Snacking Otaku - Pikachu

An Observation Involving an Idiotic Swordsman and Cross-Dressing Moments

By the time of writing this, I have just watched the 1990s classic anime series The Slayers. For those unfamiliar of this classic of cel animation (its well-animated by Madhouse), its basically Fairy Tail made over a decade early.

Here's something I noticed. When you watch the first episode with you eyes closed you will encounter a scene where you will say to yourself "Is that Brock chatting up a pretty girl after rescuing her from danger .... again?"

And you should, because the scene in question is when the main protagonist Lina Inverse "one of the most powerful and feared sorceresses in all the land" is about to battle against a bunch of bandits when "expert" swordsman Gourry Gabriev the picture and slays the whole lot of them. He did so because he thought Lina (due to her short size) was a child. Cue Edward Elric-style reaction.

The reason for the mental picture of Brock in this scene? Simple. It's because, in the series English dub by Central Park Media, the voice actor who portrayed Gourry was Eric Stuart. And, if you look at his Filmography you will find that, apart from voicing Kaiba from Yu-Gi-Oh! and been the narrator in One Piece, he is also most noted for playing (until 2006, I'll explain in a future post) Brock in Pokémon (as well as James from Team Rocket, but that's not important).

As I watched this series my ear pieced up another familiar voice. A quick Wikipedia search later showed my ear was correct - the later regular character Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun was voiced by one Veronica Taylor. And what is interesting is that, apart from voicing Nico Robin in One Piece and April O'Neil in post-2000 adaptions of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, she is most noted for been the original English voice of one Ash Ketchum.

Now, noting two poke-actors voicing characters in The Slayers is not enough to be subject to an act of cultural vandalism. What finally made me write this post is what happened in episode 17. In it the gang (Lina, Gourry, and Amelia) have to catch a ship without been ambushed by bounty hunters (someone placed a bounty on them for reasons that will spoil the series finale). To do so they have to disguise themselves. They disguises they choose - three female siblings. Yes, Gourry (the idiotic muscle-bound swordsman) was forced to dress as a girl. I have to admit, his long blonde hair helped in this endeavour. He really did become a Sailor Moon knock-off. Of course, Gourry didn't like the ordeal.

(I later found out that this cross-dressing is a regular joke in every series. Yeeaaae!)

And here comes the reason for this post. Remember when Ash Ketchum was forced to cross-dress? He was forced to do so in four episodes (as of 2017). If you factor in that Ash was voiced by the same person who voiced Amelia and that Brock is voiced by the former voice of Gourry I have come to a conclusion -

Brock is a reincarnation of Gourry.

And having Ash cross-dress is Gourry's revenge for been forced to wear woman's clothing back then.

My Recent Situlation

In the past two months they has been a noticed lack of new content on this blog. That is because of recent events in my life.

Back in December my father passed away. As anyone who has lost someone will know, when someone dies you tend to reevaluate your life to compare your life so far to the life of the person who passed away. And if you had a life that didn't exactly look "great" right now compared to the life of that dead person then you tend to feel pretty low. You may feel unaccomplished. It,s natural to do so, especially if that person happens to be a relative that appeared to have done a lot in one's life.

In March an aunt passed away. She wasn't that well known to me, but her death did awake feelings I had for my dad. I attended her funeral. Then an uncle of mine passed away. One I was quite close to (but not as close has I was to this one). Of course I attended his funeral. Then another relative passed away. An more obscure one. Didn't attend funeral. And then other aunt passed away. I had four relations die within two months. By May I had reevaluated my life too many times to be considered healthy. Admittedly, on the day when I was told about the last death I experienced the most severe bout of depression I had ever had. IT WAS AWFUL! I couldn't be bothered to watch TV! That is not normal for me.

I may have had some form of depression before this. Probably since my graduation in 2012. But this year's deaths in the family have pushed it to an extreme. So extreme that in April I was prescribed an anti-depressant. The leaflet that came with the tablets did say that it will get worse before it gets better - and they were right. That day in May was horrible. Fortunately, my mood improved soon after. In fact, since taking the tablets I have become more assertive. I am more eager to do things than before.

Recently I drew another pokehuman. A friend of my nephew asked for an Eevee.

And a parent has commissioned me help teach her kids how to draw.

What an interesting challenge.

A lot of annaverseries today

Today a number of things celebrate their annaversery. Three of them are...

• Gurren Largann
• The Teletubbies
• And the Pokémon anime 

(Sorry I missed the deadline). 

A Meaty Question About The Future

It's the end of March and I have neglected my blogging obligations of posting something once a month. It's not my fault that two relatives died in the past month and my health is not 100%.

Fortunately for me an interesting topic was twirling in my mind recently that I thought interesting enough to write something about. But I have to warn you....

THE FOLLOWING POST WILL TALK ABOUT A SUBJECT THAT SOME WILL FIND SHOCKING AND DISGUSTING .... 

THE REASONS FOR YOUR DISGUST IS THE VERY TOPIC I AM TALKING ABOUT HERE.... ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE BRITISH

I HAVE WARNED YOU ALREADY. 

