GEMUZINE

Pokmon 20th Anniversary

POKEMON

20TH ANNIVERSARY
20 Memories for 20 Years of Pokmon.

01

5 Life Lessons Ive Learned From Pokmon.

09

Reflections on 20 Years of Pokmon.

18

Designed. Sonny Nguyen

2016 Brigham Young UniversityIdaho, ADVANCE TYPOGRAPHY 2016 Sonnykun

001/020

PUBLISHING
GEMUZINE
Imprint
Editor
Sonny Nguyen
Art Direction
BYUI Design Society
Designers
Sonny Nguyen
Ash Ketchum
Misty Kasumi
Brock Takeshi
Tracey Sketchit
Publisher
Brigham Young University-Idaho
525 S Center St, Rexburg, ID
83460 United States
Typefaces
Annon
Dimitri Swank
Futura
Futura Extra Bold
Microgamma Dot
Pocket Monsters
Pokemon DPPt
Pokemon Solid
Unown
Paper
Coated 90 GSM
Glossy Cover

All rights are reserved

No part of this publication may
be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical,

photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of Gemuzine Publishing Ltd.
Authors
Mat Ombler
Patricia Hernandez
Brittany Vincent
Nintendo Life Staff
Brandon Bui
Sources
http://www.highsnobiety.
com/2016/02/28/20-bestpokemon-memories/
http://kotaku.com/the-original151-pokemon-ranked-1758520358
http://kotaku.com/five-lifelessons-ive-learned-frompokemon-1209329670
http://www.nintendolife.com/
news/2016/02/feature_reflections_on_20_years_of_pokemon
http://gamerpros.
co/looking-back-future-pokemon-20th-anniversary/
http://www.pokemon20.com/enus/timeline.html
https://projectpokemon.org/forums/showthread.php?5799-Essential-Pokemon-related-Fonts

POKEDEX
001 20 MEMORIES
006 ORIGINAL 151
007 LIFE LESSONS
014 REFLECTIONS
018 LOOKING BACK
AND THE FUTURE

20

1996
FEB
On February 27,
Pokmon Red and
Pokmon Green for Game
Boy launch in Japan.

MEMORIES FOR
YEARS OF POKMON
BY MAT OMBLER

his weekend the Pokmon franchise celebrates its 20th anniversary. Stop and think
about that for a moment and feel old (we
certainly do).

In the two decades since those little monsters

first burst out of their spherical prisons ready to
do battle, the Pokmon brand has taken the world
by storm. The clever original concept has somehow ballooned into an entertainment franchise bigger than almost anything the world has ever seen,
encompassing more than 75 video games, over 800
TV episodes, 22 movies, countless thousands of
trading cards, stickers, collectible figures and a
hilarious amount of unnecessary merchandise. In
fact, Pokmon frontman (front monster?) Pikachu
could arguably rival Mickey Mouse as the worlds
most recognized cartoon mammal.
While the Pok bandwagon still shows absolutely zero sign of slowing down (raising doubts over
whether one can, in fact, ever truly catch em
all) were taking this moment to celebrate where
it all started with a roundup of 20 moments every
true OG Pok-fan can relate to.

CHOOSING

OOO
YOUR FIRST STARTER
POKMON

Were not exaggerating when we say that, for a

child of eight, this was one of the most difficult
decisions youd ever had to make in your lifetime.
20 years on, and not much has come close since.
Maybe you chose Charmander and spent the next
couple of hours regretting your decision, frantically searching for a decent replacement after realizing the first two gym leaders use Rock and Water Pokmon. Maybe you picked Squirtle, because
youre a pro and know that cute looks can pack
a mean punch. Or maybe you picked Bulbasaur, because you love salad.
Either way, that decision stays with you through
the rest of your life.

1997
APR
The animated Pokmon
TV series is introduced
in Japan.

NOV
Mew is available via
distribution at Nintendos
Space World in Tokyo..

REALIZING
THAT MAGIKARP

EVO

LV

Upon finding out that harmless Magikarp

eventually evolves into the almighty Gyarados at level 20, you would spend hours leveling up via a painstaking process of waving it
in front of enemies to gain experience before
swapping out for your real battle Pokmon.
The effort it took was enough to bring most
people to tears, but boy was it worth it.

