"And that was 'Exile Vilify' by The National. Good morning, everyone! This is Super Nerd Bob of the Variety Channel and you are now listening to the very first broadcast of 'The Super Nerd Show!'
"The Pokémon world is a very strange place, isn't it? There are uncertain rumors behind different Pokémon, strange locations that warrant explanations, and some pretty famous people of whom we know little about. Well… starting with today, I am going to bring up a thought-provoking topic for you Pokéfans out there and we are going to see if we can provide explanations for them.
"The weather is stormy with a whole plethora of questions at the Super Nerd Kingdom today so let's get down on our first simple topic: the design of the Poké Ball!
"Now some of us know different ways in which Poké Balls are constructed, the most commonly known method being hollowing out Apricorns. But what inspired that red-and-white design of the modern Poké Ball?
"If you ask me, let's take a look at this Pokémon species called Foongus. If you have never heard of it, that is because it is neither native in Kanto or Johto. Foongus is a small mushroom Pokémon with a peculiar little trait: its cap looks exactly like the modern-day Poké Ball! It maintains this cap as it evolves into Amoonguss and sprouts two arms ending with flat shields that resemble-you guessed it-Poké Balls.
"And of course, there is evidence to suggest that this same design is older than we think; some of them date back to when Pokélantis was still standing. The Pyramid King himself, Brandon, has managed to recover a stone orb that looks like just a Poké Ball. It's too bad this little relic is not going to be exhibited anytime soon, what with ghostly possessions going on lately. But luckily, he kept a photograph! It resembles the pattern on Foongus's cap, only it is that aged gray color. Do you know where the ruins are now? Why, our own Pewter City!
"And for those of you nearing Pewter City, I heard that the Pewter Museum of Science is holding an exhibition of ancient devices used to contain Pokémon back then just like we do today. Included in the exhibition is a small tour of the ruins of Pokélantis themselves, so I seriously recommend you check this out while you're in town. And no, don't worry… I don't think they are just going to put in strange objects without inspecting them first. So for those kiddies who are expecting giant Pokémon fights to occur right in the museum… sorry to disappoint you.
"But back to my point: could it be that the original inventor of the Poké Ball, centuries or maybe millennia back, has a certain fondness for that little mushroom Pokémon? Hopefully, we will find the answers soon.
"Now Bob, why are you not suggesting that Voltorb might have inspired the design? The answer is simple, my fellow nerds: does Voltorb look like a Pokémon that occurs in nature? Not only it thrives on electricity, it hangs around power plants. I don't think there are power plants in ancient kingdoms. I wonder where they came from in the first place? Well, that's a question for another day.
"Thanks for listening, everyone! If you have some topics you wanted to bring up for discussion, you can text TOPIC to 7653 and we'll give you a call. You can also leave comments on the Variety Channel's Pokébook account. Stay tuned for Buena's Password coming up in a few minutes, and I'll see you fellow nerds out there next week!"
"The Variety Channel that's a treasure chest filled with laughter and tears!"
This is my first shot at a fanfic that has no structured plot. Being a huge fan of Pokémon myself (and also a critic), I often find flaws and oddities with the Pokémon world that tend to haunt me. It could be a disturbing trait about a certain Pokémon or a big, gaping plot hole left forgotten. Either way, I find it really fun to debate on these kinds of topics.
And for those of you who picked up on the Portal 2 reference, I salute you.