tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33551843159374534732024-03-18T05:00:31.865-05:00Poke Press UpdatesSteven "Yoshi" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00598399740275264678noreply@blogger.comBlogger593125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-20434979901438710612024-03-18T05:00:00.002-05:002024-03-18T05:00:00.193-05:00Chris Hackney discusses his roles in the Pokémon Franchise (Anime Milwaukee 2024)<p>At <a href="https://animemilwaukee.org/">Anime Milwaukee 2024</a>, I had an opportunity to interview Chris Hackney, a voice actor who's worked on a number of projects within the Pokémon franchise, including the Detective Pikachu games, several web series, and Pokémon Masters EX.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MuSHjLpni84" width="500" youtube-src-id="MuSHjLpni84"></iframe></div><p>A press pass was provided for this event. </p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Milwaukee, WI, USA43.0389025 -87.906473614.728668663821153 -123.0627236 71.349136336178844 -52.7502236tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-19222238044183469472024-02-12T05:00:00.001-06:002024-02-16T19:38:04.352-06:00Why it Works: We're A Miracle<p>The de facto ending theme of the first Pokémon Movie's dub has an interesting story behind it. Starting off as an unrelated demo and deemed "too adult" for the target audience, the song was given a second chance and rewritten to include elements from the movie:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-G6x0v59hDs" width="300" youtube-src-id="-G6x0v59hDs"></iframe></div><br /><div>Transcript:<br /><br />Some songs start in one place and end up somewhere very different. That’s what happened with “We’re A Miracle”. Deemed “too adult” by Christina’s label, the demo sat around for about a year, but somehow managed to find the right eyes and was sent back to David Zippel for a rewrite. With a few tweaks, a song about an unlikely couple became an amazing retelling of the Ash/Pikachu relationship. Of course, to some degree the parallels were always there, as Christina does sound a bit like our ten-year-old hero, coincidentally enough. In any case, do you have any thoughts on this song’s journey? Be sure to let us know. Thanks.</div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-89744850334061032992024-02-08T05:00:00.004-06:002024-02-23T15:23:40.009-06:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 70-Discussing the music of "Pokémon Conquest"<p>Anne from Pikapi Podcast helps me discuss the music of Pokemon Conquest for the DS. This quirky crossover gave us a lot to talk about, including instrumentation, Japanese history, and a much more recent Pokémon game. On top of all that, there’s a game discussion after the outro that covers...much of the same:</p>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1740897132&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><div><br /></div><div><b>Editor's Note:</b> I state in this episode that One Direction did promotional work specifically for this game. They were brand ambassadors during this time, but I was unable to find a promo for this specific game.<br /><br />If you're just looking for a snippet of our discussion, you can check out a short here:<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fS7XZm-Kdzk" width="320" youtube-src-id="fS7XZm-Kdzk"></iframe><br /><p>Links:</p><p><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__AMe_WiuoA">Pokemon Conquest History</a><br /><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><br />Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-79404611717765822252024-01-29T05:00:00.001-06:002024-02-07T23:05:45.747-06:00Recap: Side Events at Pokémon Charlotte Regionals 2024<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0d0d0d; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">At this years' Pokémon Regionals in Charlotte, NC, I had the opportunity to try out a number of side events in both TCG and VGC. Tune in and found out what I experienced:</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0d0d0d; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hMKUlo0tBbA" width="500" youtube-src-id="hMKUlo0tBbA"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-73597813092284403432023-12-18T05:00:00.003-06:002023-12-18T05:00:00.134-06:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 69-Discussing the music of "PokePark 2: Wonders Beyond"<p>Anne from Pikapi Podcast drops by to discuss the music of PokePark 2: Wonders Beyond for the Wii. This sometimes-forgotten sequel delivers a fresh set of tunes, which have some interesting structural ties to the game. Afterwards, we move on to our feedback section, where we ponder whether the Japanese version of the second movie may have originally had a different credits song, and why having a backup plan is good idea. Finally, there’s a Wonders Beyond game discussion after the outro:</p>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1693009098&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><p>Links:<br /><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a><br /><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-51130611988211212252023-12-01T05:00:00.007-06:002023-12-01T05:00:00.145-06:00I went to my congressperson’s office to talk about AI. Here’s what I learned.<p><span style="font-family: inherit;">After writing some <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/comment/COLC-2023-0006-7080">comments</a> for
the US Copyright Office’s comment period on artificial intelligence, I decided
