Legit one of the hardest battles in the whole series. And in the remakes they made Cynthia even harder by giving her team the stats of competitive Pokemon. 😵💫
@@JessesAuditoriumyou'd be right! She's very kind but is able to turn on the serious switch, so as you can imagine with her being the champion, having an awesome design, and being involved in the stories of multiple Pokémon games since her debut in D/P/P, she's a fan favorite
@@JessesAuditorium you can kinda think of her as having the attitide that politicians pretend they have. Care about the country, it's people, and it's history. Especially the history part she's a big history buff.
@@JessesAuditorium Cynthia is like the cool big sister that you could always rely on to have everything figured out. She's the champion of the Sinnoh region and is an insanely formidable final fight in the 4th Gen games.
My childhood... :D To answer some questions: The piano melody plays when you enter the room before her fight begins. Volo is her ancestor because Legends Arceus takes place in the same region, in the distant past, hence why they share the motif. Diamond/Pearl came out first, Platinum is kind of an "enhanced" version with the exclusive Pokemon from both games and some added content, but it's the same game for the most part.
@@JessesAuditorium You said you played Yellow as a Child. In Gen 1-4 There were allways a 3rd enhanced Game which came a Bit later: Yellow, Crystal, Emerald, Platinum
@@JessesAuditorium also team composition. When you fight volo, you get a taste with the opening piano riff - then as soon as the battle begins he sends out a spiritomb just like cynthia. As you go through the fight - you learn that volo's 6 pokemon and cynthia's 6 pokemon are almost identical lol. Causing many freakout "I'm in danger" moments from lets players.
Theres probably a lot of people that are filled with dread as soon as they hear Cynthia’s encounter theme, as she’s one of the most iconic and notoriously difficult Champions. As was noted, Legends Arceus is a prequel set in the distant past of the same region that DP/Platinum is set in. Volo is Cynthia’s ancestor from that time, hence them having that same musical motif and even having a clear physical resemblance to one another. For me the contrast between Cynthia’s encounter and battle themes actually matches her character quite well. As outside of Pokemon battles she’s a kind, polite person, yet in battles she’s brutal.
Cynthia is a genuine sweetheart when shes just walking around, one of the most kindhearted characters in the pokemon universe. and then you challenge her to battle and suddenly you're facing a woman with absolutely zero holds barred and not a DROP of remorse as she shreds your team to pieces LMAO
The "Encounter" part of the song is something most trainers have in these games. It's typically played when they spot you in the overworld to challenge you to a battle. In Cynthias case, it's when you enter the Champion room. Then as it transitions to the battle scene and the battle theme plays. The way Cynthias battle theme starts makes the transition extra sick imo.
Cynthia is the champion and probably the hardest one in the series. As you walk into her arena the intro plays which is just such an intimidating set-up. There's also a later entry where she appears as a super boss. You walk into a random house in a beach town and this music starts playing, with her standing ominously at the opposite side of the room. Terrifying stuff!
The only champion (imo) that you face during a title match that compares to her is Kieran from the Indigo Disk DLC. Highest level team during a champion fight, as well as being competitively viable.
I get the foreign but nostalgic. I mean, there's a clear continuity of Pokemon music - I feel you can usually tell that something is meant to be a loopable pokemon battle theme? - but it's foreign because it's still flavoured with the generation... the soundfont, the vibe of the region (similar instruments or genres), all sorts of things that stand out. Same thing with the design language of pokemon designs or such. And yeah Cynthia oh baby Cynthia. Legit likely still the strongest champion of the series. What makes this infamous is, yeah, Wielder Volo is Cynthia's ancestor, and their theme is a remix of Cynthia's encounter. Why the encounter? Because Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, she's the 'story final boss' (as the League Champion) and was terrifying. But then in generation 5 (Black/White, one gen later) there's a surprise battle that you are NOT prepared for, heralded by THAT ENCOUNTER THEME. THAT second encounter is probably what turned her from a "Ok that was a tough fight! cool!" to
@@JessesAuditorium I shit you not, a completely different Pokemon game has a random house where she is staying on vacation, and the piano starts playing the MOMENT you enter. Literal jumpscare. You can even fight her and it plays her theme.
It’s even funnier because there’s like, 0 indication or hint that she might even be in the game at all, considering it even takes place in a different country. The game just slaps you in the face with her for being nosy.
Cynthia was so popular she got to make a cameo appearance in Black and White as well where you can also battle her as a kind of bonus boss fight, you just come across her house at random and her piano theme just starts playing.
The Encounter Theme was composed and arranged by Go Ichinose. The Battle Theme was composed an arranged by Junichi Masuda! =D But there's many, _many_ more versions of this track, not just Hitomi Sato's arrangement for Volo in Legends Arceus! ^^
Ah Cynthia, the terror of her and, because of how much the developers know the impact, future pokemon generations, a champion who used an incredibly diverse team with good coverage. A big factor leading into why she became so notorious was the lack of information available at the time due to this being early DS, so social media wasn't really a thing yet. Combined with her team being the aces from 2 of the strongest gym leaders in the game and a 3rd being from the last game's champion, a super rare egg evolution that required an item only 2 could be obtained in the game, a no weakness (at the time) opener who could only be obtained by a convoluted hidden technique that hadn't yet been discovered, and then her ace being a psudeo-legendary that would go on to wreck havoc on the competitive meta, and you begin to see why she was such a hard fight, one many people lost against numerous times. Add her encounter theme playing every time you reached her again, and it became burned into the minds of those who endured on, becoming the sound of dread and impending defeat.
Social media was a huge thing at the time. What are you talking about? This was the era of Livejournal and MySpace, to say nothing of how Bulbagarden and Serebii's message boards were up and running.
@@BJGvideos Yeah but that was more for the older teens and adults. As a late middle schooler we used the internet solely to download images and go to official sources for info. No one knew about much of anything for a large part of those who got the game
I had never thought about the effect that Spiritomb would have had back in the day. I think the first time you see one is in this fight, so you'd go 'what the heck is that it looks terrifying' and then, to your horror, you discover that it has NO weaknesses
Cynthia is one of the nicest people in the franchise, yet her Pokémon team is amongst the strongest there have ever been, in the anime, she went undefeated for FIFTEEN YEARS and not for a lack of trying, she was officially the second strongest trainer in the world (I call BS, no way the no. 1 was actually stronger than her), her Garchomp was so powerful, so feared that in the battle before Ash defeated her, when Garchomp entered the field, literal gregorian chants played, that thing was a Dark Souls boss.
Pokemon Diamond and Pearl came out in 2007 for the Nintendo DS. Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum make up the main games of Generation 4. Platinum is an enhanced 3rd version of the first two, coming out later and adding new content, as well as fixing up some problems with the engine that made DP play kind of slowly in battles. Platinum is one of my favorite main series Pokemon games. There's just so much to love about it. As for composers, Go Ichinose composed the encounter music, and Junichi Masuda composed the battle music. (Hitomi Sato also did a lot of music for Diamond and Pearl, but did not work on either of these songs).
Cynthia is an absolutely terrifying opponent; one of if not *the* most difficult Champion battles in the series' history. There was an old meme that went around when I was in my early 20s (I'm mid 30s now) that you couldn't find her battle theme on youtube without the 'low health alert' sound also playing in the background. The music is chaotic because the fight is chaotic. Cynthia's encounter embodies the saying "No plan survives contact with the enemy."
Just to help clarify if there's some ambiguity. The Encounter/Battle theme split is based on how the game plays out. Before a battle with a trainer, there is *some* amount of talking they do as a preamble; even if it's simply a Youngster telling you "I like shorts. They're comfy and easy to wear!" More important trainers get more dialog and may have scripted sequences of sprite movement or whatnot. This preamble is the "Encounter" where a small loop tune plays. Then that gives way to the actual battle itself, which carries its own music.
