802+ Pokemon Retrospective - Gen 2 (Part 2)

#201: Unown Family
Type:
Ability: Levitate
Appearances:

• Unown A
• Unown B
• Unown C
• Unown D
• Unown E
• Unown F
• Unown G
• Unown H
• Unown I
• Unown J
• Unown K
• Unown L
• Unown M
• Unown N
• Unown O
• Unown P
• Unown Q
• Unown R
• Unown S
• Unown T
• Unown U
• Unown V
• Unown W
• Unown X
• Unown Y
• Unown Z
• Unown !
• Unown ?

Stats of final evolution: 336 (48, 72, 48, 72, 48, 48)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• The Unown are a great concept - they're these strange little creatures that resemble the letters of the English alphabet. They occupy the mystery of the Ruins of Alph (complete with their own unsettling theme) and were the titular force behind the third Pokemon movie, where they were depicted as some unholy, impossibly powerful force of nature when brought together.
• In the actual games, though? They are easily some of the worst Pokemon you could bring to a fight. They have mediocre stats and only one attacking move - Hidden Power. (Aka. the move whose type varies with your individual values)
• Now, if there were an Unown amalgamate that could learn more moves, that would be fine, but as they are... You'd be lucky to beat even a regular Pokemon, let alone one fully trained or god forbid, a legendary.
• You can arrange them to spell things out and that's cool, but that's purely novelty.
• Concept wise, they're amazing, but their battle capacity is so hilariously awful that you'd have to be insane to ever bring one along.

Overall rating: *******

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#202 / #360: Wobbuffet Family
Type:
Ability: Shadow Tag / Telepathy (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Wynaut
• Wobbuffet (Level 15)

Stats of final evolution: 405 (190, 33, 58, 33, 58, 33)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Wobbuffet is... definitely an interesting Pokemon. It's a big blue punching bag with a dopey face and salute... which is a reference that was lost in translation. You see, Wobbuffet is based off of the late Sanpei Hayashiya, a Japanese comedian whose trademark lines consisted of "That's the way it is, ma'am."
• The joke is that Wobbuffet's pose is a homage to how Mr. Hayashiya touched his hand to his forehead. The original japanese name for Wobba (Sonans) is a homophone for "That's the way it is" in Japanese, hence why I assumed it was changed to something else over here - nobody would understand the joke.
• Wynaut is just friggin' adorable with its little ball feet and big eager smile. (Its japanese name is also a pun - Sohnano is basically "Really?", so when you combine both names together you get "Really?" followed by "That's how it is." Cute.)
• Battle-wise, Wobba is the god of tanks. Sure, its only useful stat is HP and learns no attacking moves, but that's the point. It is simultaneously uber bulky and soft enough to really take advantage of Mirror Coat and Counter, its tell-tale moves. Encore is another big issue because it locks you into the move you just did, so if you get cornered by this thing then you are boned.
• They're obnoxious, but I can't help but like them due to their unique... everything. Plus it is really cute how female Wobbuffet just put on lipstick and that's all they need.

Overall rating: ********

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#203: Girafarig
Type: [/
Ability: Inner Focus (1st) / Early Bird (2nd) / Sap Sipper (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 455 (70, 80, 65, 90, 65, 85)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Girafarig. Huh, that's a palindrome... to compliment that, it is a giraffe with a head on both sides of its body. Really neat concept.
• Normal/Psychic is a weird type combination that... works, surprisingly enough.
• Girafarig themselves aren't too impressive beyond that, however, due to their largely average stats.

Overall rating: ******

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#204 - 205: Forretress Family
Type: (Pineco) / / / (Forretress)
Ability: Sturdy / Overcoat (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Pineco
• Forretress (Level 31)

Stats of final evolution: 465 (75, 90, 140, 60, 60, 40)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• I'm not quite sure why you would ever put Overcoat on Forretress considering Sturdy is infinitely more useful due to all the setting up you would have to do to get anything out of them. (For the uninitiated, Overcoat protects you from sand and hailstorms along with powder/spore moves, but they're so situational that you might as well not even bother)
• Pineco and Forretress... I originally thought they were pinecones as a Pokemon, but they're actually bagworms - bugs that intentionally resemble pinecones so they don't get snatched away and/or eaten by birds. Hence the bug typing.
• Forretress looks like a giant walnut, but it's still pretty cool. Its most valuable contribution is the move Rapid Spin, as it removes entry hazards. (In the metagame we have now, it's more valuable than ever)
• They're pretty good for entry hazards and being a giant physical wall, so use them wisely.

