As The Pokeball Turns
Imagine a Pokemon interview podcast where every episode dives into personal stories of Pokemon Trainers like YOU.
From picking your first starter Pokemon, meeting lifelong friends, to epic Pokemon Battles, we explore the highs, lows, and unforgettable moments that make Pokemon a lifelong passion that drives us to become the best like no one ever was.
If you're ready for heartfelt moments, surprising insights, and the ultimate celebration of Pokemon, this Pokemon podcast is your next adventure!
More people. More stories. And more Pokemon!
As The Pokeball Turns
TRAINER'S EYE #125 - "Obstagoon's Alley Mates" ft. ThePokeNetwork
In this Pokemon interview, we are joined by ThePokeNetwork, leader of The Back Alley, and a Pokemon Twitch Streamer.
ThePokeNetwork starts his Pokemon journey in the Hoenn region where he fell infatuated by the mechanics of catching Pokemon and traveling through the region. His interest with Pokemon would continue through each generation until he found a connection with Dark-type Pokemon.
Dark-Type Pokemon are often misunderstood, which helped ThePokeNetwork related to them more, due to how his autism caused people around him to misunderstand him growing up. We give examples of different Dark-type Pokemon and how they were misperceived based on their actions in the Pokemon anime.
ThePokeNetwork gives insight into his content creation journey and mental health struggles. ThePokeNetwork building a group of supportive friends, found comfort and solace with some of his fellow creators. However, not all people were there for him during his dark times and ThePokeNetwork shares insight in how that has shaped his life moving forward.
Finally, ThePokeNetwork shares his motivation for starting the Poke NERDS Inc. Podcast where he interviews Twitch streamers about their experience with Pokemon. Sound familiar?
Sources
Opening Song: "Forget You" by Alex_MakeMusic from Pixabay
Connect with ThePokeNetwork: Linktree
Connect with David Hernandez: Linktree
E-mail Me: asthepokeballturnspodcast@gmail.com
Join Our Discord Community!
https://discord.gg/AqAbD7FbRt
I am the PokéNetwork, and this is my Pokémon story.
David Hernandez:Welcome to As the Pokeball Turns, where we interview people about their experience with Pokemon. My name is David Hernandez. Today, I'm joined by the PokeNetwork. A fellow Poki NERD here to tell us how great Alolan Persian is. Welcome to the podcast.
ThePokeNetwork:you just had to run that ballpark. Did you buddy?
David Hernandez:Of course, it's part of my show. Welcome to As the Pokéball Turns where I troll my guests sometimes.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, yeah, well, I'm also glad you emphasize the nerd like I like to
David Hernandez:The NERD! NERD! How could I not do it? That's like one of the key parts of what we're going to talk about later. I had to include it.
ThePokeNetwork:I mean after all it's a whole it's like a whole concept of my channel I mean after all I do have a podcast myself called pokey nerds Inc
David Hernandez:Well, what's unique about you is that you know, you do years live on Twitch and you know We're gonna dive into more the heavy part, but I kind of wanted to start, you know I'm one of the first Pokemon interview shows around and I know you came in a little afterwards What made you kind of want to dive into that kind of part of the Pokemon content sphere?
ThePokeNetwork:well, it's actually quite a funny story because, I was more of a entwined with, some of the variety content community before I was like really in depth with the Pokemon community. So I knew this guy on Twitch who did a podcast and I told him, Hey, when, if you, if you ever need a guest for the show, feel free to contact me. And so we did. And, I really loved doing the podcast experience. I've been on a few, a few other podcasts, aside from that. And I was like, You know what? There's a lot of Pokemon community members out there that I know but don't really know so I'm like I want to start my own podcast. So I asked around various people that I knew and see if they would be interested in doing this with me. So I jumped the gun. I made a discord. I got some graphics made and, almost two years later we're here. And I've interviewed, uh, almost, over 30 creators so far.
David Hernandez:That's amazing because it's kind of cool. You just like thought it was a good idea because you were a guest on and then you're like, I don't really know these other creators. Let's like kind of dive into their own kind of, I guess, experience with Pokemon because you'd kind of dive in on like what started with him. You know, what's their favorite shiny Pokemon? What's a Pokemon they hate, which I kind of actually love because you don't really hear that kind of question too often.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, yeah, I like to try to, like, learn as much about them, Pokemon wise, as I can, and also, like, about them, per se, because, like I said, I'm all about learning about the origin stories of the people that I know, and I'm just glad that I've been able to not only learn these stories, but also, you know, blessed with them taking time out of their lives to spend it with me so I can pick their brains.
David Hernandez:I think one of the best things I loved about your show is you actually spent the whole season honoring, I think his name is Turbo because I think he passed away, right? Yeah.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, TheTrueTurbo, he was the season one finale guest, And, that was actually the last time anyone ever saw him on a live streaming platform, Because after that, he got really sick, about a couple months later, he unfortunately passed away. So, I decided to dedicate my whole second season to him, And I had People wearing bow ties or putting a bow tie on a plushie to help help help honor him. That's why I also wear a bow tie for, every show that I have to honor my brother. And that's why I also at the end of every podcast, I always say, stay safe, stay rock and stay true to yourself because that was his outro. And I don't think he would mind at all if I honored him by, you know, doing that at the end of every show.
