TRAINER'S EYE #128 - "Alolan Sandslash Whiffed The Psychic Pokemon" ft. Angelo Pagano from Littleroot Lessons

In this Pokemon interview, we are joined by Angelo "Rho" Pagnoa a Pokemon Trainer and podcast host for Littleroot Lessons.

Angelo's Pokemon journey started with the Pokemon TCG where he would learn the Pokemon TCG at his locals. Angelo touches on the early days of competitive TCG and how it was more show up and play compared to the organized play of today.

Angelo dives into his journey into Pokemon VGC and playing the main series games. However, it wasn't until Pokemon Sword and Shield when he started to engage with competitive Pokemon. Angelo shares his progress to become the Pokemon Trainer he is today and what he enjoys most about engaging with the Pokemon community.

Finally Angelo dives into his involvement with Littleroot Lessons and his motivation to do Pokemon interviews of VGC players after certain regionals. And to finish off this interview, we play a game of "What's That Pokemon?"

Sources
Opening Song: "Forget You" by Alex_MakeMusic from Pixabay

Connect with Angelo: Twitter | Bluesky

Transcript

Angelo: 0:00

Hi, I'm Angelo from Literate Lessons, and this is my Pokémon story.

David Hernandez: 0:43

Welcome to, as the pokeball turns, where we interview people about their experience with Pokemon. My name is David Hernandez I'm joined by Angelo from little root lessons podcast. Angelo. Thank you for coming on the podcast.

Angelo: 0:57

Thank you for having me, David. Uh, this this has been, something that we've been trying to get done for, a couple months. life gets in the way, but super excited to be sitting on the other side of the microphone, so to speak.

David Hernandez: 1:08

Let's give the listeners an idea of how much work we've had to go to this. You know, we had to travel by sea. I had to take a plane, then a fire alarm gone off, and then my dogs went crazy. And then all of a sudden I had to eat dinner and then all of a sudden my mic didn't want to work. And then all of a sudden I need to take a nap. It's been exhausting. We haven't even recorded.

Angelo: 1:28

It absolutely has been, and that's not going the fact that I had to travel literally through space and time to get here. I need to catch Dialga and Palkia, we're talking two versions, to do the trades, a lot of work.

David Hernandez: 1:42

And then I had to run a Giovanni and the team rocket was trying to kidnap Pikachu again. It's just an entire mess. Just trying to record this one episode. the universe was trying to stop this from happening.

Angelo: 1:52

But we're here, and it's beautiful, it's going to be a great episode, I'm excited.

David Hernandez: 1:56

It is, it is now, Angelo, I appreciate you reaching out to me and, you know, before we dive into all your journey and, dive into like you being a podcaster, What is it about you wanting to do a podcast with Pokemon that started this whole thing?

Angelo: 2:10

So, when you're saying like, starting the podcast, I got into podcasting, It wasn't the direct way a lot of people do it where, as you were telling me beforehand David, where you said, Hi, I want to make this content. I love Pokemon. This is the passion project I can do. For me, so Literate Lessons isn't of my own creation. the creation is from Carl Wilkin and Carter Noble, two VCC players, and two of my dear friends. and a little before COVID, I want to say it was February of 2020, the two of them, they already had a Magic the Gathering podcast, but they were really getting out of Magic, decided to make a Pokemon podcast, specifically for Pokemon VGC. They end up posting the podcast, 2020 Angelo Finds It. I already knew about VGC, Sword and Shield just came out, and I was thinking, hey, let me get into it a little more, and the podcast was kind of my gateway into it. I joined their community, become friends with these guys, long story short, Carl had his first kid and wanted to step away from the week to week recording side. And since I was already coming in as a guest, I was so close with these guys we already had. The rapport you need to do a podcast with multiple guests, myself and another one of our friends jay we joined as two new hosts along with carter to Have this new literal lessons. So A roundabout way of answering your question I never chose this I was kind of Put into this and very happy I was put into this. Uh, Being able to spend multiple hours a week talking with my friends about a game I love so much, and a game that brought all of us together, is just probably one of the best privileges someone can have.

David Hernandez: 4:00

So what you're saying is the Pokemon podcast, you didn't choose the Pokemon podcast life, the Pokemon podcast life chose you.

Angelo: 4:06

Absolutely.

David Hernandez: 4:07

Okay. What nickname did he give you?

