Kobushi Factory – Seishun no Hana/Start Line February 23, 2020

Track Listing

1. Seishun no Hana
2. Start Line
3. Seishun no Hana (Instrumental)
4. Start Line (Instrumental)

1. Seishun no Hana

Boy, did I get worried when I saw the title of this song and immediately thought of “Kobushi no Hana”, but luckily the song isn’t a ballad and kind of sits at a mid-tempo/upbeat song that’s a little more akin to something like “Haru Urara” since they’re both Springtime songs.  There’s something about the song that feels both sentimental and kind of generic in a way.  I think it’s OK and the light pop/rock vibes is OK, but nothing that really pops out to me.

2. Start Line

As for the other A-side, Start Line is a bit more along my tastes bringing back the more rockin’ style to the group which actually reminds me of “Shalala! Yareru Hazu sa” considering its similar topic here.  I’m really loving the fact that all 5 members are giving such hefty solos that really show off their vocal talents (especially for both Minami and Sakurako, they impressed me the most out of the song.  Despite that it’s another one of those be your best and look forward to the future kind of tracks that for whatever reason Kobushi Factory keeps getting, this one is pretty good overall!

 

 

If I had to be honest, I would say this single is pretty tame for the group, it’s kind of the similar feelings I had with “Oh No Ounou / Haru Urara” with the upbeat rockin’ track and the softer springtime song but reversed.  Both songs though feel similar to past tracks they’ve done which is kind of a bummer too.  Though it kind of sucks…

Because this is also Kobushi’s final single as a group as they’ll be disbanding in March leaving only Reirei to remain in H!P.  I didn’t think it’d happen so soon after their sophomore album, but long and behold it’s going to happen.  Not even a best album to kind of wrap things up either, but I don’t think they needed one to begin with (although T&C Bomber did that).  Just sad that the group couldn’t keep up after all the drama in the group, hopefully the remaining members will go onto have good careers (though I think Sakurako is the only one fully retiring).

GENERATION 8: Bring your Sword & Shield, It’s Galar time! Pt. 1 February 21, 2020

Yep, it’s been a couple months since Sword & Shield have been released and finally all the Sugimori Arts have come out (with a small few still kind of missing).  Anyways, we are in the Galar region and its been a rather controversial Generation so far (y’know, with the #dexit thing going on and just random things.  I’m here to talk about the new Pokémon that were introduced, but it’s going to be handled slightly differently than previous gens, so here’s how it’ll go down

• I’m going to talk about the brand new designs and Pokémon from Grookey to Eternatus (well until the mythical Pokémon is announced in a week)
• Then I will talk about the Galarian forms of older Pokémon (example Galarian Meowth & Perrserker, and Galarian Slowpoke)
• Following that will be Gigantamax forms (includes Snorlax, Toxtricity, and Melmetal)
• Then it’s the first DLC’s exclusives from The Isle of Armor (which will include Gigantamax, and Galarian forms)
• and finally, the Crown Tundra which will be wayyy down the line

So with all that said and done, let’s jump right in!

001: Grookey, 002: Thwackey, 003: Rillaboom

As the starters of the new Generation, I knew I had to choose the Grass starter (especially since I haven’t chosen one since Chikorita in Gen 2.  Grookey was also incredibly cute right from the start (although Scorbunny & Sobble were too).  Though you don’t see it, Rillaboom has a drum it uses (especially in its Signature Move, Drum Beating) and it was pretty great on my team, making it to the final battle against Leon!

Though it did get me surprised that a Gigantamax form would be introduced in the Isle of Armor DLC, so we will see how I will feel (though I’m feeling bummed, I may have to train a new Grookey to get it…)

004: Scorbunny, 005: Raboot, 006: Cinderace

If I wasn’t locked into Grookey, the Cinderace line would might have been a next-to-go line.  I already enjoy the fact that it’s based off of soccer players and the fact it’s a pure Fire-type is exciting (and haven’t you seen it’s signature move, Pyro Ball…wow the visuals are good).  I really enjoy this line after using him post-game, but I think I like Rillaboom a little more.

Though from the Isle of Armor, Gigantamax Cinderace is looking really cool and the fact that it’s soccer ball is like a pyroplasmic ghost and it just looks crazy cool!

007: Sobble, 008: Drizzile, 009: Inteleon

Finally with the Water starter, it felt like once again Water types got not a lot of love, but honestly I really like the Inteleon line because of the fact they’re based off of both reptiles & spies.  Just like Cinderace though, it’s move Snipe Shot is just so badass and the fact it can glide is awesome.

Like the other two starters, Inteleon will be given a Gigantamax form and seeing it on a geyser perched high and aiming like a sniper, it might be my favorite of the 3 to be honest.

As for how I think of the 3 as a whole, I don’t think they’re the best as all 3 are all pure-types which haven’t happened since Johto which is a slight bummer, but I do think they’re better stat-wise (maybe not so much Inteleon). 

010: Skwovet, 011: Greedent

Of course, it wouldn’t be a new Generation without the typical rodent, bird, and bug Pokémon to represent the gen.  Honestly, the Greedent line didn’t get much of a response out of me and even though I think Skwovet is super adorable, there really wasn’t much interest in these two outside of the first 1 or 2 gyms.

012: Rookidee, 013: Corvisquire, 014: Corviknight

Wow, I figured when they first showed off Corviknight, I thought it’d be elsewhere in the Pokedex, but it turned out it was the last of the line of the actual beginner bird.  What’s interesting and what slightly seperates it from previous Gens is that both Rookidee & Corvisquire are pure Flying-types (the only other Pokémon that is pure Flying is Tornadus).  With Corviknight also being the 2nd Steel/Flying type (next to Skarmory).  Still, I really liked this and Corviknight stayed with me all the way to the end.  Add on that the Gigantamax form is really awesome looking and the blades shaped like smaller birds are so cool!