this topic was important enough that I should talk to someone at my local
congressperson’s office about it. After a bit of phone tag and filling out
forms, I was able to get a meeting with one of the staffers during lunchtime
earlier this week.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The office was located in downtown Madison, WI, not far from
the state capitol building. I wanted to do a live demo, so this involved
carrying my personal laptop and a full external GPU setup around for the day (which
was hard on my legs, as you can imagine). I arrived at the office just before
noon (after picking up lunch) and waited to be let into the office. After a
short time, I was let in and was able to set up in their conference room.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As I was setting up and starting Stable Diffusion, I asked
the two staffers in attendance what their background in artificial intelligence
was. It seemed that neither was familiar with much beyond ChatGPT, so I gave
them a chance to suggest images to be rendered, and showed them around the
Automatic1111 interface, including the upscaling and img2img features.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The staffers had a number of technical questions about the
technology, which was to be expected. I did have to caveat that even as someone
with a computer science background, some of the aspects were difficult for me
to understand as well. That aside, I explained how diffusion models work, with
a focus on how data is represented in the model, and how an image model is more
a loose understanding of concepts and connections between them, <b>not</b> a
database of image data. I also did my best to explain the importance of GPU
technology, cost of training/operating models, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A few other things I tried to get across:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">-Any regulation that gets enacted needs to have some level
of public compliance to be viable, especially since the things individuals and
small groups can do will continue to expand as compute power continues to grow.<br />
-Nearly every application of AI has both legitimate and illicit uses, so it’s
going to be difficult (if not impossible) to make clear lines in regulation.<br />
-I don’t expect to get exactly what I want out of court rulings and
legislation. That’s life.<br />
-Video/audio enhancement AI probably has <b>as much or more</b> potential in
the near term as generative AI, but isn’t getting as much attention because it
isn’t controversial enough.<br />
-Media outlets will start making use of generative AI in speculative content
(what if they made a movie about X starring actor Y?), so it’s not just a “freedom
of expression” issue, but also a “freedom of the press” issue.<br />
-In addition to a wide array of first amendment issues, there may also be fifth
amendment considerations-I see a good chance of a case arising from the use of
an AI voice in court.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's what I learned/noticed from them:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">-Although some legislation is being worked on (I mentioned I
was aware of the “No Fakes” act), they didn’t seem to think much would get
passed before cases got to trial or during this session of congress (i.e.
through the end of next year), so if you want to contact your elected
officials, now’s a good time.<br />
-They seemed genuinely interested in learning more, and I might get asked again
in the future.<br />
-The older staffer took notes (handwritten!) on some of the things I said and
showed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Overall, I thought the meeting was productive and I was
listened to with respect and consideration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you’re similarly interested/concerned about artificial intelligence,
I’d suggest reaching out to your elected officials as well.</span><o:p></o:p></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-61575994600956804732023-11-04T05:00:00.005-05:002023-11-04T05:00:00.152-05:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 68-Discussing the music of "Pokémon Rumble Blast"/Who said that?<p>In the first segment (1:14-28:42), Anne from Pikapi Podcast drops by to discuss the music of Pokémon Rumble Blast for the 3DS. Like practically everything else in this entry, the soundtrack is an expansion of the original Rumble’s, but that didn't stop us from making some interesting observations. If you want to know what we thought of the game itself, be sure to listen after the outro.</p><p>Our second segment (29:41-46:19) is a quiz of sorts, where I play disguised versions of voice clips from prior episodes, and Anne tries to guess which of us said it, as well as what we were talking about. Listen closely and see if you can figure it out before she does:</p><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1656379683&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><br /><p>Links:</p><p><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a></p><p><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-53182174746842752522023-10-15T05:00:00.004-05:002023-10-15T05:00:00.158-05:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 67-Discussing the Music of "Super Smash Bros. Brawl"<p>In this episode, Anne from Pikapi Podcast joins me to discuss the music of Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii. This entry in the series massively expanded the number of