Pokémon Adventures volume 39 review thread

[Eitarou]

It's out! I doubt anyone has read it, but I just need an excuse to post these pictures! All images (minus the cover) are from karubiimunomono.

Spoiler

Look closely - You can see Diamond behind Platinum.

Daisy is back! And she's joined by Bebe!

Caitlin has tentacle rape hair....fun.

Gasp! It's true! Paka and Uji really do have eyes!

So, in conclusion.

Daisy is back and is apparently friends with Bebe (who is just adorable).
Caitlin has psychic powers (I knew they closed this early so they could have this shown in volumes)
Paka and Uji are, in fact, in the Distortion World with an angry statue-hating Giratina.

 

[Joshawott]

I do have to say, Caitlin looks awesome xD

 

[Sapphire Cherry]

That cover is so cute! I'll have to wait until the english version comes out though.

EDIT: Caitlin looks really creepy in that 3rd picture

 

[Naya Rivera]

Woo, glad to see Bebe got some more screen time (I thought she was only going to get only a cameo from the last volume with Hayley.) Also, crazy Caitlin looks like something that would come out of Higurashi or the troll faces in Umineko

 

[Eitarou]

If there's ever a moment where I questioned the sanity of the creators of this series...it's right now.

Well, Dia and Pearl are out looking for legendary Pokemon (and Rotom) but they have guests! Dr. Footstep and the Sinnoh Pokemon Association Chairman (you know, the guy with the really curly hair, had an afro in Hoenn, this time he has ice-cream hair, it's like the Adventures version of Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny, and Don George).

Dr. Footstep is joining because Regigigas refuses to come out of its Poke Ball (I guess it's miffed because it didn't do that much in the battle against Dialga and Palkia) and Dia thought he'd be able to read its footprints to check its mood (although how he'll do that when Regigigas refuses to come out of the Poke Ball is beyond me).

The back cover has Darach, Caitlin, and Dahlia.

The Sinnoh Elite four appear and were the ones who gave Dia and Pearl (and guests) their mission.

Roark, Gardenia, Maylene, Wake, Fantina, and Candice are still out cold (dear god, it's been weeks! Wake up! What kind of Gym Leaders are you!?)

Platinum does meet Palmer but the scene where they leave for the Distortion World does NOT appear.

Next volume will involve a battle between the Sinnoh Legendaries (and Rotom? Probably not)

 

[Naya Rivera]

Hm, seems this volume so far is being a bit rushed? Many events seem to be occurring within the same time frame, making it a bit oddly handled. It's good to see we finally get to see the Sinnoh Elite Four. The Gym Leaders will probably be awoken if such an event with the legendaries does occur.

 

[Eitarou]

Well, all I know is that I'm excited for the next volume.

1. Because it's all original. The entire volume will have new content in it.

2. Because it promises a huge all out brawl between the legendary Pokemon! And Rotom and Phione..

Oh, and some pics. Courtesy of Serebii.net.

Spoiler

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311841778069.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311841856292.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311841900713.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311841953368.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842151802.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842183038.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842222114.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842248679.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842325611.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842358573.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842557399.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842665392.jpg

http://2cat.or.tl/~tedc21thc/new/src/1311842729952.jpg

And some from Coronis.

Spoiler

1) Aaron and his laptop
2) Wake's Music Player
3) Pearl touched that Wake has created him a theme song
4) The Chairman helping Dia and Pearl remember who he is
5) The problem with bowing with an ice-cream head
6) Lucian dumping the reference books on the Chairman
7) Dia asking why there are only 3 people in the Elite 4
8) Palmer, Argenta checking on the connection while Riley aura-senses
9) Darach, Riley and Thorton gathering to help Platinum at the Battle Tower
10) Platinum making Palmer blush by telling him he is a good father
11) Rotom joining Dia and Pearl

The two Dex-to-memo change scene between the magazine and volume
12) Pearl looking up on Rotom magazine volume
13) Rotom's formes magazine volume

And a clearer pic of the backcover

 

[Naya Rivera]

Wait, so the chairman was the statues this whole time? I'm pretty shocked it was found out this chapter.