Angelo: 4:09

it gave me the nickname of Ro, and if you are a Little Root Lessons listener, or just someone in the general VGC sphere, a little funny story on how I got that name, in the Literate Lessons Discord server, Carter's, username for a while there was Mr. Missouri, that's the state that Carl and Carter are from. And, Everyone was doing Mr. and then State Name, and it was all Ms. And I didn't realize it was supposed to be a Mr. M thing. So I made my name Mr. Rhode Island because I wanted to be in on the joke, but I wasn't actually in on the joke. And, after a while of that, I was just under as Mr. Rhode Island, or Mr. R. I. that's the state I'm from. we were in a voice chat, and one of the other Mods and members of the Little Lessons community, Swede, Swede's wife asked him who he's talking to and he said, Oh, I'm talking to Carter and Ro, shortening Mr. Rhode Island to just Ro. And I was like, I like that, that kinda sticks. And I just rolled with it that I'm just Ro, and that's what I've been going by in the Pokemon sphere. Along with my actual name, I don't make my actual name a secret. but yeah, that's kind of how I got Roe. It was just a one off thing a friend said to his wife, and became kind of part of my identity for the last four and a half years.

David Hernandez: 5:32

It's kind of cool. How you said, you know, a franchise you love kind of brought y'all together and even more so it's all through competitive y'all compete in Pokemon, trying to earn your chance to world to try to be the best that nobody ever was. What is it about competitive Pokemon that interests you and made you want to get engaged in that part of the franchise?

Angelo: 5:51

I am a competitive person. I was an athlete, in high school. I, in middle school, I was a long distance runner and I just loved competing and due to some health issues I've had pretty much ever since I graduated high school, I wasn't able to keep that athleticism, that, that level of competition. And so, I've always been playing Pokemon, really not even just VGC. going back to when I was very, very young, when I was in middle school, early parts of high school. my brother and I actually played the trading card game competitively. this was back when there wasn't even a VGC when we started. It was, like, Worlds was solely the card game. so when I was a lot younger, back in generation 4, I went and played the card game competitively, my brother and I, at the local card shops near us. Uh, it was a lot smaller back then. The card game. That was the only official competitive outlet for Pokemon. And I loved collecting the cards. That's one of the ways I got into the Pokemon franchise to start. And I was one of the kids who actually read the rule book that came with the theme decks to figure out how to play this game. And we would go to tournaments for that. my brother and I both step aside playing the card game competitively for other extracurriculars, mainly sports. And between not being able to, Do the sport that did for so long and also wanting to get back into playing the Pokemon that I loved playing competitively. I decided to go with VGC instead of the TCG because I was already buying the game and it was cheaper. And I was thinking, hey, I can just use the online ladder. I was never thinking I'd be going to tournaments. Or, recording a weekly podcast covering all these events. And once I got into it, everything just snowballed. This was also when the COVID shutdowns happened as well.

David Hernandez: 7:50

Oh, wow.

Angelo: 7:51

nothing else for me to do. But listen to Pokemon podcasts, watch Cybertron and Wolfie videos, and just obsess over Picolytics usage stats to figure out like which Pokemon I should use. And it's just something that's like really, really kept with me because of the people that I met and the connections and friends I met uh, play in this game.

David Hernandez: 8:17

At the time when you were into playing Pokemon TCG. Was it difficult to kind of learn by yourself at first or did you immediately step into trying to. Find the locals to kind of help you advance in the game.

Angelo: 8:29

So I was a member of a league. There was a local card shop they had both Friday, And Saturday just free to play leagues you show up you play your matches with whoever else was there. It was a free for all no tournament Very fun sort of thing just play who was around if you want to play people like two three times in a row You could do that. You could switch up decks it's something that We found, and it was like a really great place to learn, meet people who just weren't, in your school or in your town, that also had this love of Pokemon. This was back in that weird time where, Pokemon wasn't the cool thing or the big thing as it is now. I don't know. I always, I wouldn't say I felt embarrassed that I played Pokemon, but it's not something I would bring up at school because it's like one of the things where, oh, you still play Pokemon and you get made fun of.

David Hernandez: 9:19

It was like one of them little secrets that you didn't really bring the public because at the least for me, I remember it was more Yu Gi Oh or more being in the sports. If you were in a Pokemon, you're like, what the hell's wrong with you? Kind of thing.

Angelo: 9:30

yeah, it was definitely that. And especially I was in middle school and every middle schooler is just awkward. Uh, so it was one of the things where it was nice where it was something I was so passionate about. And it was a place where I can. be with people who had this same passion and enjoyment about Pokemon as I did. And I wasn't completely alone. I have a younger brother who also played Pokemon with me and we would both go to tournaments together and we would play against each other at home and test decks against each other. And so I always had that with him as well. So not like I was fully, fully alone, but it was like one of the things where we had a league funny thing about the person who owns that card shop, that card shop ended up getting sold about 15 or so years ago, and one of the non Pokemon things I do, I'm a Freemason. And one of the days, I'm at my lodge, the building where we meet, and see this guy here, haven't him at the lodge before, and he looks familiar, and I go up to him, like, hey, are you so and so? Did you used to own this card shop? And he looked at me, he's like, Angelo, is that you? Like, he completely, recognized me. And he's like, I remember when you were not even twelve, like ten. and it's like one of the things where, like, literal full circle, the person who owned the shop that helped give me this passion, I now see weekly. Uh, he met my wife at my largest Christmas party, I said, Babe. If you want to know why I'm a 29, 30 year old man child blame this man

David Hernandez: 11:10

It's his fault. Although I'm not complaining though.

