Who's that Pokemon (based on)?

[The Qu]

I bring you fellows a double dose of generation one dragons!

#129 Magikarp & #130 Gyrados

Magikarp. The Pokemon every smart trainer passes over.Gyrados. The secret weapon every smarter trainer picks up early in Generation One. These two odd Pokemon have long gripped the generation that played Pokemon Red and Blue when they first came out. And why not? It's an odd Pokemon- a nigh useless Pokemon that evolves into a first disc nuke- if you have the perseverance to train it. And by train it, I mean take advantage of the fact that switching out gives the switched out Pokemon experience. And this isn't even getting into the fact that, the evolution makes no sense....

…because it does. Magikarp and Gyrados are based on a Chinese myth slash proverb. I'll be getting into that in just a bit, as I always do. But first, Magikarp. Did you know its based on a carp!? Crazy, I know! In particular, it's based on the Asian carp. Well, one species of Asian carp- the term is an umbrella term for several species of carp. One in particular, the Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys harmandi) is of particular note. This fish is a scaredy fish. It is quite easily frightened, by boats and the like, and can jump high into the air. And when I say jump, I mean some Michael Jordan stuff here- they have been recorded as jumping as high as ten feet into the air. These are hefty fish too- they can grow as big as 100 lbs/45 kgs. People have been cut by their fins, had bones broken and received concussions. From a fish no less. How embarrassing, eh? This explains Magikarp's infamous Splash move, and it learning Tackle as well.

Now, that leaves Gyrados. Many of my people have wondered exactly how a little fish evolves into a big dragon. Well, I'm going to tell you after I school you on the prerequisite stuff about Asian Dragons, Chinese in particular.

There are two major divides in Dragonology, a term I just made up: Western and Eastern. Western is the kind you are perhaps most familiar with- overgrown lizards, on four legs, wings, breathing fire, sleeping on a trove of treasure, sewing babies from their teeth. The Eastern dragon is quite a bit different. Rather than being a malevolent force, it is a benevolent force. It is traditionally associated with water, rain good luck. The Dragon has been associated with the Emperor historically, although three and four clawed Dragons have been associated with commoners (The five clawed with the emperor.) The Dragons are usually simplified as looking like long snakes with draconian faces, but there is actually a ridiculously complex design for them, as recorded by the Han Dynasty scholar Wang Fu:
“The people paint the dragon's shape with a horse's head and a snake's tail. Further, there are expressions as 'three joints' and 'nine resemblances' (of the dragon), to wit: from head to shoulder, from shoulder to breast, from breast to tail. These are the joints; as to the nine resemblances, they are the following: his horns resemble those of a stag, his head that of a camel, his eyes those of a demon, his neck that of a snake, his belly that of a clam (shen) his scales those of a carp, his claws those of an eagle, his soles those of a tiger, his ears those of a cow. Upon his head he has a thing like a broad eminence (a big lump), called chimu. If a dragon has no chimu, he cannot ascend to the sky.”

Pretty crazy design eh? Much more imaginative than the Western Dragons. Eastern Dragons don't usually have wings, although they'd been drawn with bat-like wings before. They can fly not through physical abilities, but mystical powers. This shows on Gyrados, as they are part flying, but don't have any visible wings. (Short aside, but the real reason Gyrados is part flying was that had it been dragon/water like originally planned, it would have been completely overpowered, as it would have only one weakness. Ice wasn't nearly as prevalent than as it is now, and it's still a pretty rare type.)

Even Gyrados' color may have some basis in Chinese myth. Chinese myth assigns a mythical creature to each direction, with the Azure Dragon being the god of the east, as well as symbolizing the Chineses element of wood. This may be a stretch, though, as Gyrados really doesn't have any other relation to the Azure Dragon.