available tracks, so the two of us had to be very picky in narrowing that down. After that topic, we have our feedback section, where I give a detailed explanation of why Pokémon: The First Movie doesn’t look completely uniform, and how that might be… “fixed”. Finally, be sure to listen after the outro, where we have a Brawl gameplay discussion, and a preview of our next episode:<br /></p>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1640999505&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><div><br /></div><div><div>Links:</div><div><a href="https://youtube.com/shorts/ftnfxFQKXCA">First Movie Film Size</a></div><div><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a></div><div><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></div></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-10477422586504124802023-10-11T05:00:00.002-05:002023-10-28T22:38:59.090-05:00Recap: Side Events at Peoria Regionals 2023<p>Last weekend, I attended the Pokémon Regionals in Peoria, IL. Rather than participating in the main events, I decoded to spend some time in the side events area:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vskR1aIwgtI" width="500" youtube-src-id="vskR1aIwgtI"></iframe></div><br />Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Peoria, IL, USA40.6936488 -89.588986412.383414963821153 -124.7452364 69.003882636178844 -54.432736399999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-4372444298594364472023-10-07T17:00:00.004-05:002023-10-14T22:59:59.071-05:00Looking for things to do in Japan? Pokémon can help.<p>At this year's Pokémon World Championships in Yokohama, I found a display touting "Pokémon Pickup Japan", the company's social media outreach for visitors to the country:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hXOHLz8P5lk" width="300" youtube-src-id="hXOHLz8P5lk"></iframe></div><p><a href="At this year's Pokémon World Championships in Yokohama, I found a display touting "Pokémon Pickup Japan", the company's social media outreach for visitors to the country. PPJ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pokemonpickupjapan PPJ on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pokemonpickupjapan/">PPJ on Facebook</a><br /><a href="https://www.instagram.com/pokemonpickupjapan/">PPJ on Instagram</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan35.4436739 139.63796397.1334400638211548 104.48171389999999 63.753907736178846 174.7942139tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-40000321843986857332023-09-18T05:00:00.010-05:002023-10-06T19:28:26.150-05:00Where did those bottles come from?<p>In a recent discussion about PokePark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure, I recount a task that involved taking some bottles from the beach to a nearby recycling bin:</p><p><br /></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K-6wwSs5yyk" width="300" youtube-src-id="K-6wwSs5yyk"></iframe></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-19948059388916200712023-08-13T05:00:00.002-05:002023-10-06T19:27:32.222-05:00Pokémon Promotes Recycling? (Worlds 2023)<p>At this year's Pokémon World Championships in Yokohama, Japan, I had an opportunity to visit the Pokémon Activity Center, where I found a curious use of Grimer to promote recycling. I suppose it's not so surprising when you consider how the franchise has attempted to gamify walking, sleeping, and other regular activities:<br /></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JV5SwnJCr6Y" width="300" youtube-src-id="JV5SwnJCr6Y"></iframe></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan35.4436739 139.63796397.1334400638211548 104.48171389999999 63.753907736178846 174.7942139tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-60245156855605114852023-08-01T05:00:00.002-05:002023-08-01T05:00:00.142-05:00Cosplayer Interview: Goosaphone<p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiD1nAQMQwU8yzlWZFnexOcP5_acHp3_30dlQp3IaIvkaGRBRgsSifOl8iWDjQ8QuKFbuBhKKJtFSkgLZVq-a3I9ml-T6uESSg_pfXRFc5jVNddk0dIO7NPShpW9in1YpjezzZZ6UOeHY3sHxEFuRjp7jH6oYx8FL-F2ZTJJm3kcaspKEy6mZ26zl0E0CEl" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Goosaphone dressed as Elysa from Pokemon BW" data-original-height="672" data-original-width="299" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiD1nAQMQwU8yzlWZFnexOcP5_acHp3_30dlQp3IaIvkaGRBRgsSifOl8iWDjQ8QuKFbuBhKKJtFSkgLZVq-a3I9ml-T6uESSg_pfXRFc5jVNddk0dIO7NPShpW9in1YpjezzZZ6UOeHY3sHxEFuRjp7jH6oYx8FL-F2ZTJJm3kcaspKEy6mZ26zl0E0CEl=w143-h320" title="Goosaphone" width="143" /></a></i></div><i>The following is an interview with Goosaphone, a cosplayer I met at Pokémon NAIC 2023.</i><p></p><p><b>Where are you from, and how did you get into Pokémon?</b></p><p>I’m from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I got into Pokémon when I was just 3 years old from the Indigo League anime. That year, I got Pokémon Yellow and a Game Boy Color for Christmas. I was obsessed!</p><p><b>How did you get started in cosplay?</b></p><p>My first cosplay I wore to a convention was May from Ruby & Sapphire when I was a sophomore in high school. I used my natural hair and clothes I bought-I only made the bandana myself. I’m remaking the cosplay this year with a proper wig and more accurate clothing, since that was over a decade ago. My skills have improved so much since then!</p><p><b>How did you choose costumes for this year’s event?