Pokemon

WALLY
Wallly of pokemon ruby/sapphire/emerald/omega ruby/alpha sapphire fame is so special to me. one of my original favorite characters in the series, i find him really endearing. maybe young me related to his implied illness a little too much, but i really adored him. i love his design especially in the original games. while i do like the choice to give him mega gallade in the remakes, i prefer the gardevoir of the original. something about this extremely determined and sick person facing the world with a pokemon by his side that will create black holes about it? idk, its fun and silly, and exactly what i would've thought was cool at 10 years old. to keep it brief, i find his storyline motivational and his design to be something out of the older pokemon philosophy that i enjoy!

FLORIAN
Florian is the boy player character from scarlet and violet, and as you might imagine that means his personality is wellll. lacking? so what makes him my favorite then. honestly? im endeared to his ugly ass design. hes just a little guy! and you can extrapolate a lot of personality from dialogue options in the game that might imply something of a snarky streak in an otherwise helpful and polite person. that orrrr maybe thats just typical pokemon text choices. but! his dialogue in the mobile game makes him a losercore nerd who loves studying and being outside, so theres something to work with that i find fun.

KIERAN
ohhhhh boy. this guy was like dropping a bomb on me. Kieran from the Teal Mask and Indigo Disk dlc of scarlet and violet is an incredible character. as good as some past ones? maybe not, but when i say this guy skyrocketed to my favorite on release i mean it. theres something so interesting about a character who feels like an outsider, and ostracized socially for all their social failings snapping when the one person they trust betrays them. like, it feels very real? and relatable? it can be hard especially given Kieran is only 14 give or take. hes grown up without many friends, he romanticizes stories about the bad guy of the local myth, and feels inferior to the player because of how well beloved and strong they are. it becomes a mental state he cant shake himself out of, and by the time he does its almost too late. the end of the indigo disk really did make me emotional, im not sure ive even explained his character all that well because so many of my thoughts are just the emotions his character arc made me feel. him reonciling wiht the player at the end, finding the fun in battles again in the epilogue, it all feels so sweet. what finding people who accept an understand and listen to you can do it all just. feels really good as a narrative arc, not to mention all his forbidden fruit and vague bible themeing he has going on? kieran really is a slam dunk of a character.

TAUNIE/URBAIN (CONTAINS ZA SPOILERS)
Taunie/Urbain (referred to here as Taubain) is such a fun character in Legends Z-A. it really was a shock that i think of them as my favorite, since so many characters in the Z-A cast really are endearing to me, but the palette swapped gender swapped rival got me it seems. their need to always prove themself as leader of your little group, even at its detriment is really fun. this underlying well-meaning selfishness makes them standout, and their dedication to AZ and the Z Hotel- while also having their connections to Team Flare and Quasartico makes them so interesting. i love the ending sequence with floette and ange a lot, and wish we got to see their point of view. theres a vital part of that selfishness, and that desire to prove themself on your level that i really like. between them and kieran, perhaps i just like characters with a Beating The Player narrative going on haha! (even if theirs is rooted more in a paying people back/ making good on promises that only they hold themself to way) i dont know what else to say without getting rambley again, but theyre really a beloved character of mine.

KRIS
KRISSSSS SHES SO AWESOME. idk how to talk about her like normal because lets be real, much like florian she has the personality of wet cardboard. and yet!!! i love her so much!! her design is so unique for a protagonist in this series, and her sporty attire with a jacket that looks almost labcoat esque? is so fun. the idea of Pokemon Crystal being HER journey seperate from ethans has always really appealed to me. she gets to have suicune, and travel kanto and johto trying to stop team rocket and work with silver, it's all just so fun. in my head shes definitely the researcher type, but in the crazy dedicated way. no matter how far she has to go shes gonna get that damn dog yknow? i think shes also the last really crazy player character design which in turn, makes her feel so grounded in her time period and i think that informs her personality. shes a 90s kid man!! she cant NOT be, and thats why lyra is a different character. idk, all that to say, shes awesome!!

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Leaf, May, Cynthia, Hilda, Nate, N, Colress, Iris, Lillie, Sycamore, Elio, Hau, Marnie, Bede, Cogita, Volo, Cyllene, Nemona, Carmine, Lida, Naveen, Jacinthe, Lebanne, Canari, L.

