Text Play: Pokémon Xenoverse #17

Hello, and welcome back to the Eldiw region! This is entry number #17 of my Text Play through Pokémon Xenoverse!

Before we begin, I would like to warn you all that I will be spoiling this game.

As such, I recommend that you play the game for yourself before reading this. You can download the game here. And with that out of the way, let's do this!

Last time, we learned the origin of this version of the Pokémon universe thanks to Abraham, the grandfather of Queen Nuphar. This also revealed to us the origins of the Xenoverse and the X Pokémon that inhabited it. We traveled to the Xenoverse itself, battled our counterpart, and obtained the power of Xenoversal Evolution, which temporarily made Trishout go nuts. With that accomplished, we returned to Ishtar City, and Queen Nuphar invited us to her Gym (which is a giant pyramid, and that's awesome) to face her for our 4th badge. And now we're here.

I did look into the Gym a bit in the last entry, but I realized I'm going to need a special team of Pokemon to take her on. Nuphar is a Water-type specialist, so I put together a team of Electric, Grass, and Sound to counter her. From my regular team, I kept my Phantump (Grass/Ghost) and Harrowk (Electric/Flying). The rest of my team comprises of Hystearic (Grass/Sound), Sewaddle (Bug/Grass), Bremand (Electric/Sound), and Mareep (Electric). I'm pretty confident that this bunch can handle the Queen of Ishtar City and her Wave Brigade. 

Thing is, most of these Pokémon desperately need to be leveled up. Which means yep, time to do some grinding!

It's not so bad. As I said in the last entry, all your Pokémon in a team get experience after a battle. I did most of my grinding on Route 7, and I already managed to get my non-regular team Pokémon into their twenties power level-wise after a couple hours. A couple funny things did happen to me when I was grinding on Route 7. First, I have to explain something. My lead Pokémon here is Phantump (I've really grown to like using Phantump thanks to this game as well as Sun and Moon), which has the ability Frisk. That ability allows the player to instantly know what item the opposing Pokémon has, if it is carrying one. And on Route 7, you can find wild Papaqueno and Kadabra.

There's a point to this, I promise! Anyway, I got a couple of interesting items during my grinding sessions. From a Papaqueno, I got a Fire Stone. And from a Kadabra, I got an item called a Psi Update. What is a Psi Update? Well, a Psi Update is an evolution item. It allows one to evolve a Kadabra into an Alakazam when you use something called the Pokémon Transfer. I have no idea what that is. You can also fight Bibarel and Koinkoin on this route. Bibarels can provide Oran or Sitrus Berries, and Koinkoin can provide Pearl Strings. You can sell Pearl Strings at stores if you need a little extra money. So, a little helpful info there for you all.

After doing quite a bit of grinding, I was ready to face Queen Nuphar at the Ishtar Gym. And appropriate for her, it's a giant pyramid.

You know, I'll give it to the old Queenie. Her having an Ancient Egyptian-style pyramid for a gym is pretty darn awesome. 

We recount to her our little misadventure with her grandfather. She is thrilled that we unlocked Xenoversal Evolution, and she wants to see it for herself. 

With this new power, as far as she's concerned, we've got the canyon problem handled. But first, she wants to challenge us and see this new power for herself. I'm afraid she's going to be a bit disappointed. Remember, Trishout is a Fire-type, and she's a Water-type specialist. As such, he won't be on my team when I face her. Hey, I want her badge. I'm taking every advantage I can get. We did go into the gym a little bit in the last entry, but we didn't really explore it, if I remember correctly. When we get inside, the first chamber has a jar.

Inside the jar is a Hyper Potion. Which is always handy. The Ishtar Gym has challenges that are based on games their ancestors used to play. Basically, puzzles. Well, I like puzzles, so let's do this. 

The first puzzle is "Walk on the Grass". We pass through the door and find ourselves on a path. 

