#551 - #553: Sandile, Krokorok & Krookodile

I've always wondered why Basculin comes before the desert Pokémon in the Pokédex, but today I realized there is a patch of water to be found on Route 4 where I thought you could find the goddamn things. After a bit of reasearch I found out you can't find them there. Like, at all. So, confusion ensued and now I still don't know what Basculin is doing so early on in the Pokédex. Oh well, at least we're kicking off the new year with two amazing and generally beloved Pokémon.

Up: Sunglasses Sandile. Down: The same Pokémon as a
Krokorok, who is eventually 'caught' by Ash.

First up on the list are Sandile and its evolutions Krokorok and Krookodile. Sandile is a funny-looking crocodile, but it doesn't possess any powers related to water (aside from Aqua Tail) because Game Freak have made it a ground/dark dual type. It's not the first time they turned animals that are usually aquatic into desert creatures; the whole thing was done with Hippopotas and Hippowdon before, but I have to say they did a far better job with Sandile and its kin. The little croc looks like it's permanently wearing a pair of shaded binoculars, which actually isn't all that far from the truth, as the black area around its eyes is a membrane that prevents sand from getting into its eyes and shield them from the glare of the harsh desert sun. Sandile usually burrows under the surface of the desert like a sandfish (a type of skink), with only its nose and eyes sticking out from the sand, which has a purpose: it allows the heat from the sand to regulate its body temperature, and it allows Sandile to freely move around in the desert while seeing where the fuck it's going and staying hidden from its enemies at the same time. The reason why Sandile is such a beloved Pokémon nowadays, however, is what the Pokémon community affectionately refers to as Sunglasses Sandile. This Sandile wearing sunglasses was first seen as the leader of a group of wild Sandile causing trouble at a spa resort, but it was revealed that they were merely trying to save the Pokémon there as a result of a geyser about to erupt. Of course, Ash and his friends save the day and, as such, Sunglasses Sandile gains the utmost respect for Ash and starts following him around the Unova region. It took a couple of episodes, in which one was revealed that Sandile loses its confidence when its sunglasses go missing and becomes quite timid and cowardly, but in the end Ash invites a then Krokorok to join its team, which it happily accepts. 

An especially vile 'dile, if I may say so.

Aside from having a prominent anime arc, Krokorok has interesting origins as well. Like Sandile, it is based on a couple of crocodilians, more specifically the spectacled caiman, whose species' common name comes from a bony ridge between the eyes that gives it the appearance of wearing a pair of spectacles, and the slender-snouted crocodile. Given the fact that Krokorok looks like it's wearing a pair of shades (aside from Ash's Krokorok actually wearing sunglasses), this is kind of an obvious reference. It also draws inspiration from baryonyx, a slender-snouted and bipedal dinosaur that heavily resembled a crocodilian and is not seldomly depicted as having a reddish skin with stripes on its back, just like Krokorok and especially its evolution Krookodile - the latter of which has a snout that resembles the long, thin snout of a gharial. The main aspects of the entire evolutionary line's design, however, lie in the mask-like eyes and the stripes; Sandile and its evolutions are all based on criminals, as supported by their dark typing, and the stripes may even be a reference to convicts back in the day - you know, when many prison uniforms were black-and-white striped (I believe most US prison uniforms nowadays are either orange, khaki or yellow). Krookodile may also be based on a gang leader, as the markings around its eyes bear great resemblance to triangular sunglasses, which are often associated with manga and anime criminals. Additionally, it could also be a reference to Sobek, an ancient half-crocodile deity from ancient Egyptian mythology who is often associated with violence and even robbery.

Krookodile being a true crook.

When it comes to Krokorok and Krookodile's Pokédex entries, the only interesting part lies in the development of the eyes as the evolution line progresses. Krokorok's membrane not only protects its eyes against sand and heat, it also acts as a thermal detector and allows Krokorok to see the heat of the objects around it, which gives it excellent night vision. Krookodile can adjust the focus of its eyes over an incredible range, enabling it to view objects and prey in the far distance as if it were using binoculars, even in the midst of a sandstorm. Although I'm not sure if I should believe Sun and Ultra Sun when they say that Krookodile can detect small prey more than 30 miles away and swims through the desert as if it were water, only to jump out and chomp them. Ultra Moon even contradicts that, saying that this Pokémon waits patiently in a sandstorm for prey to appear.

Krookodile jumping out from beneath the sand. 

Krookodile is undoubtedly a very violent Pokémon that tries to clamp down on anything that moves with its powerful jaws and never allows its prey to escape, which really shows in competitive, the area in which this Pokémon really shines - at least it's in the UU tier, which is by no means a tier with Pokémon to be taken lightly. You'd wish Krookodile was a bit faster, but it isn't slow by any sense of the word, and aside from its physical strength it has some suprising bulk behind it. I mean, with an excellent HP stat, decent physical defense and access to the Intimidate ability, Krookodile could seriously serve as some kind of physical tank. Supported by a Jolly nature and the Rocky Helmet as a held item, this Pokémon is an excellent Stealth Rock setter and a complete and utter annoyance to your opponent when it's trying to get rid of their Pokémon's held items with Knock Off, which is also a quite powerful STAB dark-type move. Taunt makes it even worse, as it forces opposing Pokémon to use directly offensive moves and prevents them from using support or set-up moves, while a STAB Earthquake is always a thing to be wary of.

You could always go all-out offensive with a Choice Scarf set, which also makes Krookodile instantly faster but locks in into using only one move at a time until it's switched out. A moveset consisting of Knock Off, Stone Edge, Earthquake and Superpower has proved to be as effective as ever, although they're not the only moves that Krookodile learns: its vast movepool consists of STAB moves like Pursuit, Crunch, Throat Chop (only if you're worrying about sound-based moves), Bulldoze and Stomping Tantrum, but it also has access to nifty coverage moves like Aqua Tail, Iron Tail, Fire Fang, Thunder Fang, Rock Slide, Brick Break and even a good amount of dragon-type moves - considering Krookodile's alleged baryonyx origins, this is not surprising in the slightest. You could always stick with the Intimidate ability when taking the offensive approach, although Moxie boosts Krokodile's attack stat by one stage every time it kills something, which allows it to build momentum. Pair this ability with a Life Orb or Choice Band, and Krookodile really hits like a truck.

Krookodile being a sheer badass.

