The Blaze Life

Hiatus Ends

2009-06-28T03:21:00.000-07:00

It's been quite awhile since I last posted a blog here, and that is largely because I decided to end my career as a Pokemon Webmaster. From the constant drama to the lack of innovation in the fandom, I had for all intended purposes left for good. That was my belief anyways for the past two years as I had finished high-school, gone onto university, and become a more well-rounded individual.

So now what? I am returning to the fandom as a more mature individual that is looking to once again recreate a Pokemon mega-site out of nothing. I have a new approach I wish to try, along with a reassembled team that have largely been out of scene for as long (if not longer) than even I. So with a new staff ranging from my days at Pokemon706, TotalPokemon/Shinou, and PokeWizards I am hoping to blend an old-school team with new-age ideas.

This is the only the beginning, as I have plans to copy this format into other genres if it proves successful. As always I will be working inside a room of doubters and naysayers, but as history will once again prove I can make a mega-site out of nothing.

I offer an olive branch to all those in the past I have come at odds with, and it is my hopes that after two years those individuals will have matured enough themselves to begin our relationships anew. I hope they will meet me half-way and stop living in the past, but if they choose to cling to their old-ways then that is their choice, but they will miss great oppurtunities.

godspeed.

It's Been a Year!

2007-12-17T03:29:00.000-08:00

Wow,

I have not blogged or really communicated my feelings on the Community in quite some time. Be it a little more than a year, I have switched my focus from crushing rivals in Pokemans (I spelled it wrong for effect), and begun my work towards my professional career at University.

Returning to the Pokemon Community, I quickly noticed how much things have changed since I went on my self-given hiatus. Most of my former rivals and enemies are not defunct and have closed up shop. Pokemon sites I once wondered if I would ever see the end of, have in fact closed. This however does not surprise me at all, as the same chain-of-events happened following the aftermath of the release of Gold/Silver and Ruby/Sapphire.

Yet one of my more familiar pricks in my side, PokeCommunity has still weathered the storm and have held on for survival. While I still dislike the Administration (oh the irony, as TotalPokemon stands as a Community Site), I have deep respect for how they have handled some "issues" that have arisen during my hiatus. While I am sure anyone who reads this blog knows what I am talking about, I rather not divulge into details or rumors, because that is simply none of our business. I just felt props was in order for the forums, and as always I challenge the Administration to a more hardcore Pokemon fan-friendly atmosphere.

While on the topics of forums, you may or may not know that my own forum Shinou is now defunct. Yes, the forum I had been bragging about and defining as the "end of the PC era" turned out to be a flop. Although membership activity was strong, it was simply that of our Spanish counterpart PokeSafari. In a rather suprising turn-of-events, Nil (owner of PokeSafari) made his own Serebii-type forum secretly and then launching a migration campaign once it had open, while he fully denied it to the rest of the Community Sites. This has left a bitter taste in my mouth for any International Webmaster, and it has taught me some important lessons before I embark on Shinou2. Bilingual Forums do not work, simple as that.

Shinou is not dead forever, I will once again reattempt to test out a new system in hopes of coming up with a more perfect system to appeal to all Pokemon Fans. I would call myself the Ralph Nader of Pokemon Forums, but for the simple fact that he never wins, I will just say I am like the Democratic Party of the USA. After years of being the minority, they finally are in power (not to say I support them) but I too hope to rise from this minor ditch and will attempt to make the perfect place for the PokeFans.

I am worried with myself for writing this much, but when you have insomnia and are bored out of your mind you do crazy things. I went on LiveJournal for the first time in over like 1-2 years and read some peoples LJs. I find it crazy people still use that thing, but hey then again I am still blogging on Google. Anyways, since I cannot sleep I am sure I will have like 20 new blog posts today/tonight just releasing all my pent up views.

Cya Then!

- BlaZe

Zelda Kicks Ass As Does Shinou!

2006-12-11T19:44:00.000-08:00

Shinou Community Forums hit 3,000 registered members today. Since opening around 3 months ago, we have been flooded with mostly spanish speaking members alongside a small secular English following that continues to grow.
However, as anyone who knows the English Forum market knows that it is basically impossible to create a fan base or stronghold. In order to complete that, we needed the essential help of our Spanish side that has continued to pour new users in. As time goes by, the more users who comes adds to Google Searches (Member Lists) and will continue to get us better known.
So today we may not be as big as PokeCommunity English-wise, but we are on a definite path to kick their ass. With Diamond/Pearl launching in the United States, the Shinou name which is basically alongside Shinnoh (the USA version of the region) will give us a huge boost in viewers. Plus unlike our competitors, our sites actually have a cult based following for our content, which will lead to a higher percentage of join rates.

Anyways, just beat the Gerudo Desert level in Zelda, so I am officially half way done with the game. It is absolutely amazing, and I wish there was more places I could swim, because I absolutely just LOVE swimming under water in Lake Hylia.

Buy Out The Competition

2006-12-07T15:43:00.000-08:00

Recently, I have been pondering how a site like PokeZam could manage to get around 3,000 hits per day while I and TotalPokemon were in a hiatus. Today, I presumed to have found the real answer which as any human with a brain would realize is not because of any actual good content or news.
Earlier this year PokeZam bought out Pkmn-Source for a undisclosed sum (ranging in the $100 area, if memory serves correct). Infact, I arranged the bid when Mark approached me when he was looking for a buyer. Anyways, until a few weeks if not days ago PKMN Source was running in cooperation of PokeZam while still averaging 1-2k unique hits per day. They have decided to instead just redirect it to PokeZam thus causing the soar in hits.
So I guess I was wrong about the French side being the reason, as it is just a simple little tactic I like to call "Buying Out The Competition"

Operation Dr. Pepper

2006-12-05T19:58:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow BGT and I will be launching a new service through TotalPokemon, Shinou, and beyond. I am absolutely thrilled to be working on it to say the least, and usually I have some sweet code names to go along with them. However, I just couldn't think of one so we will be calling it Operation Dr. Pepper (since I really wish I had a Dr. Pepper at the minute).

Just for the record it is NOT PokeFeeds or any news service organization, although it may at times include Pokemon news. However, this is something entirely different that possibly could eclipse TotalPokemon in hits or at the very least influence within the Pokemon Fandom.

I haven't decided what type of advertising method I will be using yet. TotalPokemon launched with just a small grassroots campaign, while Shinou was heavily marketed for a few days which happened to occur alongside the Diamond/Pearl launch.

