Michael

media type="custom" key="4000757"**//This is a picture of me.media type="file" key="MichaelhelloWAV.wav" width="300" height="50"This is Kirby hitting Meta Knight with a umbrella Look at my disscussions beacause I wrote something random!!//** The name Pokémon is the [|romanized] [|contraction] of the Japanese brand **Pocket Monsters** (**ポケ**ット**モン**スター , //**Poke**tto **Mon**sutā//[|?] ) ,[|[5]] as such contractions are very common in Japan. The term "Pokémon", in addition to referring to the Pokémon franchise itself, also collectively refers to the 493 [|fictional species] that have made appearances in Pokémon media as of the recent release of the newest Pokémon role-playing game (RPG) for the [|Nintendo DS], [|Pokémon Platinum]. Like the words [|deer] and [|sheep], the word "Pokémon" is identical in both the [|singular] and [|plural], as is each individual species name; in short, it is grammatically correct to say both "one Pokémon" and "many Pokémon". In November 2005, [|4Kids Entertainment], which had managed the non-game related licensing of Pokémon, announced that it had agreed not to renew the Pokémon representation agreement. Pokémon USA Inc. (now [|The Pokémon Company International]), a subsidiary of Japan's Pokémon Co., now oversees all Pokémon licensing outside of Asia. The Pokémon anime [|series] and [|films] are a meta-series of adventures separate from the [|canon] that most of the Pokémon video games follow (with the exception of //[|Pokémon Yellow]//, a game based loosely on the anime storyline). The anime follows the quest of the main character, [|Ash Ketchum][|[16]] (known as Satoshi in Japan) a Pokémon Master in training, as he and a small group of friends[|[16]] travel around the fictitious world of Pokémon along with their Pokémon partners. The original series, titled //Pocket Monsters//, or simply Pokémon in western countries (often referred to as //Pokémon: Gotta Catch 'Em All// to distinguish it from the later series), begins with Ash's first day as a Pokémon trainer. His first (and signature) Pokémon is a [|Pikachu], differing from the games, where only [|Bulbasaur], [|Charmander], or [|Squirtle] could be chosen.[|[17]] The series follows the storyline of the original games, [|//Pokémon Red// and //Blue//], in the region of [|Kanto]. Accompanying Ash on his journeys are [|Brock], the Pewter City Gym Leader, and [|Misty], the youngest of the Gym Leader sisters from Cerulean City. //Pokémon: Adventures in the Orange Islands// follows Ash's adventures in the Orange Islands, a place unique to the anime, and replaces Brock with [|Tracey Sketchit], an artist and "Pokémon watcher". The next series, based on the second generation of games, include //Pokémon: Johto Journeys//, //Pokémon: Johto League Champions//, and //Pokémon: Master Quest//, following the original trio of Ash, Brock, and Misty in the western [|Johto] region. The saga continues in //Pokémon: Advanced Battle//, based on the third generation games. Ash and company travel to [|Hoenn], a southern region in the Pokémon World. Ash takes on the role of a teacher and mentor for a novice Pokémon trainer named [|May]. Her brother [|Max] accompanies them, and though he isn't a trainer, he knows large amounts of handy information. Brock (from the original series) soon catches up with Ash, but Misty has returned to Cerulean City to tend to her duties as a gym leader (Misty, along with other recurring characters, appears in the spin-off series //[|Pokémon Chronicles]//). The Japanese Logo for the current series, Diamond & Pearl The Advanced Battle series concludes with the //Battle Frontier// saga, based on the //Emerald// version and including aspects of //FireRed// and //LeafGreen//. The most recent series is the //Diamond and Pearl// series, with Max leaving to pick his starter Pokémon, and May going to the Grand Festival in Johto. Ash, Brock, and a new companion named [|Dawn] travel through the region of [|Sinnoh]. In addition to the TV series, eleven [|Pokémon films] have been made, with a twelfth to be released in Japan in July 2009. Collective bonuses, such as promotional trading cards, have been available with some of the films. [|Palkia], the Spacial Pokémon //Trading Card Game// card from //Pokémon TCG Diamond and Pearl//. The //[|Pokémon Trading Card Game]// is a [|collectible card game] with a goal similar to a Pokémon battle in the video game series. Players use Pokémon cards, with individual strengths and weaknesses, in an attempt to defeat their opponent by "knocking out" his or her Pokémon cards.[|[20]] The game was first published in North America by [|Wizards of the Coast] in 1999.[|[21]] However, with the release of [|//Pokémon Ruby// and //Sapphire//] [|Game Boy Advance] [|video games], [|Nintendo USA] took back the card game from Wizards of the Coast and started publishing the cards themselves.[|[21]] The Expedition expansion introduced the //Pokémon-e Trading Card Game//, where the cards (for the most part) were compatible with the [|Nintendo e-Reader]. Nintendo discontinued its production of e-Reader compatible cards with the release of EX FireRed & LeafGreen. In 1998, Nintendo released a [|Game Boy Color] version of the trading card game in Japan; [|Pokémon Trading Card Game] was subsequently released to the US and Europe in 2000. The game included digital versions cards from the original set of cards and the first two expansions (Jungle and Fossil), as well as several cards exclusive to the game. A Japan-exclusive sequel was released in 2001.One of the consistent aspects of the [|Pokémon games] — spanning from [|//Pokémon Red// and //Blue//] on the [|Nintendo Game Boy] to the [|Nintendo DS] game, [|//Pokémon Diamond// and //Pearl//] — is the choice of one of three different Pokémon at the start of the player's adventures; these three are often labeled "starter Pokémon". Players can choose a [|Grass-type], a Fire-type, or a Water-type.