#but that's because catching every pokemon in that game is literally the fucking point lmao

[shiny-meowstics]

pokemon: yeah, we've added more and more shiny locks to starters, legendaries, and mythicals bc we don't want players wasting hours and hours of their time in front of the screen not playing the game the way we want them to play it

also pokemon: let's start distributing shiny mythicals, but only after players have wasted hours and hours of their time catching/trading for every single pokemon for specific dexes, which means they'll also need to literally invest hundreds of dollars into a bunch of half finished games and their dlc's. that or they waste literal weeks of their time if its one of the shiny mythicals that are/have been distributed through Go through paid researches

[honnojis]

go forth friend. ramble about your favorites of the SV cast (w warnings where absolutely necessary ofc!!)

i wanna hear ur opinions of em !!!!

OUGH okay i will. put all of that under the cut bc i'm definitely going to talk about big spoilers AND IT'S GONNA BE LENGTHY BECAUSE I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS. SV may be a mess in some aspects but the story is the best it's been in many gens, if not the best story in any Pokémon game

i gotta talk about the two elephants in the room first; RIKA AND ARVEN.

For Rika; She's giving me gender envy bc like. god i wish that were me. But also I want to marry her because oh my god I love her and her design so much GAMEFREAK WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME. Why do they always keep getting away with this shit EVERY GOD DAMN GEN that there's a character I end up being down bad for LOL... She's so chill!! But she's also so nice!!! And I'm ough. I really hope any future DLC will give her more screentime or at LEAST let me rematch her because why the fuck can i not fight the E4 again!!! sir!!! lemme see her!!!!!!!!!

Arven.............. he is my son now. That whole last stretch of the story in area zero really REALLY solidified him as my favourite of the main cast because man he's been through a lot and this guy can't catch a fucking break!!! Had to go years without seeing his parents only to find out that the one parent he remembers and saw only very occasionally as a kid died years prior to the game's events protecting the mirai/koraidon you've been traveling with all this time. And the whole thing about Mabosstiff!!! The titan questline had me tearing up on several occasions. im AUGh.... I'm so SO weak for characters like this who appear a bit standoffish at first but then open up to the player and they're just beans that have gone through a lot and are trying to help. And his own resolution to become a chef with the knowledge he now holds over the herba mystica to help others felt like the most logical course of action for him to take so i'm glad he found what he wants to strive for next!! anyways sorry not sorry if i end up drawing him a lot LMAO he lives in my brain rent free. son boy allowed

Then there's Nemona!!! She's so fucking head empty no thoughts and I love her. And if there's something in that head of hers it's just a brick with the only thought being violence and battle. And you know what? good for her! good for her. She's really funny and probably one of the most fun rivals we've had in recent history for pokemon. I like that she's not just super talented either, she literally explains to the trainer when you talk to her in postgame that she had to work hard to even get to this point. She really feels like a mirror to the player but she just took her journey of becoming a champion a year or two earlier than the player did. But also wow same lady ur just like me fr fr

Penny!! she's just a bean that cares for her friends!!! And the team Star story stuff really felt nicely done. Trying to help her friends that were painted as bullies because of a misunderstanding and mismanagement at the school while the team Star members aren't bad people at all. I also absolutely love her sass when traveling with her in Area Zero (and subsequently the dynamic between Penny, Nemona and Arven as a whole, they're best friends now your honor)

AND ALSO CAN I TALK ABOUT HER BATTLE THEME FOR A SECOND BECAUSE ?????????????????????

THEY PUT HARDCORE/HARDSTYLE IN MY POKEMON GAME

I genuinely was not expecting that but hearing the hardbass i was like wtf holy shit they went OFF with this track!!! The track is an absolute banger too but definitely felt unexpected for a character like Penny. Good for her though!! She's got one of the best themes in the game and im jamming

And then Turo! I played Violet but I'm aware that the same thing happens with Sada in Scarlet so it's easy to just replace names. Man... I could talk about this part of the story all fucking day. The professor is probably one of the most interesting "villains" in Pokémon as a whole and I'm SO GLAD that the series finally went down this route, because they absolutely nailed the story telling with this. Area Zero blew me out of the fucking water and was so unexpected!!! This whole segment has "REJUVENATION" written all over it!!! I was literally WAITING for Jan to get to this segment after completing the game, only for him to say the same exact shit LOL. I was not expecting this from a main series Pokémon game at ALL and frankly I'm so glad it did because this whole story segment with made Violet easily one of my favourite pokemon games in the series.

AI Turo stimulating the player from the background to find the herba mystica with arven and them becoming stronger but not really wanting to talk to Arven because-- just like his original counterpart-- he's too focused on the goal of the mission to care for the son of his original counterpart (though him being an AI also might hinder processing emotional attachment even MORE than the original Turo already had problems with). The reason why Turo hasn't visited Arven in years being that the original is dead and AI Turo literally cannot leave the crater due to him needing the power of the Tera crystals to stay functional. AI Turo, despite being the same in almost every possible way, realizing and coming to agree that there's no logic in the original Turo's decision to want to introduce future Pokémon into the ecosystem KNOWING that it'd destroy the old one, making him a better person than the original was-- and painting the original Turo as the villain in this situation due to that his obsession with the future as written in the Violet book drove him to ignore how wrong he was for what he was trying to do, even after death. AI Turo knowing that he himself is part of the security system and needs to be fought in order to put a stop to the time machine, hence why he stimulated the player to keep training and taking care of Miraidon. AI Turo realizing that he needed to go in order to put a total stop to the time machine because his very existence is keeping it active. He says "I want to see the future" and leaves the present day in order to stop the time machine, but there's some deeper implications here; in practice this is AI Turo taking a massive risk by sacrificing himself to save Paldea because on the chance he ends up outside of the crater, he'll cease functioning and will practically die. And you know? The revelation that he's an AI powered robot actually makes total sense if you paid attention to his animations and speech mannerisms; he's the only character that doesn't have a breathing animation (it's not even there in the first video transmission you see of him! and it's the same for Sada in Scarlet) and is constantly identifying the player & friends through student ID's and biometrics rather than acknowledging them as actual people. BUT ALSO THAT BATTLE WAS SO FUCKING COOL!! Genuinely challenging too since you had to figure out his mons' typings on the fly, AND HE'S GOT A BANGER BATTLE THEME. Toby Fox you've done it again you madman

honorable mention goes to Clavell and Grusha, the former because Clavell is fucking funny as hell and I'm so glad he ended up being more involved in the story than I expected. Sir you're a little behind with the times AND YOU ASKED ME WHAT CHEUGY MEANS WHICH KILLED ME but you're all the funnier for it. thank you. Grusha gets the mention because he caught me off guard by having the highest leveled gym team out of any of the gym leaders with having mons at level 47 while I strolled up with my mid-30's team and got my ass blasted. thank you sir. i will now never make the mistake of thinking you're a lower tier gym leader just because TPC advertised you early. good god

All that being said, I could go on about every other character but these really were the ones that stuck out the most in my mind. i have so many thoughts about this game and i swear the brainrot's going to be around for a LONG ASS TIME

[robinplayspokemon]

pokemon blue, day 2, part 1: viridian forest & pewter city

ok can we talk about all the boys awkwardly hitting on me in this game?

yes, i selectively cropped that. no, i'm not sorry. but also, hold that thought & stay tuned for one i didn't even have to crop later?

anyway. i took my time finishing up viridian forest & route 2 because i thought i was gonna need to do some grinding before taking on the first gym leader and his rock pokemon which i had literally no answer for in terms of type advantage. i probably didn't need to be nearly so cautious, but idk, i'm taking my time and trying to fill up my pokedex as much as possible anyway.

i was not very confident when i took on brock. but where 12-year-old me eschewed status effects & stat debuffs in favor of pure damage, i'm older & wiser now. i mean, i'm ngl, i'm oftentimes still pretty impatient with that stuff and still likely to just look for a type advantage if i can get one, but there was none to be had in this case so i brought in gale and just spammed sand attack until brock's geodude & onix didn't have a prayer of hitting the broadside of a barn, and with much less difficulty than i had anticipated considering the type matchups, i collected my first gym badge.

(note: this screenshot is from when i had to replay the whole beginning of the game but we messed with the save file to rebuild my pokemon collection so i wouldn't have to do all that grinding over again, so that's how i had a weepinbell this early in the game and why it doesn't quite match my text description of my original playthrough; more on that in a later post.)

i again took my time on route 4, catching every pokemon i could to work on filling up my dex, and battling every trainer. including this dude armed with one of the most infamous bits of pokemon dialogue ever:

and, like... fair enough? but then there's THIS guy, and remember that thought you were holding earlier? well...

yeah. this fucking dude is SO OFFENDED by not being able to see my bare legs that HE LITERALLY WANTS TO FIGHT ME, so uh thanks for that game freak?

(i'm 100% being melodramatic for effect, i am not this easily offended, ok? i would hope that's obvious but i'm worried it isn't so here's this little autistic interjection ok bye.)

anyway, during this grinding we got our first evolution!

which, y'know, i have to imagine metapod is a lot of people's first evolutions given how notoriously quickly bug pokemon evolve (it was ash's in the anime iirc? guess i'll see in a few days or whatever lmao), but still! exciting times.

anyway i kept on training and at least i wasn't about to randomly get hit on again and OKAY WHAT THE HELL

dude, i'm a BOTTOM, you're gonna want to invite me to dinner after kicking MY ass, not after i kick YOURS.

(also, note: this screenshot is once again from when i had to replay the whole beginning of the game but we messed with the save file to rebuild my pokemon collection so i wouldn't have to do all that grinding over again, so that's how i had a zubat before mt. moon; more on that in a later post.)

on a plus side...

even though she's one of my favorite gen 1 pokemon (by "favorite" i mean like top 25 or 30 or so, i fucking love gen 1 pokemon), i did end up stashing mothra after catching some more pokemon because like i said i wanna keep evolving them! i didn't release her, though, because i can see adding her back into the party after i've evolved and released a few others. i think she's a keeper regardless of whether she ends up in my elite four party, which as i'm thinking about all the pokemon down the line i still have to catch, feels kinda unlikely at this point?

regardless, my time on route 4 found me catching a spearow (i named him warbird) and a jigglypuff (named him cloud). after making short work of all the trainers between pewter city and mt. moon, i rested up at the pokemon center at the foot of the mountain, and me & my brave pokemon companions are ready to proceed.

new pokedex entries:

[icharchivist]

hello icha!!!!! learned from my mistakes and typed this out in a separate document. first i have to say im feeling a very deep connection with citron as of late bc i was giving myself a pep talk abt like physics and i told myself "face up and man the music!" and was like "...is that wrong. theres that song called man against the music isnt there... yeah it must be right" and. well i realized later. i also think the phrase "dont cry because it happened, smile because its over" is very good. also I’m halfway thru creating a very eclectic list of like. a Pokémon team for each a3 character which is… something. kinda knew it would happen to me. might take a while for me to finish it tho now that I’m halfway bc I’m suddenly having a crisis like “wait shit I’m only confident on my understanding and characterizing of like 4 characters am I good enough” so… it’s slow going lol. anyways. i finished that damn physics thing I was giving myself a pep talk about and so am treating myself to autumn/winter. happens that watching these events is also like. the only thing which reminds me to actually like. log into a3 lol. i am so bad at gacha games. probably a good thing in the long run. ok starting from the top!