IF YOU STILL WANT TO BROWSE THE WEB WITHOUT READING ANYTHING CONTROVERSIAL AND CHALLENGING 

READ SOMETHING ELSE NOW!

If you are someone who has no trouble reading such blog posts, continue reading....

(You are the audience I am after here.)

But for those (who some call "snow flakes") who are still continuing reading this wondering what is the subject of this post.... let me start it with an imaginary scenario....

Imagine that you are a Pokémon trainer who owns an Eevee.... who has gotten lost in the mountains during wintery conditions. You find a cave as shelter and managed to make a fire. 

You are hungry.

It's been days since you last had any food.

Because of conditions there is no forms of editable plant available.

You got a knife and fire.

You must have worked it out by now (from the title and the long extended "trigger warning" alone).

If not, let me put it in words I will not like to say to someone at all....

In a life-or-death situation ...

are you willing to kill something if not doing so meant certain death for you?

In other words, are you willing to eat Eevee?

Yelp, this post is about the activity of consuming the flesh from dead animals in the form of (what we call linguistically to separate it from its bloody origins so that we are not thinking about it when eating said flesh) "meat."

The subject entered my mind recently because of a recently released documentary called Carnage: Swallowing The Past. It is a documentary made in a peaceful future, where veganism has become universal, that looks back to the meat-eating habits of 20th and 21st century, and how this future came to be. It is a great film to watch, if you don't mind the occasional slaughter scene that PETA has an endless supply of.

And it got me thinking about the subject of meat. Familiar readers will know that I have a thing for human ingenuity. How we have turned raw materials from the Earth into useful tools. And food is one of those "useful tools." So I do have the knowledge to know how all the components that make a up a McDonald's Happy Meal (including the toy and the cardboard box it comes in) are made and put together in the form of a corporate-sponsored childhood memory (and what memories those giveaways were to me, including a few of those gold-plated Pokémon cards from Burger King (Take that Mc! I am not a sheep who goes tot he same place for substance again ad again. It depends on where I am when its lunch time, suckers.)).

In short, I know where burgers come from. I don't need to taught by a preacher to megaphone it down my ears how gruesome the process is. And let, I still eat a burger anyway (I was in KFC yesterday, if you were going to ask.). So why do I still eat meat, despite knowing of the suffering the animals that made it go through (in their final moments, if you consider the "free range" variety)? 

I can narrow it down to three things.....

1. The distance from slaughterhouse to burger joint.
2. The cultural habits of the western lifestyle.
3. Autistic people tend to be "fussy eaters" due to there overacting senses.

That last one only applies to a small number of people. (And I bet many "meat is murder" preachers aren't aware of this small number of "fussy eaters." They may be aware of autism, but not the "fussy eating" bit.) 

But the rest can apply to most meat eaters worldwide. Now, the distance from sight of slaughter isn't the biggest problem when it comes to converting carnivores. They are places in the world where people do regularly go out and hunt for food or raise animals for personal slaughter later. Yes, they are people in isolated places that still regularly do the same thing our cavemen ancestors once did a long time ago before farming was invented, allowing us to distant ourselves from the providers of food, blinding us form the process. These people have no qualms about it because they are use to it, after doing it a million times. So, I'm afraid to say that (in a world where we are accustomed to seeing people been shot in the head in movies (and on the news)) showing footage of a cow been shot in the head won't convert many TV viewers. 

The real reason that vegetarianism (let alone veganism) has been a fringe lifestyle is because the practise of eating meat has been so the norm in the west that most people don't second-think about it. It seems to have always been that way, to them. And it doesn't help that meat happens to be very rich form of nutrients (especially when cooked).

Also we have culturally segregated the animal kingdom. Because we see ourselves as "intelligent" over the rest of the "dumb" animals we see ourselves as separate from nature, so therefore free to do whatever we like it it and her fellow inhabitants. We can determine the fate of species just by calling it a "pet" or "meat" (a game which should make a thought-provoking arcade machine) And, as I said in this previous post,  I think it's an "idea that has truly done more damage to Earth than any other manmade invention."

And burgers are more damaging to Earth than just that. According to this article a single cheese burger has the carbon footprint of somewhere between 3.6-6.1 kg (gases have mass remember). Doesn't sound much, until you remember how many burgers are eaten around the world.That same article suggests that if every American stopped eating burgers for one year, the US can remove the equivalent of (at least) 6.5 million Hummer H3s off their collective carbon footprint. So, if cheese burgers alone can do that amount of damage, imagine what all those hot dogs, buffalo wings, KFC buckets, steaks and Thanksgiving and Christmas turkeys are doing too. 

Some may be wondering why burgers create such large amounts of CO2 (apart from the methane coming off the cows)? The basic reason for the high environmental cost is simple ... raising an animal requires a lot of resources. According to this article, producing one pound of beef requires 1,799 gallons of water. The same weight in wheat (in comparison) only requires 132 gallons. In other words, the amount of water used in the growing and making the bun (and some salad) in the burger is chicken feed compared to the amount used to raise the cow to make the lump of grilled mince in the middle... And that figure doubles if you consider dairy cows, so the situation gets worse if you decide to have it served with a slice of solidified gone-off milk. (Yelp, that's what cheese is.)

