I liked this story for the most part, it was a very interesting exploration of a concept I haven't seen before. I liked how you characterized the individual Pokemon, they each had distinct personalities and conflicts that led to interesting interactions. It was a really fascinating conflict and one where I understood everyone's point of views, particularly Bulbasaur and Ekans who I found to be the most intricately developed characters in the story.

To be honest, (THIS WILL DEAL WITH SPOILERS) I wasn't a fan of the ending. I really enjoyed how you explored the Pokemon being lost and confused, having to carry out this dream of a dying trainer and how over time you peel back the layers to Ivysaur's behavior. There were concepts and scenes I liked, such as "Marty" using Dream Eater on Ivysaur to address an idea that's been slowly realized throughout the story, the idea Ivysaur's carrying out Marty's dreams because of the idealization he held of Marty. But I just wasn't a fan of the direction of the last two chapters as a whole, the story had great execution in regards to telegraphing plot points which made Giratina's appearance... very abrupt, and feel a little cheap. It was a bit disappointing especially since Giratina would be the means through which the story would be resolved. But I mostly found it disappointing because narratively, I found Ivysaur's idealization and codependency to be the most interesting parts of the story, there was this loyal bond that became questioned and critiqued throughout the story... and then the story ends off on a note critiquing the world as a whole, so I didn't feel like Ivysaur's character was brought to a satisfying conclusion.

Despite my criticisms, I enjoyed the story. It was very well written, I enjoyed the characters and world you've created, and I found the conflict to be really gripping.

Wow. This was an incredibly fascinating and thought-provoking story! All of the characters were fascinating, sympathetic, and believable given their backgrounds. The twists (like the all-poison team and Haunter possessing Marty's body) were telegraphed very well; I could see them coming, but they still hit hard when the characters realized. Yet somehow it completely went over my head that Giratina wouldn't do this for just one team. The last chapter hit me like a ton of bricks, especially the title drop. What a revolutionary idea for the Pokemon world!

This whole story was amazing to read. Thank you for writing!

This is a fantastic story, throughly enjoyed it!

Wow. Poetic, horror story, brilliance. All words I would use to describe this. Mostly I’m just happy that in the anime version, the starters aren’t bred to be specifically obedient, mixed in with togepi style imprint from moment of hatching. And that that world seems to give the starters a bit of time to develop a personality/be a free living being before ending with a professor and presented to a trainer-if the professor elm and totodile episode is any indication, plus the whole: pikachu and ash thing. Oh, and Foakie too I guess, but that’s a later reference that wouldn’t have been know when this fic was written.

while i like this story, its a little too dark for me right now. ill come back later.

To this day reading this ending still brings tears to my eyes. I would love to see a sequel or an alternate ending or something of that sort. Thank you.

Ive come back to this story after over a year. Once again 10/10

Okay, I accept this story as a solid win.

I had my doubts in it for a couple of reasons. There wasn't much use of setting to keep the story grounded, allowing for some scenes to be in a white space. Also, the middle portion (after Ekans shows up) was hard for me to stay immersed in; it felt a little dry and confusing.

But it's a good story all right. I was unsatisfied with the events of the story, but during Chapter 6 everything began to come together in a beautiful way. Twists were set up and executed in surprisingly impressive ways, especially ones I should have foreseen - I should've known there was something up with Bulbasaur drinking an Antidote at the start of the story.

The finale was a bit hard to swallow since it technically had the givings of what must be the strangest ex machina I've ever seen, but given the circumstances and also how the Chapter 8 epilogue brings the whole story full circle, I feel it was the bittersweet end it deserved.

Oh, and the characters were done well - their backgrounds and motives felt a little narrow, but went very deep. Just from them, I can tell why people recommend this fanfic so much. I'm sure to take notes on this for my own fictional works.

Damn

Gave me chills, excellent writing and concept (and characters)! Feel like you should’ve just ended it at the ending, but the epilogue/denouement adds something different so fair enough.

I haven't read this since I was a teen, and it is still one of my favorite fics. Beyond that, it's one of my favorite pieces of literature. Such spellbinding writing, vivid character voices, and what a premise! It's morbid. It's macabre. It's magnificent.

If you ever need a beta, let me know. I'd love to get in on the ground floor of anything even close to this. And, if I haven't made it painfully clear, well done!

Funny, he has a team full of poison Pokémon, the thing that’s killing him. Hope he keeps finding Poison types.

I’ve only been more mad at 1 starter in my life. The one from another fanfic where the charm Andre nearly killed the animal.

It's been ages since I've read this and I've got to say it's qaulity still holds up well. Fics that do that are hard to find. (By the way, did you know this has a TV tropes page?)

Amazing job.

10/10

The clear amount of thought and preparation the seems to have gone into this story is inspiring. Best character development and interaction I’ve seen in a Pokemon work. Thank you for your efforts.