 

[Silktree]

So the Platinum chapter is guaranteed to have at least eight more rounds, giving it a total of 22 rounds at the minimum. HGSS only had 10 magazine chapters, and yet we actually got to see its ending. I expect the volume release to be revised, but I certainly don't see how they can double the number of rounds without completely rewriting the story.

I don't understand why Kusaka had such little regard for a new Johto-centric story, especially one involving Arceus and a glimpse of another region (the Sinjoh Ruins).

 

[Joshawott]

I don't understand why Kusaka had such little regard for a new Johto-centric story, especially one involving Arceus and a glimpse of another region (the Sinjoh Ruins).

Made to rush it to begin work on the BW chapter, and only doing it out of tradition?

 

[Naya Rivera]

That's quite possible, as he was work on both Platinum and HGSS around the same time, if I remember correctly. If Platinum becomes the shortest arc, I'd think it would have some link with HGSS due to Arceus. Both regions are involved with the myths surrounding it.

 

[1dbad]

Woo, glad to see Bebe got some more screen time (I thought she was only going to get only a cameo from the last volume with Hayley.)

Really? While I knew that was a possibility I figured at least one of them (and figured it would be Bebe) would get more focus in Platinum.

Hm, seems this volume so far is being a bit rushed? Many events seem to be occurring within the same time frame, making it a bit oddly handled. It's good to see we finally get to see the Sinnoh Elite Four. The Gym Leaders will probably be awoken if such an event with the legendaries does occur.

Really? I don't think it seems that rushed. The only thing that seems rushed about Platinum to me is the Frontier battles, but that's because they aren't supposed to be the main focus of the arc anyway.

Wait, so the chairman was the statues this whole time? I'm pretty shocked it was found out this chapter.

I was surprised by that as well. xD Although it makes perfect sense. And yeah, I wasn't expecting it to be found out this chapter either.

So the Platinum chapter is guaranteed to have at least eight more rounds, giving it a total of 22 rounds at the minimum.

8? I thought volumes usually had 9-10 chapters each. And actually we'll probably get a bit more than that, since the arc most likely won't end next volume.

HGSS only had 10 magazine chapters, and yet we actually got to see its ending.

That's because it got rushed, and they probably skipped a few chapters so they could get to the ending quicker. (it needed an ending magazine-wise so the magazines could solely focus on BW)

I expect the volume release to be revised, but I certainly don't see how they can double the number of rounds without completely rewriting the story.

Aside from changes, I'm pretty sure some of the magazine chapters will get split into more than chapter and I think we'll get some new chapters as well.

I don't understand why Kusaka had such little regard for a new Johto-centric story, especially one involving Arceus and a glimpse of another region (the Sinjoh Ruins).

Actually he doesn't. Kusaka was very excited for the games and he said he absolutely loved them upon playing them, so I'm sure he felt just as excited about doing another Johto-centric arc. (in fact, I think he may have even said that, but I'm not 100% sure.) What it was the magazines just forced him to go through it quickly magazine-wise so he could start BW and so they wouldn't have to publish anymore HGSS chapters.

That's quite possible, as he was work on both Platinum and HGSS around the same time, if I remember correctly.

Actually he worked on the end of Diamond/Pearl and start of Platinum at the same time, until the magazines Platinum ran in got canceled and they stopped releasing DP via magzine. He did start working on magazine HGSS the very next month after the last DP and Platinum magazine chapters though.

If Platinum becomes the shortest arc, I'd think it would have some link with HGSS due to Arceus. Both regions are involved with the myths surrounding it.

I dunno, HGSS magazine-wise seemed pretty self-contained so I'm not quite sure about that. And Platinum so far is pretty much just a continuation of DP so I think it'll be more focused on completely finishing up the Sinnoh saga than trying to connect to HGSS. Then again we don't know what changes and additions will be made to either arc volume-wise though, so who knows.