hisoka going "zzz" as his reaction made me immediately go... oh dear, please dont fall asleep in the bath and guess what happened. yeah. good thing homare was there lol. speaking of i fucking adore homare and his poetry. id buy his collection. i also wish there was a collection like if there was a master list of every poem he says in like. at the very least main story. if not i will literally do it myself. i love homare so much im like him in that back when i had to play dodgeball id always be like kufufufu they cant hit me if im friendless enough that no one pays attention to me but like in my case it actually worked out. on the subject of the pillow fight tho, hisoka's crazy strong pillow fight throw... one more mark on the list for suspicious, maybe assassin occupation. this event made me realize how much i missed winter like. i saw the stranger pretty recently (which has caused the effect of be being like "taichi!! thats my boy!!" in my head everytime he shows up lol but anyways i havent gotten to a winter play yet so im VERY hype. especially bc this seems like it stars hisoka and homare??? like oh!! oh!!!! also detective fiction... im swooning. i also just enjoy the hisoka homare dynamic a whole fucking lot i think its nice how homare was like "yeah im ride or die for this funky lil amnesiac, why wouldnt you be?" and its just like. nice. feel like hes always reaching out to hisoka which is like. man homare is so nice.

back to chronology. ofc sakyo goes cheap for the hot springs lol. on brand as ever. was very hype for the azuma sakyo dynamic bc all i remember is like azuma trashing everyone including sakyo at some game or the other in one of the winter chapters and it was very good. or was this a clip in like a stage play? either way it was delightful. at first i misinterpreted taichi going "…" after azuma and sakyo said theyd never been on a field trip bc like. taichi being quiet or noncommunicative... after going thru autumn troupe act 1 it makes me fear for my life a little lol. anyways im glad he was just like planning fun times. speaking of taichi tho we got a tasuku taichi pair for etudes!!!! im not spoiling myself for later events but i hope to GOD tasuku and taichi do like a lead co lead in SOMETHING or at least like some mixed troupe event i want them to talk!!!

also dunno if this is an intentional pun but i enjoy that its called high spirits at the hot spring bc like oh theyre having fun but also bc like. "spirits" is used to refer to a certain type of alcohol i think? which is cool. dunno if its intentional but i liked that. anyways the talent show. taichis moving rendition of single ladies... ok i know it said single fellas but like. we know. wonder if that line was a different song in japanese? its not too old at ALL tho imo. anyways the way banri and juza being themselves Are the entertainment... flashback to when banri slaps juza live on stage instead of doing a stage slap lol. my reaction to azuma essentially went:

azuma: I can offer to bare my soul, and a little more ;)

izumi: what do u mean by that???

me: hey tasuku and omi were shirtless what's ur problem with azuma

anyways i reread and from what i understand they were maybe only flexing and doing a gun show? which like. no wonder it didnt last too long then lol. also explains why they didnt have shirtless sprites i suppose lmao. i am SO curious abt what azuma ended up doing tho that fade to black is so mysterious! did he tap dance? did he pole dance? the world will never know...

oh also im not like super familiar with azuma yet but my read on his personality is definitely like "I am so touch starved All The Time but I will be chill. :) :) this is fine :)" like he just seems to rly like being around people! just like basking in presence whether or not hes rly talking that much.

i enjoyed that juza mentioned pillow fighting with his lil brother... thats nice! i think a lot of this event was just focused on ppl having fun over the drama lol bc it got wrapped up sooo quick. i liked the bit where sakyos worried that izumi was out late searching for him tho it was so sweet. table tennis match was very fun although id argue calling hisoka and juza the two quietest tho lol like... banri exists so juza isnt quiet. just like inevitably. finally, the event cg!!! azumas hair tied up... so nice! thats how I tie my hair up sometimes tho it doesnt look nearly as nice lol. taichi rambling abt his first love for so long tho... lol. ill be honest i have to reread autumn bc i was not aware of this whole situation until it came up in the stranger and i like inferred from there. the end of this event was nice! it was cute. i dont rly have much thoughts on it but im so hype for the winter play

Hello:!!! so good to see you again, freshly learning from your mistakes then :3c

the connection with Citron is a BLAST to read about. I am glad that Citron is there, on your mind, supporting you at every turns of language. It's beautiful.

AND OH THE POKEMON LIST!!! thrilled to hear about it being a wip ongoing! take your time ofc and i hope you'll feel more confident as you go for your characters interpretation! i believe in you!

lmao i'm glad the events help you remember to play a3, i'm sure that by the time you'll be done with the events you will have unlocked so much of act 2 you won't have to worry too much about it. Anyway i'm glad you treat yourself to good things :3c

of course Hisoka fell asleep in the bath. tbh this event was a lot of "Hisoka almost dies in a spring house multiple times if it wasn't for his troupesmates". Between sleeping in the bath and almost swallowing the table tenis ball... where would we be without Winter, and especially Homare, taking care fo him.

I'm SO GLAD you like Homare that much! he's so so good! i'm sure there must be a masterlist somewhere, or well. can be done anytime i guess?? but yeah Homare is fantastic and LDJFDLKFJDF the evil plan to avoid dodgeball from both of you.. this is incredible DLKJFDLKF. But yeah alas he's loved by his own so he gets hit smh.

And yeah Hisoka is just acting sus huh.

BUT YEAH... YEAH... WINTER... BELOVED.... I feel regular and normal feelings for Winter as you know, s o .

(i'm so delighted that you feel that way about Taichi though, as he deserves!! what a good boy!!!)

But yeah Winter play next!!!!! i love the winter plays so much i hope you'll like it as well!! aND YEAH HISOKA AND HOMARE AS A DUO... for a DETECTIVE story?? so good.

I'm sO GLAD you like their dynamic! yeah i adore it too. Homare was so quick to leap into taking care of Hisoka? Like i mean he immediatly called him sleeping beauty when they first met, and immediately decided to be his roommates to watch over him, and then he did everything to take care of him and it's just so sweet. Homare has such a big heart he's so gentle with Hisoka. Homey and comfortable, whenever Hisoka admits it or not ahah.

ahah wouldn't be Sakyo if he didn't need to stay cheap. BUT YEAH the Sakyo/Azuma dynamic is pretty good. oh the event you talk about i think is in some of his very first backstage storyes (that you can read if you have them since they're at this point of the chronology). There's one where they play a mafia game and Sakyo is warry of Azuma because "people like him are those you need to worry about the most" and Azuma is just ":) you wound me :) i would never :)" and then Azuma wins the game and starts to mess with everyone. It was so fun. and yeah i see which clip you mean for the stage play!! it's so so fun they have such a neat dynamic and i loved to see it in this event as well.

and omg worrying about Taichi while he was just there preparing a fun time! this child really would have worried us all back then huh

but AHH YEAH TASUKU TAICHI.... It's such a neat dynamic! ofc i won't say anything but man i love the potential of their stories, as the two ex Godza boys. To see them bond and be comfortable with each other always make me so soft.

OH NICE CATCH FOR THE PUN! i think it must be the reason for it tbh, i love it! thanks for pointing it out!

The talent show was really fun yeah ahah! I wonder what it is in Japanese too but at least the localization was hella fun!

"anyways the way banri and juza being themselves Are the entertainment." THEY'RE SO SILLY I love them so much

AND LMAO YOUR REACTION AT AZUMA I LOVE IT. YEah i think Tasuku and Omi are just flexing (which is Still. SO FUNNY. Just there saying "our talents is.. our muscles...") meanwhile Azuma is like "my talent is that i'm crazy hot :)"

But YEAH Azuma... AZUMA WHAT DID YOU DO....

your read on Azuma's personality feels pretty spot on to me ahah omg. Staying with what you know about him, the fact that with his job and all, he seems like he's starving for connection while also terrified to make himself emotionally vulnerable. He loves staying with people, listening to them, caring for them, and he's touch starved as hell (i mean it's his job) but he doesn't seem to really know how to be on the receiving hand of affection. there's a flair talk, i can't remember where, with Omi at some point, where Azuma compliments him, and Omi is just "mhm.. but you know i think that it's more about you" and ends up complimenting Azuma in depth and it let Azuma dumbfounded because he didn't expect Omi to trick him at his own game, while Omi just genuinely don't get why Azuma is reacting that way. He gives he gives he gives, and he's genuinely happy with that, but he seems to have difficulties to take, or to demand for something, while also starving for it. I have so many emotions for Azuma.

Any mentions of Juza's little bro are the best things. I love this type of mention TwT

And yeah it was such a laid back event. Honestly deserved after the crying fest that was The Stranger imo. It's good to relax once in a while and it was nice to have them have fun. There was the bitterness of both Azuma and Sakyo's past that was always a bit looming but everyone was working so hard for them to enjoy themselves that the joy just overtake any sadness i loved it.

Sakyo worrying about Izumi is always adorable TwT

And yeah the Table Tennis match was so fun and chaotic LMAO. I love the dynamic between Juza and Hisoka. Just two usually quiet boys who like sweets. Except that yeah like you say, as long as Banri is around, Juza cannot be 100% quiet. Rip.

THE CG WAS SO PRETTY i loved seeing it. And omg you can share your hairtips with Azuma how nice :D Azuma manages to make everything look beautiful smh....

Oh yeah Taichi and his first love! if i recall he mentions it quickly at the begining, that Yuki reminds him of his first love, and he says that again at some point - then the fake Portrait he does he mentions his first love again. And since then it's been a reccuring topic so yeh :3c

but yeah! this event was really sweet and laid back, not much to say about it, but it was nice to have it at all!

Hope you'll like the winter play :3c

Take care and thank you again for your thoughts <33 i love reading them!! bless you!!

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #340

“wash the poison from off my skin  /  show me how to be whole again”