GETTING YOUR VERY FIRST

POKMON CARD
From the moment Pokmon cards entered
the playgrounds of schools around the
world, no kids pocket money was safe.
What no doubt began as a harmless hobby would soon snowball into an addiction
bordering on Class A narcotic severity, often manifesting in some truly harsh
life lessons on human nature. Still, nothing came close to the rush you felt when
you unwrapped a fresh booster pack to reveal the glint of a new metallic foil card.

ES

TRADING VIA A LINK

CABLE

If you dont know what a link cable

is, you didnt grow up with Pokmon.
Long before the days of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or even broadband internet,
Pokmon trading was done with friends
using a link cabl Some Pokmon only
ever evolved through trade, and discovering this for the first time as you
fired over a Kadabra to a friend was a
monumental discovery.

PURPOSELY CATCHING

T ER RI BL E

POKMON TO LEARN HMS

Lets face it: no Pokmon can learn
Flash and be taken seriously.
Youve got four move slots and, with
the exception of Surf, every HM
is pretty much useless in battle. No
one wants a level 65 Charizard thats
still using cut as one of its final
moves, which is why you catch yourself a little minion to stick all your
HMs in, only to be called upon when
you need to light up a cave.

CATCHING YOUR FIRST

LEGENDARY POKMON
You learn Surf, and suddenly
realize that the bed of water on
Route 10 leads you to Zapdos. Discoveries like these made Pokmon
amazing. The only hard part was
catching them usually achieved
through a vigorous combination of
saving, turning the game off and on
again, slinging ultra balls and hoping for the best.

HEARING THE
EXTRA VERSE IN THE
MAIN POKMON THEME

Spoiler Alert: Ash doesnt become champion in the Pokmon

league (not surprising for a
someone who was given his first
badge out of pity and seems to
possess almost no talent as
a trainer whatsoever). Conventional anime rules dictate
that shit is getting really sewhen the main theme song
ACCIDENTALLY USING THE rious
is played during an episode
especially over the top of an
emotional flashback sequence
MASTER BALL
and thats exactly what hapBefore you became aware of the pened in this crucial, crushing
fact that Master Ball was giv- episode. So many feels.
en its name for the very reason
that it cannot fail in capturing
any Pokmon, it was way too easy
to accidentally use it if you found
yourself running out of regular
Pok balls. Cue much swearing.

POKMON SNAP!

You
play as
a take
photographer
and
photos
of Pokmon
doing
stuff.
paSEEING YOUR POKMON IN per the lamestOnvideo
pitchbut
since
PaFOR THE FIRST TIME game
per
Boy,
in
rePokmon
Snap
The Pokmon Stadum ality
was
actually
amazing.
titles for the N64 allowed you to Thanks to its vibrant
transfer your Pokmon from the color, varied locaGame Boy and bring them to life tions and uniquely
on the big screen. Not only that, quirky gameplay mebut you could use the transfer chanics, it ended up
pack to play your Game Boy tiunorthodox,
unextles on your TV screen too. See- an
pected
joy.
ing the Pokmon you had put days

3D

into training on your handheld ...............................

rendered in 3D for the first time
was really something special.

MAY
Pokmon makes its
first US appearance at
Electronic Entertainment
Expo in Los Angeles.

.........THE OLD MAN,

HIS COFFEE AND THAT

MISSINGNO. GLITCH

SEP
Red and Pokmon Blue
are released for Game
Boy on September 28.

Pokmon Pikachu, a
pocket virtual pet, is
released.

Missingno.

NOV

r i o u s
glitched,
wild Pokmon
known as

The Pokmon animated

TV series is introduced
on September 5 in North
America with the episode
PokmonI Choose
You!

Through a series of specific actions and

movements, it
was possible to
trigger a glitch
that could allow you to duplicate items, encounter Pokmon
over the level cap of 100,
and also stumble on a myste-

Catching it
meant playing with fire,
as it could
cause a lot
of weird effects to oc-

2000

cur in
includi n g
data.
stop a
a s s

your game,
ing corruptyour save
That didnt
lot of badkids doing it,
though.

