Title: Modern Day Mayhem: Demons, and Angels, and Magic oh my!

Plot: It was another peaceful, normal, and usual day within the prospering city of Ikaruga. A city of many people of many origins, a city capable of sustaining itself and its neighboring towns and cities, a city of endless possibilities, and a city… that will never be the same again. For one day, a mysterious lights shines from the center of the town and extends to the sky, only to be followed by a small-scale explosion, while it seemed just to be that, many citizens were shortly granted powers and abilities that almost seemed to unrealistic to be true, as if it were magic! Almost immediately in response, the Government establishes a lockdown upon the city claiming it's for "investigative" purposes. However, while this would be passable with a good amount of people, the fact that lockdown has extended to suburbs around the city itself! Already, people have become scared, and already some of them have begun calling out for a hero to save them…

But a savior will not answer their calls, instead a conqueror will. Enter the man named Mao, our (villainous) protagonist, who rises to the occasion to not only challenge the Government and their lockdown, but also anyone who dares stand in his way on his quest to the top. Mao faces against numerous opponents and odds all for the sake of his ambition of ruling many, but he's not alone in his quest. Accompanying him are his close childhood friend (and yandere "girlfriend") Lilith, naïve and idealistic (idiot shonen) hero wannabe Genki Satoshi, love and justice obsessed cosplayer (with a split personality) Saya Nanaho, philosophical mass murderer (who has good taste in music) Jack Noid, and last but not least, the sadistic and bat**** insane (former) Dr. Nero Ahriman. It's all up to these six individuals to survive and possibly take over the lockdown. However nothing is as it seems…

As they venture from the suburbs to the city, they not only find themselves against rival factions for rule, but also against Government agents, and beings taken straight from various mythologies. But does the aspiring conqueror of Ikaruga back down in the faces of such threats? No, he charges forth with his comrades in tow to slay these newfound challengers. And thus, begins a tale that can only be told through experiences and choices made in dire moments. All there is now is speculation of possible outcomes; outcomes such as a peaceful utopia with social divide between "chosen ones" and "mindless drones", or a town ruled by an ironfisted tyrant, or a Darwinist society taken to the extreme. And these are but only a fraction of the true possibilities of this conquest based campaign…

Meet the Playable Cast:

Mao: Our main character who has chosen to forsake his real name to give himself and his future subjects a much cooler one to be addressed by. Prior to the lockdown and ignoring his failed plans of ambition (trust us, we'd be here all night), Mao spent his free time reading comic books (Western, Eastern, never mattered to him), playing obscure video games (because according to him the mainstream guys are just catering to the ignorant and working at the local pawn shop under the owner and founder Shumor. Personality wise, Mao is cynical, ambitious, determined, and outright arrogant with a bit of apathy mixed in for good measure. The only things that matter to Mao are himself, his plans, his followers, and Lilith (most importantly), nothing else.

Starting Stats:
Level: 5
HP (Health Points, what else could it be?) : 66
MP (Mana points, again obvious) : 34
STR (or Strength for short) : 10
MAG (Magic, not the game) : 10
VIT (Vitality, have nothing witty to say) : 6
AGL (Agility, nothing witty here either) : 4
Weapon Proficiencies: Fist, Sword (mono-wield kind only), Axe, Bow, and Guns (Dual-wield kind only)

Lilith: Mao's yandere "girlfriend", like him, she has chosen to give up her real name to choose one that suits her better. As previously mentioned, the two were childhood friends and have done a lot together throughout their life. As mentioned many times before, she is a yandere (obsessive lover) so putting yourself between her and Mao is definitely not recommended for good health. Her hobbies prior to the massive take over of the Lockdown include: being with Mao, stalking Mao, and watching the Weather Channel.

Starting Stats:
Level: 5
HP: 50
MP: 42
STR: 4
MAG: 10
VIT: 6
AGL: 10
Weapon Proficiencies: Spear, Staff, Whip, Bow, and Gun (mono-wield kind only)

Genki Satoshi: You know that guy who tries to imitate some character from a popular show? Well, this is him in a nutshell. Genki has, like Mao and Lilith, also chosen to give up his real name but for different reasons. Trying to become a hero, he "joins" (read as: begs) Mao and Lilith in their quest for domination. Truly believes that he is the main character, Mao is his sidekick, and Lilith is HIS girlfriend. Needless to say, he is often ignored and more often abused comically by his teammates. Hobbies prior to the lockdown include: making heroic speeches, showing off, and watching whatever's on TV.

Starting Stats:
Level: 5
HP: 65
MP: 13
STR: 12
MAG: 2
VIT: 10
AGL: 6
Weapon Proficiencies: Sword (Both Mono and Dual), Great Sword, and Bow.

Saya Nanaho: A local cosplayer who has some renown within the city, Saya has chosen to be addressed by an alias she made herself as to protect her real identity (like it would matter in this situation). While coming off as being the same or maybe being worse than Genki, Saya actually switches between two main personalities, one being her LARP/cosplay personality of an out going young woman who will go around and kick evil in the groin to her true personality, an analytical and shy woman who wishes to just be normal and left alone. She does attract the worry of her teammates (minus Genki because he thinks its totally normal, just like Lilith being a yandere) during moments when both personalities want "control". She "insisted" (read as: forced) her way into the party, seeing Mao as a potential savior for the people but knowing full well of his evil tendencies. Hobbies prior to the lockdown included: LARPing, IMing, and playing the piano.

Starting Stats:
Level: 7
HP: 58
MP: 50
STR: 5
MAG: 12
VIT: 10
AGL: 9
Weapon Proficiencies: Spear, Staff, Hammer, and Guns (Rifle-kind only)

Jack Noid: Currently a wanted mass murderer who somehow wound up being stuck in the lockdown as well. Upon stumbling coming across the party slaughtering a bunch of rival gangs and fighting them himself, he grew to like them (especially Mao) and decided to join them in their slaughter. Despite his current standing as a murderer, Jack Noid often talks about philosophy to the others and often acts as the Team Dad to ensure no one decides to kill each other (after all, slaughter is much more fun when you have friends). Hobbies prior to the lockdown included: Murder, more murder, and listening to various hits from the 80's (such as Hearts on Fire, You're the Best Around, Come on Eileen, and many more).

Starting Stats:
Level: 12
HP: 111
MP: 23
STR: 26
MAG: 5
VIT: 15
AGL: 20
Weapon Proficiencies: Knife (mono-wield and dual-wield kind), Sword (Mono and dual wield kind), Axe, and Gun (mono-wield kind only)

Dr. Nero Ahriman: Once a great and renown doctor for years, Ahriman had been plagued by the deaths of those around him as well as those of the ones he couldn't save. This eventually drove him absolutely insane and resulted in a hospital becoming a slaughterhouse and after coming to his senses, realizing what he had done, he faked his death and left for a faraway town called Ikaruga. He shortly was able to find peace in the new town and able to fit into society. However, his blood thirst and sadism continued to haunt him and began driving him to a breaking point… and then the lockdown happened. Was virtually on his wits end until the party ran into him and was not only able to help him calm the **** down but also recruited him for his services. Prior to lockdown, Ahriman spent his free time tending his garden, subscribing to various health magazines, and collecting Tiki masks he'd buy off the Internet.