Overall rating: *******

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#206: Dunsparce
Type:
Ability: Serene Grace (1st) / Run Away (2nd) / Rattled (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 415 (100, 70, 70, 65, 65, 45)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• There's not much substance behind Dunsparce, to be honest. Its design is neat - it's based off of a legendary snake cryptid called the Tsuchinoko, a creature whose existence is on par with something like Bigfoot or the Chupacabra.
• Unfortunately, the novelty of its design just isn't enough to make up for it. Its use of Stealth Rock is the only real advantage it has, because it just doesn't have the firepower that something like a Mega Evolution or even just a plain old evolution can give. I will also admit that it's kind of barfy looking with the kind of color scheme it has.
• It definitely deserves an evolution at least, because as it is? Not doing too hot.

Overall rating: ****

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#207 / #472: Gliscor Family
Type: /
Ability: Hyper Cutter (1st) / Sand Veil (2nd) / Poison Heal (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Gligar
• Gliscor (Level up while holding a Razor Fang at Night)

Stats of final evolution: 510 (75, 95, 125, 45, 75, 95)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Gligar would be alright by itself, what with their mischevious appearance and unique typing (at least, before Landorus rolled around)...
• But then we have Gliscor.
• You see, we have a bat-scorpion that turns into a more fearsome Dracula-looking bat-scorpion... that's immune to electricity. Gliscor is one of my favorite Gen 4 designs and I'm proud to have one.
• It goes beyond the design, though - they're absolutely hellish in battle. Toxic Orb + Poison Heal + Substitute + Protect? Unbelievably fiendish if done correctly, and I feel it compliments their look.
• One good ice move and they're practically batsicles, but again, you should be prepared enough to not let that happen. You know, unless the other guy sucker punches you and has Hidden Power Ice or something.

Overall rating: ********

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#208: Steelix

Already covered in Gen 1 along with Onix.

Additional thoughts:

• It's a giant metal snake! That can mega evolve, no less.
• I love Mega Steelix's new crystals and blue eyes - it really pops out in my opinion.

Individual score: ********

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#209 - #210: Granbull Family
Type:
Ability: Intimidate (1st) / Quick Feet (2nd) / Rattled (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Snubbull
• Granbull (Level 23)

Stats of final evolution: 450 (90, 120, 75, 60, 60, 45)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Not gonna lie, I actually forgot the Granbull line existed. Now that they're fairy bulldogs, however, they've caught my attention.
• Despite their tough exterior, they're actually more timid than their pre-evolution, which is adorable.
• The most reasonable explanation I could find for their newfound Fairy type is that they're based off of the Cu Sith - aka. a mythical creature in Celtic mythology whose name literally translates out to "dog fairy."
• With all this information in mind, I kind of love them now? It helps that they're kind of good at fighting, given their access to Intimidate, their great attack and Fairy typing.

Overall rating: *******

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#211: Qwilfish
Type: /
Ability: Poison Point (1st) / Swift Swim (2nd) / Intimidate (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 440 (65, 95, 85, 55, 55, 85)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Qwilfish was always one of those Pokemon that... I never quite liked all that much. It may be a pufferfish with a funny look to it, but I've always seen it as an inferior version of the Tentacruel Family.
• It has Swift Swim and Intimidate, but those aren't guarantees for victory. You could certainly do much better for a Water type, and it's a shame it doesn't get an evolution or Mega to improve its condition.
• (Admittedly, this is one of the few things I can actually thank Pokemon Snakewood for - giving Qwilfish of all Pokemon an actual evolution)

Overall rating: ****

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#212: Scizor

Already covered in Gen 1 along with Scyther.

Additional thoughts:

• I like that shiny Scizor makes it look more like Scyther. Nice touch there.