015: Blipbug, 016: Dottler, 017: Orbeetle

Though I think the biggest surprise is this Generation’s choice for their early Bug Pokémon.  Honestly, Blipbug (despite looking incredibly dorky) isn’t really much worth noting, it isn’t until it evolves at lvl. 10 where things get interesting.  Once it evolves into Dottler, it’s type becomes Bug/Psychic (a first time dual-type) and it becomes quite a nice tank and Sp. Attacker.  Definitely was a strong member on my team and really nice against Leon too.  Add on the UFO look when it Gigantamaxes and I’m just blown away by it.  Definitely by far the best regional Bug!

018: Nickit, 019: Thievul

I guess to kind of parallel with the Mightyena line, we got Dark-type foxes with the Thievul line.  I really like Nickit as it’s just clever and cute, although the tail is a little funky at times though I do understand why it’s a thing.  Thievul is OK, maybe if the mask wasn’t a thing either, but it’s interestingly more interesting that aforementioned Pokémon above.  Not high up, but it did serve it’s purpose about til halfway through the game for me.

020: Gossifleur, 021: Eldegoss

This was also the part of the first few that were revealed, but was surprised that the Eldegoss line was entirely shown off in the 2nd trailer of the game.  So lest be not surprised that I was slightly disappointed this line didn’t go further (or even get a Gigantamax form).  I don’t know why, but nothing really popped out at me with this Grass-type.

022: Wooloo, 023: Dubwool

So another early reveal, Wooloo was an early fan favorite and for good reason as it’s just adorable and innocent.  I think we all knew it was going to evolvetoo, but I’m not sure many were thinking it was Dubwool (also that name is bad tbh).  I think it has good Attack, but I didn’t find myself using the line in the game.  I mean it’s a Normal-type which is already kind of putting it in a meh place.  Cute, but I don’t know honestly.

023: Chewtle, 024: Drednaw

A new turtle huh?  I suppose so and Chewtle is derpy enough to kind of stick out.  When it evolves into Drednaw it becomes a Water/Rock type which is interesting and it makes sense to me (although we already have that in Carracosta too).  Though I think what bothers me (like with the Eldegoss line) is that it doesn’t evolve but it does try to reflect that by having a Gigantamax form…though IMO, maybe it should’ve been a 2nd evolution at the end of the day (especially since Blastoise is getting one too).

WOO ITS JUST GETTING STARTED!  STAY TUNED!

GENERATION 2: The last 25! pt. 4 February 6, 2020

So earlier today (the 5th), majority of the Sugimori Art had finally come out in decent quality, so I thought I would get the remainder of the Johto Pokémon out of the way before I begin Galar sometime next week! (still missing some arts, mostly Galarian forms and Gigantamax PKMN).  So shall we get this over with?

076: Skarmory

Starting the last 25, Skarmory comes first who was a Silver exclusive and for the longest time was one of my favorites to use because it had a nice typing mix of Steel/Flying and it was fast and hits pretty hard despite being only a one-stage Pokémon.  I will say that nowadays it might’ve been surpassed by Corviknight (who shares the same typing), but there’ll always be something nostalgic about Skarmory.  Really awesome!

077: Houndour, 078: Houndoom

Ooooh, something a big more menacing huh?  Yup, this devil dog is fitting due to its Dark/Fire typing and just the overall look of it.  I remember that I had liked using it in Gen 2 because it was another nice Fire user and Houndoom looked badass!  I don’t recall taking him to the end, but I still found use regardless.

Which was why I was happy to see it got a Mega Evolution in Gen 6, though disappointed it wasn’t a representation of Cerberus of something.  Still, it was strong as hell and I loved using it more than other Megas.

079: Kingdra

Of all the Generation 1 Pokémon, I had the least thoughts about Seadra getting an evolution, but once you trade one with a Dragon Scale, Seadra evolves into Kingdra who is now a Water/Dragon type.  I actually remember it being quite powerful and such a decent upgrade, but I never really got to own one til later Generations due to the lack of friends with a link cable (and me with a 2nd GBC).  Still, I really like using it on occasions.  Strong Pokémon!

080: Phanpy, 081: Donphan

Another Pokémon that was first shown off during the first movie (this time the actual movie as it’s the unnamed opponent Ash goes off against and despite it wasn’t given a name throughout, watching this unknown Pokémon using Rollout, really made me curious about it and luckily it was another Silver exclusive!  Being a pure Ground-type, the Donphan line wasn’t too special, but it did have a little usage in and out of Generations, though it seems this elephant now has a challenger in Gen 8’s Copperajah line…pretty curious to see what’ll come next for the line if there will be any.

082: Porygon2

One of my favorite Pokémon form Gen 1, Porygon got an evolution in Gen 2 after trading with the Up-Grade item being held.  Of course it gets a bit faster and it’s bubbly appearance makes it look even more duck-like (especially its movement looks like the Drinking Bird toy).  I have to say that I enjoyed this design just as equally as its pre-evolution.  There was a beta design where it was like a lion with balls around its neck and I’m so happy they spent more time with working on it.

Though it also gains an evolution once Gen 4 comes around after ONCE AGAIN trading a Porygon2 with a Dubious Disc held to get a Porygon-Z where it’s a bit more zany and insane.  Still a really awesome line here

083: Stantler

I think the blandest inclusion is possibly Stantler in the 2nd Gen.  I mean nothing really stands out about it, but I had felt because of some of the Dex and Anime happenings, I felt like maybe it could’ve been a Normal/Psychic (maybe make it a parallel to Girafarig perhaps?).  Still it ended up being just pure Normal and eventually in Gen 5 get surpassed by the Sawsbuck line too.  Really forgetful overall!

