#63

I was precisely the "blazing, unchecked, nigh-supernatural fever" age when Pocket Monster Mania swept the nations of the world. Being a contrary sort, I held out for a little bit--the toys, the cards, the cartoon, it was all appealing enough in its way, but I held it at arm's length a bit. As far as Japanese Animation went, I held that Dragon Ball, Knights of the Zodiac, and Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) were superior to the yellow mouse and his whole deal. Until I played the games.

Man, I still play those games. Buy new ones every time they make 'em and sell 'em. Pull the old cartridges out for old time's sake now and again. I used to stay up late, dreaming so hard on a life free in the fields and forests and mountains with my beloved parters at my side that I would break a sweat and basically hallucinate.

All manner of complex ideas about Pocket Monsters brew in my mind. Ah, and the memories.

Watched the movie where Mewtwo threatens to take over the world using clones with a friend of mine and I cried in a movie theater for the first time in my life. I now bring a handkerchief to the theater, and not for my sinuses. I heard that dude got rabies but did not die, a few years after I moved away. I heard he stayed weird and extremely unpopular, just like when we played pretend together, folding innumerable paper airplanes and exploring highly unlikely but tremendously exciting fictional scenarios years after the little kids around us started to get off on pretending to be adults, which is what fucks up the entire planet and really spoiled a great many recess periods. 

Respect to that dude. Hand on my heart. I'll never forget watching that movie, or what a good guy he was.


--JL