POKMON YELLOW
The game that hugged you, and promised that you
didnt need to have friends to own all three starter Pokmon. Emulating the success of the TV series, it was cool to see your little buddy Pikachu
walking behind you and even cooler that you could
interact with him. The ability to capture all three
starter Pokmon so early on in the game also made
you a hilariously potent force to be reckoned with.

REVISITING KANTO IN
GOLD, SILVER, AND CRYSTAL
So youve just completed Pokmon Gold. An awesome experience, made even more amazing by the
fact you essentially get to start an entirely new
game after youre thrown back to Kanto from the
first Pokmon series. This added huge replay value to the game, and was a nostalgia overload as
you revisited old gym leaders to discover theyre
more powerful than before, with even stronger,
more evolved Pokmon.

THE FIRST POKMON MOVIE

Preceded by an animated short that was cute
enough to give even Pixar a run for their money,
the first Pokmon movie was a huge box office success. Mewtwo plays the role of an evil tyrant who
wants to take over the world, and ends up killing
Ash in the process. Youre probably lying if you
said a part of you didnt enjoy that a little bit,
and mega props if you made multiple trips to the
cinema to collect all the promotional cards you got
for buying a ticket.

BEATING THE ELITE FOUR ROCKETS HIDEOUT

floor tiles. Sweet merciful crap, those floor
AND FINISHING THE GAME Those
tiles. The source of all frustration in the original
Sweet victory. You needed a decent team to
get through the Elite Four, and the amateurs
who spent the entire game leveling up just one
Pokmon soon saw the errors of their ways. Unless, of course, youre a professional speed runner blitzing through the game with a Nidoking. In
that case, well done.

OWNING A MEW
Nowadays, it may not seem like much of an achievement, but back then, Mew could only be obtained
through going to real life special events or at
specific in-store locations. Or you could cheat,
and use a Gameshark pack but were not counting that kind of n00b behaviour.

games, as you accidentally stepped on the wrong

floor tile for the 10th time in a row, made all the
more painful by the harrowing dissonance of the
music playing over the top. Were pretty sure this
experience contributed to a large number of psychotic episodes in later life.

CATCHING THE FIRST 150

Or 151, if you include Mew and you were lucky
enough to pick him up at a special event. Catching
em all certainly took a long time, and you had to
be lucky enough to have friends who were willing to
help out through the monotonous routine of trading and training, but literally NOTHING says Playground Master like that completed Pokdex. True
commitment never felt so good..

MILTANK AND THE WHITNEY GYM BATTLE

Probably the most frustrating gym leader in
Pokmon history, especially when youre under 10
years of age. Whitney repeatedly uses rollout,
which can easily lead to your entire party being
wiped out again and againand again. Perhaps the
only rage quit-worthy moment in Pokmon.

THE POKMON MUSIC

The songs from the Pokmon series are so cheesy
that theyve surpassed the point of being bad. If
you were one of those people who somehow found
yourself owning the Pokmon soundtrack, youre
probably about as familiar with all the words to
the Pokmon Rap as you are to the Fresh Prince of
Bel Air theme. And we think thats cool. Sort of

1999

Kingler
Spearow
Weezing Cloyster
Tentacool

Paras Goldbat
Electrode
Magneton Magnemite
Voltorb
Zubat

Oddish

Goldeen

Seaking Tauros

Fearow

JAN
Fans discover a new way
to play with their favorite
Pokmon when the
Pokmon Trading Card
Game debuts with the
launch of the Base Set.

APR
Super Smash Bros. is
released for Nintendo
64 on April 26 with
Pikachu and Jigglypuff as
playable characters.

JUN
Pokmon Pinball is
released for Game Boy
Color on June 28.
Pokmon Snap lets players go on a photography
safari for wild Pokmon
when it is released for
Nintendo 64 on June 30.
Pokmon Yellow: Special

OCT
Pikachu Edition, along
with a limited-edition
Pokmon Game Boy Color,
is released on October 1.