But that's enough about this. That's now why you are reading this entry, is it? No, you are reading it to learn more about why a little fishy evolves into a huge dragon, and why I said it had some basis. Well, let's dip our toesies into Chinese proverbs, shall we? One Chinese proverp states that if a carp can leap to the top of a waterfall to reach something called the Dragon Gate (This may be the name of the waterfall), it will turn into a dragon. Many waterfalls are allegedly the famous Dragon Gate, such as the Wei River, and at Tsin in the Shanxi Province. If you recall Pokemon Snap, in the valley stage, you could help a Magikarp eventually reach a waterfall wherein it evolved into a Gyrados. So, this myth has even been referenced in the games, albeit not the main games. Furthermore, some sources have the carp as golden, befitting Magikarp's shiny form! However, this could also be a reference to actual carp colors. Heck, red was often a color used for Chinese Dragons, so perhaps Gyrados' colors are a nod to that. I've seen

Now, obviously this myth is not just a myth. It's a proverb- a story designed to give a particular lesson from it, similar to Christ's parables if I may be blasphemous. This particular story tells of how perseverance can grant people high positions. This was especially true two thousand years ago, when Chinese youths' exams determined if they got an Imperial position. In fact, there is a saying that roughly equates to “A youth doing their exams is like a carp at the Dragon Gate” or something of that sort. Of course, this can also be used as a generic parable of someone working hard to get what they want.

This leaves us with the matter of Gyrados' name. Well, that's a strange bit. It's Japanese, and honestly, has no basis in English. It was originally going to have the name Skullkraken, after the famous Norse beast called the Kraken, but that fell over the character limit. So, they went with the Japanese name. It can be broken down into gyakusatsu meaning massacre or slaughter, and gyakkyō, meaning hardship or adversity. The dos at the end may be in reference to dosu, a Japanese onomatopoeia representing the tearing of flesh. Pretty violent, isn't it?

#147 Dratini, #148 Dragonair & #149 Dragonite

Let's head back to dragons, shall we? The three Pokemon we are looking at today are the only dragon type Pokemon found in the original generation. They were among the rarest Pokemon that weren't legendaries, available only through the casino in Celedon City. It had next to no weaknesses (By which I mean dragon and ice, and the only dragon type move did set damage), and in general had great stats. They were amazing Pokemon.

It's pretty obvious they are based on Eastern Dragons, which we discussed earlier in the origin of Magikarp and his violent relative. If the shape didn't convince you, the name would. If the name didn't, the type would. If that didn't convince you, you're dumb.

Right from Dratini, we've got references to myth. Eastern Dragons, in contrast with Western Dragons, have a convoluted growth cycle. Most sources agree they start like this: They start out in an stone called a Serpent's Egg. After it hatches, it spends one thousand years under water in a form called a water snake. Sounds like Dratini, doesn't it? Following this, the dragons grow scales, horns and later wings. It isn't until they are a few thousand years old that they meet mortals. This may explain why Dratinis are so rare.

Dragonair offers a few more links to the Eastern Dragons. Most obviously, it controls the weather, just as Eastern Dragons do. Those puzzling pearls that Dragonair are another piece. You see, in the oldest of depictions of Chinese Dragons, they wear pearls upon their neck. The pearls are said to glow blue or white, and have a bright halo about them. They are associated with wealth and prosperity, being said to be worth quite a bit. The pearls are also said to have a comma shaped apendage on it, indicitive of yin and yang, the masculine and femine combining. This isn't surprising, as dragons are said to have 81 of their 117 scales yang (Positive) and 36 yin (Negative.) The pearls are also possibly associated with thunder and lightning, perhaps giving a reason why Dragonair changes the weather with them.

There is also another possible origin in the Korean dragon. Koreans dragons start out as serpents called Imugi, Imugi would remain giant serpents until they could catch a Yeouiju that had fallen from the sky. The Yeouiju was a mythical stone or pearl modeled on Cintamani jewel or pearl in Hinduism and Buddhism. The Cintamani was a wish granting stone that the beholder could use to wish for or wish away positive or negative things. Imugi were feathered in the dreadfully bad Korean blockbuster D-Wars, and the Cintamani was the treasure Nathan Drake quested for in Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

Lastly, this brings us to Dragonite. The previous two basically looked similar to one another; this is the dragon matured. Dragonite still has a major focus on the sea, showing its Eastern origins. It appears more like a Western Dragon, but instead of being quadrupedal, it stands on two legs. And, of course, it has gained wings at long last. Generally, Dragonite doesn't have as much to its origin as the other two do.

[Johans Nidorino]

Jan 7, 2011 1:08:44 GMT -5 The Qu said:

(Short aside, but the real reason Gyrados is part flying was that had it been dragon/water like originally planned, it would have been completely overpowered, as it would have only one weakness. Ice wasn't nearly as prevalent than as it is now, and it's still a pretty rare type.)