What is one thing that you took to show and tell as a kid? I have this oddly specific memory of bringing my little Snorlax plushie for one in pre-k. I remember thinking everyone thought I was weird for liking Pokemon as a girl. Do you remember losing your first tooth? I don't. Have you ever been addicted to a game? What game? I think I was addicted to World of Warcraft at a point, but it's honestly hard to tell. My depression was just so abysmal that it was the one thing I got even a smidge of not even joy, but active distraction out of because the options of what you can do in the game are essentially limitless. Are you afraid to pop a balloon? Not really, but it does make me jump because I don't like loud noises. Name one person you’d like to see this month. Bitch we fighting Covid, stay away from me. When was the last time you laughed when you shouldn’t have? I don’t know. Which was better: the first The Lion King or the second? They're nearly tied, honestly, but I prefer the original. Do any of your grandparents have a tattoo? I KNOW my maternal grandmother didn't, and I don't believe any other grandparent did, either. When was the last time you had a bubble bath? Not since I was a kid. What do you usually buy when you go to the corner store? You mean like, a gas station or dollar store? Something small like that? In that case, I'll usually look for a Mountain Dew Voltage sometimes along with something Reese's-related. Do you believe that your pets feel love towards you? My cat, absofuckinglutely. He so obviously loves me. I know my snake doesn't though, considering reptilian brains just physically aren't capable of creating that emotion. She does, however, obviously trust me and definitely seems to enjoy coming out of her terrarium and thus hanging out by me. Bubbles or sidewalk chalk? I loved drawing with chalk, but I like bubbles more. I just love how they catch light and have such beautiful colors to share. What do you use to tell time when your gone out somewhere? My phone. Are you proud of your body? FUCK no. I wish I still was, goddammit. I used to be so fit, and it's funny, because even back then at like, 118 lbs at 5'4'', I thought I was kinda chubby. Like bitch shut the fuck up. Watermelon or cherries? I honestly don't like either, but I'll definitely pick watermelon over cherries. They're disgusting. What is your all-time favourite song? "False Flags" by Massive Attack. Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? Biiiiiitch guess lmao. I think everyone has, though. What is the band you’ve listened to most lately? Definitely 3TEETH. Love 'em. Favourite brand of cookies? Hm, good question. They've gotta be good at making SOFT chocolate chip cookies, though. I don't enjoy crunchy cookies nearly as much. If you could meet anyone who lived before your time, who would it be? I don't really know. Oh, y'know, chatting with Edgar Allan Poe would probably be cool. Do you pay for your own things? I literally can't. It's embarrassing. Have you ever been rushed to the hospital in an ambulance? No. What is one thing you’d never want your parents to find out? Certain sexual things I've done, probably. When you were little, did you like Dr. Suess books? Of course. Have you ever felt trapped in a relationship? I felt that way in my friendship with Colleen, but no romantic relationships. What would you consider unforgivable? Rape. Like no, go to hell. Do you like eating out at restaurants? Pre-Covid, yeah. What do you dislike the most about being the gender that you are? Probably how heavily judged women are for having ANYTHING "wrong" with their appearance. You could be five pounds over what is "normal" for your height and you're seen as fat. One strand of body hair, and you're disgusting. Bushy eyebrows, you're now manly. I could go on and on. Do you think that weed/marijuana should be legalized? Yes. Rate your typing speed on a scale from 1 - 10? 10. Do you enjoy tanning? Ugh, no. Just sitting there doing nothing but sweating. Have you ever written anybody an anonymous note? I have not. What is your favorite condiment to go with french fries? Ketchup. Have you ever laid in a hammock? Yeah; we used to have one. It was the best when we lived in the woods. Do you blow dry your hair or do you let it air out? I just let it air dry. Candles or incense? I prefer incense. Can you juggle? No. Your favorite vegetable? Broccoli. Do you catch lizards? No; I don't like terrifying wildlife. I'd much rather just take pictures of the little guys and let them go about their business. If we returned to a world without internet, what aspect of online life would you miss the most? YouTube, haha. It's more unique and personal entertainment than television, imo. Are you craving anything aside from food, and if so, what? I want a new piercinggggg. What was the last change you made to your lifestyle? I'm *trying* to get back into regularly making art, along with reading. I'm also really trying to implement drinking more water into my day. What was the last thing you gave up doing? *shrug* What was the last thing to boost your self-esteem? What sort of things typically make you feel good about yourself? It really, really helped to hear my PHP group enjoy my poem about gay rights so much. I was so terrified and did NOT want my therapist to share it, but it turned out being very beneficial. To answer the second question, it's pretty much stuff like I just mentioned: positive reactions to things I create. When it comes to food, do you prefer crunchy or softer textures? Definitely softer. Do you prefer savory or sweet things for breakfast? Hm. Depends on the day, ig. What is something small that you take extremely personally? I'm blanking. What was going on the last time you couldn’t sleep? I just... couldn't sleep. That's not rare for me. Have you drawn anything recently? I recently drew a picture of a still from Rammstein's "Mutter" music video, and I'm now working on Sara's 'kat Alucard. If you're going somewhere close by, do you walk? No. One simply does not walk in this town and not fear being shot. Do you prefer colorful notebooks over plain ones? I like colorful ones, particularly those with a nice pattern or something on it. What's your most ambitious goal? I'd consider wanting to be a successful freelance photographer to be rather ambitious. Do you know anyone named Alex? Well, knew, by this point. One of my closest online friends that just got a boyfriend and fell off the face of the planet when we used to talk every day. I'm still hurt about it, honestly. What's your favorite kind of pie? I don't like pie because of the crust being so, well... crusty and crumbly. Have you ever chatted someone up and scored a date? No. How far would you go with someone you just met? Not very far at all. All you're getting is a hug, if even that. What's your favorite meal to have for dinner? I mean, it depends on what I feel like having. I don't have a set favorite meal. What do you daydream about? The future, mostly. People I miss. Have you ever known someone online and then met them in person? If so, which website did you meet on? Yes, Sara. <3 We met via YouTube back when it had much more social connection. Have you ever been to the beach? Yeah, a good number of times. When was the last time you were sick and what illness did you have? I don't believe I've been ill in any sort of way since I had that ungodly ear infection a few years ago. Have you ever been kicked out of somewhere? Yeah, Colleen's house. Mom once tried kicking me out of the car one night otw home, but I didn't listen. Have you ever intentionally trolled? No. How many siblings do your parents have? Mom has two brothers and I think one sister, and Dad has one sister. Who last held your hand? My niece or nephew, dragging me somewhere, haha. Have you seen all the Lord of the Rings movies? No, not interested. What was the last thing you watched on YouTube? I'm watching John Wolfe's playthrough of Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. It's so funny how like... every let's player I watch doesn't enjoy the game, like they miss the incredible symbolism and shy away from the advanced language, and sometimes it's just frustrating to watch them; I only do because I enjoy the game and want to see more people experience it and relive it vicariously. It's very high on my list of favorite games. What sport do you find yourself best at? I wouldn't know; I haven't played any sports in years. I was pretty good at softball as a kid, though. Do you think makeup on guys is freaky or sexy? My opinion shouldn't matter; a man can wear makeup whenever he damn well pleases without worrying what others think. But anyway, I tend to find it attractive, especially if it's goth makeup. Have you ever been accused of a crime you did not commit? No. Do you like pickles? I love dill pickles. What was the craziest moment of your life? Probably just lying in that hospital bed following my OD, my mom and two best friends just sitting there with me. It was such a weird, weird feeling. Like I was just so done, frustrated beyond what I can say. I remember thinking it was almost funny, just how it all built up and went wrong. Where do you spend most of your time? In my room on my bed. What is your favorite muffin? Chocolate chip. Would you ever get a boob job? I already know when/if I lose the weight I want to, it will be kind of a big deal to me and my atrocious body image to get a breast lift. Being overweight ~does things~ you know, and god knows I want every trace of it that can be erased gone. Would you ever go on a reality TV dating show? That's a massive "no" from me, buddy. Would you rather be inside or outside? It depends on where I am and the temperature outside, but generally, inside. Do you like the current president? Well, I voted for him, so I can't shit-talk much. I don't know the true depths of him as a person and all he stands for, though; when I decided I needed to vote, I just did some research on his core values. I don't have any complaints yet, from what I've seen at least, which isn't a lot. Do you whiten your teeth? I've used whitening strips before, but I don't now because they're not that effective. If it's financially plausible at some point in my life, teeth whitening is another thing I want to have medically done because of my previous horrible self-care. My teeth have a clear yellow tint and I hate it. Do you get cold easily? No; it's actually the opposite: I get hot easily. What was the worst sickness you ever had? Probably this one stomach bug I had where I just threw up relentlessly. Like eventually barely even bile would come up; it was just dry heaving. My stomach muscles were in agony. Was your childhood wasted by something? No, thankfully. Would you rather die during an adventure or die like a normal person? A normal person. The idea of having such a sudden death stresses me out for multiple reasons; I mostly don't want my family to just be suddenly devastated, and I honestly want to come to peace with the fact I was dying. Like, find my life's own closure instead of just having it ripped away. Have your parents ever tried to commit suicide? Jesus, I sure hope not. Do you have a gag reflex? A very strong one. Do you ever fantasize about trying drugs? I've wondered before what the effects of weed would be like for me, but "fantasize" is definitely the wrong word. Would you rather have sex before you’re married or wait till marriage? It'd be up to my partner, honestly, because I'm fine with either. What is the nastiest dare you have ever committed? I never did dares because I thought they were stupid. Like I'm not gonna do dumb shit just to show you I can. Do you know anyone who has been raped? I think I might? Have you ever asked someone for a tampon? Yeah. Do you have any exes you can’t stand anymore? No. Are you more of a phone or a computer person? Computer. Do you prefer headphones or earbuds? Earbuds. Headphones are just big and clunky and in the way when you use a laptop in bed, plus they irritate my skin. I like how earbuds actually go in your ears for more direct hearing. Would you ever consider adopting a child with a severe mental illness? If I wanted children, no, because I don't think I'm capable to give a child like that adequate care, being so mentally ill myself. I wouldn't want to risk worsening their condition. Favorite thing to do with a significant other? Play games together, particularly cute multiplayer ones that are more about the experience of playing together versus getting past difficult obstacles and such. Like for example, one of my favorite memories with Jason is simply playing Little Big Planet together. Favorite ice cream topping? I don't like many toppings on my ice cream, but I do love melted hot fudge. First boyfriend/girlfriend’s name? Aaron. Do you support PETA? Considering they are incredibly self-righteous extremists, no. Do you believe in the Big Bang Theory? Well, I believe in some sort of "god" figure that created the universe, so I don't think so. A condensed ball of nothing exploding to create something so extravagant? It sounds pretty far-fetched to me. But then again, maybe that semblance of a "god" I believe in created the universe through that, idk. It doesn't really matter now, though, does it. What happened happened, I'm not very concerned with it. What insect can you not stand the site of? It's more so larvae that I can't stand the sight of, like maggots and stuff. They make me squirm. Do you like Doctor Who? I've only seen one or two episodes, so I can't say. Do you approve of gay marriage? Of course I do. I'm bisexual and would like to get married, so I might marry a woman. Are you into politics? I'm really not. Do you think the world is ending soon? Nah, even though it sure does feel like it sometimes. Ever been to a mosh pit? No, they don't seem very fun at all. Do you like to debate? NO. NO NO NO. Do you like the band System of a Down? Yeah, I do. Are you German? It's a big part of my heritage. Do your parents like your best friend? Yes. Who’s someone you can act your complete self around? Sara, 100%. She's the only person I feel entirely comfortable around when it comes to being myself. Do you believe in Friday the 13th? I don't believe in there being any supernatural power to it, no. Who is your favorite rapper? Eminem. What age is your youngest aunt? Uhhhh I have no idea. Do you like bowling? Sure, it's fun. Do you like roasting marshmallows on a bonfire? I do. What shows or characters scared you as a child? Ghostface from the Scream series was my worst fucking nightmare. I couldn't even see pictures of him without crying. The King Ramses guy from Courage the Cowardly Dog also gave me a number of nightmares. Something about the way he was animated was very unnatural and unnerving to me.

[radramblog]

Pokemon Legendary Themes Ranked

I saw a video of a youtuber I like doing this tier list so I thought I’d get my own opinions in first so I’m not biased by theirs. This list is a little incomplete- there’s a few things I know are missing, most pointedly side game stuff, but I suppose they can’t win em all. Thus, here are my objectively factual opinions, no nostalgia bias here surely. Here’s a link to the list in case you want to do the same.

(Tiers are sorted in increasing quality right to left)

D Tier

Mewtwo (FRLG): Y’all know Articuno/Zapdos/Moltres also use this, right? It’s just a marginally more dramatic version of the regular wilds music, so it gets the fail from me.

Mew (Emerald): This is the same as the last one! Except it gets the edge because it is slightly higher pitched, and because it’s in a game where it’s not a remix of a song you’ve just heard dozens of times.

Mewtwo (XY): I just really dislike the soundfont XY uses for most of its themes. This sounds like a shitty youtube remix from the late 00s with like 300 views, and most of them are the same person who really likes the song for some reason. Am I just biased against the kanto wilds theme? Maybe.

Regis (Crown Tundra): Narrowly dodges being the worst Regis theme since the Platinum one exists (It’s not on this list though). I think a lot of the more recent versions of older themes suffer since they were designed with the lesser hardware in mind. It is a shame because I do really like some of the additions to the theme.

C Tier

Dynamax Legend (Crown Tundra): Mewtwo is already back for his last appearance on the list. It’s just a remix of the max raid theme, which I don’t really care for- especially after hearing it over and over and over again grinding Lairs for shinies.

Calyrex (Crown Tundra): This song being dramatic makes no sense in universe- the player knows this is the big legendary, but the character sure doesn’t- but it ultimately feels hollow. This is deliberate, since it’s actually just one half of another song.

Steeds (Crown Tundra): h o n s e theme is the other half of that song, and it’s the better half, but its still incomplete.

Aura Trio (X/Y) and Solgaleo/Lunala (S/M): These two get lumped together because I always get them conflated, which signifies to me that neither has made a strong impact. Listening to both again, I think I like the latter more, but it’s narrow.

