The latest Pokemon and Digimon crazes have left many parents scratching their heads - and opening their wallets
By: Devorah Stone
June 8/00 - Elijah was crazy about Pokemons. He wanted the cards, the Nintendo Game Boy and all the games - anything with those pudgy, little creatures on it. He'd shout out the show's slogan: "Gotta catch them all!" He loved the fantasy - 150 Pokemons, all creatures who can fit into a compact ball, ready to fight for their young trainers. The TV show's animation is, by almost any standard, basic and simplistic. The creatures and kids are static, inhabiting a computer world where they live to fight. So why is it so popular? "I think the kids like the idea of a normal, regular kid (just like themselves) having great adventures, and having control over powerful, almost magical, creatures," says Christine, who has a seven-year-old son.
Nine year old Elijah Stone is the writer's son and a devotee of Pokemon and Digimon
Pokemon cards are popular because it's like stamp collecting, only cheaper and easier, says Bruce Boyd, the owner of Card Central, a Japan-based online store. There's also the added element of the card game, he says. "Collecting more powerful players gives you an edge in the game."   Like many parents, Christine isn't overly concerned about the craze. She feels it will eventually fade. "My only concern is that many kids would do anything to complete their card collections," she says. "One thing that has happened in our local elementary school is that the older kids hang out in the halls, outside the younger kids' classrooms, and try to con the smaller kids out of their cards."
Christine soon discovered the cost of "Catching them all!" "I explained to [my son] Michael exactly what an entire set would cost," she says. "Assuming there were no duplicates, it would be around $135 for the set, we calculated. He decided that the cards weren't worth the expense."
Elijah bought the cards with money his relatives gave him. I laid down some ground rules: no trading cards with anyone older or younger than him.   Many schools now ban Pokemon and all card collecting. "There are problems with regards to popular cards in terms of theft and exchange of money," says Alan Kirsby, principal of McKay Elementary School in Richmond, BC. One problem Christine encountered was the cost of "Catching them all!" "I explained to [my son] Michael exactly what an entire set would cost," she says. "Assuming there were no duplicates, it would be around $135 for the set, we calculated. He decided that the cards weren't worth the expense."
Elijah lost interest in Pokemon within six months and started on the second craze, Digimons
Christine did buy a black and white GameBoy, but my husband and I balked at spending $100 on a portable game system and $40 for the Pokemon game cartridges. We didn't like the idea of a video game console which had such limited use. We already have a computer with CD ROM capability, and Elijah can borrow educational, non-violent CD-ROM discs from the library.   Elijah lost interest in Pokemon within six months and started on the second craze, Digimons.   Avi only had a few Pokemon cards, but when a friend agreed to give him Digimon cards for his Pokemon ones, he got hooked. He says he likes Digimon because it's available on computer. Avi watches all the Digimon TV shows and collects the cards. He is eagerly awaiting the release of the games. His father Jacob is not so eager. "It's something the parents need to control a little bit," he says. Jacob says he doesn't believe in making hard and fast rules, but parents need to know what's going on - and control it. Outfitting a child for Digimon can cost in the neighbourhood of $250.Commercial childhood fads are not new, but the Digimon and Pokemon crazes are part of a new, integrated breed. Television shows, games, cards, posters, movies, action figures and even food (Mac &amp; Cheese now sport Pokemon pasta shapes) - they're all integrated.
"We've established a rule that he needs to ask permission to watch the TV shows," Christine says. "If he is allowed to spend as much time as he wants watching the shows and playing games, he starts making a lot of Pokemon sounds throughout his day, and his playtime will be mostly spent playing Pokemon fighting and, sometimes, non-fighting games."
So, how can you tell a Digimon from a Pokemon? Digimon can talk, for one thing. They also seem a little more into exploring emotions and building up plot lines. Of course, both Digimon and Pokemon fight continuously and - of course - no one ever dies. The shows make fighting look like a harmless activity because all the characters recover so quickly from their wounds - something else parents may want to discuss further with their Poke-infatuated children,   What else can parents do when commercial fads target their children? Some parents forbid their children to watch commercial television, or don't have a television at all. Others, like Christine, set limits. "I don't mind that my son has an interest in Pokemon or Digimon, as long as it doesn't affect his behavior," she says. "We've established a rule that he needs to ask permission to watch the TV shows. If he is allowed to spend as much time as he wants watching the shows and playing the games, he starts making a lot of Pokemon sounds throughout his day, and his playtime will be mostly spent playing Pokemon fighting and, sometimes, non-fighting games."   Can you say Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?
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