i've played pokemon before but ive never watched it, is it worth watching?
Gen 1 has a lot of classic moments and is a lot of fun. Gen 2 is less good, IMO, but I never finished it.
Never saw 3 and 4, I know a lot of people like them. Gen 5 is... bad, from what I've heard. Gen 6 is REALLY good, but the ending is dumb as all hell on some levels. Gen 6 is the best if you like battling, probably.
Gen 7 is a lot more world building and slice of life stuff with Alola, so it's a weird show. I really liked it, but it got a lot of hate.
Same with Journeys, lots of love and hate.
The worst part about Pokemon is that the protagonist never really grows as a character, at all. And, even if he does, it gets reset once they shift to the next gen. If you don't like BS writing, stay far away from this series, things NEVER make sense.