David Hernandez:What is it like to have a guest who, you know, after you interview them, they kind of pass away, was it kind of shocking and kind of weird
ThePokeNetwork:Um, It's it's a little bit of both because I mean I I knew turbo a little bit before I interviewed him But after I interviewed him, I knew I knew more about him But I also knew people connected to him that were like just as like devastated for his loss Like the idea that the last time somebody was on camera as a content creator was on my show it it Don't get me wrong. It did it did like mess You Not, I wouldn't say mess, like, it would, it definitely hurt me emotionally and psychologically, but at the same time, I knew that if, I just, tucked myself away that I wouldn't be honoring him the way I have been. And, Turbo had, like, the biggest heart of anyone that I ever met, heck, I mean, I deal a lot with my autism, but he had a lot of other issues aside from his physical impairments. But, the sheer fact that that man could not only do content creation, but also inspire hundreds of people around the world, I mean, it just, it just meant a lot that I had him on my show, it was definitely a big loss for the Pokémon community.
David Hernandez:Absolutely. And I think Nobody can really say like how difficult that would be to kind of go through that because I would struggle even myself trying to imagine like if I had a past guest go through that and I'm like, I don't know how to handle it. So Bravo for even taking consideration to do that for a season. it's easy just to say like, Oh, it just happened. But you actually gave him a full season dedication with all the bow ties. And it was very sweet to see for an entire season.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, some of the people that I had on season two were close to Turbo, so it just made the season a lot more special.
David Hernandez:Well, I want to ask you this so obviously, you know, Pokemon brought us together and you know We're gonna talk about the ways you kind of engage with the franchise now But where did your origin story start? When did you first start playing Pokemon?
ThePokeNetwork:let's see. I first started playing Pokemon games in, I believe 2006, 2007, because that was the era of, Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire. Sapphire was the very first Pokemon game that I ever played. I didn't actually start and finish it. It was just a pre loaded copy with everything done on it. So all I was doing was just knocking out, various things like, Seviper, Zangoose, and Nuzleaf, with, my buddy Swamper night. It was like, this is a really, this is a really cool game. I mean, this is a really cool franchise the very first Pokemon game that I started and completed was Pokemon Leaf Green. And, I remember using a Venus or the first time I played, and Venus Source is still my favorite, gen One star to this day. it really also got me thinking about, like, actually strategizing because, you know, I made the careless mistake of overleveling my starter and then I didn't train up an actual team. So, I learned how to play the game and, the rest is history. I've played pretty much, I've played pretty much every single Pokemon game there is in existence. I've even gone back and played the older games.
David Hernandez:Mm hmm. That's amazing. So even before Leaf, Green, and Fire Red, do you go back to play the ones that came on the Game Boy Color?
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, like, uh, um, some of my stream endeavors were actually, runs with, the very first Gen 1 mechanics of Pokemon. Like, I did a Charizard solo run, in Red. And, uh, it was
David Hernandez:I imagine
ThePokeNetwork:um, it was difficult in some ways, but, it was still a pretty doable run. the very first time I complete, started and completed Pokemon Red was actually on stream.
David Hernandez:Oh really, so the first time you ever beat the game, your audience to see you do it.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yep, exactly.
David Hernandez:That's awesome dude, that's crazy. I remember when I played, Pokemon Leaf Green, and I loved it, because for me, I was revisiting Kanto, but it felt kind of empty compared to like some of the remakes nowadays. But I always loved the Hoenn games though, those have always been one of my favorites.
ThePokeNetwork:I've always said I'm a Gen 3 baby, so, people will say, like, what Pokemon region you like to live in, and, I always, like, give them two answers. Uh, the first one would obviously be Hoenn, because it's my home region, it's where I first started playing Pokemon games. And the second would be Galar, because, of course, that's where Obstagoon resides, and the only region he resides as of this point. uh, uh,
David Hernandez:since, I mean, give us some time here.
ThePokeNetwork:uh, uh, uh,
David Hernandez:Because I haven't seen Galar, I haven't seen Opsigun so long.
ThePokeNetwork:I yeah, I mean, uh, I still, I still say to this day, I'm still pissed off that they didn't integrate, the Linoone line, whether it's Huinian or Galarian into the, teal mask or. Indigo Disc DLCs. I'm still pissed off about that.
David Hernandez:I think what's amazing, and we're going to dive into some of your favorite types. Originally, I think it was Darkrai was your favorite, but once you saw Obstagoon, I think that became your number one. Is that correct?
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, um, Obstagoon, uh, on looks alone, jumped into my top ten instantly because I just, I've never seen a Pokemon like this before. It looked so badass. I'm a really big fan of black and white, color schemes, and, this thing just looked menacing. and you know, the fact that it's a dark type, my favorite type, just made it all the more special to me. And then when I finally started using it in Sword and Shield, it pretty much became my second favorite Pokemon, toppling everything else. And, the reason why it's, became my favorite is because when I started doing Twitch streaming, I needed a Pokemon mascot. And I know for a moment at that Paters was using dark rice like a co mascot, so I didn't wanna feel like I was copying anyone. So that's why I chose Stego because no one else was using it. So I jumped on the gun and the rest is history.
David Hernandez:It's cool just to see how both Pokemon that you kind of got attracted to is basically how you build your channel. And you know, you have a very deep passion, not only for Dark type Pokemon, but especially for Obstagoon. It's kind of amazing to see.
ThePokeNetwork:I know I'm currently actually getting a full gon line tattoo on my right arm.
David Hernandez:Really? No way.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, the pinned photo on my Twitter page is actually, the progression of my tattoo.
David Hernandez:you said earlier, Dark type's your favorite type. what is it about the Dark Type that makes it your favorite, and when did it first happen, do you remember?