Mii Review Red Steel

2006-12-05T15:10:00.000-08:00

After about 2-3 days of playing Red Steel (about 20-40 minutes per level, with their being 12 levels I believe) I can safely say that I shall be turning in this game for Rayman or something.

The graphics are actually not bad, you can tell they are gamecube-like but the story really makes up for it. There are scenes when you are in this Shrine-like area that really blows your mind that they could be displayed on the Wii.

The sound in Red Steel is pretty impressive, Ubisoft unlike Nintendo didn't overuse the Wiimote to blast unneeded sounds. Everyone in the game is voiced, which for a Gamecube-like system I was pretty impressed.

Gameplay or the script itself is absolutely amazing, and I can foresee a new successful franchise that could be Ubisoft's answer to Metal Gear Solid or some other FPS. The cut scenes were done in a magna style, which was absolutely perfect for the game.

The controls however were mediocre, and you could tell that this part of the game was rushed. Numerous times I had to recalibrate the wiimote with the sensor because my gun pointing in the air and going around in circles (which led to numerous outbreaks of nausea I might add). Ontop of that the nunchuck sometimes had a delayed response when I went to block or parry, which was a slight annoyance at times.

Glitches are absolutely horrible in this game, and is the sole reason for my wish to return the game. They range from enemies that you cannot kill to game freezes which causes a screeching sound to come out of your TV. Though some were funny, it just really is too big of a hassle and really takes away from the overall gameplay.

I personally am giving this game a 74/100, with a detailed list of everything I took off for below.

Graphics : 9/10
Sound: 10/10
Gameplay: 10/10
Controls: 5/10
Game Perfection (Glitch-Free): 3/10

37/50 *2 = 74/100

You Want War?

2006-12-05T11:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I received a hate comment on TotalPokemon from the staff of PokeZam. Which I find ironic, when yesterday I gave their time lacking Webmaster tips to improve his site. However, it appears that they were ill-received and have now tried to wage war against my site.
This is what the comment said, in specifics.

1. They usually beat TotalPokemon to news, which is quite hilarious when we were on a Hiatus and yet still beat them on certain news pieces even during that time. Usually we have gotten complaints of PokeZam STEALING our news pieces, so yeah real good one there Zammy.

2. They beat us to the Pokemon Snap DS post, which I find weird seeing we were the only news site to have a picture featuring the scan at the time of writing? Only thing PokeZam had was a one word sentence that said "We know the Pokemon Snap DS can is fake thanks to Serebii" yet it included no picture, however now they WE have put up the scam they must have stolen the picture and published it as their own.

3. In final said I like to argue, which I have never done on my Pokemon site. This "PokeZam" is clearly trying to start something. Let it be known, that they have had a distaste for us since we abruptly kicked them out of Shinou prior to the forums' launch.

So to the Staff of PokeZam I say this, don't attack another site just out of pure jealousy and spite. Even though you have your site in another major language that barely has any major players in yet, you still only receive about 1,000 more then us and this right after our prolonged hiatus. Enjoy your temporary hit increase, because you just got TotalPokemon motivated to take names and kick some ass.

kthxbai

The UN of Pokemon

2006-12-04T08:10:00.000-08:00

As a Webmaster, I usually take the time to browse my competition to see news I may have missed or basically just look for ways on how I can improve TotalPokemon. Lately however, viewing is basically worthless and just a total waste of my time.
With the hiatus between the Japanese and USA launch of Pokemon Diamond/Pearl, you can just smell fansite death in the air. I mean in all seriousness, I really don't see or account for many large English sites. In my personal opinion the following below are the large sites, and a little description on WHY they are big.

*Serebii - It's number one for one major factor, that being content. No site has more content then Serebii, and I don't see another site ever reaching that magnitude in the foreseen future.

*Psypokes - They have compiled one of the best Dex's around, and really just have some great content. Not to mention their host is a pretty well known site, so that always adds to the hits.

*Pokemon Palace - Steve may have been gone for awhile, but PPN will always stay afloat as long as it has its Serebii Affiliation. As being 6 years old and counting, PPN is basically the posterboy of the Pokemon Fandom.

*TotalPokemon - Call me biased if you must, but TotalPokemon has really gotten a stronghold onto the market. With presenting new innovative means of distributing content (we were the first Pokemon Fansite to institute flash players, even before youtube went mainstream on the Fansites). TotalPokemon shows no signs of slowing down, especially with it becoming the leader in Japanese Anime guides/pictures.

*#PocketMonsters - The leader in the Pokemon Fandom Anime distribution services. Without #PM a majority if not all Pokemon sites would not have access to the Japanese Episodes. #PM is a force not to be reckoned with, and continues to grow at a amazing speed.

*BulbaGarden - I really wouldn't call it a "leader" in the Pokemon Fandom, but I personally feel it deserves recognition. BulbaGarden has been a icon in the Pokemon Online Fandom, and is one of the most beloved Fansites around. With their premier news service, on top of their infamous BulbaCast, I don't see BulbaGarden ever going away.

*Smogon - I will admit I haven't been tracking this site lately, but I am sure Smogon will be one of the big players come the release of Diamond/Pearl in the USA. With their large collection of statistics and other gaming knowledge, Smogon is sure to be a best bet for fans who want to make specific teams when preparing to battle people over Nintendo Wifi.

Red Steel Makes Me Puke (Literally)

2006-12-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

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- Wii Chat -

I have been busy playing my Nintendo Wii, and wow do I hate/love Red Steel. I will admit to being absolutely in love with the story line, and overall level game play. I think that whoever came up with the level ideas is a absolutely mental but brilliant man (or woman).
HOWEVER the controls are absolutely horribly, and I say that in the most positive way I could think of. In Red Steel you use the nunchuck to move around, while using the Wiimote to aim/adjust your camera view. This leads to the view going insane and rotating at such a fast pace that it literally gives you motion sickness at times. I personally have had to take long breaks to help my eyes (and stomach) recover from this game.
I personally agree with the overall average score of Red Steel being a 5/10, because it really is half perfected. That being the overall game design, while the gameplay (controls) just absolutely ruins the game at times.