Actually, if a Water/Dragon-type Pokémon had existed back then, it would have been weak to no type, given the move you referred to below!

About Dratini, don't forget you can also fish for it in the Safari Zone.

Anyway, interesting stuff!

Dragonite is a weird one because of the Western appearance. It resembles cartoon friendly-looking dragons, such as this one that was made before Pokémon existed:

Dragon Tales, although it appeared later, shows more examples of cartoon dragons with a similar design.

[kirbychu]

Awesome! Other than the Dragon Gate, most of that was new to me. ;D

Two little nitpicks, though...

Jan 7, 2011 1:08:44 GMT -5 The Qu said:

(Short aside, but the real reason Gyrados is part flying was that had it been dragon/water like originally planned, it would have been completely overpowered, as it would have only one weakness. Ice wasn't nearly as prevalent than as it is now, and it's still a pretty rare type.)

Though it's true that it'd only have one weakness, that weakness would be Dragon, not Ice. That proves your point even further, though, since Dragon was the rarest type in the game.

Jan 7, 2011 1:08:44 GMT -5 The Qu said:

They were among the rarest Pokemon that weren't legendaries, available only through the casino in Celedon City.

You can get Dratini and Dragonair from the Safari Zone, too. The only Pokémon that's ever been exclusive to a casino prize is Porygon, which I assume is what you were thinking of.

EDIT: Oh snap! That's what I get for leaving the reply page open for hours before hitting the post button.

[TV Eye]

I have something to say about Mareep. Some people claim that the fact that it's an electric sheep means it's somehow based on the book "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" which seems like an odd exposition for a Pokemon's origin.

I think it's much simpler than that. Mareep's wool looks like a cloud. Seriously, compare Mareep to Kracko...




That's it. There doesn't seem to be any mystery to it
Just thought I'd point this out...

[The Qu]

Even simpler: Wool conducts electricity.

That said, I do buy the electric sheep thing myself, if just because of other examples of electric sheep in Japan, such as Sheep Man from MM10.

[The Qu]

Here's four Pokemon from gen V. Special thanks go to Jonathon Wojcik of Bogleech.com for information for this one.

#588 Kaburumo, #589 Shubarugo, #616 Chobomaki & #617 Agirudaa

The first four generations have brought up some creative ways to evolve Pokemon. Radioactive stones and trading in the first generation, trading with specific items, happiness and times of days in the second, beauty stats, empty shells, the fourth brought us leveling up in specific locations and gender specific evolutions. But the fourth generation brought us one of the craziest forms of evolution: Trading with specific Pokemon!

When one trades Kaburumo with Chobomaki, the devious little Kaburumo steals Chobomaki's shell and becomes the plate armored Shubarugo, whilst the now shelless Chobomaki metamorphizes into the ninja like Agirudaa. All in all, it's a bizarre way to evolve. After all, whoever heard of snails getting their shell stolen by a beetle?

An entomologist, that's who. You see, the relationship between these two Pokemon is likely based on actual behavior exhibited by a family of beetles, the Carabid family. Also known as the ground beetle family, some of these beetles- especially the Scaphinotus angusticollis- have evolved long, slender heads to dig into the hole of a snail's shell to dig out the fleshy mollusk. This can be seen somewhat on Kaburumo, with the shovel like extension on its head. It may also owe some to our old pal, the Rhinoceros Beetle, on which Heracross was based. Indeed, it even looks like a baby Heracross, doesn't it?
Chobomaki doesn't seem based on any specific snail. Indeed, some people seem skeptical that its a snail at all! I've heard people bandy about it being a a land nautilus, or even a giant tube worm. I find both of these ideas a bit silly, considering that its species is listed as Snail Pokemon. It does have major characteristics shared by most snails, including a logarithmicly coiled shell (Created by the way a snail's shell grows) and sticky mucus (Chobomaki's is poisonous; a snail's helps it by reducing friction. This makes it easier for it to glide along the ground. It can even slide across sharp objects like straight razors without harm!) The shell it has is, of course, an exaggeration of a snail's real shell. Real snail shells are made as larva, and are made out of calcium carbonate. A few land snails make their shells out of Conchiolin, a protein. The shell is mainly for, what else?, protection. They can even be used to protect a snail from a snake! Snakes can't get into the shell to eat the snail, so they are safe. Pretty amazing, no?

Shubarugo is based on a jousting knight and a beetle. Sometimes these are just bizarre to think, aren't they? Jousting was a sport in the Middle Ages practiced primarily by knights to train their skills on horseback. The two needle-like appendages Shubarugo has in reference to the lance, the primary weapon used by jousting knights. Well, in the most familiar aspect of jousting. A joust would considt of various games, each with a different weapon. Battle axes, swords and daggers were among the other weapons. The primary goal was to knock the other knight off of his horse. Inntersetingly, jousting lances were often painted with stripes, just as Shubarugo's lance is. The steel typing of Shubarugo suggests a knight's plate armor, as does its crest.

While Shubarugo becomes the Medieval European idea of a warrior, Agirudaa becomes a Feudal Japan idea of an assassin. Without its shell, Agirudaa becomes much more agile. Dressed in tattered rags, it resembles the popular image of a shinobi, or, to my fellow Westerners, a ninja. Ninja were feudal assaassins and masters of unorthodox warfare in pre-modern Japan. Despite everything we have ever seen in pop culture, real ninja did not actually dress in black. While that's rather effective, especially in the days before electric lighting allowed people to see well at night, it is highly conspicuous. They probably just wore civilian clothes, or mission specific disguises. The idea of a ninja garbed head to toe in black cloth probably comes from drawings of them from centuries ago, that garbed them in black to convey a sense of invisibility. It may also be derived from bunraku theater, wherein black clad stage hands moved props to convey them being moved independently. People who saw the theater just ignored them. Overall, ninja were- and are- renowned for their agility. Most Eastern martial arts have some sort of agility training to them, so it's not particularly surprising. This is portrayed with Agirudaa's high speed and number of priority moves such as Quick Attack and stat increasing moves such as Agility.

Interestingly, it can learn Substitute and Double Team- these may refer to ninja tactics, real and imagined. Ninja were the sort that could use tactics such as lighting fires away from where they were, or lying still in a ball position to be mistaken for a stone to draw attention away from themselves. I can see this sort of subterfuge being represented with Substitute, which involves the enemy attacking something disguised as the Pokemon being attacked. Double Team's animation seemingly involves the Pokemon splitting into to two Pokemon. Indeed, the Japanese name means Shadow Divide. This may be a case of something being shaped like itself though, as the move is in reference to the mythical ninja technique sometimes called Shadow Clone in English, wherein a ninja could allegedly split into two individuals. Still, the fact is that the ninja Pokemon has the move. The move raises the user's evasion stat by one stage, fitting for a ninja. Agirudaa also knows several poison type moves. While this is likely a leftover from its pre-evolution, it could also be in reference to ninja using poison in their assassanations. For instance, legendary ninja Ishikawa Goemon, the guy the pineapple haired Konami star is based on, allegedly tried dripping poison from a string into Oda Nobunaga's mouth!

[Johans Nidorino]

This evolution method is funny...

I'm becoming a bit intrigued that most of the stuff related to ninjas is associated with bugs. There are these Pokémon, there is the Ninjask family, there are the Scyther Pokédex entries, and several of Koga's Pokémon. I wonder why?

[The Qu]

Looks like you can add two more to the "Pokemon with meaningful Shinies" category: The gears and the round bat. The gears have a shiny colored like bronze, complete with oxidized noses. The round bat has a green shiny. That link should explain why that's meaningful, at the bottom.

[The Qu]

Now for a double dose of religion based Pokes!

#433 Chingiling

Chingiling is the baby form of my single least favorite Pokemon. I don't like Chimecho. Never have, never will. Chingiling is almost worse- it's an annoying baby Pokemon you find in the wild far too often. And to top it off, it's based on something quite silly at first glance

It's quite obvious Chingiling is based on a jingle bell. It's Platinium and Gen V Pokedex entries make this pretty clear by mentioning that it has a small orb inside it that rattles. Jingle bells, also called sleigh bells, are small bits of metal crimped into a crude sphere with a small ball bearing inside them. Though most associated with Christmas thanks to that song (You know the one), they are sometimes used in music as a substitue for regular bells.

Now, that rope... That rope that is tied onto Chingiling is what ties in Chingiling with the Japanese folkloric roots of his adult form. You see, in the varying folklores, mythologies and religions of Japan, bells play- or played- a pretty important role. Dōtaku, for instance, where large bells used to pray for good harvests. We will discuss them more at length in a short bit. A festivel- which we shall also discuss in a bit- involves ringing a bell 108 times on new year's.

In particular, Chingiling is based on Suzu bells, which are Shinto bells on rope at Shinto shrines. It is customary to ring the bell before giving an offering (Read: Cash) in the offering box they are suspended over. Suzu bells resemble oversized jingle bells somewhat, especially the more spherical ones. Suzu themselves are believed to have some power, so this may explain where Chingiling's psychic typing comes from.

#442 Spiritomb

It weighs 108 kg. It's defense and special defense are 108. It's Sinnoh Pokedex Number is 108. It is said to be formed from 108 spirits bound into a stone. It is Spiritomb. So, what's with the number? Well, read on and find out.

Being made in Japan, it is no surprise that Pokemon has a large number of designs, moves and more based on Eastern concepts. As we saw with Chingiling, this extends to religion. Whilst Spiritomb likely focuses on Buddhist beliefs, the number 108 has immense importance in a staggering number of Eastern religions. Hindu deities, for instance, have 108 different names, whilst Gaudiya Vaishnavism gopis (Cow herder girls) of Vrindaven (A holy place.) Recitals of their names often involve a Japa Mala, a type of rosary with 108 different beads, plus the head bead. May Eastern martial arts believe there are 108 different pressure points on the body.

But, the religion with most importance to Spiritomb is Buddhism. In Buddhism, there are 108 different temptations one needs to overcome in order to reach Nirvana. A Japanese end-of-year festival called Joya no Kane (Jo means to cast off, Ya night and Kane is bell.)has a bell ring 108 times to drive away temptation and welcome in the new year. The ritual seems to have its roots in Shintoism rather than Buddhism. Most Shinto rituals are aimed at self purification, and this seems to be an extension

Spiritomb is likely based on the novel Water Margin, which you've likely never heard of, but have likely heard of the game series based on it, Suikoden. At the beginning of this novel, 108 spirits are relased after being contained under a stone tortoise. The spirits then go on to become famous outlaws fighting against the imperial army, and are ultimately recruited by the Emperor to form a special unit to fight against invaders. The novel is immensely famous in China, and even in Japan. Outlaw Star, for instance, was inspired by the novel.

Interestingly, there does not seem to be agreement on why 108 is such an important number. The most common theory seems to be a combination of Chinese lucky numbers, being 12 months, 24 solstices and 72 somethings that aren't agreed on.

Spiritomb has a fairly concise origin once you know the importance of the number 108. Nevertheless, it makes for an origin more interesting, to me, than another Pokemon based on an animal.

[The Qu]

Here's two that could prove controversial:

#54 Psyduck & #55 Golduck

They have not, are not and never will be ducks. Despite what you think. Despite their species name. Despite every single name they have. They are platypuses, plain and simple.

Let's start with Psyduck. It lacks feathers, for one. This is a fairly minor thing, all told, since most Pokemon definitely based on birds don't necessarily show feathers. Golduck, however, most certainly lacks them. Platypuses, of course, are furred mammals. Psyduck's bill bears a closer resemblance to platypuses as well, being wider and less pointed than a duck's. This could be a stylization, of course, but with the other evidence, it raises a small flag. Interestingly, Golduck's bill is closer to a duck's than Psyduck's. The two also have tails closer to a mammel's than fowl. However, Platypuses aren't exactly known for their mundane tails.

There is also the none-to-small manner of the duo's claws. Golduck quite visibly has nasty looking nails at the end of its four webbed hands. While Psyduck lacks visible claws, it does know Scratch from the start and learns Fury Swips. Also linking them to Platypuse spurs are the fact that the duo can learn the TM move Toxic. Last time I checked, ducks weren't known for being poisonous. Platypuses, meanwhile, have poisonous spurs on their hindlegs. The poison isn't lethal for humans, but it can cause immense pain and heightened sensitivity to pain, sometimes lasting months. The poison can, however, kill smaller animals, including unfortunate dogs. Golduck's aforementioned webbed hands and feet can also serve as a link to platypuses, as ducks only have webbed feet. Since, you know, they lack hands. However, this may also be a nod to Golduck's other basis.

Golduck's first Pokedex entry makes no bones about it. It's based on the Japanese yokai (Demon) called the kappa. I guarantee if you've played games for any length of time you've seen the mark of the kappa somewhere. Remember the large mountain on Yoshi's Island in Super Mario World, that had the odd water bowl in it? In Japan, it's referred to as Mt. Kappa. Kappas are mischievous, sometimes murderous beasties that are usually said to look reptilian, though I've heard monkey or ape like as well. They are often portrayed as having tortoise shells, though some portray them as just scaly or furry, without the shell. They are almost always portrayed with webbed feet and hands, just like Golduck. And like Golduck, they are blue, but are more often shown as being yellow or, most commonly, green. But, of course, its the head that is most iconic to kappas. Kappas are said to have a hollow, bowl like indention in their head, usually ringed with a bowl style haircut. That piece isn't really important, but I find it kind of funny. In the bowl is water from the kappas native river. This somehow gives the kappa life, as if the kappa spills the water, it is immobilized until it is refilled. Fortunately for would-be victims, kappa are extremely polite- if one bows deeply in front of one, it will feel obliged to bow as well, spelling the water. The reason folks would want to do this? Kappa like to eat people. Especially babies. They also like human liver, and have been known to pull it out of humans through their anus. Because of this, kappa are sometimes called shirokodama, which means anus vampire. I'm serious here, folks. They are also “known” for pulling under horses and cattle, and drowning them. You can tell why Golduck's Pokedex entry mentions that people are afraid of it because they mistake it for a kappa.

Despite those terrifying tales, kappa are sometimes portrayed as being merely mischievous. Some stories say they do no more harm than loudly farting or looking up ladies' kimonos. They like the taste of cucumbers, and will do you no harm if you give them a cucumber with your name carved in it. And if you are kind enough to refill their heads for them, they will never harm you, ever, even in tales where they pull peoples livers out through their butts. They are also alleged to have taught humans how to set broken bones, and are trustworthy to a fault, even in their evil tales.

Golduck obviously doesn't have the shell, but even with that, kappa are sometimes portrayed as lithe beings. Golduck has the webbed limbs that kappa have. And while Golduck's head may not have the bowl, the spikes it has are somewhat indicative of a hollow behind it. Notably, in the first generation, we couldn't see the back of Golduck's head, as its head was tilted in the back sprite. Of course, this is one of the few times we don't really have to debate on a design, since its more or less spelled out for us in the Pokex.

Psyduck, on the other hand, will likely draw controversy from here to eternity. It's species is listed as Duck, after all. Nevertheless, I feel I've given an adequte argument for it sharing characteristics with a platypus, if it is based on a duck. Truth be told, the only characteristic that I cannot ascribe to platypuses as well is its color, which seems to be derived from baby ducklings that are yellow. If it is based on a duck, it's safe to say it has platypus characteristics.

[Shrikeswind]

I would never go either way on Psyduck as duck or platypus these days, since it's pretty much both. But Golduck? Kappa is the only thing I'll give it.

[Johans Nidorino]

Jan 12, 2011 4:43:51 GMT -5 Shrikeswind said:

I would never go either way on Psyduck as duck or platypus these days, since it's pretty much both.

The very fact that people describe real-world platypuses as "duck-billed" makes this possible in a world where all creatures are blends of several things, even disproved ancient myths.

@qu: The Toxic thing on Psyduck and Golduck... I think it doesn't really matter. Farfetch'd is able to learn Toxic, as is the new duck and any Pokémon able to learn TMs.

Another bitter thing on Psyduck and Golduck are their names. Golduck has nothing gold to it. And the English name of Psyduck only leaves one wondering "why weren't they made part Psychic-type?" (which is yet another strange thing to discuss).

[The Qu]

The name Psyduck doesn't really bother me, since the Pokedex entries all mention its psychic abilities. The name likely came from a translator looking at that and thinking, gee. I could make a pun out of this.

It's another thing entirely why Psyduck doesn't get the psychic type despite those entries. And the mystery of Golduck's name will continue forever, likely.

On a side note, I'm going to do some more yokai/Japanese myth Pokemon. Maybe three or four entries this time.

[kirbychu]

Yay! The Japanese origins are my favourites to read about, since they tend to be the ones I have absolutely no idea about.

[The Qu]

All right guys, still working on a few Japanese origins, but here is something I'd like to point out, and its another one for the meaningful shinies one.

The Polar Bear Cub's shiny form:


seems to be based off the famous Purple Polar Bear:


If you are wondering, the polar bear gained its strange tint from a medication.