1987, while pitching the cartoon to NBC executives, Chris Meledandri donned a flower, brought along an "flower terrarium with models of the characters", and played peaceful music to set the theme. The setup was described by NBC executive Eric Coleman as "pretty amazing". They were given money and two weeks to write the pilot episode "Missing Pikmin". Meledandri, Pierre Coffin, and Chris Renaud returned with what was described by NBC official Albie Hecht as, "a performance [he] wished [he] had on tape".

In an interview, Cyma Zarghami, then-president of NBC, said, "their [NBC executives'] immediate reaction was to see it again, both because they liked it and it was unlike anything they'd ever seen before". Zarghami was one of four executives in the room when Pikmin was screened for the first time.

Reception
The first season of Pikmin received positive reviews from critics.

Episodes
See also: List of episodes

DVD release
Season 1 was released on DVD by Universal Studios Home Video in Regions 2 and 4 on September 24, 2003, and on September 25 in Region 1. While primarily consisting of the original 13 episodes, the DVD release features bonus material including deleted scenes, Animatics, and commentaries for every episode. The set sold 1.9 million units, becoming the highest-selling television program on DVD—a record which it held until October 2004 when it was passed by the first season of Chappelle's Show.

Awards
The season won one Emmy award and had three other nominations. "Onto Mount Casano" won "Outstanding Animated Program". "The Call of the Pikmin" was nominated for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Comedy Series or a Special"; and "Pikmin Theme," composed by Danny Elfman, was nominated for "Outstanding Achievement in Main Title Theme Music."