NOV
Pokmon: The First Movie
debuts in theaters with
the highest box office
opening to date for an
animated movie

Muk

Raticate Dugtrio

Kabuto
Parasect DrowseeKrabby

Jynx Hypno

Seel

Metapod Kakuna
Caterpie Weedle

Eevee
Bellsprout

Doduo
Horsea Dodrio

Tentacruel Golduck
Golem Vileplume

Venonat Venomoth

Dewgong Poliwag
Staryu
Persian Bulbasaur

Graveler Arbok
Machop

M
Chansey Gloom

WigglytuffN
Poliwhirl Macho
Starmie Shelld

Magmar Sead
Tangela
ExeggutorVap
10

THE ORIGINAL 151 POKMON,

RANKED WORST TO BEST

Mew Poryg
Raichu
Gengar
Dragonit
Mewtwo

Charizar
Nidokin
Magikarp
Lapr
m Kabutops
Cubo
NidoransRattata
oke EkansIvysaur
derZapdos
Omastar
dra Ditto Pidgey
poreonVenusaur

11

2000

five
Life
lessons

FEB
Players are treated to
Pokmon in 3D for the first
time when Pokmon Stadium is released for Nintendo
64 on February 29.

APR
Pokmon Trading Card
Game is released for Game
Boy Color on April 10,
giving players a chance to
play the card game against
virtual opponents.

JUL

IVE
LEARNED
FROM
POKMON

The Legendary Pokmon

Lugia makes its first appearance when Pokmon
the Movie 2000 debuts.

SEP
The third season of the
animated Pokmon TV
series, airs on Kids WB!

OCT
Pokmon Gold and
Pokmon Silver lead
players into the Johto
region when they are
released for Game Boy
Color on October 15.

SEP
Hey You, Pikachu! is
released for Nintendo 64
on November 6.

BY BRITTANY VINCENT
12

truth
I

ve grown up rather fondly, I might add

with Pokmon. Over the years the several
different hundreds of pocket monsters have
become my dear friends. Simply settling into a
new game (like Ive recently done with Black) is
a comfort to me. In a tumultuous, changing world,
I find solace in the fact that while the games have
metamorphosed over the years, whittling down
a health bar or throwing a Pok Ball havent
changed. When so many things I cant control refuse to stay the same, these smaller precious memories become infinitely more dear to me.
Of course, this phenomenon hasnt been around
forever. When I was in elementary school, the
craze hadnt yet been fully realized. I was the
weird pigtailed nerdling recruiting trainers to
battle via vending machine capsules (Pok Balls)
and the piece of paper inside illustrated with a
stick-figure Pokmon. Wed shout out attacks and
carry anything we could find in our backpacks
that even slightly resembled the illustrious red and
white globes. Several trainers defected to Team
Rocket and would hassle us at recess. I decided to
call myself Jessie and my buddy Jamie got the honor of being James. Later in the year I researched
Robert Goddard as part of an overhead projector
assignment and the two of us somehow managed
to earn an A though we recited the Rocket motto
during the presentation. Life was good.

The years advanced and Pokmon grew with me.

My network of fellow trainers expanded into a
global organization. I didnt need to rely on Tamagotchi candy keychains or capsules to role-play.
The advent of the Pokmon games simply felt like a
natural extension of the non-video games I played
throughout school. Though I had considered myself
a gamer long before the introduction of Pokmon
Red and Blue, the day those games were announced was no less monumental.
Perhaps even as a child I knew something big was
happening. Maybe I could sense the significance
of that event; the impact one simple game could
have on my future as a gamer, an anime fan, a
geek, and as a person. The first few magical hours
I spent with Pokmon Blue (for Meowth, my favorite Pokmon) were nothing short of mindblowing. I
knew something fantastic had landed. But it wasnt
until recently that I discovered what, exactly.
Delving back into that familiar world with the re-releases that have been bestowed upon loyal fans
of late has taught me several valuable lessons: lessons that I didnt realize were being taught all of
this time, and some that are so relevant to this point
in my life that its scary. I dont intend to create
meaning where there surely is none, but Im putting
fingers to the keyboard today to share the life lessons that Ive learned (and am still getting down)
from the wonderful world of Pokmon.

13

1.

2001
MAR
Pokmon Stadium 2 is
released for Nintendo 64
on March 28.

APR
Pokmon 3 the Movie,
featuring the mysterious
Unown, debuts on April 6.

JUL
Pokmon Crystal is
released for Game Boy
Color on July 29.