Starting Stats:
Level: 20
HP: 210
MP: 143
STR: 22
MAG: 25
VIT: 20
AGL: 23
Weapon Proficiencies: Knife (mono-wield kind only), Fist, Axe, and Gun (Rifle kind only)

Getting to know your enemies:

Talking Heads: A group of floating severed heads that revolve around a single severed head. These began appearing shortly after the demons did. It can only be guessed a single demon possesses the center floating head and uses that to control the other heads in orbit around it. A typical day in the life of a set of Talking Heads involves chasing down things weaker than itself, and using telepathy to kill it and then have all the heads devour it. These things are obviously Psycho Killers and should be slaughter the minute they are encountered. It's well worth noting that Once In A Lifetime that another head or two can be added to the center of the orbit and grants some sort of sentience to the heads in orbit. Lastly, they are incapable of Burning Down the House (all right, we'll stop).

Stats:
HP: 440
MP: 202
STR: 23
MAG: 14
VIT: 18
AGL: 10

Count Vladimir Tepes the 3rd (Or Dracula as everyone calls him) : When the lockdown began, a rumor was spread regarding the possibility of summoning demons. So, a group of people decided to get together in the Ikaruga library and summon a vampire (right off the bat, you know who these people are and what's going to happen). And fortunately (or unfortunately depending on your point of view of course), they succeeded and summoned the precursor to all Vampirism, Dracula himself, although, to be politically correct, they had summoned a demonized version (and that's saying something) of the Wallachian ruler whom he was based on, Vlad III. Upon his entrance into the real world, Dracula's summoners were rather unhappy with his appearance and doubted he was a vampire. Upon being informed he was a vampire and not what they had unexpected, he decided to make it up to them, by giving a good ol' fashioned Wallachian greeting… which of course involved impalement and blood sucking. After that, Dracula left the library and began building an army of demons to exact his revenge against humanity for several (completely justifiable) reasons.

He is a recurring enemy within the story and is one of the few main enemies to properly greet Mao's group upon entering the city and engages in combat with them on several occasions. He is finally confronted and slain in the library from which he was summoned in. Upon his death, light erupts from every orifice of his body as his body crumbles to dust leaving only his clothing and weapon behind for the party to take. From this point on, Mao can equip Vladimir's clothing as an optional set of clothing to spruce up his appearance, furthermore the spear wielders gain access to the Rose of Wallachia, Vladimir's conjured weapon while had been alive. Furthermore, should Mao be the one to land the death blow upon Vladimir, he obtains the title of "The Night of Wallachia" (you're probably thinking this is a typo, but its not, we're talking about the time when the sun's not up, not the medieval warriors of Britain).

Stats:
HP: 6,666
MP: 4,444
STR: 27
MAG: 24
VIT: 29
AGL: 28

I say, what system would this be for?: This would most certainly be a PS3 exclusive title.

Why would I play this?: Well, if you read all of this and none of it seemed appealing to you, I'd advise going to play something that has the same amount of depth as a cardboard cutout of some random person or product. As one can see, there are plenty of deconstructions present here, and that's a good thing. Furthermore, all the choices to be presented in the game will all be in-character decisions Mao would make. As mentioned before, these choices do result in multiple endings and outcomes of the lockdown situation. While the game possesses a serious atmosphere, the characters themselves will crack jokes regarding various subjects and even their own interactions can bring forth some comedic relief. All in all, the game is pretty damn good and is worth playing.

It's been a while hasn't it? It sure has, but hey, these sorts of things are prone to happen. I deeply apologize for the lack of life in my profile, however, not much appeals to me in this site anymore. Although, I do think I need to get better about being on the forums. And by that, I mean making a commitment to try and be alive. Anyway, moving on.

I figure before going any further, I should give a minor life update. Just beat Persona 3 Portable today, I can easily says its one of the best RPGs of our time. You know, just like every other RPG Atlus has made. Also, with P3P, you can just play bits of it at a time and take a break from it without worrying about forgetting what's going on in the plot. Then again, it is just Persona 3 put on the PSP, so hey, if you can find a copy of P3:FES for the PS2, get that if you don't have a PSP.

Also, my classes start a week from tomorrow… while everyone else seems to have started already. I guess it's just a college thing… or a state thing. The only notable thing about this semester is that I'll have three classes on two days and will be taking Photography for the first time in my life.

I suppose I should move on to the meat of this blog.

Ahem, as many of you know, my past couple blogs were composed of Top 10 lists dedicated to various aspects of Pokémon. Now my plan was to make a surprise last Top 10 list before moving on with an ending monologue regarding the franchise, but after so much time has passed, and a possible length problem, I have decided to save that list for another day, and just move on with the monologue. So please, read and enjoy.

What can be said of Pokémon, one of the few franchises from the times of old to last for 25 years? Well, I'm sure there's plenty that could be said. Although nowadays, people have begun to say enough is enough. Many are claiming the 5th and most current generation to be not up to par with the other games. While there are reasons and facts behind these claims, Black and White have done rather well in sales.

Furthermore, B&W slightly changed the standard formula from the previous games to give a new experience in comparison to the previous games. The most notable difference to everyone is the existence of an actual plot and a team composed of people wearing swimming hats. But aside from that, and a couple of other things I'm probably forgetting, B&W is a good game nonetheless.

In fact, isn't the purpose of a game to entertain the player? Regardless of your feelings about a game, as long as it entertains you isn't it fulfilling its purpose? If something has achieved its intended purpose, why complain about it? Well, of course there are reasons for doing so on other issues, but for the argument of a game being entertaining, why argue about it?

Perhaps I've said enough regarding B&W, and not enough about everything else. And yet, words and thoughts elude me for the other subjects of the franchise. Perhaps it is because they spoken for themselves, and have been around the longest to have done so? I mean hey, that's perfectly plausible explanation. Besides, 25 years is pretty good for something based on the MegaTen games. Face it, you KNEW I was going to bring that up at one point with the SMT-craze I've been having lately.

But it turned out pretty good and became its own thing. Because after all, summoning various hell spawns, gods, and JACK FROST (best demon ever) to fight against other monsters from various religions doesn't float every ones boat. And that's perfectly fine and understandable. Just like how some people don't like being a 10-year old wandering the world and enslaving the local population of colorful animals for various purposes, battle being one of them.

----

And thus, I am left with nothing else to say… other than I have ANOTHER list of Top 10 polls ready. Did you really think I was going to stop there? Nah, it gives me something to do for my somewhat dead GS account. So without further delay, let's see the lists!

Top 10 Favorite Robot Masters
Top 10 Favorite Mavericks
Top 10 Favorite Net Navis
Top 10 Western Animation intros
Top 10 Anime intros
Top 10 Closing themes

Quite the selection isn't it? I figured I should try doing something non-game related and decided to throw those options in there… alongside the obvious Mega Man ones. Well, remember to vote after reading this everybody. Have fun and be ready for the next one in five days… unless of course there aren't enough votes. So, until then, have fun.

~ Burner

Greetings everybody… All right, this is way overdue, but it's better than never having it, right? Well, might as well mention I'm out of college until the fall. What does this have to do with anything? No idea, blog posting may or may not be affected, too early to determine. No more delay, it's time for the moment everyone has been waiting for.

So kid, you just beat the eight Gym Leaders of your region and possibly an evil organization. Do you think you're the best around (and nothing's ever going to keep you down)? Well, you are not. In fact, you need to now go across the obligatory dungeon known as "Victory Road" to reach the regions league and take on that Region's Elite Four, and the Champion. This is the last stop on the journey, and you better make sure you've got everything you need to win, because you'll definitely need all you have in order to win. Now I kind of wish there was a small animation of the protagonist stepping up to the League as the sky darkens and the outlines of the Elite Four and the Champion loom above. This is…

~Top 10 Elite Four (Champions included)~

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this list are those solely belonging to that of the writer. There is only one song called "Push It To The Limit", it is by Paul Engemann and was used the in the movie Scarface. There are no others. List may also contain slight spoilers.