ThePokeNetwork:Well, I think it generated from, you know, Darkrai becoming my favorite Pokemon, and I think Dark types became more of a staple for me, like Gen 5 and beyond, because Gen 5 introduced some really good Dark types, you know, like Hydreigon, Crocodile, Bisharp, and, so. The reason why it started becoming my favorite is because, like, I'm not gonna sugarcoat shit. I've been through hell and back, as a kid and as a teenager. I guess, like, Dark Types just kind of spoke out to me because, like, Dark Types are always giving a bad rep. like as we both know, it's called the evil type in Japan. And, you know, that's why dark types are like, evil menacing creatures, but I just, I just, you know, become like, I feel like more at home with them. And I feel like I can, you know, kind of relate to them because I've had such a pretty dark past and, they are actually some of the strongest mods in the game, in my I can, be at home with them. That's pretty much all I can say about it. It's just, I feel at home with dark type Pokemon. And on top of that, I've used Dark type Pokemon on pretty much every team I've had, now that I think about it. I used Crocodile in Black 2 and White 2. I used Greninja and Pangaroo on my first run of X and Y. I had a Sheesh, what was that first team I had? Um Actually, did I have a Dark type on my first run through of the game? No. Oh, yeah, I used Incineroar. I was I was like thinking. I used Incineroar I used Incineroar Gen 7, and I used, obviously, I used Obstinator in Gen 8. I used Grimmsnarl in Gen 8, so just like, I've always wound up using a Dark type Pokemon on my team. It's pretty much since Gen 5.
David Hernandez:I know there's some Dark Types, specifically Absol's always been the prime example, to where people think that it's a sign of things, that it brings disaster But if you watch the anime, it actually is kind of foreboding, of a disaster coming. But people think that it brings the disaster with it. So it seems like it's almost a misunderstood type in a way.
ThePokeNetwork:Exactly. Because that's also how I feel because like I said, I'm on the autism spectrum. So I feel I felt a lot misunderstood by my fellow students, my fellow, you know, Human beings in general because I just felt so Misunderstood but it did you know, I took later in life for me to start to realize that these people yes They misunderstood me because I didn't understand what was going on in my head So people don't really understand what's going on behind the scenes as a dark type. So that's why I kind of relate to them in so many ways and shapes and forms. And plus, I can also agree that they do have strong hearts. I mean, after all, if you've seen the anime, you'll know that Houndoom just loved Misty's togepi.
David Hernandez:And Houndoom has the flames that would, you'd feel the burn forever, but it also has a soft spot, which I think kind of shows contrast of both what you perceive and what can be reality at times.
ThePokeNetwork:Exactly.
David Hernandez:I kind of want to focus on just Team Yell for a bit because the one thing that's unique about, not Team Yell, but the leader, he actually became the first Dark type Gym Leader within kind of Pokemon's franchise. Did you kind of feel some sense of pride that, yes, I finally have a Dark type Gym Leader after all this time, you know, after Karen and the guy from Gen 3?
ThePokeNetwork:I definitely felt some pride because, well, you're also left out, uh, Nanu, the Kahuna of Ula Ula
David Hernandez:I'm not gonna remember guy's name, man.
ThePokeNetwork:Well, I have to, well, I have to for certain reasons, but any But, yeah, um, I definitely felt, like, very, very, very, very happy that we finally got a Dark type gym leader. And, on top of that, Piers ace is Obstagoon, so that's why, like, he held a special place in my heart. Not just him, but also Marnie as well. Marnie's my favorite, not only my favorite Pokigirl, but she's also one of my favorite gym leaders because of the fact that she, it's a dark type gym leader and uh, Have you like have you seen that like that that that cut scene at the end game? post game where she's like in a hotel room and she like puts on a Like puts puts her fingers up to her lips and does like a real smile animation front her more pico I thought that was I thought that was the most like one of the most adorable things I have ever seen So that's another reason why marty has a little bit of a special place in my heart
David Hernandez:I actually always enjoyed Marnie as a character. She was very, I think, underrated in Sword and Shield. And, Grimsley actually. Grimsley, I loved Elite Four. He was the dark Elite Four, I think, in Innova. And I liked his style. He always had that very sentencing look, if that makes sense.
ThePokeNetwork:exactly. like, Piers looks like the definition of a dark type, trainer because he has dark circles for days, he has the long, super long ass hair, his whole ensemble is just, you know, black and white, grim looking, and he's also, like, I don't know if, like, being super skinny is, a depiction of being a, a dark type master, it is, then I guess it is. Is
David Hernandez:Anyway, I want to dive into, you know, you starting to stream on Twitch. I think you started back during the pandemic, right?
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, I actually started, June 17th, 2020. It was the, the day the Isle of Armor, DLC released.
David Hernandez:What made you want to start streaming on Twitch?
ThePokeNetwork:it comes down to, uh, years of watching YouTube and seeing all these various, uh, creators doing, like, randomizers and Nuzlocke challenges. And, uh, it's like, I could do these myself, but I want to share my experience with the world. Like, my world seems so small because there's Pokemon fans, uh, where I was living at the time. So I decided to branch out and, actually reach out to, a Pokemon YouTuber known as MJTV. I think you know him.
David Hernandez:Yes, I do.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, um, I actually,
David Hernandez:know him by name. Okay. Just
ThePokeNetwork:yes, yeah, I mean, yeah, yeah, I know, yeah, we know him by name. So I, I actually emailed him and asked him if there, if he, you know, give me some advice on starting up, a Twitch channel or whatnot. And, uh, I didn't know if he was going to respond or not, but to my surprise, he actually did.