I absolutely love this Pokémon. Its design is original, its origins are fascinating and its pose is badass; and aside from that, it isn't half bad as a competitive Pokémon, nor as an asset to your in-game team. To top it off, Krookodile is much better and more badass as a crocodile - be it design- or flavor-wise - than Feraligatr, who is actually an honest-to-goodness water type rather than a ground type (I know Feraligatr is based on an alligator, but that's also a crocodilian, amirite?). I've used Krookodile on multiple occasions and it has honestly never let me down, because it's such a good Pokémon to use - although I have to say that I often chose Excadrill over Krookodile when I wanted to use a ground type on my Gen. V teams. Still, Krookodile is worth every star I'm giving it.

Oh man, I can't wait until I get to review Darmanitan!

Rating: 5/5

#535 - #537: Tympole, Palpitoad & Seismitoad

The Machop and Poliwag families almost sit back to back in the Kanto Pokédex, with the Abra line spoiling the fun for them; in Unova we actually get to discuss Tympole, Palpitoad and Seismitoad right after we're done with the Timburr line.

Official art of Tymple, drawn by Ken Sugimori.

To be honest with you, I've always been a little underwhelmed by Tympole and its evolutions, as there doesn't seem to be anything that makes them distinctive enough from the Poliwag family to warrant their very existence. I mean, they even have the same color scheme! Sure, they have supersonic abilities, but I can name a few other Pokémon that have the exact same powers; and when it comes to Seismitoad's typing (water/ground), it is heavily outclassed by the likes of Swampert and Gastrodon, and perhaps even Quagsire. That is not to say that Tympole isn't interesting at all design-wise, as its face looks as flat as a drum, the half-spheres on the side of its head make it look like it's wearing headphones and its eyebrows look like little musical notes. The aforementioned 'headphones' - or 'loudspeakers', rather - are actually rhythmically vibrated by Tympole to create a sound so high-pitched that it is imperceptible to humans, in order to communicate with others of its kind and warn them of danger. They also look like a toad's 'warts' or poison glands, although Tympole's name and Pokédex entries point to them being based on a tympanum, an external hearing structure in animals such as mammals, birds, some reptiles, some amphibians and even some insects. In frogs and toads, the organ is large and oval-shaped and is visibly located behind the eye, while it is simply used to transmit sound waves to the inner parts of the amphibian's ear. Heck, I already said Tympole's face looks like a drum, so its name might very well be derived from big Italian percussion instruments called timpani - also known as kettledrums.

Honestly, Palpitoad is a weird-looking Pokémon in every way
possible: limbless, warty, kinda plump... not Game Freak's best
effort to date. 

Unfortunately, the musical theme is dropped when Tympole evolves into Palpitoad, and the only thing that Palpitoad does that Tympole doesn't is using its ability to vibrate to create giant waves when it's underwater or earthquakes when it's on land - even though it cannot learn Earthquake in any way, shape or form. Palpitoad is a ground type and therefore it's capable to live on land just fine, which means it is based on a toad rather than a frog, but like Poliwhirl it is still a water type - and yes, I do still hold on to my belief that Poliwhirl and Poliwrath are grown-ass frogs, not tadpoles. Also, the bumps on Palpitoad's back, its more toad-like appearance and its ability to create vibrations underwater are derivative of the common Suriname toad, an aquatic amphibian whose back is covered in pockets that hold its eggs - although strangely, Palpitoad's Japanese name Gamagaru (ガマガル) is a corruption of gamagaeru and suggests that it is based on the Japanese common toad instead. Hell, its German name Mebrana even includes rana, a genus of frogs, which is... ahem, NOT what Palpitoad is based on at all. Come the fuck on, Game Freak. You're not gonna tell me you can't be at least a little bit consistent, are you?

"Come at me, bro!"

But then there's big, bad Seismitoad, and I have to say it has grown on me quite a bit. It is good design-wise, at least as far as toads go, and characteristically it has found many more ways to make use of the 'warts' found all over its body. Seismitoad can make all of its lumps vibrate at will, obviously, but it uses this function to make tormenting sounds and catch opponents off guard (unironically, the two bumps right above its eyes may be based on the bells of a traditional alarm clock, an invention that has been tormenting people ever since it came into existence). Some lumps have specific capabilities: the ones on Seismitoad's head can be used to spray a paralyzing liquid - which in my opinion is simply masked language for some kind of poison - and the ones on its fists can be vibrated to give more power to its punches, allowing it to turn a big boulder into rubble within seconds. Seismitoad's punching ability can actually be really dangerous if not controlled, because its hands will vibrate with the resonant frequency of the object about to be hit (in physics, resonance is a phenomenon in which a vibrating system drives another system to oscillate with greater amplitude at specific frequencies), causing extra, devastating damage to said object. Buildings can sway or collapse entirely, while for living creatures it could cause internal organ damage to the extent of possibly rupturing them. Sounds quite lethal, doesn't it?

Seismitoad being protective of its young.

Yeah, well, the problem with that is that Seismitoad isn't very good at punching things when it comes to competitive. Focus Punch is generally not recommended on any Pokémon and Ice Punch should be used on a Pokémon with more offensive presence (Mega Swampert, anyone?), which leaves Drain Punch as the only viable option for Seismitoad to use. And even then Seismitoad can be put to better use by giving it a support moveset of some sort, which should consist of Scald, Stealth Rock and the classic Toxic/Protect combo - or perhaps you could ditch Protect and give it Knock Off instead, so you can get rid of opposing Pokémon's held items. Combine this moveset with the Leftovers, the ability Water Absorb and a Bold nature (lowers its physical attack, but even though that stat is ten base points higher than its special attack, its only offensive move - which is Scald - is special-based), and you'll have a tanky water/ground type that isn't that easy to take down. And yes, alright, Seismitoad's defensive stats aren't very good in and of themselves, but its excellent HP more than makes up for that. There is one offensive set that could actually work, though: a Swift Swim set with a Life Orb and a Modest nature. Swift Swim doubles Seismitoad's average speed when it's raining on the battlefield, so if you somehow manage to let another teammate set up the rain for Seismitoad, you've got a very decent sweeper on your hands. There are exactly four good special moves of different types that Seismitoad can learn, too: Hydro Pump, Earth Power, Focus Blast and Sludge Wave, although you could opt to slap Surf on Seismitoad for more accuracy (100%, against the 80% of Hydro Pump). Seismitoad has access to a lot more physical moves than special moves, so a physical moveset is possible, but keep in mind that Seismitoad cannot learn a single physical-based water-type move, which kind of defeats the purpose of a rain set in the first place.