</b></p><p>To be honest, attending NAIC was a bit of a last-minute decision for me, so I didn’t have a plan for a cosplay lineup initially. I was already working on Elesa, and since I wore Skyla to Milwaukee regionals a month before, I thought NAIC would be a good fit for her debut. </p><p><b>And the other costumes for the weekend?</b></p><p>For Saturday, I initially wanted to be Sonia from Sword & Shield on Saturday, but the outfit wasn’t really weather appropriate. Serena was better suited for the warm weather, and she’s a very recognizable character, so I decided to bring her. For Sunday, I chose to bring my “Champion Ash” to celebrate Ash's victory in the Master’s Eight tournament that came to Netflix the week before NAIC. </p><p><b>What went into making the Elesa costume?</b></p><p>Some of it is secondhand and some of it is handmade. The dress is made of a flexible material in three colors, the collar is from my Serena cosplay, and the headphones I painted and glued some cords onto.</p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjIeUT3jbjZ42WqbJRejg9Zvmgw6KV5WUVe81Zm6qfFqovL3QOUKOViPr5EKoHE5JkpoHqd0Q6Y1ldJi1Ni5fmd7F-GIA3QBnKtzPZcoLMBtxKtWWUSzpJmT4fpLwKThM6j8DgvTPdUL3fsbosQo5MSbq1LxwcAa-U-4pInc0wv1ub2bVcAixV8crJzgIPE" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Goosaphone dressed as Champion Ash" data-original-height="330" data-original-width="230" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjIeUT3jbjZ42WqbJRejg9Zvmgw6KV5WUVe81Zm6qfFqovL3QOUKOViPr5EKoHE5JkpoHqd0Q6Y1ldJi1Ni5fmd7F-GIA3QBnKtzPZcoLMBtxKtWWUSzpJmT4fpLwKThM6j8DgvTPdUL3fsbosQo5MSbq1LxwcAa-U-4pInc0wv1ub2bVcAixV8crJzgIPE=w223-h320" width="223" /></a></b></div><b>You also wore a “Champion Ash” outfit on Sunday. How did you make that one?</b><p></p><p>Part of the outfit I got online, like the vest, and other parts are altered clothes or official toys. For the logo design, like the backpack and hat, I used a machine called a Cricut to cut out foam and vinyl (respectively). I got some basketball shorts online that I custom-dyed. For the wig, I used a black wig that I already had, and I cut, crimped, and spiked it. I had to use thinning shears to thin out the fibers so I could fit the hat on top! Ash uses all three regional gimmicks between gens 6-8, so I wanted to incorporate that into the cosplay. I glued a mega keystone of the glove for the mega glove. I purchased an official Z-Power Ring with Pikachunium Z and Dynamax Band replica toys for the other two gimmicks. I also have an official Rotom Phone like Ash has. I bought Leon's cape online as a finishing touch. Lastly, for the makeup, I contour my face to look more boyish, thicken and darken my eyebrows, line my eyes with black, and use an eye pencil to create those Z-shaped cheek marks he had.</p><p><b>Is it difficult to bring multiple cosplays to an event?</b></p><p>It depends! It’s always a challenge to cosplay on Sunday, since it's shorter, and a lot of the times you have to worry about checking out of the hotel too. It’s only really a pain if there is a lot of armor or big props, and most Pokémon characters don't have that problem, fortunately. Most of the problem is having the motivation to get up, get ready, and for Pokémon events, potentially compete. </p><p><b>What other cosplays have you done recently?</b></p><p>Most of what I cosplay is from Fire Emblem, but lately I've done a lot of Pokémon. Goh from the Journeys anime, Rosa from Black & White 2, and Vaporeon are some of my more recent ones. My Rosa cosplay was even featured in the trailer for Chuggaaconroy's BW2 Let's Play!</p><p><b>What else did you do at NAIC this year?</b></p><p>I competed in Pokémon Puzzle League! I play this game very seriously, and it’s based on the anime, which is one of my favorite things about it, because there aren't any other Anipoke games out there. I ended up placing 1st on Friday, 3rd on Saturday, and 2nd on Sunday. I also did side events for GO and VGC. Between all of those, I won a ton of prize tickets that I cashed in for plushies and other merchandise!</p><div><br /></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Columbus, OH, USA39.9611755 -82.99879419999999211.650941663821158 -118.15504419999999 68.271409336178849 -47.842544199999992tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-74534713915692922142023-07-31T05:00:00.003-05:002023-07-31T05:00:00.140-05:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 66-Day 2 Events/Discussing the music of "PokePark Wii"<p>In the first segment (1:22-3:54), I interview Vince Krekeler of Day 2 events, the company that runs many of the regional Pokemon tournaments in the middle of the US. I took this opportunity to talk with him about how things are going for the first full season back from the pandemic, and gave him an opportunity to talk about some of the other events they run.</p><p>The second segment (4:56-45:45) is a discussion of the music of PokePark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure. Anne from Pikapi Podcast helps me cover the soundtrack of this final fourth generation side game. As you might expect, PokePark's array of environments meant that we got to discuss a wide range of tunes. If you want to know what we thought of the game itself, we examine that after the outro:</p>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1578505974&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><br /><p>Links:</p><p><a href="https://www.day2events.com/">Day 2 Events</a><br /><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a><br /><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-54785560857407040512023-07-23T05:00:00.012-05:002023-07-30T21:53:01.647-05:00What if other Pokémon movies got CGI remakes? (via Stable Diffusion)<p>Ever since the release of Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution in 2019/2020, folks (including myself) have wondered what other Pokémon movies might look like if they got a CGI remake. While there's no practical way to definitively answer that, with the help of the Stable Diffusion image generation framework, we can get a glimpse of what such a movie might look like. I took stills from a number of Pokémon Movies and used a "Modern Disney" model in combination with an embedding I generated using stills from Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution (I also retouched the images afterwards to improve their appearance).