Don't ask why I decided to randomly blog about this now...
but anytime I look at anything related to Pokemon, it reminds me of my scarred passion for the series, scarred from the last experience I had playing at a league. The DS game I wouldn't mind if I had the cash, and maybe the TCG. On a competitive scale, I have the desire but not the resources. My last experience was against a kid who was probably a competitive Organized Play regular. It wasn't the fact that he was using a well-tuned top tier deck easily whipping me with my old busted one, it was the immaturity of his 8 other friends hovering so close around our game, pointing out subtle turn play errors and not making the game any fun. Almost drove me to just give up and walk away. I could have complained to the gym leader, but at the time I was so frustrated that I didn't think anything he could do would help resolve the issue.
Though my passion as a fan and player has been pretty bruised up by the immaturity of the players I've met, I know not all are obsessively uber-competitive, hyped up brats. Some are parents still trying to learn the game. Like any hobby, it all revolves around how much you want to spend on it (and having the job to generate the funds in the first place) and if its worth your time. the series IMO is evolving a little too fast. Despite my scars from competitive play, my spirit as a fan hasn't been broken. If I cosplay any Pokemon or human character at all, it's going to be from 1st or 2nd generation. I'm not crying to anyone for help, I'm just venting an issue that's been like a needle in my brain every time I think about Pokemon cosplay or play any of the older games.