what is with Pokémon?

I admit it, I don't get it, but my daughter is completely enthralled by it, them, their evolutionary beings!???. I find the Pokémon characters to look a little troll-ish, but E thinks they are the cat's pyjamas. She has been in to Pokémon since before Christmas thanks to the non-sanctioned trading that is going on at her school. Some of her generous friends even got her started by gifting her a few cards to start trading with à la same vein as those really silly Silly Bandz. Really. We had marbles when I was a kid and for a good long time too. None of this skirting from one thing to collect to the other...oh, but nostalgia is a wonderful thing. I know, these are just my E's version of marbles...

Thankfully, once she discovers a new thing to collect, she casts aside her previous fixation. Currently, E has a daily ritual of going through her cards and counting them. Santa gave her a few at Christmas, I gave her a few as a reward, she picked up a few at a recent birthday party, and she's about to get some more for her birthday. I bid on a huge lot of them on ebay: a lot of more than 300 cards with books and figures. It was an impressive lot even for someone who doesn't get it. Thankfully, there is a book that will help me get it. It's a guide for parents and kids. Not that E needs it. Last night, she spent about 20 minutes talking to me about Pikachu and Infernape and all the other ones with cute names and creepy bodies and their various "powers". It's like a whole other language! I need an English-Pokémon dictionary. :P