History Webcomic / Pogeymanz

*** This actually became a major point brought up by a recent (October 2014) reviewer in his review of the comic as one of the comic's most glaring inconsistencies, as [No Name] received a "Pokémon translator" in one of the first pages but Hitmonchan blatantly ignores the development while Shadowkilla762 and /b/bat ''still'' speak with parentheses. However, if one pays attention, [[FridgeBrilliance all Pokémon except Hitmonchan, Registeel, and Alakazam are ''never'' coherently responded to by any human other than the protagonist]]. (Well, except for the one time when Nidoking conversed with its master, but that was a hiatus page) It could be that Registeel and Alakazam can communicate via telepathy while Hitmonchan learned English à la anime Meowth.

* ToneShift: Although the comic generally keeps a zany, off-the-walls tone with its humor, the later pages have grown exceedingly more comfortable with becoming DarkerAndEdgier with its humor. "Faint" is no longer the worst that can happen, [[spoiler: apart from the one time when [No Name] kills a godly being [[WesternAnimation/SouthPark named Kenny]]]], and in one scene the villain instructs a few lackeys to ''arrange their suicides''. The author seemed to largely avoid BlackComedy in the earlier pages.
** Notably gone starting with "A Return to Form" (Page 53), from which point the author seems to have... well, returned to form. WordOfGod says that the Registeel campaign of the game (which is being made concurrently with the comic as of Page 53) is the main reason for this, as that campaign is being written for the audience the comic originally intended to cater to.

It is also notable for the fact that each individual page is freaking HUGE, being 3 panels wide and between 20 and 30 panels high. As a result, you get a slightly different experience than with other comics; instead of being hit with one punchline each page, you get hit with several punchlines at a breakneck pace, with a fair share missing the mark due to the sheer volume of gags. In fact, the comic's pages feel less like an actual comic and more like a storyboard for an animated series, with much of the main laughs coming from punchlines that get built up to (and the buildup is often laden with zip-gags).

* CrapsaccharineWorld: The comic's world maintains a generally bubbly and happy atmosphere seen in the Pokémon games, until the details get revealed:

* AuthorFilibuster: Not as bad as some other webcomics, but at one point the author clearly displays his hatred for the clichés of overly popular webcomics.
** It's more that he hates that including particular clichés in your comic tends to make the comic automatically popular (and that having prior popularity as an author almost always guarantees an audience regardless of the comic's actual quality).
** It's never actually stated by a characterized manifestation of the author. It's also presented as a normal conversation between two people, so this is an aversion.

* AWizardDidIt: ''Possibly'' played straight. The protagonist is magically teleported home by a random Alakazam without any explanation.

** In a recent comic, two combatants in a battle use Confuse Ray--only one of them has their Pokémon use "''all'' the Confuse Rays", which hits everyone in the room, including [No Name]. The resulting experience is... [[http://pogeymanz.smackjeeves.com/comics/1981474/things-part-3/ well, see for yourself]].

''[[http://pogeymanz.smackjeeves.com Pogeymanz]]'' is a sprite comic made by Ultimate Ridley and primarily hosted on [[http://www.smackjeeves.com Smack Jeeves]], with Ultimate Ridley recently releasing the pages daily on deviantART as well. It is notable for its extremely satirical nature, with some pretty deep allegories buried underneath a [[MindRape very random and screwed up outer shell]].

* ItemGet: Played with in "[[http://pogeymanz.smackjeeves.com/comics/703801/the-safari-zone/ The Safari Zone]]". [No Name] gets a hold of the Warden's dentures (found in an incredibly open area) and delivers a panel-wide monologue basically detailing how one normally gets items in The Legend of Zelda games.

* ProductionThrowback: The movie producer in Page 60 briefly describes the previous two projects helmed by Mr. Director Guy, who is begging for a new movie deal. The descriptions are basically exact synopses of Ultimate Ridley's first two sprite comics, [[http://arkthecomic.smackjeeves.com ARK]] and [[http://buttshot.smackjeeves.com Buttshot]] (be warned, Ultimate Ridley [[OldShame often advises against reading these comics]] if you hate crude humor).

** Not to mention, the movie. We're not sure exactly how much of [No Name]'s journey has been filmed, we just know that [[AwardSnub it didn't win the Oscar]].

* ButtMonkey: [No Name] can be downright ''cruel'' to a number of recurring characters who have only mildly wronged him or inconvenienced him in past encounters. The cameraman Stephen Talker gets the worst of it all, being painted as mostly incompetent (he doesn't know how to give interviewees space and ''always'' forgets to remove the lens cap) and getting his ass handed to him by Hitmonchan every single time he appears in the comic.

