Judge A Pokémon Express: Galarian Formes and Pikaclones
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Codraroll
A new trailer for Pokémon Sword and Shield was released on August 7, and it showcased a handful of new Pokémon. We got a look at this generation's "Pikaclone"—the Pikachu-like Electric-type Pokémon found in every generation so far—as well as a few Galarian formes of Pokémon from previous generations. In an unprecedented move, we were even presented with a brand new evolution of a regional forme. A panel of art judges was quickly assembled to discuss these new designs. Here are their impressions!
| Galarian Zigzagoon | Galarian Linoone | Obstagoon | |||
| Galarian Weezing | Morpeko | ||||
| Click on the images to reveal everyone's thoughts! | |||||
Kalalokki
Punk is dead, but who killed it? If Zigzagoon and its goons would follow the trails of the real world, they would just be a product of the mainstream, even if they turn black and white with starstruck eyes. Nothing much truly changed in this departure from their normal counterparts, beside an appetite to rebel against the confining norms and structures of the oppressive older generations and their grip on the Pokémon world. One could say that it's in their nature to turn on those that once nurtured the franchise to what it is today, as change can only manifest once generations come and go since time immemorial. Hate change, but want progress: a paradox that haunts those that are brave enough to stir up things that are too big to fail in this day and age.
GatoDelFuego
So I guess we've really run out of early-route rodent designs, eh? Like, there really isn't much to talk about with this design, it's Zigzagoon with a color swap and... a larger tongue? The color scheme is "OK," the concept is "OK," everything is just "OK." There's nothing actually interesting. I would have said the same about this design if I saw it for the first time, which just makes it worse when it's a variant.
Blitzamirin
CUTE! The regular Zigzagoon is already adorable, and its Galarian counterpart doesn't disappoint in that department—the color scheme makes it look like an Oreo cookie and I imagine everyone in Galar owns one. That is until you realize that, like the invasive Alolan Rattata, the lore says it's everywhere in the region, which probably makes them more akin to that annoying dog. Since it also likes to engage and start battles, you'll probably encounter it trying to look menacing and failing miserably.
Pikachu315111
With the announcement that only Pokémon in the regional dex will be in Sword & Shield, there are concerns certain Pokémon will be forgotten. The Zigzagoon family would certainly have been one of these Pokémon, and then they revealed their Galarian counterparts. Focusing on Galarian Zigzagoon itself, like what? Sure, the Rattata family got Alolan formes in Gen 7, but they have nostalgia, while Zigzagoon was seen as a Hoenn expy you struggle to remember what it evolves into. I'm not sure why they gave Zigzagoon a Galarian forme, but it could be because of Team Yell. The creators wanted to give these punk sports fans an equally punk Pokémon but also an early-route Pokémon. But instead of making a new Pokémon, someone must have looked through past gen early-route Pokémon, seen Zigzagoon, and thought "yeah, I could turn this scruff ball into a punk." And that somehow turned them into a homage to the rock band KISS, go figure. But it surprisingly works. My only complaint about them is not with their design but GF trying to convince us these were the original Zigzagoon. Yeah, and Aerodactyl looked like a flying rocky porcupine.
Codraroll
Back in the pre-release period of Pokémon Sun and Moon, when we first saw Alolan Meowth revealed, I found it hard to distinguish from a regular Meowth that had been playing in a coal bin. Likewise, Galarian Zigzagoon looks a lot like a regular Zigzagoon that fell into a bucket of zebra-striped paint. It's not an outright palette swap, but it comes dangerously close. Galarian Zigzagoon sticks out a tongue regular Zigzagoon appears to lack, it has pointy fangs, and... uhh, the black stripe around its eyes is star shaped? That's literally all I can find. While the stark black and white coloration gives Zigzagoon a mischievous twist I can appreciate, the design itself is not very creative, particularly when compared to, say, Galarian Weezing. Sorry Zigzagoon, I don't think I'll be seeking you out any time soon.