It's not really much of a puzzle, sadly. As you can see, the path has tiles that have drawings of Pokémon on them done in the style of Egyptian hieroglyphs. The "puzzle" is not really a puzzle. What you have to do is walk down the path. So what does "Walk the Grass" mean? Well, there is a safe way to walk the path. You have to walk on tiles that have Grass-type Pokémon on them. The thing is, it can be hard to tell which tiles to walk on. On this path, you have to walk on the tiles that depict Leafeon and Pansage. 

And I'm afraid that's where we're going to have to end for this month. I know, I do apologize. Real life has been taking up much of my time this month, and I wasn't able to work on the game as much as I wanted to. Not to mention much of the time was eaten up by grinding. And I wanted to maintain my regular deadline up putting up these Text Plays on the last day of the month, so...yeah. Hopefully next month, we'll get to take on Nuphar herself. Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading this 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!

Pokemon Obtained:
(Route 7)
- Ampharos (evolved from Flaffy)

Memorial Day

 Today is Memorial Day.

Thank you to all those who gave all for our freedom. 

Fantastic Four #36 (March 1965)

It is no secret to Marvelites that the Fantastic Four is the team that gave birth to the modern Marvel Universe as we know it today. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, in their over 100-issue run on the FF's book laid the foundation for many of the concepts that still exist within the Marvel Universe today. One of them was the Inhumans.

While Marvel has pretty much adopted the mentality that the Inhumans no longer exist these days (to the point that when they brought over one of the most popular Inhuman characters to the MCU, they erased her connections to them), they still have a fanbase. And they still have a long history with Earth's heroes, having been given features and appearing in various books over the years. 

The comic we're going to be looking at here is part of Lee and Kirby's classic run and is the introduction of one of the characters that would later be established as not only an Inhuman, but also a member of its Royal Family: Medusa. Did this comic give Medusa a strong introduction, or did it turn out to be a royal disaster? Let's take a look at Fantastic Four #36!

The cover is a Jack Kirby, Chic Stone, Stan Goldberg, and Sam Rosen piece. It's pretty good, showing our debuting team of villains about to siege the FF in their own home. I suppose some may find an issue with the top third of the cover being so covered by text. It doesn't bother me so much here. Maybe the announcement of the Frightful Four could have been put on the bottom? WOuld have helped frame the action on the cover.

"The Frightful Four!"
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: Jack Kirby
Inker: Chic Stone
Colorist: Unknown
Letterer: Artie Simek
Editor: Stan Lee
Editor-in-Chief: Stan Lee

The story begins with the titular heroes being swarmed by the press. Why? Well, the elastic scientist Reed Richards and the mistress of invisibility, Sue Storm, have announced their engagement. 

It's a joyous day indeed! A delivery boy arrives with a gift for the FF. Ben Grimm, the ever-lovin' blue-eyed Thing, opens it and finds...a bomb. And not the bad movie kind.

Naturally, it causes a bit of a panic. Being the heroic powerhouse he is, Ben uses his big rocky hands to smother it. 

"ROSE BOMB, BABY! WHOOOOO!"

Yeah, it was a gag gift. The "bomb" just spews flowers everywhere. Angry and humiliated as he realizes it's one of the Yancy Street Gang's typical pranks (They were Ben Grimm's old childhood gang, and they supposedly loved playing pranks and tormenting him. It would later be retconned that Johnny Storm was behind the pranks), he stomps off.

Meanwhile, at a dock, the supervillain known as the Trapster (at the time going by Paste-Pot Pete. Yes, that was his name) is waiting for the Spider-Man rogue known as the Sandman to show up. And he does: in style. 

"And now...I shall eat you."

Another villain floats down to meet them: Bentley Whittman, the Wizard. He was last seen in Strange Tales #118 floating in space towards his doom. Well, it turned out the Sandman and Pete had found him when they were breaking out of jail. They rescued him and as they fled, the Wizard had an idea.

What if we formed our own version of the Fantastic Four? All they needed was a woman. Wizard knows of a powerful woman they can recruit. He tells of her of a time he went to an island in the Mediterranean Sea. There, he saw her fight some cops...with her hair.

Medusa does not approve of police brutality.