With so much resources needed to make it, its no wonder meat has become a big factor to consider in the fate of the future of the Earth. 

In hindsight, 2013 was a significant year in our relationship with meat. A relationship that is changing for the better. Three things happened that year that'll have huge significance historically in the future.

1. Traces of horse flesh were found in meat products marketed as "beef."

This food scare caused a stir in Europe, especially to the British, who love horses so much that the idea of eating one was so appalling that one woman I heard phone in on the radio at the time saying that she would rather move to another country than live in a Britain that did allow it. I'm amazed that Carnage didn't reference this incident. But it did reference BSE, so I can forgive Simon Amstell for that. 

2. The first burger made of meat grown in a lab was cooked.

This is very promising idea. I do hope it takes off in the future, otherwise the transition to a post-meat world is going to be much harder. 

3. That year's Oktoberfest offered vegan dishes for the first time.

The fact that a festival famous for displaying and consuming large amounts of meat has done that is a sign of big trend that is happening right now.... the rise of veganism. 

This increase in interest in veganism is a coming together of multiple cultural forces mostly relating to the environment. For one thing the price of meat is increasing. Would this make many reduce their meat-eating habit? Probably, if this trend continues. But a much bigger factor would be this - in 2015 the World Heath Organisation declared processed meats as a carcinogen. If history is to go by, 50 years from now the sight of someone eating a hot-dog in a cinema will be looked at in the same way we now look at that same cinema patron smoking a cigar. 50 years earlier that same guy would have been a normal unquestionable sight in cinemas. No one then thought inhaling the smoke from burnt leaves was an alien thing for humans to do. And then the reports came in linking it to lung cancer and (slowly) the sight of tobacco smoke disappeared in public spaces. Could the sight of eating meat follow the same fate? To be honest, I don't know. Unlike cigarettes, the eating of animal flesh is normal in nature. Maybe the eating of meat may become an occasional treat in the future. Or maybe we will dodge it altogether with lab-grown meat (unless that proves to cause cancer too). 

Whatever happens, the future depicted in Carnage definitely looks like a future worth living for. Maybe veganism may be a key to making the world depicted in Pokémon possible (except for the possible genetic engineer).

But the question remains - In a life-or-death situation would you eat an Eevee?

In fact, would you eat a Magikarp? 

Or a Politoed (Silver League Network's "favourite" Pokémon)?

Or any listed in this video?

In fact, any Pokémon that is made of flesh. 

(come on, who would be able to eat a Geodude? Chuck Norris?)

In fact, what if this happened in the real world.

What if the future turned out bad. Mad-Maxy. 

All the supermarkets have been ransacked. And so has all the food depots and the farms. 

You are alone in the wild lands with a knife (a survivor's best friend).

You are hungry. You not eaten for days. 

You see a horse wondering about on a clearing. 

It may be wild or it ran away from his former owner. Who knows. 

But one thing is certain, you are hungry. 

Would you eat a horse?

Act of Cultural Vandalism - A twist in the Snickers

I had the idea of this very recently. One internet meme that I have seen a few times on my Facebook feed has been one of these...

For those who are not familiar, they are a reference of a series of TV ads for Snickers that started in 2010. Below is the first one ever, featuring Betty White... playing American Football!

First "Not yourself" Snickers ad, 

featuring Betty White (2010)

The still used in the memes above come from this version, starring Joan Collins.

Snickers ad, featuring Joan Collins (2012)

They are many memes based on these ads, but the one I have been seeing feature a certain red-head....

And its from this version where I got the idea for my version of this meme.....

I await your praise (and anger) in the comments.

(But please read the ad's disclaimer before you do so.)

By the way, I have plans for another Snickers ad.

I won't say any more....

An Important Announcement

Due to various distractions (including my dad dying and the start of my stand-up comedy career) work on the Pokemon special has been delayed hugely. When work began on it, I hoped to have all this done by July 2016 (until the lock-out happened). "Part 1" was finally published on August 31. "Part 2" is near completion. "Part 3" and more will take long to finish (if I get around to it). So today (as the first post for 2017 I will declare that the final deadline for everything in my 20th anniversary special will be April 1st 2017 (hopefully). 

My First Stand-Up Gig and the Mechanics of Telling Jokes

Me performing in the Garden Lobby of Scottish Parliament (13th December 2016)

"Gordon Wallace, from South Lanarkshire, is set to perform a routine about his autism, science and art. He said: “The workshops have been a great opportunity to meet new people and learn about what different people find funny. You need to be able to process audience’s reactions and social cues in order to perform. I have learned these things.”" - Andrew Learmonth (from The National (10th December 2016))

People who know me (and regular readers of this blog) will know that I have a thing for comedy. I mean, you could find a joke in almost every post I have ever made. I'm a regular viewer of comedy on TV and I read a lot of literature (which is mostly made up of manga, admittedly). And I write a bit as well, with much of it comedic in nature. So it won't be a surprise that I have occasionally thought about performing comedy ... to an audience.