Seismitoad and its little babies.

I like Seismitoad. It may look hideous, but toads aren't pretty creatures to begin with and Game Freak can't make all Pokémon look aesthetically pleasing. This Pokémon is fine for what it is. Technically, there was no need for it, especially since all other water/ground dual-type Pokémon (Quagsire, Swampert, Whiscash and Gastrodon) serve as bulky support Pokémon, but it is obvious that Game Freak were aiming for at last some Kanto rip-offs during the production of Black and White. This time I'll forgive them for being such lazy asses, because if anything, Seismitoad is just a well-designed Pokémon. The only thing that could have been different aesthetically is Seismitoad's color palette, which should have been green/brown - or something along those lines - to make it at least a little bit more distinctive from Poliwrath design-wise. Then again, if that had been the case, people probably would have thought that it was a Politoed rip-off or something.

Rating: 4/5

#529 - #530: Drilbur & Excadrill

Now, this is how you create a mole Pokémon!

Yes, I am aware of the fact that Diglett and Dugtrio are mostly based on those ridiculously stupid Whac-A-Mole arcade games from the 1980s, but that doesn't mean that their designs aren't lackluster: Diglett is nothing but a brown, phallically shaped Pokémon with merely a pair of eyes and a pink button nose for physical features, while Dugtrio is just three Diglett clumped together. Game Freak haven't made things better by giving these Pokémon Alola Formes, whose added 'hair' makes them look dumb rather than creative, even though Alolan Diglett and Alolan Dugtrio got the same typing as Excadrill, the latter of whom I will discuss today.

TCG art of Drilbur.

But first, let's start off with Drilbur. This mole Pokémon has a pointed nose, distinguishable claws and actual fucking feet, however small they might be compared to the rest of its body. Unlike Diglett, it actually looks like a goddamn mole, and I'd even dare say it's cute. Drilbur is able to straighten its body and align its claws forward, allowing it to rotate quickly and dig through soil like a drill at speeds of 30 miles per hour, which is why its arms are shaped like shovels and its claws like the teeth of burrs. Its English name Drilbur implies just that, and its Japanese name Mogurew (モグリュー) even contains the English word 'screw', a type of steel fastener usually driven into a wall with a drill (or screwdriver, for that matter). When Drilbur evolves into Excadrill at level 31, it gains the steel typing. This can only be attributed to the steel blades Excadrill has for claws, as well as the one blade on its head, giving it the appearance of wearing some kind of helmet. By straightening up and putting both claws against its 'helmet', basically hiding its face between its steel blades, Excadrill actually looks like a drill - one that is strong enough to bore through iron plates no matter the thickness. It digs tunnels up to 300 feet deep and usually builds its maze-like nests at that depth, an activity that can turn out to be detrimental to underground structures such as subway tunnels, although Excadrill's swift digging prowess might be beneficial in tunnel construction as well.

Excadrill.

But if Excadrill is strong enough to destroy even thick iron plates, surely it can hold its own in a competitive battle, right? The answer is, 'You bet.' With phenomenal base 135 attack and pretty good base 88 speed, Excadrill is a force to be reckoned with. Its speed isn't that great, but this can easily be fixed by breeding a Jolly nature onto it and/or letting it hold a Choice Scarf, only to click whatever move you feel like clicking: STAB Earthquake, STAB Iron Head, Rock Slide, Stone Edge, Poison Jab, Brick Break, X-Scissor and Shadow Claw... Excadrill does have a few options to choose from. It can't take a hit very well due to its paper-thin defenses, but this problem is slightly compensated by its beefy base 110 HP stat and the slew of resistances granted to it by its steel typing. However, a Choice Scarf is not the only option for you to choose from. If any of your competitive Pokémon has the ability Sand Stream (Tyranitar, perhaps?), you could use it to set up a sandstorm to trigger one of Excadrill's abilities, Sand Rush, which doubles its speed stat as long as a sandstorm is brewing on the battlefield. This allows Excadrill to Swords Dance up and demolish everything in its way, provided you let Excadrill hold something like a Life Orb or an Air Balloon and find the right time for it to switch in. A Choice Scarf set on a sandstorm team is not a bad idea either, especially considering Excadrill's other ability - Sand Force - increases the power of all of its ground-, rock- and steel-type moves by 30% when a sandstorm is in effect. If you're not going for a sandstorm strategy, Mold Breaker is the recommended ability for Excadrill.

These are actually two Excadrill, believe it or not. The one on the left has actually
just withdrawn its face into its claws and 'helmet' in order to look like a drill. 

A Focus Sash set on Smogon suggests you give Excadrill the moves Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin and Toxic, but that is a waste of its strength, at least in my opinion. Rapid Spin is a solid option to remove entry hazards and could easily find its place on a Choice Scarf or Life Orb set, but there are much better Stealth Rock setters and Toxic stallers than Excadrill. It is simply not bulky enough for such a support role, and its massive physical attack should be used to its full potential.

Well, maybe not its full potential; for that, you'd have to give Excadrill an Adamant nature, which it really can't afford with speed like that, but you know what I'm getting at... don't you?

Excadrill drilling away at Dewott, but Dewott won't have none of it. So much for
the claim that Excadrill can even drill through iron plates. 

I absolutely love Excadrill. It is the perfect example of a Pokémon actually looking like the animal it is based on, while having some very cool additional characteristics that makes it stand out among other Pokémon. It definitely helps that it's a steel type, my favorite typing in the entire game, and that it looks like something you would not want to have an encounter with. Excadrill is nothing short of terrifying and I'd run away from it as fast as possible. The cherry on top is its excellent competitive utility, which is so good it can even be used in Smogon's legendary Uber tier - although it officially resides in OU. I've used Excadrill numerous times in my Black, White, Black 2 and White 2 playthroughs, just because it's a fantastic Pokémon that annihilates everything as it goes, especially with a Swords Dance up. The five stars I'm going to give Excadrill are more than deserved, all five of them.