#10
Agatha/Phoebe
Position: Third/Second
Region: Kanto/Hoenn
Pokémon Specialization: Ghost (Both)
and
I figured it'd be best to get rid of (most of) my bias in this list as early as possible. And as usual, I couldn't choose one or the other, so it is left at a tie. These two are absolute polar opposites appearance wise, but are the same when it comes down to their Pokémon of choice. Speaking of their appearances, they both appear to be very non-threatening, Agatha being an old woman and Phoebe… um… being a belly dancer (I guess that's what she's supposed to be.). Do not underestimate them, for they will both knock you down in their respective games if you do so. On a final side-note, Agatha is gone from the E4 roster in Generations II and IV, with no reasons being given at all, although the two most popular reasons according to the fans is that she has either retired during the three year time skip or passed away. With nothing else to say, the masters of the Ghosts claim number 10 on the list.

#9
Bruno
Position: Second (Gens I and III), Third (Gens II and IV)
Region: Kanto/Johto
Pokémon Specialization: Fighting

The man who never stands up, a lot of people know who Bruno is simply because well… he's been in the E4 for two straight Generations. Bruno is also famous for being ridiculously easy, as a single psychic Pokémon could sweep the majority of Bruno's team and he would be unable to hit it with anything super effective. Regardless of that, Bruno seems to be a fan favorite, probably because he made an appearance in the anime (while it was still good). Reminds me of a reason the anime irritates me (seriously, was it too hard to have battles against five people), but this is not the place for that. Bruno takes spot number 9 by the horns and throws it into submission.

#8
Aaron
Position: First
Region: Sinnoh
Pokémon Specialization: Bug

The kid deserves some credit. When people build their teams, Bug Pokémon are often overlooked due to their poor stats. However, there are several exceptions to this, and Aaron makes use of those exceptions to put up a fight. Granted his Diamond & Pearl team is nothing to write home about, but it's his Platinum team that gets him on the list. He replaces Beautifly and Dustox with Yanmega and Scizor, now take those two and put them in the same line-up with Heracross, Vespiquen, and Drapion. Yeah, not looking so easy now, isn't it?

All in all, Aaron nets eighth place in the list.

#7
Karen
Position: Fourth
Region: Johto (technically Kanto)
Pokémon Specialization: Dark

My memories of my battles with Karen are just plain weird. The battles are easy, yet at the same time my Pokémon are fainting left and right against her. Don't think I'll remember the reason why, but that's fine with me. This is probably because she's the last of the E4 to be fought before the Champion, which of course makes sense. Her team, however, is just weird. Sure, you can bring along a fighting Pokémon, but its not going to do you much good considering only two of her Pokémon have that weakness (Umbreon and Houndoom to be precise) while Murkrow will hit that fighter with flying moves scoring super effective hits. Furthermore, her Gengar, unlike what one would expect, is a complete pushover while her Vileplume spams STAB Petal Dance that has the potential for a 2-3HKO. At the end of the day, Karen has spot number seven in her grasps for very good reasons.

#6
Koga
Position: Second
Region: Johto (Technically Kanto)
Pokémon Specialization: Poison

There's a reason Koga didn't make my Top 10 Favorite Gym Leaders, or it's Honorable Mentions section, because this is where I believe Koga belongs. As one could expect of him, Koga has maintained his love of Poison Pokémon and it makes him rather deadly. Especially in Gen IV when all of his team can poison you, and even worse is two of his Pokémon know Toxic, which is a poison that's damage doubles each turn (of course, in Gen II three of his Pokémon knew it, no idea why it was dropped). Granted a psychic Pokémon could sweep his team, but not even psychics are immune to poison and then Forretress could always use Explosion and that will definitely OHKO any Psychic. This makes him one of the few second position members of the E4 to be threatening within a battle.

Having that said, Koga earns sixth place, because he earned itlike his spot on the E4 (by fan speculation anyway).

And now, with the E4 half complete, it is now time for the Champion's half of the list. Also, the format will remain unchanged. Enjoy.

#5
Cynthia
Position: Champion
Region: Sinnoh
Pokémon Specialization: Various

I'll let her have her gif, only because it looks better than the non-moving sprite she has in Diamond and Pearl. Cynthia starts off the list for well, being the only threatening part of the E4. Sinnoh didn't exactly have a good selection running for it you see. However, Cynthia on her own is definitely the challenge to take down, especially considering she's packing a Garchomp, a Lucario, a Miltoic, and a Spiritomb. Those four on their own are just enough to crush most teams guaranteed. As for another reason why she scores low? Well, this comic: http://www.doublepuma.com/gamelog/games/ppt69/

For someone specialized in various, she sure seems to have a weakness to ice for some odd reason (balanced team my ass). Regardless, Cynthia gains fifth place.

#4
Alder
Position: Champion
Region: Unova
Pokémon Specialization: Bug

I find it odd that Alder lacks a gif, with B&W being Gen V and all. You think he'd have a gif. That aside, Alder doesn't have much going for him either, but he's got a little more. First and foremost, he uses Bug Pokémon, granted he only has three but that's enough to count. If a Champion were going to specialize, would they pick Bug? Well, Alder did and he's clearly a challenge.

Unfortunately, because N is a cheating *****, you can't fight Alder on your first run of the Unova E4 and therefore, have to come back later. And yes, I haven't fought him yet as other games of importance have come up. The only other things that put Alder higher than Cynthia are his design (come on, you know its awesome), the fact he's just wandering the region instead of being in the League all day (granted other Champions head out for various reasons), and lastly, he has the Afro Bull. Those reasons are absolutely legitimate to me. With nothing else to say, Alder steals fourth.

#3
Steven
Position: Champion
Region: Hoenn
Pokémon Specialization: Steel

Mostly everyone in the E4 has very offensive teams that never let up attacking, Steven's the complete opposite of that, in that he walls you while attacking your weak point for massive damage. Sure, he's packing three Steels (Skarmory, Aggron, and Metagross), two Rocks (Cradily and Armaldo), and a Ground (Claydol), but after fighting Darks, Ghosts, Ices, and Dragons, what are the odds you have Pokémon that can take these guys on? That's another thing Steven has going for him, sure, you could have called him being the Champion, but could you call what he was going to use? Even if you did call it, you had to make your way through four other strong trainers before reaching him and had to plan for them as well. In short, Steven has the perfect defense already set up before you even fight him.

However, with proper training and planning, Steven's perfect defense can be brought crumbling down to the ground. Steven is handed third place, on a nice silver platter with all of this said.

#2
Lance
Position: Fourth/Champion
Region: Kanto/Johto
Pokémon Specialization: Dragon

So, you got past Will, bypassed Koga's ninja nonsense, curb stomped Bruno, and survived Karen. And who's waiting for you at the end, your good pal Lance, the only man you know whose packing Dragonites! I never saw Lance coming when I first played, and even if I did, I probably wouldn't have been able to won my first time regardless. And there's a good reason for this, the man is packing three Dragonites, which at this point in the game are hard to come by (although not as hard as Gens I and III). Dragons, which may I remind you, are very powerful stat wise and have wide varieties of moves at their disposal making them very threatening. Furthermore, Lance is very fond of the move Hyper Beam, a devastating move capable of a OHKO on the poor Pokémon it gets hit with, however the user has to spend the next turn recharging allowing a chance to strike back.

