PokéCommunity Daily: Harambe Joining The Pokémon Franchise?

[Nakuzami]

I had a long response, and then my phone decided to erase it all, so this will be my less patient version of what I originally wrote.

Not sure how off-topic this is, but I do want to ask why Harambe is an especially amazing animal and why we should honour how he lived at all. I am genuinely curious. Am I just heartless in not particularly caring about a gorilla?

No. I would certainly seem just as heartless by saying that I think the lives of most animals have more value than a human life. Which I do. There was nothing special about Harambe, beyond the fact that I would have preferred the gorilla to live and don't believe it should have been shot. Keep a closer eye on your kids if you don't want them to fall into a gorilla enclosure and potentially die. Which, on that note, I think the kid could have been saved without it being necessary to shoot Harambe.

On the topic of the actual fakemon, I think it's ridiculous to even consider adding it to the Pokémon roster. It would be a stupid idea with poorer execution. It's a troll concept in the first place. The fact that people (outside of the ever trolling 4chan) would actually sign the petition lessens my faith in them, of which I already have very little.

I won't say that I don't think Pokémon should be modeled after individual animals, as I could see a Pokémon modeled after Hachiko, for instance, being added, but with a less direct reference than giving it the name "Hachiko." I don't see a Pokémon being modeled after Harambe. What happened to the gorilla was sad, but Harambe was not extraordinary, nor are deaths like this that rare.

 

[Avatar]

I feel like it's important to give the guys behind Pokemon Sage credit, since they're the ones that designed the fakemon that has been passed around as Harambe.

 

[El Héroe Oscuro]

I feel like it's important to give the guys behind Pokemon Sage credit, since they're the ones that designed the fakemon that has been passed around as Harambe.

Thanks for the heads up. When I get some spare time either today or tomorrow, I'll edit the article to include the reference and the inspiration to it.

 

[Bulbadon]

Not sure how off-topic this is, but I do want to ask why Harambe is an especially amazing animal and why we should honour how he lived at all. I am genuinely curious. Am I just heartless in not particularly caring about a gorilla? People die every day and a lot of those people have done a lot more good and lived in much more amazing ways than Harambe. I do not see what is special about Harambe. What did he do that other gorillas haven't, other than (likely unintentionally) put a child in critical danger? Animals die even more often than humans - is this one different because it looks a bit more like us, or am I actually missing something major?

I'm not trying to call you out here, I just think I must be missing something important.

Well I called it amazing because its my personal opinion that it was an amazing animal, other people might think differently and about honoring it imo it was sad the way he was killed, the reason he was killed that made him memorable. The memes did do something. Like yeah he was just a regular gorilla like every other gorilla but he was killed by a person and was caught on camera. People watched the video and everyone had their own opinions. Imo people think Harambe was a great animal because the way he was killed. If Harambe somehow was in the wild, somewhere with no cameras and was shot there Harambe wouldn't been known. Its the video that made him known by everyone and the media.

 

[Pinkie-Dawn]

Well I called it amazing because its my personal opinion that it was an amazing animal, other people might think differently and about honoring it imo it was sad the way he was killed, the reason he was killed that made him memorable. The memes did do something. Like yeah he was just a regular gorilla like every other gorilla but he was killed by a person and was caught on camera. People watched the video and everyone had their own opinions. Imo people think Harambe was a great animal because the way he was killed. If Harambe somehow was in the wild, somewhere with no cameras and was shot there Harambe wouldn't been known. Its the video that made him known by everyone and the media.

Plus people use Harambe unironically to reference the BLM movement (due to stereotypes).

 

[Her]

if god found a way to kill this joke i would turn catholic again in an instant

 

[clbgolden]

Yeah, as others said, it would be wayyyyyyyy too controversial, and wouldn't come true no matter how many signatures this thing gets.

... But at the risk of sounding like an idiot, what the heck does "Meat Shield" mean, and how would it add to the controversialness?

 

[Hikamaru]

Even if this petition did get successful Harambe still won't be a thing because of all the legal issues this would have to go through, and Game Freak are usually very salty when it comes to controversy, such as the Jynx "blackface" scandal and also Uri Geller suing over Kadabra, which got so bitter to the point Kadabra got erased from the TCG and never appeared in the anime since the opening Battle Frontier episode (some even believed it was the reason behind the Everstone glitch that caused a Kadabra holding it to still evolve), likely done so that they don't infuriate Geller again due to how bad the scandal was.

 

[stzy]

Not sure how off-topic this is, but I do want to ask why Harambe is an especially amazing animal and why we should honour how he lived at all. I am genuinely curious. Am I just heartless in not particularly caring about a gorilla? People die every day and a lot of those people have done a lot more good and lived in much more amazing ways than Harambe. I do not see what is special about Harambe. What did he do that other gorillas haven't, other than (likely unintentionally) put a child in critical danger? Animals die even more often than humans - is this one different because it looks a bit more like us, or am I actually missing something major?