So when an opportunity to do just that suddenly came along, I jumped at it like that!

It was September 2016. I was visiting a "coffee group" organised by The National Autistic Society. A while earlier I was on a panel choosing the coordinator of these groups and the woman who got the job invited me to take part in one she was overseeing. It was there that another attendee talked about a "comedy workshop" NAS was setting up. I was intrigued. NAS has started a comedy club. I got to see this....

But before I continue, you may be asking why? 

Why did The National Autistic Society create a comedy workshop?

"We designed the workshops to challenge stereotypes after research found that 73 per cent of autistic people in Scotland said that the public considers them to be ‘anti-social’, and 80 per cent feel they are judged as being ‘shy’." - Facebook post from The National Autistic Society Scotland (14th December 2016)

There is a stereotype that autism makes "sufferers" unwilling to engage with the activities of other people. They prefer to stay in "a world of their own" isolated from everyone else, doing insular activities, like building models or play video games. To many "lazy-thinking" folk, this is seen as a travesty. Humans a social creatures who crave company. To them, autism is like solidarity confinement.

Judging from events in 2016, the same thing can be said for many neurotypicals. 

But autistic people? No. Many of them do want to interact with others, make friends, play football and other stuff, but you neurotypicals (for many years) never gave them the opportunity to do so. You never had that patience and time to learn how to deal with our involuntary "ticks." A lot of parents, nurses and carers do. And also, video games have become very multi-player since 1990, so all that anti-game propaganda you heard is no longer true. Have you guys ever heard of  Minecraft or Pokémon Go? That latter one was in the news a while ago. Try believing that "all gamers are loners" lie after reading what happened.

In other words, (if given the chance) autistic people can be sociable and creative like any neurotypical person. So how can NAS prove this in a very public way? What activity is there that can be done by anyone, involves creativity, taps in their obsessive nature, and requires a good social brain to pull of successfully.

 “Because of their courage, their lack of fear, they (creative people) are willing to make silly mistakes. The truly creative person is one who can think crazy; such a person knows full well that many of his great ideas will prove to be worthless. The creative person is flexible; he is able to change as the situation changes, to break habits, to face indecision and changes in conditions without undue stress. He is not threatened by the unexpected as rigid, inflexible people are.” - Frank Goble

So, been creative means (occasionally) been silly.

"When a thing is funny, search it for a hidden truth." - George Bernard Shaw

 A joke can be as scrutinised as any form of art to find hidden meanings. 

Hidden meanings only special knowledge could reveal. 

The kind of knowledge an obsessive can have.

"Among those whom I like or admire, I can find no common denominator, but among those who I love, I can: all of them make me laugh." - W. H. Auden

Laughter is a social glue. 

Members of the same social group find the same things funny. 

But making jokes that'll span multiple groups is the real challenge.

"A joke goes a great way in the country. I have known one last pretty well for seven years." - Sydney Smith

A good joke has power. 

The power to be a viral meme. 

A meme that can survive ages.

A lot of people don't realise is that telling jokes involves a lot of intelligence, especially telling jokes that actually make a lot of people laugh. It involves social knowledge as well as regular general knowledge and logical thinking. Plus a lot of empathy (telling successfully funny jokes involve knowing what the audience knows, otherwise they don't get it.). As empathy is the thing most people think autistic people lack, if they realised the truths I just said a moment ago, they would think that autistic people can't do comedy.

And so, to prove their point (and to have some entertainment for their Scotland branch's 20th birthday) NAS decided to make a group of autistic adults create and perform their own stand-up comedy routines in front of an audience in Edinburgh.

The workshop took place in Glasgow (in an office block so recently-built that it has embedded touchscreen tablets to control the lifts) and were chaired by award-winning comedians Janey Godley and her daughter Ashley Storrie. They were the perfect leaders for this project. Janey and Ashley no stranger to the subject of politics. If you are familiar with their work, you agree that they will find what I said about neurotypicals in 2016 earlier up their alley. So they have no trouble getting us to perform material in front of politicians. Also, they are no stranger to autism. Janey's husband and Ashley herself are autistic, giving them a lot of material on the subject (which I can testify). This also made proceedings very informal. There wasn't a rigid "week one we do this, week two we do that" structure. We were all free to do whatever we wanted, like such creative workshops should be.

I loved it!

It was my highlight of the week for two months. Everyone had a ball. On our final workshop/rehearsal for the gig we had pizza and had a mind map game on the room's whiteboard involving the The Tommy Westphall Universe Hypothesis (Ashley may have been one of the first people to ever thought up of the fan theory back in the very early-2000s). I was challenged to link Pokémon to it (I did reveal to the group about my History of Pokémon I've been working on here.). I somewhat succeeded by linking  it (loosely) through The Simpsons (Pikachu (along with Bender) appeared in a sleep-deprived endued hallucination Bart has in class in episode "Bart vs. Lisa vs. the Third Grade"). There is a picture of me in front of this whiteboard. Janey or Ashley have it. It was a great experience for all of us.