Individual score: *********

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#213: Shuckle
Type: /
Ability: Sturdy (1st) / Gluttony (2nd) / Contrary (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 505 (20, 10, 230, 10, 230, 5)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Ladies and gentlemen, the notorious Shuckle and their whopping 230-on-both-accounts defense. It's glorious how lopsided the other stats are to make way for the highest defenses in the entire game.
• An otherwise simple-if-cute Pokemon jumps into crazy territory with stuff like that, made worse with X/Y giving them a new utility in Sticky Web. They're practically guaranteed to get one off and maybe even some stealth rocks on the side if you're feeling really cheeky.
• The most notable thing about Shuckle that I've heard is that it can deal over 480+ million damage thanks to a ridiculously complicated series of events involving a Metronome (boosts power of move used consecutively), Helping Hand, Power Trick (swaps attack and defense), Ability swapping (to change it to Pure Power) and Rollout somehow not evaporating a Level 1 Combee.
• To let you know how outrageous that is, even Disgaea would be calling overkill on that. (Aka. the series that's infamous for grinding to level 9999)
• Ultimately, you're better off trying to use Shuckle as reliable entry hazard duty... but damn if it isn't an adorable little destroyer of worlds under the right circumstances.

Overall rating: *******

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#214: Heracross
Type: /
Ability: Swarm (1st) / Guts (2nd) / Moxie (Hidden) / Skill Link (Mega)
Appearances:

• Normal
• Mega Heracross (Heracronite)

Stats of final evolution: 500 (80, 125, 75, 40, 95, 85)
Additional forms?: One

• Mega (Introduced in X and Y): +100 (95, 185(+60), 115(+40), 40, 105(+10), 75(-10))

Thoughts:

• Heracross is just plain cool to me. It's a rhinoceros beetle that knows martial arts for corn's sake! It has a slick design and apparently has a rivalry with Pinsir, another Pokemon I greatly enjoy. It helps that both of them have Megas, then.
• Mega Heracross turns them into a hercules beetle supertank, although not in terms of health but instead raw destructive power. 185 Attack is the highest non-legendary attack in the game - it's practically superhuman. I'll admit that their mega design is kind of goofy looking, but I also really like it thanks to how it looks like a living turret.
• Speaking of living turret, Skill Link makes that idea into a reality thanks to moves like Rock Blast, Pin Missile and so on. Plus, I love the mental image of it popping off a gatling gun's worth of needles at incoming aircraft.

Overall rating: ********

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#215 / #461: Weavile Family
Type: /
Ability: Pressure / Pickpocket (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Sneasel
• Weavile (Level up holding a Razor Claw)

Stats of final evolution: 530 (70, 120, 65, 45, 85, 125)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Ah, the history behind Sneasel... Sneasel was stupidly underoptimized in the generation when they were introduced. Sneasel was primarily a physical attacker, but Dark and Ice were both special attacking types... so it couldn't even benefit from its native two types. It doesn't help that they had mediocre defense in an era where there were no focus sashes to take advantage of.
• They had a great design being an underhanded icy weasel with mean eyeshadow eyes, but largely overshadowed due to their lack of positives.
• Gen 4 to the rescue again, because wow Gen 2 and 4 really had a love affair. The Sinnoh era of the Pokemon games introduced a pivotal mechanic and evolution that salvaged poor Sneasel and turned them into a consistent threat - the Physical/Special split. Also known as "moves are physical/special themselves, not the type they are associated with".
• Weavile is fucking amazing. It fleshes out Sneasel's already good design by giving it more bits and a feather headdress (for some reason), but the best part is that they're the very definition of fast and brutal - you don't mess with 120 attack and 125 speed.
• I'm fully aware that Stealth Rock and burns cripple them, but they'll always be one of the best to me.

Overall rating: **********

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#216 - #217: Ursaring Family
Type:
Ability: Guts (1st) / Quick Feet (2nd) / Unnerve (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Teddiursa
• Ursaring (Level 30)

Stats of final evolution: 500 (90, 130, 75, 75, 75, 55)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Bears are always bad news.
• Teddiursa is cute until they evolve into the beast known as Ursaring. Guts and Swords Dance from this thing is terrifying, even if there's a Pokemon later on that does it better.
• Admittedly, I like them more because they're bears and less because of their competitive viability so what can you do?

Overall rating: ******

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#218 - #219: Magcargo Family
Type: / /
Ability: Magma Armor (1st) / Flame Body (2nd) / Weak Armor (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Slugma
• Magcargo (Level 38)

Stats of final evolution: 430 (60, 50, 120, 90, 80, 30)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• You know, anime has a ton of crazy shit in it. The Pokedex entry for Magcargo is an example of how over-the-top it can get: it has a consistent body heat of 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit. To give you a proper scale of what we're working with, that is double the heat of the surface of the sun.
• You know? The giant flaming orb in the sky which, despite being several millions of miles away from Earth, can still prove severely lethal due to UV ray poisoning and/or permanently blind people if stared at long enough?
• If the dex entry for Magcargo was accurate, they would literally be too hot to even take physical form - that, or everything else around them would be a scorched wasteland so desolate that not even dust would be left (Bones disintegrate at 1500 Celsius - snail boy here is roughly nine/ten times that).
• So yeah, what the fuck.
• Logic bombs aside, Slugma and Magcargo are good. They're a cute little flaming snail, even if they get washed away by any common Water or Ground type. I'd keep one as long as my house has fireproof measures.