P.S.: Listen, Game Freak... I know that in Greek mythology, the Minotaur - half bull, half man - dwelt at the center of an elaborate maze-like construction called the Labyrinth, but that is not a reason to include this in Excadrill's French name Minotaupe. It's just a suggestion, but perhaps you should save that for a Pokémon that is actually based on the Minotaur. Good idea, no?

Rating: 5/5

#449 - #450: Hippopotas & Hippowdon

It’ll take some getting used to writing full-on reviews like these again, but I should be able to put a couple out this month.

A female Hippopotas on the left, a male one on the right. The
only difference between them is their reversed color scheme.

Let’s just say Game Freak have a knack for turning aquatic animals into land-dwellers, because shortly after a trio of land sharks we encounter an interesting pair of ground-type hippos in the National Pokédex. However, introducing Hippopotas and Hippowdon alongside the Gible line apparently wasn't enough for Game Freak, because we would be able to get on familiar terms with the likes of Krookodile and Stunfisk exactly one generation later. It's not like Hippopotas and Hippowdon are overly remarkable Pokémon; their main in-game shtick is the color differences they have depending on their gender. Whereas a male Hippopotas has a tan skin color with dark brown spots, a female is dark brown with tan patches on its skin; male and female Hippowdon are simply light brown and black, respectively. At least there's no shortage of evidence that Hippopotas doesn't like water, as it spends its time bathing in sand and avoids water at all costs, while it also enshrouds itself in sand as a protective measure against germs and even sweats sand. That's right, it expels grainy sand from its body instead of perspiration. Also, it prefers traveling in groups of ten, which I find oddly specific.

A big-ass Hippowdon ready to kick some butt. 

At least Hippowdon is much more interesting, design- and flavor-wise as well as competitively. This Pokémon is far more intimidating, being short-tempered and holding its mouth agape as a display of strength, and its massive jaws are capable of crushing cars. Hippowdon skillfully uses the sand stored internally to create dust devils when attacking. While Bulbapedia states that Hippopotas and Hippowdon are probably derived from the Arabian myth of Bahamūt, I believe this is actually an error. The origins of this creature can actually be found in Jewish folklore, as Behemoth is often described and depicted in tales as a hippopotamus-like creature that rules over the Earth's landmasses - which I previously addressed in Groudon's entry - but this already large creature is further magnified in Arabian folklore, turning Behemoth into a vast cosmic fish or whale that serves as one of the foundations on which the Earth stands (Bahamūt). I don't think neither myth is where you can find Hippopotas and Hippowdon's origins, but it's a good guess.

At least these Pokémon are undoubtedly based on hippos. Simple as that.

Sand spouting from the holes on Hippowdon's back.

Competitively, Hippowdon isn't quite the behemoth. Rather, this Pokémon more commonly serves as a Stealth Rock setter than an offensive threat, relying on Whirlwind to become set-up fodder. Fortunately, a moveset consisting of the moves Stealth Rock, Whirlwind, Slack Off and Earthquake - along with the Leftovers as its held item and an Impish nature - proves to be effective as ever, and it is exactly what Hippowdon is good at due to those massive base 108 HP and 118 defense stats. One drawback is that it is a pure ground type and thus not a rock type, which means that it doesn't get a special defense boost in the sandstorm it whips up with its Sand Stream ability when it enters the battlefield. Sand Force boosts all of Hippowdon's ground-, rock- and steel-type moves in a sandstorm, but if it has that ability it would have to rely on another teammate to set up the sandstorm in the first place, which honestly defeats the purpose of having Hippowdon on your team: as it's a support Pokémon, it is generally better to run Sand Stream so that it can support its teammates instead. Hippowdon is basically a one-trick pony, although its base 112 attack stat allows it to hit fairly hard with moves like Earthquake, Stone Edge, Crunch, Superpower and Iron Head if that's your thing. I wouldn't recommend it, especially since this thing is painfully slow and will almost always get hit first; plus, there are plenty more ground types to choose from if you want to go the offensive way.

In that regard. Donphan is a good offensive alternative to Hippowdon, both aesthetically and competitively, because it has a higher attack stat and has access to a priority move in Ice Shard.

Hippowdon lazing about while their young are playing around. Amazing drawing!

I have to admit that turning aquatic animals into land-dwellers is a creative way for the people at Game Freak to introduce us to innovative new Pokémon designs, although they should not let this happen too often if they don't want to turn into one-trick ponies themselves. Hippowdon isn't one of my all-time favorite Pokémon, and I don't think I'll ever use it in a competitive setting, but I am definitely open to using it in a playthrough if the opportunity arises. I'm a little bit confused as to why the huge aesthetic differences between male and female Hippopotas and Hippowdon were applied to this specific evolutionary line, but I rest my case.

P.S.: Hippowdon's French name of Hippodocus is partly derived from an extinct genus of sauropods called diplodocus. Who the fuck at Game Freak came up with that?

Rating: 4/5

#443 - #445: Gible, Gabite & Garchomp

Let's put out a few reviews before Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon drop, shall we?

Stubby little Gible in TCG.

For the basic form of a pseudo-legendary Pokémon, Gible is available fairly early on in Diamond, Pearl and Platinum, found in the secret section of Wayward Cave after obtaining Strength as well as the Mine Badge. In comparison, Dratini was hard to obtain because it is found in the fucking Safari Zone or in the Rocket Game Corner for a shitload of coins, Larvitar couldn't be encountered until after you had finished the entire Kanto post-game in Gold and Silver, Bagon couldn't be caught in Meteor Falls until after you had gotten Waterfall and the Rain Badge from the eighth and last Gym Leader, and Steven left a Poké Ball with a Beldum for you to snatch at his house only after beating him in the Pokémon League. In addition, Deino (Black and White) and Jangmo-o (Sun and Moon) are found in Victory Road and Vast Poni Canyon, respectively, which is nearly at the end of the main story. Only Goomy is found before the sixth Gym in Pokémon X and Y, but Goodra might well be my least favorite pseudo-legend in existence, so I'm not overly excited about that fact. It's a good Pokémon, but still...

Regular Gabite (left) with its shiny form (right).

