Text Play: Pokémon Xenoverse #7

Hello, and welcome back to the Eldiw region! This is the seventh entry in my Text Play of Pokémon Xenoverse!

Before we continue on, I do want to, as usual, make a warning. I will be spoiling the heck out of this game.

So, please keep that in mind before reading this. If you want to play the game for yourself, you can download it here. And with that out of the way, let's go.

Last time, we started out on our journey through String Forest. I noticed in the last entry that it was an odd forest. Green, but very snowy. It also had some poisonous patches. Continuing on through the forest, we find a... quite foreboding sight.

Yeah, there's totally nothing creepy about this. We should totally not expect a monster to try and eat us or something like that.

And just like in any good horror movie, the monster does appear. It's yet another X Pokémon, the third I believe we have encountered so far: Garvantula.

I wonder if this big spider is the reason why there's so much snow and hail here. It would make sense. When I captured this fellow here, I discovered that it was a Bug/Ice type. It's an interesting combination. I don't think I've ever seen this combination of Pokémon types before. I mean, there are what? Around 900 "official" Pokémon species now? Add on the potential new Pokémon of Scarlet/Violet, and...yeah. You'd have to have a computer brain to remember them all.

I can imagine that this guy was also responsible for those strange Joltik we saw around that building in the last entry as well. I mean, they did not look like the standard Joltik. And Joltik is the pre-evolution of Garvantula. It would make sense.

So, how did this family end up in this mess? Well, they were camping in the forest when it started to get colder and colder. The X Garvantula had captured the family and basically planned to freeze them to death. One of the children, Lucas, invites us to visit him in Stellato Town. I just may have to do that. Make sure everyone's truly okay. I can imagine this family's going to have plenty of nightmares about that big ugly spider. I do not blame them. I'm not creeped out by spiders, but...yeah.

Natalie, who I presume is the mother, gives me a Lappa Berry in gratitude. Leppa Berries are the main ingredients in Star Siders. The other one of the boys is Nadir, and he gives me TM07 (Hail). I think that X Garvantula knew Hail, which would explain why the forest was hailing.

Nadir also gives us some advice: if we continue on here, we'll get to Route 6, and then land in Milkiway City. Considering the space theme of this game, it's not hard to guess what the city's name is referencing. The city is evidently a small kingdom as well. It also hosts the third Gym we'll have to beat to continue on.

I went back to the Pokémon Center in Stellato Town to get healed up. When I returned to the String Forest, something changed.

The snow on the ground, the hailing...it stopped. It's all gone. It's almost like catching that X Garvantula magically ended the winter in this forest. Weird.

Remember the frozen item boxes we saw in the last entry? Well, they're all thawed out! We can open them! 

For example, that box in the last screenshot, next to the gnarled-up tree. It contains a Pecha Berry. I really wish this game had Berry Pots like in HeartGold and SoulSilver. Growing berries on the go is so convenient. If we go the way through the forest like we did last time, we find another formerly frozen box.

It contains another Pecha Berry. It's kind of not surprising to me. We're in a forest, so it does kind of make sense that we get Berries here. I just wish the boxes contained stuff like Ethers, Full Restores, and Revives. Those are hard to come by (not to mention expensive if they're sold in shops), and maybe we can just look in trees for Berries.

Remember the poisonous area of the String Forest? Well, there's a man standing in the center of it.

Rupert the Hiker here will take you back to Stellato Town if you want. But I don't want to go back there, I want to go to Milkiway City. Traveling further into the Forest, I found a familiar area.

Hey, those weird Joltik are gone. I wonder what happened to them. Did they vanish when I captured that X Garvantula? The scientists here are doing some research, so we can't come in at the moment. Maybe we can later in the game. I'm playing blind for the most part here.

I headed to where the X Garvantula attacked.

Man, it looks a little different without the snow everywhere. And since the box there is thawed out, we can open it. It's another Pecha Berry.

Right below is the entry area to Route 6.

All we have to do is head eastward, and Milkiway City, here we come!

The Route itself is short and pretty straightforward. There are a couple of items one can get here.

This box contains a Figy Berry. Right near the entrance to Milkiway City is a rocky ridge you can walk over.

You have to use Perseum H to break the rock in front of the box there. The box there contains TM62 (Acrobatics). The first thing you see when you enter are a couple of what look like wheat fields with Miltanks in them. You can encounter wild Pokémon in the fields. You can't catch the Miltanks, though. They are owned by a man named Toby. Well, his family owns them, but same deal. 

You see that box there in the screenshot? There's another bottle of Moomoo Milk in it. We head right, and we see the entrance to the city proper.

That guard there clearly is rocking his best Ragnar McRyan from Dragon Quest IV cosplay. Milkiway City has, naturally for a supposedly ancient kingdom, has the vibe of a medieval-era European town. Heck, they even have bards playing here near the entrance!

The tunes ain't bad, but it's a shame they do not know "Freebird". That song rules. I managed to find the Pokémon Center here. I didn't notice it at first because it blended in with the other buildings.