David Hernandez:That must've been very humbling. Like, Oh my gosh, he actually responds.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah. Yeah, like I, yeah, it was, it was very humble of him and, uh, yeah, he just gave me some advice but this was in 2019 and I didn't have enough money to save up for, a starter PC. So basically what I did was I, pretty much, Put my entire stimulus into my startup PC and, I had no idea what I was doing at the beginning. I hadn't, I had no idea like I was, I was streaming off the Elgato software, not OBS. I didn't know how to integrate on social media. It was just like, I was doing something, but at the same time I wasn't growing because I just didn't know what to do. wasn't until my friend, uh, John, uh, aka PowerPunchPlays, uh, rated me for the first time, where he kinda like opened up my eyes to the world of Twitch, and that's where I, started, you know, actually started progressing as a creator and, a person in general, because, it took me about six months to finally get affiliated. And when I did, it just all, it just snowballed from there. I started doing a lot more randomizers and challenge runs. I just started doing a lot more types of shiny hunting. I started doing community, shiny hunting events, world record attempts. that's just pretty much how it's, got to that point.
David Hernandez:So, you know, initially you sent the email out to Mandy, to see what he would say in regards to, you know, starting the content creation journey. Do you think you would have kept going with Twitch or even think about trying it, had he responded?
ThePokeNetwork:Yes, and no because like I said, it was always something I wanted to do, but I just didn't know where to begin. If he didn't respond, I probably would have just dove into The Google verse and then just started looking up about tutorials and how to get started and whatnot Like I didn't know how to do anything for my startup PC. I had to rely on my brother in law and my sister for that. So
David Hernandez:Shout out to them. Yeah.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah. You know what's cool about them? I actually had them on stream a couple of times.
David Hernandez:Oh, really?
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, I did a 24 hour when I got to a thousand followers and they were sitting with me when I was playing XD Gale of Darkness and and of course, and of course, my sister told embarrassing stories and I had to mute them out because I didn't want my dirty laundry to be spread all over Twitch like that.
David Hernandez:But you're the dark type trainer. Isn't dirty laundry supposed to be, like, your M. O.?
ThePokeNetwork:There are just some things in my past that are just so embarrassing, I don't even want to explain them on this show.
David Hernandez:about this joke? You want to slay them here? I don't mind going to dirty laundry.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, uh, yeah, not today, not today, not today.
David Hernandez:It's like you brought the family with you. I mean, besides the whole embarrassing stories, of course, you it must have been kind of, it kind of came full circle in a way.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, it definitely did. So, you know, and sometimes they, uh, came in to crash my stream, especially one time when I was, playing my, alter ego, dark king persona. And I had full blown face paint on they came in and I was all decked out in costume and face paint. They're like, what are you doing?
David Hernandez:It's like, is it Halloween or something, or?
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah. Yeah. It was like, was so random.
David Hernandez:I think you go through every single region, and that's when you go and beat every game with dark types, right?
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yes, indeed. Uh, his name's the Dark King Zao.
David Hernandez:Mmm, okay. How'd you come up with him? Was it just something that came out of the head, or have you been working on him?
ThePokeNetwork:it's kind of a mixture of spur of the moment and, uh, Let me further explain. Uh, you see, after I did my first ever dark lock and sword, um, I decided to do it again in Ultra Moon, but this time I decided to just, put a little gimmick behind it and I got a, cape. And a crown and I just said, the dark king is coming back to conquer the next region because I called myself the dark king of Galar. So now I wanted to proclaim myself the dark king of the Pokemon world. So I just, you know, bought, bought a crown and the cape and just started, you know, acting like a king when I was on stream. the Zeo part didn't come into play until later on, like halfway through that lock, when I decided to actually give my alter ego a name and Zeo is actually a name of, a character That I wrote in Avatar last Airbender Fanfic.
David Hernandez:Mm hmm. Wow. Okay, so you really went deep to dream bring him back, huh?
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah. So, um, I decided to give him the name and then, uh, I decided to speak in this deep, somewhat British, deep s Scottish accent to differentiate myself from the character. You know,
David Hernandez:but that's only the chain looks I got a chance to see some of your streams when you do that and you get so into character and you started out Saying that we're gonna go and conquer this region and expand our kingdom, you know I'm not doing you justice, but that's just like stuff like that was always entertaining to see
ThePokeNetwork:I actually, so far I have successfully done, uh, dark lock in Galler, a Lola. Kalos, Unova, and Sinnoh.
David Hernandez:so you thought you've gotten Almost over half, you know, you've gotten over half. You're just missing a couple.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, yeah, I was actually doing my Darklock in Omega Ruby before I took a hiatus. I still have yet to return to said lock. So, one day soon, someday soon, the Dark King Zael will come back and he'll complete that run. And, I'll finally be able to proclaim myself as the Dark King of the Hoenn region.
David Hernandez:There you go now you gotta do the dark king of kanto
ThePokeNetwork:Ah confusing because you first, like that one's gonna be the final lock, cause, the plan is to conquer Johto and Kanto in one game, and we both know there's a game that has both of them, HeartGoldSoulSilver. So, so, basically, I have a plans to do it in SoulSilver, so that's gonna be a, two in one whopper because I'm gonna, Defeat the Johto region, get all the Kanto badges, and then defeat Red, and then as soon as I defeat Red I can proclaim myself the Dark King of the Pokemon World. I Have a friend who is the fairy king and I don't think there's a damn soul that can conquer him
David Hernandez:Okay, bug king. I don't know, that's all I got.
ThePokeNetwork:You're killing me here
David Hernandez:Yeah, I think that's all I mean, uh, the fighting Nah, the fighting king's kinda overrated. call you the bug master.
ThePokeNetwork:I don't know there's only a few bug pokemon I can stand
David Hernandez:you know, since we're on the topic of Nuzlocke, you know, sometimes you do that on Twitch, and sometimes you do that in private. Like, what is it about Nuzlocke that you enjoy?