Gible is a little shark-like dragon-type Pokémon, with the secondary ground typing and a pair of horns comparable to jet engines to boot. Basically it's just a shark - more specifically a hammerhead shark - adapted to deserts, which is... well, we've seen weirder things from Game Freak, so I'll buy it. Moreover, its design kind of makes sense, as Gible and its evolutions may be a reference to the book After Man: A Zoology of the Future, the first of Dougal Dixon's speculative evolution series, in which one species is mentioned as a type of land shark that lives in desert regions. Additionally, there's also a land shark creature called a bulette (pronounced 'byoo-lay') to be found in the tabletop RPG Dungeons & Dragons. Desert sharks, huh? Pretty clever, to incorporate this idea into the Pokémon franchise. However, when it comes to its flavor text, Gible is nothing special: it likes to dig holes for homes in caverns, play-fight with others of its species, huddle close with others of its species if it gets too cold, bite enemies with its strong jaws or pounce on them forcefully while hurting itself because of its clumsiness, etc. The only interesting thing to say about Gible is that it once lived in the tropics and now lives in caves warmed by geothermal heat to avoid the cold. I really can't see Gible and its evolutions surviving in the tropics, because I imagine the humid environment would have made them very uncomfortable due to their ground typing. Or maybe they were once aquatic sharks - not 'land sharks', as the Pokédex insists - and had to adapt because they were forced to find another habitat? That makes more sense; I guess they're the original Alola Formes, ha ha ha.

I'll let myself out in a minute.

Awesome realistic fan art of Garchomp! When it folds up its body and extends its
fins/wings, it looks exactly like a jet plane and is able to fly at the speed of sound,
creating blades of wings that can fell trees and swallowing whole flocks of birds
while it's at it. In my opinion, the artist perfectly put the emphasis on this aspect of
Garchomp!

For now, allow me to continue and let me move on to Gible's evolution Gabite, whose scales apparently have medicinal properties and can heal most illnesses. What's more, the Gabite Scale is an actual item in the Gen. IV Mystery Dungeon games Explorers of Time, Explorers of Darkness and Explorers of Sky and these scales are stated to be a cure-all for all afflictions in a Mystery Dungeon anime special, however incurable these ilnesses may seem. Also, Gabite loves sparkly things and habitually digs up and hoards gems, resulting in its nest constantly being targeted by thieves. Gabite is so obsessed with its loot, in fact, that it can have its gaze fixed on the jewels it has amassed - or Carbink it has caught - for hours on end. It's an unhealthy obsession and I think Gabite should see a Pokémon psychiatrist. Just sayin'.

Also, want more proof that Gible, Gabite and Garchomp are based on sharks? Gabite's French name Carmache is derived from two possible shark genera, namely carcharias and carcharodon.

Garchomp in the Pokémon Adventures manga series (left) and Pokkén Tournament (right). 

However, Gible and Gabite are nothing compared to the almighty Garchomp. Seriously, anyone who has ever faced Cynthia's Garchomp must have lost at least one team member to it. The first time I played Pokémon Diamond I let my Empoleon stay in, thinking it could either outspeed or live any attack from Garchomp and strike back with an Ice Beam. I have never been more wrong in my life. That Garchomp is one of the reasons why Cynthia is considered one of the hardest Champions to take down, along with the fact that her team is just crazy diverse - in her Pokémon's typings as well as their movesets.

Mega Garchomp whipping up a sandstorm. In its Mega form,
Garchomp is known to become mad with rage, and in its anger
it slices the ground to pieces with its scythe-like blades, created
by the claws and fins melting and morphing together due to the
excessive energy released when it Mega-evolves. 

However, Garchomp isn't just the cherry on top; it's the entire fucking cake. Being a pseudo-legendary, it has good base values in all of its stats, most notably its attack and speed. That's why a Swords Dance set (for some reason, Game Freak did not give it access to Dragon Dance; I guess they were scared that would be too broken) supported by a Jolly nature is the most common set run on Garchomp: raise its attack by two stages and fire away with Dragon Claw, Earthquake and Fire Fang. While Dragon Claw is more accessible than Outrage, you could still go all out with the latter and switch out Garchomp once it gets confused. Also, Fire Fang isn't mandatory, as it also has access to some neat coverage moves such as Iron Head, Stone Edge, Rock Slide, Poison Jab, Brick Break and Aqua Tail. And while Garchomp's special attack is still only 80, Fire Blast is often used instead of Fire Fang because it is more effective against physical walls like Skarmory or Pokémon that like to rely on chip damage such as Ferrothorn, just to name a few - although it has to be said that Garchomp also likes to rely on chip damage with its ability Rough Skin. To finish the set, there is a plethora of items you could give Garchomp: Life Orb gives some extra oomph to its attacking moves, Dragonium Z or Groundium Z let it perform a powerful Z-Move that will probably blow the opposing Pokémon out of the water, the Garchompite lets it Mega-evolve, and the Choice Band and Choice Scarf are excellent items that work well on movesets that only consist of attacking moves. Leftovers is an option, but only if you have a slightly defensive Garchomp rocking Stealth Rock - which, by the way, is not an uncommon option, either.

Gible trying to... eat my precious little Shuckle? GIBLE, SHAME ON YOU!!!
Fortunately, Shuckle is showing the crowd (and Gible) who's da shit.

Garchomp is terrifying and I wouldn't like to meet it in real life. It's a cool Pokémon and aside from the weird-looking square jaw on Mega Garchomp I won't criticize it; it's just not one of my favorite Pokémon. And there are still a lot of 5-star ratings coming up in the next couple of years. I'm not a fan of pseudo-legends in the first place - especially not Dragonite when compared to its pre-evolution Dragonair - and Garchomp is not an exception. However, the only thing that really bugs me about it is its flavor text: Garchomp's Pokédex entries mention that Garchomp can fly at Mach speed (hence its classification as the 'Mach Pokémon'), yet it cannot learn Fly. Great consistency there, Game Freak. Sublime.

Rating: 4.5/5

#422 - #423: Shellos & Gastrodon

Today's Pokémon are the perfect embodiment of the sluggish pace at which I'm currently posting reviews, wouldn't you say? Expect me to post a lot less frequently from now on, as this here guy now has a job as a proofreader. I am so sorry, but I had such a heavy workload the past couple weeks that I didn't have any time writing something for this blog in the first place.

TCG art containing both of Shellos's forms, with the East Sea
Forme on the left and the West Sea Forme on the right.

