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

He won't last five minutes on foot. It's spawning season for the Antlions! Today's Pokemon of the Day is Flygon! Always outshined by the likes of Metagross and Salamence in the third generation metagame, although not without a niche of its own in lower tiers, Flygon has always been fairly popular amongst fans nonetheless. Initially, it was going to be one of the few Pokemon to receive a Mega Evolution in XY, although this was ultimately dropped due to Ken Sugimori experiencing artist's block...a block he evidently didn't get over in time for ORAS either. Flygon made its anime debut in the sixth Pokemon movie, where it provided transportation for Ash and friends, and Drew would later use one in the series against May in Contests.

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

• Would you have liked to have seen a Mega Flygon in Generation VI? Would you like to see one in the future?
• How would you rate Flygon's design and general usability when compared other Dragon-types? Despite Salamence's popularity, have you ever considered using Flygon?

Hurricane winds are a breeze for Pidgeotto here! Today's Pokemon of the Day is Pidgeot! The fully evolved form of Pidgey - and not a Pidgeotto, regardless of what the dub occasionally tells us - Pidgeot was subsequently a staple for many teams in the earlier days of the franchise...after all, Pidgey was everywhere. It was one of several Pokemon to receive a Mega Evolution in Gen VI, catapulting it back into relevance again after being overshadowed by several other Normal/Flying types...and Talonflame. In the anime, Ash's Pidgeotto eventually evolved into Pidgeot - after the Indigo League competition, unfortunately for him - and he reacted to this by promptly letting it go so that it could defend an arbitrary patch of forest against a Fearow that he originally upset in the very first episode as a Spearow. Not one of his smarter moves. Falkner also used one against Ash - and lost spectacularly against his Charizard - and Solidad also used one in her contests, which were noticeably more successful.

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

• Were you pleased to see Pidgeot receive a Mega Evolution in Gen I, or do you think there is another Gen I Pokemon that would have been better served getting one?
• Do you think Ash will ever actually go back to get his Pidgeot? Would you like to see this happen?

If you're gonna dig, dig to the heavens. Today's Pokemon of the Day is...oh, right, it's Dunsparce. Always depicted as being much smaller than its actual 4'11" in length, usually uncommon or rare when it's available in games - making it a popular choice for swarms - and often outright forgotten or overlooked by the majority of people, Dunsparce has been around since the second generation and has not done a single meaningful thing in either the anime or the games during that time. Based on the tsuchinoko, a Japanese cryptid, it seems that this trait has carried over onto Dunsparce: nobody wants to acknowledge its existence. In the anime, Dunsparce has rarely appeared outside of the token episode it had in the Johto anime, in which an entire town full of children had one for some reason. Ash also encountered one in Unova and wanted to catch it, but unfortunately for him, things didn't go according to plan...

Share your opinion, memories, and experiences of Dunsparce! 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 Dunsparce? Is it really as forgettable as it seems? Have you ever used one?
• Do you think Dunsparce would benefit from an evolution, or a Mega Evolution? How would you make it more relevant in the franchise if given the chance?

Your bullets cannot harm me! My wings are like a shield of steel! Today's Pokemon of the Day is Emolga! The adorably cute "Pikaclone" of the fifth generation, Emolga is based on a flying squirrel - hence the dual flying type, making it unique amongst the Pikaclones up to that point in being the only one with a dual-type...at least until Dedenne came along in Gen VI - Emolga is woefully outclassed by other Pokemon offensively and fragile to the point of absurdity...good thing it's so cute. In the anime, Iris caught an Emolga, which would get itself into numerous difficult situations...or, rather, everyone else. Especially once it learned how to use Volt Switch. Gym Leader Elesa had a slightly more well-behaved one, which somehow managed to take out Ash's Palpitoad, putting him in a spot of bother...momentarily.

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

• Emolga was first revealed on August 7th, 2010 - almost six years ago! How did you feel about it then? Had you decided on using one, and did you when BW were released?
• In your opinion, how does Emolga compare to the other Pikaclones, both before and after its reveal?

Drat, I'm out of clever puns and references... Today's Pokemon of the Day is Dratini! Dratini was originally considered a mythical Pokemon in the in-game and anime universe...at least until that classification was used to refer to Legendaries that weren't quite legendary enough to be Legendary, then it was downgraded to a "Mirage" Pokemon instead. Dratini was originally one of three Dragon-type Pokemon, the other two being its evolutions, making it something special in the first generation titles. Unsurprisingly, it was extremely difficult to get hold of, being a rare Pokemon in the Safari Zone or a ridiculously expensive Game Corner prize in the first generation titles, and being generally uncommon or outright unavailable in other games. Dratini's first appearance in the anime was actually in episode 35 of the original series, although a trigger-happy warden meant that episode was ultimately banned and never aired outside of Japan. It's only other noteworthy appearance was under the ownership of Gym Leader Clair, where it ultimately evolved into Dragonair.

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

• How did you get your first Dratini? Did you buy it, or get lucky and fish one up?
• Dratinia's prototype name was "Dragoon". Do you think this suits it better?