ThePokeNetwork:Well, I've always been good with challenging myself. I like to challenge myself and, those locks are like one of the easiest things you can do in terms of like, you know, trying to make a game that you've either not played before or have played before. Just a lot more, of a fun experience. So, Like, in terms of like, Nuzlocke's on stream, I started with a Shield Surprise Locke, which is, you know, the new term for a Wunderlocke, because I don't know why they changed Wunderlocke to Surprise, like, Yeah,
David Hernandez:Wonder Trade sounded so much better. But anyway, continue.
ThePokeNetwork:so I started with that, it wasn't my first ever Nuzlocke, because I did a few Nuzlocke's off screen before, But my first one on screen was that, and I had a lot of fun doing it, I gained newfound respect for some Pokemon, like I gained a newfound appreciation for, you know, Excadrill, Leafeon, even Primarina, and I didn't, I didn't even like Primarina at the time.
David Hernandez:Ooh, you're tapping into your furry side.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, I mean, there's only a few fairy Pokemon I can actually, you know, stand and like, but, Primarina's still off that list.
David Hernandez:Still off the list. it saved your butt, it's still off the list.
ThePokeNetwork:yeah, pretty much, but yeah, yeah, just like that. Um, it always like gives you like a newfound respect for Pokemon you think you'd never use. Like for like biggest example I got is that, I did a electric only Nuzlocke in Pokemon shield and I used a lantern on my team and I nicknamed her Sushi and I gained a newfound respect for that powerhouse because she had such a versatile moveset, it was like, man, I mean, come on, Dazzling Gleam, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Scald, I mean, dang, this thing is the perfect powerhouse right here, like, like, if, if, if Lantern's stats were a little bit better outside of its HP, it'd be a lot more used, in my opinion.
David Hernandez:It would be. I love that water electric typing. I fell in love with it in Johto and I'm like, I love ice beam surf. And I think Thunderbolt was always my move set until it got rain dance. And of course I upgraded, but I've always loved the typing and the potential. It just, unfortunately the stats are very mediocre.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, I know, exactly, but yeah, like I said, it gives you new, a new perspective and newfound appreciation for Pokemon you thought you'd never use.
David Hernandez:I know we just touched on Nuzlocke, but you also do shiny hunting Do you have a preference on which one you prefer over other?
ThePokeNetwork:kind of like half and half because I always station myself as a variety Pokemon streamer. So I stream pretty much anything Pokemon related. But I do focus primarily on Shiny Humping and Nuzlocke. So it's kind of like a half and half batch because there's a lot of Pokemon. There are hunts that, uh, you're dedicated to that you just don't want to, you know, stop in the middle of it and then move on to something else. But then, you start getting dedicated to a muzzle lock project that you don't want to stop. So, you just, you know, wind up kind of putting shiny hunting on the backboard. So, I like how I can, like, try to blend the two, in sync as much as possible so that way I'm not doing one over the other. But sometimes I do things where I do, like, community events where I'm shiny hunting, So, I try to make it as even as humanly possible. And, uh, when it comes to my interests. Cause I love them both equally. So I try to like, you know, just, even it out.
David Hernandez:when it comes to Shiny hunting, you know, Game Freak's very good about picking shiny Pokemon in the colors, right? You know, they do such a good job with all of them. But if there's happened to be like one Pokemon that you could change the shiny form, which one would it be?
ThePokeNetwork:Easy answer. The whole Charcadet, Armourous, and Saru Ledge line. The whole line.
David Hernandez:yes, oh my gosh.
ThePokeNetwork:I say this every single time I do a podcast. All they had to do was make Char Kedet a burnt out charcoal gray color and then swap the color schemes of Armourers and Cerulidge, and they would have been some of the best damn shinies in the game. But new Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You don't get any good shinies.
David Hernandez:Nope, it's gotta just be the eyes, but nobody's gonna really pay attention. It's just for some reason just the eyes are different, but everything else is the same.
ThePokeNetwork:I say this before. I mean, you've seen me on stream before. I wear sunglasses on stream as a gimmick. So people see me without my sunglasses are like, oh my God, this is a rare form of Spencer and it is.
David Hernandez:Well, I just figured the glasses were they power up your dark type moves early.
ThePokeNetwork:Well, I guess they kind of do, but they kind of do, but yeah, but yeah, like kind of off topic. But yeah, the sunglasses are purely gimmick. Um, my, I wear regular prescription lenses that have severe monitor glare. So people can't see my eyes normally. So why not just, you know, make myself look cool? Yeah.
David Hernandez:Yeah, that one and Mal's Hold were the two that bugged me from that generation. There's others, of course, but Mal's Hold, I've always said, if they just made it brown for the color. That's all they had to do. It would have been a brown mouse. It would have been perfect, but no. It's just a different shade of white, and it bugs the hell out of me. But especially for Set Religion, the other one. That, that's just ridiculous.
ThePokeNetwork:I also say this, like whatever, like They don't PK Hex shinies anymore. They, you know, they design them. So whoever designed the shinies just does not deserve to, be in the company anymore because they're so bad.
David Hernandez:Right, that's the worst part, like I would be understanding if it was like before, I think, what was it? Pokemon Sun and Moon was the last time, the first time they ever started designing their own shiny Pokemon? I would understand maybe if it was before, but no, this is after. They can design whatever they want, and they chose white on white, I don't get it. And same with the ones you talked about, they just changed the eyes. There's no reason outside of, I don't know, just trolling us, I guess?