Anyway, Shellos is based on the concept of allopatric speciation, specifically the vicariance model: an original population is separated by a geographic barrier, preventing the exchange of genetic information between the two populations (reproductive isolation) and resulting in the development of two different species (evolution). In that regard, this sea slug Pokémon based on chromodoris lochi comes in two different variants depending on where you are in Sinnoh, as the pink West Sea Forme can be found on the west side of the geographic barrier called Mt. Coronet and the blue East Sea Forme can only be caught on the other side of the mountain. It's just an aesthetic difference; neither Shellos has any special effect on the battles and/or overworld in the games, and there aren't any differences in their base stats. In fact, both forms are perfectly able to interbreed and the young inherit the mother's form. The only difference is in their Pokédex entries, and only as of Pokémon Sun and Moon: the pink West Sea Shellos secretes a purple mucus that sticks to the hands of those touching it and is troublesome to wash off, a trait that applied to both Shellos prior to Gen. VII and had a more generic description to begin with. The rest of Shellos's flavor mentions the fact that the color of its body depends on its diet and habitat (well, duh!).

That's it, really. There's literally nothing else to say about it, and I have the feeling Game Freak rushed this Pokémon a little. According to an interview with Ken Sugimori in Nintendo Power, Shellos and Gastrodon were originally intended for Ruby and Sapphire, but they weren't implemented due to time constraints. There are even early back sprites to be found of these Pokémon in the Diamond and Pearl game data, showing the West Sea Forme's pink color and bunch of fleshy head knobs and the East Sea Forme's wing-like appendages. The same can be said about Shellos's evolution Gastrodon, whose early back sprite is incredibly knobbly and doesn't even resemble the two forms of Gastrodon we're familiar with today. Basically, we just got the leftovers from the production period of Ruby and Sapphire, and other than a form difference they weren't given much of an attentive treatment.

3D art of Gastrodon's West Sea Forme.

Before I'm going to talk about Gastrodon, I have to say that I like that, wherever you are in the world, Shellos's name actually always refers to its lack of a shell, which... well, Gastrodon doesn't seem to have a shell, either, but of course its Pokédex entries contradict each other on that, too. That is something for a later time, though, as we're going to dig into Shellos's name origins first.

Japanese: Karanakushi (カラナクシ) is derived from kara, meaning 'shell', and nakushita and/or nashi, meaning 'to have lost' and 'without', respectively. The latter actually makes more sense.

English: Shellos contains 'shell' and 'loss' or 'lost', obviously referring to the fact that it doesn't have a shell. It also suggests that Shellos initially did have a shell, but assuming that its shell was lost as it grew might be a bit of a stretch.

French, German: Shellos's respective French and German names of Sancoki and Schalellos originate from sans coquille and schalenlos, wich literally mean 'without a shell'.

Korean: Kapjilmu (깝질무) contains kkapjil and mu - 'shell' and 'naught', respectively. Evidently, 'naught' refers to the absence of a shell on Shellos's body.

Mandarin Chinese: This is actually the strangest one, and the sole reason why I wanted to talk about Shellos's name origins. Wúkéhǎiniú (無殼海牛) literally means 'no shell manatee', while Gastrodon's Mandarin Chinese name Hǎiniúshòu (海牛獸) means 'manatee beast'. However, a manatee is commonly called a sea cow and is undoubtedly a mammal. Shellos and Gastrodon are based on sea slugs, which are obviously gastropods, so this whole manatee thing makes no sense, unless I'm actually missing something important here.

Eh, whatever. It's probably just a cultural thing.

Two East Sea Gastrodon chillin'.

Gastrodon itself isn't all that interesting, though. In ancient times its entire back was shielded by a sturdy shell, of which there are traces left in its cells, although it is also mentioned that its sturdy shell serves to protect its body. 'Serves', as in simple present tense rather than past tense. Come on, Game Freak, make up your goddamn mind. I know you're busy, but try to get rid of your inconsistencies for once. We're not stupid; give us a little credit here. As for the rest of its flavor, East Sea Forme's Sun and Moon entries mention researchers scouring the oceans of the world in search of a Gastrodon in a color never seen before, as well as experiments that are being conducted by scientists to discover what happens when a Gastrodon is raised in a location other than the sea where it was born. I have no idea what all of this has to do with East Sea Gastrodon specifically, but it's the only form available in Alola and I suspect the 'Gastrodon in a color never seen before' might as well refer to West Sea Gastrodon. In turn, West Sea Gastrodon has strong regenerative capabilities, so it will return to normal within a matter of hours if parts of it are bitten off by fish Pokémon. This was part of Gastrodon's general Dex entries before Sun and Moon, so I guess this trait isn't exclusive to West Sea Forme.

So, the bottom line is that giving the two Gastrodon forms separate Pokédex entries in Sun and Moon was absolutely not necessary.

West Sea Gastrodon chillin' on a cliff.

But Gastrodon has a base HP stat of 111, which is monstrous for HP standards, and base 68 and 82 defense and special defense, respectively. That makes it an excellent tank in battle, provided you use one with a Bold or Relaxed nature to buff up that defense stat. Trust me, it's necessary; in itself, a base 68 defense stat is in nothing to write home about, but a Bold nature and an excellent HP stat renders it more than useful in Gastrodon's case. Just heed grass-type moves, which deal quadruple damage due to its water/ground typing. The only thing about Gastrodon is that it is a pretty straightforward Pokémon with a rather predictable moveset most of the time, despite its versatility. It often carries Recover, Toxic, Scald and either Earth Power or Earthquake; it is genuinely the best moveset for Gastrodon, as it can heal itself with Recover - which is irritating to your opponent when you let it hold the Leftovers - and hit back with STAB moves like Earth Power and Scald. The latter also has a chance to burn the opposing Pokémon, which only adds to Gastrodon's physical bulk due to the attack cut a burn causes. Those are not the only options Gastrodon has, however: it learns useful moves such as Mirror Coat, Counter, Ice Beam, Sludge Bomb, Sludge Wave, Rock Slide, Stone Edge, Clear Smog, Curse, Waterfall and Surf. Its special attack is a base 92, which in combination with its bulk is nothing to really sneeze at, although its base 83 attack and access to Curse might prove to be more helpful to you. If you want to spice up the game a little, Gastrodon is not a bad Pokémon to do that with. Of course, make sure its ability is Storm Drain at all times; not only does this ability make it immune to water-type moves, it also raises its special attack when hit by one. Sticky Hold is useful when you really don't want your item knocked off, but otherwise it is to be avoided, as is Gastrodon's hidden ability Sand Force. This powers up all of its ground-, rock- and steel-type moves in a sandstorm, but Gastrodon isn't that much of a powerhouse in the first place, so I wouldn't bother with it.

