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Ask the Staff

Doctor Oak

Staff member
Overlord
Do you have a question about the site? Got something you've always wanted to know about a certain staff member? Do you just want to get to know us a bit better? Well now's your chance. Here we have the revival of the popular 'Ask the Staff' topic :D

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You can ask a question aimed at one member of staff in particular, or one aimed at all of us. We'll do our best to answer. For anyone who is unfamiliar with the staff, you can find a handy little list of all of us here.

So, if there's anything you'd like to ask the staff, fire away. We won't bite well maybe a little~
 
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*yawns out of sheer boredom and slumps lower in her computer applications seat*

Alright, allow me to summon some random question out of nothing-ness....


In the Pokmon anime, as it progressed, did the quality get any better? Not a personal question, but I just caught a tiny bit of a preview for one of the episodes, and quickly noted that Ash has a new voice actor. Along with the better graphics (compare Pikachu from the first episoe and the newest ones...I see a difference..maybe it's just me. :-\), mayhaps it's getting better.

Although I still prefer manga, where commercial jive can't destroy public opinions of a series. Probably why I just watch anime that hasn't come out in Elngglish yet.

Anyways, has the quality and overall worthiness-of-watching gotten better since the frist episodes?
 
Even if this is "ask the staff", Alex did say that the questions were open for discussion, so I'd like to tell the burning fox my opinion, seeing as I have quite a big interest in the anime!

First, here's a brief overview of how I feel the show has changed throughout the years:

I don't know exactly how much of the anime you've seen but a lot has happened. The first season (I'm counting the indigo league as one season, even if I believe it was aired as two) was excellent in my opinion. The second season (orange islands) didn't have the same overall quality as the first one (mainly because it was a filler season), but it still had that "Pokémon feel" to it.
Once Ash got to Johto, certain things started changing (at least in my opinion). Mainly, it lost part of that original feel that the first seasons had. Of course, since I started watching it during the first season, it might just be nostalgia that gave me that impression; someone who started watching during the johto seasons would perhaps say the opposite. I could name other subtle differences but I'm trying not to drag this on forever.

It really changed direction in Hoenn however. They switched to making the drawings and animations on computers, instead of paper, which increased the image quality, but again distanced it from the original. The background music, theme music etc. also completely changed (although it had been doing this during johto as well), most likely as a result of adjusting to the new decade. Team rocket got a new motto, Ash got new clothes, Misty was dropped... Basically, the show wasn't really the same any more

Today with the new voice actors, it feels very different. The voice actors have improved since they started, btw. and they are almost acceptable now. I think everyone has their complaints about them, but they're sounding better and better with each episode (although I still say Ash got stupider since the new VA's. He sounds like a surfer or something :p)
The story telling technique, battles, etc. have only improved over the years though, and the quality of the individual episodes have gone up.

Now is the show better than before? Technically, I'd say definitely. Story wise, I'd say yes as well. Personally though, it feels like it's gotten worse, mainly because it doesn't feel like the same show anymore. You might feel the opposite though, seeing as you had complaints about the way it was before.

I can only tell you one more thing: I fell in love with the anime when I was visiting my grandparents in the states back in the day. I woke up early (it was like 6.15 am) and "Kanghaskan kid" was on Kids WB. I was instantly captivated, and later had a lot of trouble adjusting to the Pokémon free world back in Sweden. then it eventually came to Sweden, and I followed it there.
During my next visit to the states, I saw the episode were Ash rescues Chikorita in a blizzard. The episode reminded me of another episode from season one; This gave me the impression that they were copying the plot of one episode into the other, the only diffrence being that they slapped on one of the new johto Pokémon which I hadn't seen in Sweden. I got "kinda" dissapointed and stopped watching the show (although never at heart) until a bit over a year ago. Since then I have been catching up (and succeeded in mid September) to everyone else; and I realize the worst mistake I ever made was to leave the anime in the first place. So think about giving it another shot, so you won't end up miserable like me! :p

Anyway, sorry if the post is crummy or anything. I've got a test tomorrow and I just wanted to say something before going off to slumberworld XD
 
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Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
Alright, here's my very long winded (edit: and ye gods this ended up long XD), honest opinion on the Anime, and there's no real science behind it. If others don't agree, good for them. They can answer for themselves. Yeah, you said it's not a personal question, but for me it more or less is. There are reasons why I personally enjoy it and watch it. And if you read through this ramble, you shall see why. Kinda ^^;

The thing that really drew me into the Anime originally was because it was a mix of a few of my favourite things: Anime, and animals/monsters. Safe to say, the same formula is also what drew me into the games: RPGs and animals/monsters. I was pretty much hooked immediately: taped the first episode, rewatched it again straight after, and repeatedly listened to the intro over and over again until I'd memorized it. Back then, the show could do no wrong. I loved the corniness, the plots were decent, the battles were awesome, and it was just fun seeing all the different Pokemon in Anime form.