Angelo: 11:12

No No, not at all

David Hernandez: 11:16

It brings actually an interesting story. I've never shared before. So back when I was younger and you know, I saw a commercial saying like, you should go join your local Pokemon league and I'm like, you can earn a badge. I'm like, I can be like Ash Ketchum, but like you, I was ashamed. I was like, I don't know what to say. I feel kind of embarrassed. So one day I go to a car shop in a closed down mall called six it's in Arlington. and I went inside and there was a car shop, it was supposed to be a league and I go to the store and I'm like, Hey, do I get to be a part? I'm like whispering. How do I get to be a part of the book? And because there's guys, you know, shopping other stuff and looking around for, you know, whatever that was. And the guy is like, I cannot hear you, man. And I keep whispering. I'm like, Hey, I'm just trying to find out where the Pokemon league. And I'm just so embarrassed. I don't know what to say. Cause there's people next to me, there's a card owner. I have no idea what I'm supposed to be asking. And then eventually I just, he said something like, Oh, it's not happening tonight, and I just ran out cause I was just. So nervous I wasn't comfortable being in my own skin asking about a Pokemon leg, but it's just a different time that thankfully people nowadays don't get to, thankfully, don't have to experience.

Angelo: 12:22

Yeah, it is really weird where I think that's one of the things that really helped it is pokemon go And all of us Nerdy kids who didn't fall off Pokemon after Gen 1 or Gen 2. and now we're just all adults and we just don't care. I also think that just the growth of Pokemon, it's the number one media franchise in the entire world. Bigger than Star Wars, bigger than Mario, bigger than Mickey Mouse. it's like unavoidable where yeah, you could say like everyone knows what it is now. It's not just this late 90s early aughts fad And everyone's just cool with it

David Hernandez: 13:01

So obviously you're more involved with VGC nowadays, but at the time you originally started with TCG, were you not much into the game side of Pokemon at the time? Or

Angelo: 13:10

So, I was in a household that was a no video game household for a while. My first actual experience with Pokemon was back in 99. and before the kids were picked up, we would have like a TV time, and people can bring in VHSs, remember those?

David Hernandez: 13:26

Oh my gosh, people don't even know what those are anymore.

Angelo: 13:29

Yeah, look it up. you don't know what it is, look it up. But yeah, so, some kid brought in a Pokemon VHS, and the first ever experience with Pokemon I saw, it was the episode that Ash caught Muk. And that was my first thing I thought was cool. And this was right around when the first movie was coming out as well. So there were all these commercials. The show was everywhere. And I think I was at the right age where I saw the show. And my dad, he loves collecting cards. he used to trade Baseball cards and go to the big baseball card shows so when he saw that this interest I had had a card aspect to it He would buy me and my brother packs and we started collecting in that sense It wasn't until I was like 9 a little after fire in the leaf green came out is When I got a game boy and I got the Pokemon video game But I always kept that love of the cards because that is what Started me with everything and As I said before When I we going to leagues and everything and just playing competitively There was no VGC at the time back in oh six there was a tournament called the journey across America That I was too young to even understand what that was. was, that's kind of what people will point to as one of the first official competitive doubles tournaments. Hulk Hogan was actually the commentator for finals at Bryant Park in New York, for that event. that's not a bit, that's real. Look it up so, yeah, like it, if I, for me to play competitively, it was always just. But I knew when VGC became a thing, I knew about it. I just never dove into it, really. One of the biggest issues with VGC, especially back then, is It can be a little daunting to get into, as someone who is 12 or 13 years old, having to look up EVs, IVs, nature, breeding, and this was before there were nature mints, before there were bottle caps, really, like, back in Gen 4 and Gen 5, before there was even to pass down IVs using A 6IV ditto and a Destiny knot like it literally was just random and there was so much work that needed to be done To get a team that it was just too daunting to get into

David Hernandez: 15:50

To even add on, there was even before Flame Body was a thing, because Flame Body was only one game in those generation of games. So you were literally hatching the entire mount. There was no reduction whatsoever. Mm hmm.