POKEMON BLACK AND WHITE | BLACK AND WHITE 2
GENERATION FIVEEEE MY ABSOLUTE BABY. ill admit, while the majority of the fanbase likes these games for their writing and music (as do i) i KNOW the nostalgia glasses have warped my perception. BW were my first pokemon games! and so im very very fond of them. that and their sequels (alongside soulsilver) were my second ever pokemon games! crazy shit!! theres an endless charm to the ds eras pixelart and i really love the musical soundfont really lends itself so well to making the most of what the DS could do. every character, every track, is so special to me. ive played through unova so many times and while it isnt my favorite region- it still means a lot to me ;w;

POKEMON SUN AND MOON
SPEAKING OF PEAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKK sun and moon are incredible games through and through. the 3ds had an upper limit and god damn did these games WORK it to the bone. everything from the visuals, to music, to story make them standout games that are endlessly fun. that and the pokedex?? dude?? so many of generation sevens designs are like actually so so good. lillies storyline with her mom in these games is really good. the complicated feelings of having a parent that isnt great but still shows care is an interesting and well done dynamic. (putting it lightly, its something im not sure i can tactfully explain her dynamic with her abusive/neglectful mother- or how the last moment of that story changes things. i have thoughts but you get it- youve probably played this one)

POKEMON LEGENDS ARCEUS
holy. shit. this game came out of nowhere, and was insane?? for the first time pokemon was open world, in the past, and looked this good??? AND THE MECHANICS WERE CHANGING?? this game means a lot to me as the first pokemon game one of my friends ever played to completion! to be so smitten with a game and have a friend who liked it so much too just really felt special- i hadnt had that in a long time and it was cool! ^w^ the story of this game while simple, is really effective, and seeing ancestors of so many characters was so exciting. for such an ambitious entry in the series- Arceus really pulled itself off wonderfully.

POKEMON SCARLET AND VIOLET
gets really close to the mic. i know this game is broken. ignore that. great. OKAY so. scarlet and violet. ^w^. these games are insane. like- the three story system gives you enough time to become endeared to all the characters and the finale storyline?? dare i say one of pokemons better storylines THAT DOESNT EVEN END THERE. not to snub Nemona, Penny, and Arven but um. Kieran? Carmine? Indigo Disk and Teal Mask? are so fucking good? like the way they had Carmine address consumerist tourism AND her complicated relationship with her brother as the protective older sibling trying to keep them from getting hurt while also having a short temper and getting frustrated why he cant see why you do what you do?? or kieran who plays the social outcast and direct foil to the player in a way that somehow works?? despite a silent protagonist?? and how his desire to be liked and loved is conflated with usefullness and power and how that totally destroys him and his relationship with his sister?? are we being serious??? or how the entirety of SV are a stable timeloop that only happen because of the player giving Arvens parents Briars book. like are we serious right now. thats insane, these games are so good. ;w;

POKEMON LEGENDS ZA
12 years later we finally got pokemon Z. and not only did we get it- it came out SWINGING. start to finish za surprises with surprisingly well written dynamics, a new battle system thats super challenging, incredible music, additions to XYs story that feel so good and retroactively make them better games? AND all the new characters all slot in so well and it feels just so refreshing to play through? listen not to be a suck up but whoever was in charge of writing for Arceus, SV, and ZA locked the fuck in. because man this game made me feel so many emotions and be so good with what it had. peak game i fear.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Emerald, ORAS

NOT TOO MUCH TO SAY HERE but Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness are really fantastic Side Games of the pokemon series. theyre quirky, painfully edgy for no reason, and have such a unique visual identity in the series. it makes me quite sad Geniues Sonority doesnt exist anymore ;w; their work couldve made for more really unqiue games (even if Orre isnt that accurate to Arizona as someone who used to live there lol).

Conquest?? such a fun game. while one of the least pokemon feeling pokemon games- its still so so fun to playthrough and really challenges how you think. tactical battle sim spinoff goes crazyyyyy

MYSTERY DUNGEON. okay listen dont kill me but ive only played Blue Rescue Team. IM SORRY I WANNA PLAY EXPLORERS I DO I WILL I JUST GOTTA FIND TIME. THAT SAID blue rescue team is AWESOME. its relatively simple story wise but lets be real here, who doesnt wanna be a little guy in the pokemon world ^w^ its so awesome and that alone is peak. the music?? so good, and what ive HEARD about EoS has me very excited.

