Pok?mon of the Day - Dratini (163/???) [being remade]

Poor is the pupil who does not surpass his master. Today's Pokemon of the Day is Smeargle! A relatively forgotten Pokemon introduced in the second Generation, Smeargle is an artist who firmly believes that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so despite being mediocre in itself, its signature move Sketch allows it to copy the last move used by its opponent (excluding Chatter and Struggle) permanently. Be it a simple-minded Splash or a terrifying Roar of Time, if Smeargle can survive the hit and use Sketch, that move becomes its to keep. It learn Sketch once every ten levels up to Level 91, too. This gives it some rather terrifying and highly interesting options in competitive battles. In the anime, Smeargle has been relatively scarce, only ever having one major appearance - in which a trio of them vandalised a town with random scribbles - and has otherwise been limited to minor cameos.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Smeargle! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• What is your ideal Smeragle moveset?
• So...how do you think Smeargle's "paint" works? Can it run out if it gets dehydrated? Can it change colours and, if so, how?

i can haz cheezburger? Today's Pokemon of the Day is Purugly! A prime example of what typically happens to your cute little kitten if you keep it in the house and pamper it, Purugly feels the need to make itself look even bigger for some reason...perhaps to make up for its generally mediocre stats and limited movepool. That said, Purugly is faster than it looks, with a base speed of 112. In the anime and games both Purugly is the higher-level Pokemon of choice of Team Galactic; mostly notably, Commander Mars has one. Its other appearances in the anime has been limited to cameos...probably because it's indoors, tucked up on the couch, fast asleep.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Purugly! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• Is Purugly REALLY that ugly? How would you rate it when compared to other feline Pokemon?
• ...a lolcat you'd like to see as a Purugly, or one that reminds you of Purugly. Go.

So i herd u liek mudkipz? Today's Pokemon of the Day is Mudkip! One of the three Hoenn starters - and actually voted the most popular in a poll conducted by Nintendo of Europe! - Mudkip is surprisingly adorable for a Pokemon based off one of the most disturbingly ugly fish in existence. Popular enough to get its own nonsensical meme, Mudkip is a Pokemon of many talents: it can sense water flows, lift and crush boulders, and can even use the gills on its cheeks to breathe. It's also extremely docile, making it perfect for beginners...at least until they get to the third Gym, anyway. If you haven't evolved it by then, you're screwed. Brock owned a Mudkip for a short time in the anime, although he eventually evolved it into Marshtomp.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Mudkip! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• So...DO you like Mudkip?
• Did you choose Mudkip in your latest playthrough of ORAS, or in an earlier playthrough of R/S/E? Did you find it to be a good choice in starter, or were you left wishing you'd picked one of the other two?

On the farm, every Friday, on the farm, it's rabbit pie day. So every Friday that ever comes along I get up early and sing this little song... Today's Pokemon of the Day is Diggersby! A Normal/Ground-type introduced in Generation VI, whilst Diggersby is not quite as popular as Lopunny (although looking at its design it really isn't difficult to see why...) it still has a few things going for it: it is the only Pokemon currently revealed with its type combination, and for some reason it also learns Spikes, being the only Ground-type to do so. Not that it does it much good as, with Huge Power, it is much better suited to being a physical attacker. In the anime Diggersby has only appeared a couple of times; under ownership of a character of the day, and in the dream of Clemont's ridiculously overpowered Bunnelby...although why a Pokemon as adorable as Bunnelby would want to evolve at all is a mystery that will never likely be solved.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Diggersby! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• How efficient do you think Diggersby is as a construction worker when compared to the more buff Pokemon commonly used for such work, like Machoke and Conkeldurr? What sort of work do you think it would undertake?
• How much do you think Diggersby would benefit from a Mega Evolution? Is this something you'd like to see in the future?

My armour is like tenfold shields, my teeth are swords, my claws spears, the shock of my tail is a thunderbolt, my wings a hurricane, and my breath death! Today's Pokemon of the Day is Dragonite! The original overpowered pseudo-Legendary at the end of the regional Pokedex - which would spark a trend in later generations - despite its gentle-looking demeanour Dragonite is still a ridiculously powerful and terrifying threat in the game...which is probably why Lance had three of the bloody things in the first gen titles. For some reason they even knew Barrier of all things, which they couldn't learn legitimately until a recent event distributed one with said move. In the anime, Dragonite has always been reserved as a powerhouse of noteworthy trainers: Lance, Drake of the Orange Islands, Clair and, for some reason, Professor Oak had one too. Iris also encountered an extremely moody and frankly terrifying Dragonite which she somehow managed to tame, and a ridiculously huge one was encountered by Ash and friends in the thirteenth episode of the original series.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Dragonite! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• Dragonite resembles fairy dragons in design. Based on this, would you like to see it acquire the Fairy-type in the near future - either as part of a re-type for the next generation titles, or through a Mega Evolution? How do you imagine being Dragon/Fairy would change Dragonite in the current metagame?
• Six generations on, how does Dragonite compare to other pseudo-Legendary Pokemon in your opinion?
• How difficult did you find Lance's Dragonites in the first/second generation titles?

With the Power of your Ancestor, Grant the prayer of your followers, Arise and show your Power! Today's Pokemon of the Day is Volcarona! Volcarona takes far longer than any other Pokemon to go through a single stage of evolution, evolving from Larvesta at Level 59, although the wait is worth it. With a unique Bug/Fire typing, the highest base special attack of all Bug-type Pokemon, and an impressive signature move in Fiery Dance - as well as access to Quiver Dance, Volcarona is a strong threat. Just don't send it out when there are pretty much any entry hazards sitting on the field waiting for it. Unsurprisingly, Volcarona has only been made easily available once in the games, in Black and White in the Relic Castle...and even then, it has a measly catch rate of 15. In the anime, Volcarona has made but a single appearance, in which a hunter was attempting to capture it. Brycen was having none of it, however.

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Volcarona! As well as the general questions in the first post of this topic, here are some fun things to think about:

• What do you think of Volcarona's design when compared to the other moth-like Pokemon?
• As things stand, Volcarona and it's pre-evolution are the only Bug/Fire dual-typed Pokemon. Is this a combination you would like to see in other Pokemon in the future, or should it remain exclusive to Volcarona?