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- TotalPokemon Update -

TotalPokemon has launched a two-in-one system, with TP.com being our old v2 design while launching TP.net with v3. We hope to diversify the two in the future, so that both sides showcase certain strengths and making it worthwhile for the viewer to look between both sides.
While TotalPokemon.net (v3) will stay visually the same, we are planning a new default skin for TotalPokemon.com (v2). While we have a few in the works, the next skin will make TP.com and TP.net appear more integrated.
With our news activity reclaiming lost ground, TotalPokemon Webmaster BGT has begun work on a new project Codenamed Tsunami, which I personally feel will blow our competition out of the water (pun intended XD). Anyways, I will continue to give you guys a look into things coming to TP, since I kinda.... co run the place? X)

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- Around the Pokemon Fandom -

Kudos to PokeJungle Owner Paul for finally putting his foot down and forcing Brandon (The Hulk) to stop his religion based news posts. I can think of a few people, who are probably giving out a big sigh right now, to hear this wonderful news. So thanks for listening and acting on our concerns Paul!

Shinou Community Forums has passed the 50,000 posts' benchmark and with over 2.7k members, it shows no sign of slowing down. With little maintence and being still in a early Beta, Shinou Community Forums promises to shake up the Pokemon Fandom. While, we have put language additions on hold (see Puissance Pokemon is a asshole post) we are considering add more English/Spanish based sites to the Community. However, this is only being considered and I personally could not think of any English site I would even consider asking.

PokemonPalace is once again being updated, which is good news to a degree. Although I feel Steve's absense has been overplayed, I hope to see Steve do some real work with the site. However my only issue, is that he has yet to issue real credit to guides BGT licensed him usage back when he was still running PokeGalaxy. Laziness or not, TotalPokemon is now a real player and it is expected we are to be treated as one. Unlike some of our competitors, we have no real affiliates to count on for hits and must rely on our content. So it is vital to us that we get treated properly, otherwise it could lead to a end to full cooperation with the outside Fansites.

PokeZam appears to be gaining hits, which appears to be coming from the French side. Personally, I am very happy for Sean to see his French side booming while I personally throw up at how trashy the English side has become. Now don't get me wrong, PokeZam following The APCC has some of the best content around. HOWEVER, their news updating is absolutely atrocious and usually leaves me questioning if I just read news or had my eyes gouged. If Sean wants to really tap into the Pokemon Fandom Market, he is going to need to make real changes surrounding his Staff and level of quality news articles.
You can only rely on getting a boost of hits from having multiple small affiliates for so long, although it is a common practice to boost your Pagerank it really lessens the quality and reputation as a leading Pokemon Fansite in my own personal opinion. When I agree to affiliation, that basically is putting my name on the line that I trust the sites that I link to and that they have honest and accurate news/content. However, it seems like PokeZam among other sites (i.e POL, PokeJungle, PokemonPalace) care more about pageranks or popularity among the Webmasters' then about their own viewers wellbeing (i.e Pop ups, Plagiarism, Tracking Cookies, Fabricated News/Content, etc).

Lalala

2006-11-27T19:05:00.000-08:00

1. Steve returned rofl, I cannot wait to see what suprising turn of events comes from his arrival.
2. TotalPokemon has temporarily reverted back to v2, now known as TotalPokemon - Diamond Edition.
3. Nintendo Wii keeps getting more amazing =]
4. I don't feel like blogging today~
5. I am gonna go get some H20

Ideas Oh Ideas

2006-11-25T23:50:00.000-08:00

I planned to beginning to phase out the TotalPokemon division, due to some crazy fever I must have had because it honestly was a horrible idea. I believed I talked about LunarMoon and SolarFlare (It was SolarSun, but Flare sounded cooler lol), so I finally will begin working on them.

Moving and Nintendo Wii preempted my time, but now with the Wii losing its impulsive playing feeling on me I now see TotalPokemon in desperate need of updating and all around work. However, I have a variety of ideas on how to change TotalPokemon.

My main idea I am leaning towards right now, is to leave TP in its current format (until I finish LM and SF) and just create a temporary TP News Blog. I think this would be the most productive, and most unique format. I could offer sneak peaks and other unique things by having News updated in a blog, in which would require less maintenance and work.

I just feel that the Pokemon Fandom is really a dead in a sense, I mean the point of fighting in this market is quite pointless. It actually is quite amazing at how large the online fanbase it actually has, when looking at other fandoms. To be honest, I think that unless some new amazing Pokemon site comes out it really is a closed case.

If TotalPokemon fixes it's temporary focus issues I do feel it will edge out its total competition (aside from Serebii of course). And I say that not as a Webmaster of the actual site, but just as a bystander. I have been around awhile (Pokemon706, PokeRush (LOL), PokeWizards, etc.) and I have never seen in my career a site boom as fast and as well as TP. It really has turned out to become the successor of TP in my regards, which I find quite humbling. Yes, we aren't perfect and BGT and I (mostly myself) and be overly boastful which can carry across to outsiders as "cocky" or just downright "ignorance", but it truly is just pride in one's (being ours) work.

PokeJungle has actually earned my respect and admiration. However, I state that as the PokeJungle under the leadership of Paul. One cannot deny PJN's sudden decline to the biased and stupid daily posts of Brandon (The Hulk or w/e he wants to be called). He is so stuck in his views that by reading just one of his news updates, you automatically believe he is a Southern Baptist. There is nothing wrong with professing ones faith, but do it outside the Fandom News Area, I mean seriously.

Like today for example, he stated PokeJungle is officially going to recognize "Christmas" this year. Wow way to be singling only one holiday out, that being.... you guessed it HIS religion's holiday. I guess Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or really any other non-Christian holiday mean nothing to you Brandon.

As a Pokemon Fansite we are obligated to stay neutral out of all conflicts in the world, and also that means not supporting one faith over another. The Pokemon Fandom is a global phenomenon which is not limited to just Christian Fans. I guess PJN has forgotten this, which is horrible because they are going to lose a lot of good fans and users who potentially will leave the Fandom altogether out of disgust for being forgotten or singled out.

I am not sure how my blog on Ideas turned into this rant, but I am glad it did. I know of many a times' where I have discussed The Hulk's (Brandon) religiously motivated posts. Being a Christian myself, I am not personally attacking his love of God but there are times when professing it just isn't appropriate. Since as you may or may not know, not everyone believes in God!