 

[Naya Rivera]

Really? While I knew that was a possibility I figured at least one of them (and figured it would be Bebe) would get more focus in Platinum.

Iunno, I guess I'm just going off the past arcs.

Really? I don't think it seems that rushed. The only thing that seems rushed about Platinum to me is the Frontier battles, but that's because they aren't supposed to be the main focus of the arc anyway.

Yeah, everything that has happened so far is already led to a "legendary battle." I guess it's part of the fact this is DP continued in order to resolve everything. The battles seemed normal pased in my opinion.

I was surprised by that as well. xD Although it makes perfect sense. And yeah, I wasn't expecting it to be found out this chapter either.

I was expecting someone else to do it. Unless this is the Nurse Joy/Jenny of the Adventures series.

Actually he worked on the end of Diamond/Pearl and start of Platinum at the same time, until the magazines Platinum ran in got canceled and they stopped releasing DP via magzine. He did start working on magazine HGSS the very next month after the last DP and Platinum magazine chapters though.

Ah, I figured at some point he would have to be working on all these chapters in order to meet the deadlines.

I dunno, HGSS magazine-wise seemed pretty self-contained so I'm not quite sure about that. And Platinum so far is pretty much just a continuation of DP so I think it'll be more focused on completely finishing up the Sinnoh saga than trying to connect to HGSS. Then again we don't know what changes and additions will be made to either arc volume-wise though, so who knows.

Yeah, but Arceus is a Sinnoh legend but also connected with Sinjoh Ruins.

 

[Silktree]

8? I thought volumes usually had 9-10 chapters each. And actually we'll probably get a bit more than that, since the arc most likely won't end next volume.

I said eight at least. Considering that volume 39 has that number of rounds, and so does volume 37, it wouldn't be a surprise to have that number again.

That's because it got rushed, and they probably skipped a few chapters so they could get to the ending quicker. (it needed an ending magazine-wise so the magazines could solely focus on BW)

It was rushed, but there weren't any gaping plotholes that indicated a skip. The content just seemed terribly condensed and significantly under-utilized, which would be hard to fix without some serious rewriting.

Aside from changes, I'm pretty sure some of the magazine chapters will get split into more than chapter and I think we'll get some new chapters as well.

How many new rounds would that be? My gripe is that even with the additions the HGSS chapter is unlikely to have more than 14 rounds, which is what the Platinum chapter had just from the magazines. Also note that the FRLG and Emerald chapters were continued in the magazines several months into Generation IV.

Actually he doesn't. Kusaka was very excited for the games and he said he absolutely loved them upon playing them, so I'm sure he felt just as excited about doing another Johto-centric arc. (in fact, I think he may have even said that, but I'm not 100% sure.)

That's nice, but his efforts on the arc didn't reflect this. Also, he clearly had doubts about Gold and Silver being remade, judging from the way he left little room for development with Silver and Giovanni after FRLG. More to the point, he explicitly stated in 2006 that he wanted Gold and Silver to be ported via the Wii's Virtual Console (despite the fact it didn't support handheld games), in which case he probably wouldn't have bothered with a new story.

What it was the magazines just forced him to go through it quickly magazine-wise so he could start BW and so they wouldn't have to publish anymore HGSS chapters.

But why did he rush the ending? Why couldn't he have paced the arc properly and ended the magazine run on a cliffhanger, which is what he had done for Emerald and Platinum? How are readers supposed to look forward to the volumes when they already know what happens in the end?

 

[Eitarou]

I said eight at least. Considering that volume 39 has that number of rounds, and so does volume 37, it wouldn't be a surprise to have that number again.


It was rushed, but there weren't any gaping plotholes that indicated a skip. The content just seemed terribly condensed and significantly under-utilized, which would be hard to fix without some serious rewriting.


How many new rounds would that be? My gripe is that even with the additions the HGSS chapter is unlikely to have more than 14 rounds, which is what the Platinum chapter had just from the magazines. Also note that the FRLG and Emerald chapters were continued in the magazines several months into Generation IV.