ThePokeNetwork:yeah, I mean, they, they, they've really dropped the ball with certain, like good shinies between sun and moon and, and Scarlet and Violet. But I will say they have done decent compensation with some Pokemon, I won't, I won't say they've completely trashed us. They have given us some good Pokemon like vi vault, uh, grapple, locked ops, Sagoon, grim snar. I'll just name a few.
David Hernandez:Now, speaking of shiny Pokemon, you had a shiny hunt on your second favorite Pokemon, Darkrai.
ThePokeNetwork:Actually, it's my third now.
David Hernandez:Oh, it's gotten downgraded even more, my gosh.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah. Uh, Greninja.
David Hernandez:Really?
ThePokeNetwork:yeah, it is become my favorite, not because it's a dark type, it's because of its versatility and also its ability. And, uh, you know, my history with it, it's become my favorite starter of all time.
David Hernandez:Oh, okay. Ripped Darkrai. But what was it like to kind of shiny hunt and finally get Darkrai then?
ThePokeNetwork:Like, I'm, I'm gonna take you all the way back to April 2022 when I first started this hunt. So, I started this hunt literally 2, 3 o'clock in the morning at the end of my 24 hour stream. And, when I started this hunt, I had no conceivable idea how long I would have spent just going after that purple nightmare. so, Yeah, pun intended. That's literally, that's the nickname I give it, the Purple Nightmare. after like the first few months, uh, I was like, okay, okay, this is getting a little bit long. And then all of a sudden we go at the end of the year and I'm like, oh my god, I'm starting hunting this thing into the new year. And I was. I was shining out into the new year and I was like, okay, so I knew at the time my community was also kind of getting bored seeing the darkrai hunt, so what I did was I got a second capture card and I started doing double hunting, so that way, you know, we could actually get shinies on screen in case this darkrai never shows up and I don't know the exact number, but I have gotten at least, at least Over two dozen shinies on the other side before I found Darkrai, INCLUDING a shiny Regieleki.
David Hernandez:Wow, he was dedicated for this shiny darkrai.
ThePokeNetwork:Yes, um, I was too far gone. Once I hit 10k, I was too far gone. And once I surpassed one other content creator I knew that got his Darkrai at, 10, 522. I knew I had to please him no matter what. And then I entered the infamous 20k encounter club for Darkrai, and I'm like, oh my god, this can't get any worse. But, Like, uh, less than two weeks later, two weeks later, I was shiny hunting Drillbur and Darkrai at the same time, I got a shiny Drillbur in 82 eggs, and literally, the next reset for Darkrai Finally, after one year, nine months, three weeks, one day, 20, 118 resets, that frickin purple nightmare finally decided to pop up on my screen.
David Hernandez:And your reaction deserved it. Like it felt like, you know, you won the lottery that you couldn't believe what had happened. You were wondering if you were dreaming, like it was such an ecstatic reaction to finally getting a Pokemon like that.
ThePokeNetwork:Like, I won't say that my reaction was better than Reversal's Feebas, because we all know how badly that was going on for him. But I will say that I, fully believe. I screamed louder than he did.
David Hernandez:And you know, here's the guys the more depressing part, you know in another world The poking network is still shiny hunting darkrai
ThePokeNetwork:Oh God. Yeah. The mult,
David Hernandez:gosh
ThePokeNetwork:or, or there's a multiverse where he's not hunting it at all.
David Hernandez:What would he be doing then? Just he probably like me with the feedback, huh? Mm
ThePokeNetwork:Like, I don't know what I would have done if I wasn't doing Darkrai. I mean, that's one of the reasons, that's one of the things I'm known for now is my shiny Darkrai. I'm known for a few things now Twitch. I'm like the Obstacoon guy, I'm the guy that took nearly two years to find shiny Darkrai. I'm the Mr. Celebi finding two shiny Celebi within the span of like three days. And I'm also, please be female guy on on TikTok.
David Hernandez:What the heck? What's the what to please me female guy?
ThePokeNetwork:Please be female.
David Hernandez:Oh, please be female! Okay, what's the story behind that?
ThePokeNetwork:Basically, what's going on is that I'm shiny hunting a Snow Runt in Radar and I finally got a shiny patch and whatever brain cell clicked in my brain, I kept yelling, please be female, please be female, please be female. And when it did, I got a decent reaction and then I blew up on TikTok. uh,
David Hernandez:what are some of your favorite shiny dark types?
ThePokeNetwork:Well, obviously I gotta go with, the Bacon Bird, Yveltal. That's a good one. My fa my favorite one of all time is shiny Greninja. That's my favorite shiny of all time. Let's see, we have shiny Grimmsnarl, that's a good one. I know people like to call shiny Galarian Lyneum Toothpaste, but, I call shiny Obstagoon the red, white, and blue demon.
David Hernandez:Okay, uh, I call him Colgate.
ThePokeNetwork:Tch, yeah, Colgate. Well, Toothpaste, Colgate, whatever one, floats the boat. so yeah, we also have crooked aisle. He has a good one. B Sharp. Uh, his whole line has a amazing blue, shiny I love I, I love, I love blue shinies. Love blue Shinies. let's see, uh, spirit Tomb Shiny is also s here.
David Hernandez:You got that blue, I think it's blue and pink, right? Yeah.
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, blue, pinkish, magenta, something like that. Umbreon obviously has, uh, my, that's my favorite, uh, shiny evolution. I actually have a shiny ryon plushy in my nerve cabinet.