Oh Zelda [Part 1]

2006-11-25T19:22:00.000-08:00

I have been busy playing Legend of Zelda: Twighlight Princess, well whenever I actually feel like playing or have enough time. I am about 10 hours' into the game, with just completing the second temple (oh gorons ;<) and I can safely say this is one big ass game.
Don't get me wrong the temples are fun and all, but personally I find the things leading UP to the temples are what I find most stressful.
I mean who wants to go searching for fucking insects for a vessel of light. All I know is that once I saw the areas for the ones needed to be obtained to bring back light to the Zora area, I was done for the night.

Anyways, I am going to get a Sonic Slushie (oh which flavor? I dunno one of like 100000 combinations). So anyways, expect a big editorial on what I feel is a underlying conspiracy happening on one of the larger Pokemon Forums!

Moving = Fun

2006-11-17T17:09:00.000-08:00

For anyone who was worried, or ironically glad this blog has been rather dead well I am back. I recently expierenced a interstate move, so I have been adjusting to the transferring. Luckily for me, I already knew a good majority of the people, due to my old school's program so there hasn't been any major loss. plus the ladies here are damn fine, but that's another story

Anyways, now lets first look into the Wii Genre. I am happy to say, I played the Nintendo Wii yesterday, and absolutely fell in love with it. I loved everything about it, except the fact that I played it on a LCD with composite cords. I will speak from expierence, the Wii looks absolutely horrible and I would reccomend not buying it UNLESS you get the seperately sold component cords. I also had the unfournate pleasure of playing Excite Truck, which don't get me wrong is "fun" however the controls are horribly oversensitive.

Moving onto the PS3, which I also had the pleasure of playing. It is was "meh" in my own opinion, I mean yeah the graphics looked rather amazing (though it was being optimized on my friends 32 inch plasma HDTV). However, I don't see it worthy of the 600 price tag due to the unforseen future of the Blu Ray format. NBA Live 07, is beautiful however the gameplay is totally lacking while wishing to myself I could pay it instead on the Nintendo Wii.
Just because I run a Pokemon Website, does not mean I am a Nintendo Fanboy however. From the graphics in Excite Truck, it looked more like Gamecube quality and nothing more. I would go far as to say, it didn't even look as visually good as some Xbox/Gamecube games. Though this is expected, seeing as usually the launch games for a system, barely tap into the power of the system.

Blaze's Best Bet:

Buy Now: Nintendo Wii, with over 60 games on the horizon there will be no other system that can even closely replicate its gameplay quality. I personally was worried about the name, and I will admit to being rather shocked at hearing regular people talk about the "Wii System" so normally. Usually, as has been the case years prior you would never mention the Nintendo Gamecube in the general public, as it was typically shamed upon for it's ugly color and design. Nintendo Wii's commericals have clearly done their projected job, and I expect to see Nintendo gobble up some newfound market share very soon.

Best To Wait: PlayStation 3, with only around 20 games all retailing at $59.99 along with the system pricetag of $500-$600 it is rather wise to wait on this one. Although the gaming addicts, impulsive buyers, and misled consumers may rush to get this system at this outrageous price, it would actually wiser to wait a year to pick this baby up.

Reasons Why:

PlayStation 3 will only have 20 Games, not excluding basically identical game types.
PlayStation 3 is not only at $600 because of its Cell Processor, but because of the built-in Blu Ray player. Waiting a year, in which more PlayStation 3's will be manufactored, will lead to a price cut.
Like the PSP, Sony will probably offer a rather lucrative deal during Christmas 2007 to regain their badly beaten market share.

However, the girlfriend is on the way over so I must leave. Expect a update to this Blog later tonight/this weekend

Changes Afoot

2006-11-06T18:14:00.000-08:00

I wanted to take the time to blog about what is about to be the largest new intake into the Pokemon Fandom since the release of Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire. Although Pokemon Diamond/Pearl have to yet to have a imminent release date, all signs are pointing towards February/March 2007.
We have only seen a small burst of new Pokemon Fans, when Diamond/Pearl was released in Japan. Now with the USA and Europe getting Diamond/Pearl next year, expect nothing less then thousands upon thousands of new fans. This is the transitional time period, in which old big sites usually phase out of existence while being replaced with new ones.

The sites that I have personally noticed to have begun to being phased out are PPN, PokeDream, SIVPH, among others. While that have caught be eye to replace these once large sites are the following: TotalPokemon, PokeJungle, and Smogon.

1. TotalPokemon - I cannot really anything without being impartial or biased towards it due to the fact of it being my site (along with BGT). In all seriousness, TotalPokemon is basically taking the place/role of PPN. Most of PPN's Episode Guides and other Anime/Media features were/are actually from TotalPokemon, we just had/have allowed PPN to use them.

What To Expect: ShinouDex, from the previews I have seen look very promising. We also have a few guides in the works, that could satisfy even the most questionable Pokemon Fan.

2. PokeJungle - This site really boomed out of nowhere, going from around 200 unique to about 2k-3k. This site has been labeled the "rival of TotalPokemon", though I personally feel that is impossible to compare us due to our niche's and overall style. PJN is likely to take on the role of SIVPH, due to its longevity plus it is a added bonus that they actually stay updated =]]]

What To Expect: Spinarak, which appears to be connecting all the member parties websites/projects. Hence PJN being "PokeJungle NETWORK", expect something focusing on integration. PJN's Webmaster, all appears to have been doing Videos of his battles throughout Diamond/Pearl, so I expect to see him compile a few pages of those videos in the near foreseen future.

3. Smogon - Comparing this site to PokeDream would be a insult, because of how amazingly different and well crafted Smogon is. Smogon in my opinion is a completely new type of Pokemon Fandom Website. Originally focusing on Netbattling, Smogon has grown to have own of the best PokeDex's on the internet.

What To Expect: With Diamond/Pearl being Wifi-Enabled, expect Smogon to be the place of choice for gamers who want to pick a team with a strategy. I expect this site to flourish in the coming weeks, along with TP and PJN.

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Sites' That Deserve Honorable Mention...

PokeZam: The new name for the once thought dead APCC. Alakazam once again returns to the Pokemon Fandom to unleash his once untouchable Pokemon Content. The only flaw with PokeZam is their News Updater Kater, due to his News Posts which I often find to offer no credit, horrible grammar/spelling, and his lack of making a news post that makes sense.