If there is ANY kind of relief at all in this, it's that any Ice attack is capable of a OHKO on a Dragonite. An Ice Pokémon actually is capable of being a nice addition on your team, but God help you if you use it against Lance, because chances are after it knocks out one his Dragonites, or comes close to doing so, Lance will whip out his Charizard and probably one-shot your ice Pokémon. Chances are though, he'll start the battle with a Gyrados, which will go down with on Electric attack, and that leaves you the three Dragonites, the Charizard, and an Aerodactyl to take down.

After everything is said and done, Lance is granted second place. I do wonder how he became the Champion in the first place…

And now, for the moment you all have been waiting for…

#1
Blue (or Green if that faithful)/GARY ************* OAK (couldn't resist)
Position: Champion
Region: Kanto
Pokémon Specialization: Various

So, you just beat the ever-loving crap out of Lance (hence the Fourth position), when he only has one Dragonite and no Charizard, and are about to become the Champion, only for him to inform you that somebody else already IS the Champion. And before you can even guess who it is, the dread Rival theme is heard as none other than the original Troll himself walks up from nowhere and tells you he just curb stomped the E4 and became the Champion, and will gladly do it to you. There is a LOT going against you in this battle before you even begin, and I'll gladly explain it all. For starters, you just got down fighting with Lance, granted he's not packing his Champion party, but he's still hard to take down considering its Gen I and III. Secondly, you have no time to even heal up before this battle begins unlike the other Champion battles in the series, even in the Gen III remake there's no time to heal. And third and most importantly, Blue's team has no theme to exploit and is higher leveled than Lance's team.

Even if you saw Blue being the Champion, what can you do against him when your team's borderline wasted from your previous battle with Lance with no time to heal? Furthermore, the last three Pokémon in his team completely revolve around what Starter you chose, so in a way, this team is built to counter whatever you may have set up while maintaining good balance. The only thing you can take advantage of is the fact you battled his team before even entering Victory Road so you should be able to remember what you'll be up against minus an evolution or three. Of course, it's very possible to beat Blue, it's just that you have a lot of things going against you in comparison to the previous Champions.

Thus, with nothing else to say, Blue is awarded the number one spot.

~End of this List~

Well, that's the last one… for now. I'm tempted to do an ending monologue, but I feel the list speaks for itself and thus, does not require one. I hope you guys enjoyed it. So, until next time…

~Burner

Greetings everybody. Burner here posting yet another long overdue blog. Well, plenty of procrastination and life occurred between this blog and the last, but I assure everyone that everything is okay now. Granted I still have some work left to do, but I have plenty of time before it's due. Now then, on to the main event.

Unlike last time, I won't do an honorary mentions considering it wasn't requested. And looking at the way things have been going, I'm kind of surprised the Elite Four Top 10 wasn't chosen earlier. But, I suppose everyone wanted the best for last. Oh well, enough of that. Now onto a small monologue before the actual list itself. What? I figure I should do something for it!

What is an RPG without a town of some sort? Well… I really have no idea how to answer that, probably just gave some inspiration to some indie game maker who reads cheap blogs like this to get inspiration for his indie games. Moving on, while some games really don't care about their towns, the good people of GameFreak have been devoted to the making of their towns to ensure each is unique in their own way. Some have Gym leaders, others are the beginning of games, and some… just kind of… sit there. Nonetheless, let us now take a look at…

~The Top 10 Towns~

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this list are those solely of maker, who is not being a tyrant and forcing his views upon others. Does not contain the word, "tiddlywank."

#10
Pacifidlog Town
Region: Hoenn
Gym Leader: None

And our first winner ladies and gentlemen, Pacifidlog Town is a rather obscure town that rests on top of a Corsola colony. According to history, the ancestors of Pacifidlog Town lived and died in large boats because they were looking for something. Present day, everybody's just doing fine. Although, they have their own legends, like a dragon in the sky that doesn't rest or sealed away Pokémon that represent Rock, Ice, and Steel, or even a Pokémon… that vomits rainbows. Wait, made that last one up, we're good people, just keep going. Let's just give the town with the annoying name 10 and move on, stupid Mirage Island.

#9
Fortree City
Region: Hoenn
Gym Leader: Winona

Greenest town ever, I swear to God. Fortree takes number nine for being… just a colony of tree houses. I mean granted Winona's a good gym leader and the theme isn't too bad, it's just… tree houses. So how does this place beat Pacifidlog Town? Simple, easy name, it's not annoying to reach, there's more stuff to do there, etc. Fortree takes number nine in my book.

#8
Cinnabar Island
Region: Kanto
Gym Leader: Blaine

Ah yes, the original town on an island. Cinnabar Island probably shocked a lot of people, considering the other towns are on the continent and all. Who wouldn't have seen it down there? Considering Blaine runs the place, that puts it pretty high up along with its design and theme. And people said building a town next a volcano was a bad idea, I mean, what could possibly go wrong?

CINNABAR, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

#7
Viridian City
Region: Kanto
Gym Leader: Giovanni, then replaced by Blue

And here we are at number seven, Viridian City! What's that? You thought the Top 10 Gym Leader list was going to influence this list? Hahahaha, WRONG! Now then, where was I? Oh yes.

Viridian City is the second town in the series and seemed to be very lackluster, at first. I mean really, there's a Gym and its closed, the shop doesn't sell Poké Balls, and there's a drunk guy who passed out on the road/angry old man who didn't get his coffee lying on the road. I mean yeah, it does sell Poké Balls at one point, and the old man allows you to move, but why is the Gym closed? Seriously, you just started the game it couldn't be that hard. And then it turns out its run by the Godfather, I mean Giovanni and he and his mooks are packing Pokémon in their 40's.

So yeah, it's a good thing it was closed after all. Due to its charm, simplicity, and the guys who ran the gym, Viridian City gets spot number seven.

#6
Lavender Town
Region: Kanto
Gym Leader: None

Okay, I know what you're thinking. "Burner you wuss, how dare you not use Gen I's picture of Lavender Town!" And you know what, call me whatever you want. I prefer Gen II and IV Lavender Town to the originals any day. And you do know why? It's because the people of Lavender Town are finally getting a break!

I mean, think about it. Back then, ghosts were haunting their tower, Team Rocket was up in their tower, Mr. Fuji had gone missing, and a Snorlax was making travel very hard for them. And now, here they are with a Radio Tower, a new building for the Pokémon graves, and no Team Rocket or Snorlax ruining their lives. Also, the new theme the town gets is very soothing, and just one-ups the original. All in all, the new and improved Lavender Town steals number six.

#5
Petalburg City
Region: Hoenn
Gym Leader: Norman

Now before you say anything, check the Gym Leader list again because Norman's number four! Moving on, Petalburg City is the third town entered in the Hoenn region, but it really doesn't play that much of a role at first considering you have to win four badges before fighting Norman. Oh yeah, you meet Wally here too and watch him catch a Ralts, but that's beside the point. You know what really gets Petalburg City here? It's theme.

Seriously, go to youtube now and listen to it! It is single-handedly the most upbeat song you will EVER hear from a Pokémon game. And that in itself nets Petalburg City spot number five… okay, Norman helps too.