084: Smeargle

Another Pure Normal-type, Smeargle is definitely one of the more odd Pokémon introduced here.  Found in Ruins of Alph (but in a rather small patch of grass), Smeargle doesn’t seem quite special until you start your research.  Smeargle only learns one more, Sketch, but it learns it every 10 levels (ex: 1, 11, 21, 31).  What Sketch does is that Smeargle copies the last move used on it, so in a sense it can learn any move in the game, but that move is permanent so you could build a rather dangerous moveset for it, but Smeargle has some piss-poor stats that doesn’t really use it to its advantage.  Very gimmicky but could be useful?  Just be careful when using Sketch!

085: Tyrogue, 086: Hitmontop

We get into another batch of Baby Pokémon starting with Tyrogue who is a pre-evolution to Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, and the also newly introduced in the Generation, Hitmontop.  The idea for Tyrogue is that it has 3 ways to evolve into the 3 mentioned above.  It basically goes once it hits level 20, it will evolve.  If its Attack is higher than Defense, you get Hitmonlee, the opposite (Defense above Attack) will net you Hitmonchan and it both are equal (making it rather difficult to get) you end up with Hitmontop.  Interesting though, as for my thoughts on Hitmontop, it’s unusual and the fact it doesn’t tie-in with the naming convention (Bruce Lee & Jackie Chan) lends itself to be a rather black sheep Pokémon, but I do like it has Speed and Triple Kick is cool to use back then.  Also both Beta designs were pretty bad xD

087: Smoochum

The next 3 baby Pokémon IMO really don’t add much to the meta for their evolutions, but I suppose it’s a thing.  Smoochum is of course the pre-evolution for Jynx and it’s just much weaker overall and you only want one for dex completion.  Though you are stuck with Smoochum until lvl. 30 when she evolves.  Nothing really much else to say about Smoochum.

088: Elekid

Same thing with Elekid (actually even Magby too) that all 3 evolve at level 30 into their respective Gen 1 evolutions. I remember Elekid being in the Pokémon short for the 2nd movie, but that’s really about it.  Of course a much weaker Electabuzz here, but it looks interesting.

Of course after Electabuzz, it gets another evolution in Gen 4 after trading an Electabuzz holding a Electrizer into an Electivire.

089: Magby

Very much like Elekid and Smoochum before just repeating, level 30 into Magmar.  I feel like I forget about this Pokémon a lot because I usually don’t like using Magmar (or Magmortar) that much.  Actually thinking about I’m surprised that Jynx is the only of the 3 that didn’t get an evolution

Once Magby evolves, Magmar can evolve again in Gen 4 into Magmortar by trading it while it’s holding the Magmarizer item.  Though I really am not a big fan of its design very much.

090: Miltank

I’m pretty surprised Miltank is found all the way towards the end of the Johto dex here.  It’s not even totally that great besides the fact that it knows Milk Drink, but otherwise, Miltank wasn’t particularly that interesting in Johto.  Well, other than the fact it’s known for being a beast when going against Whitney’s (the 3rd Gym leader) Miltank who wrecked teams with its Rollout.  Since then, it usually is seen paired up with Tauros (because all Miltank were females).  Not the most memorable, but it did its job.

091: Blissey

Did Chansey really need this?  We already had a Pokémon who had a LOT of Hit Points and was surprisingly decent for being a Normal-type and then we suddenly get Blissey here who is just a dreadnaught of a tank in Gen 2.  Though to get Blissey, your Chansey needs to have high friendship and if I remember right, it wasn’t easy to get xD.  It was just such a good Pokémon to use and I had used one a lot in later Gens.

The evolutionary chain was completed in Gen 4 when we were introduced to Happiny which was the Baby Pokémon for the line.  Kind of surprised that it didn’t join others in retyping to Fairy (was one of the first Pokémon I thought of, on top of the Lake Legendaries of Gen 4 and none of them changed (or added types)).

092: Raikou

We finally get into some legendaries starting with the legendary dogs.  Raikou I felt of the 3 got the short end of the stick because the other two had some prominence in a rather obvious way (Entei in the 3rd movie & Suicune being the main in Pokémon Crystal).  Raikou was funny enough the only one of the 3 I had caught in Silver because I was young and dumb and was already stressed with finding them in Johto (they were the first to start the whole “roaming” legendary meaning they can be found in any route you’re in by chance.  I managed to catch Raikou and it was my leading Electric-type user for a while.  Neat Pokémon that gets me nostalgic!

093: Entei

Yeah Entei ended up being the major face of the 3rd movie (alongside Unown) and Entei looked pretty badass and powerful even managing going toe-to-toe with Charizard.  Like I said under Raikou, I never was able to catch it (ending up fainting it instead) and I missed out on the Fire-type beast.  Still looks cool though that’s for sure!  Though it’s interesting to note that the 3 looked VERY different in their Beta designs, I’m happy they got better looking down the line!

094: Suicune

Yup, Pokémon Crystal actually had Suicune on its boxart and I thought that was pretty weird that it was getting the focus over both Raikou and Entei.  Though it is my favorite design of the 3 dogs.  Though it is a Water-type, I find myself being confused because a lot of the moves I remember it getting were Ice-types.  Regardless, I dug it and I like it in Smash Bros. Ultimate!