“I’ve really enjoyed the comedy workshops and I wish there were more opportunities for autistic people to meet up and actually do things. I feel like I can be myself, it’s somewhere that I fit in,” - Donna Holland, Quoted from The National article

She performed along with Ashley on stage that night (I think. Her bit was filmed, but I know she was a bit hesitant to perform live, so I can't relay on my memory on whether she performed live that night or not. Someone reading this will correct me.)

Along with Richard (and his math-based puns), Mark (with Ashley as two wizards), Ronan (the movie quote machine (in the early workshops)), Brenn (who nearly died of laughter during the workshops due to asthma), Damian (the procrastinator), and Frank (A cheeky Charlie), we made a lot of people (and ourselves) laugh (especially Brenn).

I was the "middle act." The middle of a comedy bill is usually the home for the more thought-provoking acts, like me. My bit was.... 

Wait. It's my bit, I have rights to it, so I can just reconstruct the whole thing here....

But this reconstruction is not accurate. 

Because it was a subject close to my heart I mostly improvised through it.

(I walk on stage. For a few seconds pretended the microphone was off by moving my mouth quietly.)

Good evening everyone.

Obsession.... (whisper) by Calvin Klein.

It's something we are all familiar with. The tendency of us to be obsessed over a single narrow subject, like trains, Patrick Thistle, Disney movies or (in my case for the past few years, as evident in what I'm wearing) Pokémon.

But obsessions can change. Things can happen that can change one's obsession.

When I was about 11 years old my class in primary school was taken out to a trip to the local public library. It was something we did every few weeks. And each time we did, we all took out a book of our choice. I tended to pick books that were highly illustrated. I had an eye for that, been a keen artist at the time. 

I didn’t much cared for the text. I didn’t mostly bother to read them in the conventional sense. 

Your taking to a kid who didn’t read the speech bubbles in the Beano.

On one of those visits I discovered this book....

The Visual Dictionary of Everyday Things

It's an odd book, I admit, but this book changed my life.

Before I found this book when I drew the world I just drew it. I didn't "study it."

But when I opened up this book I saw this....

(I open the book at "bicycle".)

“All these bits make up a bicycle?” Wow!

And it's not just bikes....

(I flick through the book at select pages.)

There's lawnmowers, umbrellas, cameras, chairs, batteries....

(The pages covering the subject of "batteries" was covered up with this....)

[This took a while to make.]

... even a two-piece suit....

(When I open at "Suit" paper cut-outs of Venomoths fell out the book.)

Ah! Moths have gotten at it. Well, the book's 25 years old. What did you expect?

To keep a long story short, soon after finding this book I wanted to make my own version of this book. But I was not able to take this book home, so (for the first time ever) I had to do my own research. Through it I bonded with my engineer dad and years later, thanks to that book, 

when I went to high school I choose to study science as well as art. 

And I have become a better person because of it.

Thank you, and good night.

(Walk off stage.)

After the performance I gave out (from an inside suit jacket pocket) the "moths" that fell out, like business cards. I signed and dated the back of them so anyone who got one has a note of who drew it and when they got it.

This is a British Standard Venomoth

Can you guess why?

The whole routine proved to be poignant, as a week before I was in Parliament my father died. By luck, I was visiting him and had the book with me, so I was able to perform it for him hours before his soul became a moth. And been an engineer it didn't take long to spot why I called the moths that fell out the book "British Standard Venomoths."

That last month of 2016 turned out to be a happy and sad moth in my life.

(Booo!)

Oh, come on!!!

Christmas Card 2016

I admit that recent events in my life kind of intervened in the making of this year's card (I'll explain in a future post). It wasn't until the night of December 22nd I finally had an idea what to do for this year's card. It is something different... a collage, instead of a drawing. Took most of today to make it. Hope you people like it....

Sorry Digimon fans..... and Genwunners.

(But at least I did something for the Pokeshippers.)

Visual Dictionary of Everyday Things Intervention (Part 1)

The following page-spread is part from a recent creation I have been working on. In October I was visiting a "coffee group" organised by The National Autistic Society. A while earlier I was on a panel choosing the coordinator of these groups and the woman who got the job invited me to take part in one she was overseeing. It was there that I discovered the existence of a comedy club, where people can take turns been a comedian. 

I jumped at the chance and joined. 

It turned out that the plan is to hold a live show at the Scottish Parliament celebrating NAS' 20th anniversary in Scotland. Half a dozen of us (including me) came up with a bit to perform. 

The bit I devised involves the childhood memory of discovering that book of Everyday Things that led to me to take an interest in science, and involves showing the audience the book in question. 

But I did a few modifications to reflect another thing that's celebrating its 20th anniversary (have a guess). And one modification is the page-spread above (replacing the pages covering "batteries").

The version you see at the top was just completed today.

I'll tell more in a later post. Just now events (including this one) are forcing me to delay my progress on "Part 2".

20 Years and we are still trying to catch'em all! - The Greatest Fan Theory Ever

"It all comes together."

While I was locked out of this blog I was not able to work on the Pokémon 20th anniversary special. "Part 1" was originally planned to be finished by 30th April. But that hasn't stopped me doing research, so while I was locked out I was occasionally looking about the internet for various things. And in July I found the most incredible work of art I have ever seen this year - The Pokemon Reset Theory by YouTuber Lockstin.