I'm not trying to call you out here, I just think I must be missing something important.

Yeah no I agree with you. It's tragic the way he died, but that's about it. I don't think he was necessarily an "honorable figure". If anything, the way this gorilla (who by the way probably shouldn't have been introduced in the article as "protecting the child") died indicates to me at least we need to honor the way animals live and not keep them confined to a 100' x 100' box. I barely see anything about this anywhere now, though, and I'm glad. It was one of those things that made me hate the internet.

 

[Rivvon]

Game Freak thought making a Pokémon based on Dolly the sheep would have been too controversial so this... This definitely wouldn't fly.

But western lowland gorillas are critically endangered. There was a long-running theme of new Pokémon being based on endangered or even extinct species for some time; a similar gorilla Pokémon could be introduced into the franchise. Just... not based on Harambe specifically. Although, dark humor of the Typing and Ability aside, the idea that Harambe "deserves to live on" as a Pokémon is a sweet sentiment.

 

[OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire]

Even if this petition did get successful Harambe still won't be a thing because of all the legal issues this would have to go through, and Game Freak are usually very salty when it comes to controversy, such as the Jynx "blackface" scandal and also Uri Geller suing over Kadabra, which got so bitter to the point Kadabra got erased from the TCG and never appeared in the anime since the opening Battle Frontier episode (some even believed it was the reason behind the Everstone glitch that caused a Kadabra holding it to still evolve), likely done so that they don't infuriate Geller again due to how bad the scandal was.

If the rumors of a fighting type Alolan Kadabra are true, then it'll likely appear in the anime again, as the whole controversy with it involved it's spoon bending with psychic power, which will likely be lost (unless if it's Psychic/Fighting, but I think the rumor meant pure Fighting).

I do want a gorilla Pokemon. The closest we have is actually a giant sloth...

 

[Itcheeee]

I agree the design is really good. But Harambe should not be interjected into the Pokémon world. It would open up a world of pandering to the internet community, and that's beneath Nintendo and Game Freak.

I agree, I really hope they choose to simply ignore it. They have no reason to edit a already made game anyway :/

 

[bobandbill]

I feel like it's important to give the guys behind Pokemon Sage credit, since they're the ones that designed the fakemon that has been passed around as Harambe.

Thanks for the heads up. When I get some spare time either today or tomorrow, I'll edit the article to include the reference and the inspiration to it.

Good pick. Added it in already since I had a bit of time.

 

[Ashs Pika Pal]

Besides the controversy I'm sure they couldn't do it because the game has got to be finished by now. Atleast we still have Slaking. I nicknamed my Slakoth,that I caught last June,Harambe, for the Gorilla that died. So,if you still want to nickname a gorilla Pokemon in honor of Harambe atleast you'll still have Slaking.

 

[Hands]

People need to stop turning this poor animal into a stupid meme.
He shouldn't of been shot, but what else was the Zoo expected to do? It was a tragic mess.

I almost really liked this idea and the artwork, till I saw the ability "Meatshield"

I mean, just let it go. It was kinda funny for a day on facebook when everyone made stupid Harambe memes, but its been 3 months.

 

[PkmnTrainerElio]

To put Harambe in would be just plain stupid. Why don't we ask them to put the tiger that attacked Roy from Siegfried and Roy too?

It would be risky to put Harambe in, especially since Pokémon Sun and Moon are already causing controversy and pissing off SJWs (with Team Skull and their "cultural appropriation").

Even if it was to happen, we'd have to wait til Generation VIII (that's if there ever is one), as it is way too late for them to add more Pokémon to Sun and Moon.

 

[Bigdog]

To put Harambe in would be just plain stupid. Why don't we ask them to put the tiger that attacked Roy from Siegfried and Roy too?

It would be risky to put Harambe in, especially since Pokémon Sun and Moon are already causing controversy and pissing off SJWs (with Team Skull and their "cultural appropriation").

Even if it was to happen, we'd have to wait til Generation VIII (that's if there ever is one), as it is way too late for them to add more Pokémon to Sun and Moon.

Cultural appropriation? Between this and them complaining about Pokemon Go, they have officially became parodies of themselves.

Team Skull looks like a bunch of hipsters and people who went to Hot Topic before it became scene and commercialized. Unless we now have goths complaining about that, then I don't know what culture they are referring to other than goth or emo.

 

[kingdenas]

The game's already finished at this point! Plus, to add a new Pokémon takes a lot of work, from thinking about stats and movesets, to the actual coding. Beyond this, Harambe is a very controversial animal, and I doubt GF would add that Pokémon. It would be so disrespectful for the poor animal, and those stupid jokes (meat shield? Ghost in its typing?) really upset me!

 

[Mis]

Why the hell would you want to add that to the franchise??? Bad idea. Don't do it.

It's ugly too, by the way.

 

[juliorain]

as much as I'd want a ghost/fighting type, this is too political for pokemon. Also "dicks out" does not appeal to the target audience of the franchise... lol