</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j4zan_YI1ts" width="300" youtube-src-id="j4zan_YI1ts"></iframe></div><p>Technical Details:</p><p>Model Used: Modern Disney<br />Embeddings Used: Custom "Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution" embedding<br />Front End: Automatic1111<br />Base Render Resolution: 512*512 (upscaled to 1024*1024)<br />ControlNet Features Used: SoftEdge, Color, Canny, Reference<br />GPU: NVIDIA RTX 3050</p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-74030204311607427932023-06-12T05:00:00.002-05:002023-06-12T05:00:00.143-05:00Pokémon Midwest Regionals 2023: Vince Krekeler of Day 2 Events<p>At the recent Midwest Pokémon Regionals in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I had a chance to interview Vince Krekeler of Day 2 Events about the current tournament season, as well as some things in the near future.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Z7yeRePIRp0" width="500" youtube-src-id="Z7yeRePIRp0"></iframe></div><p><a href="https://www.day2events.com/">Day 2 Events</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Milwaukee, WI, USA43.0389025 -87.906473614.728668663821153 -123.0627236 71.349136336178844 -52.7502236tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-70407267614581905792023-05-30T05:00:00.003-05:002023-05-30T05:00:00.145-05:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 65: Discussing the Music of Pokemon Ranger: Guardian Signs<p>Anne from Pikapi Podcast joins me to discuss the music of Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs for the DS. This final entry in the trilogy may not change the Ranger formula drastically, but it does come with a wide array of new tunes. As usual, there’s a game discussion after the outro:</p><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1525609318&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><p>Links:<br /><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a><br /><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-79301273750197901472023-05-05T05:00:00.003-05:002023-05-07T23:11:18.103-05:00I used AI to generate realistic pictures of Pokémon Masters EX characters. Here's what I got.<p>In my continuing experiments with Stable Diffusion, I took screenshots from Pokémon Masters EX and attempted to create photorealistic versions of the characters. Watch as Anne from Pikapi Podcast attempts to identify them:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fZbUye2QRNo" width="500" youtube-src-id="fZbUye2QRNo"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p>Don't have a lot of time? Check out this short to see all the images. How many did you recognize?<br /></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JD9mBG8rewM" width="300" youtube-src-id="JD9mBG8rewM"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-37149017827255683292023-05-01T05:00:00.003-05:002023-05-01T05:00:00.151-05:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 64-Discussing the music of "Pokemon Rumble"<p>Anne from Pikapi Podcast drops in to help discuss the music of Pokemon Rumble. This WiiWare title is definitely meatier than My Pokemon Ranch in terms of gameplay, and we try to figure out if the soundtrack follows suit. As usual, there's a gameplay discussion after the outro, where among other things we compare Rumble to Pokemon Unite:</p><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1503624241&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe><br /><p>Links:<br /><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a><br /><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-8985704809149398382023-04-26T05:00:00.002-05:002023-04-26T05:00:00.143-05:00Musician Interview: GlitchxCity<p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicjVHEncgwVb8lr3nMvE21o7gXG-oDwxFOBBEDZaUy0Tf74K2YqC0raqlEXL7Hx3QUXf6H5mEb3OzBwNZSpA_8frHrStshxbzV6qZGF-0BcuKZjPgjiN3QznHPYKMpHWm3eCkUE02cgMGKUiVe4wL2akC9nCvPnymn_5XYtSsNZTPwbqWQHzsSizKY9A/s275/GlitchxCity.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="275" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicjVHEncgwVb8lr3nMvE21o7gXG-oDwxFOBBEDZaUy0Tf74K2YqC0raqlEXL7Hx3QUXf6H5mEb3OzBwNZSpA_8frHrStshxbzV6qZGF-0BcuKZjPgjiN3QznHPYKMpHWm3eCkUE02cgMGKUiVe4wL2akC9nCvPnymn_5XYtSsNZTPwbqWQHzsSizKY9A/w200-h200/GlitchxCity.png" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">GlitchxCity</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;">The following is an
interview with GlitchxCity, a musician specializing in video game remixes.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Where are you from, and how did you get into music?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in Texas. I got a
late start in music when I chose choir as my arts elective in middle school,
and then carried on with that in high school.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">How