#4
Saffron City
Region: Kanto
Gym Leader: Sabrina

Another instance of the Gym Leader list having no effect! And I'll probably get telekinetically choked after posting this list for that comment. Saffron City is the other huge city in Kanto, right next to Celadon as both are the biggest cities in Kanto. Saffron gets the short end of the stick when it comes to music, but everything else about it seems to make up for it. Let's see, two gyms, the center of Team Rocket's attack in both game and manga, my favorite Gym Leader, train that can take me instantly to Goldenrod City and back. Yeah, all of those definitely make up for it.

With that said, Saffron is awarded number four on the list.

#3
Goldenrod City
Region: Johto
Gym Leader: Whitney

I bet most people thought it was too good to be true to not see anything Johto related so far. Well, here's that comes crashing down kids. And before anyone asks why I used the original and outdated picture of Goldenrod, well, the new one is kind of too big to be honest. Need to save space here people. Moving on.

Goldenrod City makes number three for many reasons, its theme, the solution to that Sudowoodo blocking the three way route leading to Violet City and Ecruteak City, the Radio Tower, the fact Team Rocket takes it over, and all sorts of stuff. Except Whitney, I dislike her Miltank with a great intensity. All in all, Goldenrod grabs number three… and stays there.

#2
Ecruteak City
Region: Johto
Gym Leader: Morty

And here we are at number two, the original town that loved mythology in the Pokémon world. Ecruteak City, like Goldenrod, has a lot going for it in my opinion. The theme, the legend stuff it has going on, another of my favorite Gym Leaders is here, the towers, etc. Really, I could just go on about Ecruteak for another couple paragraphs. But time is growing shorter by the minute and I need to get this done. So, with all the other reasons in mind, Ecruteak achieves second place on the list.

And now for the moment you have all been waiting for…

#1
New Bark Town
Region: Johto
Gym Leader: None

Before I say anything, I just want to say this. I can feel the hate mail I am going to receive for this. And you know what? I do not care, because it will all be horribly written and anime based, thus making it beautiful failure. And this is what happens when a child plays Gold or Silver first! All right, enough of this.

New Bark Town is obviously the hometown in Gold/Silver/Crystal. What puts it on the map here, is its theme, design, and the mini plot that goes on. For starters, go to youtube now and search New Bark Town Theme and listen. That is exactly what a starting town's theme should sound like, granted Pallet Town's theme gives that same impression, but it just sounds sad (as in the emotion) whereas New Bark Town's theme just has that calm feeling about starting something new that will take some time to finish.

As mentioned before, there's a small plot here where your Rival, aka Silver, steals the Pokémon that your starter is weak to. The fact that he stares through that window the whole time just… kind of comes off as creepy when you think about it. I mean, its obvious he's up to no good, but seriously, he's watching you and Elm the whole time! That's kind of creepy GameFreak. And on a side note, I do like how the fat guy in this town acts like you and him are bros, which is awesome in comparison to some fat guy who says, "Technology is incredible".

And before anyone asks why the original picture of New Bark Town was used, I'd like to say I like it like that. With nothing else to say, New Bark Town is crowned with first place.

~End of this list~

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed the Top 10 Towns and I apologize for being late. Expect the Top 10 Elite 4 to come very soon! So until then, take care everybody!

~ Burner

All right, let's get this list started with no more delays. Although, I guess I should say some stuff regarding my personal life for those curious. My break is pretty much over, although today was very good considering my factory sealed copy of God Hand arrived, meaning I have a good chance of being able to play it on MY PS2 and not requiring me to barrow my friend's Slim PS2. Now then, with all this said, its time to begin the list, considering this is the eve of Black and White's release.

However, I must fulfill an obligation regarding the runners up for my Top 10 Gym Leaders list. I will say this; it's just going to be a list of names, no pictures, no info, and no details. Just their names. Now then, let's begin.

~Top 10 Gym Leaders Honorable Mentions~

11. Blue
12. Clair
13. Pryce
14. Wattson
15. Lt. Surge
16. Gardenia
17. Jasmine
18. Flannery
19. Erika
20. Volkner

Now that that little obligation is out of the way, let's begin the true main attraction of this blog. There are no more delays… okay, there is a minor one.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this list are incredibly biased and should not be taken seriously. Also may or may not have been written by a man residing 20 floors below sea level in a bunker.

~Burner101's Top 10 Favorite Pokémon~

#10
Entei/Suicune
First Game: Gold & Silver
Fire/Water (Respectively)
and
I feel kind of bad that I'm starting the list with a tie between two Legendary Pokémon, it kind of hints that the person in question has terrible taste. Although, in my defense, those two are fair game in online battles… well, except Entei considering how common Earthquake is. Moving on, I could not, for the life of me, decide between the two, considering I just love their designs. Entei looks absolutely beast (pun intended) and Suicune looks like an absolute Boss. Furthermore, they both look like dogs as, Entei reminded me of a Saint Bernard due to both having very stocky appearances while Suicune looked like a Greyhound due to both having a very sleek frame. Due to the graphical limitations of the Game Boy Color, I was given the impression that Entei had a large shell on his back and Suicune had some kind of jellyfish on his.

Also, before their movies are brought up, I'm going to say it. Entei's was better, but Suicune pretty much made the fourth movie for me. Because let's be honest… Who really likes Cele… On second thought, I really shouldn't ask that question. Moving on.

#9
Dusclops
First Game: Ruby & Sapphire
Ghost

Probably one of the better Ghosts in franchise, Dusclops made number nine considering he looks awesome, is a Ghost, and was very good meta-game wise and could have even gone without Dusknoir. Dusclops' main role in battle is to simply be a wall that will drive your opponent nuts or drain his/her team as it absorbs attacks and retaliates. Alas, poor Dusclops doesn't get much higher on this list due to the lack of nostalgia I have for him. And there really isn't much to saw about him.

#8
Feraligatr
First Game: Gold & Silver
Water

Say what you will about the Gen 2 starters being horrible and/or being copies of the Gen 1 starters, but that won't change my opinion of Feraligatr here. See, back in Gold I was rather shocked to know Croconaw could evolve again, and could only wonder what it would come out as. Needless to say, my jaw dropped upon seeing Feraligatr. It was an absolute monster that crushed most of the opponents it faced. Considering this thing is 7'7, I do believe that monster statement is justified.

Feraligatr makes eight due to the good times we had back in Gold, Crystal, and the current time we're having in HG.

#7
Groudon
First Game: Ruby & Sapphire
Ground

Last Legendary, I swear to God. Groudon may not have as much nostalgia as Feraligatr, but he does however, have much more badassery going for him. To put it simply, Groudon is the living embodiment of land, and after having a titanic battle with Kyogre, decided to sleep within the depths of the Earth in peace. Seriously, just look at him! Does Groudon look like a morning person? No, he most certainly does not, and therefore, like most Legendaries, should be left alone or bad stuff is going to happen.

How bad you ask? Well, his ability called "Drought" is pretty significant considering it increases the effects of the sun's rays and which will of course, lead to literal droughts. I don't think I need to explain why that's a bad thing. Now do I? His concept, appearance, and execution within the games give Groudon spot number seven. Now go back to sleep.

#6
Cubone line
First Game: Red and Blue
Ground
and also
I really couldn't make up my mind on the two. I mean really, one is adorable and the other is badass. Let's begin with Cubone, a cute little Pokémon wearing its mother's skull and assumedly carrying one of her bones as a weapon. Could someone explain to me how the crap that got through the censors? Then again, it WAS the 90's so yeah, not surprised. Marowak on the other hand, is simply Cubone after becoming a badass, that's all I can say.

