#not big on chespin or grookey though

[i-never-forgot]

So…I know I said I would finish the comic page next, but hEAR ME OUT—

I finally bought Violet :) I’ve got Gatito the Sprigatito (original, I know), Fresa the Tarountula, and Gawain the Ralts so far as I explore the zone on the way to the academy!

[imthepunchlord]

If you were to make your own pokemon starter trio, what would their unifying theme be?

Well, that will depend on what the region theme would be, or what about the region would stand out.

And atm, I don't really have a particularly region in mind... um, I have thought of a region inspired around Halloween and all things spooky, if doing original starters, I'd vote for a bat, spider, and (black) cat or wolf or hose that'll really play off nightmare. And either they'll all be part ghost or it'll be a ghost, bug, and dark.

I'd also be tempted to be bias and do a trio of some of my favorite animals: snake, shark, fox, horse, or peacock.

But idk what the themes would be. That theme would come down to the region and I don't really have a region in mind.

[thelivingmemegod]

Rank the starters

Gen 1

Squirtle line: 10/10 would recommend, had one and I loved my blastoise dearly

Charmmander line: 6/10 overrated

Bulbasaur line: the chunky baby to big boy pipeline I give many kisses 10/10

Gen 2

Chickorita line: 5/10 little weird but it’s got spirit

Cyndaquil line: 10/10 they’ve got an awkward teen phase and I’m a little biased because I thought a typhlosion was a real weather pattern

Totodile line: 10/10 just a little bitey guy and I love all their names, exceptionally fun name scheme

Gen 3

I’ve really got the least experience with these ones. Don’t know why I’ve just seen em the least.

Mudkip line: 10/10 A derp. A real derp and it’s always a derp

Torchic line: 8/10 Fighting fire chicken. Cool (though I do not like Combusken at all-)

Treecko line: 3/10 I get what it’s going for but I…don’t really like how they executed it.

Gen 4

Thanks to the rereleases I actually played this one!

Chimchar line: 100/10 no I’m not biased cuz he was my starter leave me alone-

Turtwig line: 10/10 love the idea and execution behind these guys!

Piplup line: 4/10 I love the actual first form but the other two I really don’t-

Gen 5

I remember these guys unreasonably well, I guess I watched a decent amount of this season to remember it.

Snivy line: 4/10 like the actual first two designs, don’t like the third. The general personality of this line I don’t like. Little grass twerp is judging me-

Tepig line: 10/10 Chunky to WWE pipeline, also Emboar is fun to say and I like it’s tag teaming with the anteater thing against the metal ants. I like those kinds of prey predator relationships in Pokémon

Oshawott line: 3/10, like Oshawott, don’t like the other two that much. It does get another point for the name reminding me of osha though.

Gen 6

Played these games too!

Fennekin line: 8/10 despite my bias cuz it was my starter I really hate how delphox looks. I wish it quadrupedal. If I were to replay X I’d see if I can find and everstone and just keep Braxian

Chespin line: 1/10 I don’t like where he goes at all I wish he’d just stayed a little guy

Froakie line: 10/10 Cute little guy to edgy ninja pipeline!

Gen 7

Played em!

Litten line: 8/10 same issues as the Fennekin line, would’ve much rather stopped at the quadrupedal stage two Torracat. Plus I really like the name Torracat

Rowlet line: 10/10 Cool line! Starts squishy and ends mysteriously!

Popplio line: 4/10? I’m kinda neutral on this whole line-

Gen 8

We all know why I didn’t play this mess, this isn’t gonna be pretty

Grookey line: 2/10 I don’t hate Grookey or Rillaboom but like. Rillaboom seems like the type of Pokémon a gay kid has before he realizes he’s gay because it’s just a gymbro

Scorbunny line: 5/10 mehs all around

Sobble line: 5/10 M e h

Gen 9

The newest one-

Sprigatito line: 3/10 it starts cute then what the fuck. LET THE DAMN CATS BE QUADRUPEDAL

Furcoco line: 2/10 I’m not into the concepts or the execution of these little guys 

Quaxly line: 1/10 what the hell happened to its color scheme and why it’s legs suddenly get so thick-

[whimsicalsesquipedalian]

Ranking the grass-type starters by how well their name substitutes into ABBA’s Chiquitita (1979)

Bulbasaur (1/10)

Three syllables makes it hard to satisfyingly swap for a four syllable word. Plus, the lack of hard consonants means it doesn’t echo the crisp, satisfying vibe of the original. Sorry Bulbasaur - first in my heart, last in this ranking.