It is one of the most epic fan theory video I have ever seen. In fact, its THE most epic fan theory video I have ever seen (and that's a rare thing for me to say).

The jist of this theory is that the events of the then upcoming games Pokémon Sun and Moon will feature a plot that'll initiate a "reset" of the Pokémon universe, making it possible for the franchise to have a reboot.

To explain how this would happen Lockstin has delved into the subjects of alchemy, the bible, Hinduism, Norse mythology, the language of flowers ... and more. It is incredible that someone would go such lengths in research to prove a plausible theory about a video game franchise. To me this is not just a series of videos about a "crack-pot theory". It is a genuine work of art (In my sense of the word it is.).

Part 1 (June 2016)

As soon as I saw this video it inspired me. It's ideas made me make a work of art.

But not everyone was convinced by the reboot idea. Why would a franchise making millions of dollars what to reboot it? One noted Pokémon theorist (ProtoMario) created this reaction to that first video, highlighting this....

Pokemon Theory: Sun and Moon IS THE CLIMACTIC ENDING - DEBUNKED?!

(September 2016)

But Lockstin couldn't take that lying down, and reacted to this argument with this video....

Does $$$ Mean No Pokemon Reboot? | Lockstin (September 2016)

It was no stopping him. Soon he was making many videos about and relating to the theory. What I have on this page just the main videos. For the rest, visit Lockstin's channel. 

Part 2 (August 2016)

Part 2.5 (August 2016)

Part 3 (September 2016)

Part 3.5 (October 2016)

Part 3.8 (November 2016)

And for an encore, in November (when events proved not to be as he predicted) he proved a video that debunked his theory. Talk about meta!

As Pokémon Sun and Moon are about to be released (officially beginning the era of Gen 7) I thought it is a good time to do this post, documenting this piece of fandom history. This theory could only have been theorised in 2016. It was highly dependent on leaked info about the upcoming games. Info that only first came out from February 2016. I love this theory, even if it does prove to be wrong (probably). But I think future fans would love to see this work of art in the future, which is why this post exist. I hope no one forces these videos to go down, because if they do....

I am still working on "Part 2". I originally planned to have all this done by June (until the lockout happened). Because of this (and other events) I have pushed the final deadline for everything to April (to co-inside with the 20th anniversary of the TV anime debut). 

20 Years and we are still trying to catch'em all! - Pikachu goes West

By 1998, Pokémon, had truly become a multi-platform franchise, with games, toys, a TV show, a manga or two and (from 20th October 1996) a trading card game (an idea of Tsunekazu Ishihara's). So when Pokémon arrived on American shores in September 1998 it didn't come as a box of fire crackers by releasing the games first then everything else, it arrived as a merchandise atom bomb.

Well, that's the traditional narrative of the story of Pokémon. But what really happened was that in the summer of 1998 Pokémon entered the US as a tiny (almost unnoticeable) trickle - in the from of a VHS tape....

A Sneak Peek at Pokémon (1998)

This embarrassing (in the "parents trying to be cool" sense)15-minute promotional introduction to Pokémon made by Nintendo was sent to a small number of people in the US (maybe subscribers to Nintendo Power magazine?). Whether this tape stirred enough interest to make kids watch the show can be debatable, but one thing we do know is that almost no one had heard of this relic from the Poképast - until some uploaded its footage onto YouTube over a decade later. Because this tape pre-dates the official debut of of Pokémon  in the US (and the rest of the world) it has became a very valuable collector's item (about $100 on eBay (in 2016)).

It wasn't until September when the VHS trickle became a torrent. The English-dubbed version of the series (where all further translations were based upon) first aired on syndicated US TV on the 7th (with the dramatic, action-packed 'Battle Aboard the St Anne'. They began the series properly with Episode 1 the next day.). Then, on the 28th, Pokémon Red and Blue were released in North America. 

Now comes one of the biggest questions from the subject of Pokémon entering the US - 

Why was Pokémon Green never released outside Japan? Why only Red and Blue? 

Remember Missingno? Missingno was a glitch. Red and Green were full of bugs and glitches, like Missingno. The original Pokémon Blue (released on 15th October 1996 through mail order through CoroCoro Comic, then became available through general retail on 10th October 1999) was the first "solitary version" game. The first of a tradition where after the first pair is released a second stand alone version of them is made where faults are fixed and new features (which the developers thought about putting in the previous pair of games but had no time or resources to put them in) are introduced. So, the original Pokémon Blue is basically just like Pokémon Green, except with a few aesthetic changes and (more importantly) less bugs. So when it came to introducing Pokémon to the rest of the world the obvious thing for Game Freak to do was to make a new Red version (using the less buggy Blue version as a base) and localise those for the foreign markets. That is why Pokémon Green never crossed the Pacific. I hope this answer sorted out the confusion you had when you first found out about the Blue/Green inconsistency. 

Oh, and on a final note here, in the mist of localising it, the American team doing so suggested changing the designs of the creatures. Tsunekazu Ishihara refused the idea (which we're all thankful for).