did you get into Pokémon, and when did that start crossing into your musical
work?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I got into Pokémon when I was 5 back in the 90s (like every
kid)! It was actually the anime that introduced me to the series, and I’ve
stuck with it ever since. It wasn’t until I was in high school where I wanted
to have a creative outlet to show my love for the series.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">How do you choose
which tracks to remix/rearrange/create?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It depends on how I’m feeling and what the community is
feeling. When a new generation drops, I pay attention to the characters that
may have huge potential in the game and hope that their themes match up to my
expectations. Outside of Pokémon tracks, I’m working on other projects from
originals, to commercial work, and even tracks from other video game series!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUklwkWI-lQVKvpsQh6TU7g_VHyzON4qXOX6ZNSrwJyGoCnhwAHPmE6-jCfy7t_NmOMCh4A1gYkRe_m1uExW3bz8Qrp8AEXW0igMGMSuFqh4v3Y90MDdyOS6_syljzKkPUAc2jDaAOEVICCHCn-5mFzFgPJbBbzTawlYAvR9JLBtaXLHdotn3ZtzOsoA/s3600/Image%20Edited.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3600" data-original-width="2880" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUklwkWI-lQVKvpsQh6TU7g_VHyzON4qXOX6ZNSrwJyGoCnhwAHPmE6-jCfy7t_NmOMCh4A1gYkRe_m1uExW3bz8Qrp8AEXW0igMGMSuFqh4v3Y90MDdyOS6_syljzKkPUAc2jDaAOEVICCHCn-5mFzFgPJbBbzTawlYAvR9JLBtaXLHdotn3ZtzOsoA/w160-h200/Image%20Edited.png" width="160" /></a></span></b></div><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">What are some songs you've put out recently?<o:p></o:p></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">My most recent Pokémon track is the “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5pCI_6-BCo">Battle! AI Professor!</a>”
theme from Scarlet and Violet. The original was written by Toby Fox and I was
so ecstatic to get my hands on it. It’s honestly one of my favorite battle
themes I’ve worked on and I’m thoroughly proud of how it came out!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Anything coming in the near future you'd like to tease?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I just wrapped up a large project that will be launching on
May 5th and I’m really excited for people to hear it! I’m also working on more
long-form compilation projects that will launch during the summer in
collaboration with a few illustrators!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Where can folks find you online?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">You can find me on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/GlitchxCity">YouTube</a> where I upload all my
Pokémon and other video game related remixes, <a href="https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity">Soundcloud</a> for an ad-free
listening experience, and <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/0X1wtVNo8CVrMEKh8y8knH">Spotify</a> and <a href="https://music.apple.com/us/artist/glitchxcity/988572854">Apple Music</a>
for streaming my music!</span><o:p></o:p></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Dallas, TX, USA32.7766642 -96.7969878999999914.4664303638211535 -131.95323789999998 61.086898036178845 -61.640737899999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-30123708848743226992023-04-16T05:00:00.015-05:002023-04-17T20:22:25.664-05:00Excerpt: Which XY Pokémon Movie is the most popular?<p>In this excerpt from a recent round of Pokémon music trivia, I explain which Pokemon movie from the X & Y generation is the most popular, at least from what I've observed:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KzwFrxpBTfM" width="300" youtube-src-id="KzwFrxpBTfM"></iframe></div><br /><div>Links:<br /><div><a href="https://youtube.com/live/GMwgFDrrVoE">Original Livestream</a></div><div><a href="https://soundcloud.com/pokepress/episode-62-discussing-the-music-of-my-pokemon-ranchpokemon-music-trivia">Podcast Episode</a></div><div><a href="https://pokepress.blogspot.com/2021/09/the-most-popular-pokemon-movies.html">Article Shown in Video</a></div></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-73320010315256427492023-03-29T05:00:00.005-05:002023-04-17T20:41:47.553-05:00Review: The Arceus Chronicles: Gen 4 Anime Callbacks and Little Else<p>“The Arceus Chronicles” is one of the few Pokémon outings (it’s promoted as a movie, but it’s really more of a mini-series) that I consider legitimately bad, and would not recommend to even to fans of the franchise. It could certainly be worse, and there are those that will enjoy it, but I would suggest spending your time with one of the recent alternate universe movies instead.</p><p>Thematically, I’m not sure what the project was going for. It seems like it was supposed to be a tie-in for the Legends Arceus game, but very little from the game makes it into this, outside of a recreation in the early part of the film. Instead, the story mostly focuses on an attempt by members of Team Galactic to rescue Cyrus (their leader) from the dimensional rift he was imprisoned in during the Diamond & Pearl generation of the anime. This is a fine premise, but conflicted with my expectations of a time-traveling adventure back to Hisui, which I think would have connected better with the first part of the special.</p><p>The animation is okay. It’s clearly a step up from a regular episode, but not on the level of what one of the full-fledged animated Pokémon movies would have gotten.