[|[13]] For example, in //Pokémon Red// and //Blue// (and their respective reworks, //Pokémon FireRed// and //Pokémon LeafGreen//), the player has the choice of starting with [|Bulbasaur], [|Charmander], or [|Squirtle]. The exception to this rule is //[|Pokémon Yellow]// (a remake of the original games that follows the story of the //[|Pokémon anime]//), where players are given a [|Pikachu], an [|Electric-type] mouse Pokémon, famous for being the mascot of the Pokémon media franchise; in this game, however, the three starter Pokémon from //Red// and //Blue// can be obtained during the quest by a single player, something that is not possible in any other installment of the franchise.[|[14]] Another consistent aspect is that the player's rival will always choose as his or her starter Pokémon the one that has a type advantage over the player's Pokémon. For instance, if the player picks a Grass-type Pokémon, the rival will always pick the fire-type starter. Of course, the exception to this is again //Pokémon Yellow//, in which the rival picks an [|Eevee], but whether this Eevee evolves into [|Jolteon], [|Vaporeon], or [|Flareon] is decided by when the player wins and loses to the rival through the journey. The original Pokémon games were Japanese [|RPGs] with an element of strategy, and were created by Satoshi Tajiri for the [|Game Boy]. These role-playing games, and their sequels, remakes, and English language translations, are still considered the "main" Pokémon games, and the games which most fans of the series are referring to when they use the term "Pokémon games". All of the licensed Pokémon properties overseen by [|The Pokémon Company] are divided roughly by generation. These generations are roughly [|chronological] divisions by release; every several years, when an official sequel in the main RPG series is released that features new Pokémon, characters, and gameplay concepts, that sequel is considered the start of a new generation of the franchise. The main games and their spin-offs, the anime, manga, and trading card game are all updated with the new Pokémon properties each time a new generation begins. The franchise is in its fourth generation. A level 5 [|Bulbasaur] engaged in a battle with a level 5 [|Charmander] in //[|Pokémon Red and Blue]//.[|[8]] The Pokémon franchise started off in its first generation with its initial release of [|//Pocket Monsters Aka// and //Midori//] ("Red" and "Green", respectively) for the [|Game Boy] in Japan. When these games proved extremely popular, an enhanced //Ao// ("Blue") version was released sometime after, and the //Ao// version was reprogrammed as [|//Pokémon Red// and //Blue//] for international release. The games launched in the United States on September 30, 1998. The original //Aka// and //Midori// versions were never released outside of Japan.[|[9]] Afterwards, a further enhanced version titled //[|Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition]// was released to partially take advantage of the color palette of the [|Game Boy Color], as well as to feature more elements from the popular [|Pokémon anime]. This first generation of games introduced the original 151 species of Pokémon (in [|National Pokédex] order, encompassing all Pokémon from [|Bulbasaur] to [|Mew]), as well as the basic game concepts of capturing, training, battling, and trading Pokémon with both computer and human players. These versions of the games take place within the fictional [|Kanto] [|region], though the name "Kanto" was not used until the second generation. The second generation of Pokémon began in 2000 with the release of [|//Pokémon Gold// and //Silver//] for [|Game Boy Color]. Like the previous generation, an enhanced version titled //[|Pokémon Crystal]// was later released. The second generation introduced 100 new species of Pokémon (starting with [|Chikorita] and ending with [|Celebi]), with a total of 251 Pokémon to collect, train, and battle. The [|Pokémon mini] is a [|handheld game console] released in November 2001 in North America, December 2001 in Japan, and 2002 in Europe. Pokémon entered its third generation with the 2003 release of [|//Pokémon Ruby// and //Sapphire//] for [|Game Boy Advance] and continued with the Game Boy Advance remakes of //Pokémon Red and Blue//, [|//Pokémon FireRed// and //LeafGreen//], and an enhanced version of //Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire// titled //[|Pokémon Emerald]//. The third generation introduced 135 new Pokémon (starting with [|Treecko] and ending with [|Deoxys]) for a total of 386 species. However, this generation also garnered some criticism for leaving out several gameplay features, including the day-and-night system introduced in the previous generation, and it was also the first installment that encouraged the player to collect merely a selected assortment of the total number of Pokémon rather than every existing species (202 out of 386 species are catchable in the //Ruby// and //Sapphire// versions). In 2006, Japan began the fourth generation of the franchise with the release of [|//Pokémon Diamond// and //Pearl//] for Nintendo DS. The fourth generation introduces another 107 new species of Pokémon (starting with [|Turtwig] and ending with [|Arceus]), bringing the total of Pokémon species to 493.