POL: Pokemon Online, the answer to the prayers of Pokemon Fandom Obsessive kids. The only problem is that it is a few years too late. Although I like the idea of POL, I feel with Diamond/Pearl coming out (being Wifi-Enable and all) it is just a waste of time. We will see though, when it finally gets launched I might end up being.... WRONG =[

Lunar Moon Changes The Oceans Tides

2006-11-05T07:45:00.000-08:00

Project: Lunar Moon, formally known as PST has gone through another change. Effectively immediately Puissance Pokemon was dismissed from the Network and Shinou Community Forums. Puissance Pokemon (PP) felt that the Network/Community Forums should revolve around themselves, and just to say it plainly PP was a pain in the ass.

We are considering removing the French sector completely or just finding a new Head for that area. Personally, I think we might just focus on being bilingual, and add Japanese or Chinese in the future. I now believe the French section was rushed, and we acted on impulse which lead to the unfournate picking of a asshole for the Community Admin title.

Lunar Moon (PS-TP) will still go forward, now with better integration since we don't need to have to make tough integrations with the French Sector. We also have plans to interlope some of our new sections that will be making a return shortly (PokeFeeds, PokeTalk, TBA).

So expect the unexpected, because remember the Moon controls the Oceans Tides... which are always changing.

Commenting On Controversary

2006-11-04T22:44:00.000-08:00

I hope this is taken the right way, and is not seen as a attack on PokeCommunity because it clearly is not. I am just voicing out my concerns about it's path, and I fully expect to have PC Users (notably the Upper Staff) comment on them. I think that the only way of fixing a problem is acknowledging it exists, and since PC Staff is keen on reading my blog then maybe I can use this as a medium to make some change for the better.

PokeCommunity is still a fun filled forum, as it was when I first joined more then 4 years ago. It like any other Forums has had its ups and downs, though more notably ups then the downs. It's growth has slowed down over the years, but it shows no sign of losing popularity. The major concern I have is something that is hotly contested and controversial among PCers which is Staff Ignorance.

Now I hope someone reading this, doesn't get all mad at seeing that term and go to make a flame comment before reading the rest of the article. To me PC's Staff Ignorance fits hand in hand with my own problem I can have at times, and that is dealing with being conseided. Upper Staff tend to look down upon the people below them, usually stating that only their Forum Class could understand them and usually take criticism as it were a personal attack on themselves. This is a serious problem, and I wish it was talked about and discussed instead of being shut down and dismissed like usual.

Secondly, I am one of those anti SPAM crap in forums. I personally despise all the "Non Pokemon Forums", especially the Daily Chit Chat sector. Now this by no means is killing off PC, it actually is probably in most regards keeping PC alive and help sustain its weaning growth. I just feel if someone wants to discuss personal issues, then do it @ a Myspace, LiveJournal, PM, Blog, or IM. It adds nothing to a Pokemon Forum but a fake increased number of posts, and slowly kills off the Pokemon Fandom Users at the forums.

Forum System is completely in shambles @ PokeCommunity. The whole original system is basically destroyed while rule changes and other Staff motivated changes have basically become the basic Constitution of how things are run. I am actually quite sad at this revelation, as PC was once the premier Community Forum but now that the process to CShip is so long and difficult people have moved/gone elsewhere.

Power System, is a major problem at PokeCommunity. The Upper Staff is majorally in favor of becoming equals to the Community Sites, which is understandable due to how much work they put into the system while a site just comes along and goes above them. The difference is, a Pokemon Site brings in new people while the Staff just moderates the new people. I truly believe that if Staff started bringing in people, then they could justify their longing to be equals but the chances of that happenning are slim to none. It is Human Instict to crave power, and if someone denies it then they are flat out lying to you. I just think Staff should become more lenient and understand Community Sites will help PC thrive, even if it means their power gets somewhat more limited.

Grudges, now I am going to write this as someone who has observed this in the past. Just for the record, I am writing from the perspective of watching others get subjected to this treatment. PokeCommunity Staff has a large problem with picking the right people to join their Staff. They tend to pick people they can get along with, for the sake of "teamwork" yet that means they turn down some of the best people. This system is so unrealisitic in the real world, because you are bound to work with people you don't like. If anything, this is going to hurt the people following this method in the long run, when they get a job in the real world and try to once again follow this system. You cannot discriminate against people, just because you don't like them. Personally I feel when selecting someone for a position, you need to keep personal feelings outside of this type of decisions.

Now I hope you do not see this as a attack on PokeCommunity, or people within the Community of it. I just felt that if they are such religious readers of my Blog, I could do some could by commenting on some of areas I think could work. Though I will state PokeCommunity has improved tremendously in the last few weeks, and hope it only gets better. To me Shinou is a traditional multilanguage Pokemon Forum, the only element Shinou shares with PokeCommunity is having Community Sites. I hope in the future we can cooperate on projects, I had promised to do with Kwesi in the past.

The Leaves Are Changing [TotalPokemon Promotional Blog]

2006-11-04T09:33:00.000-08:00

I love the fall, because this time of year usually brings forth new fandom changing projects. With the launch of TotalPokemon v3, we basically changed the look of the Fandom. Never before TP has there been a professional looking Pokemon Site. However, the problem with going this path is the loss of it's "Fansite" Appeal which I can see is clearly evident.

TotalPokemon is done by trial and error, and not to say that we are going back or downgrading our Website (since we are by no means abolishing v3), we are instead adapting to our surroundings. The Pokemon Fandom is a social network, which is always evolving and changing. It is up to us to adapt to these changes, when faced with such a monopoly like Serebii.net.

Content will not win the fight, and I know there will be many who disagree with me but it is clearly evident. The only way to win is become innovative, and continually change the Pokemon Fandom for the better.

TotalPokemon will be phasing out the whole version setup (no more v1, v2, v3, and or v4) instead we will be using Beta Codenames that fit into what we feel the project is about. For example, the long awaited PST Network is being dubbed Lunar Moon, while our new changes coming to TotalPokemon will be Solar Sun.

You may be wondering, while Lunar Moon and Solar Sun as they really have nothing to do with Pokemon at all. Well "Earth" (Pokemon Fandom) cannot survive without the necessities given to us by Lunar Moon (OCEAN TIDES) and Solar Sun (WARMTH/SUNLIGHT) among other things.

So with Diamond/Pearl fast approaching, be ready for change in the fandom. TotalPokemon is once again adapting due to the necessity of survival. However expect some Ditto's to copy our new approach.