Kalalokki
Punk is dead, but where's the grave? Grab a Zigzagoon and stretch it long and thin: a Linoone lives at the cost of a Zigzagoon. Did the decline really start just recently? What drove it to this form of existence, if not the environment we turned our blind eye to in exchange for fleeting happiness, a distraction from problems at hand? Answers are few and far between, as self-reflection is a rare occurrence among people caught in the extravagance of it all. But, is it really something to warrant sticking out your tongue in disgust against? Maybe it's time to leave our bubble of comfort, embrace the coming tides, and come to terms with a simple fact—nothing lasts forever.
Blitzamirin
If the line wasn't inspired by the band Kiss enough, Linoone drives the point home with its tongue. While it loses the utter cuteness of its pre-evolution, Linoone would make the likes of Stunky jealous if the citizens of the Pokémon world knew what a real skunk looked like... Never before would a pet be cast aside so quickly. But man, does it pack a punch! This thing can push cars with its Tackles and Headbutts and just seems like an overall badass. One can only hope that power translates into it having Belly Drum + Extreme Speed...
{Pokemon_Vigilante}
I get that there will be variants of Pokémon based on regions. What I can't stand is that there are very few changes made to the aesthetics. Linoone was already white before, so why make it look more like Skuntank than its own individual entity by trading its brown stripe for a black one?? I am a person of low expectations when it comes to regional variants in the last installments to this great game series, but at some point I feel like we should get more than what we've been given. At least make us feel like Linoone is new instead of giving us no hope for anything beyond the skunk rummaging in our trash.
Pikachu315111
While the KISS-ifying works on Galarian Zigzagoon, I'm not so sure it works on Galarian Linoone. But Linoone may give a hint why the Zigzagoon family may have been picked for a Galarian re-imagine. While Zigzagoon is based on the raccoon dog, the tanuki, Linoone is a combination of several long-bodied mammals, one being the badger, which is a well-known UK animal. Galarian Linoone's color scheme does make it resemble the European badger, so maybe it just started off as that, but they looked to add more punk elements when they needed a Pokémon for Team Yell. That could be why its tongue and curled mouth look out of place; they weren't part of the original design. Though with it now being a middle stage Pokémon, you could say it's the "ugly middle stage" curse striking again. It went from being a fully matured adult to a middle stage angsty teenager, no wonder it's so restless and not sure of its place in the world. But I guess that's a positive point about regional variants; it lets them experiment with ideas like this without affecting the original Pokémon that may be someone's favorite Pokémon.
Codraroll
A recurring trope in fantasy cartoons is a curse, serum, parasite, or illness that turns the afflicted creature evil. This tends to involve a transformation with a darker coloration, red eyes, and an evil grin. Pointy fangs, claws, and tongue are optional. Galarian Linoone looks like the poster example of this trope. It plays the evil Linoone to a T, checking all the boxes. And for some reason, it has puffy wristbands, probably stolen from somewhere. Unfortunately, there's not a lot more to be said about Galarian Linoone. It is regular Linoone, but evil, and that's all there is to know. At least in this game, it can grow beyond this boring stage. And let's face it, regular Linoone probably wishes it could too, it never was that much of an interesting design to begin with.
Max. Optimizer
The reveal of Galarian Zigzagoon was a positive surprise: the first non-Kanto Pokémon that finally receives a regional variant! Not only does it evolve into Galarian Linoone, it also received a brand new second evolution in the process: Obstagoon! This evolution allows it to persevere under harsh living conditions. This is consistent with how living beings in the real world constantly have to adapt to changes in their habitat, in order to survive and thrive. This "survival of the fittest" motif complements the franchise's leitmotif par excellence: "evolution." Interestingly enough, while Obstagoon looks like the kind of lurking assailant Pokémon that would make the first move by ambushing its unsuspecting opponent, its modus operandi is actually the exact opposite! It downright invites its opponent to do the first move and then uses its move Obstruct to protect itself, before dishing out a counterattack. It is in a sense the exact opposite of Golisopod, the Pokémon introduced in the previous generation that was infamous for always wanting to make a good first impression. It makes hence perfect sense that Game Freak gave this "reckless" Pokémon that shows that it has "guts" the two homonymous abilities.