095: Larvitar, 096: Pupitar, 097: Tyranitar

Interesting that once again the pseudo-legendary line comes after the trio of the games.  Curiously enough Tyranitar was one of the first Pokémon created so I really enjoy they brought this Kaijuu design around for the 2nd Generation.  It starts as the Rock/Ground Larvitar and at lvl. 30 it’ll evolve into its cocoon form, Pupitar before reaching and evolving into Tyranitar at lvl. 55.  At that point, Tyranitar becomes a Rock/Dark type and just is a force to be reckoned with.

Curiously enough to kind of parallel Aggron, Tyranitar got a Mega Evolution in X & Y and it just made it more powerful and scary to deal with.  It could’ve looked more monstrous, but it definitely did the work!

098: Lugia

Finally we get to the box legendaries!  Even though you can get both legendaries in both Gold and Silver, the difference is who you see first.  So for me in Silver, Lugia came first and you can find it in the Whirl Islands (between Olivine and Cianwood City).  I just remember the slog getting to it using Whirlpool and Waterfall to get by.  Though at the end you find this Psychic/Flying legendary (though thinking about it, Lugia was definitely more attuned to the Ocean which left me wondering why it wasn’t like part-Water at least.  Still, Lugia had a LOT of impact (being the main focus of the 2nd Pokémon movie).  I loved when I caught mine and loved using its signature move Aeroblast all the time.  Great Legendary!

099: Ho-oh

The other box legendary, Ho-oh is technically the first 2nd Gen Pokémon to get previewed for the Generation because it made a cameo in the first episode of the anime as the bird Ash sees before his adventure begins.  Ho-oh might not quite raise eyes initially because we already had a Fire/Flying bird in the form of Moltres.  Though it did stand out for me by being a lvl. 70 capture.  Though I do like that it did get Sacred Fire as its signature move, up until Gen 6 when Entei had also got it too.  I mean I didn’t really use it too much originally (I mean by the time you caught it, it was basically the end of the game lol).

100: Celebi

Ending the Johto dex and being a Mythical Pokémon, Celebi in the West never really happened, it was mostly a Japan-only thing because while it was programmed in G/S/C, it was only truly available in Crystal through an item event with something called the GS Ball (if you remember in the Anime, Ash carried one for quite a while and it was eventually put into use in the 4th Pokémon movie).  Other than hacks, you really weren’t able to get a Celebi legitimately unless you do an event during the time or until Gen 6 when it was gifted away as a Pokémon Bank exclusive or the re-release of Crystal on the 3DS.  Yeah this was a pretty elusive PKMN for sure, but looking at it now, it’s not really powerful and its movepool isn’t too fortunate (no signature move either).  It’s Psychic/Grass typing is the same as Gen 8’s Calyrex, but otherwise it’s cute (another one I though could’ve been part Fairy) but it’s OK

 

THANKS FOR FOLLOWING THIS RUN THROUGH JOHTO, HOPEFULLY GALAR WILL BEGIN AND THEN KANTO EVERYONE!

GENERATION 2: The 3rd Entry pt. 3 February 2, 2020

Welcome to the 3rd post about Generation 3, really there isn’t totally much to say other than more Pokémon to cover!!!!

051: Wobbuffet

Opening this post, we have Wobbuffet, a rather strange Psychic-type Pokémon.  Despite that it’s mostly well known as being the kind of joke fold to the Team Rocket roster in the Anime, Wobbuffet is known for having just four moves in its arsenal at all times (Safeguard, Counter, Destiny Bond, and Mirror Coat)  That said it does have a nice set of HP and Defenses, but it’s pretty gimmicky at best.  Also, female Wobbuffets with the lipstick is hilarious!

Gen 3 though did bring its baby pre-evolution, Wynaut and slightly opened its movepool to include Splash, Encore, Amnesia, and Charm which yeah doesn’t quite add more to its usefulness, but I mean Wynaut is cuuute!

052: Girafarig

Another strange Pokémon IMO, Girafarig is our Normal/Psychic type which was unique right up until Gen 5 when Meloetta was introduced.  Initially in its Beta, it did have a pre-evolution on top of Girafarig’s design being different (it’s tail was another giraffe, but instead it got the chain chomp tail).  Personally, it never stood out for me and made me wonder why it was there…just seemed random too me.

053: Pineco, 054: Forretress

It seems Gen 2 for me had a lot of Pokémon that I really never found useful, or just kind of doesn’t stick out! The Forretress line is one of the few that I seemed to just purely forgot was a Gen 2 Pokémon!  Another one found by headbutting trees throughout Johto & Kanto, Pineco was kind of the annoying one because it can learn Self-Destruct making it somewhat annoying to catch, though I felt like it got better when it evolved into Forretress because it went from being a pure Bug type to a Bug/Steel-type.  It’s a pretty fast Pokémon and it learns some interesting moves, but yeah it’s outclassed clearly (and plus Scizor was the better Bug/Steel type anyways.

055: Dunsparce

Yeah this post is going to have a LOT of random Pokémon here and I feel like Dunsparce at this point has been kind of been looked at one of the few that should get something (6 Generations).  Being a Normal-type, it doesn’t seem to quite stick out, but it does because of his height (pretty big) and the fact in Gen 3 gained its ability Serene Grace (a couple others have it) have made it more curious.  I definitely vouch for it to one day get an evolution!  Maybe it won’t be such a meme!

056: Gligar

So here was another version exclusive and someone I missed out on, Gligar was a Gold exclusive and for shame because I really liked the Ground/Flying dual type (which like Quagsire) stopped Electric-types dead in their tracks.  That said I never really got to experience him until…

Generation 4 because we got introduced to its evolution, Gliscor which became quite the powerhouse for me and really was awesome to use.  Interesting Pokémon but in Gen 2, kind of just there…

057: Steelix

What a surprise to see that Onix actually has an evolution in Gen 2 (by trading it between games while holding a Metal Coat).  This Steel/Ground ‘mon is just so cool and surprisingly powerful.  It was just a monster and really represented the new Steel-type very well!