Blaze is Back

2006-11-03T16:06:00.000-08:00

I apologize to any daily reader for the absense of new posts, but I have been rather sick. However, I have returned and have the determination to speak my mind even more, which will probably lead to more controversary.
Anyways, I want to first point out that Spinarak has missed its deadline which I found funny and yet again unsuprising. I expect it to be probably revolutionary or atleast somewhat special. Though I do expect it fail just because of the listed sites involved, since they are totally unrecognizable to the greater Pokemon Fandom. I also am somewhat curious, if Spinarak turns out to be what PST Network aims to do, which if the case would be a total copy of our idea which was posted beforehand.
TotalPokemon on the other hand is loading more slowly then PPN which is totally unacceptable and pathetic. Looking fancy or whatnot, that loading time reminds me the days of the fearful 56k. I am rather happy that the site has zoomed in on the Anime and what not, even though Koroku (JKaizer) stated Spinarak will rival it. I highly doubt it only because he said the same thing with PokePress, and it wasn't until I took PokeFeeds offline did he get even a 20% stake.

Anyways, I shall be blogging something later.

My View for October 31st, 2006

2006-10-31T16:42:00.000-08:00

There has been nothing but new Blogs continuing to pop up, all surrounding my lovely PERSONAL BLOG. I honestly don't see the whole obsession behind it, since I have never even publicized this place (other then to see the SIVPH grade) nor ever plan on it.
People assume I made this with the attention of throwing this "weight" around, to get people to believe my way. If that was true, I would have put on Moderated Comments or something inwhich I could limit and moderate the amount of views I get here @ TBL (The Blaze Life), yet I don't.

I personally would like to thank FandomObserver for acknowledging my views, though I still would have liked to have seen a apology from him (or her). I also am getting rather annoyed with new Bloggers coming in trying to gain popularity by flaming or attacking me in Blogs every chance they get. One person in particular, Crystal_Walrein has really disapointed me, with his AntiBlaze Blog filled with assumptions made by him. He also stated that BGT fabricated his statistics guest blog, yet he has not provided any evidence or anything to back up his claims.

Also, surrounding the whole "Spinarak" subject. I am fully aware what it is, and I have commented to a few people, BEFORE the FandomObserver's comment about what I theorize it is. The most notable clue was the "Our Network" image in the header, which at the time of writing has no link. Yet, the "Our Oekaki/Community" both include links to their respected areas.

Rather Humbling

2006-10-30T15:12:00.000-08:00

Earlier today, the man or woman behind FandomObserver.LiveJournal.com issued a new blog basically full out attacking me and my blog. The most humorous thing I get from reading it, is the simple fact that he is attacking my own personal blog. I mean it is one thing to attack my site or forum, but to go for a person's personal blog, is just rather pathetic.
Honestly, what is wrong with this person. Just because I have stated in previous posts my stance on issues, he calls me "biased" and on a "ego trip". So what if I own TotalPokemon.com along with BGT, it really isn't important to me. I do it for the love of the fandom, and if someone is going to state I cannot have a opinion just because I own one of the larger Pokemon Fansites is simply downright wrong and stupid.
Who is he/she to tell me my views are wrong. Last time I checked he isn't God, Yahweh, Jehovah, Allah, or any other denominational name of a higher presence. I think it is he (or she) who is on the ego trip.
I personally usually enjoy his (or her) blog, since he is painstakingly honest and usually indepedent of any favortism of any site. It is unfortunate, they had to blow their reputation as a voice of wisdom when they come down on a Personal Blog. My only wish or hope is that they will get back to posting what is important to the Pokemon Fans, which is helpful reviews of Pokemon Sites and or any other insight focusing on the Pokemon Fandom.

________

Oh my friend Razzy was kind enough to make me a banner for my personal blog. I hope you all enjoy it, and like the slogan XD

Guest Blogger

2006-10-29T19:02:00.000-08:00

This is something BGT wrote yesterday (Directed to PJN, following Private Messages Paul sent to him via Shinou). I know some will call it biased since we both run TotalPokemon, but honestly it is very true. Anyone who knows BGT can tell you that he straight up tells it how he sees it, even if it means alienating or going against his own friends (or Co Webmasters). He tends to not get involved in fights or drama in general with other people, but even BGT could not put up with PJN.

"

When a webmaster announces a new project, it generally spikes interest in the general fandom of people that visit the fansite. A new project might come to peoples minds; Spinarak. Now, some may ask, wtf is this. Others may wonder, wow, its going to be great, lets wait and see. To be simple and put it as this, I think its very ironic and concidental that out of anytime to do anything, Paul mysteriously selects to make a “revolutionary” project right when “we” announce the idea… what, 5 days before that. If he was going to do something, wouldn’t he do it before or way after our announcement, why within the same timeframe?

Paul constantly spams it everywhere he can; constantly bringing the thought to my head; is it this great or is it just propoganda. I mean, for one, you wouldn’t name such a great project such a lame name. I mean, Spinarak, you couldn’t have chosen a lamer name. Hell; Harley's Paradise probably would have worked better.

The people representing the project include PokemonEX, PKMN Sky, TPC, and PokeJungle. Now throughout my days, I’ve searched for webmasters to webby with or to merge with; and you know what; 95% of the lower fansites are jokes for webmasters, no dedication to their site at all, and thats partly why they fail. If no confidence exists in the webmaster, why in the **** would a fan want to visit. So it brings me back to the supposed staff of Spinarak.

We come to webmaster #1:

Matt of PokemonEx. Now, actually, I was expecting a ****ty layout, seriously, but when I visited today, I was actually somewhat impressed with the R/S art. Although some of the content could be reordered and redone. But when I take a look at topsites, which I do know Aardvark isn’t 100% reliable; but its good enough. The average traffic is 53 uniques per day. 53 uniques? So your telling me I get atleast 50x-100x more uniques. Hmm, what makes the difference between my site and his site. One word. DEDICATION.

Saul of PokemonSky. Another “low” fansite. Mediocre layout, Very General Content. I won’t say much about it; it brings in roughly 50 uniques on average.

The Pokemon Center. Probably the worst of them all. Using a layout I attempted to obtain myself for my n00bish site just like his 1 year ago; PokeGalaxy. And you know what, hes still using the same exact layout. Mediocre content for the most part, nothing unique. Why would someone want to visit your site when it has the same content as everyone else.