I love Cynthia so much. When people talk about "Well designed and written female characters" in games she is my number 1. She kicks so much ass but is still caring when she needs to be.
One of the coolest battle themes in the series. Dpp doesn’t have my favorite soundtrack of the ds era, but there are some bangers in there. I love that drum ostinato so much, it really drives the battle theme. Idk if I would be so bold as to call this my fav champion theme, but if it isn’t it’s very damn close.
What’s so funny about Cynthia is that initially she doesn’t look like the type that would have such chaos music or a stacked team that would rock your shit. When you first meet her she’s basically just a history buff and mythology nerd and “oh yeah I’m also the champion of Sinnoh and one of the strongest trainers like ever but that’s not really important did you know that back in ancient times-“
Shoutouts to Truegreen7 for the request of an all time classic Pokémon song as well as for being a great content creator. If you’re seeing this keep it up dude! Same to you Jesse since you give some of my favorite osts the love they deserve.
Hey, to explain Volo/Cynthia Volo is the ancestor of Cynthia ; and most people will probably tell you they used Cynthia Encounter them as a Battle theme for Volo However, the part less people know is the Cynthia Battle Theme is Volo Encounter Theme ; there was actually a full swap Diamond/Pearl are the original version of the game ; Platinum is the "deluxe" version, sorta The Pokemon you see behind Cynthia is named Garchomp ; it is her ace and a Pokemon that was so good it could rival with the legendary pokemon - meaning you couldn't just sweep her with overpowered Pokemon ; making her one of the hardest fight in the game that most people actually lose the 1st time ; making the "Encounter" music that much more impactful
You said you played Yellow. That is basically to Red and Blue what Platinum is to Diamond and Pearl; a version released after that is essentially the enhanced version. It started with Yellow being more like the show, but then we got Crystal for Gold and Silver, Emerald for Ruby and Sapphire, Platinum for Diamond and Pearl, etc., which was more centered around a certain legendary Pokemon of that generation, providing new areas, story, and Pokemon (never played Crystal so not sure what that one adds exactly).
Most of the Pokemon games get a third version with some minor updates and content later. That's what yellow was to red/blue. There's also crystal for gold/silver, emerald for ruby/sapphire, and platinum for diamond/pearl, etc
Cynthia is a Champion, the final fight in a pokemon game, and even as far as Champions go shes one of if not THE hardest one. Her encounter theme is iconic not just because it sounds cool but because she appears in another game in a random house post-game and that encounter theme plays right as you enter it, so a lot of people would go "oh no, cynthia"
Not sure if anyone’s mentioned this but “ wielder” is a title. Volo’s game was based in ancient times so it’s the way of calling someone a “pokemon trainer” in the past
"ancient times" dude it was only 150 years ago. It matches up with the Japanese occupation of Hokkaido. The Galaxy Hall is even based on a real building.
So yes you are right. Cynthia is wielder Volo's descendant. They even use the same pokemon team if i remember correctly. But this is my 2nd favorite champion theme if you include the lead up of the encounter music into the battle theme. My favorite is the champion from black/white 2.
No matter what game you fight Cynthia in, she always has a well-balanced team to fight you with and she takes no prisoners and gives zero f---s. Even the Sword/Shield anime made it abundantly clear. When Ash had to face her in the semifinals, she gave him the fight of his life, especially since she had access to Mega Evolution there.
This was impeccably timed. I was wondering and hoping just last week if this was somewhere on your suggestions list and I went back to playing Pokémon Brilliant Diamond today! This is one of my favourite gaming memories. Beating Cynthia for the first time. A strong female pokemon champion and she's an absolute beast with legendary music. A queen. 👑 Edit: just finished watching and came back to add: You're right in that her music may be unexpected from her look but it very much fits her champion battle in hindsight. Cynthia (especially at the time when she first released) is like a perfect Pokémon trainer. She's intelligent, diligent and kind but ruthless in battle. Her team is strong and diverse and can unpick and shred through your team really quickly. You said the music sounds chaotic and I would also argue it's intimidating and exhilarating. That's exactly the feelings Cynthia evokes when you fight her. I remember trying over and over again when I was younger to take her down. Her battle music and the alarm that plays when your Pokémon is in critical health became synonymous with one another. I got my first piano and started learning just under a week ago. Hopefully one day I'll be able to play Cynthia's encounter music! That would be epic.
Imagine if you started in Red and Blue and your very original strat of "I'll just use my over leveled starter pokemon the whole game" worked for generations 1, 2 and 3 and then suddenly stopped on the last battle of the 4th. 😂
Once I hear the piano confrontation music 😭 my heart rate go brrrr 📈. So glad they included that as a rec cause Cynthia isn't the same without her piano jumpscare of doom 😂. What I love about pokemon boss music is that no matter how intense it gets you can think while listening to them, this is a turn based strategy game afterall. Also they sound super nostalgic with their familiar construction of elements 😊
I just love how the encounter theme shows us Cynthia's mindset, how she's calm cool and collected, and then we go into the battle theme and it's utter chaos, which accurately reflects the collective experience of fighting her
Love your content, and these songs always slap. A little funny being confused by there being three versions (Diamond, Pearl, Platinum) when you mention your experience being with Yellow, which was itself the third version of it's generation (along with Red and Blue). But while all the pokemon generations up to the point of Platinum had followed the standard of two games released simultaneously followed by a third enhanced version (Red/Blue followed by Yellow, Gold/Silver followed by Crystal, Ruby/Sapphire followed by Emerald, Diamond/Pearl followed by Platinum) it was also the last game to follow this trend. The next games, Black and White, were followed up by full sequels in Black 2 and White 2. Then X and Y got nothing. Sun and Moon were followed up by Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, so two versions like Black and White got, but they were still more along the line of enhanced versions than sequels. And after that they moved to the Switch and have had any follow-ups be in the form of DLC rather than new versions. (This isn't counting full remakes, which don't seem to get a third version regardless. Those being Fire Red/Leaf Green, Heart Gold/Soul Silver, Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire, Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl, and in a not quite a remake but also definitely a remake Let's Go: Pikachu and Let's Go: Eevee.) And it seems like Legends games will only ever get one game, so even simpler (though currently we only have Legends: Arceus and the announced Legends: Z-A to go by, so it's hard to call anything a trend when you don't quite have 2 entries yet for sample size).
Cynthia's background is that she's an archaeologist who specialised in the research of ancient mythology and legendary pokemon. The region she's the champion of, Sinnoh, is directly tied to legendary pokemon who are allegories to real life deities. the gods of space, time and antimatter; below Arceus who created of the universe. (pokemon lore goes deep) being a researcher, Cynthia's team is a collection of pokemon who were extremely rare in diamond, pearl and platinum. Her battle theme feeling very anxious and foreign reflects how the player is likely to have never seen these Pokémon before. She's also potentially the strongest trainer in any of the games.
Ah yes, the piano that instilled fear into a whole generation, also my favorite character from pokemon's female cast. Her team in genuinely a nightmare to beat, especially with the fairy type not existing in the OG games. Literally the first thing she throws out at you is a pokemon who at the time had zero weaknesses. Also her ace pokemon garchomp (shown in the video) is so strong that it took till just recently for it to be kicked out of one the strongest normal competive tiers OU. Also back in the days when mega evolution was a thing, basically specific mons had a specific temporary evolution that buffed them, garchomp had one, but it was debated on if you should even use it because it nerfed its speed. Now imagine having to fight that to beat the game....especially as a small child who didn't understand mechanics. Her team was evil and the remake only made it worse by giving her mons trained stats and items. Final topic, I don't think pokemon has any legitimately "bad" music off the top of my head, but the mobile game PokemonGO has a contender. To celebrate the event of Necrozma coming to the game, they made a special remix of all its themes. Normally it sounds great, but something Niantic did bitcrushed the song to all hell. The upload I saw mentioned they had to reduce the audio decibels, and when someone asked for the original they sent it. Listening to that was pure pain and it just becomes bitcrushed noise after a bit...