Yes, everyone! Meet Medusalith Amaquelin, the future Mrs. Black Bolt, and queen of the Inhumans. At this time, she was amnesiac, thanks to injuries she suffered thanks to Maximus taking the throne of Attilan. 

The FF are unaware of this villainous plot, as they're getting ready for the engagement party. The Frightful Four are also preparing, getting themselves some spiffy new outfits.

"Sandman, you lazy jerk!"

Well, okay. Not quite so spiffy in Medusa's case. I love that Sandman just changes the colors of his shirt and pants. The FF hold their engagement party. The X-Men and the Avengers are the guests. Spider-Man also makes an appearance to get some cake. He thinks he wasn't invited. I can imagine that the FF did, but in the typical Parker luck, a dog ate the invitation. Unknown to the heroes there, the Frightful Four land their craft on the Baxter Building. They wait for the party to end to launch their attack. Considering how hard superheroes party, it could be a while.

They ambush a sleeping Ben Grimm, using a bit of Pete's adhesives and Wizard's sleeping gas to make sure the Idol o' Millions stays in dreamland. Sue and Reed try to fight Pete, Sandman and the Wizard, but the three manage to overcome them. The Wizard wants to make sure that Ben, Reed, and Sue won't be able to bother him ever again. He attaches his anti-gravity discs to the three heroes. Unknown to them, Alicia Masters was in the kitchen. She's able to make her way to the unconscious Sue Storm...and to her flare gun. 

In a garage some blocks away, Johnny Storm is working on a car. He spots a flare forming a "4" in the sky. He flies off to check it out. Medusa manages to catch Alicia and restrains her with her prehensile hair. The Wizard attaches Alicia to the other three FF members and lets them float off into the sky. The Torch swoops down, and grabs the Wizard, taking him into his craft.

Johnny forces the Wizard to take off and get the other members of the FF. As for the rest of the FF, well, they're in a bit of a pickle. Reed stretches his body and envelops Sue, Ben, and Alicia, creating a temporary air pocket for them. However, this leaves Reed vulnerable. The group are going higher in the air, the air thinning and the temperature going down.

You know, this makes me think of something. The Wizard built these little anti-gravity discs that can take a person to orbit. That mean they're capable of reaching escape velocity a lot faster and more energy-efficiently than a big ol' rocket could. He should have patented this and leased it to NASA. He'd have made a legit mint!

Reed sees the Wizard's ship heading towards him and stretches desperately for it. Johnny is able to get the others on board. The other members of the Frightful Four pursue Johnny using the FF's Pogo Plane. The Sandman jumps on board the Wizard's golden saucer and hardens his body to be like rock, hoping the extra weight will force the saucer down, but it doesn't work.

Sue uses her forcefields to force the Pogo Plane to stall and spin out of control. She then uses her forcefields to make the Pogo Plane land safely. The FF engage the Frightful Four, and curbstomp their evil counterparts. The Wizard makes his saucer self-destruct, covering the Frightful Four's escape. 

I enjoyed this comic. It's a fun action-packed adventure supported by Jack Kirby providing great art. What I found cool was the party that was attended by many of the active superheroes of the era. It helps show the idea that the Fantastic Four have brought the Marvel heroes together into a community, like they are the center of the Marvel Universe. It's especially interesting that the X-Men of the era are enjoying the party as well, considering how far they've distanced themselves from humanity sixty years later. 

What I also found interesting about this comic is that it really doesn't establish or even hint that Medusa is an Inhuman yet. Nor was it explained how she ended up amnesiac on the island the Wizard spotted her in. She would battle the FF a couple more times until Gorgon was introduced in Fantastic Four #44 (November 1965). This led to her reuniting with the rest of the Attilianian Royal Family, and the rest is history.

The Frightful Four themselves would go on to appear numerous times since, and like the FF themselves, the roster would be fluid. Characters such as Thundra, She-Hulk villain Titania, and Spider-Man villain Hydro-Man would be members. The Wizard would be a mainstay of the group. being part of almost every incarnation. The group would also appear in the 1978 and 1994 Fantastic Four cartoons, as well as the 2000s animated series Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes and in the Ultimate Spider-Man animated series. The latter three are watchable on Disney+.