PokeJungle. The best out of the entire compliation of staff. The only site I would say that could possibely come up with something; but not to bash, but with the new Wii layout, I dunno. PokeJungle did manage to generate a decent amount of hits in the last few months, jumping roughly 250% in Alexa ranking. I know PJN pulls atleast 1,500-2,000 uniques, although I don’t know for sure since this new “Wii” layout debuted. Now, hes closest out of everyone to the so called “big boys” of the fansites, with PPN the low man on the totem pole.

So you may ask, what can three n00b sites, yes I said n00b, freakin jokes that pull roughly 50 uniques avg and one larger fansite that pulls 1,500-2,000 on avg actually do with this Spinarak project. Well, I will tell you. If anything even becomes of the so great spammish project, Paul would have done 95% of the work. And like i said, with his new Wii layout, I don’t see much promise in the project. I just see alot of dead promises and **** talking. But from what Paul says, we only have 5 days left to see.

Hey and guess what, I’ll make a prediction. 5 days from now, the project will be delayed. Just wait and see.

People seem to constantly want to push the fact that PC pulls in more than Shinou. I won’t dispute the fact that PC pulled in more posts and users during a specified time with Shinou. I’ll show you an argument from my side, valid.

Domain Registration dates

Pokecommunity: Creation date: 24 Sep 2002 11:46:30

Shinou: 2006-08-15 04:18:40

Age of Forum

PokeCommunity: 49 months

Shinou: 2.5 months

In mathmatical terms, PokeCommunity is 19.6 times older than Shinou. So in theory, PC should have 19.6 times more activity for the time that its been around. Now, lets look at a few figures submitted by some fellow fans. Someone decided to take figures within an undefined amount of time.

Registered Users:

Shinou: 2,060

PokeCommunity: 3,344

Margin: 61.6%

Difference: 39.4%

Posts

Shinou: 27,382

PokeCommunity: 49,477

Margin: 55.3%

Difference: 44.7%

Comments: So your telling me that a forum that has existed 1960% longer than Shinou can only manage to get 39.4% more user registrations and 44.7% more posts. The figures don’t add up people. But hey, lets even take a look at traffic.

Shinou Ranking: 143,361, 53,416, 30,121

PokeCommunity Ranking: 415,728, N/A, 210,716

The following data represents 3 month avg, daily ranking for (10/29) and weekly avg. The PC ranking was pulled from theud.com since pc.com redirects to theud.com anyways.

Difference: 289%, N/A, 699%

This past week Shinou has pulled in over 699% more traffic than PC. During the past three months, Shinou has pulled in 289% more traffic than PC. So if PC is that popular, why does Shinou manage to crush it in traffic. And if PC is so popular, why can a 4 yr old forum only manage to keep up with a 2 month year old forum and manage to only beat it by a 48% difference.

Argue with you want, Numbers don’t lie kids."

All I can is "wow", this is a blog nothing short of amazing. These are rock solid facts, which no one can dispute. Bravo to BGT for being brave for writing this feature, and even allowing myself to republish it on The Blaze Life.
If any of you fellow readers have a view on anything I have blogged about, or something I SHOULD blog about then feel free to leave me a comment or email me at webmaster@totalpokemon.com with your views. I will gladly post them, as long as they are not flat out rude towards my views or the views of others.

PokeJungle's Project "Spinarak" Nothing But Hype

2006-10-29T18:43:00.000-08:00

I love how PokeJungle is scrambling to keep its userbase, as their hits steadly decline. PJN's Webmaster, Paul, did nothing but brag for their insanely increase (largely due to his presence in Japan, which led people to sadly believe he would have #1 DP Content).
What do you know, he barely even has/got ANY. The only exclusive thing he obtained during the whole Diamond/Pearl Massive Game Updates, was some videos he took of him playing the game. Even the *pictures* he had on his site were from either Serebii or TotalPokemon, and to top it off he didn't even have our permission.
Anyways enough about that, I want to focus on his newest scheme to get hits. That is as you probably all know his big new "revolutionary idea"..... Spinarak.net

Now first let me tell you (in detail) what he has said about this project over the last couple of weeks.

1. Don't kill the Bugs
2. This is revolutionary
3. The domain is Spinarak
4. Just wait it is going to be amazing
5. Stupid Splash on Spinarak of quotes from random people, talking about bugs.
6. A hilarious comment stating that the "Top Webmasters" from TPC (what site is that rofl) PokemonEX (Matt, who is very lazy but must just be doing the layout), PokemonSky (a site that gets 50 hits, wii NUMBER UNO WEBBY), and JKaizer/Koroku (Someone is missing being in the spotlight rofl).

In the end, I am sure it will not live up to the hype. I myself, will probably regret even giving it publicity by talking about it or even blogging it. I just think it is funny, that Webmasters turn to extreme measures like this just to scramble up the few people they have left visiting their sites. I don't see why they are even working on a project, when they don't even seem to have the time to work on their own sites' content.

Oh and Paul, or anyone else involved in this project. I think I should inform you the name "Spinarak" is a Trademark owned by Nintendo/Pokemon. So don't expect any major suprise if they take the domain away from you.

PokeCommunity Laughter

2006-10-29T18:36:00.000-08:00

I thought I would make a quick (and humorous) jab at PokeCommunity's Server. While we were at this once amazing forum, we were in talks with Kwesi (the humble and quite rad owner of PC) to co-pay for a server for PC/TotalPokemon.com.
Approximently about Five Days after Kwesi paid for the Server in full, did we pull out of the agreement due to the arrogant PC Staff who did not like the idea of us having control. As anyone from the Old PC knows, the Staff have become more powerful and downright power crazy. They decided that they rather pay for the Server, then have us have anything to do with it.
Apparently they didn't keep their word, because about a few days ago PC once again has ads featured all over the forum. Not only that, but it appears the forum server is once again acting up, which leads me to believe Kwesi has either a.) Downgraded the Server or b.) Staff has neglected to cut back on extraneous image posting.
Whatever the case, this just helps Shinou (which just hit 2k, this past week) and will help us reach our goal of passing PC's memberlist within the next Six (6) Months.

My New Project

2006-10-23T20:11:00.000-07:00

I have finally decided to open a Gaming Site, which is causing me to get all impulsive and excited. I already have purchased a domain, and have begun work on setting it up and hope to release it within the next few weeks.