Angelo: 16:00

And not to mention needing to get legendaries having to soft reset there is a really really great youtube channel i'm a blissey Please And they mostly deal with, RNG manipulation, but what they do is, they'll have a video where like they went and made the first world champion team. And, they'll be like, I'm gonna make this team from scratch, I'm gonna record everything I do, and I'm gonna tell you how long it takes me to make this team. And, some of the earlier teams, 20, I believe it was like, he did a video, they did a video on RayRizzo's 2010 Worlds team. And, it took them well over 50 60 hours to make this 6 Pokemon team.

David Hernandez: 16:46

Only 50 to 60 hours. Wow Yeah,

Angelo: 16:49

was and now it's you can and now it's a lot easier You can make a team In two to three hours and honestly, you could probably do it a lot faster there's been times where Before a local I decide to make two or three changes on my team And i'm able to make all those changes within 30 minutes or so

David Hernandez: 17:10

you bring up so many points about the archaic side of competitive on the TCG side You have a point your first time when you and your brother just going and you are just randomly playing You're not even like having to pay an entry fee. You're not having to be linked up together Y'all just playing people who are actually there It's just like a little gathering before nowadays if you play TCG you have to sign up you're paired together There's a whole database behind it. Keep in mind this is even before computers were more advanced to what they are now You And then when we flip the mirror to both VGC, VGC, it was difficult to get, the ideal IVs. You're spending hours trying to get the right Pokemon. you don't have the items, the abilities are way limited and the speed of trying to get that is more, way more grindy than it is nowadays. How does it feel to just seeing that early part of competitive Pokemon and what it takes to what it is now?

Angelo: 18:01

I really can't speak to too much of the VGC side, that would be better for, there's a lot of, I, affectionately call them, a lot of old heads who can speak to that significantly more than I can. I knew the process, I knew about it, but even then it's not something I never really attempted to do. Until I'd say Gen 6, Gen 7 is when I first actually tried starting to even just for specific natures But I think the biggest thing was with the TCG It was always easier to just play that because worst case scenario if you were missing a card, you could just buy it When I played specifically the cards really weren't that expensive. There was only one crazy expensive card back then a Luxray G level X Which was, at the time, an 80 card. everything else was just cheaper. there this was the Pokemon Lulz, so there wasn't a 200 300 Pikachu card coming out every other set. And you have the Elite Trainer Boxes going for 150, and Scalpers going crazy. I played TCG, that wasn't a thing whatsoever. So, if there was a single card you needed, if you had the dollar or two it would take, you could just buy it. And that was a lot easier compared to VGC, where it was a lot, a lot, a lot of work. For minimal payout in a lot of cases, like, honestly, a lot of things you weren't in control over. Nintendo and the Pokemon company, they definitely have looked into trying to fix it. Every generation it feels like it becomes easier, or relatively easier, to Get your Pokemon, Scarlet and Violet had a lot of good things, but there were a few aspects of Scarlet and Violet that I think were taking steps backwards. In terms of trying to get Pokemon, the good things they did were making bottle caps level 50 cap instead of a level 100 cap. it's super easy to get your Pokemon up to level 50.

David Hernandez: 20:00

Very much so. Yeah.

Angelo: 20:02

with all of the experience candies. The way Egg Moves work now, you just need an item, the Mirror Herb, and it's not like you have to breed the Pokemon to get the Egg Move. You just have the two of them in the party together, holding this item, and as long as it has the empty move slot, it just gets it. That's something that saves a lot of time. The worst feeling was to hit that, perfect IV Pokemon with the nature and everything and then you look at it and you realize that you used the wrong parent that Didn't have the egg move and you got to start the whole process over again. I'm not saying I ever did that Maybe who can say? But now it's very easy, it's oh I forgot to give my Incineroar a fake out Well, grab a fake out Pokemon and it's here now on the other side of things and this might just be a me thing, I really hate how they have breeding in generation 9. I just don't think it's an efficient cycle of getting eggs. It's probably my least favorite part of gen 9, is just what they did to breeding for Pokemon eggs. And the Terra Shards, especially early on, I Getting 50 Terra Shards is very, very difficult for a specific type. And, in this generation, a lot of times you'll need to change a Pokemon's Terra type. for defensive purposes, even for certain offensive purposes. Like, Dragonite will run Terra Normal a lot in order for it to get a same type attack boost on extreme speed. And they weren't giving out, like, a Terra Normal Dragonite. So it's not something you could bring down, you have to change it, you have to get the 50 normal Terror Shards, and if you're unlucky in terms of your own raids, and you can't get the Blizzy raids, or you're not getting the right online raids, then you literally might not be able to get that specific thing you need for your Pokemon. that would be my biggest, like, downside. whatever regional gimmick they have in Generation 10, I hope that it's just something that is easy to slap on. such as what Dynamax was, or Z Moves, or Mega Evolutions. Where it was either just available from the get go as is, or an easy to obtain item. Instead of it being a very to obtain item you need 50 of.

David Hernandez: 23:10

Do you have a particular favorite generation of games that you enjoyed playing?