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2013 trade paperback Inhumans: The Origin of the Inhumans. 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!

Super Dungeon Maker Launch Trailer, My Thoughts

Do you like RPGs, or any other kind of game that requires you to make your way through dungeons? I know I do! Have you ever wanted to make your own game dungeons? Well, there have been plenty of ways to do it,

Behold, the fighting chicken!

(fight fight fight)

That's gonna hurt.

(ouch)

"Okay, so we'll link these blocks to this here hidden switch...Okay, let's try it now!" 

Success! The chicken has crossed the pit and gotten the treasure!

(woo-hoo)

An outdoor-themed dungeon would be neat.

Indoor gardens are a wonderful fixture for your dungeon. A nice bit of lively green to break up the dark damp dankness.

(thumbs up)

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle!

On this day, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (KStJ DL) was born. This year sees his 164th birthday. He was a British writer and a physician. While his biggest claim to fame was the creation of Sherlock Holmes, he was actually quite a prolific writer. He also had written poetry, plays, science fiction and fantasy stories with another creation of his: Professor George Edward Challenger, and even humor tales. His stories even helped raise the mystery of the Mary Celeste to public conciousness.

Doyle was also a bit of a renaissance man. He was a doctor, amateur boxer, amateur billiards player, skiier (He helped popularize skiing in Switzerland), and he even helped get two men exonerated for their crimes, by personally investigating their cases.

I first learned of his work as a kid. When I was a kid, I had these small books that collected various stories by classical authors, people like Robert Louis Stevenson. My favorite of those books was a little gray one that collected three of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes short stories: The Red-Headed League, the Adventure of the Spackled Band, and The Adventure of the Copper Beeches.

I read through that little book several times over. I know I still have it somewhere. It was one of my favorite books. Sherlock Holmes became a personal favorite character of mine. Mainly because I identified with him a bit. I saw him as an autistic superhero. I doubt that was what Doyle intended, but I saw a bit of myself in him. Thank you for that, Sir Doyle.

Rocket Raccoon #1 (May 1985)

In the Marvel Universe, anyone can be a hero. Regardless of who you are, where you're from, what you identify as, anyone can be a hero. Heck, you don't even have to be human. In the marvel Universe, a hero can be an anthropomorphic raccoon. Which is what the subject of this week's blog entry is about: Rocket Raccoon.

He's a rather famous character, but that was not always the case. Rocket first appeared in the black-and-white magazine Marvel Preview #7 (July 1976), created by writer Bill Mantlo and artist Keith Giffen. Aspects of his character were inspired by the Beatles' 1968 song "Rocky Raccoon". In fact, in his first appearance, he was named "Rocky". it would be retconned that "Rocket" was his full name in his next appearance in The Incredible Hulk #271 (May 1982), which was written by Mantlo. In 1985, he would be given a four-issue miniseries. Afterwards, Rocket would go on to appear in Quasar and The Sensational She-Hulk, but it seemed that the character would fade completely into obscurity...until the 2000s. 

In 2008, he was included in the revamped version of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Being part of this group would significantly elevate Rocket's profile, as this version of the group was the basis for the Marvel Cinematic Universe's version of the Guardians. Rocket's been associated with the Guardians ever since, going on to appear in video games and cartoons. 

The comic we're looking at here is the first issue of his 1985 miniseries. Is it a good contribution to the legend of Rocket Raccoon, or should it be best forgotten? Let's find out as we look at Rocket Raccoon #1!

The cover is a Mike Mignola and Al Gordon piece. It's pretty good, depicting our titular hero shooting at a clown while being surrounded by various enemies. It's an exciting cover, giving the impression that that Rocket is fighting for his fuzzy life. 

"Animal Crackers"
Writer: Bill Mantlo
Penciler: Mike Mignola
Inker: Al Gordon
Colorist: Christie Scheele
Letterer: Ken Bruzenak
Editor: Carl Potts
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The story begins with an anthropomorphic lizard hard at work. 

