Pokémon
I sometimes struggle with the fact that the main character of one of my favorite media franchises is named Ash Ketchum. But as a child, I was able to look past Ash’s terrible voice and complete inability to understand the mechanics of the world he lived in and become enraptured in the world of Pokémon. Some of my fondest memories of my childhood involve Pokemon. There was the Christmas I received my very own bright green Gameboy Color with Pokemon Crystal. There was the time that my brother and I slept in the guest room of our apartment after we watched Pokemon 2000 on TV. And then there were countless road trips spent playing Pokemon games, where we would be sure to save constantly and hoard AA batteries for our Gameboys.
Although I’ve outgrown the anime series, I still haven’t outgrown my fondness for the video game series. The Pokémon games are the most consistent series of video games for me - constantly evolving to become more beautiful and complex, but keeping the core gameplay exactly the same. There’s a reason that I’ve spent at least a few hours playing the games nearly every year for the past 15 years.
At some level, I’m enamored with the quality of the games - it’s fun to just to go on an adventure throughout an imaginary, mystical world with animal friends by my side. The entire experience made it feel like these digital creatures were really your friends throughout the journey, especially if you gave them different nicknames corresponding to their attributes and nature.
Now that I’m older, however, I realize the sheer nostalgia associated with the games has a power of its own. Every time I play a Pokémon game, I feel like I’m back in my mom’s minivan driving with my family to Jacksonville to visit our grandparents. I don’t just escape to a digital world, I feel like I escape to my childhood.
Drops of the Week
where I *drop* recommendations of cool things this week
Longread
“The Lonely Life of a Professional Youtuber” by Joe Zadeh - I always find it interesting to read about how Youtubers live. Also, as advertisers continue to pull out, I wonder how long these medium-sized Youtubers can continue to exist. In a few years, this article could be an artifact of a group that no longer exists.
Playlist
hippity hoppity - a playlist I whipped up to serve as an introduction to the hip hop I listen to. It’s in no way, shape or form comprehensive, but it covers most of my favorite songs throughout the years.
Digital Art
“Ya Boiii” by Danny Jones - creepy, weird digital art series depicting individuals through strange distortions.
Thanks so much for reading! If you have any comments/concerns or fan/hate mail for me, you know how to reach me (links below). Feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends too! You can also hit this link to subscribe if you're not subscribed already!
:~)
Love,
Nikhil