Kalalokki
Punk is dead, but did it ever truly live? It takes strength, internal and external, to rise up after a life close to the ground, a life of never taking things for granted. But once you do rise, your obstacles become just another stepping stone to greatness beyond. Obstagoon has honed its skills to finally take the center stage, to truly break free from the shackles of a suffocating past. It won't please everyone; those responsible know it's an impossible task. They still decide to stick with their guns, cross their arms, and bite down against the torrent that tries to make them back down and return to where they started. As this is no longer just a battle against the present discord, it's a battle to make sure that there will continue to be those that care enough to voice their opinions in the future. Punk is dead, but so are we.
GatoDelFuego
This thing is terrifying. Not terrifying in that the Pokémon actually looks scary or threatening, but terrifying in that somebody actually thought this design was an acceptable thing to produce. This thing is REALLY just Gene Simmons with a looooong neck. I feel like I've seen this design already in some weird mid-2000s human-animal-hybrid JRPG universe. And the design looks... pretty edgy!!! And it's not necessarily a "bad" design, it just creeps me out how humanlike these proportions are. We're going to levels we should not have gone to before.
Ryota Mitarai
It's ya boy, Obstagoon! Oh wait, that's not Guzma. Well, whatever, if I have to be fair, Obstagoon can be related to Guzma as "leader of a gang," due to few factors regarding its official art. Firstly, look at its posture; not only does it have its arms crossed, signaling to others to not "screw with the bad boss," but if you look at its legs, you can imagine one of them standing on a rock, while the other is standing on the ground, showing its superiority and mightiness to its "subordinates." Secondly, the fur around its hand can be seen as a gang-like jacket, showing how tough it is with its huge "jacket." Finally, the "star" on its right arm can be seen as a tattoo, 'cause one tough boss must have a tough tattoo. I can imagine the leader of Team Yell having a Obstagoon, not only because it is the final evolution of the rodents that the Grunts are (likely) using, but also because it will reflect both's statuses as "gang leaders."
heritage
I honestly really like Zigzagoon, but this line gets more and more messy the higher in the chain it goes. Linoone looks kinda cute and I can't wait to see all of its animations, but Obstagoon really doesn't look like a Pokémon that should be standing on two legs. Pokémon has this weird obsession with making humanoid Pokémon, and I think this one would have looked more natural and intimating if it stood on four legs. Its design is still alright, but there's some missed potential lying around here and there. I sorta like the move it showed off in the trailer at least, it does look like it makes use of the two-legged figure. Again, not terrible, still nothing really special. Neat how certain forms will have exclusive evolutions though. Just please don't give us anything for any already-popular Pokémon (looking at you, Charizard). Let some lesser-known Pokémon take the spotlight.
{Pokemon_Vigilante}
Now this is more like it!! Obstagoon is a perfect name for this beautiful powerhouse. This Pokémon looks like it could suit up and play just about any physically abusive sport known to man and take next to zero damage. The build is bulky, hence the word play on Obstacle and Goon to make Obstagoon. The color scheme is bland, but the sheer ferocity conveyed by this imposing figure in the heat of battle makes me giddy. I do believe it could have been an evolution to a totally new Pokémon and still looked this good, but it's also nice to see some Pokémon that may have been overlooked in previous generations getting a much-needed second chance with this kind of powerful-looking new evolution.
Pikachu315111
I was not expecting the Zigzagoon family to get Galarian formes, so I was definitely not expecting them to get an evolution also! However, Obstagoon is such a departure from Linoone; even now I'm not sure if the bipedal "werebadger" design works. Obstagoon uses countering battle strategies. Its abilities, Reckless and Guts, reinforce this; Obstagoon wants to be put in danger so it can do more damage. But with a Normal / Dark typing, unless they change around its base stats, I don't see Obstagoon staying around in battle for long. With how much extra fur it has grown I think it's going to drop in Speed and receive more Attack, Defense, and HP. Its signature move, Obstruct, sounding like a Dark-type Shell Trap maybe mixed with Follow Me further supports this idea. This could make Obstagoon a helpful double battle partner, taking all the hits and dishing out heavy damage while its partner safely powers up. Regular Linoone gets Extreme Speed, so if it also gets that and Sucker Punch, it won't need to worry about Speed. Gene Simmons approves.