Really, what kind of being goes walking around wearing a skull and using a bone to fight? Nobody else, that's who. I never could get a Cubone or a Marowak into a team to fight the Elite Four, but that's cool. I'll just raise one for online battling. After all is said and done, the Cubone line takes sixth place. On a related note, Marowak's Yellow Sprite scares the crap out of me, even to this day, those of you who played the game will know why (friggin' Pokémon Tower).

#5
Dragonite
First Game: Red and Blue
Dragon Flying

Bet you didn't see this coming, did you? Dragonite is my absolute favorite Dragon in the whole franchise. Sure, Salamence (and especially Garchomp) are more destructive dragons, but Dragonite is their precursor, so he deserves the same amount of love as they do, as Dragonite is just as destructive as they are… well okay, except for Garbrokenchomp. Sure, Dragonite looks like a giant yellow pushover, but its appearance hides the raw power coursing through its body that it will use to decimate you. And unlike some third evolution Pokémon, all Dragonite wants is to be left alone in peace, nothing more nothing less.

Also, it is probably one of the most satisfying things in the franchise to go through the Elite Four packing one of these guys, I should know because I did it in FireRed. Dragonite destroyed all of his opposition, and it was oh-so satisfying. A Pokémon definitely worth the time and effort, Dragonite earns fifth place.

#4
Kabutops
First game: Red and Blue
Rock Water

Bet you didn't see this one either. Ironically, when I was a kid, I liked Omastar more. However, I now I like Kabutops more because he has scythes for hands, and everyone knows I love scythes. Now some will probably wonder why Scyther isn't on here for that reason, and here is the answer to that question. If confronted by either one, which would you be more afraid of; a rare bug about 4'11 with scythes for hands or something that died tens of thousands of years ago that has scythes for hands, about 4'03, and will not only cut you open, but drain you of your fluids? I rest my case.

Kabutops is also undeniably badass, admit it, you know its true. Look at that, that thing will chop you and your Pokémon just to suck out your bodily fluids… wait a minute… this kind of makes it like a vampire that needs to mutilate its victim to death… Even more badass… and even more intimidating. Kabutops steals fourth having said all this.

#3
Slowbro
First Game: Red and Blue
Psychic Water

Hells yes, Slowbro! A bipedal pink hippo with a huge shell on its tail with psychic abilities. What part of that statement doesn't say "awesome"? I absolutely adore Slowbro, and words cannot express it enough. Sure, he's outdone by plenty of other waters, but are they pink psychic hippos? I think not.

Slowbro's massive move set, combined with nostalgia, and his awesome design (not gonna lie, he clearly has one of the best designs and you know it) nets Slowbro third place. Yes, I'm fully aware a lot hasn't been said, but seriously, look at Slowbro! What else can be said?

#2
Arcanine
First Game: Red and Blue
Fire

Before I say anything else, there is one thing I have to say. Ahem, Arcanine is so fluffy that fluffiness itself pales in comparison to the fluffiness of Arcanine's insanely fluffy looking fluffy fur and outranks everything else that has ever been created that has a fluffy looking appearance. With that little obligation out of the way, I can now continue. I really couldn't decide what Fire Pokémon I liked the most, considering Magmar and Magmortor are crazy awesome, so I decided to go with the fire breathing fluffy dog. Seriously, who doesn't like Arcanine? Answer, nobody, that's who.

Unfortunately, due to Earthquake and other moves of the sort being popular, Arcanine has suffered greatly in the meta-game, and will probably never recover. But you know what? Screw that crap, Arcanine is too cool for online. Also, not going to lie, would so want one in real life, because I love dogs, and its roughly 6'3 so I could probably put a saddle on it and ride it around. Second place is awarded to Arcanine, with my previous delusion aside (admit it, it would look so badass having one as a mount).

#1
Gengar
First Game: Red and Blue
Ghost Poison

Here's the one everyone probably saw coming. Gengar is my top favorite Pokémon, yet the odd thing is, I don't know why. I mean, I love his design, I love his concept, I love how much damage he's capable of doing (feel free to ask Darth, I'm sure he remembers), and everything else about him. The thing is though, my love for Gengar just suddenly happened. It's like one day I woke up and said "Gengar is my favorite Pokémon from this day forward". Knowing me though, I wouldn't be surprised if that happened, but that's not the point.

I guess it comes from the fact that Gengar himself was incredibly unique back in the first two Generations… or maybe it has something to do with my odd feelings towards death? Well, I'm running out of time here. So I can't say a lot. Gengar practically took first place and ran off with it.

~End of this list~

And well, that's another list down. And I hope you all enjoyed it. However, don't forget, there's two more lists to select from for next time. So remember, read, comment, and vote. Until then, stay awesome everybody.

~ Burner

All right, I've stalled long enough. It's about time I get to the list everyone's been waiting for. Now, I'm sure some of you are curious as to why the delay happened, and I will say due to bad time management and Marvel vs. Capcom 3. But regardless, it is being done now, so without further ado, let us begin!

Disclaimer: The opinions and views expressed in the following list are simply those of the maker and should not be taken seriously, at all. Also, the criteria seem to be a bit off in some cases. The Pokémon Special manga will also be referenced, but not all of it has been read.

~Top 10 Gym Leaders~

#10
Falkner
Region: Johto
Pokémon Specialization: Flying

I try not to post gifs, but it looks like I have no choice considering it's the only up-to-date picture of Falkner that's small. Anyway, Falkner makes the list at #10 for being the first Gym Leader I beat, also because his appearance is kind of cool. Long story short, Falkner doesn't have much else going for him other than that. His Pokémon aren't that strong, and even though you don't have any sort of Electric move at your disposal, you won't even need it. Heck, you can even grab a Geodude or trade a Bellsprout for an Onix if you want the advantage. I'd take the time to write a witty one-liner regarding Rock but I won't.

#9
Fantina
Region: Sinnoh
Pokémon Specialization: Ghost

Up next is the second Ghost Leader in the series, Fantina from Hearthome City. Now granted I can't remember much about playing the Gen IV games, but I'm going to try my hardest to get my facts straight here. Fantina makes number nine simply due to the fact she uses Ghosts, my favorite kind in the games as a whole. What hurts her chances on the list? Well, for starters it's the fact that when you have to do some kind of side-quest first before fighting her, kind of like Norman from Gen III. However, when you finally get to fight her, her team is an absolute joke.

Just three Ghost Pokémon in their 30's, to be precise a Drifblim, a Gengar, and a Mismagius. And none of them know Hypnosis, only Gengar and Mismagius know Confuse Ray, which really doesn't do much. Granted confusion is good, but at this point in the game, you can easily take her team on without much a worry. Had they given her a couple extra ghosts and put in some actual status effect moves, I'd see her being a threat.

#8
Chuck
Region: Johto
Pokémon Specialization: Fighting

Oh man, here he comes, the first (official) Fighting Gym Leader in the series, and he's quite the guy. Packing only two Pokémon and the guy still manages to be a challenge. Chuck, despite his intimidating appearance, is a rather good guy and clearly enjoys all challengers. Although he is a challenge with his Primeape and Poliwrath, I feel he could have used a third Fighting Pokémon to make the battle last longer. Although, he does get points for throwing a boulder with his own bare hands on to one of those unbreakable statues. Seriously, that guy could do some serious damage on his own!