[|[10]] The [|Nintendo DS] "touch screen" allows new features to the game such as cooking poffins with the stylus and using the "Pokétch". New gameplay concepts include a restructured [|move]-classification system, online multiplayer trading and battling via [|Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection], the return (and expansion) of the second generation's day-and-night system, the expansion of the third generation's Pokémon Contests into "Super Contests", and the new region of [|Sinnoh], which has an underground component for multiplayer gameplay in addition to the main overworld. //[|Pokémon Platinum]//, the enhanced version of Diamond and Pearl, much like Pokémon Yellow, Crystal, and Emerald, was released September 2008 in Japan, March 2009 in North America, and is scheduled to be released in Australia and Europe in May 2009. Spin-off titles in the fourth generation include the //Pokémon Stadium// follow-up //[|Pokémon Battle Revolution]// for [|Wii], which has Wi-Fi connectivity as well.[|[11]] Nintendo announced in May 2009 that enhanced remakes of [|//Pokémon Gold// and //Silver//], entitled [|//Pokémon HeartGold// and //SoulSilver//], will be released for the [|Nintendo DS]. //HeartGold// and //SoulSilver// will be set in the [|Johto region] and will be released in Fall 2009 in Japan. The concept of the Pokémon universe, in both the video games and the general fictional world of Pokémon, stems from the hobby of [|insect collecting], a popular pastime which Pokémon executive director Satoshi Tajiri-Oniwa enjoyed as a child.[|[7]] Players of the games are designated as [|Pokémon Trainers], and the two general goals (in most Pokémon games) for such Trainers are: to complete the [|Pokédex] by collecting all of the available Pokémon species found in the fictional region where that game takes place; and to train a team of powerful Pokémon from those they have caught to compete against teams owned by other Trainers, and eventually become the strongest Trainer, the Pokémon Master. These themes of collecting, training, and battling are present in almost every version of the Pokémon franchise, including the [|video games], the [|anime] and manga series, and the [|Pokémon Trading Card Game]. In most incarnations of the fictional Pokémon universe, a Trainer that encounters a wild Pokémon is able to capture that Pokémon by throwing a specially designed, mass-producible tool called a [|Poké Ball] at it. If the Pokémon is unable to escape the confines of the Poké Ball, that Pokémon is officially considered under the ownership of that Trainer. Afterward, it will obey whatever commands its new master issues to it from that point onward, unless the Trainer demonstrates enough of a lack of experience that the Pokémon would rather act on its own accord. Trainers can send out any of their Pokémon to wage non-lethal battles against other Pokémon; if the opposing Pokémon is wild, the Trainer can capture that Pokémon with a Poké Ball, increasing his or her collection of creatures. Pokémon already owned by other Trainers cannot be captured, except under special circumstances in certain games. If a Pokémon fully defeats an opponent in battle so that the opponent is knocked out (i.e., "faints"), the winning Pokémon gains experience and may [|level up]. When leveling up, the Pokémon's statistics ("[|stats]") of battling aptitude increase, such as Attack and Speed. From time to time the Pokémon may also learn new [|moves], which are techniques used in battle. In addition, many species of Pokémon possess the ability to undergo a form of [|metamorphosis] and transform into a similar but stronger species of Pokémon, a process called [|evolution]. In the main series, each game's single-player mode requires the Trainer to raise a team of Pokémon to defeat many [|non-player character] (NPC) Trainers and their Pokémon. Each game lays out a somewhat linear path through a specific region of the Pokémon world for the Trainer to journey through, completing events and battling opponents along the way. Each game features eight especially powerful Trainers, referred to as [|Gym Leaders], that the Trainer must defeat in order to progress. As a reward, the Trainer receives a Gym Badge, and once all eight badges are collected, that Trainer is eligible to challenge the region's Pokémon League, where four immensely talented trainers (referred to collectively as the "[|Elite Four]") challenge the Trainer to four Pokémon battles in succession. If the trainer can overcome this gauntlet, he or she must then challenge the Regional Champion, the master Trainer who had previously defeated the Elite Four. Any Trainer who wins this last battle becomes the new champion and gains the title of Pokémon Master. POKEMON RULEZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 * Pokémon** (ポケモン , //Pokemon//[|?], English pronunciation: [|/ˈpoʊkeɪmɒn/] [|[1]]) is a [|media franchise] published by the [|video game] company [|Nintendo] and created by [|Satoshi Tajiri] in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable [|Game Boy] [|role-playing] [|video games], Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video game-based media franchise in the world, behind only Nintendo's own [|//Mario// series].[|[2]] Pokémon properties have since been [|merchandised] into [|anime], [|manga], [|trading cards], toys, books, and other media. The franchise celebrated [|its tenth anniversary] in 2006,[|[3]] and as of 23 April 2008 ( 2008 -04-23 ) [|[update]], cumulative sales of the video games (including home console versions, such as the "Pikachu" [|Nintendo 64]) have reached more than 186 million copies.[|[4]]