</p><p>Pacing is what really dragged this down for me. It really does seem like they had to pad things out to fit the target run time, and I wanted this to end 5-15 minutes earlier than it did, even when I was watching it with other Pokémon fans at Worlds 2022 in London. There simply wasn’t enough action or character development to keep me interested.</p><p>Musically, I don’t think there was much memorable about the score, nor were there any vocal songs. As is usually the case with the TV show, much of the Japanese score was replaced, but as someone who hasn’t found the work of Shinji Miyazaki and co. particularly interesting as of late, I’m skeptical it would make much of a difference, regardless of quality.</p><p>Pretty much the only thing I can say this special does well is bring back characters from the Diamond & Pearl arc of the TV show. If you wanted to see Dawn, Brock, Cynthia, or their Pokémon, they show up, though I can’t say they were used in a particularly interesting way.</p><p>Part of me really wants to know what happened with this project. It’s possible the writers weren’t allowed to use as much material from the Legends Arceus game as they wanted, or that multiple ideas were pitched and this is the result of some sort of compromise. Whatever the reason, it seems very likely that this wasn’t given enough time and other resources to coalesce into an interesting product. As I stated earlier, do yourself a favor and watch one of the alternate timeline movies instead (particularly “The Power of Us” or “Secrets of the Jungle”, which could use some more attention). I can’t guarantee you’ll love them, but the odds definitely seem better.<br /><br />-Steven "Yoshi" Reich, Poke Press Editor</p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-71149690612967780422023-03-26T05:00:00.042-05:002023-03-26T05:00:00.208-05:00Anime Milwaukee 2023: Merari Marin of Pengunia’s Presents<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gV86wQzLfuMtSAYULRbKn59Ox2UEc-iVb71J9_9eFwCBUouGeny0hpX_XlkjkBxTVqOVnw8mHrO3Uvzm6qCEjQmcIzDkwKgRCcy518nQPoVxBe3okOqNA4hXtT-pT375F8dtsqvxu6TkrUtXOsPz7pvrLasdp6eVjvVyNtRmVKJtitXKPsh0yNEYqQ/s1351/psyduck-sleeping-cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Psyduck sleeping between two mushrooms" border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1351" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gV86wQzLfuMtSAYULRbKn59Ox2UEc-iVb71J9_9eFwCBUouGeny0hpX_XlkjkBxTVqOVnw8mHrO3Uvzm6qCEjQmcIzDkwKgRCcy518nQPoVxBe3okOqNA4hXtT-pT375F8dtsqvxu6TkrUtXOsPz7pvrLasdp6eVjvVyNtRmVKJtitXKPsh0yNEYqQ/w320-h175/psyduck-sleeping-cropped.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">The following is an interview with Merari Marin, owner of
Pengunia’s Presents, a vendor I met at Anime Milwaukee 2023*.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">*A press pass was provided for this event.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Where are you from, and how did you get into craftwork as
a profession?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I got into crafting
because ever since I was young, I was always making things. I love art and the
different mediums it can take. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">How did you get into making the Pokémon terrariums?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I got into it because I love Pokémon. I remember collecting
the cards when I was younger and imagining a whole world just from the card
artwork. The terrariums express that imaginary world in the real world. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">What goes into making them? <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The amount of work that goes into making them varies
depending on the world I decide to create for the terrarium. For example, the longest
process is the lava layouts I make, but they’re also by far my favorite to
make. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As for materials, I’m always on the lookout for items that
fit inside the terrarium that make the world feel a little more real. For
example, I found these mini wheelbarrows and they fit inside the Poké Ball. I
imagined someone collecting flowers and putting them inside the wheelbarrow and
pop! There's an Eevee in the wheelbarrow amongst the flowers.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</xml><![endif]--><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmFQWXmCjUTPsbPcunZfxoMbi3tB842FFQX5JT9qqZ3QDh86TECpNRhG4rZ0Yef3XMaGv5hs6ytbaMTm_mhZQHFNDbV6HQ2EctGNHJOpZTf9n2nURGvERvqUupUnVN9eAlbRQVBb3ozaEV37RvDPBjx0lLYMkNGfK7NtTImAP7lH7scaErmrpKKWyDng/s1324/Charmander-Heart-square-SharpenAI-Standard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" alt="A terrarium with Charmander holding a heart surrounded by lava" data-original-height="1324" data-original-width="1324" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmFQWXmCjUTPsbPcunZfxoMbi3tB842FFQX5JT9qqZ3QDh86TECpNRhG4rZ0Yef3XMaGv5hs6ytbaMTm_mhZQHFNDbV6HQ2EctGNHJOpZTf9n2nURGvERvqUupUnVN9eAlbRQVBb3ozaEV37RvDPBjx0lLYMkNGfK7NtTImAP7lH7scaErmrpKKWyDng/s320/Charmander-Heart-square-SharpenAI-Standard.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></b></div><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">What were some of your favorites that you've made?<o:p></o:p></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As I mentioned before, the lava layouts I make are my
favorite layouts; they especially stand out when they have lights inside. I
also very much enjoy making Vaporeon terrariums, as that's my favorite Pokémon.