So, time went on. Didn't love the constant reruns, but I still loved the show. When the Orange Islands started and Brock left I was a bit bugged, but I soon got over it. I personally LOVED the Orange League - possibly more than the Indigo League on a whole. Still love it, too (recently started rewatching the Orange Island episodes and they're just as good as I remember).

Johto Journeys was my first real "meh" moment with the series. I think it's a mixture of reasons really. G/S couldn't hold my attention, so I didn't have that extra source fueling me to watch. The beginning of the show also felt very repetitive, most likely because it was back to the standard "main series" formula while the Orange Islands had really broken out of that mold. Then there was the slow transition into Ash's new team. Yeah, I didn't particularly want to see the Kanto Pokemon go, but it was inevitable. Very obviously inevitable. I'm truly surprised how long they kept Bulbasaur around for because it was more or less pointless (and that's funny coming from me because I love Bulbasaur to pieces). Ash just didn't need two Grass Pokemon.

Maybe this is why I loved the start of Hoenn so much. It immediately sent all of Ash's Johto Pokemon away, leaving him with only Pikachu to start and rebuild in the new region. I won't say Johto was all bad, though. It had its moments, and by the time Johto League Champions had rolled around I was heavily interested in the show again (thank "Wired for Battle" for that feat). "Fly me to the Moon", one of the first MQ episodes, is STILL one of my all-time favourite Pokemon episodes.

Anyways, I'm gonna emphasis how I "loved the start" of Hoenn. I truly did. We had two new characters join the cast, Ash DIDN'T get all the starters as usual, and Contests had been introduced which, very unlike the games, were actually pretty cool. I was also watching the show in Japanese for the first time, and there's no denying the impact that had on my early Hoenn enjoyment. It was just different, and for a show that repetitive different was a good thing.
As Hoenn went on though... Well, it was the opposite of Johto IMO. While Johto got better as it went, Hoenn seemed to get worse. Maybe it's because we were getting the same rehashed plots for the third time now, or the fact that Max had outstayed his pointless welcome. It certainly wasn't Ash's Pokemon - if anything, they were the highlight of the series. I really enjoyed the fact that they evolved the majority of his team. It always seemed odd how most of his championship opponents had fully evolved Pokemon and Ash heavily lacked in 'em. There was no reason for that.
One thing Hoenn kinda skimped on, though, was the amount of Pokemon Ash caught in total. He only had five Hoenn Pokemon. Yeah, I was all for him not using his previous region Pokemon for the Hoenn League, but it would've been much better if he'd had a few extras to swap in. Not that the league battles still didn't rock. Repetitive Pokemon choices aside, I found them overall better than the majority of Johto's league matches.

Now, can't really comment on how Battle Frontier has been dealt with by the dub. I've only seen the first few episodes of it that were dubbed by 4Kids, and the majority have all been quite good. When it comes to that season, the Japanese Anime is mostly what I go off of, and seriously... it rocked. Hard. Compared to the second half of the Hoenn saga, Battle Frontier was a breath of fresh air. It was like the Orange Islands all over again. As great as it is meeting a new Pokemon every episode, the episodes that don't revolve around that always seem better. Better quality plots n' such. I think that's one of the main reasons why I enjoyed both of the non-gym league seasons so much.

But here's the catch. So far, DP has -not- focused every episode around meeting a new Pokemon, instead opting for a feel that seems more like the Battle Frontier episodes. Maybe it's because there's a serious lack of new Pokemon this gen. If so, not complaining at all. It's too early to say if this new season will keep up the momentum, but it's definitely off to a great start.

So... uh. Yeah. Has the show gotten better? I'd say yes, because Battle Frontier was an awesome season and DP is shaping up to be just as good. That's very much on the short-term, though. Overall, the series has had its ups and downs, and it'll always have a distinct rehashed feel since it is aimed at kids and promoting the games, but I've always relatively enjoyed it. Enough to keep watching, at least. Maybe it's because the main reasons I watch it at all is to see the various Pokemon and experience some cool battles. The show is familiar to me, it's light/laid back and fun (thus a good thing to unwind to), and there are a lot of repetitive aspects of it I've come to accept and even enjoy. Namely, Team Rocket. You get rid of TR, you kill the show - simple as that. Anyone who doesn't love those three by now is taking the show way too seriously :p And Pikachu. They're never gonna get rid of Pikachu. Deal with it. Accept it. EMBRACE THE PIKA!