I think that's actually pretty neat. It does make sense that different places would have Pokémon Centers that look different. Anyway, the nurse? Maid? outside correctly deduces that this is my first time in town, so she gives me a welcome gift: A bottle of Moomoo Milk, fresh from the farm...presumably my family's farm. Huh. Anyway, she warns us that the inside of the Center is a bit different from the usual.

It's really not, as you can see. It just looks a bit more rustic. I think it actually looks...kind of nice.

The PokeMart here does look more like an outdoor kiosk, which fits the aesthetic of the town. I kind of find it funny that's inside a building, though. A kid here will also give you a Premier Ball. You can get these for free at PokeMarts if you by 10 Pokeballs at once. I also learned something interesting at the Center from one of the people there. You know the Pokémon Bremand? 

Yeah, that one. Well, the one we caught is one of four different forms. Interesting.

Anyway, wandering around town and talking to people, I learned that one of the royals here is a Princess Vanilla. That sounds like the name of a Dragon Ball character. I expect that her parents would be named something like King Chocolate and Queen Pecan or something like that. Since there are royals here, they likely live in a castle or something like that. So, where would it be? Well, there's a gate to it in the northernmost part of town. 

The guards don't really say anything. Nor do they even try to stop you from going through the arch. You'd think they'd be in trouble for that kind of thing. I mean, I could be an assassin, for all they know, and they just let me walk on in! I don't think these two will be employed for very long.

When we first come into the grounds, the first thing we see are the Royal Gardens.

Huh. You'd think they'd be a bit more...elaborate, considering they're royal gardens, after all. Maybe Princess Vanilla isn't into that kind of thing. Who knows?

There are a couple of small grass spots just outside the gardens on both sides that have wild Pokémon in them. According to a maid next to the one on the left side, the Princess likes to play with wild Pokémon, hence the grass spots. It gives the impression that Princess Vanilla may actually be pretty young. The trip through the gardens isn't long. It's literally a short walk to the front of the castle, which is also a Pokémon Gym.

Considering the Princess's love of playing with wild Pokémon, it does make sense that the Princess would have a Gym in her castle. I would not be surprised if her team of Pokémon she likes to use as a gym leader are wild Pokémon she tamed. When we first enter the castle, we're met by this fellow.

I think we've seen this guy before, at the past two gyms we beat. he seems to have an interest in us, as he's encouraging us to succeed. He informs us that the Princess specializes in Fairy-type Pokémon. Fairy-types are vulnerable to Poison and Steel. The idea is that these Pokémon are vulnerable to the same things that real monarchs are: poison and steel. And to face her, we have to pass through three trials. You head upwards and there's this big ol' door.

The guard next to us tells us that this door is the entrance to the first trial: The Trial by Fire. If we pass through this door, there is no going back. Evidently, we have to tackle all three Trials at once.

So, yeah. We'd better make sure we are absolutely ready before we pass through that door. So, let's look around the town to help mentally prepare. To the far right the castle is this dude here.

He dreams of being essentially Princess Vanilla's personal bard. He gives us an Air Balloon. This item you give to a Pokémon to make them float in the air. Near the bard is a house in which a clown resides with their Hikiloo.

Talking to the sad clown (his name is Elmer) reveals that he tried to use a TM on his Hikiloo. However, it didn't seem to work. So, he'll let me have it. It's TM49 (Echoed Voice). There's also a golden nugget in the trash bin nearby. In the Pokémon games, a Nugget can be sold for a lot of money. Which makes me wonder why Elmer would just have this in a trash bin.

Above that house to the right is the home of a Move Tutor.

The person inside (Fae) says they'll teach a move to a Pokemon of a Trainer that has the Sugar Badge. I'm assuming that this is the badge you win from Princess Vanilla. Makes sense. There's another significant house to the left and slightly below the castle gate.

The woman inside wanted to catch a Sparkowl. Thing is, she was driven away by a flock of them, and she really wants one. She'll give you a Quick Ball. If we go further down and to the left, we find this little alleyway.

The box there contains another TM: TM51 (Steel Wing). That'll be a handy attack to teach a Pokemon for facing Princess Vanilla. Inside the house next to the box is a woman who found something in a cake. If you answer "yes" to her asking if you want it, you'll get a Meringue Update. This little chip will allow evolution of Swirlix into Slurpuff. I wonder how that chip got into a cake? 

Anyway, if we go further down and to the left, we find another significant house.

This one houses a pair of guards. In a nice little touch, when you talk to them, their speech is written in a Medieval/Old-English style. In their house is a trash can that contains a Destiny Knot. If your Pokémon holds this item, and it ends up being infatuated, the Pokémon that caused it will become infatuated with your Pokémon, too. I get the feeling that this thing would be used a lot in Pokémon breeding, and that...disturbs me.

Anyway, I want to get ready for Princess Vanilla, so I went back to the Pokémon Center to see what I got. Fairy-type Pokémon are vulnerable to Poison and Steel. I have an Ekans with Poison Sting, so I could bring that in. My Blingrimm is Steel/Poison. Would be perfect, but it knows no Steel or Poison moves. My Beedrill is Bug/Poison, and it knows Poison Sting. I have an Oddish that knows Acid. Gastly is Ghost/Poison, but it knows no Poison-type moves. I have a Zubat that is Poison-type. Maybe it can learn Steel Wing? And I have a Grimer that knows Poison Gas. I have options, but I'm not sure which to pick. 