Though it was made even more crazy strong in Gen 6 in OR/AS specifically due to the fact it got a Mega Evolution.  With mirrors surrounding it, it’s not more defensive and just are ridiculous.  Really cool look overall.

058: Snubbull, 059: Granbull

I was so surprised when I got to see the first Pokémon movie and watching that Pikachu short just to end up seeing previews of the Johto Pokémon.  One was Marill and the other was this pink bulldog, Snubbull.  As the Normal-type, like many others with it, it just never really popped out for me.  Granbull is physically nice, but really doesn’t quite reach the top for me.

Though things changed in Generation 6 when the Granbull line’s typing changed entirely to being a pure Fairy-type making it slightly more interesting and the switch to having STAB with Fairy-moves.  At least nowadays, I’m a little more curious.

060: Qwilfish

These one-stage Pokémon are really throwing me off because they have some potential, especially with this Water/Poison type Qwilfish because in the Beta it actually had an evolution originally.  Though what we got is pretty much rather forgetful especially since we have the Tentacruel line that still is better.  I just don’t know what else to say about this one

061: Scizor

Yeah, even fan favorite Scyther got an evolution in Gen 2 in the form of Scizor (trading it while holding a Metal Coat, like Steelix).  Yeah, we get better defenses and sacrificed a little speed, but damn Scizor looks really edgy (though not quite sure on the switch from Green to Red though).

Though in Gen 6, we were introduced to its Mega Evolution and it looks more cybernetic and very angular too.  It kind of looked like a Deoxys forme if anything lol.  I will say it did make me enjoy Scizor a little more at least.

062: Shuckle

Using Rock Smash on certain rocks in Cianwood City could end up surprising you with this new Bug/Rock Pokémon and boy it’s a doozy.  Initially it’s pretty much the weak, but defensive Pokémon whos interesting use was from making it hold a Berry so it can turn into Berry Juice after a battle.  After more Generations passed, Shuckle turned into a demon who can incredibly raise its Defense into crazy numbers and if you’re lucky and use a Trick Room…makes him THE biggest attacking cannon.  Though there’s a lot behind it so it may not be worth that risk.  Interesting Pokémon though and was a nice surprise for a one-stager.

063: Heracross

More Pokémon that were found by headbutting trees, Heracross was in my opinion the winner of them all!  Being the first of the Bug/Fighting types, Heracross was surprisingly strong (especially since Bug types were boosted incredibly, most importantly with Heracross’ signature move during this Gen, Megahorn).  I definitely remembered using one for my battles a lot and was pretty powerful overall despite being one-stage.

Though in Gen 6, it curiously got a Mega Evolution and kind of paralleled Pinsir (who also got one too).  I don’t like its design much, but any buffs to Heracross is always a good one.

064: Sneasel

There was just something about a Dark/Ice Pokémon hat really struck me as interesting especially since it, like Misdreavus were two of the last Pokémon you were able to run into Gold & Silver.  Sneasel is rather fast and uses its claws to really make its mark.  I would actually go ahead and say that it was my 2nd favorite from the Generation.

Though also like Misdreavus, in Generation 4, Sneasel was given a new evolution in Weavile.  Still cool, just more dangerous basically!

065: Teddiursa, 066: Ursaring

Gold had another exclusive though with the Ursaring line.  Being a pure Normal-type line, it felt like I hadn’t miss too much bypassing these two because while it has nice Attack stats, it felt a bit forgettable once again.  I think maybe I should use it again someday and see how well Ursaring stacks up but I don’t think I’ll be too impressed.

067: Slugma, 068: Magcargo

I was wondering if there was more Fire-types in the Generation and we get a strange slug Pokémon (aptly named) Slugma.  I wanted to like it but it’s slow Speed was not going to do it any favors and its evolution Magcargo (becoming a Fire/Rock) and while defenses go up, it’s still pretty slow.  I do kind of like it, but I’m just not good with it.

069: Swinub, 070: Piloswine

On the flipside of the coin, we were given a new Ice/Ground-type Piloswine line and I remember running into these a lot in the Ice Path.  Though I did pass these up because it was nearing the 8th Gym (and before the Elite 4).  I do like that the dual-type was unique at the time and brought some really nice moves for it.  I kind of enjoyed them despite not using them til later Gens.

Which is mostly due to Gen 4 when you can teach Piloswine, Ancient Power and when you level it up, it becomes the new evolution Mamoswine and it’s pretty cool and bulky especially as the 3rd evolution.  It’s what made me begin using them!

071: Corsola

Corsola was pretty unique too, I remember finding one from fishing near the Daycare Center.  Made sense since it is a Water/Rock (though, I’m sure Corsola would’ve been much better if it had been introduced in Hoenn).  I thought initialy it was connected to the Blissey line, but I mean it’s nice we got it.

Though in a sad twist, Gen 8 brought in a Galarian variant of Corsola (which is pure Ghost) and it’s evolution Cursola.  What’s sad is that it’s based off of bleached coral (dead basically).

072: Remoraid, 073: Octillery

Probably the most confusing line out of Gen 2, I think the look itself from the Octillery line is pretty much obvious here.  Yeah when I first saw these two I never thought they were connected in anyways but whenever Remoraid hits lvl. 25, it’ll evolve into Octillery.  Years later when the Spaceworld 1997 Demos were leaked and datamined, it was shown that the reason these two were connected was from the fact the beta designs were showing both being more weapon-based looking.  So I assume the fact that they changed it seemed a little weird and the connection between the two is even more further apart.

