At (and Beyond) the Beginning

And life is a road that I wanna keep going

Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road, now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there when the world stops turning

I'll be there when the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning with you

-- "At the Beginning", Richard Marx and Donna Lewis

This post is a bit overdue but still fits a bit, so I've got to get it out of the way. So last month, the big Pokémon anniversary happened, and that's a wonderful thing. That was the same case for the way Pokémon Go celebrated that anniversary by holding the Pokémon Go Tour event. It constitutes an elegant way to hold a throwback to the roots of Pokémon - the beginning, where it all started. Of beginnings, there is this song that also makes them out to be wonderful, literally, and I thought of this song as that happened.

The song is already taken as the feature song to a different kind of animation that can be considered to be worlds away from Pokémon. It is the pop song complement to the musical songs of the animation; it is also a lesser hit song for one of the artists, who is typically well-known for another hit pop song. As is typical with songs of this nature, there's a romantic message about it, perhaps as the start of great times for a person and their significant other for what will likely be quite some time to come.

That same message can be said to apply for a good number of Pokémon fans at this moment after the big anniversary, particularly those who have been with the franchise from the very start, and that of course includes myself. After a quarter-century, the sentiments don't seem to change even if a lot has changed and will continue to change. In a way, it also could encapsulate the feelings between a Trainer and any of their Pokémon, for whom there are many beginnings when the former catches the latter.

And certainly, the Pokémon Go Tour event only makes the sentiments more appropriate in many ways. Now, Pokémon has come very far from its beginnings, but there are or may be still more of them to speak of: new games down the pipeline, new potential fans, and new ways to enjoy this franchise. It is also very hard to deny about everything from where the franchise started, and that's a wonderful beginning to a wonderful journey... hopefully one that will never end, but will always begin somewhere for its fans.

One year ago: Pokémon Conferences?

Two years ago: Add Hope and Tears...

Three years ago: Cultivate or Gather Berries?

Four years ago: Pokémon and Music Games