SEP
Pokmon: Johto League
Champions, the fourth season of Pokmon animation,
has its TV premiere.

DEC
Super Smash Bros.
Melee is released on
December 2. This is Pikachus first appearance
on Nintendo GameCube.

Being an overachiever is in no way a bad thin

imply squeaking by has never been the

trademark of successful individuals. In
school, I resented the fact that I could
read earlier than my fellow students, and that my
teachers asked me to complete book reports on
Marie Curie or Clara Barton while my classmates
gathered on the square carpet and participated
in reading aloud from our colorful storybooks. I
couldnt understand why I should have to work
so hard just because I was capable of doing it.
Alienation wasnt something I appreciated, and I
definitely felt it when my teacher, Mrs. McGraw,
would announce to the class that I would not be
joining them in their egg-shell-in-a-glass-of-Coke
experiment analysis, that I was busy with a book
report and did not need to be bothered. It frustrated me. It enraged me. Most of all, my feelings
were hurt. I just wanted to be the same, to squeak
by with forgetting my homework or fudging some
incorrect reading comprehension questions. I was
lazy and began spelling words I knew full well
were wrong just to try to prove to my teachers that
I needed time to learn, too, and that I didnt want
to do all of that extra work.
Coincidentally, around that time, I found myself
running into trouble in Pokmon. Id try to face
Pokmon gym leaders having only battled when
absolutely necessary, flee from duplicated wild encounters, and try to coast through the game with my
overpowered starter monster. I didnt see the point
in wasting time on Pidgeys, Rattatas, and Caterpies
when adventure was waiting around the corner. So
when I met up with Misty, who fought water with
my water (Squirtle), I was in a bit of a quandary. I
couldnt comprehend why my Squirtle wasnt doing
the job all by himself, and why Misty was pummeling me with that darn Starmie. My initial approach
to change the outcome of the battle was to simply
stock up on potions and run in guns blazing. And
just as you can imagine, I failed miserably.

14

I tried the impossible after that: I leveled my

Pokmon team equally, grinding level to level even
though the repetition bored me to tears. I ensured
that every single member of my team was fully capable, level-wise, of tackling Misty, even if it meant
they were criminally overleveled. When Starmie
fell to my Pidgeotto, I was floored, overjoyed, in
the way that only you can be after taking out a
particularly austere boss. And it dawned on me:
what if my parents, teachers, and the rest of the
adults in my life were right? What if they saw potential in me and were preparing me for that great
boss battle that we know as life? After those days,
my overachieving didnt seem like too much of an
issue anymore. In fact, I saw it as a necessity, and
something that Id continue to uphold throughout
the rest of my school days despite the teasing from
friends who considered me a nerd or a teachers
pet, or those who assumed I was doing more than
every`one else for attention. I enjoyed the praise
from faculty and especially my parents, but they
didnt know I was a workhorse because I just wanted to be prepared.
These days I waver, with all of the responsibilities
I attempt to take on, and Ive worked myself away
from the overachiever I grew up as. But as I run
into real-world issues that I need to tackle, I find
myself reliving that battle with Misty, and forcing
myself to complete everything I need to, and more,
even if theres a little repetition involved. Breezing
through the game didnt earn me that Cascade
Badge. Its not going to make me a professional
journalist, either.
For reminding me that working harder than hard is
integral to success, I have Pokmon to thank.

ng.

2.

Being BAD might be cool, but it

wont get you where you want to be.
ts almost universal knowledge that I havent always been a savory individual.
Heck, Im still not. I fed on controversy
and being an angry annoyance and the anonymous call-you-out-in-the-hallway-for-being-adouche voice you heard in school. I didnt get
along well with others. Thats a road Im still
trying to pave, improving human relations. Being a rebel was always more appealing to me.
Doing bad, speaking out, and most importantly, looking ten kinds of awesome were more important than earning anyones trust, approval,
or friendship.

Koffings, and earn little experience to show for

it? They were the in-game Buzz Killingtons. Did
they even have friends of their own except their
fellow Rockets? They never exuded anything
but disgusting overconfidence along with, Im
sure, some unsavory smells. While they might
have looked in the mirror and seen a cool, confident organization with goals surpassing that
of any mere trainer, those of us looking in from
the outside were laughing, and not along with
them. Perhaps they were a successful and influential organization in their own right, but never
to the ones who mattered most.