If you ever get the chance, you should play the generation 1-5 games! They are definitely the best games in the series with so much care going into the gameplay and music. As someone who started with generation 2, I would say generation is the peak of the mainline pokemon games! Glad to hear you reacting to the music!
The first time a battle in Pokemon had difficulty and cannot be easily brute forced. Until then, most games you'd probably be overleveled by the time you get to the champion. But not only are her pokemon quite high level for somebody playing the game organically, but they're chosen strategically. She's also probably the most memorable champion because she has a job outside of the league, a renowned archaeologist in the world of pokemon who probably knows the most of that "lore" that goes so deep out of anyone (short of maybe the immortal errant king who was there for most of it). The fact that she participates in your journey by frequently meeting up with you to talk about history is pretty cool, it's rare for the champion to take an interest in helping aspiring trainers directly instead of working in background politics.
When pokémon fans discuss about the strongest trainer in the franchise Cynthia is never out of the discussion, a lot placing her as the strongest trainer. That fast and menacing piano literally traumatized a whole generation of trainers back in the day when you meet her and find out is the last obstacle of your journey or your team is too weak to fight her. As a trainer, Cynthia makes honor to the reputation she build herself. With a strong and balanced team, that unlike the rest of characters, has a team that was built for competitive battles, starting with a spiritomb that in her debute it didn't have weaknesses, a tanky gastrodon, two special and balanced attackers with her lucario and roserade, a togekiss that was a menance with the ability serene grace and air slash, which was almost guaranted to make you flinch, missing a turn, and the powerhouse that is the pseudo-legendary garchomp, her strongest pokémon. In Pokémon Platinum, they changed her gastrodon for a milotic, a pokémon that resisted as much as gastrodon and hit stronger than gastrodon. And in the remakes of Diamond and Pearl she was made even stronger with a better AI that reacted almost like a real player and a better constructed team. In Leyends Arceus is even more terryfing since her ancestor Volo has an orchestal version of her encounter team as a battle team and he is also the strongest of that game with a battle of six against eight since after his team, which is similar to Cynthia's, you have to fight Giratina TWICE after. No matter the game, if Sinnoh or Cynthia are involved, she is a foce to be wary about, even if is not directly her.
It's awesome how you included the encounter theme before her main battle theme because I feel like the encounter music needs to come before someone hears the battle music. I love the encounter theme so much because it gives Cynthia the feeling of intimidation but also sophistication. It's styled like a Beethoven composition which is awesome. The battle theme has the perfect amount of intensity, there's also a feeling of fun at times. This theme also makes you feel intimidated and the drums have a good speed to them. I associate this theme with a difficult Pokemon battle lol. I love this theme a lot, I love this whole soundtrack a lot and is easily in my top 10. I honestly can't think of any straight up bad song in the main series Pokemon games. I can easily find some in the spin-offs.
Oh Cynthia, godmother of PTSD and first female Champ of the pokemon series. When i first met her back in the days she wiped the floor with my pokemon. Her Ace Pokemon Garchomp was deadly. Usually u had to be overleveled to outspeed it. But its high speed, raw attack power and some of the strongest attacks in the game with having even higher attackpower because they were the same type as the pokemon itself, made it a nightmare. Plus she started with Spiritomb which had no easy to abuse weakness back then. U either needed specific attacks or pokemon skills to hit it effective, which sounds easier as it was giving the limitations of the avaiable pokemon in Perl/diamond. I will forever hate and love her.
Gotta love Cynthia's song, but I always feel like there's something missing if the first few seconds doesn't have the Spiritomb cry, it's ingrained into my synapses.
hearing that damn piano anywhere in the pokemon series is pretty much a guarantee that you're gonna get your ass handed to you, it's the first ever real "oh fuck i hear boss music" i ever experienced in my life
Since you're reacting to videogame music in general mind checking out Ezio's Family theme from Assassin's Creed II? It's one of my favorite pieces of all time, sounds so orchestral and beautiful and turns a bit rock-ier when you least expect it, you'll love it!
Some context even though some have already given it: Cythia is the Champion of the game (last boss) sort of how Lance was in Gen 1. You see her a few times through the game but you don't know she is the Champion until you enter the final room and she is there. That is when the encounter music plays. Then the battle starts and the battle theme plays. It is seen as one of the hardest fights in the series by many people. In Legend Arceus (2022) it is set in the same region as Diamond and Pearl but hundreds of years in the past. The last boss of that game is an ancestor of Cynthia and when you battle him, a remix of the theme plays. That is Volo, and like Cynthia, you don't know through the adventure he is gonna be the last boss (unless you picked up on the design similarities) so you get the surprise when the theme plays and he sends out the same first Pokémon as Cynthia. You get a moment of "Oh crap, I am about to fight Cynthia again..."
Cynthia is by far the most popular Pokémon game character and even in the Pokémon Anime people absolutely love her. In the games she is starts off as this random cool designed character that pops up every now and than to deal with Team Galactic (basicly the Team Rocket of the Sinnoh region, with a nihilist as a leader who straight up wants to destroy the world). She never mentions her profession and we never see her actual Team, but it's clear that she is strong. The Champ isn't revealed up until you enter the last room, where this infamous encounter theme starts playing for the first and only time in the game (unless you do Rematches). The battle begins with her battle theme and I bet most people can still hear the Spriritomb's cry (Spiritomb is the first Pokémon she sends out, that you never encountered in this game unless you did an obscure sidequest~ish thingy to catch it yourself. (Back then it also wasn't weak to any type)). From a Competetive POV she isn't the strongest, but from a Casual POV she is definetly up there for most difficult regular story fight. That's why her encounter theme has basicly become the PTSD theme of the fans. It also plays in Black2/White2 when you enter her random beachhouse resident in the postgame. There she just stays there in the middle of the room menancingly, before doing some casual monologue upon noticing you, with a fight starting that you can't run from out of nowhere. Forced battles by eye contact is a normal thing in the Pokémon games, but since you couldn't see her inside the house it can absolutely take you by surprise if you just wanted to check out the place. With all that said, personalitywise she is very friendly, calm & collected and just generally a great person. Fierce in battles, yet she cares about her Pokémon and wouldn't go too far. No silly tropes, no stupid mistakes, just a really great character :D Also on a side note, a lot people are absolutely down bad for her. I suppose personality, looks, music, Pokémon choice and her being a worthy Champ are reasons enough^^
Destroying the universe is sort of Cyrus's step five of ten in his plan. He plans to remake it to adhere to his view that emotions are the cause of all suffering Also, Cynthia doesn't have silly tropes? She's constantly pawning her responsibilities off on the player character because she wants to go study more ruins. They reflected this trait in Volo as well.
@@BJGvideos Right, right. I just did a generalization for the sake of simplicity, because I didn't want to throw the whole Lorebook on him^^' My point was more about silly endearing tropes that sometimes define the whole character. It's kinda like Layton where archeology is definetly a main theme for the character, but both of them are sooo much more than that. If you cut of all the mystical research stuff, she is still a unique and awesome character :D
A fun little thing to mention is that 8-Bit Music Theory just uploaded a video on this song! It's called "How Cynthia's Theme Terrorized a Generation" It's kind of funny how much attention this theme is getting this week.