Let's go back a bit and address a fundamental difference between Japan and the West. Notice the fact that the TV series was introduced first then the games. In Japan video games are a big driver in generating culture, while in the US (and Western Europe) TV is the main driver... or was, until Netflix took over. In 2016 Westerners aren't that amazed when a successful video game becomes a TV series because of the fact its an adaptation of a game, but before 2000 it would be more of a surprise. But it wouldn't have been to the Japanese, as they have been use to it for years. Mario, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Sonic have all become animes years before Pokémon. But in the West, people are surprised by this fact, as they are use to video games been a spin-off of successful  TV shows or movies. Maybe this fact is the reason why when Pokémon arrived in the US the kids were exposed to the cartoon first, then were exposed to the games.

But regardless of why it came out before that, the launch of Pokémon in the US was a success. By September 1999 Nintendo of America reported that the franchise had made them worldwide $5 billion. That was more than the whole American video game industry made in the whole of 1998.

And people were worried that Pokémon was "too Japanese" to be a success in America. 

Can you believe that?

Apparently so. A few years before Pokémon the biggest thing to come out of Japan to conquer American childhoods was the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Back then (in 1993) many people in the American toy industry were worried that Power Rangers wasn't sophisticated enough for American kids and (as a result) many turned down the offer of making toys for the franchise. Power Rangers proved to be a hit with the kids and the few toy companies that did buy a licence (plus its co-creators Bandai) got very rich from it in the mid-1990s. When Pokémon became the talking point in American toy business trade fairs in 1997, those toy companies who turned down Power Rangers years ago (learning (the hard way) that Japanese stuff can sell to American kids) took the gamble. This is the main reason why Pokémon became one of the most merchandise-heavy franchises of the 20th century. And with so much merchandise in existence (from stationary to clothes) it was almost impossible to avoid Pokémon in the late-1990s. In fact, (and this is just speculation here) in the future the presence of the remains of Pokémon merchandise (along with dead Tamagotchis and CDs from AOL) can be used to date archaeological sites to the turn of the millennium. Game Freak just couldn't keep up with with the increasing number of merchandise that needed their approval....

"At first, there were between 10 and 20 new proposals for various products each week. We used to line them up on a large table in the meeting room..." - Tsunekazu Ishihara

"But it wasn't long before we ran out of space on the desk... (laughs)" - Shigeki Morimoto (from this interview)

It was that big, you ask? It sure was. I was there, remember. I remember Pokémon toys taking up a whole aisle in a Glasgow branch of Toys "R" Us. I remember them dominating more than two pages in Argos catalogues (when I was still browsing the toy section for reason I don't think need explaining). With those two personal observations alone, I know that it was very clear for British parents that the most-wanted thing for Christmas 1999 was Pokémon. And there's more...

There was the fast food promotions (which include these gold-plated cards (I still have one of them)... and those choking hazard Poke Balls that had to be recalled in 2000). The skits on SMTV Live  (featuring a rap so terrible that the crushing of its initiator by a 10-ton weight was widely celebrated across the land (Everyone in Britain my age knows what I'm talking about.)). The magazines. The card game tournaments. (The first world tournaments were held in the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu, Hawaii from 1999 to 2001. This was before they became the pro events we are familiar with today.) Even all the presents I got on my 13th birthday (that I can remember getting) were Pokémon stuff (a ring-binder, some stationary, a digital watch and a VHS of the second movie).

You want some official statistic proof? Here's my clincher. According to this article from BBC News from November 2000 Pokémon was beating Lego in toy sales. Lego! The toy that was voted by UK toy sellers as "Toy of the [20th] Century" back in January that same year. That was how BIG  Pokémon was then. Everything wasn't awesome for Lego then. Only Harry Potter could save them.

I can go on telling you how big Pokémon was...

By November 1999, as Pokémon was making inroads into Europe, Pokémon was still pulling money out of American parents wallets. Especially in cinemas, as this was when Pokémon the First Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back was released in the US. At this time (like in all crazes that dominate kids cultures) adults try to scratch their heads what the heck it is. This clip from MSNBC in 1999 is an example of this head scratching.

Pokémania MSNBC report from 1999

"Pokémania" (as they called it then) was such a noticeable thing in the world that Time magazine made it the main feature in the November 22nd 1999 issue. This issue is worth reading if your curious how big Pokémon was in the western world and how it reacted to it in this time period. A must find for any Pokélogist. Even the cover says it all...

Time 22nd November 1999 issue

Note the explanation mark!

The whole feature can be read online here (courtesy of the Wayback Machine). It includes an online exclusive interview with Satoshi Tajiri, a teenager trying to explain the appeal of it, some cautious words from a psychologist and a preview of Generation II. It even includes this review of the first movie with a title that said it all.... The Man Who Doesn't Get It by Richard Corliss

Great title. 

