The Creature Quorum

Surf boards, boulder-pushing, and burglars ?! Aw yeah, it's time for badge number 7, baby. Enjoy the groovin' beats of one of the best songs in the game as we head to the tiny town on the sea, and learn about a tragic scientist with a heartwarming origin, a terrible secret, and a disarming fondness for really easy trivia. We get our last badge next episode: it's back to Vermilion City to see Giova...

Well, we did it one way, now we do it the other. A bit of a shorter episode as we check out the other side of our branching paths- Six goes to Saffron City, Allen goes to Fuchsia City, and they both leave ready to move on with their lives. It's good to close the loop, though. Next episode, we're headed to the sea: the Seafoam Islands, Cinnabar Island, the Pokemon Mansion, and finally the Cinnabar...

Ok. Get the Silph Scope. No problem. Head back to Lavender Town, fight your way through Pokemon Tower. Rescue Mr. Fuji. And then what? Two different answers from our two different hosts lead to a split pod, because Kanto isn't always straightforward. But wherever you go... prepare for a jarring jump in difficulty. On this episode, I went to Fuchsia City while Allen went to Saffron City, so for nex...

Nick was always nagging us about it. "Obviously, you're just going to do another round of the Quorum, and another, cutting until there's only one pokemon left." No. That's not the point. It's about pruning, not a battle royale . Hmm. But, y'know... what if? The Scanline Media Discord can be found here !

It's time for a long, looooong stretch of game! Looping all around Kanto as try to make our way to Celadon City! And once we get there? Game Corner! Team Rocket Headquarters! Erika's Gym! A weirdly creepy old man (who is weirdly NOT creepy in one version of the game)! How can we survive all of this? Thank god Magellan is here to help us along. Check out Magellan's blog, Not That Magellan , and lis...

Tunnels and ships, here we come! Bit of a short segment of game this time, but that's ok because we have tons of news to talk about for Pokémon's 30th Anniversary! It's... kind of underwhelming stuff, but at least there's a lot of it! For next time, we're doing a really roundabout run- Diglett Cave, Route 11, back to Cerulean City, to Route 9, to Rock Tunnel, and Celadon City. And a few little Rou...

With our first badge behind us, we now face the challenge of our first dungeon. And boy, across three iterations of the game, this dungeon is a wildly different experience! Once we exit Mt. Moon, it's Nugget Bridge, Bill's House, and closing it out with a challenge to the Cerulean City Gym, and the iconic/gender goals Misty. As cool as she is, she's possibly the easiest gym leader in the game. Oh...

We still have Rainbow Rocket to fight back in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon . But who IS Team Rocket? ...Listen, I know the answer, and I know you probably do too. But work with me here. Pretend that this is a good excuse to check out Kanto, the twice-remade original generation of Pokemon, spread across a staggering seven games. The origin of it all. Welcome to Pallet Town. Next time, we're doing Mt....

There's nothing expressly called a "Part 1," it's just the beginning of our episode on the Alola Elite Four. So listen to that if you want to hear us begin the task of Quoruming the Z-A Mega Evolutions! Boy, they sure dumped a lot on us, huh? So many Mega Evolutions to rate. And our philosophy on what makes a good Mega has changed a lot since the days of Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. But probably...

We can't let a new Pokemon release go without coverage! As a treat, we invited Jen and Kyrie to join us and discuss the latest, and perhaps the greatest, from the world of Pokemon. ...Ok, not the greatest. But charming, thought-provoking, and distinctive, is how I would describe Pokemon Legends Z-A , and the four of us sat down to discuss its shortcomings, its successes, and the potential it shows...

Ultra Necrozma? Done and dusted. Mina's Trial? Did it. Hapu's Grand Trial? Completed. Mt. Lanakila? Climbed it. The Elite Four? Smoked 'em. Hau? Bested. On this episode, we ran through the last stretch of Alola like a runaway train, smashing every remaining obstacle between us and the credits. There is, of course, more game after the credits roll. But that will have to wait for another time. The S...

The way our discussion breaks down does not always imitate how our play sessions went. Sure, we spend a third of the pod talking about Aether Paradise. We talk Hapu and Seafolk Village, we talk the Altar of the Sunne and the Altar of the Moone, we talk Trials and Necrozma. But most of our time? Was fighting in the aptly named "Vast Poni Canyon." Yeah, that... that's a dungeon, right there. Next ep...

Team Skull. The island challenge dropouts have hounded us since the beginning of the game, kidnapping pokemon, blocking public roads, harassing bystanders. Oh, and trying to beat us up, though their efforts have been pretty laughable. But this week, they go too far. And it's up to us to head to their hometown to bring justice to them where they live. ACAB includes Nanu, in fact it might include hi...

