Girl Guides has seriously affected the way I approach Pokémon.
Ever since I was a kid, I always imagined what I’d be like as a Pokémon trainer going on my journey, and one of the biggest things that I always got hung up on would be my outfit.
It’s only tonight, just now, as I’m designing a “Me as a Pokémon Trainer” character and trying to get a cool-looking outfit down on paper that I realize exactly why I could never figure out what bothered me about the outfits the characters wear.
They’re completely impractical for being out in the wilderness.
I mean, think about it: these kids go out into the wild, on their own, at 10 years old, wearing nothing but a short-sleeve shirt, short-sleeve jacket/vest, jeans (or in the girls’ cases, shorts or mid-thigh-length skirts), sneakers, and a hat or bandana. Oh, and a dinky little backpack for stashing pokéballs and potions and TMs/HMs (Technical/ Hidden Machines) and whatnot. They don’t have tents or (human) medical supplies or even a change of clothes. What if these people get cold? What if it rains or snows? What if your clothes get torn or wet and you need to change into something dry so you don’t, I don’t know, die of hypothermia or whatever? What if you break your leg in the middle of the woods, or get an infected wound with no civilization for miles? Yeah sure sleeping out in a field under the stars is a cute idea and all, but you have to remember this is the Pokémon world, where every dozen steps or so you’ve got some wild rabid critter jumping out of the tall grass or whatever to bite your face off. At least a tent might offer some protection.
My years in Girl Guides under the wise, watchful gaze of Denise Hennebury has taught me that first and foremost, you need to dress in layers, and bring clothes that are actually suitable for the types of weather you might face along the way. The outfits typical Pokémon trainers are depicted wearing put all the emphasis on aesthetics and throw the whole “wilderness survival” thing entirely out the window.
And don’t even get me started on the backpack. Don’t. I mean, for goodness sake, they don’t even bring trail mix, or that water sanitizing stuff!
So if anybody needs me, I’ll be over here huddled over my sketchbook and designing my character like a smart person would and like my Guiding leaders would have expected me to – to actually be able out-survive the rest of these other horribly unprepared trainers in their miniskirts and jeggings.
Pokémon: IT’S SERIOUS BUSINESS OKAY DON’T JUDGE ME. I’m not over-thinking this stuff, everyone else just isn’t thinking about these things enough!
By guest blogger Terri.
We want you to be one of our guest bloggers! Never ‘blogged’ before? That’s ok! It’s just like telling someone a short story! Email us your idea.