I especially like the background here.

Shellos and Gastrodon are no more than okay as far as Pokémon go. I'm not sold on their designs, but I don't carry a hatred or dislike towards it, either. On the contrary, even, because I think Gastrodon's competitive capabilities redeem its bland design a little. I do think the whole East Sea and West Sea differences are a little bit unnecessary, but I guess I can look past that, as it's not a pressing matter to me or something. I would give it 3 stars as a whole, but I guess I cannot put it on the same level with that ridiculous Overcast Forme of Cherrim (which only got 3 stars because of its cute Sunshine Forme), so I'll give it half a star extra instead.

Rating: 3.5/5

#412 - #414: Burmy, Wormadam & Mothim

Burmy feeling uncomfortable losing its cloak.

As if the Gen. II Pokémon Pineco and Forretress weren't enough already, Diamond and Pearl gave us more bagworm Pokémon in the form of Burmy and Wormadam. Unlike Pineco, however, Burmy doesn't blow up in your face as early as level 6, nor does it have any useful moves in its level-up moveset. In fact, Burmy just uses Protect to avoid any damage on its persona, annoying players all around the world. This Pokémon learns a grand total of six moves, two of which can only be learned through a Move Tutor in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, so basically the only thing it can do is stall the player out and do nothing in particular. That sounds contradictory, but it's not. As Burmy is vulnerable in its bare form, it composes a cloak made of twigs and leaves that is thinner in hot weather and thicker in the winter in order to shelter itself from cold and wintry winds. It doesn't always stay in the same form, however: if its cloak gets broken, Burmy quickly remakes it with materials nearby. This manifests itself in the games quite well, as Burmy takes on a specific kind of cloak based on the location where it last 'battled' - Plant Cloak (green) in grassy areas, Sandy Cloak (beige) in caves or on beaches, or Trash Cloak (pink) in buildings.

Female Burmy evolve into Wormadam (bottom left), while male
Burmy evolve into Mothim (bottom right). 

Changing its cloak doesn't change the fact that it is a bug type, nor does it gain him an additional type on top of its bug typing. However, its cloak does have an effect on wich typing its evolution Wormadam ends up with when it evolves at level 20: Plant Cloak Wormadam is bug/grass, Sandy Cloak Wormadam is bug/ground, and Trash Cloak Wormadam is bug/steel. The cloak is now part of Wormadam's body and is never shed, and therefore this Pokémon cannot change its typing at will; it will always stay in the same form. Apart from their distinctive typings, the different forms of Wormadam also have their own unique base stat distributions: Plant Cloak is more specially oriented, Sandy Cloak is more physically oriented, and Trash Cloak takes a more defensive approach. Not that it matters much, because in this case, physically or specially oriented means a mediocre attack or special attack stat as well as a good defense or special defense stat backed up by a mediocre HP stat. A physically oriented Wormadam is terrible anyway, so Sandy Cloak is out. Trash Cloak is moderately defensive with its base 95 defense and special defense, but its HP is still lackluster and it can't attack for shit with those bad offensive stats, so that one is also out of the running. That means Plant Cloak is the only remaining Wormadam form, and with base 79 special attack and 105 special defense - along with access to Quiver Dance and a decent special movepool - it is the only one who is somewhat viable for an in-game team.

Yo, these moth Pokémon are drawn so well. Great style!
Clockwise starting from the top left: Dustox, Mothim,
Venomoth and Volcarona, with Masquerain in the middle. 

But as Burmy is based on a bagworm pupa that will metamorphose into a moth if male or remain a pupa-like creature if female, it also has another evolution. Only female Burmy evolve into Wormadam; male Burmy evolve into Mothim, who is - indeed - a moth Pokémon. It is one of the better ones in my opinion, especially compared to Venomoth and Dustox, but I guess I'm a little biased because I used one in a Pokémon X playthrough and I enjoyed it tremendously. Not only do I like its design and color scheme better than any one of the Wormadam, its stat distribution is far more workable, too: it has base 94 attack and special attack as well as slightly more HP and a significantly higher speed stat than Wormadam. Its base 66 speed stat still isn't anything to write home about, mind you, but it's pretty decent after a Quiver Dance boost and allows it to actually outspeed some things. And shit, does this thing have an awesome moveset for a goddamn moth; Bug Buzz, Air Slash and Psychic are level-up moves and will suffice to complete its moveset, although it also learns Energy Ball and Shadow Ball by means of TMs and Electroweb and Giga Drain when you take it to the Move Tutor in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Too bad Mothim is so frail, but I guess it's a far more efficient Quiver Dance user than Wormadam. I wouldn't recommend using it competitively, but it makes for a more-than-decent addition to any in-game team.

Mothim in the anime series.

The only thing that really bugs me about Wormadam is that it learns Confusion, Psybeam and Psychic by level-up as well as Dream Eater by TM, which applies to all Wormadam forms and implies they all should have been part psychic, but absolutely nothing in their designs and/or flavor implicates that they have any psychic abilities. Mothim learns them also, but it's not uncommon for Game Freak to give moth and butterfly Pokémon psyhic-type moves like Confusion and Psybeam, to name a few. Wormadam, on the other hand, has no business knowing those moves and cannot make use of them effectively. It's fucking dumb, really.

A more realistic interpretation of Mothim. Although its body is now reduced to a
fluffy ball, I still think it's cute.

I don't hate Wormadam. If anything, I'm impartial towards it - I can't say that I'm the biggest fan of this Pokémon, but it's here now and I'm bothered by neither its design nor its flavor. Burmy and Wormadam are a sensible take on the traditional bagworm, only with a twist; even the pink Trash Cloak Wormadam with its bug/steel typing makes a certain amount of sense, as its cloak is based on the pink-colored building insulation material made of fiberglass. Mothim makes the exact same amount of sense as Wormadam, and even though it's nothing else but the zillionth bug/flying type, there are so many more things that I love about it, including its shiny coloration.

Oh man, can I just say that its shiny is downright gorgeous? It's definitely one of my favorites so far.

