Disabiled Pokemon Trainers

[shadowkat67]

I just (Like, twenty minutes ago) started a Tumblr side blog for headcanons about Pokemon Trainers who are disabled. However, since I just started it twenty minutes ago, I obviously haven't heard anything yet. So I thought I might come here, being full of pokemon fans, and see if anyone has some thoughts on how it might work.

Having a few disabilities myself and knowing others who are disabled, it's cool to think about.

A mute trainer being mocked by peers and told they couldn't train pokemon since they couldn't say commands. They find other very creative ways to communicate, making it hard for opponents to counter attacks because they always rely on verbal cues.

Autistic trainers coping with sensory issues using their pokemon. They enjoy petting certain one's because the texture feels good. The pokemon being very protective of their trainer and learning how to tell when they're about to go into a meltdown.

A blind girl befriending an Abra and Zubat, and they help her find her way around. The Zubat with its sonar and the Abra by imprinting telepathic pictures in her mind. The girl becomes the best trainer in town and goes on to represent her home in the pokemon league with a team of psychic types. Except for her Zu, of course, which is now a Crobat and follows her everywhere. Has a lot of neat tricks and strategies that others don't think of because she got the ideas through exercises relating to her disabilities.

There's lots of possibilities. I think the only disabled pokemon trainer we've seen is Wally, so we don't know quite how this would work out. (Imagine him traveling around the regions talking to parents of disabled kids about how to let them go out on their journeys! Role model Wally!)

Just...Bad*** trainers with disabilities holding their own in battles and not being used for pity tactics. Disabled trainers traveling and meeting people and befriending their pokemon. Disabled trainers.

Why do we not have more?

 

[Mister Coffee]

I will admit, I always did think Wally was a cool rival because he strives to overcome his own weaknesses to prove that he can be a powerful and independent individual. I wish they had made him a stronger battler in OR/AS because that overcoming such a huge obstacle for him would have been more impacting in the storyline if he was all together more challenging.

I definitely would love to see more plot oriented characters overcoming physical weakness simply because it's inspirational and really makes you care about the characters. So I'm totally on board for more handicapped characters.
One thing I thought of that would be really cool is if there was a small side story about visiting a hospital where they use pokemon to rehabilitate people in critical conditions like they do in real life with animals. It would be cool to walk into a hospital pokemon battle zone where you could fight trainers who strive to be great trainers and overcome their various illnesses or handicaps.

 

[shadowkat67]

Yeah, and seeing them succeed. We need more important characters in the story with disabilities. Someone make me this game, because wish I had the talent. XD

 

[jjc927]

It would be a good idea to show at least one or two trainers with disabilities in each season to show children with disabilities that they aren't limited by them and that they can do the same things as anyone else. Especially with the increasing prevalence of disabilities and the movement to be accepting and stop bullying, I'm surprised we haven't seen any trainers with disabilities in the anime yet.

One thing I thought of that would be really cool is if there was a small side story about visiting a hospital where they use pokemon to rehabilitate people in critical conditions like they do in real life with animals. It would be cool to walk into a hospital pokemon battle zone where you could fight trainers who strive to be great trainers and overcome their various illnesses or handicaps.

I agree, that would be something cool to show. Therapy animals are so common now. They could easily have a plot where Team Rocket attempts to steal the Pokemon being used but then their consciences get the better of them.

 

[Mister Coffee]

It's... an interesting point to raise as far as trainers with disabilities are concerned. On one hand, I can see why it probably hasn't happened yet; to be fairly honest, disabilities are pretty complex! If Game Freak were to say, create an autistic character in the games, they risk the offchance of pissing off or offending some other group, for a variety of reasons ranging from they probably designed the character wrong to designing a character with Asperger's and not say, other forms of Autism, etc, things like that, y'know? Disabilities is a very delicate area to venture without angering a particular group, and Pokemon existing is proof enough as it is that people are willing to get angry over anything remotely seemingly controversial and the last thing Game Freak needs is lawsuits, really.