#7
Crasher Wake
Region: Sinnoh
Pokémon Specialization: Water

Aw yeah, Crasher Wake is up in this *****. Now that little obligation is taken care of, allow me to continue with my horrid memory. Crasher Wake is a luchador who uses water Pokémon, at this point; logic has been thrown out the window and will not return lest a suplex from Crasher Wake destroy it. Regarding Wake's team, it's a trio as well, but there's something about the battle itself that is very fun and enjoyable from what I recall. This therefore, grants Wake spot number seven on the list.

#6
Blaine
Region: Kanto
Pokémon Specialization: Fire

Sure I could have used his sprite from FRLG, but I figured I'd go with his HGSS simply because it seems he's pulling off some kind of badass old man vaudeville thing now. Blaine himself doesn't carry many Pokémon on him in his battles, but these battles tend to be rather enjoyable and full of pressure nonetheless. To make him more original, you can even skip the trainers in his gym by answering quiz questions! Unfortunately, due to a volcano eruption at Cinnabar forces him to relocate in a nearby cave at the Seafoam Islands, making the Gym Battle with him kind of sad and anticlimactic. But the fact whenever you fight him, no matter if it's before or after the eruption, Blaine doesn't let anything get him down.

His appearance in the manga on the other hand, just makes him even more badass than his design does! Unfortunately, the anticlimactic battle in Seafoam (I haven't reached it in HG yet mind you, just going off of Gold version memories) lowers Blaine's place on the list.

#5
Byron
Region: Sinnoh
Pokémon Specialization: Steel

What can I say about this guy? Really. The man walks around with a tattered cloak and shovel all day long, that's manly! His team, from what I recall, was somewhere between challenging and easy. But that doesn't matter, the guy's probably at Iron Island all day walking around being a Boss and smacking wild Pokémon with his shovel. Yeah, it's a pretty short entry here, but the man's appearance and personality, which I never mention, get him to number five. Also, I'm pretty sure he would only use his shovel as a last resort.

#4
Norman
Region: Hoenn
Pokémon Specialization: Normal

Norman… My God. The Batman reference should easily tell you Norman is not as easy as you think he is. Norman is fought as the fifth Gym Leader, as he refuses to fight you until you have four Gym Badges, and for good reason. Because fighting Norman at any other point in time would result in you getting DESTROYED. Norman's team consists only of two Slakings and a Vigoroth… and they will make you cry. Now for the familiar, you're probably wondering, "but Burner, can't Slaking only attack once every other turn" and yes, you're right, but you don't understand.

Slaking has the third HIGHEST BASE ATTACK in the whole series, only surpassed by Rampardos and Deoxys' Attack Form; basically meaning its attack surpasses EVERY other Pokémon in terms of raw power. And trust me, you're going to be glad you get a turn of rest when fighting those behemoths. This, along with what I've heard about him inthe Manga, nets him at number four.

#3
Morty
Region: Johto
Pokémon Specialization: Ghost

Ah yes, the first Gym Leader to use Ghosts. Ecruteak City's Morty is the fourth Johto Gym Leader, and is one of the most challenging in my opinion. Sure, Whitney's Miltank is terrible, but Morty's team has got the power to shut you down and fast. In the old days, Morty's Pokemon would use Mean Look and Curse preventing you from switching your Pokémon out while the Curse would damage them. Then his Gengar would come out, hit you with Hypnosis putting you to sleep and would then either use Shadow Ball or Dream Eater until you woke up, because in those days Dream Eater didn't make you wake up immediately.

In HGSS, Morty's team remains the same, except now one of his two Haunters is now doing the Hypnosis and Dream Eater thing, with Curse and Nightmare running as well. While that isn't that effective, His Gengar comes now packing some brand new toys after losing its beloved combo. It now knows Mean Lock, trapping you in a fight with it, and still retains Hypnosis and Shadow Ball. Furthermore, it's new Sucker Punch will always hit first if you're going to attack it, which can make quite a difference. Morty earns third having said all of this.

#2
Giovanni
Region: Kanto
Pokémon Specialization: Ground

I know its not his appearance as a Gym Leader, but come on, he's wearing a trench coat and a fedora! Anyway, I'm sure this man needs no introduction as to who he is, and why he's on this list. Giovanni, for those of you who are unaware, was the leader of Team Rocket, as the as the Gym Leader of Viridian City, however it appears that his duties as a Boss came before his role as a Gym Leader, so he apparently decided to leave the Gym for a while to pursue his villainous career. So, like a Boss, Giovanni led Team Rocket through various campaigns in Kanto, only to end up being thwarted by some mute 10 year-old. Sure, getting owned by one kid three times and then another once doesn't look good on the ol' villainous resume, but the man's charisma, determination, and way of doing things just overrides the loses. Furthermore, all battles with Giovanni are simply climactic and the man never denies us a good fight with him, like a Boss.

His manga incarnation doesn't get as many fights in as he does in the game, but his magnificent bastardry and way of doing things just makes him even more of a Boss and a badass then the games did. Giovanni easily takes second after all is said and done.

So, whose number one? Many will see it coming, others won't.

#1
Sabrina
Region: Kanto
Pokémon Specialization: Psychic

Ah yes, the original Psychic Maiden of Kanto, Sabrina takes number one in my book for many reasons. For starters, there was actually another Gym in Saffron City, a fighting gym to be precise. Sabrina apparently didn't like the idea of another Gym in Saffron, so she challenged the its Leader, won the battle, and then stripped the Gym of its status so there would be only one official Gym in Saffron. The second reason is that when Team Rocket overruns Saffron City, Sabrina isn't doing anything about it. This would seem to be a bad thing, but the implication is that the criminal organization overtaking the town ISN'T WORTH a moment of her time! I mean really, what's stopping her from doing anything about it?

Next reason is her portrayal in the manga, which I absolutely love. Let's see, Team Rocket Admin? Check. Epic Battles with the Protagonists? Check. Crush on Giovanni? Check Yep, I do believe everything's in order here.

The battles with her are either long or short, and thanks to HGSS, I can have rematches with her! Speaking of HGSS, you're probably wondering why I'm not using her appearance from it, well, I'll tell you why. I HATE that redesign for the sole purpose of her hair being short now. Seriously, she looks better with long hair… at least in my opinion. Another thing that confuses me is why some people think she's cruel. It's probably due to her portrayals in the anime in manga, because in the games, she's probably the nicest character in the whole franchise.

And thus, having said this, Sabrina claims number one.

~END OF THIS LIST~

And that's the end of that. Although… it seems I wrote a lot more for some Gym Leaders than I did for others… makes me feel biased. Perhaps next time I'll do one where I won't have to refer to my horrible memory for information. So, until next time guys… also, don't forget to vote for the next one. And the list is as follows…

Top 10 Favorite Pokémon
Top 10 Favorite Elite Four (Champions included)
Top 10 Favorite Towns

~ Burner

Okay, I'm getting quite terrible at doing these now, oh well, better than just giving up, yes? Well, second semester has begun, or been going on for about three weeks now, but tomorrow my fourth cla- I mean, well, you get it. This means I'll be spending my Monday's arriving at 9:30 am to 5:40 pm. I do get a two-hour or so break in between the two, so it isn't that bad. Well, on to other things.