Overall rating: ******

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#220 - #221 / #473: Mamoswine Family
Type: /
Ability: Oblivious (1st) / Snow Cloak (2nd) / Thick Fat (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Swinub
• Piloswine (Level 33)
• Mamoswine (Level up knowing Ancient Power)

Stats of final evolution: 530 (110, 130, 80, 70, 60, 80)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Swinub and Piloswine are appealing to say the least. They're icy boars that are immune to electricity... That, and I find their hairy bodies charming.
• This guy, though. Mamoswine sure likes to annoy me during Showdown matches, but hot damn if it isn't one of the coolest Pokemon out there: It's a friggin' woolly mammoth! Their behemoth look compliments their stats perfectly - I distinctly remember wanting to get one back in Platinum.
• Thick Fat practically doubles Mamoswine's chances of surviving thanks to it giving the hulking beast a resistance against Fire types.

Overall rating: ********

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#222: Corsola
Type: /
Ability: Hustle (1st) / Natural Cure (2nd) / Regenerator (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 410 (65, 55, 95, 65, 95, 35)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Corsola is a cutie and infamous for Recover (apparently), but that's about all I got. Well, it would be the end of that if it weren't for Gen 7 and the introduction of Mareanie, seeing as they share a very... tense relationship. I'll get to it when the time comes.

Overall rating: ******

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#223 - #224: Octillery Family
Type:
Ability: Suction Cups (1st) / Sniper (2nd) / Moody (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Remoraid
• Octillery (Level 25)

Stats of final evolution: 480 (75, 105, 75, 105, 75, 45)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Remoraid is based off of the remora, otherwise known as the suckerfish. They're called that because they have a giant suction cup organ and latch onto people, which really squicks me out. It also has a relationship with Mantine seeing as they appear with them all the time.
• It also looks like it's based off of a revolver, hence Remoraid.
• Now, can someone tell me how a goddamn remora evolves into an octopus? Is it because they both suck (literally) and it keeps the firearms theme? (Octopus artillery, to be precise)
• That's just stupid. Octazooka would be a cool signature move if it weren't for the middling detail that it has 85% accuracy instead of the standard 100%. Given how Play Rough can miss two times in a row despite having an accuracy of 90%, that's just asking for trouble.
• Still, I can't help but like Octillery because of how silly it looks.

Overall rating: ******

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#225: Delibird
Type: /
Ability: Vital Spirit (1st) / Hustle (2nd) / Insomnia (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 330 (45, 55, 45, 65, 45, 75)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Delibird is the perfect example of a Pokemon that shouldn't fight - it's freaking Santa! It gets even sillier when you realize that Vital Spirit and Insomnia do the exact same thing - prevent you from going to sleep. The guys at Game Freak were obviously japing this poor thing.
• Present does random damage on top of actually healing the opponent, so that's amusing at least.
• I actually thought Present was the only move Delibird can learn - nope, it has access to Rapid Spin and Destiny Bond of all moves, but considering the stats it has... yeah, not gonna win any contests any time soon.

Overall rating: *****

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#226 / #458: Mantine Family
Type: /
Ability: Swift Swim (1st) / Water Absorb (2nd) / Water Veil (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Mantyke
• Mantine (Level up with a Remoraid in the party)

Stats of final evolution: 485 (85, 40, 70, 80, 140, 70)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Mantine is one of those Pokemon that I've always had a hard time trying to take down - not necessarily because it's strong but because of its survivability. It's pretty damn bulky.
• It's a manta ray that serves as the "fighter plane" of the weird war weapon Pokemon set-up we've got here. The Remoraid are the guns and Octillery are... well, I've already said it.
• Not gonna lie, it's a strange concept but I still like it.
• Mantyke is precious, though.