I think you're getting a little too focused on just a couple of disabilities. Why Autism and Aspergers specifically? Obviously GF wouldn't purposely throw themselves under the lawsuit bus by picking the most obviously controversial illnesses. I mean Wally has a whole back story of being terminally ill in his younger years and frail after he had more or less recovered, and including Wally as a character gives the overall idea that not even a terminal illness or disability can stop a person from achieving their dreams, even in battling and raising pokemon. That general perspective applies to all disabilities, not just Wally's mysterious and unlabeled terminal illness.

They can have their cake and eat it too. Provide an interesting and inspirational character who's in a wheel chair, blind, or what have you, pick any one of the many non-controversial disabilities, and that idea will symbolize to people with disabilities that they can overcome these obstacles. In the end it's not about what specific disability any one character might have it's about a character with the odds against them overcoming great challenges.

 

[ariesunicornxo]

YESSSSSS.
I personally struggle with anxiety/PTSD and I'm like, do other trainers deal with this?
Then again, I literally watch Pokemon to escape from that, but I think it'd be cool to be like, someone like me can exist there too!
That'd be rad.

 

[Mister Coffee]

Keep in mind those are just examples as the OP specified them. If you're going to go down the disabilities route, then it'd be completely fair to include as many characters with disabilities as possible, including Autism and Aspergers. It wouldn't be fair to include one character with a physical or mental disability and not include the rest, which I can imagine people also getting upset over. Slippery slope argument and all that, etc.

iirc, I don't think Wally is really a good character to use here as an example. Comparing apples and oranges roughly; we had (still have) no idea what kind of illness Wally had and from the best of my interpretation from the original RSE games, his illness seemed to resemble that of a really bad allergic reaction perhaps? That's just wildly throwing guesses here but I don't think Wally would be the ideal character to illustrate your point. The very fact that he got over it as soon as he progressed through the middle and especailly the end of the game seems to imply it's some sort of external, environmental factor of some sort.

Why omit the controversial disabilities in the first place, though? You're only going to piss off that select group that want to be representated in the Pokemon game. It's putting Game Freak in the hot seat either way if they decide to include characters with disabilities because, again, disabilities are very complicated (especially mental disabilities, at that) and might not be portrayed in the best light in the Pokemon game, which would risk offending people and Game Freak risking lawsuits regardless of how the disabled characters are portrayed.

You may think I'm overexaggerating the consequences, but when Game Freak got sued over Kadabra's design because some dude thought it was making fun of him (and the star on Kadabra's head apparently being the Star of David), I'm sure you can see how sensitive people can get, and this is in regards to standard Pokemon design. NPC designs with disabilities would probably be even worse in that regard.

I disagree.
This game is about pokemon in the end not about people with disabilities, it would be silly for GF to go out of their way to include every type of illness that exists on our planet, however humans exist in the pokemon world and humans get sick or have disabilities, so why act like that people don't get sick or disabled?

Wally's character proves that people get sick and can be disabled (or at least physically hindered) in the pokemon world. Sure his condition clears up due to being in a healthier environment, but he just like the other NPC's in the game are humans and they're susceptible to weakness.

It's not necessary to include controversial disabilities to make the point that a person in a disabled state (whatever state that may be) could overcome their weakness and come out a better and more powerful person in doing so. To say whether it's "fair" or "unfair" to include all disabilities is not a good argument against why it should or shouldn't be done.

The lawsuits against GF for the Kadabra incident are based on a pokemon sharing the same likeness of a person that actually exists. Although the whole law suit was in bad taste and that guy should never have gotten away with it, the lawsuit was based on an infraction of using the man's likeness in a way that was against his wishes without his knowledge. That particular type of lawsuit has absolutely no standing or ability to support a lawsuit against GF for offending disabled people due to lack of inclusion, I'm also sort of confused why you used it as an example.