This worked for me for several years. I happily

coasted through life with no regard for the repercussions of my actions. Because being cool
was way more important being the outcast,
the voice of the under-represented. Being a
jerk was fun, and as long as I was a jerk to
the right people it worked. In return, though,
what has it ever gotten me? Universal dislike.
The loss of respect from peers I have wanted
nothing but to get along with. Its gotten me
into plenty of hairy situations, and the bad kind
of experience that I wouldnt wish on anyone.

Through several incidents and words from

friends, Ive had to to learn that hard lesson
myself, to drop how cool I want to be from
being a complete rhymes-with-Witch in order
to get anywhere. And its a lesson you can
take away from the infamous organization
as well, especially if you find yourself headed
down that path. When the urge to transform
into a tough guy hits, ask yourself: Is this going to land me that Pikachu? Chances are, no.
No, its not. Will it get you a one-way ticket to
a punch into next Tuesday, hatred from your
peers, and a solitary road to a destination you
think youre entitled to? Meowth, dats right.

Think about it for a second and realize that

Team Rocket has never successfully captured
Pikachu for old Giovanni. Its true. But tell me
they dont look wicked awesome doing their
motto, parading around in their coordinated
costumes, and popping off with witty quips.
Sure, they seemed like bad enough dudes, but
did they ever really succeed in their mission?
No. But we laud them anyway. And in-game,
whenever we saw members of the dreaded
Rocket gang hanging around, werent the
first things that came to mind how obnoxious
it was going to be to listen to their corny lines
of dialogue, battle their stupid Raticates and

For reminding me that being a terrible person

isnt going to get me anywhere, I have Team
Rocket to thank.

15

3.

2002
SEP
Pokmon: Master Quest,
the fifth season of
Pokmon animation, has
its TV premiere.

OCT
Pokmon 4Ever, the
fourth Pokmon movie,
debuts as a special limited release.

Cheating to get ahead will only

you in the end.

was the proud owner of a Game Genie back

in Pokmons infancy. Really, I preferred to
thumb through the tiny booklet embedded
in the back of the device rather than actually put
them to use, but I was known to cheat here and
there to get all of the Pokmon I possibly could.
I saw no harm in entering codes to capture the
elusive Mew. I was no stranger to the Cinnabar
Island trick, exploiting the infinite item glitch and
pocketing the strange Pokmon that resulted as I
surfed along Cinnabars coast. Leveling my team
to 99 was tiresome, tedious work, and when I realized an infinite amount of Rare Candies could do
the job in half the time, I knew Id have a team of
fighting-fit behemoths in no time. After that, trouncing my competition (which, back then consisted of
classmates and my cousins) would be no contest.
Ever the egomaniac, I decided all of my pocket
monsters should level to 99, no matter which one.
Despite the warnings from friends who had attempted the same item exploitation over and over
with grave results, I pressed on because that was
a fast track to success. And how would my friends
know I hadnt simply poured all of my time into the
game? They wouldnt. Id come out smelling like
roses, and earn their undying trust and respect...
or so I thought.
I can still vividly recall the day of the big
Pokmon battle, as we had coined it in our
various circles. All of my bragging was finally
going to be put to the test. Before class began
that day, I had gotten out my Game Boy to do
some last-minute tinkering. It seemed I was curiously low on Rare Candies, and a level 99
Porygon wasnt going to simply appear out of
thin air. Off I journeyed to Cinnabar Island after
painstakingly sitting through the tired old mans
schtick about catching a Weedle. Right on time,