Angelo: 23:14

So gen three and gen four, because those were my childhood generations. I think the generation when you were nine through 12 is the coolest generation So I have a lot of fond memories of playing those games. I remember buying my Ds and getting Diamond and pearl the same day or like getting heart gold, soul silver with my brother and playing through those games. And of course the Gen 3 games as well, getting Sapphire and Leaf Green for Christmas. I think every Pokemon fan can remember the Christmas, when they got their first Game Boy and Pokemon game. Cause that's probably the best Christmas you ever had. But, on a competitive side, I've only really played Gen 8 and Gen 9 competitively. as much crap as Sword and Shield gets, I do have a really soft spot for it. That was the game that really made me fall back in love with Pokemon. I played the Gen 6 games, I played the Gen 7 games, really didn't like Gen 7. I felt like the Alolan games were a slog to get through. And once I beat the Elite Four, I didn't really go back to those games. at that point, I'd say, like, Pokemon Go, honestly, was a bigger part of how I enjoyed Pokemon than the video game or the cards. And it was Gen 8 and getting into VGC that really got me back into loving the video game proper. I know Dexit is controversial. they were the unpopular games. I don't know. I just really, really love Generation 8 as a whole. It's always going to have a soft spot in my heart. Dynamax was a really dumb, competitive mechanic.

David Hernandez: 24:53

yeah,

Angelo: 24:54

I, I will say that I did enjoy it because it didn't really centralize things in any Pokemon can use it. as for mechanics overall, I know I just went in a rant on how ization made. Getting your Pokemon difficult rationalization is the best mechanic out of any of the competitive mechanics we've had. it can be used offensively and defensively. Any Pokemon can use it. at least four of your Pokemon throughout a tournament run will use this mechanic. Some more than others, but you'll have that usage. While Dynamax While it could be used defensively because it doubles your HP, it usually was reserved for your big sweeper. my best result was at Secaucus Regionals I finished in 21st place and I ran a team with Dialga and Calrec Shadow. And I didn't Dynamax Dialga in only two games. because the entire team was built around maximizing the dynamax alga turns. And on the other whenever I've gone to events with rationalization, I might ize three different Pokemon for three different reasons I might need. the extra damage output from a Terra Water on Urshifu Rapid Strike. I might need the defensive output of a Terra Water on Amoongus, and it could change game to game, and different Pokémon can play those different roles, and that's the really cool part Terrastilization.

David Hernandez: 26:16

so I kind of want to go back to when you became part of little root lessons, you said you were listening back in 2020 and you weren't. Part of the podcast the time, you were just a listener. What was it about Little Rude Lessons that appeal to you as a listener and made you want to get involved within their community?

Angelo: 26:32

So, a couple things. There were other Pokemon podcasts at the time, and I think I've said this to Carl and Carter, so when they hear this, they won't get insulted. Uh, there was another podcast as well, that started around the same time as LittleRootLessons, that I also listen to. And both LittleRootLessons and this other podcast would go and say, Hey, if you wanna part of our community, join our Discord. And I thought that the other podcast discord was for Patreon members only. And Literary Lessons was just free. So I said, well, I'm broke. So looks like I'm going with Literary Lessons and

David Hernandez: 27:13

I'm sorry.

Angelo: 27:14

no no, come, come to find out that I was wrong and I was able to join the other podcast server, which I did, but the vibes weren't great, the vibes, I just fit with the vibes at Literary Lessons, listening to. Carl and Carter, even from the start, it just sounded like listening to two old friends. Their banter, because the two of them are very close friends. They've known each other for years before they even started recording the podcast. It just felt very comfortable. And just being around the community more, again, especially during the start of COVID 19 during lockdown, it just gave me another community of, hey, we It doesn't matter if that we're doing this all online. We can't go in anywhere anyways, so I don't know. It just started with us all hanging out, doing raid nights, in the Dynamax raids, hosting little community tournaments on Pokemon Showdown, and I just became very, very close with Carl and Carter, throughout everything, along with the rest of the mod squad, and Through all of that, my first appearance on episode 117 was my, was talking about my Secaucus Regionals run And that was the start of me hopping on the podcast. And then as things progressed, specifically when Carl's, wife got pregnant. He started trying to step back and any of the days he couldn't go on, I would just step in. And then it turned into, Carter might have had something pop up that week and he wasn't able to record, so He's like, okay, well Angelo's already been stepping in for Carl, have him step in for Carter. as we said, the podcast life was calling me. then, that's when I became one of the full time co hosts. And from that point forward, it's been, as long as I don't personally have something going on that week, every Sunday, sitting down and talking Mons.