David Hernandez:One thing I would ask, so, you know, you said you started streaming on Twitch. You know, you get some traction going. we talked earlier how, you felt misunderstood because you do have autism. Did you feel like, you know, having autism kind of put you at a disadvantage in any way? Or,
ThePokeNetwork:Um, no, not,
David Hernandez:Mm
ThePokeNetwork:I mean, people always put tags in their thing and, I've always been open that I'm autistic and no one seemed to, you know, judge me or whatnot because I've met, some of the most amazing people in my life that are actually the same as me. one of my dear friends on Twitch is actually on the autism spectrum like I am.
David Hernandez:That's awesome. So y'all both connected that way, or just, it was through Pokemon and then y'all found out together? Mm
ThePokeNetwork:you know, we first connected through Pokemon, but then we later found out that, uh, you know, that she actually is on the autism spectrum. And then, I just felt more connected to her as a person because everyone on the autism spectrum is different. so we're all technically different, but at the same time, it's nice to, you know, meet somebody that I can level with. But, in terms of like, putting me at a disadvantage as a content creator, um, I don't think it does, but I think it does give me a strength because I could probably sit here for hours and sit here in silence and just listen to music and, jam about my day and people will just, you know, like to watch me for that. Or I could just babble on for absolutely no damn reason. People either get hysterical about it or they talk along with me or they just find what I'm talking about, inspiring because that's what I try to do. Like, I try to get the conversation going cause I love the talk. I love the talk, obviously. That's why I made a podcast and why I'm talking to you with you today.
David Hernandez:Hey! Podcast on podcast action.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, pockets on pockets asking. So yeah, I love to talk and I just love to talk to people and, you know, hear their stories, you know, how their day's going or some life stuff that's going on or whatnot. Cause I also like to be an advocate for mental health because you know, I like to, you know, say to people, Hey, if you ever have any problems, you know, you can reach out to me. I'm not going to ignore your DMS. I'm not going to ghost you. I just want to be there as a emotional shoulder for you to lean on. If you ever need one.
David Hernandez:Yeah, and the reason why I brought it up is because, for me, I'm fairly new into the autistic side. I've been more on the mental health side with people with depression, anxiety, and you know, the mental health in general is just such a different world unless you've, been in it like long enough like we have or, you know, you have mental health. concerns and, you know, it's kind of inspiring to see somebody who is on the spectrum, be able to become a streamer. Cause some people they may get turned down, like, Oh, you can't be a Twitch streamer, you can't do content creation, but here you are, you know, you stream to people, you get into character, you're very entertaining and you know, it's got to have a sense of like, you kind of are a very good role model for people who are, maybe you're looking to be content creators.
ThePokeNetwork:It just boggles my mind how people can take inspiration with what I'm doing on Twitch and I'm no stranger to mental health battles. I mean, this has probably been one of the worst years of my life, to be brutally honest, because, I lost one of my cats, and, uh, I had him for about 12 years, and it sent me down a spiral that I was actually already on, but I didn't actually finally go on that steep decline until I lost him, and then, I stopped streaming for a little bit, and uh, when I wanted to come back, that's when I lost, my other cat, and I had him for fifteen and a half years, literally since the second he was born, and that destroyed That, that, that destroyed my, that destroyed my heart, that destroyed my mind. I just felt I had nothing left. it took a lot for me to go and get help when I finally did. when I finally did get help, I started healing. And when I started healing, I decided to, you know, give streaming a chance to come back to. So I decided, for a little while, I decided to stream on the weekends and dip my toes back in the water. And I gotta give major credit to, uh, shine patrol. Because, it was his, full on showdown event is what got me back into streaming. So I have a huge gratitude for him to have not only, you know, welcome me to partake in the event, but also to actually be able to start streaming again. I have to thank, my very dear friends that I have met, through the platform that, uh, stuck with me in my darkest hour, because, if it wasn't for them, I don't know where I would be. They know who they are and, they know how much, they, they mean to me.
David Hernandez:It's great because you know, you got to meet them through Pokemon, through streaming. But, that's what friends are for because Sometimes you do have those days or years, especially, you know, losing a pet. Like I have two dogs and I call them my world because they kind of are, you know, for those who don't know, my dad's gone. My mom's not in my life. So it really is just me out here. So for them, they're kind of something I look to, kind of cheer me up and I like to mess with them in their own way. And, you know, they're kind of almost become my own children without me actually having kids
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, exactly.
David Hernandez:I can't imagine, you know, what you had to go through losing one you basically had since birth And then just had to pull yourself back out and have to rely on people and it's tough because a lot of people can't handle that Intense pressure when it does happen
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, and, I learned very quickly, like, who those people were in my life, cause they quickly left my life when they, like, I had some, I had some really good friends, that I met through the platform that I lost after my mind went to crap, they have yet to resurface since I finally got back into a better state of mental health, and, everything just showed me like who my true friends are and that my community is very dear to me they love and respect me enough to be there for me. even though that I didn't ask for it. So I'm uh, I'm just glad that I'm been able to come back home to them.
David Hernandez:you hear that pokey nerds you gave uh You gave network. yeah. Well, I know you call goon squad, but I
ThePokeNetwork:Well, actually, I don't, that's actually, I don't call them that anymore.
David Hernandez:Oh, really? I'm, sorry. Okay
ThePokeNetwork:Uh, yeah, yeah, that's fine. I mean, uh, like, for those of you that don't know, because I labeled myself the Top Goon, I decided to call my community the Goon Squad because, you know, Office of Goons is the main mascot of the channel and whatnot, but after I came back, I decided, like, I had a fresh new perspective on things, so I decided to, in line with, calling, my community, the back alley because that's pretty much what spike month is giant back alley. So I decided to call, you know, just start calling my community, my alley mates instead of goons. Cause it felt more. I don't know, it felt, it felt right. It felt right to change up the community, name a little bit, so that's why I decided to go with that. I actually just formally got myself a new nickname I'm now called of the Back Alley.