Cynthia basically plays the role of a secondary mother figure to your protagonist. Cynthia's older than you and went on her own Pokemon adventure for Professor Rowan (who you get your starter from in Diamond and Pearl) so she basically acts as a caring mentor/mother figure who tries to gently push you to grow stronger and get you to seek new experiences. The game actually doesn't establish her as strong at all before the battle, nor does it establish her as the Champion until you battle her, but you do get the sense that she's special in some way considering just how confident she is. The battle meanwhile is by far the hardest Champion battle, and also probably one of the best designed fights in the series. The fight both throws you for a loop several times while also being a retrospective on your adventure. The chaotic music fits the tempo of the battle more than the character.
God, the flashbacks... She's a menace, and I'm glad they've made her somewhat recurring since the games keep getting easier and easier, but she's always terrifying.
10:20 Listen to "The Drought" from Pokemon Ruby. Entirely in context, a legendary pokemon has just been awakened and immediately started causing a massive heatwave across the region, drying up water and threatening the lives of the residents. I can't exactly say it's a "bad" composition, but it is so outstandingly SCARY and unnerving that it makes you want to hear it as little as possible. It gets the point across of telling you "THIS IS REALLY BAD AND YOU SHOULD HURRY TO STOP THIS MONSTER!" There's also the infamous Lavender Town theme from the original Pokemon game that is infamous to the point of causing an urban legend about causing people to become suicidal.
Having 3 games was actually apart of the series from the beginning until diamond, pearl, and platinum. You played Yellow which was the third game to Red and Blue
I know you reacted to the Volo theme 1 year ago, That takes place in the old times of what Diamond and Pearl are based on, So Volo has the same theme as Cynthia making Volo an ancestor for her.
Theres actually 3 versions for most pokemon gens. In gen 1 the originals were red and green, blue was a later version with improvements, gen 2 was silver and gold with platinum being the blue equivalent. Gen 3 was ruby and sapphire with emerald being the third.
The three games thing’s been a thing since gen 1. The one you played, Yellow, was the third version of that gen, with Red and Blue being the other two.
If anyone says that Cynthia is easy is because they used a guide to tell Cynthia's whole team with their weaknesses and to which pokemon use in order to beat Her in seconds, taking away all the fun.
Cynthia is the Champion of the Sinnoh region, she loves reserarching mythology and is caring person who exudes elgance with a strong imposing aura in battle. You meet her throughout the game as she helps you throughout, even gifting you a pokemon egg. However you only hear her encounter theme when you approach her after besting the Elite Four. That is when it hits you. You made it here at last, but only now you realize what she is really like with this meeting. Then the battle starts and she does not hold back. Legends Arceus is a prequel, and yes Volo is her ancestor. Fun fact Volo's Encounter Theme is a remix of Cynthia's Battle Theme, but his Battle Theme is a Remix of Cynthia's Encounter Theme with parts of her Battle Theme. Cynthia is a major recurring character and has multiple remixes of her theme in the games she appears in. She is kinda treated as Superboss when she does.
Up until Black and White Pokemon games always had a 3rd definitive version released after the first 2 in each generation. Red and Green in Japan had Blue and Yellow kinda fits that over here, Gold and Silver had Crystal, Ruby and Sapphire had Emerald and Diamond and Pearl had Platinum. Black and White had full on sequels with Black 2 and White 2 instead then X and Y didn't have anything despite there being hints in the game about a potential Z version and Sun and Moon had enhanced versions but it was still split into 2 with Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. The 2 most recent generations have used DLC for Sword and Shield and Scarlet and Violet instead of releasing a new version of fundamentally the same game.
Cynthia is just out of this world. Even with several minutes of grinding, you still gonna be defeated by her main pokemon Garchomp. On another note, have you listened to Pokemon Black 2 / White 2 - Iris Champion Theme? In my opinion, her theme and Cynthia's theme are on par, and are battling for the no.1 spot in my top pokemon champion themes. 💓💓💞💞
One of these days you should give these songs from Pokemon Black/White a listen: Victory Road theme and the Elite Four theme. That game really nailed it when it comes to music
This theme, similar to Lance, perfectly makes the player feel woefully unprepared. But Lance's team had a vulnerability to rock/ice/electric. Cynthia doesn't really have a clear and exploitable weakness.
LET'S GO CYNTHIA! AUGGGGGGGGGH Internal screaming and squealing I haven't watched the react yet I just got excited that you'll be listening so I have another reason to listen to the song for a millionth time
The Black/white Cyntia jumpscare is one of the most memorable moments of any pokemon game
i almost dropped my DSi when i accidentally walked into that beach house and heard the piano, my heart dropped to my toes in an INSTANT 🤣
So my experience with this was *after* I had skipped Gen 4 and got back in with Gen 5. I got so humbled by this fight.
YES OMG
I didn't know anything about her but the music changing the moment I walked into that house filled me with fear just fine 😭
Legit one of the hardest battles in the whole series. And in the remakes they made Cynthia even harder by giving her team the stats of competitive Pokemon. 😵💫
She looks so sweet & caring :)
@@JessesAuditoriumyou'd be right! She's very kind but is able to turn on the serious switch, so as you can imagine with her being the champion, having an awesome design, and being involved in the stories of multiple Pokémon games since her debut in D/P/P, she's a fan favorite
@@JessesAuditorium you can kinda think of her as having the attitide that politicians pretend they have. Care about the country, it's people, and it's history. Especially the history part she's a big history buff.
@JessesAuditorium she is an absolute cinnamon roll. Especially in the anime.
@@JessesAuditorium Cynthia is like the cool big sister that you could always rely on to have everything figured out. She's the champion of the Sinnoh region and is an insanely formidable final fight in the 4th Gen games.
4:31 "Sounds like I'm in a spiral of chaos" it's so funny because Cynthia's 1st Pokemon is a Spiritomb
That fucking thing set up double team and swept my whole team in black & white. I’ve loved spiritomb ever since.
@@jagerzaku9160
ghost/dark always spells trouble
@@KintokiSan not anymore, they robbed my boy.
@@jagerzaku9160 was it the fairy invasion?
@@KintokiSan yup
My childhood... :D To answer some questions: The piano melody plays when you enter the room before her fight begins. Volo is her ancestor because Legends Arceus takes place in the same region, in the distant past, hence why they share the motif. Diamond/Pearl came out first, Platinum is kind of an "enhanced" version with the exclusive Pokemon from both games and some added content, but it's the same game for the most part.
Piano bloodline. Devs cooked on that one.
@@JessesAuditorium You said you played Yellow as a Child. In Gen 1-4 There were allways a 3rd enhanced Game which came a Bit later: Yellow, Crystal, Emerald, Platinum
Well, "distant past" as in the 1870s but yeah
@@JessesAuditorium also team composition. When you fight volo, you get a taste with the opening piano riff - then as soon as the battle begins he sends out a spiritomb just like cynthia. As you go through the fight - you learn that volo's 6 pokemon and cynthia's 6 pokemon are almost identical lol. Causing many freakout "I'm in danger" moments from lets players.
Theres probably a lot of people that are filled with dread as soon as they hear Cynthia’s encounter theme, as she’s one of the most iconic and notoriously difficult Champions.
As was noted, Legends Arceus is a prequel set in the distant past of the same region that DP/Platinum is set in. Volo is Cynthia’s ancestor from that time, hence them having that same musical motif and even having a clear physical resemblance to one another.