David Hernandez: 29:07

What is it like to kind of develop that kind of social relationship initially with Carter and Carl? Was it kind of awkward to kind of be a part of that duo or did y'all, you kind of fit in like a perfect glove?

Angelo: 29:17

We fit in perfectly. Uh, I never asked, Hey, everyone would joke like, Hey, when are we going on the pod? When are we going on the pod? But I never asked to actually become a full time member of the show. I want it to be known. I did not shoehorn my way into, it, like parasocially, whatever. We, just had a lot of other common interests. It wasn't just Pokemon. We loved food. We loved talking about sports.. And then it just became, okay, we're talking every day. because of this, honestly, what ended up turning into a mods group chat meeting of the minds. we all just would talk in that, even just outside of the Discord server, daily. Hey, this is what's going on in my life, or this is how work's going for me. And, it was just kind of like organically becoming friends that way. And then, when things changed and Carl wasn't able to, Beyond the pot as much they went side. Okay. Well, who can we trust who are like that? We have this rapport with and it's okay Well Angelo and J because we already talk with them daily we would help them if they needed ideas for what to talk about We already be saying hey, maybe you should talk about this or maybe we should go over this Along with us just hopping on and being guests on the show Whenever we were needed anyways You

David Hernandez: 30:34

Since you've been a part of it, how has being connected with both Carter and Carl in Little Root Lessons affected your journey when it comes to competitive Pokémon? Do you think you would still be as involved if it wasn't for them?

Angelo: 30:45

I think I still would be. I'm very close to my local community. the New England locals, I love all of you. cause, you're gonna listen to this cause I'm gonna post it every single place I see you all. Um, and yeah, it's like, I really, really love my locals. I'm very lucky the New England area is probably one of the more, if not one of the most active areas. Thank you very much. And there's just a lot of talented players and a lot of us just got really, really close. once we had live events return, it just became a thing where we met and we were able to see each other in person. And actually meet other people that we never met before, because we were actually able to play the game in person again, and it just became a massive family. So I think in that sense, I still will be playing, I'm not going for my world's invite, I understand that. the stage I am in my life, I don't have the time or the financial freedom in that sense to travel around to regionals to try to get a world's invite. my happiness with that is when I see my friends. who succeed and they're able to make worlds up. Just recently, my friend Anthony Londrigan who is one of my dear friends, he is one of the members of, my team building group. And he just had two top cup finishes, and I saw the amount of work he was putting into everything, and wasn't getting the results that matched the effort. And to just to see my friend have the effort that he put into this match the results, and see his name. in the top or top 16, which is very difficult to do. that in itself is where I'm getting, I'd say, most of my competitive joy, outside of going to a local every now and again. It's just seeing my friends, people I try to help as much as I can, succeed at this game.

David Hernandez: 32:38

And you get the chance to highlight them on little words lessons Is that kind of the inspiration behind doing this interview series?

Angelo: 32:44

Yes and no. So, my first appearance in Literary Lessons was to cover A tournament that I was in and one of the issues, not really an issue, but one of the circumstances of us having a lot more events now, is we'll have a lot of weekends where it's back to back events. for example, If there was someone from Birmingham regionals that I wanted to talk to, I would have to either push him back a week later, which means I'm not covering San Antonio or wait two weeks. And now it's kind of that regional is out of the circle, the meta's already changed because it had another regional right after, and it's kind of a moot point. So, the Literate Record gave me the opportunity to be able to pull on from these players where, hey, if there's someone I want to talk to for Birmingham Regionals, maybe we aren't recording on the podcast proper, I can get them on Monday, Tuesday, and on Wednesday, Thursday, I'll be able to get that. Video out and so we can have that immediate impact. This is what happened right when it happened interview the week of the event or at least the week immediately after the event instead of pushing it out to three more weeks. That and I also just love yapping with my friends. A lot of the other guests were world's competitors who are my locals and talking about their Journey on getting to worlds for that year. We had a handful of people do that and That was also just really fun to be able to talk to people who are the top of the top of this game

David Hernandez: 34:17

And what we learned today is that when Ash was bragging about being top 16 in indigo league He had a very good reason to brag 16 for obvious reasons

Angelo: 34:27

no, it's it's like Especially now there's many people at these tournaments Pre COVID, especially the format immediately before generation, the Sword and Shield started, uh, that was Ultra Series in 2019. Ultra Series was a too restricted Pokemon format, uh, restricted Pokemon for those of you who don't know. It's your box legendary, your Kyogre, your Groudon, so on

David Hernandez: 34:53

You ready you guys?

Angelo: 34:55

No, Regigigas is not a restricted.

David Hernandez: 34:57

Shh, don't tell them. Don't tell them.