Snivy (3/10)

Two syllables, so it stretches over a four syllable word better than “Bulbasaur”, but we’re still not all the way there. The consonants stretch rather than clip, so it’s still not catching the satisfying, crisp vibe of the original.

Rowlet (4/10)

Still only two syllables. We’ve got a hard ‘t’ sound now so we’re getting closer to that satisfying “Chiquitita” sound. The big clunky “ow” in the middle throws the whole thing off though. Both the word and the birb are a little too round for this ranking.

Turtwig (5/10)

We’re still stuck on that goddamn two syllable split. Two hard ‘t’s and a hard ‘g’, so the sound is snapping better now. Still lacking on vibes though, and that “w” gets in the way of it tripping off your tongue as you sing it.

Chespin (5/10)

Two syllables. Doesn’t have any of those hard ‘t’s BUT I’ve gotta give it kudos for starting with the right letters. Well done, Chespin - last in my heart, but comfortably in the middle of this ranking.

Grookey (6/10)

Two syllables, and the double “oo” and long ‘y’ make the stretch over the original four more satisfying, particularly when singing. The hard ‘g’ and ‘k’ are giving it that good “Chiquitita” snap. Solid effort little drum monkey!

Treeko (6.5/10)

All the same reasons as grookey but Treeko just gives me better vibes. The nice round ‘o’ on the end is really doing it for me. 6.5 for you Treeko, you go Treeko!

Sprigatito (9/10)

We’ve got four syllables baby!! Consonants follow the same rhythm as the original. The ‘tito’ to ‘tita’ pipeline is STRONG and satisfying when sung. A good substitution, 9/10 would sing it instead of the original. Sprigatito, you son-of-a-bitch, you did something I can actually like you for!

Chikorita (10/10)

Basically the same word. Enough of a difference that makes singing it fun and exciting, but close enough that I often accidentally sing “chikorita” instead when the actual song comes on the radio. Chikorita, tell me what’s wrong? Fucking nothing, cuz you’re at the top of this ranking baby.

[a-tale-of-legends]

kinda new to your blog so sorry if youve already said these, but for the ask game- what are all of your ocs' starters? and do they have nicknames?

Hello!!! I hope you're enjoying your time here on my blog!

_ _ _ _

Jin: Hello! My starter was treecko. She's a Sceptile now, haha. Her name is Vivian.

Kohaku: Oh man, remember when we first got our starters?! Oh that was so long ago....anyway, I chose Torchic -

Jin: Because you wanted to kick my ass back then.

Kohaku: Hey, I had Haru way before you got Vivian! And it's not my fault you lost to me on your first battle-

Jin: I'm only teasing, dear.

Kohaku: Yeah, yeah....anyway! Haru had been my since.... forever! He's a big strong Blaziken now too !

_ _ _ _

Kenji: Oh! Starters? Ooooh hold on, I'll be right back! * Runs off shouting* TATUM!!!

Aiko: I don't have a tradition starter, since I already had Louie, my Azumarill. I've had him since he was an Azurill! Though I think my dad, Professor Elm, was planning to give me a chikorita until someone stole her.

Silver: You said countless of times that you didn't want a starter!

Aiko: True. But I like bugging you, so-

Silver: Oh my god-

Kenji, carrying a Feraligtr: OKAY I'M BACK!* Places the Feraligtr down* Sorry that took a bit. She was sparring with Apple.

Silver: Did you really have to carry here all the way here? You have her PokeBall.

Aiko: Yes. It means my training is working.

Silver: Chucks training.

Aiko: Which he taught to me and I taught to Kenji-

Kenji: ANYWAY! This is Tatum, with bestest girl in the world! * Squishes Tatum's face* Isn't that right girl?

Tatum: *happy noises*

Kenji: Yep! Ummm....who hasn't said anything- oh Beryl! BEEEERRRRRYYLLLLL-

Beryl: Kenji,I'm right here. I've been here the whole time.