Overall rating: *******

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#227: Skarmory
Type: /
Ability: Keen Eye (1st) / Sturdy (2nd) / Weak Armor (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 465 (65, 80, 140, 40, 70, 70)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• My metal boy!
• Skarmory is a Pokemon that I've always thought was rad. It's a metal bird with a kickass design: their skin apparently hardened due to the constant environmental abuse they took... Although, if I'm going to be real here, I've thought Skarmory was a Hoenn Pokemon because of how many I've encountered in Route 113. Oops.
• I didn't know what Skarmory could do until I started playing Showdown. It was there that I realized that getting an evolution didn't really matter for it and that it was perfectly fine spamming the other player's field with entry hazards. Sturdy is practically invaluable for this purpose and I guess you could put Brave Bird or Iron Head to surprise people who use Taunt.
• If you know how to shut one down, take the chance immediately because the last thing you need is a slew of Spikes and Stealth Rocks slowing you down.
• They're fantastic both from a design standpoint and a competitive one, seeing as they have a ton of other uses beyond the one I just described.

Overall rating: *********

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#228 - #229: Houndoom Family
Type: /
Ability: Early Bird (1st) / Flash Fire (2nd) / Unnerve (Hidden) / Solar Power (Mega)
Appearances:

• Houndour
• Houndoom
• Mega Houndoom

Stats of final evolution: 500 (75, 90, 50, 110, 80, 95)
Additional forms?: One

• Mega (Introduced in X and Y): +100 (95, 90, 90(+40), 140(+30), 90(+10), 115(+20))

Thoughts:

• Yo, you know the designers had balls when they decided to put in a burning Hellhound Pokemon. Like holy shit, Houndoom is metal. It's so honest about it that it impresses me - it's not probably based on a hell hound, it straight up advertises it with their wicked looks, Dark/Fire typing and the fact that one of their Pokedex descriptions says "the fires from this Pokemon will never stop hurting".
• It gets even better because they get a Mega evolution - Mega Houndoom is so brutal-looking that you'd swear it was the team pet of a Black Metal band. Not only that, the boosts it gets turn an otherwise decent Pokemon into one of the best. When you can both outspeed and survive a Latios using Draco Meteor, you're officially a badass in my book.

Overall rating: *********

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#230: Kingdra

Already covered in Gen 1 along with the rest of the Horsea family.

Additional thoughts:

• This thing is lethal - Swift Swim Hydro Pump when the rain is out? It's practically a war crime, especially for a Pokemon that doesn't have a Mega or is a legendary.

Individual score: *******

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#231 - #232: Donphan Family
Type:
Ability: Sturdy / Sand Veil (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Phanpy
• Donphan

Stats of final evolution: 530 (90, 120, 120, 60, 60, 50)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• If I'm not mistaken, aren't Phanpy and Donphan the only elephant Pokemon in the entire series? If so, then they shouldn't be the only ones.
• Phanpy gives me Dumbo vibes, which means I must protect it at all costs.
• Donphan, on the other hand... It may not be a beast like Mamoswine, but it's still rather fearsome. 120 on both Attack and Defense, combined with an access to Rapid Spin and Stealth Rock make it pretty versatile. It gets destroyed by Water and Grass types, though.

Overall rating: *******

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#233: Porygon2

Already covered in Gen 1 along with the rest of the Porygon family.

Additional thoughts:

• Oh right, I completely forgot to mention Electric Soldier Porygon. There was an episode of the old Pokemon anime that involved bright flashing colors - colors strong enough to induce seizures in people of various ages. It got so bad that it had to be banned and didn't even air in America!
• However, the dumbest part is that Porygon themselves didn't even start the flashing - it was Pikachu using Thunderbolt on some vaccine missiles. Like damn, even just looking at a screencap makes me feel queasy knowing that it was violently flashing between red and blue in the original.
• Mismanagment aside, I like it when a series introduces advancing technology, even if Porygon2 is more stable than its "evolution".

Individual score: ********

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#234: Stantler
Type:
Ability: Intimidate (1st) / Frisk (2nd) / Sap Sipper (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 465 (73, 95, 65, 85, 65, 85)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Ugh. Stantler is one of those Pokemon I just plain don't like. It's pretty ugly and has lackluster stats. It also has psychic powers but isn't Normal/Psychic like Girafarig for some reason.
• It might be a reindeer to go along with Delibird's "Santa" motif, but it's still pretty ech. I don't completely hate it, but it could be doing much better for itself.