16

hur t

Missingno. appeared, and in a moment of pure

cockiness I tossed a Master Ball and incorporated it into my party. What would they possibly
say if I won all of the battles with a Pokmon that
shouldnt even exist? At lunch that day I hurriedly began to link up with my first opponent, when
I realized I hadnt yet turned off my Game Boy
from my tinkering earlier. I decided it wasnt an
issue and proceeded to go through the necessary motions to enter the coliseum, which included saving my game.
I had already started the trash talking, Missingno.
is at his highest level, and Im gonna win, etc. I can
only imagine how corny I sounded. But I was about
to be thrown off my high horse and into a brick wall,
as my Game Boys screen grew black, as if the game
had reset itself. My first assumption was that it had
simply died. My friends crowded around the screen,
wildly excited as this was the big event of the day,
and most of them were waiting to take my place and
battle their next opponent. I turned the system back
on, hurriedly, only to discover that my save data was,
well, nonexistent.
I cried in public in the lunch room that day, and
I know I was made fun of as I ran to shove the
game in my backpack. I didnt look at it again
until I got home, where I found that saving Missingno. could result in loss of game data or several other complications. It shouldnt have come as
a surprise, as it wasnt even an entity that should
have existed in the first place. Yet I was so hellbent on being #1 that I had forgone winning the
honest and respectable way.
To this day, I wont glitch in a Pokmon game, and
I prefer to keep my methods strictly conventional. Of course, this translates into real life as well.
Throughout my 24 years of living, Ive been known
to partake in shady dealings simply to make myself

seem innocent or better than others, and when

I think back to the loss of all of that work that
I did in Pokmon (even while cheating) I am
literally sick to my stomach.
The honest journey I made to obtain all of the
Pokmon was so much longer than it needed to
be, but boy did it feel good when I finally completed the game. In the real world, these same
principles apply. You can cheat and swindle for
instant gratification, but it only takes one time
for all that youve worked to build to come tumbling down before you. And it doesnt have to
be that way. Be you, be honest. Its hard, and
something I struggle with even today taking
the easy way to victory. But its a lesson worth
learning.
For reminding me that cheaters never prosper,
I have Missingno. to thank.

4.

Dont discount the

or anyone whos ever played a Pokmon

game, this should be a no-brainer. Consider a Magikarp. Their splashing may
be worthless in the long run, but wait for them
to grow. Would you want to deal with them
when theyve fully grown up and splashing is
at the bottom of their list?

little people

in life.

Sometimes its the most insignificant people

you know who end up influencing your life the
most, and its important to give credit where
credit is due.
For reminding me never to discount the underdogs and the little people, I have Magikarp
to thank.

17

2003
MAR
Players explore the
Hoenn region and
discover awesome new
Pokmon when Pokmon
Ruby and Pokmon
Sapphire are released for
Game Boy Advance on
March 19.

AUG
Pokmon Pinball: Ruby
and Sapphire is released
for Game Boy Advance on
August 25.

SEP
Pokmon Advanced, the
sixth season of Pokmon
animation, has its TV
premiere, taking Ash and
friends into the Hoenn
region for the first time.

DEC
Pokmon Channel is
released for Nintendo
GameCube on December
1, offering a mix of
interactive and animated
features.

5.
moreee

Think your work in life is over?

Theres so much

nce upon a time, there were 151 different

pocket monsters.

Today, there are several hundred, as you can gather from the exhaustively detailed Pokedex entries
around the internet. And you thought you were a
master? Think again.
No matter how hard you work in life or how much
you accomplish, youre never going to finish bettering yourself. There are an infinite number of ways
to continually improve your life, your personality,
your living situation, and even the company you
keep. Dont settle when you think youve reached
a zenith. Theres always something more to do, a
new challenge to conquer, and a new legendary
moment waiting in life for you to tackle.
Life moves faster than the blink of an eye, and if
youre not ready for it it may just pass you by. So
realize that your work on this planet is never done
until you draw your dying breath, and keep on living and learning for yourself, your loved ones, and
for the dreams you know you cant give up on.
For reminding me that I cant just give up now, I
have Pokmon to thank.

WHAT CAN YOU THANK

POKMON FOR?

Brittany Vincent is a freelance entertainment writer who wields a

BFG made of killer ambition. Find her work at a multitude of digital and print publications like GameSpot, Complex, Maximum PC,
Japanator, and more. If you did Space Funeral, her portfolio can
be found at pfhorthewin.com. You can follow her on Twitter at @
MolotovCupcake. Hope you like Chiller.

18

eeeee
eeeee
to do.

19

2004
JAN

PREPARE FOR TROUBLE,

Pokmo Heroes, the

fifth Pokmon movie, is
released on DVD.

MAR
Pokmon Colosseum is
released for Nintendo
GameCube on March 22.