"Man, this new line of toys is going to make a mint!"

He lives in a galaxy unlike our own Milky Way. Within this galaxy is an area called the Keystone Quadrant. In this Quadrant is a space station called Spacewheel, and this lizard man is working for a powerful figure in it called Lord Dyvyne. Evidently, "extreme 90s misspelling" predated the 90s itself. Anyway, this Chief Toysmith is building some, well, toys for Dyvyne. He grumbles about being behind schedule, but he's able to get the job done. He notes a reflection in a crystalline eye he's about to install. 

He recognizes the reflection as a clown. One of the clowns that works for a Judson Jakes. The clown then gives the Chief Toysmith some hot lasers to the chest. The clown makes his escape through the Spacewheel, fighting his way through samurai monkeys. Lord Dyvyne calls in some help.

"I HATE CIRCUSES! KILL ALL CIRCUSES!"

That backup comes in the form of Blackjack O'Hare and his Black Bunny Brigade. These lagomorphs are mercenaries by trade, and they easily dispatch the clown, showing they are worth the expense. Dyvyne is furious, as he knows why Jakes sent the clown to kill his Chief Toysmith. Jakes wants to start himself a little trade war, but Dyvyne is going to sic the law on him.

So, who is this intergalactic lawman Dyvyne is calling in? Well, our man, er...raccoon, Rocket.

Nothing can possibly ruin a wonderful day like this...

We see him frolicking with his lady love Lylla the otter and Wal Russ the, well...walrus. Lylla is enjoying a nice cool dip, Wal Russ is taking in some sun, and Rocket is trying to decipher a book.The group get a visit from Rocket's deputies, the Keystone Kops. Rocket wonders why they're here, as he had them tracking a group called the "Snail Gang". They were, but got a call from a place called the "Cuckoo's Nest" about Lord Dyvyne's Chief Toysmith being murdered. Rocket tells the Kops to stay on the Snail Gang, he'll check out the murder. He heads out towards the Cuckoo's Nest.

Rocket realized he needed to up the hiring standards for the help...

Yeah, the idea is that the Cuckoo's Nest appears to have once been a mental hospital/insane asylum, only there seems to be no doctors. Just patients, left to their own devices. Rocket returns the book to a chapel known as "The Admissions Ward". The book is the Bible of Halfworld, and Rocket's been trying to decipher it. The book is written in the language of the ancient Shrinks, their gods. The Good Humor Men in the chapel then perform an ancient ritual.

They next burst into a rendition of Napoleon XIV's "They're Coming to Take Me Away".

The last man's straitjacket is left untied, as the others cannot tie his own. Rocket leaves as they dance, saying he'll never understand these rituals. 

That's ultimately not the point. The uplifted animals like Rocket serve a purpose here in Halfworld. They help protect and entertain the inmates. He gets a call from Lord Dyvyne, the snake-like being demanding that Judson Jakes answer for killing his Chief Toysmith. Rocket wants proof.

Dyvyne provides his proof, showing the head of the destroyed clown robot. It's obviously Jakes, as he's the only one who makes them, and he'd profit if Dyvyne went out of business. We also learn here that Dyvyne has got a thing for Lylla, which Rocket is none too happy about, as Lylla is his girl. Also, Judson Jakes is Lylla's guardian, but she doesn't hold a lot of love for the guy. Rocket hates both Dyvyne and Jakes, as their competition over who gets to provide toys to the crazies of Halfworld makes his job much more difficult. Dyvyne points out without the toys the two provide, the inmates would fall into despair. And as the inmates' protector, he can't let that happen. Rocket admits the snake-man is right. As such, he needs to make a trip to see Jakes. And he'll get there on his ship, the Rack 'n' Ruin. 

"Wal, this planet is friggin' weird?"