Rating Wormadam: 3/5

Rating Mothim: 5/5

#387 - #389: Turtwig, Grotle & Torterra

Turtwig in a flowerpot. Isn't it adorable?

It's about time I started off with the Sinnoh starters, and Turtwig is the first one. While its name suggests it resembles a turtle - most likely the snapping turtle in appearance - it is probably based off of a tortoise more than anything, as will become evident by the type combination of its final evolution Torterra. You see, turtles spend most of their lives in the sea and tortoises tend to dwell on land, which is - just as a side note - why Blastoise's name isn't technically correct. Despite Turtwig's animal appearance it's actually some kind of vegetative Pokémon, carrying a shell on its back that hardens when it drinks water and a twig on its head that wilts if it becomes thirsty. It undertakes photosynthesis with its body, absorbing sunlight and making oxygen. In short, Turtwig's flavor text couldn't have been more generic, and it hardly becomes any better when it evolves into Grotle. Like most middle stages of starter Pokémon, Grotle looks a little awkward; with its hardened soil shell running over the entire length of its body, extending from its forehead to the tip of its short tail, it looks like it's majorly uncomfortable. It has two bushes growing on its shell, which are occasionally seen producing acorn-like nuts or berries that are greedily devoured by other Pokémon, and it has the ability to sense where pure water wells up and willingly carries other Pokémon on its back to these sources. Aside from the fact that it may be based on the minogame, a turtle in Japanese mythology that is said to live up to 10,000 years and is therefore seen as a symbol of longevity and felicity, I have to be honest and say that its origins aren't very inspiring. Sure, the minogame is often depicted with a train of seaweed/algae growing on its back and as a tail, but the reference is vague at best.

Great Torterra fan art that fully utilizes its shell's
ecosystem aspect.

Luckily, everything becomes a whole lot better when the grass-typed Grotle evolves into the grass/ground type Torterra. This Pokémon is a perfect example of commensalism, a class of relationship between two organisms where one organism benefits from the other without affecting it: Torterra's shell supports the lives of many small Pokémon that build their nests upon it and some are born and spend their entire life there. Aesthetically, Torterra seems to carry a giant tree and three triangular, stony protrusions resembling mountain peaks on top of its shell. Being known and classified as the 'Continent Pokémon', it really does look like it's carrying an entire continent on its back - or at least an entire ecosystem - and that is why it is probably based on the concept of the World Turtles in various mythologies carrying worlds upon their backs. The most prominent one is a popular rendition of a Hindu myth, in which the tortoise Akūpāra (Sanskrit: अकूपार) - or sometimes called Chukwa - supports the elephant Maha-pudma, which in turn supports the world. The first thing that came to mind when I was reading that was the humorous Discworld series by British author Terry Pratchett, in which a giant turtle called Great A'Tuin travels through the Discworld universe's space carrying four giant elephants on its back. The elephants in turn carry the flat, disc-like world of roughly 10,000 miles wide that earned the entire fantasy book series its name, which I'm sure was just an attempt to ridicule all those flat-earthers. In fact, a lot of myths, jokes and hoaxes such as drop bears, treacle mines, tooth fairies and suicidal lemmings seem to be the focus of the majority of the 41 (!) existing Discworld novels.

It doesn't work in Grotle's favor that the best image I could find from it is a still
from the anime series. I couldn't find any interesting or appropriate fan art at all. 

But while this whole World Turtle myth is a cool concept to base a Pokémon on and Terry Pratchett's Discworld series is fun to talk about, there are aspects of other things to be found in Torterra's design. Its stance is reminiscent of a certain armored dinosaur called the ankylosaur, just without the hammer-like tail tip; and while we're talking extinct animals anyway, it'd probably be safe to say Torterra may be inspired by the spiky-looking proganochelys quenstedti and meiolania turtles due to its large features and... well, spikes. Lastly, Torterra's name is most likely a combination of tortoise and terra (Latin for 'ground'), although it may also be a corruption of tōtara, a kind of tree endemic to New Zealand that bears a lot of similarities with the tree on Torterra's back.

Yo, this Torterra fan art is SO COOL!

Stat-wise, I can't say Torterra is the greatest fully evolved starter in the competitive scene. Sitting in one of the lowest Smogon tiers, its low speed and quadruple weakness to ice-type attacks makes it susceptible to being OHKOed quickly, but it gets a wonderful STAB Earthquake for that in return. Its solid all-around bulk and more-than-decent attack stat allow it to take a couple of hits and then strike back with powerful physical moves such as Earthquake, Wood Hammer, Seed Bomb, Crunch, Rock Slide, Stone Edge, Superpower, Iron Head, Iron Tail and Outrage. And although you need to find the right time to set it up, it learns Stealth Rock for a bit of chip damage every time your opponents switches one Pokémon out for another. If you go the tank route, Stealth Rock and Synthesis are basically unmissable, as are the Leftovers; an offensive route mostly requires setting up with Curse, Swords Dance or Rock Polish, mostly in conjunction with a stat- or move-boosting held item such as a Life Orb or the Soft Sand. Or you could just slap a Choice Band and four offensive moves on Torterra and go all out, which works just as well. Make sure Torterra has an Adamant nature at all times to maximize the damage output, although a Careful or an Impish nature works just fine on a tanky Torterra.

Holy fucking cow, this is awesome!

Look at this!

And this!

While many depictions of Torterra somehow look savage or otherworldly, this
image is so... serene.

Torterra honestly has one of the most creative designs I have ever seen in Pokémon, and I am tempted to love it only because of that. But - and I have to say that it's a bit unfair towards the other Pokémon in the franchise - fan art plays a big part in my love for Torterra now. I never knew there were so many talented artists throwing their work on the Internet, but I'm glad they did. Torterra fan art is some of the best I've seen so far, and for the first time since Mew, I'm putting a couple of drawings directly underneath each other.

Well, it was GIFs in Mew's case, but y'know... details.

Not unimportantly, Torterra is the first and only grass/ground dual-type Pokémon, making it the only starter with STAB Earthquake aside from Swampert. And with Earthquake being one of the most popular moves in the entire game - not just in the competitive metagame, mind you - you shouldn't be surprised that I feel Turtwig has become the most popular Sinnoh starter. Grass may be kind of weak, both defensively and offensively, but Torterra's ground typing more than makes up for that in the end.

Gen. IV is a short generation, but we're starting off with a bang!

Rating: 5/5