074: Delibird

Pokémon Silver players got some exclusives too, the first up was in this Christmas-inspired ‘mon, Delibird and it’s kind of a sketchy Pokémon at that.  It’s gimmick is around its signature move, Present where it sends a present to an opponent that either does damage or heals them.  It can learn other moves by TM, but other than that it usually only knows Present (or as of recent, Drill Peck).  Not quite sure what they were thinking for this Ice/Flying type, but it kind of just sucks all-around.

075: Mantine

As the last Pokémon in this post, Mantine was the 3rd Gold exclusive ‘mon and I think this was a bit better than Delibird at least despite sharing types with Gyarados, Pelipper and etc with it being Water/Flying.  I kind of like how bulky it was and I love manta rays as well (though was curious about why Remoraids were in its official art.

That was answered in Gen 4 when we were introduced to it’s baby pre-evolution in Mantyke and the only way you can evolve it is having a Remoraid in your party.  Interesting way to evolve, but now it makes more sense.  I’ve liked it since in later Generations at least so I’m happy with that

 

 

NEXT TIME: THE FINAL STRETCH

GENERATION 2: Johto Bugaloo! January 20, 2020

Yup we return to look through even more Johto…(er Johtonian?) Pokémon with the second batch which brought some more interesting inclusions!  Let’s get to it right?

026: Natu, 027: Xatu

First on this post, we have the Xatu line and for something like Johto (since it’s based around Japan) I guess I wasn’t thinking of Native American/Mayan tribal birds to be represented here.  Also with it being Psychic/Flying and Xatu being able to look to the future and past, it’s an interesting concept.  You’d think they’d be legendaries with that kind of ability.  Not one I had on my team, but it’s really intriguing.

Though ever since Generation 6, I always felt weird whenever Xatu flies…just doesn’t look right for whatever reason.

028: Mareep, 029: Flaaffy, 030: Ampharos

When it comes to the Ampharos line I kind of understood it when it came to Mareep and Flaaffy being Electric-type sheep.  Though I think I got lost when I got to the shift from Flaaffy to Ampharos despite keeping the Electric-type.  Though if you checked Ampharos’ JPN name, it’s actually Denryuu which adds the feeling of a Dragon which was also kind of missed out on here.  Despite that Ampharos is a pretty decent Pokémon and I remember using it a LOT in Silver.

At least they answered it in Generation 6 by introducing Mega Ampharos which adds the Dragon type to its already known Electric-type.

031: Bellossom

Generation 2 also seemed to introduce a lot of new ways to evolve Pokémon, not only did they introduce new stones (in this case the Sun Stone), but it also introduced the idea of split evolution.  For Bellossom, you have to use the Sun Stone on Gloom here (instead of using the Leaf Stone, or you’ll end up with Vileplume).  With Bellossom also, it loses the Poison-type and is a pure Grass.  I really do like both so it’s definitely great whenever I get to use them, it’s a really nice idea to bring in and really gives potential to other Pokémon.

032: Marill, 033: Azumarill

Remember pre-Gen 2?  Yeah for all the older fans, they remember the hush-hush rumor of an undiscovered Pokémon named Pikablu which of course was debunked once the first Pokémon movie came out with the Pikachu short.  Though to be fair, the way Marill looks does kind of feels reminiscent but unlike other, future Pika-clones, the Azumarill line is a Water-type line which is pretty cool!  Plus, it was a Swarm Pokemon which made it a smidge more interesting.  Sadly not quite the Pokémon I’d use.

Though in Gen 3, we were introduced to Azurill which was a Normal-type baby form for the line, which was kind of unnecessary, but I suppose it’s fine.

Then Gen 6 happened and all 3 in the line got the Fairy-type added on which gave some new life to the line and Azumarill got a pretty big boost out of it too.  Still one of the cutest lines of Gen 2!

034: Sudowoodo

One of the more memorable things from Gold and Silver was a tree that blocked your path in between Violet & Ecruteak City.  You’d think you could use the Cut HM to do it but instead use need to use water on it to get it to move and it turns out to be this Rock-type, Sudowoodo. It’s such a strange Pokémon though and I feel like as block to the game, and the fact it’s the only one in Gen 2, it sticks out.

Curiously enough, when the Gen 4 games came out we ended up with baby Pokémon again and in that we were introduced to Bonsly.  Odd that Sudowoodo got it, but I’m not angry for it.

035: Politoed

Once again we return to split evolutions and this time we have Poliwhirl having a choice between Poliwrath or by trading a Poliwhirl while it’s holding a new item, the King’s Rock and you’ll get Politoed!  I will admit I was surprised to see the color change and of course the fact Politoed is a toad.  I quite like it and just sticks out in a good way here.  Plus, it’s one of my favorite designs from Gen 2.

036: Hoppip, 037: Skiploom, 038: Jumpluff

Jumpluff’s line is kind of strange looking back on Gen 2 here.  I mean in the Beta design, this line was going to have more feline features about it which was a little off, but I mean with it thrown off, it’s dandelion-design worked better in the overall.  Also finding out that Hoppip learned the useless Splash and the kind of weird Grass/Flying mixture oddly made this forgetful (oops to Tropius and 2/3 of the Decidueye line).  One of the underused lines I think.

039: Aipom

One of the Pokémon of Gen 2 I definitely questioned its creation, Aipom was pretty out of left field to me.  If I remember right, Aipom was only found by headbutting trees (with said move Headbutt).  Though I failed to see potential since it was a one-stage Pokémon and its stats were pretty weak too, so for 2 Gens, it was kind of a useless one for me.