Really, the show still retains a bit of that "can do no wrong" feeling for me because it is, after all, Pokemon. There are times it drives me insane - times I wonder WTF the writers were smoking - but still, for the reasons that I enjoy it, I'll probably always keep on enjoying it. Unless both the show and games become really boring, like what happened to me during Johto Journeys. But hey, I bounced back from that. Probably could easily do it again, too.

Now, compared with something like Pokemon Adventures, the Anime doesn't even come close. If they made an OAV out of that I'd be ecstatic ;D But again, I've come to accept why the Anime is the way it is, and I'm cool with that. While I'd like to see something at the quality of the manga, I wouldn't want to see it take the place of the current series (hence why I say OAV). I'm just not ready to let go of Ash n' the crew ^^;
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
I'm bored, and it seems my uber long Anime ramble killed this topic XP So...

What are your guys' favourite Eevee evolutions, and why? *Jerks thumb at her latest poll* You could always just vote there, too ;)

Also, did any of you ever draw/sprite your own versions of a Grass or Ice form? If so, how do Leafia and Glacia compare?
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
I personally don't actually. I like the majority of gen 3 Pokemon better than gen 2, and even now I find that many of my favourites come from gen 1. Gen 2 does contain some of my top favourites (Heracross, Houndoom, Lugia, Suicune, Crobat, Amphy, Steelix, etc.), as every gen does, but if I ranked them from most liked collection to least...

Gen 1 > Gen 3 > Gen 2 > Gen 4 (though this may change once I get to train the Pokemon)

Like you said, give it three years. Then I'll see what I think about gen 4's collection overall =)
 

StellarWind Elsydeon

Armblades Ascendant
Staff member
Administrator
The Sphere-Gen of all things? >>

Gen 2 was Okay. It was full of too many useless ball-shaped creatures for my tastes, but it did have a few of my top favorites...

I don't think there's much point to compare. Each region had a different 'feel' to the design of its PokéMon. And every gen had a few awesome creatures and a few that are downright outlandish...
 
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Doctor Oak

Staff member
Overlord
I like all the Generations pretty much equally. The first, obviously, has special nostalgia attached to it, but there are Pokemon that I love and Pokemon that I'm meh about in each Generation. For example, I'm rather meh about Pinsir, Dunsparce, Igglybuff, Cleffa, Sunkern, Luvdisc, The Regis, and from D/P, Gible. I guess the fact that G/S Pokemon make up half of that list is a bit telling, but meh.
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
I do. Whether I actually use my Serebii account is another question, though. Short answer, no. Haven't touched it in close to a year. That said... I've barely posted with my Bulba forums account either, and that one I've had since mid '05.
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
lol... Its been so long since I've used my Serebii account that I can't even remember what screen name I used. Unless accounts are deleted for inactivity, I must've used something very random and obscure...

I could probably rediscover it through the "forgot your password?" option but, meh. I'm good not knowing xp
 
I'm bored, and it seems my uber long Anime ramble killed this topic XP So...

What are your guys' favourite Eevee evolutions, and why? *Jerks thumb at her latest poll* You could always just vote there, too ;)

Also, did any of you ever draw/sprite your own versions of a Grass or Ice form? If so, how do Leafia and Glacia compare?
My fav Eeveelution would have to be Flareon! I made my own Eeveelution that was Grass-type, and, well my Iveon and Leafeon are very different.
 
And another thing: What is your all-time favorite Pokemon? (I can never keep a fav Pokemon for more than a week... most of 'em are just too cute/cool to pick from!)
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
I do have many favourites (Charizard, Vaporeon, Snorlax, Steelix, Lucario, Bulbasaur, etc.), but I generally take all-time to mean "the one and only"... so that would be Raichu for me.

Ever since I first saw the picture of Raichu in Nintendo Power's mini players guides I've loved it. I've always been a rodent freak, and Raichu is bloody cute (those ears, the big feet, that awesome tail...), so it didn't take much to sell me on it. I used to die whenever I watched "Thunder Shock Showdown". Too much cuteness, especially matched with that voice =O
 
My current fav is Flareon, and I got this very cute pose of it on the Flareon card from that 2 packs and Flareon deal, and since then my fav has been Flareon. But others really liked: Eevee (duh), Steelix, Pachirisu, Shaymin, and way too many more.
 

