Hey wow, a comic without one of the mascots in it! Don’t get me wrong, though. I love those little scamps, and I’ve still got a few you haven’t even seen yet. DUN DUN DUN.

Seriously, though, don’t pretend that you don’t have moments like this. I’m not really that big a Pokemon fan anymore, but I still find myself instinctively recoiling from the notion that the likes of Piplup are “real” Pokemon.

I’m biased, of course. Back when the first wave of Pokemania happened, I WAS a big fan. I’d been interested in anime for years, but that was the first show that I could actually watch on a regular basis. Thus, for a while there, I devoured every aspect of the franchise I could get my hands on. Alas, my interest was always driven by the show first, and right around when they started introducing the new Pokemon on TV was when I’d realized that Digimon was way more interesting. Thus, I never really bothered to get to know these new-fangled critters. And really, at this point, I don’t think I’m even capable of memorizing 300+ new species. Did they even MAKE a Poke-rap long enough to cover that?

(Historical note: Man, I wish I could port over the old Drunk Duck comments to this one. Nothing like a debate on generations of Pokemon to get people talking, and I’m sure it’d just be worse NOW.)