Though in Generation 4, if you teach Aipom, Double Hit and level it up, you get its new evolution, Ambipom.  A little bit better with stats, but still kind of a Pokémon that doesn’t impress me in the long run unfortunately.

040: Sunkern, 041: Sunflora

If Bellossom wasn’t enough, we get two more new pure Grass-types in the Sunflora line.  Another set of Pokémon that I find lacking and kind of forgettable in the Pokémon series, for quite a while Sunkern was known best as the Pokémon with the worst base stats.  Though once given a Sun Stone, it can evolve into Sunflora and it just doesn’t do anything for me still.  Oh wells…

042: Yanma

Another thing introduced in Gen 2, your character can obtain phone calls from trainers you battled and some of them are special in the way they that fill you in when there’s a swarm of a certain Pokémon on a route.  This is the case for 6 of them in which Yanma was one of the 6 (Marill, Remoraid, Snubbull, Qwilfish, and Dunsparce are the others).  While none of them truly were all interesting (later gens will fix a couple), Yanma was the one I was more interested in.  It’s still kind of weak due to its Bug/Flying typing.

Though once Yanma learns Ancient Power in Gen 4 and leveled up, it evolves into the new Yanmega which kind of throws away the cuteness and went full dragonfly here (though oddly enough remains Bug/Flying).  Still, one of the cooler designs out of Gen 2 overall

043: Wooper, 044: Quagsire

Finally something to stop Electric types dead in its tracks!  the Quagire’s Water/Ground typing was a godsend in Gen 2 for me and really left a mark in my memory about having one on my team a lot of the time.  Though it has since been taken over by other better Pokémon, but at the time, this was a fun one to use and it’s so derpy and cute so it’s a win!

045: Espeon, 046: Umbreon

Yep, one Generation in and it seems we get two new Eevee evolutions (in the Beta it was going to be three with a Grass-type evolution, though it would reappear in Gen 4 as Leafeon).  In Johto, we got the Psychic-type, Espeon, and the Dark-type Umbreon.  Though interestingly enough you can only get these with Max Friendship and depending on the day or night is how you get Espeon (Day) or Umbreon (Night).  I LOVE Espeon since it’s given a lot of strong moves and Psychic is my favorite type.  Umbreon is decent (curiously when I read the Dex entries, it made me feel it was originally going to be a Poison type).  It’s better nowadays, but I didn’t think much of it back then, also both have great shinies.  Fantastic additions!

047: Murkrow

To push out some more Pokémon based around the two new types introduced in Gen 2, we have Murkrow, a Dark/Flying type.  Curiously enough one of the few Pokémon that you could only find post-Elite 4 in the Kanto region of all places.  Not really that interesting either to me and is one of the weaker mons.  Though design-wise totally fits the crow theme.

Until Gen 4 when Murkrow got an evolution in Honchkrow which boosted it up nicely.

048: Slowking

Just like Gloom & Poliwhirl before it, Slowpoke also gets a split evolution though it’s more closer to Poliwhirl because it’s over the same held item, the King’s Rock.  Slowking doesn’t change types, but it does get more offensive power from it (and if the movie counts, it speaks!).  Really interesting choice and I kind of prefer it over Slowbro if I had to be honest!

Though with Galar, with the knowledge of Galarian Slowpoke and the hints of both Galarian Slowbro & Slowking…it makes me curious to what that all entails and the fact it has a darker, purplish look makes me think either it’s going to be a Psychic/Poison type (since it learns Acid) or maybe Dark-type who knows?

049: Misdreavus

Realizing it, Misdreavus is actually the ONLY Ghost type introduced which means we have OMG, two Ghost lines (Misdreavus & the Gengar line).  I was kind of surprised that Ghosts’ only get one new Pokémon in the generation and even then Misdreavus is one of the last Johto Pokémon you find in the wild at Mt. Silver.  Personally, Misdreavus is my favorite Pokémon of all time!  It’s just a cool whispy Ghost and I really loved when I caught it.

Despite that, Generation 4 brought in Mismagius, an evolution done by using the Dusk Stone on Misdreavus.  Honestly, I’m not the biggest fan of its design, but it’s power was well-needed and gave life to Misdreavus.  Solid overall!

050: Unown

One of the more stranger additions in Johto was Unown, who are Psychic-type Pokémon.  Though once the 3rd movie was up and running, we were shown that Unown was incredibly powerful and had a lot of potential which fizzled out immediately once the G/S/C games came around.  We ended up with a low base stat Pokémon that only can learn one move in Hidden Power which is hit or miss basically 1/16th of the time it sucks lol.  Add on that Gen 2 added the Unown Dex because god forbid there’s an Unown that represents every letter of the alphabet, so 26 variations of Unown.

However in Generation 3, two more were added to the list, the “!” one and the “?” one, bringing it to 28.  These two don’t provide anything additional, so the same stats overall.  Really useless in the meta and makes me wonder if they’ll ever make them usable in the future.

PART 3 NEXT TIME!

 

Let’s talk about Smash: The end of the Fighters Pass and the future!~ January 17, 2020

So, today we finally got the reveal of the 5th character of the Fighters Pass and the future since last time Smash announced more DLC!  But since there was time since September, I wanna go back and talk about Terry as well since there wasn’t much shown off in his initial announcement!

Terry Bogard

Yeah, last time I was talking about Terry, it was just his announcement and a SMALL gameplay showing for him.  Though November was when he released and a lot of things revealed!