And I think that's where we'll stop for now. Next month, I hope to get a team ready to face Princess Vanilla! Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and get your vaccine/booster! See you next time!

Pokemon Obtained:
(Milkiway City)
- Roselia
- Flaaffy
- Minccino
(String Forest)
- Ditto
- Kungfur
- Heracross
- Hystearic

Machine Man #2 (May 1978)

Back in January of last year, I took a look at the first issue of the debut of Aaron Stack, the Machine Man. I remember quite enjoying it. I struggled to figure out what comic to look at this week, so I looked through one of my shelves of trade paperbacks. I saw my copy of Machine Man by Kirby and Ditko and I found myself thinking "Hey, I looked at the first issue of that comic, why not take a look at the next one?" So here we are. This is Machine Man #2!

The cover is a Jack Kirby piece, and it's pretty awesome. It depicts our machine man Aaron Stack flying over a bunch of policemen while riding/being a wheeled vehicle. Aaron hasn't quite grasped how Transformers work.

"House of Nightmares"
Writer: Jack Kirby
Artist: Jack Kirby
Inker: Mike Royer
Colorist: Petra Goldberg
Letterer: Mike Royer
Editors: Jack Kirby, Archie Goodwin
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The story begins with our man Aaron having a nightmare.

"Not my incredibly gorgeous face!"

Darkseid here rips off Aaron Stack's human face, as a bunch of machines mock him, screaming that he's nothing more than a mere robot, a tool, an automaton. Aaron roars that he's more than that. He is a man, regardless of being steel and wires instead of flesh and blood. Aaron wakes up, finding himself in the forest. He evidently decided to take a nap on his way to see Peter Spaulding. Because robots can nap, I guess. 

The fight with the army damaged his anti-gravity unit, so he can't fly. I'm presuming he can't use his motorized skateboard because of the forest terrain. He spots a patrol looking for it and decides it's a good time to leave.

After a brief look in on General Kragg, we go back to Aaron. The Machine Man makes his way to a gas station. Being in the Marvel Universe, the attendants aren't too bothered by a strange man in a purple outfit. He asks for some tires, but he needs to pay for them. Aaron picks up some rocks and crushes them into diamonds. He figures that their value should cover any tire expenses. 

"Shut up Bill, we're rich!"

He also asks if he can use their repair shop. Considering what they saw, they figure to just let the weird purple-wearing man do what he wants. 

In Central City, a nurse alerts Peter Spaulding that there's something wrong with a patient in "Room Zero". Spaulding heads in and finds the orderlies struggling with the patient. As the tranquilizers take effect, the patient rants about a spaceflight going wrong and falling into the sun. 

"Oh dear, he read Star Trek novels while on an LSD trip again..."

They note that the patient was a homeless man who didn't have a lot of schooling. Yet his words sound like he came from NASA. Maybe he hung out in the library and read a lot.

The Army make their way to the gas station and prepare to surround it. But Aaron Stack has finished his little project, and he's ready to get going.

"Machine Man, Roll Out!"

The soldiers try to get a bead on him, but his speed is too great. Having escaped for now, Aaron makes his way to Central City, meeting some bikers on the way. He asks them how far Central City is, but they answer by crashing. You know, nowadays he'd likely have a built-in GPS so he'd have no problem finding that answer.

Aaron arrives and meets up with Spaulding. Aaron needs somewhere to crash for a while, so he's hoping Peter can take him in. The psychologist agrees, as he considers Aaron a friend. Aaron's systems pick up strange transmissions from the building. He projects footage of a solar system on the ceiling of Spaulding's office, his internal computers able to translate the transmissions. 

Spaulding notices that a ship appears to be trapped in the gravitational pull of the solar system's star. Spaulding then realizes that the rambling of the man inside "Room Zero" isn't insanity, it's a call for help!

The story ends with our two heroes racing to Room Zero and the man ranting that he needs to get taken off his vessel, or he'll be fried like an egg on a pan. Mmmm...fried egg...

This issue was, like its predecessor, very enjoyable. I got a good chuckle out of Aaron's interactions with the two mechanics he encounters. The whole thing with the mentally ill man receiving transmissions was very Kirby. The man has a love of the cosmic, as his work has shown over the years. The nightmare Aaron suffers is part of the theme of this series, what makes a man? Aaron wants to be seen as a human being, just like any other, despite his being made of metal and wires instead of flesh and blood. Aaron's characterization here is interesting when you consider how he has been portrayed post-Nextwave. He seems like a completely different character here.

I got a good chuckle out of Aaron's interactions with the mechanics, and his escape was quite awesome. I do wonder how the homeless man was able to receive the alien transmissions, though. Is he an alien himself? Ah, well. Maybe the next issue will explain. Kirby's art is very dynamic, but that's no surprise. It's "The King".

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2016 trade paperback Machine Man by Kirby and Ditko. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, wear a mask, and get your vaccine/booster! See you next time!