Regis (ORAS): It’s just not the same without the horns. My gen 6 bias is showing, but I don’t really like the soundfont.

Deoxys (ORAS): similar to the Regis, this is held back by the soundfont (why the fuck is there an organ in this??) but also by the fact that at this point, the Deoxys theme just isn’t special anymore. And that’s kinda sad.

Calyrex 2 (Crown Tundra): The full version of this theme is much better, obviously, sounding suitably regal for the king of the tundra, but it overall lands at a meh. The percussion sounds like it’s trying to rip off the Weather Trio’s, which is a big no-no.

B Tier

Eternatus 1 (SwSh): We are now entering the songs I like zone. Eternatus 1 goes in a lot of different directions, and despite how 13-year-old me would balk at it I actually enjoy the dubsteppy bits of it. Sorry to disappoint you, you edgy fuck.

Ultra Beasts (SMUSUM): I don’t know why these are separated, they’re the same theme. I really like the UB theme, but the thing is it isn’t really a legendary theme- it had to be a bit less bombastic seeing as you can just encounter a bunch of these bad bois. And while it sounds suitably alien, I still think it doesn’t belong on this list.

Weather Trio (ORAS): Why is this listed as this, its just for Rayquaza. Extremely dramatic, but a retread of one of my S-tier picks (spoilers oops) and not different enough for the remaster to make it worth it.

Primals (ORAS): the same as the previous, but I do like this much better, what with the song “reverting” to the original every so often. This should probably be higher, but I don’t want to separate it from the “full” version.

Eternatus 2: It’s kind of a shame how little time you get to hear this, because it’s a big ol “you’re fucked” and that’s pretty great. There are bits of this that sound like they’re sampling Kirby Super Star, and I mean that in the nicest possible way.

Galar Birds (Crown Tundra): While I know everyone used to adore this one, I think the honeymoon phase is over for me at this point. I still like it, but at the end of the day it’s still a Kanto Wild remix.

Legendary (BWB2W2): This is really good! The way the tempo shifts around the song is a really nice touch, and that build section is excellent. Just a solid overall theme.

Tao Trio (BW): Reshiram and Zekrom’s themes are slightly different, but even Game Freak forgot that one. Kyurem’s is the same but where they have different SFX it just has dead air, which while fitting is a bit less good. I adore the beat this one has running, almost a throbbing bit going on there.  Edit: Ok on relisten I’ve heard Kyurem’s a bit closer, and it’s a little different with some record skips, but they’re pretty unecessary imo.

Zacian/Zamazenta (SwSh): This is one I kinda wish was less dramatic, considering it’s not as oh shit as the situations their other themes have. I kinda hate the opening to this, but the rest of it makes up for it I suppose.

Eternatus 3: Yeah this is a Z/Z theme not an Eternatus theme let’s be real. A suitably triumphant third act to the climax of SwSh’s (lackluster) story. This is kinda just a banger, very much appropriate for the beatdown it accompanies.

Dialga/Palkia (DPPt): Closing the tier with a song that I actually love, but it’s occurred to me that it’s a little odd sitting next to some of these other ones. I mean, it’s mostly built around this very pretty little piano line, which makes it feel less weighty than the competition. It’s a classic, and hasn’t aged poorly or anything, but it’s less of a climax than I would expect. With that in mind, I shudder to think of what would happen to this in a potential remake.

 A Tier

Mysterious Being (SwSh): This is getting carried here by that bass alone. The rest of it is ok I guess.

Arceus (DPPt): Ah, the track no one ever got to hear. I really love how sparse this is, being basically only percussion most of the way through. I think the Arceus event is something we should have actually gotten to experience, I’m pretty sure it would have blown little me’s mind.

Lugia (HGSS): HGSS, the games where every legendary got its own theme. Bring this back please, I’m begging here. I understand the reason this sounds the way it does is because it’s based on the Shadow Lugia theme from XD, but I haven’t played that one, so I can’t comment. I’m sure not complaining, though- considering Lugia’s other main appearance (in the movie, of course) I wasn’t expecting such a menacing theme.

Legendary (DPPt): For a “generic” theme (fucking Rotom gets this btw) this has a lot going for it. The animation that plays when you start a fight with this music is burned into my brain. It’s fast, it’s tense, and it sounds great.

Lake Trio (DPPt): Unlike Mysterious Being, while the bass slays here, it’s not alone carrying the song. This track was always my favourite out of Diamond and Pearl, and those games have a fucking great soundtrack, so.

Black/White Kyurem (B2W2): I really love that this is a remix of the (also very menacing) theme you hear when you boot the game up- you’ve heard a version of this while staring at the fucker, now here’s the real version for when you have to fight it. The references to the regular Tao Trio theme are well placed, but this more bombastic version sounds like Kyurem is here to fucking kill you, which to be fair, it kinda is.

Legendary Beasts (Crystal/HGSS): I’m lumping these together since, although HGSS gave each their own remix, they’re basically the same theme. This was the first Legendary music ever written for the series, and it still holds up really well. As for the HGSS remixes, I don’t think Entei’s slower rockier version works as well, but I really like the punchy percussion on Raikou’s version.

Regis (RSE): Hella bass and Hoenn Horns? What’s not to love? I do think the original version of this theme is by far the best one, being an ample payoff for the puzzle that was getting to it in the first place, and it makes hurling balls at the golem’s much more tolerable. I literally never caught Registeel as a kid so I could go back and listen to this whenever I wanted.

Tapus (SMUSUM): Again, why are these separated. Considering this game has literal aliens in it, the Tapu theme in SM is somehow the most messed up sounding one, but it works extremely well. The surprise vocalisations work really well with the… I’m hesitant to say tribal, but I don’t have another word for that vibe to be honest. It does feel like you’re doing a transgression with this song, which you are (why the fuck are you allowed to catch these things in universe lmao).

Ultra Necrozma (USUM): Probably the most climactic song in the entire franchise, and it makes sense- this isn’t just the climax of those games, but the finisher to the entire 3DS era of the series. The church organs, therefore, are pretty justified. This song sounds like a Big Deal, and the organ getting pretty jazzy when it gets to some of the less intense bits is a really nice little touch. And then the percussion picks up again and oh fuck here we goooooo. A fitting track for arguably one of the hardest fights in the entire franchise.

 S Tier

Dusk Mane/Dawn Wings Necrozma (USUM): Haha oops I like this one more than Ultra. I think it’s just the unstoppable percussion that opens this that does it. I don’t think anyone who went in blind saw this moment in the games coming, and the intensity reflects this- its like a prelude to Ultra but it doesn’t have as much of a low point, with the onslaught of noise fitting the sheer OH FUCK that is seeing everyone’s favourite bag-dodger getting bodyjacked out of nowhere.

Weather Trio (RSE): Anyone who understands my bias is gonna understand this one. It’s almost entirely carried by nostalgia, but I just love this fucking song. Compared to some of the other things on this list, it feels nearly minimalistic, seeing as it’s pretty much just the drums, horns, and that bell, but that’s all it needs. It’s the first song in the series for a proper legendary, and it suits that fact.

Deoxys (FRLG/E): By contrast, the Deoxys theme is pushing that GBA soundfont to its absolute limit. You can hear some of the best of both the FRLG and RSE soundtracks in this song, with the Kanto percussion and the Hoenn horns both doing their part, but whatever instruments the rest of this is going for are absolutely not slouching either. It’s somewhat telling that the best soundtracks for FRLG romhacks (e.g. Clover) sound more like this than like the other themes in the game.

Ho-Oh (HGSS): Oh fuck is that a koto I love kotos. By contrast with Lugia, Ho-oh is a more relaxed track that takes a lot from traditional Japanese instruments, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t dramatic- far from it. The groove in this makes it sound like it comes from another series entirely, being so incredibly different from anything else the series had to offer at that point. That main riff is so fucking perfect, man.

Giratina (Platinum): I remember having my mind blown when I first heard this. Giratina went from the generic DP legendary music (which is obviously still good) to this chaotic energetic power play, and I was sold on Platinum immediately (like everything before XY, Platinum came out in Japan some months before in other countries, so I heard this well before the game dropped). This song has so many different lines, so many different builds, and yet none of them feel out of place. I almost feel like this song is what started me down the path that would lead to me being a prog fan. After the haunting ambience of the Distortion World, this sheer energy is such a shock to the system, and the climax of the song hits harder than any individual moment on any other song in the series. It’s my number 1 pick, and I love it to bits.

 Thus, the full list is as follows. If you end up doing your own, link me up, I’d love to see how wrong you are your opinions.

[ambitionsource]

wait i actually have more weirdly specific questions (if ur up to it) - how do the kids feel about poetry? do they follow any sports? what childhood tv shows were their favs? do they have celebrity crushes? fav coming of age movie? how are they doing in quarantine? what time in history were they obsessed w as a kid? have they ever been to summer camp? what type of candles do they like? what song do they cry to? how do they drink their coffee/tea sorry if u’ve answered already/too many questions

wooooo thank you for your patience iz!! we’re gonna go point by point

poetry?

charlie loves it genuinely and will read it for fun. riley likes it enough but doesn’t go out of her way to read it. farkle loves coming up with insane explanations for the metaphors and is smug about interpreting it in class. zay doesn’t care for it, neither does lucas. asher appreciates it but finds it boring; dylan likes it for the same reason farkle does, only not to look smart but to come up with something completely crackheaded to combat farkle’s interpretation (which he can’t then say isn’t correct, bc its poetry, so all interpretations are valid!). isa doesn’t like it because she doesn’t get the metaphors on paper the same way she can pick them up in film. maya hates it even though multiple people have pointed out that song lyrics are basically poetry -- she will tune you out.

sports?

sports aren’t Big at aaa (aside from dance), but there are remnants here and there. riley follows basketball of course -- even tho as demonstrated in 110, she cannot play it to save herself -- and she tried out for cheer in 9th grade at her old school but was rejected from the squad (another bad mark on a terrible year). farkle prefers wii sports over any actual sport, but will sometimes watch golf with stuart because it’s quality time with his very busy father. charlie did soccer when he was younger before it got phased out by dance and semi keeps up with it. dylan also “played” soccer, but this meant the other little league teammates getting pissed at him bc he never paid attention to the game and was just like “hey! hey, dennis, look at this!” and did like 3 cartwheels across the field. it was a smart move when randall pulled him from the team bc those intense soccer moms were gonna like beat them up fDJSKG. so now dylan is just an unofficial gymnast instead.

isa doesn’t like sports but played them a lot with foster siblings, and even though she sucks she gets very competitive. lucas liked baseball and was good at track in middle school, but he never thought about doing a sport for real because he knew he was going to quincy eventually where his dad is a coach... yeah. no. but he’s great at running fast from the police!

maya hates sports (aside from the art of dance). waste of time, waste of energy. asher has never done a sport nor ever contemplated a sport. the most Sport he’s endured is going with jade to support dave at his swim meets (where nigel also does swim) and suffice to say, asher wasn’t there to look at the swimming.

childhood tv?

dylan to this day is a spongebob squarepants STAN. legend, icon, scholar, best television show ever made, in his opinion. he also was well-versed in pokemon, adventure time, gravity falls, and phineas and ferb. asher and lucas both didn’t watch lots of tv growing up (if at all), so dylan considers it his job to give asher a thorough education in the quality tv he missed as a kid.

maya was all over hannah montana (miley is still a role model to this day for her), and she, zay, and charlie all remember the fever dream that was shake it up. zay especially loved it bc he was (is) obsessed with zendaya. zay and maya both also watched victorious. charlie was sharing a tv with four siblings so he just ended up watching whatever the dominant sister that day wanted to watch. riley was a disney channel girl, and farkle was a pbs scholar (arthur, cyber chase, fetch! with ruff ruff man... classics).