Doctor Oak

Staff member
Overlord
Mine is Chikorita. Followed neck and neck by Bayleef. After that, Pikachu, Charizard, Lucario, Munchlax, Scyther and Mewtwo.
 
Instead of naming the ones I do like, the ones I don't like are: Medicham, Meditite, Machamp, Machoke, Pidgey, Mankey, Primeape, Tentacruel, Tyrogue, Claydoll, Baltoy, and just a couple others. What do you guys not like?
 

StellarWind Elsydeon

Armblades Ascendant
Staff member
Administrator
Look no further, fool. You've hit your third warning and recieved the coveted n00b who went too far status.

Read the rules, and don't post in irrelevant threads.
 
>.> ok, um I guess this is a more "why is that?" then a actual question. See When I first tried to find a place to make a custom avi, well, I couldnt xP so I Pm'd Linkychu (I like calling him/her that >:[ ) and (s)he told me that untill I reach 50 post, I can have a custom avi. Now I dont really mind anymore because you guys have some awesome regi pics, so I'll just use those xD, but still, why 50 post to make a custom avi? o.O
 

StellarWind Elsydeon

Armblades Ascendant
Staff member
Administrator
There's a simple explanation for that.

The 50-posts-to-custom-avatar rule was established because we had some problems with idiot n00bs abusing custom avatars, like, using HUGE pictures as avatars which frelled up the forum layout.

So that's why we made sure that people cannot have custom avatars until we know they can be trusted with them. :p
 

Doctor Oak

Staff member
Overlord
We have it set up as it is to allow flexibility for those mature enough to be responsible with it. There's no reason to remove that privilege because of the stupid actions of a few idiots. All the limit does is ensure that anyone entrusted with custom avatars should be mature and responsible enough to not have stupidly huge ones.

Emphasis on should.
 
I have a question for the staff...

What first got you to watch Pokemon?
Was it boredom, looked interesting? Friends bugging you to? Or what???

I know personally, myself, I started watching it because I was channel surfing one morning before school, and it was something to watch... Then I became addicted.

And out of the first 150, what was the first Pokemon to pull you in and call it your favorite?

And out of the original first season main cast, who was you favorite and why?


Yes... I am like a three year old asking lots of questions. But I am curious. xD
 

Linkachu

Hero of Pizza
Staff member
Administrator
What first got you to watch Pokemon?
Was it boredom, looked interesting? Friends bugging you to? Or what???

It was all Nintendo Power magazine's fault for getting me interested in Pokemon and the Anime series. I was already an Anime/RPG/Animal/Monster freak at the time, and the concepts of Pokemon highly appealed to me, so by the time the games were first released I was dying to play them. It was the same for the Anime series. When it first aired here in October I was already hooked by the games and dying to watch it, so I ended up taping the first episode and rewatching for a second time directly afterwards. I rewound the intro multiple times in order to learn it, too. I was hopelessly addicted/in love ^^;

And out of the first 150, what was the first Pokemon to pull you in and call it your favorite?

That would probably be the same top favourite I have now: Raichu. I honestly have loved the thing since the first time I laid eyes on it in the Nintendo Power mini-guides. Pikachu also became a quick fave of mine, tho, simply because it was Ash's first Pokemon. I was young and naive :-[

And out of the original first season main cast, who was you favorite and why?

Do you mean character or voice actor? If character, it'd have to be Ash. I generally do end up liking the main character of a series most just by default, and Pokemon isn't really an exception. I also idolized Ash when I was younger and wanted to be him...

See what I mean by 'young and naive'? XD

Yes... I am like a three year old asking lots of questions. But I am curious. xD

Happens to the best of us ;)
 
S

Suizou-Sama

Hey there. I'm currently a user of the Trainer Card Maker—fantastic script, by the way—and I was just wondering: how is it done? I noticed it's written in PHP, which is a language I'm familiar with. I know it's unlikely that you'll release the source code, but I'd very much like to see how it all works. I'm not sure I can dedicate myself to the project, but maybe I can help out somehow? Either way, let me know. Thanks.
 

Doctor Oak

Staff member
Overlord
The brunt of it is just simply passing data through forms (with a few little if/case statements thrown in where necessary for the more complicated stuff like figuring out whether or not a Pokemon has a PinballRS sprite or if they can only be a specific Gender) and the card itself is pieced together using simple PHP image manipulation functions.

PHP.net is what I used as a reference, so if you're wanting to learn more about it I'd suggest checking out this page.
 
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