For starters, I have indeed changed my avatar again. This time to Marx from Kirby, though he's only in Super Star (available now on the Virtual Console for 800 Wii Points, Wii Points and Wii sold separately) and Super Star Ultra (available for the DS since September 22, 2008 for $15 (currently), DS sold separately). And before anyone asks, no, I'm not getting paid for the subliminal messaging. Speaking of the whole Kirby thing, it turns out I never added the games I own to my list, which annoys me to no end because I do enjoy them. Although, if I do hope I don't spam the crap out of every ones RSS Feed with my additions, if it does happen, I'm dreadfully sorry about it and will try to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Now I'm sure your wondering why I care about my game list being perfectly correct even though I've already fulfilled the ownership of 200 games for the emblem. The simple answer is, I like keeping my things in order, although to be fair, I should remove .hack G.U.//Reminisce Part 2 and both Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreed because I lost all three of those and have been unable to find them. The only real thing I can do at this point is just buy new copies of them considering all three have been lost for years. However, I will keep them on there for the time being as a reminder. Moving on to my last two topics.

As most, if not all, of you have noticed, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is gaining quite a lot of attention and has become one of the holders of GS' spotlight, and for good reasons as well. It retains the three vs. three aspect of the MvC2 and gives us a very wide selection from both sides. As for who I will main? Well, I'm obviously maining Viewtiful Joe, and then the last two spaces will either to go Trish (Devil May Cry), Morrigan (DarkStalkers), Arthur (Ghosts n' Goblins), Storm (Marvel), Magneto (Marvel), Albert Wesker (Resident Evil), and lastly, Shuma Gorrath (Marvel… and don't look at me like that. You know what he really wanted? You want to know what the one eyed tentacle monster really wanted? A Cheeseburger. That's right, a ************* CHEESEBURGER! Nothing more, nothing less). Yeah, enough with all that then as the point is obvious.

Now then, moving on to the last point, I'm sure everyone knows about Pokémon Black and White coming out soon, correct? Well, at first I had lost interest, but after some convincing from my friends, I've decided to bother with the whole thing. And to celebrate the occasion, I've decided to make some Top 10 lists. And to make the thing more interesting, I've decided to host a poll for which lists you want to see first. They are as follows:
Top 10 Favorite Pokémon
Top 10 Favorite Towns
Top 10 Favorite Gym Leaders
Top 10 Favorite Elite Four Members (Champions included)

And that's about it this time everybody. Make your votes and tune in next time.
~Burner

Well, its that time of year again. And… I really have no idea how to follow that up. And really, what's the chance someone's going to read this? I mean, XP's been the only one to come by here and post. Shame on you guys, I drop by your blogs all the time, and post something, and you guys don't even have a paragraph of stuff written. But I digress; this isn't the time of year for getting mad at people, havens no. New Years is around for that.

Joke of the blog aside, I might as well go on list what I got this year… aside from clothes and various sweets.

Assassins Creed: Brotherhood (360)
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (PS3)
Dragon Ball Z Raging Blast 2 (PS3)
Pokemon Stadium 2 (N64) (Was actually put on as a joke, but enjoyable nonetheless)
Viewtiful Joe Vol. 1 (DVD)
Fist of the North Star (DVD) (The Complete Series collection of 36 dubbed episodes)
The Simpsons Season 5 (DVD)
PSN Card
Microsoft Points Card
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Vol. 12 (Manga)
Rurouni Kenshin Vol. 19 (Manga)

And that's about it. Although, to be politically correct, the first two games were from my other family members whom I spent most of the day with today. Also, if one noticed my "Now Playing" they will notice two Super Robot Taisen games I didn't mention. Well, I bought those when I was chilling with a buddy of mine on the 23rd when we went on a trip around town because we felt like it. There's really nothing like two good friends in a van to themselves while listening to metal and video game music.

And, well, I have nothing else to discuss, so until New Years everyone.

~Burner

Geez, you'd think I'd get better about blogging with my profile revamped and all, right? Oh well, it doesn't matter. What matters is that I make this blog and get it up before my self-imposed deadline. So let's get it done, gentlemen (and ladies).

Well, as of today, I've completed my first semester of college. Now to sit back and do absolutely nothing productive until January 10th when I have to go back for my second semester. Really don't know how I did on my finals, but I'm sure I passed them considering I was doing very well in all four of my College Level Academic Semester Schooling of Epic Something. For those of you who have no idea where that came from, take all the bolded letters and put them together, that way you'll get the significance of the following parenthetical statement. (Take that **** and eat it GameSpot, you and your nonsensical censoring.)

With that obligation aside, I can at least mention a few things. For starters, I should be happy that I'm done with my semester, but alas, I am not. This is mostly due to the fact a game I bought online, Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne to be precise, back on the 10th was confirmed to have been shipped out on the 18th, an entire week and a day after the payment was made. And no, there were no stock issues with it, nor was I told ahead of time about it. Furthermore, I bought the English version of the game, for obvious reasons, and guess where it's shipping from? Hong Kong.

Review that paragraph and tell me if there is ANY sort of logic within it to defend Play-Asia, the site I bought it from. Had I been notified of the eight-day delay, I would be fine with it, since they're telling me about it and not doing so at the last second. Oh well, nothing can be done about it, and hopefully I should have it before Christmas, and if not that's okay too. Also, please do not think ill of Play-Asia just because of this, it's really a good site with a vast amount of merchandise for sale.

And as of late, I have found myself reading manga online again, thanks to a new site I found. So far I've already read and finished up Gash Bell (more commonly known as Zatch Bell here in America), Getter Robo, and Mazinger Z. Unfortunately, that site offers me nothing else for my Getter Robo and Mazinger needs other than Getter Robo Go and Shin Mazinger Zero, and those two are just retellings of the originals. Oh well, better than nothing, and they should have Berserk there, I need to read more of that.

As for now, I really don't know what else to mention, other than Christmas being a mere five days away meaning the New Year is almost here. But I'm sure everyone knew that already. And now to go look for the GBA Super Robot Wars games that actually came over here. So, until next time everybody.

~Burner

It's finally here everybody. My profile has been revamped at last! I know it's not much, but there isn't a whole lot that you can change on Gamespot. That, and I really didn't live up to my fighting themed promise as Gideon Graves, (the guy I have for an avatar) was from a Beat 'Em up game (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game to be precise, and that game kicked lots of ass).

There really isn't much for me to talk about though, that, and unfortunately, I lack the will to write a long blog post, had I the will I'd be pulling all sorts of **** out of a hat to talk about. But screw that, I'm not going to let some lack of motivation keep me down, I'm going to say as much as I want and not stop until I feel like I truly said something. So, now to answer some questions some of you may have, but never asked.

So Burner, what do you do nowadays? I'm a college student for starters. Other than that, nothing else has changed.

What are you going to do for Thanksgiving? Same thing as always, stay home, play video games, and eat Turkey.

Well, I think those are the only important questions that come to mind.

You know, lately I feel like I should spend some time and dig out my Wii or GC and actually play some of the games I have for both systems, but… One, its too much of a hassle hooking up the Wii, furthermore the wiimotes need double A batteries (the three I have anyway) and I never seem to have enough around and need the ones I have for my 360 controller now. As for the GC, it's perfectly fine… but I need to get a new AV cable for it since its so old. That, and I should track down some more controllers too.

Haven't given my PS2 much attention either… for some odd reason. Guess I'm just caught up with the new games I have, which is understandable. So, I'm hoping to get around and doing more both on and offline. And that's pretty much all I have to say at the moment. So, until next time guys.

~ Burner