Many games have included characters disabilities and the story of their overcoming them. One of my favorite video games of all time "Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced" had a fascinating side plot about Marche's little brother Doned who was terminally sick in the real world but when transported into the Fantasy World he was reborn in a healthy body and he strived to become a powerful warrior and didn't want to return to the real world. No law suits there, and through an inspirational story they told about a boy who not only overcame his illness but eventually accepted who he was in the real world and willingly returned to his feeble body but with a happier outlook on life.

There are many other popular games that show people with varying disabilities, that have never shown every kind of disability that exists and they haven't suffered from numerous lawsuits or people bent out of shape in an outrage. You ask why do I omit, I counter with why include everything?

 

[Mister Coffee]

Mister Coffee, I feel like we're kind of not seeing each other's point here, or maybe there's some sort of misunderstanding, haha. At any rate, I'll see if I can clarify myself further on my positions, and see where it is what we're apparently not seeing.

You want to think less of the perspective of "it's really not such a big deal to include a disabled character, and they dont need to include every one", and more of the perspective of a soccer mom who's kid is in a wheelchair and the only representation of a disabled character in Pokemon is someone with depression/anxiety/autism/anything else other than a character in a wheelchair. You want to start thinking as someone irrational rather than rational and logical. Hence why I mentioned the slippery slope argument and what have you; it's honestly really tough to go down the disabled character route without some serious backlash against the demographics you're marketing towards.

Hopefully this clears this up. Again, I totally understand where you're coming from, but it's worth looking at this through a different lens.

I can't really present my point any further than what I posted before.
I understand your point that certain people will either sue everything in sight because they can or that some body is mad because a game doesn't target their specific lifestyle, but I just don't think that this particular design for a video game character would really have as much of an impact as you are presenting it to possibly be.

I'm comfortable to just say agree to disagree, cause I'm argued out.

 

[shadowkat67]

It's... an interesting point to raise as far as trainers with disabilities are concerned. On one hand, I can see why it probably hasn't happened yet; to be fairly honest, disabilities are pretty complex! If Game Freak were to say, create an autistic character in the games, they risk the offchance of pissing off or offending some other group, for a variety of reasons ranging from they probably designed the character wrong to designing a character with Asperger's and not say, other forms of Autism, etc, things like that, y'know? Disabilities is a very delicate area to venture without angering a particular group, and Pokemon existing is proof enough as it is that people are willing to get angry over anything remotely seemingly controversial and the last thing Game Freak needs is lawsuits, really.

At least, this is as far as the games are concerned. The anime might be a different matter, but I imagine the same concerns would apply, unless there has been a disabled character in the anime in recent years already.

This discussion has been really good so far, though as someone with aspergers (though most of us just go as autistic at this point because functioning labels have caused issues) oh boy. Are you right about getting controversial.

However, this is something that will always happen. Some mother (because it always seems to be a parent. We normally don't get a say, which is why we're so desperate for representation besides with the demon named Autism Speaks) will show up shouting "That's not how my child is!!!!"

However, if they keep holding back we'll never move at all. Same with LGBT and POC diversity. People push for those, but very seldom do I see it for us. So it would definitely be nice to see, especially if it's not a plot about "fixing" who we are and instead showing what we're capable of..


And I disagree about Wally. He is disabled. I actually just read the manga, but it's hard to show the extent in third gen graphic pokemon games. That's another reason I liked him. It's a "invisible disability" which is what I have. You can't tell by just looking. You have to witness the effects, which many fail to see. He was my favorite character because of that. They also had a blind kid show up in the manga, but after those two I haven't seen anything else. Not in manga. Not in show. Not in game.

It is delicate, but does that mean we should just be given up on?

The creator of pokemon himself was a man with autism, and making up the largest minority group I'm sure there has to be someone with disabilities working at Game Freak. They could do exactly what we've been wanting. Ask us when designing a character. Let the disabled speak instead of shoving us under a rug for the word of a doctor who's perfectly abled instead. There are other franchises with disabled characters. How to Train Your Dragon? A disabled tag team.