That's nice, but his efforts on the arc didn't reflect this. Also, he clearly had doubts about Gold and Silver being remade, judging from the way he left little room for development with Silver and Giovanni after FRLG. More to the point, he explicitly stated in 2006 that he wanted Gold and Silver to be ported via the Wii's Virtual Console (despite the fact it didn't support handheld games), in which case he probably wouldn't have bothered with a new story.


But why did he rush the ending? Why couldn't he have paced the arc properly and ended the magazine run on a cliffhanger, which is what he had done for Emerald and Platinum? How are readers supposed to look forward to the volumes when they already know what happens in the end?

But, from what I remember the magazines had two endings.

One magazine had Togebo evolving, Gold using Togebo to calm down Arceus with a Double-Edge, and Gold and Togebo flying back home...

The other had Carr being in jail, Silver being blinded, blah blah blah Sinnoh Trio being destroyed, Executives being defeated, Arceus getting the plates back...

I'm not really sure how those will fit...

 

[Silktree]

But, from what I remember the magazines had two endings.

One magazine had Togebo evolving, Gold using Togebo to calm down Arceus with a Double-Edge, and Gold and Togebo flying back home...

The other had Carr being in jail, Silver being blinded, blah blah blah Sinnoh Trio being destroyed, Executives being defeated, Arceus getting the plates back...

I'm not really sure how those will fit...

Yes, I remember. But surely one of the two endings (the one that actually led to a somewhat acceptable climax) will be carried over to the volumes, or else, what was the point?

 

[1dbad]

Iunno, I guess I'm just going off the past arcs.

That makes sense. I just figured at least one of them (figured it'd be Bebe) would be used a bit more than a cameo since Brigette and Lanette were used a bit more than a cameo in the FireRed/LeafGreen arc.

Yeah, everything that has happened so far is already led to a "legendary battle." I guess it's part of the fact this is DP continued in order to resolve everything. The battles seemed normal pased in my opinion.

True. I can see how it seems a bit rushed, the more I think about it. The reason I don't really see it as that rushed though is because its basically the finale of the Sinnoh saga, and usually the end of an arc/saga will have a lot of big stuff going on. And really? I guess they're fairly normal; they just seem quicker in comparison to the Emerald Frontier Brain battles. (but then again that's not surprising, since the Hoenn Frontier seems a bit harder and Emerald was going for the Gold Symbols, unlike Platinum) I suppose I'll reserve my judgement for the volume.

I was expecting someone else to do it. Unless this is the Nurse Joy/Jenny of the Adventures series.

To be honest I hadn't really thought about it much, but yeah, I thought someone else was doing it as well. And apparently he is.

Ah, I figured at some point he would have to be working on all these chapters in order to meet the deadlines.

Normally he would've, it's just how the whole magazine situation worked out that he didn't. He very well could have been working on all of them though, just working on some volume-wise while he worked on others magazine-wise.

Yeah, but Arceus is a Sinnoh legend but also connected with Sinjoh Ruins.

Very true. And the Dialga and Palkia appeared as well. So it definitely is a possibility, I'm just not sure whether or not it'll happen. (I would love for it too though )

I said eight at least. Considering that volume 39 has that number of rounds, and so does volume 37, it wouldn't be a surprise to have that number again.

I know that. I was just saying I wouldn't be surprised if we had 9 or 10 either, since that amount of rounds seems to be even more common. But yeah, having 8 again wouldn't be too surprising either, but I don't think we will since they'll be trying to wrap up Platinum soon. (my guess is it'll end in volume 41)

It was rushed, but there weren't any gaping plotholes that indicated a skip. The content just seemed terribly condensed and significantly under-utilized, which would be hard to fix without some serious rewriting.

It's been a while since I read the HGSS summaries, so I may have been wrong about that then. But I'm still sure we'll get some new chapters regardless, and some of the chapters will probably be fleshed out more and turned into more than one chapter.

How many new rounds would that be?

I dunno actually, because it depends. But I'm sure we'll get enough to make it not too much longer or shorter than the FRLG arc, at the very least.

