The History that Can Be Found in Pokemon Part 2

Kinkakuji

(12/06/2017) --- Hello everyone, lets talk about Pokemon Gold and Silver; with the release of them in the Virtual Console during this year. One aspect that changed drastically on Gold & and Silver was the re-tooling of the universe setting of Pokemon itself, it was how history was rewritten to fit more the narrative of a fantastical that could be ours but it was reshaped by the events on how the Pokemon's affected the ecosystem and socioeconomic settings of that "Earth".

Burned Tower

The  Burned Tower (1) is one of the iconic locations on the second generation as it parallels the Kinkakuji or Golden Pavillion (2) in which the mythos of The Three Legendary Beasts take places as they were resurrected by a Phoenix after they perished on the tower which mimics on a certain extent Kinkakuji that burned numeros times but opposite to the tower in Pokemon, the Zen temple was reconstructed several times.

Structural and interior wise both locations are far different from each other; if we analyze the interior of the Ecruteak City there aren't any clear similar points, at least on the First Generation and Second Generation; but if we see the designs that were used on the Fourth Generation we could have an idea that the Shinden, Samurai and Zen styles were heavily influenced towards the design of the towers as if they were placed as monuments where enlightening can be achieved.

An idea of religion can be seen again, there are mostly Shintoist and Buddhist influences on the Johto region, which there is a connection towards nature and some of humans from that Johto seem to find a connection between themselves and nature, which seems to be a focal point during the gameplay of Generation 2.

Japanese Castle Plans

The towers look more similar to a castle; the evidence are more prominent on Generation Four, the main difference lies within the lore of the game that mention the towers were built to foster friendship between people and Pokemon (3) but structural wise, the tower could be seen more as a castle due the different levels, design in the hallways, the basement and exterior structure.

The towers concept remind me more of the Matsumoto Castle (4) due the content of several levels as well the last level being held by the lord of the fortress; at least in my opinion the design of the games reflects a mix version of different holds beyond the Gold Pavillion but it contains Ho-Ho on the top as the Phoenix that is seen in Kinkakuji.

One aspect that is quite interesting to see in the second generation of games is butoh (5) and kabuki which we can say is a complex form of dance theater can be seen on Ecruteak City Dance Hall and with the class trainers: Kimono Girls who handle the Eevee's as part of their dance routines but also to execute battles with any challenger.

References:

1. Web retrieved: Bulbapedia: Burned Tower - https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Burned_Tower
2. Web retrieved: Japan Guide - Kinkakuji (Golden Pavillion) - https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3908.html
3. Web retrieved: Bulbapedia: Burned Tower - https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Burned_Tower
4. Web retrieved: Wikipedia - Matsumoto Castle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsumoto_Castle
5. Web retrieved: Wikipedia - Butoh : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butoh