Butsu 1254

Bangōbutsu (Dōbutshūchaku in Japan) is a media franchise consisting of video games, animated series, and a trading card game, which is my lane. I have tried the others, they do not appeal to me. I want my numbers printed on hard paper, not a TV screen. It is just a preference of mine.

My life is not a storied one, but I do have few regrets. I only wish I could have been born at the beginning of the century instead of the end, so that I could have been there for the birth of the franchise. The novelty of being thrown into it so late is not lost on me- I have quite enjoyed cataloging the 3,683 existing fictional species depicted by the series, it would simply be convenient if I had been around back in the 18th Era, which unlike previous ones has fallen so far behind in future card support that it cost me a year’s salary to complete its section of my assembly.

I caught up to the steady forward march of the franchise and completed my collection this year. A veritable codex gigas, it spans 5 binders and has been most of my motivation to do the work I do. (Which is reporting on the series.) In a just world I’d be sponsored by the creators to do what I do, but with my viewers keeping me afloat at least I get to be unbiased. You won’t see any 29th Era apologism from me, no sir. This is all to say that I’m a devoted fan, though not a blinded one. So it’s just inconceivable that I could’ve forgotten one of these little guys, but according to their numbers in my collection, that’s what happened.

#1253- Hatchblade metamorphoses into #1254- Pterminator. That’s from the 12th Era, it’s like basic arithmetic. But according to my binder, that’s wrong. #1253- Hatchblade is positioned right next to #1255- Pterminator. What’s the missing link? I can’t remember, but that’s almost a less pressing concern to the fact that there are now 2429 cards after that which are completely misplaced.

Usually, a misstep in my organization process is a rare obstacle, and a welcome one at that. Who wouldn’t want to spend a week sorting numbered creatures into thin plastic sheets? But it’s a bit of a slap to the face when I thought I had everything right for so long. I show this collection off like it’s my bloody newborn, why hasn’t anyone corrected me on it? Maybe encyclopedic Bangōbutsu knowledge is a less common thing these days than during Butsu Fever, but you’d at least expect people to know their Sunslingers from their Junkoons. It’s a real blow to my ego, like I guess you shouldn’t go setting your self esteem on top of the shelf you keep your unopened booster packs in, but I sorta thought I had the ins-and-outs of this franchise down. Takes me a couple hours just to process and accept.

But oh well, happens to the best of us I suppose. I set my binders down and get to removing cards from their false homes, some of them resting in these temperature-controlled slots for upwards of a decade. Meanwhile I clear my throat and ask my search engine what the 1254th Butsu is.

“According to this search, the 1254th Butsu is Pterminator, a tank with sky and sharp-type DNA.”

Fuck’s sake, was it a misprint? I flip back to the card to check, only to remember I’ve removed it without inserting it into its rightful place. Christ. I shuffle through all my evacuated cards, but it’s not there either. Oh well, I think to myself, standing up to grab one of the bins.

Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. I pick up piles of cards over and over, removing them as I go until my fingers blister and I stop for fear of bleeding on some holographic that becomes worth a few million in a dozen years. You’re kidding, is it so hard to find one of these? I must’ve flipped through thousands of cards. Still, no big deal. I bite the bullet and open up Butsupedia. I used to have so much fun on this site as a kid and now every time I open it feels like I’m admitting defeat, like I’m conceding that my own knowledge just isn’t enough.

#1253? That’s Hatchblade. Right.

Yet Pterminator is #1255 after all.

Goddamn AI articles, they’re gonna have to flush the net again. I make a mental note to switch my search engine. I go to check out just what the hell Pterminator’s supposed adolescent form is.

#1254- Daction

Sky/Blunt

Tank Class

High Rarity

High Use Difficulty

Reptile, Robot

Daction (Japanese- アーノルド Anorudo) is a 12th Era Reptile/Robot Butsu with Sky and Blunt DNA.

Right. Right. You know what? I was wrong after all. I remember this thing now, it was in the 31st movie in the opening scene. Shit, what was that one called again…?

Garrapis and the Bone Canyon.

And it’s the 33rd movie, not 31st.

I must be going fucking senile.