My gripe is that even with the additions the HGSS chapter is unlikely to have more than 14 rounds, which is what the Platinum chapter had just from the magazines.

Oh trust me, it'll definitely have more than that in volume form. There is no way they would make the arc that short.

Also note that the FRLG and Emerald chapters were continued in the magazines several months into Generation IV.

That's because the magazines didn't rush them into focusing the new games as quickly as they did with BW.

That's nice, but his efforts on the arc didn't reflect this.

I think you said wait on saying that until HGSS is finished volume-wise. While it's fine to form an opinion based on what we got magazine-wise I wouldn't form a full one until we actually get the full arc volume-wise.

Also, he clearly had doubts about Gold and Silver being remade, judging from the way he left little room for development with Silver and Giovanni after FRLG.

Not necessarily. Maybe he didn't want to do anymore development with them after that arc.

More to the point, he explicitly stated in 2006 that he wanted Gold and Silver to be ported via the Wii's Virtual Console (despite the fact it didn't support handheld games), in which case he probably wouldn't have bothered with a new story.

He probably wouldn't have, but not because he didn't want to (since I'm still pretty sure he said he did) but because that wouldn't be part of what he bases his story off of. He bases his story off of the main series of Pokemon handheld games.

But why did he rush the ending? Why couldn't he have paced the arc properly and ended the magazine run on a cliffhanger, which is what he had done for Emerald and Platinum? How are readers supposed to look forward to the volumes when they already know what happens in the end?

He rushed it because he had no choice, the magazine wanted him to get through the arc quickly and wanted it to have some sort of an ending so they could use that same magazine for BW but not have people wonder why HGSS stopped so suddenly. That's also why he couldn't pace the arc properly, because he didn't have time and they wanted to go an actual ending. You have to remember Emerald and Platinum didn't end on a cliffhanger in the magazines on purpose. The magazine Platinum was in was canceled because of low sales and I don't remember what happened with Emerald exactly, but something happened with it as well to where it wasn't released magazine-wise. And well readers are supposed to look forward to it because there will be changes and expansions in the volume, and while the ending won't be changed it will most likely be expanded upon, like how DP's ending was greatly expanded upon volume-wise.

Yes, I remember. But surely one of the two endings (the one that actually led to a somewhat acceptable climax) will be carried over to the volumes, or else, what was the point?

Most likely one of the two endings will be carried over, but it will most likely be greatly expanded upon and/or they'll make all the stuff leading up to it make an acceptable end. And there would be a point if we got an entirely different ending -- it wouldn't be expected and it would be a total surprise for the volume-readers.

 

[Eitarou]

You know, I've compiled a list.

Spoiler

Ok, out of the 14 Legendary Pokemon that will be gathered, five have been taken total. (Well, four because Palmer didn't bring out Cresselia in this volume). 3 are in the Distortion World, three haven't been seen since volume 37 and the remaining are unknown.

The volume 40 preview states that the next volume will be the climax and lists all of the Legends, minus Arceus, plus Rotom and Phione.

I'm wondering, that volume is going to have to have at least 10 chapters in order for it to fully mix...

Dialga and Palkia will most likely help once they arrive in the DW.
Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf will probably appear to help in the DW.
Marley will probably have something to do with Shaymin's appearance.

The thing that perplexes me is Manaphy and Phione? Where are they going to appear from?

In the Pokemon Ranger manga, Manaphy was sent to the Sinnoh Region in the final chapter.

If Adventures does take place in the same universe, then I can see Manaphy being sent to here. But, then where does Phione come in?

 

[Silktree]

I dunno actually, because it depends. But I'm sure we'll get enough to make it not too much longer or shorter than the FRLG arc, at the very least.

The FRLG chapter was 35 rounds long; just getting the HGSS chapter to 20 rounds would be a feat. I'm not complaining for the sake of complaining.

That's because the magazines didn't rush them into focusing the new games as quickly as they did with BW.

Personally, I think it's a little convenient to blame the magazines for anything that goes wrong.