David Hernandez:So the last thing I want to touch on is again, you know We're both kind of interview podcast and eventually dive into doing the poking nerd Inc podcast and You invite all these creators from twitch to kind of share their twitch journey as well as their Pokemon journey What has been I guess the biggest? Challenge, you know doing the podcast because it's hard to kind of find guests also to do it on a live show on twitch
ThePokeNetwork:that's definitely a challenge because, there could be tech issues during the show that may, disrupt the show. Like, for example, there was a time when I had one podcast the stream quit three times and there was three different vibes. So we have to put them all into one and then put them all on YouTube. another thing is actually, yeah, just, it's one thing. Finding people to be on the show, but I have been very fortunate enough to have met a lot of creators over the last four or five years I've been able to rack up enough people to appear on my show Like communication beforehand is, also a challenge because I always reach out to these creators and I never know if they're going to say yes or no, or maybe not or anything. So it's always about, you know, biting the bullet, and pulling the trigger and just reaching out to those people is what, Basically just make or break a podcast season, and, I've been lucky enough that I've, uh, been able to rack up as many, many people over the last few years as I have.
David Hernandez:Right?
ThePokeNetwork:So, so I'm, uh, I'm fine, I also find it very fortunate that I have season four pretty much racked up, so it's like, it's, uh, whew. I have a stacked line of guests for season four, like y'all, y'all are gonna be very, very happy to see who I have on the show this time.
David Hernandez:Hey, y'all better get ready. And he showed like, he showed kind of behind the scenes of what I go through because we send these emails out. Some people may not respond. Some people mostly don't respond. And then some people respond a couple months later and sometimes you get some immediate responses, which I'm grateful for. But that's kind of the difficult part about doing this kind of format is that you've got to kind of be on top of it and you've got to kind of plan ahead. he is like, he's got months ahead of time and I'm kind of in the same boat in a way.
ThePokeNetwork:Like, uh, uh, I already have the dates lined up for season 4, I just need to get it all scheduled. And that's like 5 months down the line.
David Hernandez:You want a part time job? You can help me out.
ThePokeNetwork:I actually, believe it or not, I actually, maybe, maybe, like, I actually, kid you not, I actually have one of my fellow past podcasties. I officially made him my chief recruitment officer because I needed help. like it's just a title, but he's actually just helping me recruit people for the show. And I was just very grateful that he volunteered to help me out with this project and, it just means a lot because this was actually the same guy that was, actually I'll name him dragon tamer, Tom. he was close with turbo, very close with turbo before, you know, he passed and, he felt more than happy to, Play a role in this in this podcast series now
David Hernandez:Yeah, cuz for those who don't know for me I have like four twitch channels on one of my screens while I'm doing something else That's how I have to scout on my end because you know, I'm one man, man. He's got a recruit. He's got employees now He's fancy. I just got two dogs So I got four screens trying to see like, oh this be a pretty good guess or they're not ready and like Oh, definitely like you and I'm like, man, I'm not too sure if you're gonna respond but so It's a lot find people man. It's crazy
ThePokeNetwork:i'm not i'm not called the pokey network for nothing. I have to network all over the world
David Hernandez:aye, I like that, there's a double meaning to it.
ThePokeNetwork:Exactly
David Hernandez:Just don't call em the Spoke Network.
ThePokeNetwork:You had to go there
David Hernandez:I HAVE TO! Like it's the podcast, you're the guest of my podcast, I'd be a failed interviewer if I don't bring it up. I'm not at least, making fun of it. I'll stick Alolan Persian, that's more my jam.
ThePokeNetwork:I know I know I know
David Hernandez:If you want to know what that is, check out his episode because he explains it. So I'm not even going to explain it on this podcast. You check out his Twitch channel on whenever he has an interview podcast, he'll explain what that is.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, if you wanna, if you wanna hear the story, watch any episode of my podcast and you'll fully understand why people called me that.
David Hernandez:Well, very cool. I want to finish on this last question. And it's this, you know, we had, of course, you know, Pierce is the gym leader, but if somebody was going to come and challenge you on a six on six Pokemon battle, what six dark type Pokemon would you bring?
ThePokeNetwork:I've been asked this question a lot. So first off I am bringing off stagoon. He is my ace and he will always be my ace I will have a Greninja on my team. No doubt about that I will have a Hydreigon, definitely Umbreon as the you know, toxic staller, you know troll mom that he can always be I'll bring a drape beyond to my team. I love DRA beyond and, uh, he has a very wide range move set. And to round it off, give me my good boy crocodile.
David Hernandez:Ooh, Crocodile. Way to finish it off. I like the accent too.
ThePokeNetwork:Yeah, I can't do the rolling tongue thing, but, uh, I try.
David Hernandez:I can't either. I'm Hispanic, but the PokeNetwork, thank you for coming on. As the Pokeball turns before you go, people want to check out your content. If they want to connect with you, where can they go? By all means, please plug away.
ThePokeNetwork:You can follow me on Twitch at twitch. tv slash ThePokeNetwork. You can go to my YouTube channel. I go by ThePokeNetwork on YouTube there. You can find me on Twitter. BlueSky, TikTok, and That's pretty much it.
David Hernandez:Yep, and if you happen to be live when he, or you happen to see him when he's live, tell him that you sent a lovin Persian love to him.
ThePokeNetwork:I'm getting close to making an Alolan Persian emote that's just like it dead on the ground. You know, kind of like those emotes where like somebody's like lying dead on the ground with a pool of blood from their mouth. I'm imagining that with Alolan Persian.