And any sort of positive representation would be better for the Disabled Community than the nauseating trainwreak of "Me Before You", or the countless games and shows that use us for pity points or to build abled characters higher.

Of course we can't all be in there. Even showing one, it won't be like everyone with the disorder. Take autism again. It's a spectrum. Not autistic to non autistic, but autistic to autistic. You've met one of us you've just met one of us. We know this. We're aware. Of course not all of us can be shown, but at least some of us. Representation is so important, especially to children, who are their target audience.

One thing that was kinda hurtful that you said, however, was implying that the inclusion of a disabled character would make the show less "for everyone". I wasn't saying make a whole arc around the disabilities, but to see us in the world and how things would go.

"Hey. Why are you wearing those sunglasses? It's not that bright out."

"Oh. It is to me, because I have sensory issues."

"Ahhh, okay! That makes sense and is perfectly reasonable!"

No big deal. Just a character rolling around in the background in their wheelchair. A NPC being led by their seeing eye pokemon. Just something that says we're there. We're people, just like everyone else, and it would be nice to be thought of, you know?

 

[shadowkat67]

For the first part, I'm not saying you meant it, but it could be easily implied, and thus could hurt someone. It was where you said here:

Pokemon is supposed to be kid-friendly and light-hearted. It's supposed to be marketed towards everyone (at least, that's the idea) and as such, if it's supposed to be for everyone, it should have material that would be acceptable to everyone.

It's actually something I've heard once or twice before, which is probably why it stuck out so much to me.

But you're not looking at this from the business standpoint. Unfortunately, things aren't as rosy as you make them out to be; Game Freak is marketing a product to a specific demographic and they have to do our best to make sure that that demographic is as happy as possible. The problem comes because inserting disabled characters would cause a firestorm among easily offended soccer moms who may have a disabled child and get angry for whatever reason or another and then Game Freak has to revert the change. That's the entire point.

I do understand that. However, where I'm coming from is that this has happened in the past with quite a few things. Maybe they wouldn't have to go to the most controversial topics immediately, but start off with more characters like Wally. Slowly go into it. Makes it less likely to blow up. No matter what you do, someone will always be ready to be at your throat, and that's something a lot of companies are aware of. At least, I'm fairly sure of that. Most. Especially ones this big. The demographic is children, and there are disabled children, and again, as I said later, you don't have to make it a big deal. They don't have to be a main character either at first. Find a way to make a minimal impact, and then ease into things.

I think what I said here goes for the rest of the points too.

Again, I do see what they'd be coming from. They've gotten in the middle of quite a few battles. However, this was originally just a "what if". And to grow you also need to learn how to take chances. Look at what happened to the Sims when they gave the option of gender fluid characters. They got backlash, but they also got a boat load of praise, and a lot of people's respect for them increased as well.

And let's face it, lots of soccer moms still think pokemon are demons. The company is big enough by now that they should be able to stand against that kind of faulty logic, especially if they do their research.

They're making progress steering away from their plot right now and getting rid of gyms in the new game. That was a risk. One I don't think they'd have taken in a main game before. Maybe a spinoff, but not a main one. Who's to say they can't take more, and ones that can get their fans involved in ways they haven't before? They've started more POC representation. I have a hunch they might go further soon, maybe even LGBT. If they're careful, and do research, there should be no reason it can't be pulled off. Right now, maybe not. But one day soon, in the direction they're vearing too, it could be. And I'm sorry if I'm being a bit scattered. I've been studying for a geology test all day.

 

[DyingChild2020]

What about Hyde? He's from the Pokemon Sword and Shield Isle of Armour Expansion. When U meet him he says he doesnt like going outside due to it making him weak (Asthma like wally maybe?) Plus if u look at his ears it looks like he might be deaf as the things a lot of people have said are earbuds look like hearing aids to me. I'. Afgain if they're just ear buds then yeah i know he might just be your atypical nerd but why would the outside actually make him sick which both him and his mom (Honey) say? So final line I think Hyde is asthmatic if not deaf as well.