 celebrity crushes?

zay = zendaya (as previously mentioned). charlie = harry styles to a major degree, although his Cover Story would be zendaya if you asked (ironically). maya = britney spears (but in a I Want To Be Her way, major idolization rather than attraction) and technically the same for valerie de la cruz but like... rip to that lmao. isa = loki, yes we know, but sometimes it be that way (altho that does extend a little bit towards tom hiddleston in general). asher = logan lerman, aka the main valid white boy who dresses nice, is polite and soft-spoken, and minds his own business (not to mention he is the Same Type as dylan). dylan = had crushes more on like... personalities so like ash ketchum and percy jackson, and now its irrelevant bc he met asher and became obsessed and its like every other potential crush just flew out the window of his brain. it’s full asher territory in there nowadays.

riley doesn’t have a specific one, she thinks lots of people are Pretty but no one particularly strongly. farkle doesn’t have one because he’s insane and doesn’t have the mental capacity. lucas doesn’t have one because he’s demi and also hates most celebrities as people.

coming-of-age movie?

maya’s is mean girls. farkle’s is ladybird. zay’s is easy a. riley’s is bend it like beckham. isadora’s is eighth grade. charlie’s is dead poet’s society. asher’s is perks of being a wallflower. dylan’s is spiderman: into the spiderverse. lucas doesn’t know movies.

quarantine?

we’ve somewhat discussed this before, but ultimately es and i elected to let aaa remain in a nice, calm universe where they don’t have to endure covid. lucky them. blow a kiss to the ether for us, buds,

fave time in history?

riley is huge on ancient greece and greek mythology. maya loves the theatricality and Drama of the roaring 20s (a baby flapper at heart). zay vibes hard with the 80s. charlie likes the fashion and romanticism and music and art of the 70s (that sort of flowery positivity clashing with the rebelliousness of the movements of the 60s... yeah. that hits something in him). farkle’s is the great depression not only bc he’s an emo but also all the raw and desperate art that came out of it. isadora was a egyptian mythology kid. i know lucas sounds lame (he is), but i don’t think he cares about history -- but if pushed he’d probably say the 90s bc he dresses like he’s straight out of there, everyone was angry rocking, and he wasn’t born. asher likes the victorian era bc of the sheer elegance and Aesthetic to everything. dylan doesn’t have a favorite time period because due to being the subconscious multiverse conduit (i.e. the being that is somewhat connected to every other version of himself) sometimes he wakes up and for a minute he doesn’t even know what year it is 🤪anyway...

summer camp?

charlie has been to many a christian youth summer camp. zay went to the kossal program, but that was basically it. lucas no although he probably wished he could be anywhere else during the summer sometimes including a camp he would hate. riley went for a few years in elementary school. isa has gone to a couple of “foster kid” summer camp bonding things that she despised. farkle went to jewish summer camp One time and was like that was HORRIBLE, never make me spend a whole summer outside AGAIN. asher was more of a Enrichment courses at the rec center during the summer kid than a camper. dylan no because the orlandos couldn’t afford something like that. same for maya.

candles?

riley has a small variety of scented ones that are like... warm scents, like cinnamon and stuff. asher a couple that smell like clean linen but his fear of accidental fires keeps him from ever lighting them. maya has one and it smells like “star power,” a gift from her mom one christmas. isadora can’t have any because many of her foster homes don’t allow them. lucas legally shouldn’t be allowed anything that catches on fire. dylan doesn’t have one but similarly should not be given one. the minki have a whole collection for different things so farkle can just pluck one at any time if he needs one like for a super fancy bath or whatever the fuck rich people do.

mental breakdown song?

charlie’s are “falling” and “from the dining table” by harry styles.

riley’s is “manhattan” by sara bareilles and “rainbow” by kacey musgraves.

zay’s are “imagine” by ariana and “dear life” from the step up soundtrack (post zc breakup).

farkle’s are “vienna” by billy joel and “get it right” from glee.

asher’s is “don’t cry” by ruel.

isa’s is “you are my sunshine” because valerie used to sing it to her a lot when she was really little, so it will always make her a little emotional.

dylan’s (although rare) are “soon you’ll get better” by ts and “make you feel my love” by adele. the second one is because his mom loved adele when she was just starting out bc 19 was released the same year that she passed away so there’s a lot of like subconscious association there even if he doesn’t realize it.

maya doesn’t have one, and lucas also doesn’t have one because in the rare moments he does cry its in his closet in the dark silence alone bc he literally can’t stand the sentience of knowing he’s crying so. sensory blackout.

coffee / tea?

riley will add at least 3 sugars to anything, but she’s ultimately an iced tea gal. lucas drinks it black but only because it never occurred to him to add anything to it and so it’s a big wake up call when he realizes you can drink it and have it NOT be bitter and horrible and demoralizing ( “i thought we were all just suffering for the caffeine fix??” ). isa is a tea girl mostly, although she wishes she could drink black coffee for the aesthetic (and hates that lucas can... it’s like... he didn’t even Earn that aestheticism, smh). asher doesn’t drink caffeine bc it makes him Jittery (and he’s already jittery) so he’s like... the lemonade bitch at coffee shops which kin, and then dylan definitely drinks caffeine but not thru coffee, he’s more likely to get like a hot chocolate.

farkle lives on coffee but he can only drink it from home because they’re rich and can have like fresh ground good imported whatever the heck etc etc so he’s like spoiled about coffee. zay will hit up a starbucks now and then and will order coffee at a diner, but he’s not too attached either way. maya is a fun n free starbucks gal with her frappes and lattes and lots of cream (whipped or otherwise). charlie doesn’t drink coffee or tea bc hes hyper aware of his body and health (he doesn’t really have soda either) and it was frowned upon in his house.

[huffle-poof-blog]

Things the Hogwarts Houses say

(loosely based on conversations I’ve had/overheard)

Hufflepuff -

"If you don't start singing along to High School Musical with me in under 30 seconds you will no longer be my best friend" 

 "I swear on my chicken nuggets-"

"Yes I made that joke up by my self - no it's not from Spongebob Squarepants how dARE YOU-"

"Speaking of Spongebob can we just take a few moments to discuss how much of a masterpiece that first movie was please"

"Ah yes, it's 3 in the morning, time to get emotional and tell all my friends how much I love them"

"You made me chocolate??? Oh my God I love you so much thank you I'll have some right no - THIS HAS RAISINS IN IT YOU TRICKED ME"

"Oh my God yeah I saw that movie, my favourite part was when - oh shit wait there's this adorable kitten video I meant to show you last week and I completely forgot let me get it up on my phone"

"Sorry I'm late I was up all night watching those videos where kids get surprised with puppies"

"Are you awake? Great, let's start planning our future homes together, I have a pinterest board ready"

"This is my favourite photo album! It's full of photos of all the cats and dogs I've made friends with on my walks, I've even given them all names"

(crying) “Stop calling me emotional God damn it”

Ravenclaw -

 "Of course I remember you said you liked the colour red, you told me at like 1:35 am last year in May"

“What? Simplifying equations? No, I can't help with that but I do know all the words to every Simpsons episode in the first 5 seasons if that helps"

"Sorry I really can't go out today. No I'm fine, I'm just stressed I'm doing something important. I'm trying to memorise all the words to this documentary about frogs - What? Yes of course it's important!"

"I discovered and fully analysed that meme 3 weeks ago, step up your game"

"What do you mean why do I have a folder full of strategic plans on how to succeed at animal crossing, that's not weird?"

"Sir, I don't mean to be rude but I've been doing my own research and you're getting all of this wrong. Well yes I know I'm not the teacher here but - Yes, actually, I'd love to teach the class my self I've already made a lesson plan, thank you"

"No, I won't come and see Jurassic World with you. Because it's completely unrealistic! Do you have any idea what dinosaurs are actually supposed to have sounded and looked like? Even adult velociraptors weren't meant to be that b - OK you know what, I will come, but I'll be pointing out every single problem to you. No, it's too late, you already invited me. I'm buying our tickets right now, don't move"

"You really think you can beat me at Mario Kart? I have spent YEARS studying this game and honing my skills, spending hours upon hours training until my hands cramp and even my tv is judging the amount of time I've spent playing and you think YOU can beat me? Let's fucking go"

"I think these guys think I want to murder them because I followed them home but it's only because I overheard them talking about what would happen if Pokemon is real and I wanted to see how good their logic was"

"Shut up? Shut up? I haven't shut up for 17 years and I'm not about to start now”

(crying) "I just want Shakespeare's ghost to be proud of me"

Gryffindor - 

"I'd love to have a sleepover but it can only be when there's a thunderstorm so we can dance in the rain, let me check the weather forecast"

"Did that bee just try and sting you? COME BACK HERE BEE YOU COWARD I'M GONNA FUCK YOU UP - wait shit no run”

"What did you say? Don't touch it? Alright." (touches it as soon as the person turns away) "Sucker"

"Whaaat? Someone wrote on the desk? No it wasn't me I would never do th - My name was there? Well, I'm not the only one in the world with my na - My surname was there too? What are the chances?!"

"Help me I started saying lmao ironically and I can't stop"

"Before you say anything it wasn't me - unless it was something awesome then I definitely planned the whole thing"

"Excuse me? They said what to you? ... I have to go for a second, I just remembered something completely unrelated. No, no, I'm not taking this fork with me for any particular reason"

"Um, did you just tell me it's impossible to sing along to a guitar solo? Stand back. Your mind is about to get blown"

"I am so not drunk! I'm completely drunk! ... Wait shit I meant sober"

“I’M SO PROUD OF YOU AAAH LET ME HUG YOU! I’M NOT LETTING GO FOR THE NEXT 3 HOURS, GET COMFORTABLE BITCH”

“I bet I can stay up for longer than you - what no I’m not tired shut up - nO THAT WASN’T A YAWN I WAS JUST SHOWING YOU WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF I WAS TIRED - SEE I DID IT AGAIN TOTALLY ON PURPO - ok fuck you I’m going to sleep”

Slytherin - 

"Oh my God, just tell me what you did already so I can start complaining"

"Sorry, I didn't catch that. Did you say STOP saying fuck, or KEEP ON saying fuck?"

"Over your dead body? I was hoping you'd say that"

"If you even LOOK at them one more time I will take a stick as big as your ego and stick it right up your-"

"Don't come near me or - OK fine, we can snuggle for exactly 15 minutes. I'm setting a timer now"

"Hey, I saw you posted a picture of us on instagram yesterday where my eyeliner isn't completely straight? You're gonna have to delete that, if anyone thinks my eyeliner isn't drop dead perfect every day and that I'm not a literal make up goddess I'll lose my reputation as the Regina George of the school"

"But keep the one where I'm wearing no make up so that all those bitches know I still kill it without trying"

“Oh come on, you know I’d never do anything to embarrass you! Speaking of which, that video I posted on youtube the other day of you falling down the flight of escalators in the shopping centre has reached over 1000 views”

“My dad told me tattoos were trashy so I got a giant tattoo saying ‘trashy’ on my back I’ll send you his reaction later”

“I’m not a sentimental person but if you touch my teddy bear I will turn you into a stuffed trophy to put next to him”

“What do you mean I look smug this is my normal face”

[actualaster]

Here's the thing, blatant ableism about wanting the sick, elderly, and disabled to put their lives at much greater risk because you're tired of being inconvenienced aside...

THE BUNDLES HAVE NO REASON TO INCREASE IN PRICE BECAUSE NONE OF THE OTHER DISCOUNTS WERE REMOVED.

They literally ONLY removed the remote pass discount. Poké Balls, Lure Modules, Star Pieces, Lucky Eggs? All still discounted in their bulk purchase options. Because that's, like, what most games DO--they offer a slight discount when you make a bulk purchase or whatever. This is also how real life often works.