Kenji: Oh. Sorry.

Beryl: It's fine. My starter was a cyndaquil by the way. He's a Typhlosion now. Not the hisuian one. His name is Asher.

Kenji: And that's our starters! THANK YOU FOR ASKING!

Aiko: YEAH THANKS!!!

Silver: Why are you two yelling-

_ _ _ _

Danica: .....hey Kiran.

Kiran: Hm?

Danica: What was your starter.

Kiran:......wha? You already know- oh it's an ask.

Danica: Yep.

Kiran: You could have started with that.

Danica: Are you going to answer the question?

Kiran: Alright, fine. My starter was turtwig. He's a Torterra now and his name is Bodhi. There.

Danica: I chose Chimchar. Mostly so Barry wouldn't get her.

Kiran: I doubt that would have done much in terms of Barry's....Barryness.

Danica: Yes, but you love Barry's Barryness.

Kiran: A-and you don't?

Danica: You know exactly what I mean by that.

_ _ _ _

Alexis: Starters? Well * gestures to the Samurott on resting near him* This is Kai. Given to me by professor juniper when we started our journey.

Elliot: Lucky for us, Kai had a twin of her own! *points to the Samurott lazily resting his chin on her lap* This lazy bum is River. I love him dearly.

Eva: My starter was Tepig! Her name is Hazel and she's the best!

Wayne: I never really planned to get a starter, or be a trainer in general. But Clay- I mean, Dad convinced me to get one. I got a snivy! Her name is Lexi and....is it surprising to say she's fully evolved?

Eva: Nah, you're just a cool trainer.

Wayne: Hehe....thanks.

_ _ _ _

Okay so as much as I want to rp the xy protag and sm ones, it gets difficult as I'm doing a nuzlocke of y, so any team building for that is up in the air. However, I made a rule that the starter cannot die . For the SM protags, Ames has a starter, but Poppy is a bit hard for me write now.

Basically, Jude has a Froakie who I'm currently naming Zephyr, Dante is getting a chespin with no nickname right now. Amsonia got a Rowlet who I forgot the name of. Whoops. Poppy is a difficult case given I need to figure out how he fits into my version of sm.

Okay back to the rp!

_ _ _ _

Naomi: O-oh! Hello! Um...oh man I wasn't prepared for this-

Carol: Yo! I chose Grookey! His name is Twigs!

Naomi: M-my starter was Sobble! His name is Neptune....

Carol: Water starters with water based names must run in the family huh?

Naomi: I....I guess so!

_ _ _ _

And that's it!.....okay no. There's Sakura Ume and Zero Yamamoto. Buuuuuuut. I'm lazy lol. Also I haven't played as Zero yet.

I hope this was too your liking. I may have went overboard for such a simple task, but I had fun and I hope you have fun reading it!

[inikavulpixelreviews]

Let’s Talk About Pokemon - The Grookey Family

810: Grookey

And so, finally after 22 reviews, we get to see a Grass Starter. And erm, spoilers. Competition for the Gen 7 starters these are not. Even granting it's gonna be a tall order to top Gen 7's starters for me, these tragically can't even find a candle to hold up to them.

Grookey from day 1 has felt really underwhelming to me and my opinion on it has not improved a bit. It stinks to have the Grass starter, the starter type I've always traditionally started with, just strike out completely this time. Even if I wasn't too thrilled about Chespin either, it had a fun spin on a hedgehog design. Grookey here is. It sure is a monkey, yeah. Didn’t we already get a funny Grass monkey with Pansage though?

I don't know what it is about friggin monkeys. And how Pokemon can't ever seem to make me be able to give a damn about any of them other than Darumaka. (And that’s if you even consider that one a monkey.) Their designs have just always felt on the samey side to me even if we disqualify the Gen 5 elemental monkeys. I can't even muster up the emotional strength to get angry at Grookey for tarnishing the Grass starter's excellent run up until this point. It's just so harmlessly blasé.

It has one little personality quirk where it takes the stick out of its “hair” and uses it as not just a weapon in battle, but also it loves to drum with it. Very obviously flagging where it will be heading in an evolutionary path.