Angelo: 34:59

It's also, it's also bad. But, but anyways, that was a format where you would have 40, 50 person regionals. Because the game was just, at that point, stale. People were sick of playing on the 3DS, they wanted something new. And restricted formats, in general, since they are dominated by these big legendaries, they aren't super popular. And so yeah, making top 16 in an event like that, not as great. It's so, yeah, if you make top 16, top 32, even making day 2, and just getting that top 128 sphere, you're playing out of your mind. this is a tough game, this is not an easy game to play. it's so easy to watch a stream on YouTube or watch, whether it's Wolfie, Or Cybertron or whichever of the many YouTubers that do ladder streaming now Play and it's oh I could do that. No, it's incredibly difficult. Chess that's mixed with rock paper scissors And there's a timer and everyone around you is also just incredibly talented the skill level of your average player is a lot higher than it's been

David Hernandez: 36:12

Well, Angelo, I want to finish on this last segment before you go.

Angelo: 36:16

Sure.

David Hernandez: 36:17

Now, I gotta ask you, how well do you know your Pokemon?

Angelo: 36:19

Pretty well.

David Hernandez: 36:20

Pretty well. So we're gonna test that out. Returning to the podcast is What's That Pokemon? Where there are over 1, 000 Pokemon, but the only one that matters is the one I'm thinking about. Here's what you have to do. You have to guess which Pokemon I'm thinking about. Before you have to make that guess, you have 10 questions you can ask me, but they have to be in a yes or no format. After those 10 questions, you have to guess which Pokemon I'm thinking out based on the information you gathered.

Angelo: 36:52

Yeah. I'm ready.

David Hernandez: 36:54

So Angelo, what is going to be your first question

Angelo: 37:00

Hmm. Is the Pokemon from generation five or later?

David Hernandez: 37:07

is the Pokemon I'm thinking about gen five or after. Got your question?

Angelo: 37:11

Yes.

David Hernandez: 37:12

It is not after Gen 5. We're on question number 2.

Angelo: 37:19

Hmm. Is it a normal type?

David Hernandez: 37:23

Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of a normal type? It is not a normal type. We're on question number 3.

Angelo: 37:33

Is the Pokemon from, hmm, I think I'm, I think I'm gonna stick with these generation questions first to try to focus on the generation.

David Hernandez: 37:44

That's bad

Angelo: 37:46

is it from Gen 3 or 4?

David Hernandez: 37:49

Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of from Gen 3 or 4? It is not from Gen 3 or 4. We're on question number 4, oddly enough.

Angelo: 38:00

Is it a Gen 1 Pokemon?

David Hernandez: 38:04

the Pokemon I'm thinking of from Gen 1? It is a Gen 1 Pokemon.

Angelo: 38:10

Okay,

David Hernandez: 38:11

We're halfway there. We're on question number five.

Angelo: 38:16

Is it a water type?

David Hernandez: 38:18

Oh, that's a good question. Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of a water type? It is not a water type. we know that it's not after gen three, four or five. It's not a normal type. We know it's a gen one Pokemon. We know it's not a water type. We're on question number six.

Angelo: 38:39

Is it a flying type?

David Hernandez: 38:42

Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of a flying type? It is not a flying type. We're on question number seven. It

Angelo: 38:52

Is it part, okay. Does the Pokemon And tell me if this is too specific, is it part of an evolutionary family? So like, does it evolve, is it a Pokemon that can evolve, or is evolved,

David Hernandez: 39:08

is the Pokemon I'm thinking of part of an evolutionary family? It is part of an evolutionary family. We're on question number eight before you have to make your guess. You got three more questions.

Angelo: 39:25

Hmm, does a Gym Leader or Elite Four member use this Pokemon?

David Hernandez: 39:34

Does a gym leader or an elite four member use this Pokemon? That's your question.

Angelo: 39:41

Yes.

David Hernandez: 39:43

Yes. A gym leader or an elite four member does use this Pokemon.

Angelo: 39:48

Throw open

David Hernandez: 39:51

question. Number nine, before Angelo has to make the guess, will he figure it out?

Angelo: 39:59

Okay, so Just one moment

David Hernandez: 40:04

I

Angelo: 40:06

The pressure on is it a poison type?

David Hernandez: 40:13

Mmmmm. Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of a poison type? It is not a poison type. We are on question number 10. Last question before you have to make a guess.

Angelo: 40:30

Oh god, I feel like I've gotten nowhere.

David Hernandez: 40:34

Well, you got somewhere we know it's a Gen 1 Pokemon. We know it's not normal. We know it's not water. We know it's not flying. We know it's part of an evolutionary family. We know a Gym Leader or an Elite Four member has used this Pokemon. And we know it's not poison.

Angelo: 40:50

Yes.

David Hernandez: 40:51

Question number 10. Last question before you have to make the guess.

Angelo: 40:56

Pokemon an evolved Pokemon?