Max. Optimizer
Golly gosh! While the old bean Weezing was notorious for polluting the air with its smog, I was fairly gobsmacked to find out that its Galarian counterpart has a Poison / Fairy typing and actually absorbs smog to purify the air! I initially assumed that the hats of these chaps were supposed to represent melting furnaces, in order to further complement the leitmotif of industrial revolution and metallurgy that one can find while gallivanting through the Galar region. That symbolism, in addition to the grey colour, hence led me to believe that Galarian Weezing actually has a Rock / Fire typing now. But alas, I stand corrected! This unique typing will most definitely be interesting from a competitive perspective, and I am also curious to find out what its hidden ability will be. I personally do not see Weezing's role changing much, and I am fairly certain that it will stay a defensive Pokémon that will continue to function as a bulky wall. While I initially thought that Game Freak was bloody poppycocking around when they came up with this, I retrospectively think that its reveal was a spiffing jolly good show, and I will give it a fair chance!
GatoDelFuego
Folks, you're looking at a snapshot of the future. I'm a proud 20-something year old Boomer, and let me tell you: I don't like it! Regional variants of already-existing Pokémon... ech. I guess it's inevitable to keep the franchise rolling. Weezing is an... interesting enough Pokémon to choose for a regional variant. The original names for Koffing and Weezing were "NY" and "LA;" they really weren't trying to be subtle with the designs. All these years later and... why attempt subtlety at all? Could these designs possibly be referring to prominent figures in British history? Actually, a smokestack Pokémon is a really cool idea, and I'd have liked to see an original take on that concept. This version? Not a fan. The facial hair, bowler hat, comically large smokestack... it's all jumbled. It's Weezing + PhotoShop, not a "regional variant."
Ivy
I absolutely ADORE this stovepipe duo! The pun with these types of hats and the actual chimneys used in old Industrial Revolution–style factories does not go unappreciated. Some genius made the first association of this guy with Doug Dimmadome (owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome), whose hat clips beyond our mortal capacity for understanding into the fourth dimension, and I have to say, the resemblance is uncanny. Enough on its character, though, what of the Pokémon itself? A Poison / Fairy typing is yet another new combination we're seeing manifested in Galar, and I appreciate this greatly. Maintaining Levitate and presumably similar physical bulk to Kantonian Weezing, with the addition of some clerical capabilities that Fairy-types tend to possess, it'll likely find itself in a better spot than its other forme.
Ryota Mitarai
Galarian Weezing is one of the main reasons why this trailer is my favorite one so far. Its design is simply so genius and good! It gives me the vibes of some corrupt and evil aristocrats that care only about themselves yet deceive the people with their humble looks, and it also mixes in elements of modern-day factories, which can earn their owner a huge fortune at the cost of polluting the environment, fitting perfectly with the idea of the selfish aristocrats. The reason why I like this design so much is that it has been achieved largely with Weezing's main concept: gas. Seriously, the mustache and the gas coming from the hat fit so well with Weezing, and they also make for an interesting design concept as a whole. Galarian Weezing will definitely be one of my favorite Pokémon from Galar, if not outright, simply because I am amazed with this design so much.