For me the contrast between Cynthia’s encounter and battle themes actually matches her character quite well. As outside of Pokemon battles she’s a kind, polite person, yet in battles she’s brutal.
I wish we could battle Cogita at some point. Or for that matter Cynthia's grandma or sister (everyone forgets she has a sister)
Cynthia is a genuine sweetheart when shes just walking around, one of the most kindhearted characters in the pokemon universe.
and then you challenge her to battle and suddenly you're facing a woman with absolutely zero holds barred and not a DROP of remorse as she shreds your team to pieces LMAO
The "Encounter" part of the song is something most trainers have in these games. It's typically played when they spot you in the overworld to challenge you to a battle. In Cynthias case, it's when you enter the Champion room. Then as it transitions to the battle scene and the battle theme plays. The way Cynthias battle theme starts makes the transition extra sick imo.
Cynthia is the champion and probably the hardest one in the series. As you walk into her arena the intro plays which is just such an intimidating set-up.
There's also a later entry where she appears as a super boss. You walk into a random house in a beach town and this music starts playing, with her standing ominously at the opposite side of the room. Terrifying stuff!
Also walking in not knowing she’s there no doubt causes quite a number of panicked under leveled players to instantly lose in that damn house.
The only champion (imo) that you face during a title match that compares to her is Kieran from the Indigo Disk DLC. Highest level team during a champion fight, as well as being competitively viable.
Never clicked on a video so quickly. Really felt compelled to relive childhood trauma
Therapist: "And what do we say?"
You: "There's no running from a Trainer battle!"
Therapist: "No..."
I get the foreign but nostalgic. I mean, there's a clear continuity of Pokemon music - I feel you can usually tell that something is meant to be a loopable pokemon battle theme? - but it's foreign because it's still flavoured with the generation... the soundfont, the vibe of the region (similar instruments or genres), all sorts of things that stand out. Same thing with the design language of pokemon designs or such.
And yeah Cynthia oh baby Cynthia. Legit likely still the strongest champion of the series. What makes this infamous is, yeah, Wielder Volo is Cynthia's ancestor, and their theme is a remix of Cynthia's encounter. Why the encounter? Because Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, she's the 'story final boss' (as the League Champion) and was terrifying. But then in generation 5 (Black/White, one gen later) there's a surprise battle that you are NOT prepared for, heralded by THAT ENCOUNTER THEME. THAT second encounter is probably what turned her from a "Ok that was a tough fight! cool!" to
I feel like this video is going to trigger PTSD (and joy?)
@@JessesAuditorium I shit you not, a completely different Pokemon game has a random house where she is staying on vacation, and the piano starts playing the MOMENT you enter. Literal jumpscare. You can even fight her and it plays her theme.
@@MetroidFission And she's even tougher on her little summer vacation ambush.
It’s even funnier because there’s like, 0 indication or hint that she might even be in the game at all, considering it even takes place in a different country.
The game just slaps you in the face with her for being nosy.
@@JessesAuditorium you should look up King of the Hill/Cynthia's theme memes XD people have been way ahead of you
Cynthia was so popular she got to make a cameo appearance in Black and White as well where you can also battle her as a kind of bonus boss fight, you just come across her house at random and her piano theme just starts playing.
And she shows up in Sun and Moon
"I'm guessing that's her main Pokemon" Kind sir, we prefer to call it the destroyer of childhood dreams and innocence.
Oh shoot Truegreen! He's quite a big name in the Pokémon UA-cam scene - he's an awesome beacon for fan content in the community, fan art, and music
The Encounter Theme was composed and arranged by Go Ichinose.
The Battle Theme was composed an arranged by Junichi Masuda! =D
But there's many, _many_ more versions of this track, not just Hitomi Sato's arrangement for Volo in Legends Arceus! ^^
Please. Please tell me Ichinose isn’t pronounced “Itchy-Nose”
@@thevoidmagician6653 I would assume something close to ee-chee-no-say.
Oh God as soon as that battle theme started I immediately flashed back to "Spiritomb is exerting its Pressure!"
Ah Cynthia, the terror of her and, because of how much the developers know the impact, future pokemon generations, a champion who used an incredibly diverse team with good coverage. A big factor leading into why she became so notorious was the lack of information available at the time due to this being early DS, so social media wasn't really a thing yet. Combined with her team being the aces from 2 of the strongest gym leaders in the game and a 3rd being from the last game's champion, a super rare egg evolution that required an item only 2 could be obtained in the game, a no weakness (at the time) opener who could only be obtained by a convoluted hidden technique that hadn't yet been discovered, and then her ace being a psudeo-legendary that would go on to wreck havoc on the competitive meta, and you begin to see why she was such a hard fight, one many people lost against numerous times. Add her encounter theme playing every time you reached her again, and it became burned into the minds of those who endured on, becoming the sound of dread and impending defeat.
Social media was a huge thing at the time. What are you talking about? This was the era of Livejournal and MySpace, to say nothing of how Bulbagarden and Serebii's message boards were up and running.
@@BJGvideos Yeah but that was more for the older teens and adults. As a late middle schooler we used the internet solely to download images and go to official sources for info. No one knew about much of anything for a large part of those who got the game
I had never thought about the effect that Spiritomb would have had back in the day. I think the first time you see one is in this fight, so you'd go 'what the heck is that it looks terrifying' and then, to your horror, you discover that it has NO weaknesses
Cynthia is one of the nicest people in the franchise, yet her Pokémon team is amongst the strongest there have ever been, in the anime, she went undefeated for FIFTEEN YEARS and not for a lack of trying, she was officially the second strongest trainer in the world (I call BS, no way the no. 1 was actually stronger than her), her Garchomp was so powerful, so feared that in the battle before Ash defeated her, when Garchomp entered the field, literal gregorian chants played, that thing was a Dark Souls boss.
Agreed. Leon was only number 1 for plot. He was most recent so he got to be number 1.
Cynthia was strongest.
Pokemon Diamond and Pearl came out in 2007 for the Nintendo DS. Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum make up the main games of Generation 4. Platinum is an enhanced 3rd version of the first two, coming out later and adding new content, as well as fixing up some problems with the engine that made DP play kind of slowly in battles. Platinum is one of my favorite main series Pokemon games. There's just so much to love about it.
As for composers, Go Ichinose composed the encounter music, and Junichi Masuda composed the battle music. (Hitomi Sato also did a lot of music for Diamond and Pearl, but did not work on either of these songs).
Cynthia is an absolutely terrifying opponent; one of if not *the* most difficult Champion battles in the series' history. There was an old meme that went around when I was in my early 20s (I'm mid 30s now) that you couldn't find her battle theme on youtube without the 'low health alert' sound also playing in the background. The music is chaotic because the fight is chaotic. Cynthia's encounter embodies the saying "No plan survives contact with the enemy."
Just to help clarify if there's some ambiguity.
The Encounter/Battle theme split is based on how the game plays out. Before a battle with a trainer, there is *some* amount of talking they do as a preamble; even if it's simply a Youngster telling you "I like shorts. They're comfy and easy to wear!" More important trainers get more dialog and may have scripted sequences of sprite movement or whatnot. This preamble is the "Encounter" where a small loop tune plays.
Then that gives way to the actual battle itself, which carries its own music.
I love Cynthia so much. When people talk about "Well designed and written female characters" in games she is my number 1. She kicks so much ass but is still caring when she needs to be.
One of the coolest battle themes in the series. Dpp doesn’t have my favorite soundtrack of the ds era, but there are some bangers in there. I love that drum ostinato so much, it really drives the battle theme. Idk if I would be so bold as to call this my fav champion theme, but if it isn’t it’s very damn close.
What’s so funny about Cynthia is that initially she doesn’t look like the type that would have such chaos music or a stacked team that would rock your shit. When you first meet her she’s basically just a history buff and mythology nerd and “oh yeah I’m also the champion of Sinnoh and one of the strongest trainers like ever but that’s not really important did you know that back in ancient times-“
Shoutouts to Truegreen7 for the request of an all time classic Pokémon song as well as for being a great content creator. If you’re seeing this keep it up dude! Same to you Jesse since you give some of my favorite osts the love they deserve.
Hey, to explain Volo/Cynthia
Volo is the ancestor of Cynthia ; and most people will probably tell you they used Cynthia Encounter them as a Battle theme for Volo
However, the part less people know is the Cynthia Battle Theme is Volo Encounter Theme ; there was actually a full swap
Diamond/Pearl are the original version of the game ; Platinum is the "deluxe" version, sorta
The Pokemon you see behind Cynthia is named Garchomp ; it is her ace and a Pokemon that was so good it could rival with the legendary pokemon - meaning you couldn't just sweep her with overpowered Pokemon ; making her one of the hardest fight in the game that most people actually lose the 1st time ; making the "Encounter" music that much more impactful
You said you played Yellow. That is basically to Red and Blue what Platinum is to Diamond and Pearl; a version released after that is essentially the enhanced version. It started with Yellow being more like the show, but then we got Crystal for Gold and Silver, Emerald for Ruby and Sapphire, Platinum for Diamond and Pearl, etc., which was more centered around a certain legendary Pokemon of that generation, providing new areas, story, and Pokemon (never played Crystal so not sure what that one adds exactly).
Crystal added a female protag, as well as a story focusing on a Suicune fanatic named Eusine.
Most of the Pokemon games get a third version with some minor updates and content later. That's what yellow was to red/blue. There's also crystal for gold/silver, emerald for ruby/sapphire, and platinum for diamond/pearl, etc
YESSSSS YOU GET TO REACT TO CYNTHIA
Thank you so much for the reaction, Jesse, and for requesting it, whoever requested it! ^^
Cynthia is a Champion, the final fight in a pokemon game, and even as far as Champions go shes one of if not THE hardest one. Her encounter theme is iconic not just because it sounds cool but because she appears in another game in a random house post-game and that encounter theme plays right as you enter it, so a lot of people would go "oh no, cynthia"
Not sure if anyone’s mentioned this but “ wielder” is a title. Volo’s game was based in ancient times so it’s the way of calling someone a “pokemon trainer” in the past
"ancient times" dude it was only 150 years ago. It matches up with the Japanese occupation of Hokkaido. The Galaxy Hall is even based on a real building.
@@BJGvideos brother get over yourself. Anything over 10 years old is ancient to anyone on the internet
So yes you are right. Cynthia is wielder Volo's descendant. They even use the same pokemon team if i remember correctly. But this is my 2nd favorite champion theme if you include the lead up of the encounter music into the battle theme. My favorite is the champion from black/white 2.
Almost. He doesn't have Milotic since it isn't in Hisui, so he uses Arcanine instead
No matter what game you fight Cynthia in, she always has a well-balanced team to fight you with and she takes no prisoners and gives zero f---s.
Even the Sword/Shield anime made it abundantly clear. When Ash had to face her in the semifinals, she gave him the fight of his life, especially since she had access to Mega Evolution there.
TRUEGREEN7??????? THAT TRUEGREEN7???????? now that was a jumpscare
This was impeccably timed. I was wondering and hoping just last week if this was somewhere on your suggestions list and I went back to playing Pokémon Brilliant Diamond today!
This is one of my favourite gaming memories. Beating Cynthia for the first time. A strong female pokemon champion and she's an absolute beast with legendary music.
A queen. 👑
Edit: just finished watching and came back to add:
You're right in that her music may be unexpected from her look but it very much fits her champion battle in hindsight. Cynthia (especially at the time when she first released) is like a perfect Pokémon trainer. She's intelligent, diligent and kind but ruthless in battle. Her team is strong and diverse and can unpick and shred through your team really quickly. You said the music sounds chaotic and I would also argue it's intimidating and exhilarating. That's exactly the feelings Cynthia evokes when you fight her. I remember trying over and over again when I was younger to take her down. Her battle music and the alarm that plays when your Pokémon is in critical health became synonymous with one another.
I got my first piano and started learning just under a week ago. Hopefully one day I'll be able to play Cynthia's encounter music! That would be epic.
YESSS MORE POKEMON.
This theme slaps and has given so many trauma
Cynthia is the most formidable pokemon champion, that badass song fits her very well.
The Woman who strikes terror in hearts of every Pokemon fan
The Greatest Champion Ever, Cynthia 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
This is legit the hardest Pokémon battle ever and also the best one tied with the epic one against Red
We are here🥳 trugreen7 is a fan too? Nice hes one of the biggest poketubers
Fun fact you’ve technically already heard her encounter theme via a theme called battle pokemon wielder Volo
Its funny ... I just watched the Volo reaction last night lol, and here we are with his descendant.
Cynthia and Lance, the two best champions with the two best themes.
I really like Leon and Alder as well. My favorite Champions are Leon, Cynthia, and Alder ^_^
I really like Iris' champion theme in black and white 2
I really doubt lance being the best champion and having the best music(which is more associated with red)
you forgot steven from hoenn
Lance? Lance with his three Dragonites? He's kind of a joke imo.
Imagine if you started in Red and Blue and your very original strat of "I'll just use my over leveled starter pokemon the whole game" worked for generations 1, 2 and 3 and then suddenly stopped on the last battle of the 4th. 😂
Once I hear the piano confrontation music 😭 my heart rate go brrrr 📈. So glad they included that as a rec cause Cynthia isn't the same without her piano jumpscare of doom 😂.
What I love about pokemon boss music is that no matter how intense it gets you can think while listening to them, this is a turn based strategy game afterall. Also they sound super nostalgic with their familiar construction of elements 😊
I just love how the encounter theme shows us Cynthia's mindset, how she's calm cool and collected, and then we go into the battle theme and it's utter chaos, which accurately reflects the collective experience of fighting her
Love your content, and these songs always slap. A little funny being confused by there being three versions (Diamond, Pearl, Platinum) when you mention your experience being with Yellow, which was itself the third version of it's generation (along with Red and Blue). But while all the pokemon generations up to the point of Platinum had followed the standard of two games released simultaneously followed by a third enhanced version (Red/Blue followed by Yellow, Gold/Silver followed by Crystal, Ruby/Sapphire followed by Emerald, Diamond/Pearl followed by Platinum) it was also the last game to follow this trend. The next games, Black and White, were followed up by full sequels in Black 2 and White 2. Then X and Y got nothing. Sun and Moon were followed up by Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, so two versions like Black and White got, but they were still more along the line of enhanced versions than sequels. And after that they moved to the Switch and have had any follow-ups be in the form of DLC rather than new versions. (This isn't counting full remakes, which don't seem to get a third version regardless. Those being Fire Red/Leaf Green, Heart Gold/Soul Silver, Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire, Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl, and in a not quite a remake but also definitely a remake Let's Go: Pikachu and Let's Go: Eevee.) And it seems like Legends games will only ever get one game, so even simpler (though currently we only have Legends: Arceus and the announced Legends: Z-A to go by, so it's hard to call anything a trend when you don't quite have 2 entries yet for sample size).