* ScheduleSlip: The comic never truly had a defined schedule, but updating has decreased significantly. Especially considering the vast majority of the pages thus far (about 40 out of the total ~55) were produced at a breakneck pace during late 2009 (September-December, to be precise, with September and October getting the highest volume of releases).
** As of September 2013, however, the creator is working on the comic some more, with four new pages completed (three of which are currently posted).

* ToneShift: Although the comic generally keeps a zany, off-the-walls tone with its humor, the later pages have grown exceedingly more comfortable with becoming DarkerAndEdgier with its humor. "Faint" is no longer the worst that can happen, [[spoiler: apart from the one time when [No Name] kills a godly being [[SouthPark named Kenny]]]], and in one scene the villain instructs a few lackeys to ''arrange their suicides''. The author seemed to largely avoid BlackComedy in the earlier pages.

* ShoutOut: More than a few. One later page has a parody of ''BreakingBad'' (called "''Aching'' Bad").

** As of September 2013, however, the creator is working on the comic some more, with two new pages completed (one of which is currently posted).

** Well, maybe not. She kind of babbles about something or other in "Skehwy Ghosty Tower, Part 3" and breaks down when she's asked to socialize with a construction worker. Then again, these might just be little quirks and flaws.

* ToneShift: Although the comic generally keeps a zany, off-the-walls tone with its humor, the later pages have grown exceedingly more comfortable with becoming DarkerAndEdgier with its humor. "Faint" is no longer the worst that can happen, and in one scene the villain instructs a few lackeys to ''arrange their suicides''. The author seemed to largely avoid BlackComedy in the earlier pages.

** Geodude also seems to have a British-ish accent that oscillates between Cockney and Londoner.

* HalloweenSpecial: The main punchline is both scary and hilarious, but only if you read all of the comics prior.
* HotSkittyOnWailordAction: Played straight in one of the drawn specials.
** The drawn special in question cannot be found at Smack Jeeves, for unknown reasons. It is currently only hosted at DeviantArt. To find it, visit [[http://ultimateridley.deviantart.com/art/Pogeymanz-Special-Drawn-Comic3-181075327 this link]] (links directly to it).
*** DeviantArt is '''''not''''' the best place to find all of the comics. Ultimate Ridley never posted the "canon" comics on DA past the twentieth-ish issue (there are about fifty of them on Smack Jeeves). The only comic to find there that is exclusive to DA is the third drawn special (the other two are on both Smack Jeeves and DA).
** It's speculated that Ultimate Ridley does not post the third drawn special on SJ because of its absurdly dark content. Even though his fans clearly show no dislike for pushing the envelope quite a bit for a PG comic, which it already does.
* ItemGet: Played somewhat straight.
* KillItWithFire: [No Name] is the victim of a crazy pyromaniac. Averted, because the pyro did not express any intentions to kill him.

** Even though the author earlier claimed it would be more frequent. Apparently he decided to really dumb it down because people complain about it. This troper assumes those who complain cannot read poorly ciphered English.

* PunnyName: A lot. Most are names of Team Nubzorz admins.
** Examples: Miss Nub E. Cake, Noobat, Lolbat, Lady Trollicus, Mr. Forchan. Oh, and one of [No Name]'s given names is Anon E. Mouse.

* ScheduleSlip: The comic never truly had a defined schedule, but updating has decreased significantly.

* YouLookFamiliar: Many characters cause this.

It is also notable for the fact that each individual page is freaking HUGE, being 3 panels wide and between 20 and 30 panels high. As a result, you get a slightly different experience than with other comics; instead of being hit with one punchline each page, you get hit with several punchlines at a breakneck pace, with a fair share missing the mark due to the sheer volume of gags. In fact, the comic's pages feel less like an actual comic and more like a storyboard for an animated series, with much of the main laughs coming from punchlines that get built up to (and the buildup is often laden with zip-gags). [[YourMileageMayVary Whether or not this is a bad thing is entirely dependent on who you ask.]]

''[[http://pogeymanz.smackjeeves.com Pogeymanz]]'' is a sprite comic made by Ultimate Ridley and primarily hosted on [[http://www.smackjeeves.com Smack Jeeves]] (though it appears on other sites as well, Smack Jeeves is the only site to host all of the episodes). It is notable for its extremely satirical nature, with some pretty deep allegories buried underneath a [[MindRape very random and screwed up outer shell]].

The plot is, at first, coherent with the canon games', but derails rather quickly to become its own. For one, the main character's starter Pokémon is a freaking ''Kabutops'' at ''level 5''. The plot as a whole is one big MindScrew, but deliciously so.