heritage
Okay, so where's Galarian Koffing? I never understood why sometimes they only gave one part of an evolution a different forme (Alolan Marowak for example), but whatever... anyways, I'm glad a lot of people like this design but uh... that's a no from me. This thing looks flat out ridiculous. I get that's some people's preference, having a more over-the-top style, but I've been wanting some more gritty and realistic-looking Pokémon, so I guess it won't be in this generation. Gotta admit, I do like the lore it has, where it absorbs toxins rather than producing them. So overall, while the design is a little much, I do thin—
wait this thing is a fairy-type excuse me
Estronic
It seems that Weezing was ready to dress up as soon as it heard Galar would be based on British culture, and it certainly meets the mark. Galarian Weezing is what I believe to be one of the best regional formes out of all them so far, and these games aren't even out yet. Its design is nearly perfect for me with its dapper top hats resembling those giant tubes on top of factories and the air pollution giving it fanciful facial hair. Now, we can praise Galarian Weezing's design all we want, but can we talk about its typing? Poison / Fairy is a great typing defensively, giving it notable resistances to common offensive types like Fighting and an immunity to Dragon. Well, at least it has a pretty exploitable Ground weakness, right? Oh, right, Levitate. Man, if this thing has some good bulk, we could see a new face in OU once Sword and Shield come out. Yeah, Toxapex is confirmed to come back, but at least we'll have another option for a bulky Poison-type.
Pikachu315111
Galarian Weezing is the Alolan Exeggutor of Gen 8. Ludicrous design and out-of-nowhere secondary typing; I love it! Galarian Weezing shows the possibilities of regional variants putting a new twist on Pokémon you thought you knew. Sad that Koffing didn't get a matching Galarian forme, but I understand why. To subvert an expectation you still need the setup. Koffing remains as a representation of air pollution. Normal Weezing could be seen as the problem growing bigger and more dangerous. But what if Weezing lived someplace with so much air pollution even it couldn't survive? Being a Poison-type, logically it could just eat the pollution! But being a balloon, it would get too inflated. so has to release the extra air. But it would then be releasing the pollution it's trying to eat, so it became part Fairy type so its body would be more efficient absorbing the pollution while releasing the leftover clean air. Combine that with gentleman imagery, and you have a basis for a creative and fun design! Finally, Galarian Weezing's unique typing and ability give it a defensive niche that is backed by wide-reaching STAB coverage. James would be proud.
Max. Optimizer
While Morpeko initially looked like yet another generic Pikachu clone, its little gimmick is admittedly unique, distinguishing it from its previous spiritual forerunners. This insatiable little rodent is actually capable of changing the electric energy stored inside its cheek sacs into dark energy. The way this little rodent transforms from its harmless and inconspicuous "Full Belly" forme into its more aggressive "Hangry" forme is most likely a reference to "The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde", the famous magnum opus of Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson. In this case, "Full Belly" Morpeko and "Hangry" Morpeko are, respectively, Dr Henry Jekyll and his corrupt alter ego "Edward Hyde". The only difference is of course that the scenarios in which Morpeko's evil alter ego surfaces are of a considerably more strategic and predictable nature. Despite this interesting reference, I believe that it will stay a pure gimmick, nothing more and nothing less. I doubt that this little rodent will be able to hoard much competitive value in its little cheeks, but I also secretly wait for someone to become the World Champion with this new Pikachu clone, much like Se Jun Park and his infamous Pachirisu during Worlds 2014.
Ivy
Yep, the thought that struck pretty much everyone first-thing with this dude was "wacky Tic-Tac". Some have dubbed it the "Millenial Pokémon" due to its rapidly shifting moods via the Hangry forme. I prefer to stick to the Tic-Tac metaphor—see, in Despicable Me 2, there are evil Minions that are wily and purple. A stressor stimulates the transformation of everyone's favorite yellow Tic-Tacs into these more twisted, demented counterparts. At this point, you'd need a strong argument to convince me that Morpeko is not literally the exact same creature.
Ryota Mitarai
Didn't know Game Freak was a fan of haunted Furbies, until this thing's creation. For real, though, I don't really take this hunger concept seriously and I prefer to just imagine it as some haunted toy; looks innocent in children's presence but is a murder weapon when alone. I have imagined this scenario: child is looking at Morpeko, it looks friendly and, y'know, like your typical toy. However, as soon as the child turns away, Morpeko transforms into this dark version and is plotting to do its job. Even though the "light" forme looks innocent and friendly, I, myself, find it outright creepy; I mean, look at its eyes, the sole tooth, and pretty much anything on it. The other forme at least tells me its intentions straight up, so I don't have to wonder if I am in actual danger or not.