RANGERRRRRR ive only played Shadows of Almia but oh man. Ranger is one of those series that add so much to the world of pokemon that while like. its not that crazy. it is just another view into what the pokemon world at large looks like and other stories other than the Pokemon Trainer there can be. the gameplay is so fun and the spritework looks incredible, big big fan.

POKEMON MUSIC!!! ITS AWESOME!!! rather than wax poetic (because i could, dear god i could) I WILL INSTEAD list a bunch of my favorite tracks by generation! ready! set! go ^w^

Generation 1: Lavender Town, Gym Battle, Champion Theme

Generation 2: Goldenrod City, National Park, Ecruteak City, Battle! Silver

Generation 3: Littleroot Town, Route 101, Lilycove City, Battle! Rival, Ending theme

Generation 4: Twinleaf Town, Acuity Lakefront, Jubilife City, Eterna Forest, Battle! Galactic Commander, Battle! Galactic Boss, Battle! Cynthia, Battle! Gym Leader, Battle! Silver, Newbark Town, Lavender Town, Battle! Red

Generation 5: Nuvema Town, Accumula Town, Castelia City, Driftveil City, Dragonspiral Tower, Route 10, Battle! Elite Four, Battle! Gym Leader, Battle! N, Aspertia City, Marine Tube, Lentimas Town, Battle! Colress, Battle! Iris

Generation 6: Vaniville Town, Cyllage City, Shalour City, Lumiose City, Lumiose Power Plant, An Eternal Prison/The Sun Shines Down, Battle! Diantha, Kiseki, Littleroot Town, Lilycove City, Battle! Wally, The Heirs to Eternity, Battle! Zinnia, The Lament of Falling Stars

Generation 7: Iki Town, Hau'Oli City, Battle! Hau, Lillie's theme, Battle! Kahuna, Battle! Gladion, Battle! Elite Four, Mother and Daughter

Generation 8: Slumbering Weald, Once Upon A Time, Hulbury, Motostoke, Circhester, Battle! Bede, Battle! Marnie, Battle! Gym Leader, Storming Rose Tower, Eternatus Phase 3, Battle! Hop Final

Generation 9: Cascarrafa, Levincia, Battle! Team Star Grunt, Battle! Team Star Boss, Battle! Cassiopeia, Battle! Geeta, Battle! Champion Nemona, Area Zero, Battle! Zero Lab, Battle! Kieran, Battle! Carmine, Battle! Chamion Kieran, Terapagos the Hidden Treasure of Area Zero, Battle! Terastal Raid, and like the whole ZA soundtrack.

okay so now im going to tell you about my favorite artist who makes pokemon remixes. That! would be Emdasche but most specifically his albums Look Back and Yesterday's Journey. if you dont know, Emdasche used to make music under the handle of ElectricMudkips- and was one of the composers for the fangame Pokemon Uranium. you can find his music on that here! Look Back is an indie rock arrangment album of various songs from Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald. those tracks mean so so much to me. theres a lot of emotion and a feeling of nostalgia really seeping through every track, and it just grips me in such a way. Yesterday's Journey is a lofi album through the lens of a trainer who gave up on their journey searching for the courage to start again. while not as emotionally charged, i found the music and tracklist to lend itself very well to this concept. it was something i was able to parse immediately from track to track and i really love that.

fangames are something very important to me when it comes to pokemon. while i wont link to them here, Pokemon Flux, Sage, and Peach & Lime are some fangames that have caught my attention. without getting to into each, Flux has really good writing and music, incredible fan designs, and feels VERY pokemon. Sage has incredible map and pokemon designs that take from latin american inspirations that are just so creative- and again very pokemon. Peach & Lime arent released as of the time of writing, but they feel like a very natural slot into the generation 3 era of pokemon. their design philosophy so far feels very natural to include, and i have high hopes! if youd like to experience any of them yourself, Flux is only available via discord server, Sage is on fangame sites, and Peach and Lime will be on eeveeexpo last i checked!