The comic's primary criticism is the randomness, because [[TheyJustDontGetIt some people aren't looking hard enough]]. That, or they hate sprite comics in general and are biased against them, in which case they really are in no position to criticize this comic at all (since their complaints would be the same regardless of the sprite comic they're criticizing). Oh, and the length of each individual comic. Many exceed 30 panels each. Most critics against this tend to quote Shakespeare ("[[Administrivia/BrevityIsWit brevity is the soul of wit]]"), but many critics view the large size as respectably ambitious, since most other webcomics update with no more than six panels.

The major characters include:
* [No Name]: The protagonist. The character really doesn't have a clear name, but the comic calls him by several names, and depending on which character you ask, his nickname can be Kenny Killer, Turd Boy, mah boi, or laddy. Despite the supposed anonymity, however, he is pretty developed as a character, filling the "stupid kid with a few moments of brilliance" archetype quite nicely. He actually shows little interest in fighting the bad guys, too. His appearance is akin to Riley from the Pokémon games, but recolored brown.
* Clair (spelled "Claire" in the comic): The actual Johto gym leader appears as a character in the form of a secret agent bent on foiling the bad guys' plans. Not introduced until later.
* Bob: A Psycho With a Heart of Gold. He is the professor's lab assistant. Apparently, he "likes his balls" (he repeatedly shouts 'BALLZ' at random intervals). [[IThoughtItMeant It's not what it sounds like, though]]. He also has the ability to sense and track down pedophiles, and can determine someone's "nubbiness" level. He also [[BadAss has a flamethrower]].

And more. There are also plenty of minor characters.

The bad team is an organization of noobs aptly called "Team Nubzorz".

The comic is rated PG (going by North American standards), but it is very much a hard PG. [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar And even then]].

* How could you forget the Pokémon?
* Kabutops: Actually nicknamed "Shadowkilla762" (though he despises the name), Kabutops is a sad, depressed soul. Mostly because [No Name] ignores his pleas to visit the Name Rater. Because of his depression, he likes to cut things.
* Noobat-Lolbat-/b/bat: A Noob Forme of the Zubat evolutionary line. Undeniably the least developed Pokémon (of [No Name]'s team at least), it's implied that it is a master noob.
* Hitmonchan: Arguably the most popular character in the comic. Basically just an Irish Hitmonchan. Sounds basic, but it's executed extremely well.

He also picks up a few more, but really, he can't top Irish Hitmonchan. No one can.

The comic is currently on yet another hiatus, but the author expresses interest in completing it.

Also has a game that is currently under development: [[Game.Pogeymanz]]

* TheGame: The author has been working on a game for this comic for quite a while; he's developing it in GameMaker. It's an overhead platformer, and is divided into several different storylines, each with their own levels and gameplay mechanics. Each one seems to get more complex in terms of gameplay.
** You play as Kabutops/Shadowkilla762 in the first campaign. He wakes up in the Valley of Noobs and must endure the many obstacles [[spoiler: Devinus]] has laid out for him. Kabutops can literally do nothing other than walk and die, but there are other mechanics such as ice, sand, and clever use of a Torkoal.
** The second campaign [[spoiler: which can be unlocked from the beginning by typing 'HIT' on the title screen]] has you playing as Irish Hitmonchan. You wake up in a cave and decide to follow your wits to find where your laddy has gone. This campaign is considerably more complex than the Kabutops one, with Hitmonchan being able to punch and dash plus the frequent use of JRPG-style cutscenes (which are absent in the Kabutops campaign) and substantially more unique bosses.
** The author is currently working on a third campaign in which you play as Registeel. According to the author, gameplay will be much more puzzle-based and engaging, with Registeel being able to dash (with an added momentum mechanic), fire a charge-able Flash Cannon attack, and analyze objects and enemies to determine their weakness. However, like with the comic, development of this campaign has apparently slowed in more recent months.
** The author also plans to make a campaign featuring the Carbos-addicted Garchomp.

* BreakingTheFourthWall: Done sometimes.

The comic's primary criticism is the randomness, because [[TheyJustDontGetIt some people aren't looking hard enough]]. That, or they hate sprite comics in general and are biased against them, in which case they really are in no position to criticize this comic at all (since their complaints would be the same regardless of the sprite comic they're criticizing). Oh, and the length of each individual comic. Many exceed 30 panels each. Most critics against this tend to quote Shakespeare ("[[BrevityIsWit brevity is the soul of wit]]"), but many critics view the large size as respectably ambitious, since most other webcomics update with no more than six panels.