Personal Score: 5/10

811: Thwakey

I keep seeing people dunk on Thwakey but it's a monkey with at least a LITTLE fun going for it. It's got an odd body shape that looks a little more imaginative than its line-mates, and at least it pulls off the “just a regular monkey” look in a slightly cooler looking way than your usual Poke-Primate. I dunno, I just likes its face in a way I find a little hard to pin down.

But when it pulls out the sticks in its hair, it gets a fun bit of extra flare in a leafy mohawk! So it's got a cool dynamic model to go with it.

Though I will say a big irk for me about the design is how top-heavy the color distribution is. Had one of the colors either moved down to its legs or got removed entirely, it'd look a little less egregious, but it just makes the 'mon look uncomfortably naked. Don't be making me think of naked monkeys, man.

Something I will give this line credit for is that it continues the Grass Starter tradition of pre-history in an interesting way. And since I've admittedly been pretty on-off about explaining them, I might as well recap it so far. And since this may be the last time we talk about Starters for a few years, I might do the same for the other Starter lines and their themes, as well as how these new starters fit in.

Venusaur is easily the biggest stretch since this “extinct creatures” theme feels like it fell onto the Grass starters by accident or something. Venusaur was always meant to be more of a toad, not even being speculation at this point since it's been outright stated it is a one. It does, however, hold plenty of dinosaur-esque features which is probably why English localization has given it the “saur” in its name to begin with. Then comes Meganium, being an unambiguous sauropod. Sceptile has features of raptors and other feathered dinosaurs. Torterra goes from a tortoise to becoming notably part-ankylosaur. Serperior started out as a snake with limbs, showing a line-long progression of lizards losing their limbs over time to become modern snakes. Chesnaught evolved into the extinct mammal, glyptodont. And finally, Decidueye the Ghost-owl becomes the fairly recently extinct Stilt Owl.

Before the mass leak, a lot of fans speculated to keep up with this trend, that Grookey would eventually become a Gigantapithecus, an extinct species of ape. But turns out it's a bit more nuanced than that. As we'll see, Rillaboom is a much more average looking ape. Grookey could very well be based on cavemen. What, with them being primates that developed enough to start using sticks as tools. Even down to using them to create a musical beat! That's really clever! It's like, the one glimmer of super creative theming in this whole line.

Personal Score: 6/10

812: Rillaboom

And obviously the theme is still going into Rillaboom here, with it being a touch more human than the usual ape Pokemon as well as throwing in a bit of neanderthal into the mix with its large brow and all. But I can't get behind this decidedly basic ape. It's a Pokemon ape in a world where we've already gotten plenty of Pokemon apes so I have to wonder what was the point of introducing a new Pokemon that's even more grounded than the already pretty grounded; albeit cartoony, apes are. Why would you look at the lineup of so many grounded and fairly realistic Poke-Apes and think “Y'know what Pokemon is missing? An EVEN MORE grounded and realistic ape!!”

And yes, it gets a fun little drum set and some drum sticks made out of a tree trunk and some branches. That's neat and all, but I still think a Pokemon aught to be visually interesting even without its accessories. In exactly the same way Rotom is interesting even before it gained new forms from its ability to possess appliances, or that Decidueye is still a cool and eye-catching design even before you learn that it can use its arms and hood draw-strings as a bow. Take away Rillaboom's drum set and what does Rillaboom have? A giant leafy mullet, I guess. Though even then, it's odd how many repeated motifs we get this Gen. We already have a wild-haired glam rocker in Obstagoon, so why do we need another one, especially if it's even more downplayed? I guess they just really felt the need to have an entire band between Rillaboom on drums, Toxtricity on guitar and bass, and Obstagoon on vocals. Ehh.

I think that's the core of why these starters feel lukewarm at best to me. Normally the starters are at least competently designed, and very much made in mind that they're going to be the centerpiece of Pokemon marketing for the next 3 or 4 years. If this line had just been a mid-game random line of Grass monkeys, I wouldn't have found it weird at all.

...But at least it comes with a fun stealth pun! What do you say when you send your Rillaboom out into battle? “Go, Rillaboom!”

GoRillaboom.

Hah.

Personal Score: 4/10

Boy I can’t wait to see that new Mythical Pokemon, which is very likely yet another monkey. Sigh.

[Archive]

[sunset-spring]

Hello, nice to see you again. Question, ever since the new generation 8 game of pokémon trailer came, are you surprised? And if your a little interest of it, which starters do you like and what side should you choice, when the legendary Pokemon will soon come?

I’m definitely surprised, mostly because I didn’t really have any expectations. Unlike with Sun and Moon, I didn’t really see any speculation or leaks regarding starters, the region or even the titles. Which for the past two games, that stuff has been pretty frequent - at least from what I saw for Sun & Moon and Let’s Go. So it was really just a waiting game up til now to see where they’d go next. The only thing I was pretty positive on was that after Let’s Go, it’d return more to a traditional route of encounters and structure.

The region itself I really like. It’s much larger in scale than Alola - since Alola itself was intentionally small due to being based on Hawaii - and from the looks of it fairly big in general compared to the other maps of regions that came before. But I’m not sure if that’s a result of the style of the map or if it’s genuinely intended to be much bigger in scale, even if it’s design is primarily more vertical. 

And while it looks big, it doesn’t look empty in places. Sometimes there are just large spaces in between landmarks or towns in regions; the most notable and already pointed out by many as an example is the water segments in Hoenn. But Galar looks very well spaced out and organized so there’s a nice flow of areas to explore without too much empty space in between, which I’m very excited about. 

The climate also is very balanced, with the large snowy portion at the top, grassy farm land at the bottom, etc. So the distribution of typing for new pokemon definitely has the potential for more balance. Ice type pokemon are one of those few and far between types in a lot of cases, so this has me excited for them to have more room to play with them.

Thoughts on the region took up a few paragraphs, sorry, but now I can actually get on to talking about the starters.

They all look pretty cute, and tbh Sobble is probably my favorite out of the three. I’m a fan of the small, shy little water lizard. Second would probably be Scorbunny; it’s an adorable rabbit with a lot of energy, which is very cool - though I’m hoping for a new type combination for the fire starter this gen. 

Grookey is growing on me, but it’s probably my least favorite because I feel like the color palette and general feel seems very much like previous grass starters. I’m not gonna lie, at first in the trailer I genuinely mistook it for Chespin when I only saw it from the back.

I’m not sure which version I’ll get, and I’ll probably wait to make a final decision until I actually see the legendaries. Because they usually show them off already, but this time it’s more of a mystery. But if I had to choose, I’m leaning towards Shield because the defense is something I prefer over the offense of Sword.

[dualvission]

Pokémon starters ranked (by non-Pokémon player)

What do I have to declare?

I have no attachments to any generation because I didn’t play Pokémon as a kid. The only interaction I had was Super Smash Brothers on Nintendo 64. This will be solely on how they look and how I think they convey their elemental powers.

How did I do this?

I started by ranking the generations and correcting where I felt there were complete outliers. I feel that, in general, quality is consistent in a generation.

24. Chikorita – Arguably the ugliest Pokémon that’s met to be cute. Necklace lumps would be cool if not biologically concerning. Train should immediately take to nearest nurse.

23. Totodile – This is a good idea gone wrong. The open mouth is not the right look. Eye-shadow should encase upper eyelid, but on the third eyelid is also a good look.

22. Cyndraquil – This is a small creature, that’s about as much as I can say. Honestly, without the flaming back, wouldn’t know it was a fire type.

21. Grookey – This little bastard is taking everyone’s hearts and I don’t get it. I will address my biggest issue later in this list with the highest ranking generation-8 Pokémon.

20. Chespin – Biggest issue: I forget this Pokémon exists. That hurts it the most. Not sure what those lower antennae off the face are.

19. Tepig – I don’t like its stupid nose. Looks far too round, needs more contrasting lines.

18. Scorbunny – Looks more like an ice/fighting type. That’s a thing, right?

17. Snivy – It’s the Tepig issue, too many same-y feeling curves. Those lines on its front make it better.

16. Froakie – It’s just an ugly frog with a shawl. People only like this because Greninja, right?

15. Oshawott – Honestly just a less good looking Piplup. Looks like a friend though.

14. Fennekin – This is just a fire fox. Not impressed because there are like several of these.

13. Chimchar – This is a good monkey. I think the fire butt was a little overkill. I wish it had a long tail instead. Maybe a fire like cowlick on the top of its head would be nice but I know that’s a fire type without the fire queues.

