Rant time: Many worlds, many canons...and mine.

I'm breaking character once again to talk about something...and unfortunately, I can't ask for much interactivity on this one (though you are welcome to try). This is a rant...but a deserved one. Some of the things I am going to say might offend some people who don't like to make waves...but if I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times...that sometimes what Game Freak tells us just isn't enough.

I just finished watching a video on the issues of multiple universes in the Pokemon world by The Game Theorists; please watch this before continuing on. If anyone here says anything, I give full rights to the producers of this video for anything and everything they want, and if I get in trouble for posting this without their permission, I sincerely apologize...but I am not a YouTube presence. If they are open to it, though, I  would love to discuss this further with these people...if anyone can get me connections to them. Thousands of people have visited me in my time here; somebody is bound to know somebody. Anyways, here it is:



Now that we have that out of the way, it's time for my rant.

I completely agree with everything in this video. I am not ashamed to say that; as a scientist, I can say that everything here is perfectly sound and does, in fact, pretty much explain everything. So my problem is not with The Game Theorists at all; hell, I respect them a great for what they do. It's comforting to have other scientists out there that are trying to apply real-world science to something that is otherwise not intended to be seen realistically.

What I have a problem with is that this viewpoint, just like many that I have seen, is looking at the Pokemon universe from one direction, namely from the outside in. But that's not what I do.

I look from the inside out. That's what makes my work different, and I really don't think that this side of the coin really gets looked at much at all by serious people.

When we look at video game series like Pokemon, we are tempted to look at things from the outside; we try to take what worlds are given to us and we apply science to them as onlookers from above. These worlds are for us to explore and connect with our own world, and in doing so, we see both of these worlds in a different light. And, as shocking as it might be to some, that's how I originally looked at the Pokemon world when I started writing reports here. For the few that are still here that know me from when I first started, I sucked. My stuff was crap. It's amazing what five years of writing, rewriting, reformatting and revising can do for one's work quality.

I honestly think, though, that my viewpoint switched the moment I started writing my analyses on the 18 Pokemon types. Sure, talking about the Fire-type or the Ice-type is pretty easy for many...but the Ghost-type? The Dark-type? The fricken' Dragon-type!? Do you have any idea how ridiculous those types seem in the context of the real world? Actually, I retract that statement, because if you are a true fan, you know EXACTLY what I am talking about. I had to think differently. I had to think what they could possibly be defined by in a way that seemed realistic but nonetheless fitting for the Pokemon universe. And that's when it happened. I stopped applying science to Pokemon to explain them; I started making them real, and THEN I applied the science to them. I stopped working and thinking in terms of the real world: I started thinking as if I was a part of the actual Pokemon universe...or multiverse, as the case now seems to be.

Anyone that has read my reports on Criminal Organizations also knows this, especially in my recent work on Teams Aqua and Magma. Sure, we could have different universes where one team was the threat and not the other...but then how to explain the opposite scenario? Looking from the outside in, we simply assume that they are different universes and leave it at that. But looking from the inside out...no, that just couldn't work. Even if you knew you were in a parallel universe, you couldn't really know the events that transpired in another universe without going there...and I'll leave it at that. So what did I do? I did the unthinkable: I created a composite universe, an original canon, that includes part of each 'official' canon in order to make one universe out of two. Sure, that seems like it's too easy of a choice, but it's the fairest when you look at both sides of the situation and I think that it preserves the integrity of all stories equally.

So yes, I am sort of denying what Zinnia herself said...and yet I am not. It wasn't until I saw this video that I realized that I have done something more than just bring fair realism to the Pokemon world...I, intentionally or not, created my own canon. One that seems now to be completely broken off of the super-canon that Game Freak is piloting these days. I never sought out this goal. I wanted to do something different here and put my love of Pokemon towards something novel so I could make a few friends. Instead of remaining a hobby, it has snowballed into a career that dominates just as much time in my life as my real career as a graduate student in paleontology...and perhaps even more. I did something, and you all liked it. You kept criticizing and complimenting me on my work, and it drove me to keep on working...and it still very much does. I am thankful for all of you, because...well, you guys have made me someone special. I have never had any close friends, and for the most part, people don't really talk to me about anything other than my school work. But for the last five years, I have had all of you. You guys and girls have made my life feel like it matters outside of my work. Because of you, I have become more than just a fan. I am more than just a writer.

I am Professor Patrick Ray Wormwood, an Official Professor of Pokemon. I even have the business cards to prove it.

And for that reason, I can also say that there is probably no chance of me ever getting my work realistically published. Clearly, my canon and attempts to understands the concrete nature of the Pokemon multiverse are contradictory to those of Game Freak, and the two don't seem all that compatible. But you know what? I don't care. I'm going to keep writing and revising (just as I right now, in fact), and I'm not going to stop until the series is dead or I kick the bucket...whichever comes first. This my my...no, that's not right...

This is OUR canon. Game Freak can say what it wants, and so can everyone else, but there is another side to the Pokemon community. There is a side that doesn't just try to be a part of it; we ARE a part of it. We ARE Pokemon Trainers, Scientists, Athletes, Pokemon Rangers, Professors...this is WHO we are. And regardless of what they say, we can't just give this up when the time comes. We can't grow up. It's too late for us. Our story needs to be heard.

Hmm......well, this didn't turn out to be quite the rant I thought it would. Then again, I guess it's a good thing when an angry rant ends on a more positive note. I can't find anyone outside of here to have a serious conversation with on this subject, so I guess this is the best I can do.

While it might be a but pessimistic, I think that Game Freak is doing all of this because we asked too many questions. We demanded an answer, and they gave us one...

But for some of us, it isn't enough. So we make out own canon, create our own worlds, and do with them as we see fit. That is the ultimate power of the fan, and I hope that never dies. And I hope even more that maybe, someday, if we ever get the chance, we'll get those in power to listen to our side of the story and maybe give us a chance to prove that there is more than one way to live in this world...

Alright, I've yakked for long enough. Shout out to The Game Theorists: keep on trucking scientists, you're making life easier every day for those of us embedded in more than one reality. I will continue to update my material when possible, though school starts in a few days, so I can't promise a ton of activity. Hopefully I've made a point somewhere in here and have not just written a lot of gobbledygook as a tired man dying to get some sleep.

This is Professor Wormwood, signing out and wishing you a good day.