heritage
God, I hate Pikachu clones; they're such a waste of space. I'm not buying your low-quality plushies, Game Freak. This is by far the worst design out of all the Pikachu clones. "Hangry" Form? Y'all serious? I really can't pinpoint anything on this design, it just all looks so... fake and generic. This design perfectly shows how cartoonish Pokémon have gotten. It's so cartoony that I feel it doesn't blend well with either the realistic environments or any of the other Pokémon. The gimmick it has with changing formes has been done before, and this one just looks bad on top of it, so it doesn't really get any originality points, especially considering it's on a Pikachu clone, which is a bad gimmick to begin with.
Estronic
While the presentation of the new Galarian formes was a shocking but delightful surprise, the one brand new Pokémon that was revealed alongside them was quite underwhelming. The recent Pikachu clones weren't ever too exciting in my honest opinion, and Morpeko hasn't broken the trend. I know being a Pikachu clone means that you have to be yellow, have cheek pouches, be a rodent, and whatever, but designwise Morpeko would be the blandest of them all had it not had two formes. It's quite literally just a smaller Pikachu if you take away its brown and black colors. Though, it seems Game Freak decided to switch things up and give it a gimmick: an ability that allows it to change formes each turn. It's cool as a concept but most likely an utter waste on Morpeko. Overall, Morpeko just feels like wasted potential used up on a Pikachu clone that most likely won't even have an evolution line. At least it's somewhat cute.
{Pokemon_Vigilante}
So it's not unusual to see a slight twist here and there on the Pikachu-like format. Just look back at Dedenne. Not often do we receive Pokémon that have "modes", but Morpeko is the Pikachu-like Pokémon in the Galar region that gives us just that. Morpeko is obviously an adorable concept in its own right, but now that it has a mode that is based on emotion, it feels like Morpeko may have a greater impact on the players. It has a unique characteristic in that it turns purple when Hangry. (Why purple when I bet most of us would turn red is beyond me, but what do I know, right??) The best part is that Morpeko looks HIGHLY menacing when it gets Hangry. But I'm sure it helps to be cute, which would be my guess as to why many people will be intrigued by Morpeko. I've long believed that there has to be more than just the sheer appearance of a Pokémon to become a fan of it, but I'm sure that Morpeko's Hangry face alone could make a liar out of me yet. At least in my case, anyway…
Pikachu315111
How could I not talk about this gen's Pikaclone? This time we have a hamster, not to be confused with Dedenne, which is a gerbil; yes there's a difference. Gerbils are really good at chewing through things, while hamsters are best known for having pouches in their cheek to store food that they then hide for later. Morpeko proudly follows this behavior by having pockets around its waist that it keeps extra food in to snack on. Its ability, Hunger Switch, keeps with this theme, as it changes every turn from its normal Full Belly Mode to a darker Hangry Mode (yes, "Hangry", as in "hungry and angry"; it's so stupid you gotta love it). Right now the only difference beside appearance is that its signature move, Aura Wheel, changes from Electric-type to Dark-type. I'm not sure how useful that is; unless it's really powerful, you may be better off with separate Electric- and Dark-type moves. Electric / Dark isn't a bad offensive typing, but Pikaclones aren't known to be powerhouses. Use it or not, but since it's the ace Pokémon of one of the Gen 8 rivals, Marnie, it will at least show us what it's got.
Codraroll
I'm always so happy to collect the entries from our panelists and see how different their opinions are. While some people experience love at first sight, others can be more reserved. It also happens the other way around, of course. The interesting thing is, none of their opinions are wrong, they are just different! It's interesting to see which aspects people focus on, and occasionally somebody points out something that makes you see a design in a whole new light. Your first impressions are turned around completely, and then back again when the next panelist suddenly agrees with your first opinion. And again for the next panelist, and it's just as fun every time. With less than two months left until the release of Pokémon Sword and Shield, we are sure to see more designs be revealed in the coming weeks, with more first impressions being created, shattered and rebuilt. I'm looking forward to the next JAPE already!
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