JUN
Pokmon: Jirachi Wish
Maker, the sixth Pokmon
movie, debuts.

JUL
Pokmon Box is released
for Nintendo GameCube
on July 11.

SEP
Pokmon FireRed and
Pokmon LeafGreen are
released for Game Boy
Advance on September 9.
Pokmon: Jirachi Wish
Maker, the sixth Pokmon
movie, debuts.

MAKE IT DOUBLEELBUOD

20

Double Trouble

James:
Jessie:
James:
Jessie:
Meowth:

Prepare for trouble,

Make it double,
Prepare for trouble,
Make it double.
Well be the richest rogues of all time.
Creators of a grand design.
Ill be the king.
Ill be the queen.
Ill be the joker... of crime.

Jessie:
James:
Jessie:
James:
Jessie:
James:
Jessie:
James:
Jessie:
James:
Meowth:

Prepare for trouble

Make it double
Prepare for trouble.
Make it double.
To protect the world from devastation!
To unite all peoples within our nation!
To denounce the evils of truth and love!
To extend our reach to the stars above!
Jessie!
James!
Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!
Surrender now, or prepare to fight!
Thats right!

Both:

Chorus:

Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you

Team
Rocket:

James:

Jessie:
James:
Meowth:
Chorus:

Team Rockets rockin,

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble,
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you,

James:
Chorus:
Jessie:
James:
Chorus:

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble

Were always gonna try it

No one can deny it
We can cause a riot in Sunday School
Ooh a riot!
Well have you believing
Truth can be deceiving
Team Rocket: Do unto others is our Golden Rule
This is our most ingenious plan ever, if I do say so
myself.
Even we couldnt screw this one up Jessie.
Would you two stop yappin, here they come!
Prepare for trouble
Team Rockets rockin
Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you

Prepare for trouble,

Make it double,
Prepare for trouble
Prepare for trouble,
Make it double
Make it double,
Were Team Rocket and we fight for whats wrong
For mayhem and madness and rare Pokmon.
Im so gorgeous
Im always the man
Giovanni: Youre just the players in my master plan

Were gonna capture Pikachu

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big trouble
Gonna capture Pikachu

Team Rockets rockin,

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble,
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you,
Team Rocket: Were gonna capture Pikachu.

Jessie:

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big trouble
Gonna capture Pikachu

Team
Rocket:

Team Rockets rockin

Talkin trouble, walkin trouble
Double trouble, big troubles gonna follow you
Looks like Team Rockets blasting off again!

21

2005

Gengar
is a dark purple,
bipedal Pokmon with a
roundish body. It has red eyes and
a wide mouth that is usually curled into
a sinister grin. Multiple spikes cover its
back, and it has large pointed ears. Its arms
and legs are short with three digits on both its
hands and feet. It also has a stubby tail.
As Mega Gengar, a portion of its body sinks into
the ground. The lower portions turn a more
reddish purple, and a third eye appears on its
forehead. This new unblinking eye is oval,
yellow, and allows it to see into other
dimensions. Its ears are now considerably longer and project
backward.

FEB
Pokmon: Destiny Deoxys, the seventh Pokmon
movie, premieres on
Kids WB.

MAR
Pokmon Dash is the
first Pokmon game to
be released for Nintendo
DS when it launches on
March 13.

Gengar has
the ability to hide perfectly in
the shadow of any object, granting it
exceptional stealth. However, Gengars body
acts as a heat sink. Its presence cools the temperature of the surrounding area
by nearly 10F, because it absorbs the warmth. In addition, Gengar possesses the
ability to fly through the air, as demonstrated in the anime.
Gengar is very mischievous, and at times, malicious. It enjoys playing practical
jokes and casting curses, such as pretending to be ones shadow, then behaving
erratically. When the quarry notices, the Gengar takes delight in its victims
terror.

MAY
Pokmon: Advanced
Battle, the eighth season
of Pokmon animation,
has its TV premiere.

SEP
Pokmon Dash is the
first Pokmon game to
be released for Nintendo
DS when it launches on
March 13.

GENGAR

OCT
Pokmon XD: Gale of
Darkness is released for
Nintendo GameCube on
October 3.

22

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