20 Years and we are still trying to catch'em all! - Pikachu vs Clefairy

"Start by picking up the palm-sized Nintendo Game Boy, insert the proper cartridge and switch it on. Soon, a creature with a lightning-bolt tail bounces through an animated sequence and pops a cute grin. You have just met Pikachu, the most popular of the Pokémon, a creature--part cherub and part thunder god--that is the most celebrated cartoon icon since Hello Kitty." - "Beware of the Pokemania" by Howard Chua-Eoan and Tim Larimer, Time magazine (22nd November 1999)

And on the subject of the cuteness of Pokémon, lets take the opportunity to discuss an answer to this question. Of all of the 150 original species of Pokémon that existed then, how come the one that was chosen by the community to be the mascot of the entire franchise was... an odd-looking yellow rodent players occasionally found in the forests? Why a mammal (which is as big as a big rabbit) that could produce shocking amounts of electricity ... that also happened to be very cute-looking. How did a cute, cuddly less-threatening example from the inventory became an icon of its age, immortalised as a balloon on Macy's Thanksgiving Parade? Of course, I'm talking about..... 

Pikachu. Why Pikachu?

One answer is how players first encountered the little fella - in the grass and tree areas of Kanto. An environment you are exposed to as soon as you leave Pallet Town. But Pikachu aren't that common (compared to other things like Ratatta and Pidgey) so encountering a Pikachu will have more sticking power in the memory of players than the common Pidgey. So when kids first played Red and Green some of them must have said "Have you seen this electric rodent I found in Viridian Forest?" So very soon after the games' release Pikachu became quite famous as "that electric rodent I found in Viridian" (I was lucky to catch one on one of my few stabs at Pokémon Red, so have an idea why fans would nominate it as their icon by this factor alone.) But was this deliberate? Was this social engineering in action or just an accident? I think it was an accident. 

Why? Because of Clefairy. This pink possible alien featured predominately in the earliest media outside the games, even becoming a lead character in the first ever Pokémon manga adaptation (the long-running Pokémon Pocket Monsters by Kosaku Anakubo). It even nearly became Satoshi's first Pokémon in the pilot episode of the anime. But this was changed in the last minute when it came clear (through focus groups) that more fans related to Pikachu than Clefairy.

So why the change? Here's my theory. Pikachu easily became the mascot of the franchise due to the great (and somewhat contradictory) combination of power and cuteness. Pikachu's bright yellow fur with patches of brown and red cheeks made the rabbit-sized rodent easy to recognise at a distance, like a New York taxi cab, and (been a primary colour) made him (Most pikachus we see in the media (especially Ash's) are male (until a few years ago). Female pikachus have an indent in the tip of their tails that make it look like a heart-shape.) appealing to young children. The same logic can be applied to Clefairy. Been pink, Clefairy could have easily have gained a young female following just by her looks alone (Its hard to imagine a male Clefairy (admit it)). But Pikachu won out... how? If you put them side-by-side they look kind-of similar....

A Clefairy and a Pikachu together -

For a direct comparison purposes only.

(I didn't make this gif)

The only reason I could think of why Pikachu became the mascot of the franchise is down to power! While Clefairy (been a fairy-type) had menacing psychic powers, Pikachu had power that was more relatable in the real world - high-voltage electricity. Although psychic abilities are great and appeal to fantasy-junkies, nothing beats raw electricity when it comes to the macho-imagination of boys. To my understanding, girls would like Clefairy and Pikachu just by looks alone, but the psychic powers (and their modern transfixion of the colour pink) would skew their love to Clefairy's favour. However, boys (despite saying otherwise) will also find the two cute, but they would like Pikachu more because of his awesome power that can be easily translated into the real world. There is no need to imagine the damage Pikachu can cause, because it can be demonstrated in the real world. Something that was easily demonstrated to a child when his "idiot" friend gains a Darwin Award.

Electricity: Kites public information film (1989)

You don't see any PIFs about Scanners, further proving my point.

That was how Pikachu became the No 1 Pokémon among fans. He is a massive destructive force packaged in a small fur-ball of uber-cuteness any kid would want to hug.... 

The aftermath of an ill-prepared hug of a Pikachu

(here as a warning for anyone who thinks of doing so).

A cuteness that, according to Nick from At The Buzzer,  could (in the unlikely event of Pokémon suddenly becoming real in our world) cause the end of humanity. Oh, the things people with idle time think about....

All that was needed was the vocal talent of Ikue Ōtani in the anime and the creation of a kawaii icon was complete. 

Although, I feel that Meowth could have easily been a rival contender in that contest. 

I mean, everyone likes cats, just look how many they are on the internet. 

Meowth takes over Robot Chicken's Twitter account (February 2015)

And Meowth is not alone in this debate. Since Gen 1 a number of Pokémon have come into been that could challenge Pikachu's role as mascot for the franchise. In September 2015 Warrior13 on the gaming website supercheats.com compiled this top 10 of possible candidates.

But be warned, with fame comes ridicule, as we will revisit Robot Chicken later.

[In June 2016 a Japanese poll asking fans to rank their favourite species of all the 720 Pokemon that existed at that point of time revealed that Pikachu's time in the No 1 spot may be over - the fan favourite was now Greninja. Pikachu came fourth, after Arceus and Mew. But I suspect the reason why was due to ninja fans looking for a new icon to worship after Naruto ended.]