He probably wouldn't have, but not because he didn't want to (since I'm still pretty sure he said he did) but because that wouldn't be part of what he bases his story off of. He bases his story off of the main series of Pokemon handheld games.

What I was getting at is that he could have planned the HGSS arc since 2006, but chances are that he had doubts about remakes even when the Emerald chapter ended in 2008.

He rushed it because he had no choice, the magazine wanted him to get through the arc quickly and wanted it to have some sort of an ending so they could use that same magazine for BW but not have people wonder why HGSS stopped so suddenly. That's also why he couldn't pace the arc properly, because he didn't have time and they wanted to go an actual ending.

But I don't see how that ending was any less sudden than a cliffhanger would have been. The difference is that the latter leaves a taste for more, and the former just warrants retcons.

The magazine Platinum was in was canceled because of low sales and I don't remember what happened with Emerald exactly, but something happened with it as well to where it wasn't released magazine-wise.

With Emerald, the Grade 4 magazine simply moved onto the DP chapter, but this happened in February 2007 rather than just after the games' release. There were a batch of Emerald rounds released in the Wonderland magazine afterwards, so we weren't supposed to just wait for the volumes.

 

[1dbad]

The FRLG chapter was 35 rounds long; just getting the HGSS chapter to 20 rounds would be a feat. I'm not complaining for the sake of complaining.

I know you're not, but I don't think we have too much to worry about since I highly doubt the HGSS arc would remain that short volume-wise. No arc has ever been that short, and I seriously doubt they would start now. I don't care how short the magazine version of it was, or how much of a feat it would be for them to make it longer, I'm pretty sure it'll happen. There's a lot that they could expand upon and flesh out to make the arc a semi-decent length, plus we don't know what changes they may make to the plot to make it a bit longer as well.

Personally, I think it's a little convenient to blame the magazines for anything that goes wrong.

Firstly, I'm not blaming the magazines for EVERYTHING that's ever gone wrong regarding Special, but I don't think it's wrong to blame them for some of the stuff. Because they actually are responsible for a lot of things, and if Kusaka and Yamamoto were just allowed to do things how they want, then I think there would be a lot less problems with Special overall.

What I was getting at is that he could have planned the HGSS arc since 2006, but chances are that he had doubts about remakes even when the Emerald chapter ended in 2008.

It's possible, but I dunno why he would doubt that since it was pretty much a given. As for working on the HGSS arc since then...well, he was too busy with all the other arcs he was working on to do that. Plus, while I don't know for sure when he starts working on new arcs, I think he usually waits until he has to start a new arc since he's busy enough with all the magazine releases and fixing up the volume versions.

But I don't see how that ending was any less sudden than a cliffhanger would have been. The difference is that the latter leaves a taste for more, and the former just warrants retcons.

That's true, but an ending gives the arc a bit more closure than a cliffhanger. Plus it makes it where it's not a case of "Why didn't they suddenly stop the arc magazine-wise to start on BW!???" which probably saves the magazines from a lot of people sending in letters asking why they stopped it for BW instead of running it alongside it. And that's true, but I don't see what the problem with magazine-to-volume retcons is. I consider the volumes (not the magazines) the true canon of the series, and I'd be more concerned about retcons between the arcs then retcons between the magazine and volume versions because of changes and improvements made.

With Emerald, the Grade 4 magazine simply moved onto the DP chapter, but this happened in February 2007 rather than just after the games' release. There were a batch of Emerald rounds released in the Wonderland magazine afterwards, so we weren't supposed to just wait for the volumes.

I read that volume 29 was volume-only content though, or at least most of it was. Either way though thanks for correcting me, I didn't know much of what happened with it to begin with and couldn't remember what little I did know. As for DP starting a few months after the games release...yeah, that's because the magazines never forced Kusaka and Yamamoto to start an arc so early before. BW was the first. Used to they gave them a good few months to start planning and preparing for the arc (I'm assuming?), while they also got to work more on getting the magazine chapters to either a better ending or a nice cliffhanger.