I am just genuinly nervous that I cannot replicate my Pokemon success into the Gaming Market. I mean I go from competitors such as Serebii, to the likes of IGN, Kotaku, and Joystiq. I just don't know if it is going to work out, which frightens me since I am usually overly confident about every project I get involved in.

However I shall march on and try to claim another market, while trying to distribute the popularity among TotalPokemon and Shinou aswell. Although in some totally unrelated news, Alexa Statistics stated that Shinou was the #1 Pokemon Forum on October 23, 2006, which is a amazing feet. Now if I could just get more people to post in the English section =p

When Good Webmasters Go Bad

2006-10-22T20:55:00.000-07:00

Blaze says (11:27 PM):
Your mad about the blog.
Blaze says (11:27 PM):
Dunno why
Blaze says (11:27 PM):
You know I have high regards for you.
mewthree w/armor says (11:27 PM):
Gave me a better reson to help PC now
mewthree w/armor says (11:27 PM):
or try
Blaze says (11:27 PM):
Lol
mewthree w/armor says (11:27 PM):
not sure it can be helped
Blaze says (11:27 PM):
So since your mad at me, your going to try to help PC lol
Blaze says (11:27 PM):
My blog was trying for you to do the opposite.
mewthree w/armor says (11:28 PM):
It had the wrong effect.
Blaze says (11:28 PM):
Well then I pity you.

This is another example of why Freedom of Speech is so precious. Mewthree w/armor, the webmaster of Seafoam Island (The Site I recently reviewed), has been expressing anger at his rather high grade.
For those of you who know or do not know, I am the one who got Seafoam Island (SIVPH) into power at PokeCommunity in the first place. He recently publically considered switching to Shinou Community Forums in what appears to have been a publicity stunt to make gains at PokeCommunity.
I honestly feel bad for him, who appears to going through some rough times because of the realization that his website is no longer at the top of the crops. This hasn't been the first time he has gone negative though. There are reports from the his former RPG Staff that he has been trying to limit their newfound gains, since they decided to leave SIVPH.

PST (Shinou) Network

2006-10-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

Shinou.com, the Trilingual Pokemon Community Forum of TotalPokemon.com (my site), Pokemon-Safari (Nil), and P-Pokemon.com (GNik) is launching something called the PST Network.

P ST (Shinou) Network which stands for (Pussiance Pokemon - Pokemon Safari - Total Pokemon) will become a premier partnership between different languages. This will allow us to freely exchange news, media, projects, and even staff.

I think loose partnerships like this is what the Pokemon Community should be doing. I don't want to sound biased just because my site is forming one, but it honestly makes a lot of sense. There is some idea going around (which I will discuss in detail in the next few days) which wants large and small sites to basically consolidate their sites and power into ONE mega site. Although no large sites would ever give into this, I want to quickly talk about why that is such a bad idea.

1. Power - Who is going to hold it and who will not? It is human instinct to crave for power, and how will this Community Hub distribute it in the first place. Zeo (PokeRealm Webmaster/Founder of this "Hub" idea) stated that each site going into this would have one representive.
So basically he is stating that Pokemon Palace Network (PPN) and a small site such as PokeX (My apologies but I am not really up to date with the small sites) would both have a equal vote. Now don't get me wrong, but I think Big and Small Websites have a different view point and views on how things should be run. What will be the incentives for any large site to give up power, when they are basically going to turn around and become staff for some few select people.

2. Ownership - This really goes hand in hand with power, but I feel it needs to be addressed. Who exactly would hold ownership over this "body" of Pokemon Sites/Webmasters. I see nothing but chaos unfolding with a huge proxy war for ownership. This is why a loose partnership is more ideal, where you can either accept or deny certain agreements.

3. Resources - Who will be paying for this, especially if this Hub relied on Google Adsense. Would the ad revenue be split up, or would it automatically be given to the "Hub Ownership" which I would see highly unfair. There is also the worry about people donating with the idea that they will be given something in return (i.e power).

___________________

Those are just a few choice concerns I decided to raise up today. Expect a more indepth look at this idea, along with numerous other types of partnerships in the coming days. Now here are just some of the benefits of a Premiership that PST will be creating.

1. Non-Binding - Most of the requirements of a premiership network that PST is based on, is usually nonbinding. This allows the Webmasters to have their own say and control over what they want their site to be a part or not a part of.

2. Ownership - In a premiership, there is no *one* exclusive owner. Infact there really isn't a owner at all. PST (Shinou Network) is made up of a body of three Pokemon Sites, which could be expanded in the future. With no central Website Hub (Other then the Forums) there will be no worrying over power control, as all Websites have a equal playing field. Not to mention IN the forums, all Webmasters have equal power.

3. Resources - With PST (Shinou) Network, the hassles of finding news, media, staff, or really anything one of the sites are lacking is now almost totally obsolete. Webmasters can now freely exchange these materials, without needing to ask for a formal consent everytime. Although, a PST Premiership allows a freely exchange of materials, all Webmasters are aware to observe Copyright Laws and to ask for permission when a Network Site has some exclusive material.

4. Exclusiveness - Unlike a "Community Hub", a premiership such as PST is relatively small. In order to keep things sane and enjoyable withing our Network, we choose not only some of the leading Pokemon Websites, but also ones that we can proudly state are our friends. Nothing is worse then having a community workplace with negativity. When you work with friends, you always get better results.

[POKEMON SITE REVIEW] Seafoam Islands

2006-10-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Site Name: Seafoam Island (SIVPH)
Creation Date: March 17, 2000,
Owner: Mewthree w/armor

Summary of Site: Seafoam Island is one of the oldest Pokemon sites' still around. With some of the best content from the ancient days of Pokemon (Red/Blue) era, it still appears to be a fan favorite.

My Opinion: Longevity is no excuse for the Webmaster to leave it unupdated. As a personal friend of Mewthreew/armor, I can tell you that he is on about every single day of the year. Yet he spends more time socializing in PokeCommunity (The Forum of SIVPH) then he does on the actual site. This has lead to a severe decline in hits, yet because of his longevity he still has a loyal fanbase following.

Blaze Ranks Seafoam Islands - 63 /100

The "Blaze" Life

2006-10-21T15:36:00.000-07:00

I have been portrayed as an "asshole" or even at times I have been descripted at the "devil", which is actually quite amusing but totally inaccurate. It is because of this, I have decided to create my own blog to put down my own views from Pokemon to Ancient Greek Gods (i.e Zeus).