Also, remote raid passes were nice because I could raid with friends who live elsewhere. Maybe they should never have allowed adding friends who weren't physically present right next to you, because as it stands the game actively allows you to add a friend who lives far away and then invite them to a raid.

Remote passes also mean I don't have to beg the raid group that's ready to go to wait 10 minutes for me to arrive on-scene to play with them. I could join them while I was still in the area approaching.

It's also a boon for disabled players who physically cannot reach certain gyms. To say nothing of it being the only way to raid at gyms on private property. "Just annoy your city" that would maybe work if cities gave a shit about accessible access instead of bending over backwards to avoid having the expense and effort needed to do things like actually fix their garbage planning or renovate old structures for proper access. Just go spend time with physically disabled people and you'll learn real quick how many accessibility violations occur pretty much everywhere and nothing much gets done about it.

Plus not everybody lives in an area with a strong raiding scene. Rural players get fucked hard by both lack of other players and lack of Stops/Gyms/spawns in the first place. Expecting every single player to be able to get a local raiding group and/or to be able to join one is pretty bullshit especially as there is no in-game way to do so. (The supposed up-coming comms features will NOT be in-game. You will have to use a separate app to do it. Screw that I'll stick to Discord lmao)

There were ways for them to give incentive to in-person raiding without jacking up the remote raiding price. I can think of almost a dozen things off the top of my head that would be nice incentives for in-person that don't involve making it harder to get remote passes. Here, I'll even list them:

Massive XP boost

Massive stardust boost

Boost to Rare Candy rewards

Boost to specialty berry (like Golden Razz) rewards

Extra balls for catching the pokemon

If you use a buddy, give an extra heart for in-person battles

If you use a Mega, effectively treat the battle like a second Mega Evolve and give them a point towards their next Mega level (have a cap on the number of extra points you can get if this is "too good an incentive")

Add new rewards such as a small coin reward for in-person raiding

Boosted shiny chance

Wow, look at that, just shy of 12 different possible things that could be used to entice people to raid in-person that don't involve jacking the price of remote passes up and yanking the weekly 1-coin one. Considering they did announce XL Rare Candies and Mega Energy, that's a whole lot of bonuses they could have done instead.

(Personally speaking, extra stardust, XP, and rare candy boosts would be very enticing to me.)

At this point, I'm considering resorting to spoofing because it'll be the only way to raid lmao. It'd be more fun, at any rate--being able to play whenever I want regardless of things like health, the weather, or how bad the pandemic is around me would be nice.

Also, they fucked Incense and now it only works if you run I guess. Serious, I popped one on a 3 mile walk the other day and it didn't spawn much of anything because apparently my natural walking speed isn't what they think it should be if I want more than a handful of spanws to come from it, and I'm not running a marathon just to play a mobile game lmao.

They also returned CDs to a mere three hours which sucks. The 6 hour window actually let more people participate and have fun in their community instead of being glued to their phones the entire time. The 6 hour window was great for giving people a chance to play even if they worked because there was a much larger chance that they'd be able to play before or after their shift or at least for a little while on their break. The 6 hours was way more fun and easier to participate in.

But, then, Niantic just wants a bunch of free labor getting people to do stuff like go out and scan POIs and submit new ones so they can build up their AR metaverse (they call it that specifically) without having the expense of actually hiring people to go do that part of the work.

If they want me to generate data points for their AR network they can pay me actual money instead of ruining aspects of a game I like and expecting me to pay them for it lmao.

Man, Niantic really hates their own players and is determined to strip everything out of PoGo that boosted the fun factor, aren't they?

[captainshyguy]

so uhhh...i finished ultra sun/moon’s main “story” and here are my Thoughts 

all im gonna say above the tline if you want a good gameplay game, both sun and moon and ultra sun and ultra moon works 

if you were looking of a game with genuine emotion/one where lillie and gladion get any further development and their characters dont feel tacked on and cheap...play sun and moon lmao

ok im gonna go good first bc unfortunately i have a lot of bad stuff to talk about and i mean i ALOT which is annoying since i spent 40 fucking pound on this game 

good

god the top screen graphics were really nice like it looked so much more vibrant and the water and grass looked BEAUTIFUL 

the ultra recon squad were great, especially when phyco wanted to throw down with lusamine like same binch 

poipole is SO CUTE AAAAAAAAA 

more ilima content?? THANKS GAMEFREAK AAAAAAAAA literally like??? you see him at the trainers school, then in hao’oli city, then again in hau’oli, then for his trial, then after hala’s and then he’s a part of mina’s??? and he shows up for the festival and he also has 2 sidequests where you get to talk to him and stuff??? and you get some backstory? NICE 

also seeing him with more than 2 pokemon was nice thanks 

like honestly when i asked for more ilima content i didn’t think i’d get it bjdgkdsgkdfs 

mina being more prominent was nice 

TOTEM RIBOMBEE THANK YOU FOR SHOWCASING THIS AMAZING POKE 

mantine surfing is cute 

as someone who only played moon and not sun, im glad i got to fight kiawe this time around! 

gong up to pokemon on the street and getting to like play peekaboo with them? incredible 

elite 4 molayne was pretty damn cool

the sheer amount of cool little sidequests was really fucking cool, i still haven’t done them all/found them all probably???? i like how they’re more extnsive than in sun and moon, like the letters, the dugtrio girl, the hypno thing with ilima

speaking of ‘THEY STOLE MY NUGGET’ BNKJDSGNDSKJGDSG

also that tiny sidequest on route 15/16 where there’s a sandygast and if you talk to the kid he’s all ‘look what i made!’ and then the sandygast turns round and its like ‘SAND!!! DEE!!! GAST!!! with like a zoom in on each pause JKSDGDSKGSDG 

hau really comes into his own in this game, honestly he and guzma are the only characters from sun and moon that actually get any significant character development, and i love hau a lot bc he’s super sweet so?? getting to see him more and see his motivations, and show how close you and him are was a delight, like it almost, almost saves the game for me like hau....thank u b without you i WOULD have thrown this game out the window

o yeah speaking of YOU HAVE TO BATTLE HAU FOR THE TITLE OF ALOLA’S CHAPMION AAAAAA now i’m kinda mixed abt this bc honestly i loved fighting kukui, which y’know, doesnt happen in this game (unless he’s gonna challenge you when you redo the elite 4) and it felt like more was at stake?? like the music was better and kukui was harder so???? idk it still gave me chills fighting hau tho 

the rotomdex was sweet overall, though i do have my problems 

the music that plays when necrozma comes out of the ultra wormhole was incredible, it took my breath away 

bad 

this game took away almost every ounce of charm and emotion that sun and moon had and i’m absolutely furious, i get this game was more about the gameplay, but emotional highlights in sun and moon just didn’t happen, lillie and gladion and nebby got COMPLETELY shafted, and everything that made sun and moon so great story wise was gone

what i mean by that is the main driving force behind sun and moon was lusamine being the evil fuck that she’s supposed to be, and gladion and lillie’s absolute defiance to that, growing, tearing away from their mother and becoming their own people!! it was amazing, inspiring, especially in lillie’s case, seeing her go from quiet and timid to defying her mother to her face, shouting and making her point!!! that didn’t happen here, like yeah they run away, but bc of what they did to lusamine’s character, it felt nowhere near as impactful, and i really didn’t feel for lillie and gladion at all?? or nebby???? 

they tried to keep some things the same, but with lusamine’s character suddenly being all over the place, like the whole ‘oh she has good intentions, but she thinks she knows the best for everyone and does stuff no matter if it’s what people want or not’ but then they kept juxtaposing this, she calls lillie and gladion wretches, then she calls nebby gallant for loving lillie, she still has pokemon frozen in her fucknig hidden room, yet hau calls her a good person like???? what???? it doesnt work?? her characterisation was all over the place, and having her be good and stay at the end pissed me off SOOOOOO MUCH because like....i don’t like lusamine in sun and moon, she’s an evil fuck who was awful to her kids, but what she did made me adore lillie and gladion, and lusamine was a good character, not from a moral standpoint, but from a written standpoint, she was written so well and SOOO EVILLY and they just took that away, and it made none of lillie and gladion’s stuff make any sense??? which really pissed me off bcsun and moon was such a story driven game, it wasnt really about the protagonist, it was about lillie and nebby and their journey!

speaking of, watching lillie get forced down to a side character in this game was the worst, she doesnt go with you to exeggutor island and have tat amazing speech, she doesnt go through the ultra wormhole with you she’s just...there...and her changing into her z powered form in this game felt so forced bc like...what has she been through really, like she run away with nebby yeah, then her mum was like?? being kinda reasonable then not, and oh she went in the wormhole???? that whole aether scene felt so underwhelming, the music didn’t even change when nebby was getting hurt, unlike the other one, with lusamine’s characterisation being all over the place, it made lillie and gladion’s “arcs” in this game seem so weak and cheap 

oh yeah speaking of the aether scene what the FUCK was up with gladion like ‘oh take me with you null was made to be a beast killer!’ are you TELLING ME that after gladion says cosmog will bring disaster and they have to save it he’d REALLY try to go with, which obvious would fucking HURT NEBBY??? WEAK GAME FREAK WEAK 

can’t you tell they REALLY forgot to add anything on type null/silvally it was just...there 

gladion just randomly leaving at the end was fucking insulting, it was insulting because you can TELL they tried to add a tiny bit of emotion by paralleling lillie leaving in sun and moon but??? it doesnt work??? gladion barely has any development in this game/a big amazing arc like lillie did, you arent there to see him off, so it just genuinely feels insulting, especially since gladion actually had no reason to fucking leave lmao 

lusamine’s not obsessed with nihilego anymore?? TERRIBLE that was like her defining fucking trait??? 

also like...what was the point of nihilego coming through the wormhole at paradise, that scene has no fucking relevance/the same impact/foreshadowing or anything, it was literally just to be like ‘oh yeah that’s an ultra beast’ that was IT

now like what they COULD have done was have lusamine obsessed with NECROZMA this time around, she wants it so she can take away alola’s light, so she can catch it and use it WHY WASNT THAT THE STORY, AND SHE COULD STILL BE AWFUL AND EVIL AND CRAZY AND IT COULD MAKE LILLIE AND GLADION’S DEFIANCE ACTUALLY FUCKING MEAN SOMETHING, AND NEBBY GETTING ABSORBED BY NECROZMA HAVE SO MUCH MORE SIGNIFICANCE, IT WOULD PARALLEL THE CONTROLLING/ABUSIVE WAY LUSAMINE ACTS TOWARDS HER CHILDREN and they had SUCH A GOOD OPPORTUNITY HERE THAT THEY MISSED 

there wasn't that amazing set of credits with the photos of all the characters you’ve grown to adore in this??? and that picture that rotom snaps of you in sun and moon you dont even fucking see it in this, despite rotom still taking it?? fuck this 

my 5 FAVOURITE QUOTES WERE TAKEN AWAY ALL OF MY FUCKING FAVOURITES rotom calling ilima a dreamboat, that bit where lillie says ‘ Whenever I feel like there's nothing I can do, you seem to show up and...you do something. Every time, you've shown me that it's possible... to do something.’ that AMAZING bit where she goes off at her mum like ‘Children... Children are not just THINGS that belong to their parents! Pokémon are not just THINGS that a Trainer can do whatever they want to! I am alive! Cosmog is alive! We are not things for you to collect!, that bit right at the end where she's narrating the credits  ‘ Everyone's smiles shine so brightly. Those smiles led us to so many other people. And those meetings will lead us to a bright future. I'm so glad I got to meet everyone. I'm so glad I got to meet you.’  and the last one is Plumeria’s incredible line which really made me like her when she was like ‘no one can make up for what they've done if they're gone’ ever SINGLE ONE OF THESE WAS GONE basically they took lillie’s best lines, and they took plumeria and rotoms best lines

despite everything, we didn’t... actually learn where necrozma, solgaleo and lunala actually...come from/their origins like??? we’ve learnt there’s multiple lunala and solgaleo, seemingly only one necrozma, but like?? are they ultra beasts or not?? why dont beast balls work then lmao??? 

