Unlikely Pairings: Pokémon and Paul Young

My dad passed away in April. He had dementia and that exacerbated the virus that he’d contracted and sadly didn’t recover from. It’s been a difficult few months, not really dealing with the grief (if there is such a way) and trying not to look back too much for fear of breaking down and not being able to stop. But a few days ago, I listened to an album that my dad used to play in the car and it reminded me of a particular car journey and the game I was playing at the time. Now, whenever I listen, I think of that playthrough. I got into the Pokémon craze through the anime first before getting my first game—Pokémon Blue—in 1998 along with a new Game Boy DMG. It was my first console and one of my first games and it took me 13 months to beat (including an unnecessarily long Misty fight). Then a few weeks later, I got Pokémon Yellow for Christmas. It was the same game but with new sprites and an altered story inspired by the anime. And you got to walk around with Pikachu! One of my fondest…