Since it's the 14th anniversary of NAPACE, I figured that's as good an opportunity as any to update y'all on what's been going on. We'll save the theatrics for the big 15th next year, but the reason NAPACE has been so dead these past months is because of real life shit getting in the way (doesn't it always), but mainly because I've been working on a major project.
This major project is a manifesto of sorts, a thesis to answer the common question "Why don't Pokemon look like Pokemon anymore?". People have tackled this before, and come up with easy-but-wrong answers like "because modern Pokemon are all based on real-life objects like ice cream cones" and correct-but-vague answers like "because the proportions and art style changed". Neither of which is satisfying for me. I want an answer that's quantifiable, without resorting to prejudiced generalizations.
As you can imagine, this has taken time. Currently, I have a draft that covers Gen 1 and 9, but ideally it would work through each generation, covering the design trends that emerge. I presented this draft as a panel at a local anime convention recently (shoutouts to anyone who found this blog from that!) and if people are interested I could post what I have as a work-in-progress, or maybe I'll hold off until the whole thing is done. idk
Regardless, thanks for sticking with me despite the lack of updates.
