Gym Leader Marlon; Exclusive Photoshoot (Patreon)

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Marlon -|- Pokemon (Black/White 2)

Gym Leaders; they're basically celebrities in their setting! It's already one thing to establish a formidable team with a collection of apprentices willing to train under you, but then it's another to maintain a favorably social presence to maintain one's influence! Publicity events, hosting water based competitions, charitable acts of community service, and of course? The occasional drippy magazine interview, documented alongside provocative pin-up pieces that make fans familiar with every sea-soaked inch. Super-fans are said to pay extra for "private" alternates, and given that he's such a laid-back kind of guy, seemingly down for whatever? Hard to image he'd turn them down.  

(None of this is canon, I literally just make up whatever suits a narrative, lol.)

So funny story, about this character! Now I will preface this by saying I haven't played any recent Pokemon games and basically fell off after Sun/Moon. That said, I'm still nostalgic for a lot of the happy memories I've had with the franchise! When Black/White 2 came out? This character ended up being one of my "fixation characters" for a period. Why? BEATS THE FUCK OUTTA ME, he's there for like three minutes, has one of the easiest gyms despite being the last, and has like...four lines of dialogue. And yet? For some reason my brain just hooked into him. I think mayhaps I've always had a focused interest in beachy light-hearted hunks with oceanic themes and positive attitudes! I shit you not, this character inspired me to make Brent, the blue-haired human guy that sometimes shows up in my art, looking all nervous around the surrounding hog buffet. Brent started as a pokemon trainer character I made SPECIFICALLY to RP with people playing as Gym Leaders from the games, and then basically clap they cheeks. Marlon was the mighty white whale I sought the most, but alas, to no avail. It'd been so long I plumb forgot about that whole 'lil time period! Funny how those little memory pockets just get tucked away!