Tales of the Abyss music and Cynthia back to back? Hitting me right in the nostalgia today
Cynthia's background is that she's an archaeologist who specialised in the research of ancient mythology and legendary pokemon. The region she's the champion of, Sinnoh, is directly tied to legendary pokemon who are allegories to real life deities. the gods of space, time and antimatter; below Arceus who created of the universe. (pokemon lore goes deep)
being a researcher, Cynthia's team is a collection of pokemon who were extremely rare in diamond, pearl and platinum. Her battle theme feeling very anxious and foreign reflects how the player is likely to have never seen these Pokémon before. She's also potentially the strongest trainer in any of the games.
Well, "extremely rare" other than Gastrodon.
@BJGvideos yeah gastrodon was odd in DP, no surprise it got replaced in Platinum
Anxiety: the battle theme
Ah yes, the piano that instilled fear into a whole generation, also my favorite character from pokemon's female cast. Her team in genuinely a nightmare to beat, especially with the fairy type not existing in the OG games. Literally the first thing she throws out at you is a pokemon who at the time had zero weaknesses. Also her ace pokemon garchomp (shown in the video) is so strong that it took till just recently for it to be kicked out of one the strongest normal competive tiers OU. Also back in the days when mega evolution was a thing, basically specific mons had a specific temporary evolution that buffed them, garchomp had one, but it was debated on if you should even use it because it nerfed its speed. Now imagine having to fight that to beat the game....especially as a small child who didn't understand mechanics. Her team was evil and the remake only made it worse by giving her mons trained stats and items.
Final topic, I don't think pokemon has any legitimately "bad" music off the top of my head, but the mobile game PokemonGO has a contender. To celebrate the event of Necrozma coming to the game, they made a special remix of all its themes. Normally it sounds great, but something Niantic did bitcrushed the song to all hell. The upload I saw mentioned they had to reduce the audio decibels, and when someone asked for the original they sent it. Listening to that was pure pain and it just becomes bitcrushed noise after a bit...
Champion Cynthia... oh the trauma
Would be so sick to see you react to all the champion themes to see how they progressed. That would be a crazy long video though haha
YESSS!!!!!! Finally a pokemon song reaction from an older gen!
Ahhh Cynthia themes
If you ever get the chance, you should play the generation 1-5 games! They are definitely the best games in the series with so much care going into the gameplay and music. As someone who started with generation 2, I would say generation is the peak of the mainline pokemon games! Glad to hear you reacting to the music!
The first time a battle in Pokemon had difficulty and cannot be easily brute forced. Until then, most games you'd probably be overleveled by the time you get to the champion. But not only are her pokemon quite high level for somebody playing the game organically, but they're chosen strategically.
She's also probably the most memorable champion because she has a job outside of the league, a renowned archaeologist in the world of pokemon who probably knows the most of that "lore" that goes so deep out of anyone (short of maybe the immortal errant king who was there for most of it). The fact that she participates in your journey by frequently meeting up with you to talk about history is pretty cool, it's rare for the champion to take an interest in helping aspiring trainers directly instead of working in background politics.
When pokémon fans discuss about the strongest trainer in the franchise Cynthia is never out of the discussion, a lot placing her as the strongest trainer. That fast and menacing piano literally traumatized a whole generation of trainers back in the day when you meet her and find out is the last obstacle of your journey or your team is too weak to fight her.
As a trainer, Cynthia makes honor to the reputation she build herself. With a strong and balanced team, that unlike the rest of characters, has a team that was built for competitive battles, starting with a spiritomb that in her debute it didn't have weaknesses, a tanky gastrodon, two special and balanced attackers with her lucario and roserade, a togekiss that was a menance with the ability serene grace and air slash, which was almost guaranted to make you flinch, missing a turn, and the powerhouse that is the pseudo-legendary garchomp, her strongest pokémon. In Pokémon Platinum, they changed her gastrodon for a milotic, a pokémon that resisted as much as gastrodon and hit stronger than gastrodon. And in the remakes of Diamond and Pearl she was made even stronger with a better AI that reacted almost like a real player and a better constructed team.
In Leyends Arceus is even more terryfing since her ancestor Volo has an orchestal version of her encounter team as a battle team and he is also the strongest of that game with a battle of six against eight since after his team, which is similar to Cynthia's, you have to fight Giratina TWICE after.
No matter the game, if Sinnoh or Cynthia are involved, she is a foce to be wary about, even if is not directly her.
It's awesome how you included the encounter theme before her main battle theme because I feel like the encounter music needs to come before someone hears the battle music.
I love the encounter theme so much because it gives Cynthia the feeling of intimidation but also sophistication. It's styled like a Beethoven composition which is awesome.
The battle theme has the perfect amount of intensity, there's also a feeling of fun at times. This theme also makes you feel intimidated and the drums have a good speed to them. I associate this theme with a difficult Pokemon battle lol. I love this theme a lot, I love this whole soundtrack a lot and is easily in my top 10.
I honestly can't think of any straight up bad song in the main series Pokemon games. I can easily find some in the spin-offs.
Ah, the theme of getting your boxart legendary outsped and oneshotted, no matter the version.
Lets be real. Every gen since 3 has had BANGERS of OST.
Oh Cynthia, godmother of PTSD and first female Champ of the pokemon series. When i first met her back in the days she wiped the floor with my pokemon. Her Ace Pokemon Garchomp was deadly. Usually u had to be overleveled to outspeed it. But its high speed, raw attack power and some of the strongest attacks in the game with having even higher attackpower because they were the same type as the pokemon itself, made it a nightmare. Plus she started with Spiritomb which had no easy to abuse weakness back then. U either needed specific attacks or pokemon skills to hit it effective, which sounds easier as it was giving the limitations of the avaiable pokemon in Perl/diamond. I will forever hate and love her.
The horror of walking into that random house and hearing that piano.
Thank you Truegreen!
Gotta love Cynthia's song, but I always feel like there's something missing if the first few seconds doesn't have the Spiritomb cry, it's ingrained into my synapses.
hearing that damn piano anywhere in the pokemon series is pretty much a guarantee that you're gonna get your ass handed to you, it's the first ever real "oh fuck i hear boss music" i ever experienced in my life
Since you're reacting to videogame music in general mind checking out Ezio's Family theme from Assassin's Creed II? It's one of my favorite pieces of all time, sounds so orchestral and beautiful and turns a bit rock-ier when you least expect it, you'll love it!
Encounter theme and Cynthia Champion battle theme brings my child anxiety back, she has no chill.
Piano solo begins
*PTSD INTENSIFIES*
Some context even though some have already given it:
Cythia is the Champion of the game (last boss) sort of how Lance was in Gen 1. You see her a few times through the game but you don't know she is the Champion until you enter the final room and she is there. That is when the encounter music plays.
Then the battle starts and the battle theme plays. It is seen as one of the hardest fights in the series by many people.
In Legend Arceus (2022) it is set in the same region as Diamond and Pearl but hundreds of years in the past. The last boss of that game is an ancestor of Cynthia and when you battle him, a remix of the theme plays. That is Volo, and like Cynthia, you don't know through the adventure he is gonna be the last boss (unless you picked up on the design similarities) so you get the surprise when the theme plays and he sends out the same first Pokémon as Cynthia. You get a moment of "Oh crap, I am about to fight Cynthia again..."
Cynthia is by far the most popular Pokémon game character and even in the Pokémon Anime people absolutely love her.
In the games she is starts off as this random cool designed character that pops up every now and than to deal with Team Galactic (basicly the Team Rocket of the Sinnoh region, with a nihilist as a leader who straight up wants to destroy the world).
She never mentions her profession and we never see her actual Team, but it's clear that she is strong.
The Champ isn't revealed up until you enter the last room, where this infamous encounter theme starts playing for the first and only time in the game (unless you do Rematches).