So Terry joining was really cool utilizing a lot of moves from the Fatal Fury/King of Fighters game which was to expected and just like Ryu & Ken also includes command moves.  What makes Terry stand out though is that when his percent goes over 100%, he’ll be able to do Power Geyser & Buster Wolf by doing it’s commands like it has been for the longest time.

About his stage, King of Fighters Stadium is an interesting one.  The stage itself is basically entirely flat, no platforms and it seems it’s a walk-off stage, but that’s where you’re wrong.  While it does look like one, there’s actually invisible barriers that stop you from going out, unless you’re at a higher damage percentage then the barrier will break from the force.  Add on a lot of cameos from characters of Fatal Fury and King of Fighters and it’s basically all that.

Overall, Terry Bogard might not be someone everyone would’ve thought of, but I definitely appreciate SNK getting the green light for Terry and the Smash love was really nice here!

Byleth

Though most fans were super curious about who was going to be the 5th character in the first Fighters Pass and many had assumed it was going to be a 3rd party character (fair enough because of everyone else in the pack was at this point), but boy was everyone surprised that it turned out to be another character from Fire Emblem, more specifically from the recent game, Three Houses.  Despite the picture above, Byleth comes with 4 different weapons (sword/whip as his main, an axe, a polearm, and a bow & arrow).  Also, like with Robin and Corrin previous, there’s a female variant as well!

The stage that comes with Byleth is of course a traveling stage, Garreg Mach Monastery.  It goes between four spots in the area with cameos from other characters involved in Three Houses which is cool and the layouts are pretty simple but it’s nice it travels a bit.

My personal opinion on Byleth is that while I had figured we were going to get a Fire Emblem rep, I was kind of assuming it would’ve happened sometime in the 2nd Fighters pass.  Doesn’t help that Byleth looks so similar to Marth and Chrom (the female looking pretty close to Lucina) it’s kind of a bummer they ended up choosing what they did and not someone like Edelgard.  Also, kind of soured the fact it closed out the first Fighters pack as well.

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We also got some new Mii Fighter costumes here with Altair (from Assassin’s Creed) and the Rabbids (from the Rayman series) on top of returning Mega Man outfits from the X series and Battle Network series.  Though the best news here was that we were given a Cuphead outfit that really feels right for its style (plus it comes with a song similarly to Sans from Undertale.

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Though as I mentioned earlier, Sakurai kind of went in slightly further into DLC with the announcement of 6 more DLC characters for the 2nd Fighters Pass bringing the total to 12 DLC characters!  No announcement, but it seems there’ll be more space as the date says it should be done in December 31 of 2021.  Curious to see what this pass will be about that’s for sure.

 

SEE YOU WHEN WAVE 2 BEGINS!

Tsubaki Factory – Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma/Dakishimerarete Mitai January 15, 2020

Track Listing

1. Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma
2. Dakishimerarete Mitai
3. Nineteen no Shinkirou (Reg A only)
4. Hair up Sora e! (Reg B only)
5. Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma (Instrumental)
6. Dakishimerarete Mitai (Instrumental)
7. Nineteen no Shinkirou (Instrumental)

1. Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma

As the leading A-side of the single, Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma is kind of an odd one for me because it does start off like a ballad (with similar piano skips like in Momosu’s “Toki wo Koe Sora wo Koe”.  At least that part is nice and I really love Kishimon’s high notes in the pre-chorus.  Though the chorus because more upbeat and danceable that sort of reminds me of “Fuwari, Koi Dokei”.  Putting that together, it’s kind of not a memorable song for Tsubaki unfortunately and it just fees like fluff to me.

2. Dakishimerarete Mitai

The other B-side also kind of feels similar to me, especially when this reminds me of “Junjou cm”.  Not sure what the style they were going for here, but I do enjoy hearing all 9 members singing here which is always decent for me.  I think it’s also a bit of a wintry song with some of the jingling I hear through the chorus (which we already had with “Teion Yakedo”.”.  I don’t know, but this one did fare better than the leading A-side so I suppose that’s good?

3. Nineteen no Shinkirou

So if you don’t follow the group or just not in the in, Nineteen no Shinkirou is a song that was released digitally, already last year, but that was tagged as a special version primarily due to Kiki’s absence.  So on this single it’s touted as the complete version as Kiki’s returned.  The song itself hasn’t changed and the presence of Kiki really doesn’t move things as much as I expected.  It’s still a song that feels better hearing live rather than getting a studio cut.  It’s upbeat, rockin’, and full of energy, but it’s just kind of how I feel about most of these songs.

4. Hair up Sora e!

Didn’t mention this but the single is split into editions of course and Regular A had “Nineteen no Shinkirou” while Regular B came with this track!  I’m pretty surprised it took them this long, but this song is the ending theme to the TROLLS cartoon in Japan (if you recall, “Mou Saikou!” was the opening theme).  I do prefer this over the aforementioned as it’s not as super girly and the kind of danceable feel mixed with the ~buhhh-da-daah~ is really nice.  Though it does feel like it repeats a lot.  Still, I dug it.

 

 

I’m gonna say it, but this is probably my least favorite single out of Tsubaki Factory so far.  When the TROLLS song ends up being my favorite out of the single it’s definitely a problem.  Ishiki Takai Otome no Dilemma and Dakishimerarete Mitai really don’t bring anything new to the table and they just feel like safe songs that really didn’t make them stand out (especially since it’s been almost a year since their last single, “Sankaime no Date Shinwa/Fuwari, Koi Dokei”.  As for Nineteen no Shinkirou, I think it was just a bad idea to have released a Kiki-less version and then to re-update it on this single, especially since the song is kind of throw-away.  Unfortunate single here.