Revising

Before:

The written text on the image is very interesting. PETA’s name is at the top, indicating that they are the ones with the message. The word Pokémon is in its usual, familiar font. The words “Black and Blue” refer to the version of the Pokémon game. Every time a new Pokémon game is released, they come out with two different versions, usually by the name of a color or gem such as Soul Silver and Heart Gold. But it seems as if PETA has chosen the name “Black and Blue” on purpose. The words “Black and Blue” put an image of bruises in your mind when reading it because typically, bruises are black or blue. It also helps your mind connect the words to bruises because the words are colored in a gradient manner with blue, purple, and black. Then lastly, the famous quote almost everyone knows “Gotta Catch ‘Em All!” is changed to “Gotta Free ‘Em All!” on this image. Just by the text it self, you can tell that PETA does not like Pokémon. This clearly a spin off game from the original Pokémon because everything is written in the same font and they even have the two different versions listed. But one of the key things that gives away a feeling that PETA does not like the game Pokémon is the quote on the bottom stating “Gotta Free ‘Em all”. Since PETA is all about protecting animals and their rights, they probably do not like the fact that in the original Pokémon game, one of the main goals is to capture all of the Pokémon.

The visual above depicts four popular Pokémon: Oshawott, Snivy, Tepig, and Pikachu. But this is not the familiar cute Pokémon most of us remember. All four of them seem so be wounded. Oshawott, the one with the white head, appears to have been skinned or his fur was ripped off. Snivy, the green snaking looking one, has a needle sticking out of his head and a tag on him. This is probably showing that Snivy is being tested on like lab animals. Tepig, the brown pig looking one, has his ears bit off and a bloody paw print of his face most likely indicating some type of dogfight. Pikachu, the yellow mouse, is chained up and wounded. Based on just the visuals, it seems as if PETA is trying to get a very strong message across, the message that animal cruelty is not ok. Also, PETA’s name is surrounded by a puddle of what looks to be red blood and the Pokémon logo is bordered by harsh looking metal that is what Pikachu is chained to. Because PETA is all about protecting animals’ rights, I think this image is trying to convey that the game Pokémon has animal abuse in it. In the original game, you must battle your own Pokemon against other people’s Pokémon in order to become a stronger Pokémon trainer. PETA probably hates this fact about the game.

Together, the visuals and the text create a powerful message that PETA is trying to get across. They do not like the fact that Pokémon is about battling animals to become a stronger trainer. This is conveyed by the horrible condition that the Pokémon above are in show that PETA thinks the game Pokémon is like dog fighting, where the dog that kills the other dog is the winner. When I view Pikachu chained to the text Pokémon, it almost seems as if PETA feels like in the original Pokémon game, the Pokémon might be forced in one spot for a long time. They could be referring to the fact that when Pokémon are not fighting, they are stuck in a little pokéballs all day. This is easily relatable to dog fights where after the dogs fight, they are just chained up and ignored until the next fight. According to PETA’s Pokémon Black and Blue Gotta Free ‘Em All “The amount of time that Pokémon spend stuffed in pokéballs is akin to how elephants are chained up in train carts, waiting to be let out to “perform” in circuses”. The page for their spoof Pokémon game also talks about the fact that the original Pokémon game tries to hide the horrors of animal torture buy covering it up with images of cute Pokémon.

After:

The written text on the image helps to portray a bigger message than just the image alone. “PETA” is written at the top, indicating that they are the organization with the message. The Pokémon logo is in its usual, familiar font so that it won’t be mistaken for something else. The words “Black and Blue” are written in the middle and refer to the version of the Pokémon game. Every time a new Pokémon game is released, they come out with two different versions, usually by the name of a color or gem such as Soul Silver and Heart Gold. But it seems as if PETA has chosen the name “Black and Blue” for a certain reason. The words “Black and Blue” put an idea of bruises in your mind when reading it because typically, bruises are black or blue. It also helps your mind connect the words to bruises because the words are colored in a gradient manner with blue, purple, and black so there is no missing that connection. Then lastly, the famous quote almost everyone knows from their childhood “Gotta Catch ‘Em All!” is changed to “Gotta Free ‘Em All!” on this image. Just by looking at the text itself, you can tell that PETA does not enjoy Pokémon. This clearly a spin off game from the original Pokémon because everything is written in the same font and they even have the two different versions listed. But one of the key things that gives away a certain feeling that PETA does not support the game Pokémon is the quote on the bottom stating “Gotta Free ‘Em all”. The text is not the only thing that shows PETA’s feelings towards animal cruelty and the game Pokemon.

The visual above from a screen shot of PETA’s spoof Pokemon game depicts four popular Pokémon: Oshawott, Snivy, Tepig, and Pikachu. But this is not the familiar cute Pokémon most of us will remember. All four of the Pokemon seem so be wounded in some way or another. Oshawott, the one with the white head, appears to have been skinned or his fur was ripped off. Snivy, the green snaking looking creature, has a needle sticking out of his head and a ID tag on him. This is probably showing that Snivy is being tested on like lab animals. Tepig, the brown pig looking creature, has his ears bit off and a bloody paw print of his face most likely indicating that he was involved in some type of dogfight. Pikachu, the yellow mouse creature, is chained up and wounded. Based on just the visuals alone, it seems as if PETA is trying to get a very strong message across, the message that animal cruelty is not ok. Also, PETA’s name is surrounded by a puddle of what looks to be red blood and the Pokémon logo is bordered by harsh looking metal that is what Pikachu is chained to. Because PETA is all about protecting animals’ rights, I think this image is trying to convey that the game Pokémon has animal abuse in it and it gets the attention of a lot of viewers. In the original game, you must battle your own Pokemon against other people’s Pokémon in order to become a stronger Pokémon trainer. PETA probably hates this fact about the game. But what the visuals and the text do together really brings the meaning of the screen shot together.

Together, the visuals and the text create a powerful message that PETA is trying to get across. They do not like the fact that Pokémon is about battling animals to become a stronger trainer. Only the trainer is benefiting, not the animal. This is conveyed by the horrible and sad condition that the Pokémon above are in. It shows that PETA thinks the game Pokémon is like dog fighting, where the dog that kills the other dog is the winner. When I view Pikachu chained to the text Pokémon, it almost seems as if PETA feels like in the original Pokémon game, the Pokémon might be forced in one spot for a long time. They could be referring to the fact that when Pokémon are not fighting, they are stuck in a little pokéballs all day, just like some dogs are chained to a tree all day. According to PETA’s Pokémon Black and Blue Gotta Free ‘Em All “The amount of time that Pokémon spend stuffed in pokéballs is akin to how elephants are chained up in train carts, waiting to be let out to “perform” in circuses”. The page for their spoof Pokémon game also talks about the fact that the original Pokémon game tries to hide the horrors of animal torture buy covering it up with images of cute Pokémon.