Overall rating: ***

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#235: Smeargle
Type:
Ability: Own Tempo (1st) / Technician (2nd) / Moody (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 250 (55, 20, 35, 20, 45, 75)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Those stats are hideous. How do you get anything done with a set-up like that?
• Well, sonny jim, Smeargle's greatest utility is that it can learn any move in the game through its signature move Sketch - you are a cheap and effective substitute for Mew that doesn't involve going to events.
• Spore is pretty heinous on this thing, but if you know how to fight Smeargle then it should be child's play to counter. Taunting them is a good move too because it completely eliminates them as a threat - you don't use a Smeargle to fight directly, after all.
• On its own merits, I adore Smeargle's faux-artist design. Its shiny form having a red tail with a primarily yellow body is really neat to me.
• Moody can go suck a million chodes, though. It's essentially "Random" the ability, as it gives a different boost/debuff to Smeargle at the end of the turn. People tend to abuse this so they could wind up with something obnoxious like 3x evasion or a ridiculous amount of positive boosts so they could pass it on to someone else. No wonder why it's banned in most places.

Overall rating: *******

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#236 - #237: Tyrogue and Hitmontop

Already covered in Gen 1 along with the rest of the Hitmon family.

Additional thoughts:

• I like that Tyrogue has a completely balanced stat spread... as in 35 in everything. I think this is to give more emphasis on how the training you give it influences what it grows into.
• Hitmontop has Triple Kick as a signature move - it has a piddly base power of 10, but gets slightly more powerful the more it hits, culminating in 60 base power if all three kicks hit. Technician can really help here, but you're likely to use something more reliable because you really don't want to play the numbers game during a real fight.

Individual score:

• Tyrogue: *******
• Hitmontop: *******

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#238 - #240: Smoochum, Elekid and Magby

Already covered in Gen 1 along with the rest of the Jynx, Electivire and Magmortar families.

Additional thoughts:

• I find Smoochum more charming than Jynx themselves. Now that's a problem.
• Elekid and Magby are great and all, but man they really wanted to put an emphasis on baby Pokemon in this gen. It makes sense, though, seeing as this is the generation when they introduced the Pokemon Daycare Center as we know it now.

Individual score:

• Smoochum: *******
• Elekid: *******
• Magby: *******

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#241: Miltank
Type:
Ability: Thick Fat (1st) / Scrappy (2nd) / Sap Sipper (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 490 (95, 80, 105, 40, 70, 100)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Oh hey, a cow Pokemon. Miltank is notorious for at least two things: its bulk and its role as one of the biggest roadblocks in many a Gold/Silver/Crystal playthrough. Whitney's Miltank can restore its own health with Milk Drink, use Attract and straight up murder you with Stomp or Rollout if the game feels mean enough.
• Admittedly, the game gives you a Machop beforehand so it shouldn't be too hard to overcome... if you know where to look.
• Miltank has a cute design but I'm not ballsy enough to use one on my team... mostly because they're not that good in the grand scheme of things.

Overall rating: ******

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#242: Blissey

Already covered in Gen 1 along with the rest of the Chansey family.

Additional thoughts:

• Blissey has a gorgeous design! I love how it looks when compared to Chansey, to be honest. The latter may be better at surviving and being annoying, but I'll gladly take Blissey over Chansey. No disrespect to the latter, though.

Individual score: ********

[Theme for the Elemental Beasts: Vs. Raikou, Suicune and Entei]

(The legendaries in Gen 1 didn't have their own unique themes unless you count Mew's slight remix of the normal wild Pokemon battle theme, so...)

#243 - #245: Elemental Beasts
Type: (Raikou) / (Entei) / (Suicune)
Ability (All): Pressure / Inner Focus (Hidden)
Ability (Former): Volt Absorb / Flash Fire / Water Absorb (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Raikou
• Entei
• Suicune

Stats of Raikou: 580 (90, 85, 75, 115, 100, 115)
Stats of Entei: 580 (115, 115, 85, 90, 75, 100)
Stats of Suicune: 580 (100, 75, 115, 90, 115, 85)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• The Legendary Beasts are really cool!
• Raikou is an electric sabertooth tiger, Entei is a badass fire lion guardian and Suicune is a water leopard. They're also a pain to deal with in competitive because of their high, well rounded stats. Suicune in particular bothers me the most because of their sky-high bulk.
• I like how they're the servants of Ho-Oh in the same way the elemental birds are the servants of Lugia. It gets even better with the prevailing theory that the Beasts were originally a Jolteon, Flareon and Vaporeon that Ho-Oh reconstituted into their current forms. It only makes sense.