12. Treecko – He’s like creepy Yoshi. Not a bad thing but Broshi is a thing already.

11. Turtwig – I would protect this child with my extra life. It’s got a fat head and I love it. The little twig is a nice touch.

10. Sobble – The issue with gen-8, they all look the same. Circle head, cylinder body of third width, fat legs, and head ornament. Like that’s a big issue. You want your characters to have distinct silhouettes. Yes, when you have over 800 characters, you are going to get some overlap, but you would not want that with your starters. You want them to look distinct from each other at the least. But they don’t. Sobble is just the one I feel best uses this silhouette.

9. Popplio – This seal pup has an interesting aesthetic. I’m not a fan of that. I wish the nose was less pronounced and there was another color on that collar. Very soft round, wish there was more contrasting lines.

8. Piplup – Look at this puffin child. Look at’em. I want one but smaller. 40 cm seems really big; puffins are like 18 cm according to Google.

7. Torchic – Good use of contrasting lines and a good use of the fire aesthetic without setting the poor creature on literal fire. That beak could poke my eye and I would kiss it.

6. Rowlet – This is my brother’s favorite starter. Not a terrible choice. I wish it was a little less round and its wings weren’t uselessly small. I am concerned for its survival viability.

5. Litten – I love cats. Anyone that knows me knows that I will have 4 cats at some point if I can support them. Great use of contrasting colors and lines. It looks anxious, I want to protect and love. Definitely a fire type, though I feel like it should become a fire/dark type next.

4. Mudkip – This is a water cat-axolotl. I am sad that it frowns, why ‘e frownin’?

3. Charmander – This is easily the weakest generation one Pokémon based on design. I know this is a fire dragon, but it is so blobby. I’m not sure what would fix it, but it deserves this spot.

2. Squirtle – I love this turtle. It is obvious that it is a turtle and that it uses water in some way. Looks like baby.

1. Bulbasaur – Another turtle, but it’s also a flower-cat. That’s amazing! I want to hold’em. It would never hurt me or my feelings.

One last note about generation 8, somehow, generation 1 had very similar characters in terms of real-world counterparts but because they look so distinct in silhouette, you know instantly what each one is and its abilities, solely based on silhouettes. Generation 8 does the opposite of this and that’s disappointing.

[maggi-cube]

The time has come. I gotta make a choice... purely aesthetic btw lol idk how game strat works

Kanto: Bulbasaur. Ultimate friend and boi. Big chungus. Blastoise is cooler but LOOK at him 😭 bulbasaur ilysmmmm

Johto: Cyndaquil. She’s... so trustworthy... Voice so cute.... mama bear evo...

Hoenn: Mudkip. MUDDED! KIP!

Sinnoh: I don’t know... I love turtwig’s little head... earnest gaze... a trustworthy boy... but Ash’s chimchar had so much gravitas (and infernape is cool as hell). Piplup is so cute... but in terms of who’s best value long term I gotta pick Chimchar 😔

Unova: Tepig is SO cute and Emboar is dope but I love Oshawott SO much (fuck snivy idgas)... Oshawott. Samurott is okay

Kalos: Chespin is so cute but hear me out—Froakie is literally a frog (GRENINJA alone is just—WHO WAS IN THE STUDIO?). Plus Chespin’s second stage is lame as hell, and the final form is mediocre. 😔 I gotta go with my Guy. Braixen gets participation points

Alola: ROWLETT. I LOVE YOUUUUUUU ROWLETTTTTTTT. Litten’s final form is so cool though let’s not talk about how he’s bait

Galar: I haven’t seen this season but sobble is so small? And grookey is so friendly? Scorbunny sucks but 2nd and 3rd stage are okay? However... Grookey stays cool and i want to cause inteleon bodily harm🔫😐 rantsona ass bitch. I would choose Scorbunny’s line if I had 5-30% less taste. Grookey

That’s 3, 2, and 3 overall... I hope Gen 9 has a cute fire starter. I’m surprised these are so evenly distributed, but tbh I wasn’t expecting to choose Chimchar. Come from behind win.