However, any time I have someone reach out to me for a custom terrarium, those
are by far my favorite to make. I recently made a Porygon and that one I
absolutely adored. Knowing someone has a special place in their heart for each Pokémon,
I want to make sure that feeling is conveyed in the efforts I put into making
the terrarium.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">What's it like being a vendor at an anime convention?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's so much fun! Meeting new people, seeing familiar faces
adds to the experience. Seeing someone's face light up when they find their
favorite Pokémon or seeing someone mentally debating which Pokémon to take
home, seeing all those emotions sometimes still surprises me; that my creations
can stir those positive feelings. I hope when people stop by my booth it adds
happiness to their day at the con. Being able to be a part of such a positive
experience is really enlightening.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Any other conventions you'll be at in the near future?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I will be at <a href="https://www.eventeny.com/events/carthagecon2023-4513/">Carthage Con</a>
on April 15,2023 in Kenosha, Wi. I will also be at <a href="https://www.animemagic.org/">Anime Magic</a> in August 18-20, 2023 in
Rosemont, Il. My schedule is usually updated on my Instagram.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Where can folks find you online?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: inherit;">People can follow my work on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/penguinaspresents_/">Instagram</a> and they can
also reach out to me at my <a href="mailto:penguinaspresents@gmail.com">email</a>.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">If you'd like to see more of Merari's work, take a look at this short:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MoiZb3_3_rM" width="300" youtube-src-id="MoiZb3_3_rM"></iframe></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Milwaukee, WI, USA43.0389025 -87.906473614.728668663821153 -123.0627236 71.349136336178844 -52.7502236tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-11595506882070391882023-03-09T05:00:00.004-06:002023-03-09T05:00:00.189-06:00Poke Press Digest Podcast: Episode 63-Anime Milwaukee 2023/Discussing the music of "Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia"<p>The first segment (1:14-9:00) contains a pair of voice actor interviews from Anime Milwaukee 2023*. Listen in as Suzie Yeung and Leah Clark share their experiences working on Pokemon. If you'd like to know more about what I did at the convention, look for a link in the episode description.</p><p>The second segment (9:58-43:30) is a discussion of the music of Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia. Anne from Pikapi Podcast drops by to help me cover the middle entry in this sub-series. Of course, this title is also known for its mechanical changes, and you'll hear us talk about those in the game discussion after the outro:<br /></p>
<div><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1464649735&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="200"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><div>*A press pass was provided for this event.</div><div><br /></div><div>Links:</div><div><a href="https://animemilwaukee.org/">Anime Milwaukee</a></div><div><a href="https://youtube.com/live/n4FETjHWKnc?feature=share">Recap Livestream</a></div><div><a href="http://pikapipodcast.blogspot.com/">Pikapi Podcast</a></div><div><a href="https://www.pokecastersnetwork.com/">Poke Casters Network</a></div></div>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Madison, WI, USA43.0721661 -89.400750114.761932263821151 -124.5570001 71.382399936178842 -54.244500099999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3355184315937453473.post-85663045868750764012023-03-01T05:00:00.002-06:002023-03-08T22:48:05.792-06:00Leah Clark Discusses Playing Carlita in the Victini Movies<p>At Anime Milwaukee 2023, I was able to to interview Leah Clark, who played Carlita in the Victini movies. Find out what the experience was like, and about some of her other roles:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="300" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IC6GDdt3Seg" width="500" youtube-src-id="IC6GDdt3Seg"></iframe></div><p>A press pass was provided for this event.</p><p><a href="https://leahvclarkva.com/">Leah's Website</a><br /><a href="https://animemilwaukee.org/">Anime Milwaukee Website</a></p>Steven "PokéPress" Reichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02653938696812178840noreply@blogger.com0Milwaukee, WI, USA43.0389025 -87.906473614.728668663821153 -123.0627236 71.349136336178844 -52.7502236