Overall rating: ********

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#246 - #248: Tyranitar Family
Type: / (Larvitar and Pupitar) / / (Tyranitar)
Ability: Sand Stream (Normal and Mega) / Unnerve (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Larvitar
• Pupitar (Level 30)
• Tyranitar (Level 55)

Stats of final evolution: 600 (100, 134, 110, 95, 100, 61)
Additional forms?: One

• Mega (Introduced in X and Y): +100 (100, 164(+30), 150(+40), 95, 120(+20), 71(+10))

Thoughts:

• Dragonite was cool and all, but now we're getting into the real king of the monsters. Tyranitar is, without question, the Godzilla of Pokemon. They're a towering beast with a massive attack stat and decent defenses that is compounded by having a Mega Evolution of all things.
• Mega Tyranitar doesn't get a fancy new ability or anything like that - it just gains more power to beat the shit out of you and I can definitely respect that. Having a four times weakness to Fighting is actually a sigh of relief in hindsight, because if it didn't have that... it would be unstoppable.
• The dex even says they topple mountains and bury rivers for corn's sake! Cartographers have a field day when the local Tyranitar go on a rampage.

Overall rating: *********

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[Theme for the this bit: Vs. Lugia]

#249: Lugia
Type: /
Ability: Pressure / Multiscale (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 680 (106, 90, 130, 90, 154, 110)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Lugia is the guardian of the seas for a damn good reason. Even Kyogre would tell them they're doing a good job.
• The most dangerous thing about Lugia isn't its offense but instead its defense - 130 defense and 154 special defense combined with Multiscale (reduces damage by 50% at full health) is so harrowing that it's amazing that Game Freak made them as unkillable as they are.
• Appearance-wise, Lugia is a majestic bird-dragon thing with giant hands for wings. I'll take it.
• There was a weird thing in the anime where Lugia had a baby? It seems to be one of the few exceptions to legendaries not being able to breed (Manaphy being the other one) but not in the actual games. Hmm.
• (I don't quite like Lugia's theme compared to Ho-Oh's, however.)

Overall rating: ********

-

[Theme for this bit: Vs. Ho-oh]

#250: Ho-Oh
Type: /
Ability: Pressure / Regenerator (Hidden)
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 680 (106, 130, 90, 110, 154, 90)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• I love this thing. Ho-Oh is a phoenix - more appropriately, the legendary Fenghuang from Chinese mythology.
• It's supposed to radiate with a rainbow of colors, and given how much of a freak I am about my color palettes I can't help but adore it. Ho-Oh's theme song is also way catchier than Lugia's thanks to it reminding me of Okami's stellar soundtrack.
• Ho-Oh is effectively the less defensive cousin of Lugia due to having a type that's allergic to rocks and less defense in favor of Special Attack. This doesn't mean you should underestimate Ho-Oh, however, because Sacred Fire from this monster is blistering.
• I like how it's revered as a holy guardian figure by the Kimono Girls and the effect it had on the people of Ecruteak with the legend of the Burned Tower.

Overall rating: *********

-

#251: Celebi
Type: /
Ability: Natural Cure
Appearances:

• Normal

Stats of final evolution: 600 (100, 100, 100, 100, 100, 100)
Additional forms?: N/A
Thoughts:

• Ever since I first got Crystal, I was curious as to what Celebi was all about. I had heard of them before, but didn't know how to get them... then it was revealed they were an event legendary. Son of a bitch.
• Thankfully, the wireless events in the X/Y era solved that problem.
• Celebi themselves is a precious muffin. They're this little grass fairy that has the power of... time travel? Oh, you know that's going to cause some problems.
• Shiny Celebi is pink with green eyes, which I find even more charming than its actual color scheme.
• A spread of 100 in every stat sounds really good until you realize that being completely balanced also means you don't really specialize in anything.
• That's a huge problem for Celebi because Grass/Psychic is a very vulnerable type. Despite its dwindling viability, however, Celebi is pretty great.

Overall rating: *******

And so ends the Johto section of the retrospective. The new Pokemon introduced were largely weak until a later generation came along to buff them up with evolutions or megas, with Generation 4 giving a crazy amount of love to the Pokemon here. (Given the supposed connection between Johto and Sinnoh, it's not necessarily out of the question...)

Hoenn's up next - one of my favorites when it comes to both the region and the Pokemon designs. To encapsulate how I feel about it: