The Pokemon Crystal Haunter evolution finally happened. Episode 11 of Gotta Catch ‘Em All with Jess and Break was never going to be the Morty rematch. After Gengar wiped the whole team two weeks ago, the plan was simple: grind, catch what we could, and get Maul some levels. We got the levels. We also got a brand new Pokemon out of it.
## A Grind Night Around Ecruteak
We opened licking our wounds and picked a direction. East out of Ecruteak there was a free Ultra Ball sitting on the ground and a cave that does not need Flash. The first wild Pokemon in there was a Marill, and he went down without much fuss. Naming is back on the host and guest list, so he is Bob. Chat had Mary ready as the next option.
The cave also handed us a Zubat that confused Maul, a Golbat that hit way harder than expected, and a Noctowl that previewed what Hoot will become someday. Noctowl is part Dark, which Jess pointed out is bad news for a ghost. Fenris showed up around then with his usual greeting, something about more death, and started feeding Maul (the human one, currently in Japan) tips on where to find cheap retro consoles in Akihabara.
West of town was better for trainers. Beauty Olivia brought out a Corsola, which got Jess talking about the regional variants in newer games and a certain dead coral reef ghost form. Schoolboy Chad had a Mr. Mime. A Meowth hunt ended badly because Fenris the Onix does not know how to hold back. Then a Slowpoke nearly ended Grimace with confusion, Logan the Wooper came in to take the hit, and somehow survived. Logan learned a new move for his trouble.
The scariest moment of the night was not a wild Pokemon. Somewhere past the hour mark we walked into a surprise rival fight with a team that was not healed. We won. Break’s heart rate did not.
## Maul Evolves Into Haunter
Around forty-three minutes in, with no warning, the evolution animation kicked off. Maul the Gastly is now a Pokemon Crystal Haunter. Break knew it was coming at some point but did not know when, so the reaction was real. Haunter is Break’s favorite of the run so far, and it changes the math for Morty. Night Shade does real damage now. Lick is still on the list because it is funny.
Fenris made an offer in chat right after: send him the save file and he will trade Maul to a Gengar and back. In Crystal, Gengar only exists through a trade, so that is the only way to get there. Break said yes. We will see if it happens before the rematch.
Before heading home we took a phone call from Anthony the hiker. Dunsparce swarm in Dark Cave. That meant a trip across Johto, back past the Ruins of Alph, and pulling Useless the Bellsprout out of the PC because he still knows Flash and Cut. The Dunsparce took a couple of Hypnosis attempts and one Great Ball. Her name is Mary, which is also the name of Jess’s sister. Jess is going to tell her.
Fenris added the lore afterward: Dunsparce is based on the Tsuchinoko, a Japanese cryptid sometimes called the bee snake, which explains the stinger. We also tried for a Stantler on the way back. Three balls, no luck, so Grimace smogged him. He could have had a good name.
Off the game, Jess spent her weekend ghost hunting in Atchison, Kansas, with a tea leaf reading at Ravenhurst Manor and an EMF reader at the train depot. The full story is coming Wednesday on The Game Show, but the short version is that the spirit box said “yes” right after her dad brought up Zak Bagans. Break was sick in bed most of the weekend and sounds like it. Also covered: the new service replacing Marvel Unlimited, a new Pokecology book, Vision Quest, the 1998 Pokemon movie, and the Warner Bros. and Paramount merger.
Next week is Morty, round two. If you have a strategy for a Haunter against a Gengar, leave it in the comments. No spoilers past Ecruteak.
Catch up with Episode 10 for the loss that started all this, or the compilation of the first 10 hours if you are new here.
Pokemon streams every Monday at 6:00 PM Central. The Game Show airs Wednesdays at 9:00 PM Central on the BreakmanX YouTube channel.