David Hernandez: 41:00

For the final question, Is the Pokemon I'm thinking of an evolved Pokemon? it is an evolved Pokemon.

Angelo: 41:11

Okay.

David Hernandez: 41:11

So you've used all your questions Angelo. Before you make your guess, we know it's Gen 1, we know it's not a normal type, we know it's not a water type, we know it's not a flying type, we know it's not a poison type, we know it was used by an Elite Four or a Gym Leader, and we know that it is part of an evolutionary family, and that it is an evolved Pokemon. So now, with the information you have, what Pokemon do you think that I'm thinking about? Of

Angelo: 41:40

a minute. Okay, so Just going through it And all the options the number of options that the rival has makes this tough out all this So just going through everything I already know can't be anything brock uses because they're just basic pokemon Can't be anything Misty uses. Can't be anything Erika uses or Koga uses. could be Kadabra or Alakazam from Sabrina. Could be Rapidash or Arcanine from Blaine. Could be Raichu from Lieutenant Surge. Dugtrio or Rhydon from Giovanni. And on the Elite Four side Uh, the only Pokemon it could be would be either Machamp from Bruno, none of Agatha's, none of Lorelei's, only Dragonair from Lance. And then from the rival, Rhydon again, Arcanine again, Alakazam again, or Exeggutor.

David Hernandez: 42:53

Lots of choices.

Angelo: 42:54

are a lot of choices, but it's actually a lot less than I thought. And Something about Exeggutor is calling out to me, so I'm gonna guess Exeggutor.

David Hernandez: 43:06

Hmm. Is that your final answer?

Angelo: 43:09

my final answer.

David Hernandez: 43:11

So there was one flaw in your logic

Angelo: 43:16

And that was

David Hernandez: 43:17

on question eight. You asked, did an elite four or gym leader uses Pokemon?

Angelo: 43:26

a champion, and I didn't say champion.

David Hernandez: 43:28

No, you didn't specify which generation

Angelo: 43:31

Oh, you! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

David Hernandez: 43:34

because it also includes Pokemon in gen two, gen three and beyond. If they used a Kanto Pokemon,

Angelo: 43:43

Yes.

David Hernandez: 43:44

So, Exeggutor is your choice. It is a Gen 1 Pokemon. It's also not a normal type. It's also not water. It's flying. Maybe a regional at some point. And it is part of an evolutionary family. And it was used by, Blue. Is kind of what you were going off of.

Angelo: 44:05

And if you want to go by yours, I believe Will, the first Four member of Gen

David Hernandez: 44:11

Used it as well. Mm hmm Yep, so it has seen use in both elite four as well as champion probably not has been used by a gym leader Oh, no, it has because it was used in gold silver and crystal by blue.

Angelo: 44:21

Yep.

David Hernandez: 44:22

So is it executor maybe? What do you

Angelo: 44:26

it is.

David Hernandez: 44:27

you hope it is?

Angelo: 44:28

I'm sticking with it.

David Hernandez: 44:30

All right, it is not Exeggutor

Angelo: 44:35

Oh no. What is it?

David Hernandez: 44:37

you really want to know

Angelo: 44:39

Oh, absolutely. I mean, you've, you've, you made me go through this process. I definitely want to know.

David Hernandez: 44:44

Does mystery treasures ring a bell for you?

Angelo: 44:48

Mystery Treasures,

David Hernandez: 44:49

mysterious treasures

Angelo: 44:51

Treasures, the That was the second set of the Diamond and Pearl series.

David Hernandez: 44:56

Any particular card in there?

Angelo: 44:59

Oh my god, it was Alakazam, and the reason

David Hernandez: 45:01

Yeah.

Angelo: 45:03

Okay, so Yusei Mysterious Treasures, that is, so I went to the Mysterious Treasures pre release and I pulled that Alakazam

David Hernandez: 45:11

hmm.

Angelo: 45:12

it came up uh, so we didn't get into this really. the artwork for the Alakazam card in Pocket is the Mysterious Treasures Alakazam. And yeah, that is uh, that is definitely a good, poll.

David Hernandez: 45:29

Angelo, thank you before you go. If people want to connect with you, if they want to check out little roots lessons, where can they go? By all means, please plug away

Angelo: 45:37

And here we go, everyone, uh, you can find us, at Literary Lessons on Blue Sky. You can find me at Rose Tinted Cheeks, Ro with an R H O, on Blue Sky as well. all of our stuff is found on all podcasters you can find this podcast on. Spotify, Apple Podcasts, if that still exists, Google Podcasts. Uh, along with our YouTube page, which is also where you can find a lot of other great stuff that we do. Including the little record that I told you about. We've been putting out weekly podcasts since, I believe, March or 2020, and we don't plan on stopping, so every Monday, tune in to Literal Lessons.