This panel here helps show why this planet is called Halfworld. One half of it is green, lush, teeming with life. The other half is its opposite. Cold, sterile, metallic. This half is inhabited by robots. These robots work all day and night. They provide and maintain the toys for the inmates, as well as any of the uplifted animals' cybernetics. They're also hard at work on another project: A giant humanoid spaceship. Rocket wonders about the ship. Where would they go once it's done? The Galacian Wall around the Keystone Quadrant keeps everyone trapped inside. The only one who was ever able to get through was the Incredible Hulk in Incredible Hulk #271 (). Rocket finds himself envying the Hulk, as he wants out of here just as much as the Green Goliath did.

Rocket and Wal arrive at Judson Jakes's company, expecting a warm welcome. By that, I mean a firefight. Lord Dyvyne is thrilled, as he hopes this leads to Rocket and Jakes killing each other. We also learn a bit of Lylla's backstory. You see, her parents originally owned Mayhem Mekaniks, and Judson Jakes was their Chief Toysmith. Until he had them killed, and then took over the company, and made himself Lylla's guardian.  

On Halfworld, corporate intrigue is a deadly serious business.

Speaking of Halfworld, Lylla is watching over the Loonies, unaware a cloaked figure is among them. He makes his way to the room where the Bible is kept.

"Now I can finally finish the series!"

Meet Uncle Pyko, possible grandfather of the Ninja Turtles. Unlike Rocket, he's managed to decipher the Halfworld Bible. Pyko works for Jakes, but he's kept his successful decryption of the Bible to himself. Why? Well, because knowledge is power, and Pyko hungers for it. He believes that he can use the knowledge within the Bible to become the most powerful person, er...tortoise in the Keystone Quadrant.

He manages to make off with the Bible, replacing it with another book of his own. The Good Humor Men don't notice the switch until they perform their ceremony again. Trust me, you do not want to know what was in the book that Pyko left behind.

Lylla realizes that Pyko is behind this. She'd alert Rocket, but he's too far away now. She grabs a blaster to take care of him herself, but gets grabbed.

Meanwhile, Rocket and Wal Russ arrive at Mayhem Mekaniks. They head through the dumping grounds, the place Jakes lumps all the defective and rejected toys go. The ship is grabbed by a giant metal claw. Rocket flies out to take care of it, only to be greeted by Judson Jakes himself and his mechanical army.

This is what Terminators would be like if Skynet was a furry.

Rocket fights his way through the army of mechanical monsters, horrified that Jakes would make these things. After all, his creations are meant to entertain the Loonies, not wage war. But Jakes wants a war. He wants a monopoly on the Loonies' toys. And he wants Lylla's inheritance. But the only way to access it is to marry her. Pyko stops the fight. He is infuriated by the idea of his creations being used for what he thinks is a pointless war. He points out that both Dyvyne and Jakes want to control Mayhem Mekaniks, but Lylla will never consent to marrying either one of them. She loves Rocket, after all. 

Pyko shows the two that Lord Dyvyne has got his Black Bunny Brigade to kidnap Lylla. The story ends with Rocket vowing to make some fur fly. Nobody makes off with his main squeeze and gets away with it. He takes it real personal. 

I did enjoy this comic. It's...is surreal the proper term? Bizarre? It's bizarre, but in a rather fun way. I do think it requires a bit of context for the times. These characters all look like something you would see in a children's cartoon of the era, but you likely would not expect them to be plotting murder against each other. The whole bit with the Loonies can be seen as a bit stereotypical these days, considering stigmas regarding mental illness. The portrayal of Rocket himself can be a bit surprising for those who are more familiar with the modern and MCU interpretations of the character. Rocket is shown to be quite capable, a crack shot, and a loving boyfriend to Lylla. He's also shown to be a bit more lighthearted than modern takes on the character, which I think is interesting. I kind of like this more swashbuckling Rocket. 

I was surprised when I learned the art was done by Mike Mignola. I'm more familiar with his modern artwork from stuff like Hellboy. It's neat to see how his style started out. It feels more like "classical" comic art before its evolution into his later "German Expressionism-meets-Jack Kirby" (as Alan Moore) described it. It's very well done. 

If you want to read this one for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2013 trade paperback Rocket Raccoon and Groot: The Complete Collection. 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!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

I hope you have a wonderful day today! May you have a wonderful time with whatever mother figure you have!