#115: Kangaskhan

Mother hen and her cute little baby.

Remember the Zimbabwean lion Cecil, who was killed last year by a guy named Walter Palmer, an American dentist who kills big game just for sport?

Yeah, apparently mankind is as cruel in the Pokémon world as in real life.

You see, Kangaskhan were nearly hunted to extinction, until somebody was so smart to pass a bill that stated that they should be protected. And they are being protected now, but they are a very rare species only found in the Safari Zone. Well, that was the case in Red, Blue and Yellow at least; in later games you could still find them in one area or another, even though their encounter rate was still somewhat low (never higher than 10%). And considering Kangaskhan will always protect the baby in its pouch at all costs, even sleeping standing up so as to not crush its young, it is plausible to think that it was rather difficult to hunt, equal to the Big Five (a term coined by big-game hunters to refer to the African lion, Cape buffalo, African leopard, African elephant and black and white rhinoceros, for their difficulty to hunt on foot). It's interesting how some Pokémon's characteristics are serious fodder for discussion, as they sometimes represent issues that are problematic in the real world as well. In the case of hunting, they show how cruel, rotten and corrupt humans can sometimes be; in other cases, such as pollution, they show how neglectful, ignorant and selfish humans mostly are. It definitely leaves some food for thought...

Official art of Mega Kangaskhan by Ken Sugimori. Only the
child's appearance has changed; it looks more like its mother now,
including its eyes, armor-like patches on its knees and spiky tail.

Anyway, Kangaskhan. Its name is a contraction of kangaroo and Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire, despite the species being exclusively female. On the other hand, Kangaskhan's design shows some elements of Mongolian laminar armor, so combine that with how violently protective Kangaskhan is of its child and the name makes much more sense. No matter how badly injured Kangaskhan becomes, the mother will not cease fighting until its young is safe, except in its Mega form. That's right, Kangaskhan has had a Mega evolution ever since X and Y came out, and it's probably the quaintest one, as Kangaskhan itself didn't get a change in its appearance like the rest of the Mega evolutions did; instead, the child in its pouch grows and gets to battle with its mother. That kinda contradicts Kangaskhan's flavor, as it is so protective of its child and the latter barely even leave its mother's pouch until it is three years old (I doubt even Pokémon grow as fast as demonstrated by Kangaskhan's Mega evolution's young, aside from regular evolution), but let's not be finicky about that. I mean, a Mega is nothing more than a battle mechanic to make a Pokémon stronger and, hopefully, more useful. Moreover, one characteristic of Mega Kangaskhan does make sense: the child is feisty, hates to lose and will boldly challenge its opponents to protect its mother. All of the mother's nurturing is finally paying off: baby loves its mama!

Mother Kangaskhan pulling her baby out of her pouch, getting
ready for battle (Mega Kangaskhan).

Besides, Mega Kangaskhan has a nifty new signature ability that perfectly matches its flavor: Parental Bond. This ability makes moves that Kangaskhan uses two-strike moves, with the second strike being half as strong as the first; one could see that as the child attacking after its parent. What's more: any secondary effects, such as the attack raise from Power-Up Punch, occur twice, and priority moves like Fake Out and Sucker Punch can easily be abused. There are even other effects, such as each strike having a separate chance to get a critical hit, that are so overpowered that Mega Kangaskhan resides in the Uber tier (where most OP legendary Pokémon like Lugia, Kyogre and Zekrom can be found). It is just too strong for normal tiers like OU, UU, RU and NU, especially since its base attack stat is already a powerful 125 (before applying abilities), while its base speed stat of 100 is nothing to sneeze at, either.

This is a very nice drawing of Kangaskhan!

For battles in a normal tier, I'd recommend using a regular Kangaskhan holding a regular item, preferably a Life Orb, Choice Band or Assault Vest, or maybe even a Silk Scarf if you want to run Double-Edge and don't want to take additional damage from a Life Orb. Jolly or Adamant is the preferred nature, while Scrappy (makes Kangaskhan hit ghost-type Pokémon with normal- and fighting-type moves, which ghost types are usually resistant to) is the most useful ability. Early Bird causes Kangaskhan to wake up earlier than usual, but that ability is merely situational and might not be of use. Inner Focus, however, prevents flinching, which might not be a bad idea if you suspect a Fake Out abuser or a Pokémon with the Serene Grace ability; still, Scrappy is the best ability to go with. As for Kangaskhan's moveset, this Pokémon learns a shitload of useful moves, most notably Double-Edge, Return and Fake Out, normal-type moves that it obtains STAB from. Crunch, Rock Slide, Outrage, Earthquake, Sucker Punch, Brick Break, Shadow Claw, Aqua Tail and Iron Tail are options as well. And it's a shame Kangaskhan doesn't get the Iron Fist ability, because it is able to lean Comet Punch (which is terrible, actually), Mega Punch (you're better off with Return), Dizzy Punch (mediocre, but has a chance to confuse the opponent), Hammer Arm, Focus Punch (only works reliably in conjunction with Substitute), the elemental punches, and Drain Punch. Especially the latter is nice, because it is a reliable source of healing for Kangaskhan. All of these moves are great options depending on what Pokémon you're gonna face and what kind of Kangaskhan you want to use.

TCG wallpaper of Mega Kangaskhan.

Kangaskhan is probably one of the few stand-alone Gen. I Pokémon that didn't get an evolution or a pre-evolution (Mega-evolving doesn't count, because it is temporary), the other ones being Farfetch'd, Pinsir, Tauros and Lapras. And quite honestly, Farfetch'd is the only one who actually needed an evolution but didn't get it. It's too bad Game Freak made Mega Kangaskhan way too overpowered by giving it the most broken ability ever. Kangaskhan needed a little love, but there is such a thing as giving it too much love, I guess. Nevertheless, Kangaskhan is an amazing, versatile Pokémon to use competitively. However, because of balancing problems (its Mega is too OP and its regular form falls a little short stat-wise, which is why it resides in the NU tier) I am unwilling to give it a perfect rating, even though I still love this Pokémon. 4.5 stars should do, right?

Rating: 4.5/5