i’m sorry i love lillie but....i’d 100% rather have this amazing strong incredible lillie in sun and moon leave and make my heart wrench and make me cry bc it was so emotional and beautiful, than have this usum lillie stay around, this one who hasnt been through everything, who hasn’t had this amazing beautiful arc, who just randomly gave me nebby, with the whole catching nebby scene completely tacked on with none of the emotional impact that the sun and moon catching nebby scene had, who was reduced to such a side character that i cant possibly feel the same emotion for her

i just...i know pokemon games have always been about gameplay, and sun and moon was an exception but,....sun and moon was the first mainstream pokemon game i’ve ever played, and it blew me away, it was breathtaking, incredible, it was the best fucknig game i’ve ever played, it has the best fucking story i’ve ever had the honor of playing, it was complex, deeply emotional, and still so so wholesome, despite all the awful stuff that happens, it was beautiful, heartwarming, heartbreaking, i loved it and it will forever have a place in my heart, so playing this...and watching the characters i love being forced aside, with everything i love about them being gone was the most disappointing thing i’ve ever had to witness and it’s made me furious to the point where i barely even want to play through the post game rainbow rocket shit (if hau comes along then i will, if it’s just lillie and guzma, then....i dont know) because what’s the fucking point honestly 

[aquarianlights]

1-10 hehehe c:

*cracks knuckles* AH, I’M SO GLAD YOU ASKED. Heh. Heh. HEH. IT’SSSSSS CHRISTMAS TIMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! (I type this as I’m listening to Enya-esque Gaelic Christmas songs from the 1800′s. My heart. Omfg.)

1. Favorite Christmas tradition?

We have so many, honestly. It’s the only holiday we have traditions with. It’s a seriously significant day for me and would honestly give me hope every year throughout my childhood. If I could just hold out until Christmas, I would be okay. Because Christmas was the happiest day of my life. Always. I think my favourite is watching all the old stop-motion Christmas films towards bedtime with the couch pulled out into a bed in front of the fireplace that had a fire going with the tree off to the side glittering and shimmering. Since I was born, my parents have never lived in a place that didn’t have a fireplace. Not even the house I grew up in in Florida. That’s what I immediately think of when I see this scene in my mind, despite the fact it has taken place other places.

2. White lights or colored lights?

Oh, psh, that’s not even a contest for me. :p You should be able to answer this one for me, actually. Hahaha. ANYONE who has known me for 2 seconds would be able to answer this one. COLOURED LIGHTS, OFC! The more colour, the better!! There’s an app out that can control the pattern of your light flashing to do it in all these different light-show style flashing and up and down movement and stuff and aw, man, it’s so fucking cool! Idk how it works, though. Ergh.

3. Real or fake Christmas tree?

Okay, so, my roommate has as big of a love for Christmas as I do. Well, ALMOST. And we agreed on p much EVERYTHING Christmas and it was so happy and stuff until we went with the family to buy the tree. All four of us. . .in the store. . .Me, my other three roommates, him included. Only missing one member of the family there, but he’s not a roommate of ours; just a friend. So he wasn’t included in the household tree picking. Lol. But anyways. . .My roommate and I have never disagreed on ANYTHING regarding Christmas. Chelle asked us “So...looks like fake ones are less expensive, so...Which one do you guys want?”

At the exact same time, my roommate and I shout out two different answers. Him, “Fake”. Me, “Real”. And we just both stared at each other in sheer horror. And then got into a heated debate. Lmao. I mean, he made some pretty decent arguments. . . So, yeah, we are getting a fake tree this year and that makes me HORRIBLY sad. . .because this will be the very first Christmas I have ever spent without a real tree and the smell of pine flooding the house and to get to feel the texture of the branches when you walk by..... Sigh. Real. Christmas trees have to be fucking real. . .otherwise, what’s the point? :/

4. Favorite Christmas memory?

Oh my god, I have WAYYYYYYYYYYYY too many. I think it’s a tie between when I first got my N64 when it came out. . .along with the game Pokemon Stadium. And Echo’s first Christmas.

Memory 1: When you’re little, you get up REAAAAAAAAAAAAALLY early to open your presents on Christmas. Everyone in the neighbourhood did. And I had that kinda childhood where I was friends with all the kids in the neighbourhood within my age range and on Christmas, I was actually allowed to go out and see them and have them over and stuff. So after I opened my N64 and Pokemon Stadium, we literally had an open door policy. I say literally because the front doors and the back sliding glass doors leading out to the pool and patio were permanently pushed open. I ran around the neighbourhood gathering all my friends and we all came back to my house and got in my living room and there were four controllers and a handful of us so we took turns battling each other in Pokemon Stadium all morning. It was so much fun. Our parents got together, too, while we played and had wine and stuff and when we were done playing, our parents had us make cookies and ice/frost them and it was a lot of fun

Memory 2: Not as elaborate of a memory. . .Simple, but pure and good. Echo’s first Christmas. . .he saw snow for the first time. That’s when I got that picture of him as a puppy of him howling on the trampoline that got really up there in the notes on here (coz, y’know, he was the cutest pupper alive lol and that picture did his cuteness in his puppy ugly years justice). He was SO EXCITED by the snow but also so frightened. At first, he started barking at it. He would get close to it and bark at it and back up. Finally, he stuck his paw in it and SCREAMED and started running (I had his leash and harness on obvs) and the dummy ran straight into the snow. . .snow piles that were taller than him. So he was like. . .hopping like a bunny through the snow. You’d only see him and hear him when he hopped up in the air. Then he’d fall back into a snow pile. And he was screaming the whole time. (Pomeranians are VERY vocal and they will scream at anything that is new to them when they are young. I learned this via absolute horror and shock because he jumped off the couch when he was a pup for the first time and it wasn’t a big drop or anything just a small hop. . .and when he landed, he was perfectly fine, but nonetheless. . .his tail tucked between his legs, he started SCREAMING BLOODY MURDER, and skittered into my mom’s bedroom and squeezed under the bed. I thought he was fucking dying. Nope, turns out that’s just how all poms are. Lol.) I was running after him this whole time trying to get him to pick him up out of the snow but I kept falling in the snow, too, coz it was past my ankles and I don’t have any boots or pants equipped to handle that. I’m from fucking Florida! Lmao. Anyways, I eventually caught up with him and put him on my trampoline to dry him off a bit before taking him back inside to dry him off for real. And that’s when I snapped those two highly photogenic pictures of Echo on the trampoline during his puppy uglies. . .covered in snow. . .but cute af. He also learned that he quite enjoys sticking his snow into snow piles. . .moving it around a bit. . .pulling it out. . .and then immediately furiously digging/burrowing. Lol. ANYWAYS. . .I got him back inside. . .dried him off and everything. . .and since he was kinda wet, he did that dog thing where he skittered around the house as fast as he possibly could. . jumping on all the furniture, knocking things over, running in literal circles. . . When he FINALLY calmed down. . .I had him open his presents. I had wrapped them easily enough to where he could open them himself and I actually have a video of his first Christmas with him opening his presents somewhere but I can’t find it! D: But, anyways, he was SO GODDAMN CUTE opening all his presents!!!!!! He would just tug on the wrapping paper with his snout and put his little fluffy paws on it and push and tug simultaneously. . .and he would slowly rip the wrapping paper off while snorting. And it was the cutest fucking thing. I do this every Christmas for him. I wrap his presents very loosely and make sure to get him a cookie. This year, I’m gonna be getting him an Ugly Christmas Sweater, an LED Christmas Collar, a new year-round collar, a few new toys with squeakers, a special cookie like always, some of his favourite training treats from when he was a puppy in his favourite flavour, and a shiny new dog tag with his new address on it. :3 I’mma put his Christmas collar on with the lights blinking and put his ugly sweater on him before he goes to open his presents this year. And record that. Coz it’s the best sight. c: Our family member who is just a friend and doesn’t live with us works at Petco and he already confirmed they have ugly christmas sweaters in Echo’s size and they have the Christmas collars I’m thinking about. . .So I’m heading over there as soon as I get back and I’m taking Echo into the store and we’re gonna go searching for his presents and let him sniff out which toys he wants and stuff. c:

Okay okay I’m rambling SORRY. YOU CAN’T GET ME TALKING ABOUT ECHO. YOU KNOW THIS. LMAO.

5. Favorite Christmas song?

Of all the traditional ones, Pachelbel Canon. That was actually one of the first two-handed piano pieces I successfully learned how to play in lessons when I was little. I always master Christmas songs quicker than anything else on any instrument because they’re my favourite. The newer ones are okay, I guess. They’ve really got to do it right. . .because writing Christmas music nowadays is just. . .Idk, it doesn’t really catch on. Coz we had that era. We had it. And now we listen to all those old songs even if we aren’t people who would normally seek out older songs (I’m definitely not that kind of person!). But, wow, I love all the traditional Christmas songs. I have my pandora on the Traditional Christmas station. Same with my spotify when I use it. And my Sirius XM radio stays on the channel that they convert to the Traditional Christmas channel for the month if dec

I think the only current group that has done Christmas music correctly in the modern music scene is Trans-Siberian Orchestra, tbh. And their Christmas music. . .all of it. . .actually should come in a tie for first with Pachelbel. Tbh.

6. Have you ever had a white Christmas?

Once. Literally once in my entire life. And it just so happened to be Echo’s first Christmas. I had dreamed of having a white Christmas since I was a little boy. Ofc, I never saw snow until I was like 13 or 14 for the very first time. So I had no idea what a white Christmas really entailed growing up coz I had never seen or felt snow before. But Echo’s first Christmas was the only white Christmas I’ve ever had. . .and it was the most beautiful day. I had such joy with my dog that day.

7. Favorite Christmas treat?

Holiday chocolates. Specifically, those orange-shaped chocolates that only come out during Christmas time that you have to slam against a hard surface to break them into slices. . .and when you open it, it looks like it’s been sliced and pulled apart like an orange. And it’s orange/citrus-infused chocolate. Which happens to be my fave. . .I got three of them as presents so far this year coz everyone knows I freak out when they’re in stores but didn’t have any money to buy them this year. They came out with a new flavour, too! So someone got me that one. Strawberry-infused chocolate. Still looked and sliced like an orange when slammed against a hard surface and broken. . .but it was delicious. And I’ve had two orange-infused ones. I still have a whole orange-infused one left, I can only eat like 1 slice at a time. Very rarely 2. So they last for a pretty long time with me. Lolol. I know there are other holiday chocolates. . .but I can’t think of them. Oh, ALSO, the candy-canes that are fruit flavoured. Specifically, the jolly rancher ones. Mmmmm! Stock up on those. Aw ye. Heh. :p

8. Do you have a favorite Christmas tree ornament?

I have way, way, WAY too many, omfg. I have so many favourite ornaments. And so many of them hold extreme sentimental value to me. There is legit no way possible that I could pick just one. Nope. No way. There’s no way I could pick like. . .just five or ten or something, either, tbh. Lol. There’s so many........ Although. . .if I absolutely HAD to choose. . .like, if there were a gun to Echo’s tiny little head and I had to choose to save his life. . .I would choose my Lady & The Tramp one.