A haunting experience this week as we tool around Ula'ula, finally fighting the leader of Team Skull and challenging a throwback in the form of the Nugget Bridge, but it's all building to a shopping experience we won't soon forget. Sure, the Haunted Thrifty Mega Mart is spooky. But it's also really hard, with the Totem Mimikyu thrashing us within an inch of our lives. Past that inch, in some insta...

New island, new us! Ok, I lied. Same us. Gardens, community centers, tile puzzles (???), even a gym ala Kanto, Ula'ula Island is immediately serving up some fresh and engaging spots for our tour guides. We get to the top of a nearby mountain at the end, but it's the rest of the island that's really proven so interesting. Plus: Six forgets what shape a Z is! All this and more. We'll tackle the ghos...

Leaving the volcano behind, we head for the coast and cooler climates. Then it's back into a hot and humid jungle to pick ingredients for a soup. We make some time for science and golf, head through tunnel taken over by an invasive species, meet the Ditto Five, fight Team Skull's strongest trainer yet, and triumph over Olivia. All in a day's work. A lot waiting for us next time- the Aether Foundat...

A shorter piece of game gives us time to linger and explore, and we're all the better for it. Akala Island has a lot to offer, from ?evil? scientists to definitely deranged influencers to our main topic- a friggin' volcano with a dance contest at its peak! Boy howdy, lot to dig into there. Plus: Hapu! She's the best! Next episode, we will CONCLUDE Akala Island with Mallow's Trial and the Grand Tri...

We're leavinggggg! On a Mantine! Don't know why cuz I'm back again! ...Hold me like you'll never let me go? Or is that part BEFORE the chorus? I don't know the song that well. We finish our first island, leave, and then turn around and come back because hey we weren't actually done. But THEN it really is on to island number two, a watery trial, and a trailer full of infinite Pikachus. It's probabl...

An interesting theme of empty homes this week as our journey through the Trial and Grand Trial of Melemele Island sees us stopping by the homes of both Ilima and Guzma. We start sticker collecting, learn to do Z-Moves, and... have Metal Gear Solid 3 flashbacks? Alola means "hello," "goodbye," and "enemy spotted." For our next episode, we're playing up through Lana's trial on Akala Island! The Scan...

We're picking starters. We're Deciding If We're A Boy Or A Girl (TM). We're walking into tall grass obliviously. Yes, it's time to start a new Pokémon game, and a new tour. As summer gets underway, we take things to the sunny side in Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon , and the island chain of the Alola region. There are malasadas to eat, Kahunas to fight, trials to pass, and Mimikyu to fear. Let'...

We've taken the League Challenge, and fought our way through eight gyms to the Elite Four, beaten them, and then the champion. (Kind of.) We've beaten N, and proved he should have more faith in humanity. We bonded with two ancient dragons of legend, and used their might to beat Team Plasma. Then we started over. We took the League Challenge anew. We beat back a reformed Team Plasma. There was a th...

Here we are- the reason Magellan encouraged us to pick up our watch pods of the Pokemon movies to begin with. Are you READY. To see LEGENDARY POKEMON LATIAS. Kiss a HUMAN BOY. We're heading to PokeVenice, we're shapeshifting, we're corrupting gems, we're solving ancient sliding tile puzzles. If you thought the last Pokemon movie was a bit of a whiff, don't worry. We're back on track. Incidentally,...

It's dungeon time, baby. A nothing town with a weak gym (though the inside is cool!) lasts as long as a Mento before we're off to a cave, then a floating fortress, then a cave, then a floating fortress, then a cave, then a cave. I hope you brought Surf. And a lot of patience. It's time for the Team Plasma Payoff, and... sorry Allen, it's a bit overhyped for what we got. Victory Road lies before us...

The road to Opelucid City is paved with good intentions. And stones. And gravel. And clay! And grass. And sand. And interrupting legendaries (plural). And... well look, it's a long friggin' road. A pretty interesting one, too! We enjoy the small towns we missed in Black & White , relax on Village Bridge, mourn death in the Strange House, and much more in a really cool and exciting stretch of g...

Through caves, along balance beams, up a tower, through a wind tunnel... this leg of our tour takes us to some interesting places, though most are alarmingly familiar. Perhaps this is a calm downbeat to set up for some dramatic surprises next week? I can't be sure. For all its quality, Black 2 & White 2 have felt pretty inconsistent to me. Next time, we're... well I would say we're headed to I...