The battle begins with her battle theme and I bet most people can still hear the Spriritomb's cry (Spiritomb is the first Pokémon she sends out, that you never encountered in this game unless you did an obscure sidequest~ish thingy to catch it yourself. (Back then it also wasn't weak to any type)).
From a Competetive POV she isn't the strongest, but from a Casual POV she is definetly up there for most difficult regular story fight. That's why her encounter theme has basicly become the PTSD theme of the fans.
It also plays in Black2/White2 when you enter her random beachhouse resident in the postgame. There she just stays there in the middle of the room menancingly, before doing some casual monologue upon noticing you, with a fight starting that you can't run from out of nowhere.
Forced battles by eye contact is a normal thing in the Pokémon games, but since you couldn't see her inside the house it can absolutely take you by surprise if you just wanted to check out the place.
With all that said, personalitywise she is very friendly, calm & collected and just generally a great person. Fierce in battles, yet she cares about her Pokémon and wouldn't go too far. No silly tropes, no stupid mistakes, just a really great character :D
Also on a side note, a lot people are absolutely down bad for her. I suppose personality, looks, music, Pokémon choice and her being a worthy Champ are reasons enough^^
Destroying the universe is sort of Cyrus's step five of ten in his plan. He plans to remake it to adhere to his view that emotions are the cause of all suffering
Also, Cynthia doesn't have silly tropes? She's constantly pawning her responsibilities off on the player character because she wants to go study more ruins. They reflected this trait in Volo as well.
@@BJGvideos Right, right. I just did a generalization for the sake of simplicity, because I didn't want to throw the whole Lorebook on him^^'
My point was more about silly endearing tropes that sometimes define the whole character.
It's kinda like Layton where archeology is definetly a main theme for the character, but both of them are sooo much more than that. If you cut of all the mystical research stuff, she is still a unique and awesome character :D
I still hear the constant sound of my pokemon being at low health to this day.
Hearing her Encounter theme Triggered my Cynthia pstd
The sound of impending doom
A fun little thing to mention is that 8-Bit Music Theory just uploaded a video on this song!
It's called "How Cynthia's Theme Terrorized a Generation"
It's kind of funny how much attention this theme is getting this week.
This boss fight was one of the few time when people found out it wasn't just a kids game. She was brutal for first timers.
Super cool to see @Truegreen7 as one of the requesters for this song!
This and Lance from Gen 1 are probably my favorite metal covers I've heard.
Cynthia basically plays the role of a secondary mother figure to your protagonist. Cynthia's older than you and went on her own Pokemon adventure for Professor Rowan (who you get your starter from in Diamond and Pearl) so she basically acts as a caring mentor/mother figure who tries to gently push you to grow stronger and get you to seek new experiences. The game actually doesn't establish her as strong at all before the battle, nor does it establish her as the Champion until you battle her, but you do get the sense that she's special in some way considering just how confident she is.
The battle meanwhile is by far the hardest Champion battle, and also probably one of the best designed fights in the series. The fight both throws you for a loop several times while also being a retrospective on your adventure. The chaotic music fits the tempo of the battle more than the character.
God, the flashbacks... She's a menace, and I'm glad they've made her somewhat recurring since the games keep getting easier and easier, but she's always terrifying.
Then in BDSP, which is a very easy game, she's somehow harder than she's ever been
Pure, unadulterated PTSD
FINALLY another good pokemon ost
10:20 Listen to "The Drought" from Pokemon Ruby. Entirely in context, a legendary pokemon has just been awakened and immediately started causing a massive heatwave across the region, drying up water and threatening the lives of the residents. I can't exactly say it's a "bad" composition, but it is so outstandingly SCARY and unnerving that it makes you want to hear it as little as possible. It gets the point across of telling you "THIS IS REALLY BAD AND YOU SHOULD HURRY TO STOP THIS MONSTER!" There's also the infamous Lavender Town theme from the original Pokemon game that is infamous to the point of causing an urban legend about causing people to become suicidal.
Having 3 games was actually apart of the series from the beginning until diamond, pearl, and platinum. You played Yellow which was the third game to Red and Blue
Would love to hear a reaction to Zinnia’s theme!
I know you reacted to the Volo theme 1 year ago, That takes place in the old times of what Diamond and Pearl are based on, So Volo has the same theme as Cynthia making Volo an ancestor for her.
Cue in the low HP pokemon sounds
Theres actually 3 versions for most pokemon gens. In gen 1 the originals were red and green, blue was a later version with improvements, gen 2 was silver and gold with platinum being the blue equivalent. Gen 3 was ruby and sapphire with emerald being the third.
If you want to hear more music from this gen I recommend some of the route themes, the legendarh theme, and Cyrus's battle theme
Giratina is a must
The three games thing’s been a thing since gen 1. The one you played, Yellow, was the third version of that gen, with Red and Blue being the other two.
Huh, I never thought about it that way but yea lol
If anyone says that Cynthia is easy is because they used a guide to tell Cynthia's whole team with their weaknesses and to which pokemon use in order to beat Her in seconds, taking away all the fun.
Cynthia is the Champion of the Sinnoh region, she loves reserarching mythology and is caring person who exudes elgance with a strong imposing aura in battle. You meet her throughout the game as she helps you throughout, even gifting you a pokemon egg. However you only hear her encounter theme when you approach her after besting the Elite Four. That is when it hits you. You made it here at last, but only now you realize what she is really like with this meeting. Then the battle starts and she does not hold back. Legends Arceus is a prequel, and yes Volo is her ancestor. Fun fact Volo's Encounter Theme is a remix of Cynthia's Battle Theme, but his Battle Theme is a Remix of Cynthia's Encounter Theme with parts of her Battle Theme. Cynthia is a major recurring character and has multiple remixes of her theme in the games she appears in. She is kinda treated as Superboss when she does.
YO!? lots of pokemon!
Up until Black and White Pokemon games always had a 3rd definitive version released after the first 2 in each generation. Red and Green in Japan had Blue and Yellow kinda fits that over here, Gold and Silver had Crystal, Ruby and Sapphire had Emerald and Diamond and Pearl had Platinum. Black and White had full on sequels with Black 2 and White 2 instead then X and Y didn't have anything despite there being hints in the game about a potential Z version and Sun and Moon had enhanced versions but it was still split into 2 with Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. The 2 most recent generations have used DLC for Sword and Shield and Scarlet and Violet instead of releasing a new version of fundamentally the same game.
Cyrus’s theme is also great from DP. Amazing bass
Gen 4 music goes so hard
You should check out the Lake Trio theme from this same generation if you haven't already
Cynthia is just out of this world. Even with several minutes of grinding, you still gonna be defeated by her main pokemon Garchomp.
On another note, have you listened to Pokemon Black 2 / White 2 - Iris Champion Theme? In my opinion, her theme and Cynthia's theme are on par, and are battling for the no.1 spot in my top pokemon champion themes. 💓💓💞💞
One of these days you should give these songs from Pokemon Black/White a listen: Victory Road theme and the Elite Four theme. That game really nailed it when it comes to music
There are a lot of good battle themes in this game you must listen to including Giratina, Palkia/Dialga and Cyrus
This theme, similar to Lance, perfectly makes the player feel woefully unprepared. But Lance's team had a vulnerability to rock/ice/electric. Cynthia doesn't really have a clear and exploitable weakness.
The definitely cut no corners IN MUSIC. Don't worry about it
Would love for you to check out both of Hops themes from pokemon Sword and Shield, there's a lot to digest with those tracks
LET'S GO CYNTHIA! AUGGGGGGGGGH Internal screaming and squealing I haven't watched the react yet I just got excited that you'll be listening so I have another reason to listen to the song for a millionth time