9. Do you go Black Friday shopping?

HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT!!! Lmaaaoooo. Bruh. Never. Never in my goddamn life will I ever go Black Friday shopping. Absolutely not. A) Because I have worked too many black friday’s in retail. . .specifically in malls. . .and it is absolute hell and I have never been so stressed and past my limit at my jobs in different retail stores. And B) Because why the fuck would you go deal with all that bullshit. . .long-ass lines. . .People literally camping outside your store waiting for you to open so they can flood the store and destroy EVERYTHING. . .fighting. . .getting hurt. . .things breaking. . ..getting angry and upset. . .getting stressed past your limit trying to get to the items you want in time before everyone else does in this chaotic every-man-for-themselves race. . .Like, seriously? No thanks. Why the FUCK go to Black Friday when we have Cyber Monday???? It’s literally the same exact thing. . .just online. That;s it,

I’ve always kinda just judged people who go to Black Friday sales coz a) they’re causing the employees hell just by participating and b) where the fuck is the common sense in that when you can do it completely stress-free and from the comfort of your own bedroom or a coffee shop or wherever you want!

Cyber Monday is where it’s at, guys. Don’t cause employees that are forced to work Black Friday even more hell by participating in that chaos and fueling the fire. God forbid you accidentally take out your stress and rage on the cashier without even realizing it. Cannot even tell you how many times that happens on Black Friday. Can’t even tell you how many of us literally had to take 5 minute breaks every hour or so because of how psychologically/emotionally damaging it was. So.....yeah, no. Lol.

10. Favorite Christmas movie?

I actually can’t say I have one, tbh. Like. . .I don’t get super, super excited by any particular Christmas movie anymore. I used to get excited over almost all of them growing up. Especially the stop-motion ones because they were close to cartoons and  I wasn’t allowed to watch cartoons growing up. They were banned in my household. But honestly. . .You could even pop in one of those fucking Hallmark Christmas movies where the plot is exactly the same for every single one of them and I will act surprised every time the plot turns out exactly the same as every other Hallmark movie. Lmmmaaoooo. 

I can’t actually think of one in particular that stands out over the rest. I love them all. Some more than others, some not very much at all. But they all still qualify in the love category.

EVERYTHING Christmas is in the love category for me. FUCK.

Thank you so much, fren!!!! You just literally made my night. I am a hap kit. :3

[radramblog]

(almost) Every Pokemon game’s plot in 50 words or less

People in a groupchat started talking about doing a powerpoint night, and I got this idea in my head, and while maybe I’d be better off presenting this for that, I got the worm and it has to escape. I have to rip off Jelloapocalypse/Brian David Gilbert.

At this point there are something approaching 100 Pokemon games, most of which with a rich and diverse set of plotlines that definitely doesn’t revolve around just “catch them all lmao”. And while covering literally every single one of them would be a little needless (Pokemon Bank doesn’t exactly have a rich storyline), there’s enough here that we can make something fun and entertaining that would probably work better as a youtube video.

Anyway!

By the way, if any of these have an asterisk (*) next to the name, that means I had to look up what that one was. I haven’t played all of them, you know.

Core Series

You can just assume every single one of these games has the plotline of “small-town youth rises through the ranks of Pokemon trainers and eventually defeats the Pokemon League, becoming the Champion through a combination of skill, kindness, and determination” as a baseline. That said, you know, there is a bit more going on here.

Red and Green: A child takes on the Yakuza at their perfectly legitimate pachinko parlor, ruins a non-shady business deal, and gains the respect of their leader by beating the shit out of him three times.

Red and Blue: A child takes on the Mafia at their perfectly legitimate casino, ruins a non-hostile takeover, and gains the respect of the Don by beating the shit out of him three times. Also it’s a bit less ugly and we fixed a few bugs.

Yellow: The same as the before, but there’s some random references to an obscure 90s anime? Probably not a big deal.

Gold and Silver: Someone lets the yakuza/mafia simp brigade onto the radio and now the whole thing’s a shithouse. You forget to catch the cover legendary, because nobody asks you to.

Crystal: What if you could catch both cover legendaries, but it was a huge pain in the ass? Featuring Eusine the dog/cat/horse/gerbil stalker and the ability to choose your gender.

Ruby and Sapphire: GOT CAUGHT TRYING TO EXPAND THE (LANDMASS/OCEANS) #GONEWRONG

Emerald: GOT CAUGHT TRYING TO EXPAND THE LANDMASS + OCEANS #GONEWRONG #ANCIENTLEGENDARYDRAGONCALLED

Firered and Leafgreen: Postgame Story: Running the Jewels edition. Also, jokes aside, why the fuck did they add Lostelle’s bit, what the fuck,

Diamond and Pearl: You see, alternative energy companies are actually evil, because they steal shit, do terrorism, and attempt to reset the world in their leader’s image. That’s why I only use safe, clean coal power. This message brought to you by Oreburgh Mine.

Platinum: Charon self-inserts into the Galactic plotline, and Poke-Lucifer does not approve. Kinda got the wrong guy, though. Looker does the one useful thing in his entire long run in the franchise, and it’s in the postgame of the first game he shows up in.

Heartgold and Soulsilver: Canonising a popular fan theory, half a decade after the manga did the same thing. Getting forced to fight the cover legendary, in a plot beat that feels forced and awkwardly paced!

Black and White: PETA is invading New York, and they’re somehow less evil than they are in real life. Possible exception of the real villain. Everyone’s favourite green-haired weirdo personally makes the player important as he actually gets the big dragon and dares you to get the other one (you do).

Black 2 and White 2: They’ve stopped trying to be PETA, they’re just actually evil now. The one where they villain tries to literally kill you, but you don’t remember that because the rival is too busy unleashing his rage.

X and Y: The #fashionpolice attempt to use an ancient superweapon to gain eternal life/kill everyone in France. In which you have a gaggle of friends, maybe two of which matter literally at all. The one with the stupid sexy professor.

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire: Shoving 10 years of new mechanics into a mediocre remake makes them feel bloated and forced! Featuring a postgame that does not deserve Zinnia’s theme, but also brings the entire nature of the Pokemon universe into question.

Sun and Moon: The plan is for Team Skull to cause nonsense while the WHO’s psycho president can do evil shit in the background. And it works! Unfortunately, your buddy has been keeping a legendary in her bag the whole game.

Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon: We made the gameplay better, but also the story worse? Lusamine is less evil, but also there’s a bunch of space people and space aliens running around to remind you that space exists so it won’t be weird when the villain comes from space and you go there to fight it.  

Let’s Go, Pikachu and Let’s Go, Eevee: “Do you think if we make it cute enough then they won’t notice how little this game makes sense in the timeline?”

Sword and Shield: Jeff Bezos is good, actually, but if you make him wait literally one day to help him out because you have to go play in the Super Bowl, he’s going to cause the apocalypse.

The Isle of Armor: The Karate Kid, but there’s only one dojo, Johnny is an e-girl/reply guy, and Daniel is a bear. The bear is designed for competitive play.

The Crown Tundra: The number one reason to not have this written out as text, because I want so badly to interrupt this with the opening bars of Peony’s theme. This time, the optional postgame legendary hunt isn’t optional! I hope you brought Ultra Balls.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl: I dunno I haven’t played it yet it’s probably the same as DP though

Legends: Arceus: [itisamystery]

Side Games

Stadium 0/1/2: SPARKS ARE FLYING IN THESE HEATED BATTLES!

*Colosseum: This time, you’re stealing the Pokemon, but it’s okay, because they’re eeeeeviiiiiiiilllll…

*XD: Gale of Darkness: As far as I can tell: The same, but more of it. Shadow Lugia is big, mean, and not appearing in any more games, sucker.

TCG (Game Boy): “How do we make an RPG out of a TCG?” “I dunno, just the same thing but with cards?” “Brilliant, Johnson, get the boys to print it.”

Mystery Dungeon Red/Blue Rescue Team (/DX): Fucking around helping people, oops you’re the target of a mass manhunt now. Get exonerated, beat up a god until they look up at the fucking meteor bearing down on them, vanish from existence, then un-vanish because you’d rather live with Pokemon than with your family (and really, who wouldn’t?).

Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky: The real discovery is the fact that this series was an isekai all along. Genuinely kind of the best plotline of any Pokemon game? Even if it spends a while in abject silliness, this shit goes hard.

*Mystery Dungeon (Keep Going! Blazing/Let’s Go! Stormy/Go For It! Light) Adventure Squad: We didn’t release these outside of Japan, and that was probably for the best. Some guys are fighting, and the solution is going on an adventure and finding some special cookies. Suuuuure.

*Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity: The synopsis on Bulbapedia was ludicrously detailed, and I am not reading all that. You like, build a town? And then you have to punch up the literal manifestation of negativity and I think I’ve seen this anime

Super Mystery Dungeon: You spend over half the game doing actual schoolkid nonsense, and then suddenly all the plot happens at once. In this game, you die and go to hell! …you get better.

Ranger: Running around borrowing Pokemon to solve natural (and unnatural) disaster issues is definitely more efficient than just keeping them with you, I don’t see any problems with this idea. There’s a lot of kerfuffle about a super version of the thing that lets you do this.

*Ranger: Shadows of Almia: Nothing I can write could possibly be funnier than the fact that the evil team’s name is Dim Sun.

*Ranger: Guardian Signs: Is it clear yet that I don’t really care about the Ranger games? You get a Pichu with a ukulele, and the bad guys are trying to take over the region using legendary pokemon. We have filled in the necessary blanks now.

Rumble: There is no plot! Only wind-up toys!

Rumble Blast: Okay, fine, there’s a plot now. The world’s magic is being ganked by a literal rust demon, gotta kick its ass so you can turn your wind-up toys better. Neither of the rest of the Rumble games get anything either, because they’re freemium 3DS and mobile games respectively.

Snap: Well boys, we did it. We found a way to make a Pokemon First Person Shooter. For varying definitions of “shoot”.

New Pokemon Snap: 22 years of begging later, and it’s still completely on-rails.

Puzzle League: The anime doesn’t matter, and neither does this game.

Trozei: Lucy Fleetfoot, Secret Agent, recovers stolen pokemon through the power of match-3s. I genuinely don’t know why this one even has a story.

Café Mix: You run a café. That’s it, it’s a mobile game. It looks cute?

Hey You, Pikachu!: Yell into your “voice recognition unit” for several hours while late 90s technology works about as well as you’d expect! Play with Pikachu as you…no that’s it actually.

*Channel: I’m pretty sure this is just a video game where you watch Pokemon stuff on TV. As you do.

*Pokepark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure: Pikachu and friends fuck around in an amusement park doing minigames and making more friends. I’m pretty sure this game was aimed at an even younger age group than normal.

*Pokepark 2: Wonders Beyond: What if there was a second amusement park, but this time it was evil? So…Disneyland Paris?

*Pokken Tournament: This is literally just Tekken but Pokemon, and much like with Tekken, I refuse to interact with the story. I took one look and my eyes immediately glazed over. Just play the punchy mans game.

Pokemon Dream Radar: Professor Burnet cameos 5 years early in this game I literally bought a 3DS for! That was a mistake! Remember when AR games were going to be the Next Big Thing? Yeah, me neither.

Go: The real storyline was the friends we made along the way.

Masters(/EX): Finally, a chance for every random character someone somewhere hyperfixated on to interact! Unfortunately, it’s in a Gacha game.

Conquest: A crossover with an obscure Japanese franchise that dares to ask: what if you were Azai Nagamasa? Also what if there were Pokemon all over feudal Japan for some reason?

Dash: GOTTA GO FAST

Magikarp Jump: fuckin boing lol

Quest: Somehow, this looks significantly worse than early Pixelmon, and it came out at least half a decade later.

Unite: The only story I want to hear about this game is about its downfall.

 And that’s, like, all of them! All of the ones I care to talk about, at least, since I’m not going to bring up the Sega Pico games or whatever. Or the arcade-only things I vaguely recall existing. This is your list! Take it and be grateful. More content at some point. Good Bye.