When I was a ten year old – maybe even a five year old – I wanted to be a Pokémon master. I’m twenty-eight now, and, to be honest, I still want to be one.
Pokémon has been around for 25 years, which is nothing short of incredible, and it’s still going strong. I no longer watch the anime (I fell off sometime around Hoenn and never got back into it), but the games are still consistently fun, so I still play (and replay) them to this day. I started with Pokémon Blue, followed swiftly by Yellow (and I had the special Pikachu Gameboy Color) and have played all generations ever since, with the exception of Black and White 2. Some adults may think it’s lame to still like a franchise that aimed more toward children, but I’m still a Pokémon fan, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon – like many, I was super thrilled with the announcement of the Diamond and Pearl remakes for the Switch coming later this year. Heck, I can probably still recite the Poke Rap!
Ever since the first generation, I always pick the water starters – a lvl. 100 Empoleon with Pokerus is one of my prized companions. Johto is my favorite region, though Sinnoh and Galar both make a strong case for second, and Kaanto is up there as well. My favorite legendary is Ho-oh, favorite game is HeartGold, and favorite Gym Leader is Sabrina, then Faulkner. Like all good Pokémon fans, especially those of us who remember the OG 151 Pocket monsters, I also have a dream team, and to celebrate Pokémon’s 25th anniversary, I thought I’d share my trainer card!
Here’s to 25 years of Pokémon – and, hopefully, 25 more to come!
Frostwritten 