Leech Seed planted the seed of doubt and was chosen as the most underrated Grass type move! Congrats to u/RU_Gremlin for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 13: what’s the most OVERRATED Electric-type move? Not the worst, but the one that is famous for reasons you don't quite understand!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Rock Polish was quick to polish its reputation and was chosen as the most underrated Rock type move! Congrats to u/LoganW21406 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 7: what’s the most OVERRATED Bug-type move? Not the worst, but the one that is famous for reasons you don't quite understand!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Flower Shield did not find any Grass types around and was chosen as the least quintessential Fairy type move! Congrats to u/NickTheAuti for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 19: what’s the move you’d be least likely to think of when it comes to... moves as a whole? Not the worst, but the one that feels the least important, memorable, or relevant!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Inspired by u/Internal_History59, here's my take on Ash's teams without using any Pokémon he caught, while keeping the same general roles the originals filled. Would love to know what you think of these teams!
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Pikachu -> Eevee
The obvious change, and for a reason — there’s no better replacement for a Pokémon who doesn’t want to evolve. It is a small and agile Pokémon capable of ricocheting around terrain that also learns Quick Attack, ranged attacks (Shadow Ball, Swift), big physical moves (Double-Edge), mobility tools (Dig), and has its own species-specific Z-Move and G-Max form.
Butterfree -> Beedrill
Venomoth was also a candidate, since it could learn a very similar moveset, but Weedle covers the two most important thing Butterfree did in OS: teaching the viewer (and Ash) about evolution; and that dumb-ass Metapod fight. For sure not the greatest replacement ever, but it’s the only viable candidate.
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Pidgeot -> Fearow
Look, the only relevant thing about Pidgeot is that it was Ash’s flier, so I feel comfortable giving it a new coat of paint by giving the team a Spearow: one from the very flock that once attacked Ash. It starts despising Ash, of course, creating an early recurring tension, but ultimately becomes into the typical aerial scout. It all leads to an encounter with another violent Fearow threatening a colony of smaller birds, choosing to defend them because Ash taught it that strength doesn’t exist merely to dominate weaker Pokémon — that’s when it stays behind as their guardian. As a battler, it’s faster and more aggressive than Pidgeot and would be great at aerial feints and diving attacks, to give some life to those weak-ass OS gym battles.
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Bulbasaur -> Tangela
There’s a big problem replacing Bulbasaur: it’s got to be a Pokemon capable of evolution, but threatening enough to look like it could be a protector of anything. Bellsprout is too wacky, Oddish is too weak, Exeggcute just does not work… and that’s it for Grass types in Kanto. So I’m sadly forced to get rid of the evolution plot and give Ash a Tangela, a Pokémon I think works best as a companion ‘mon, but I digress. Tangela’s vines recreate a huge portion of Bulbasaur’s battle strats; and could even return in Sinnoh if you want to showcase cross-gen evos.
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Charizard -> Poliwrath
Forgive the sudden type changes, but Charizard is a character arc. At first abandoned, remains sweet and loyal, then evolves and becomes increasingly difficult and prideful; leading to a training arc and yadda yadda, we know the drill. Out of all the available Fire-type mons, the one that works best is Arcanine. It does look like an ace, which works as contrast to the rest of the team.
It’s not a perfect replacement because Charizard is also a flier and so the circumstances behind its evolution would have to be tweaked, plus its battle utility cannot be replicated; but alas, it is what it is. Tad would of course own an Electabuzz and not a Poliwrath, and I guess the Charicific Valley would be replaced for a martial-arts training facility, perhaps linking back to the P1.
The biggest problem to address is Misty’s Poliwag, but I think that would add to the comedy (lil’ Poliwag versus battle-scarred Poliwrath), and Poliwag eventually evolves to the massively different Politoed regardless, so…, I don’t think it’s the biggest deal.
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Squirtle -> Growlithe
Okay so, Squirtle’s whole thing is that he once led a mischievous squad, and eventually returns with them to lead them as they perform a social function.
Like, c’mon: that’s Growlithe in a nutshell. The episode would subvert expectations by making Jenny-linked Growlithe be mischievous, then they are all hired by the police as Growlithe leaves with Ash. Instead of sunglasses, maybe he could wear a red bandanna or something.
I know it causes an overlap with James’ Growlie, but there’s only so much I can do, okay? There’s not many Fire types, maybe James could have a Ponyta instead?, I guess it works.
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Kingler -> Electrode
Minuscule and disappointing at first, evolves in the league to become ferociously incredible, and matters little after that. We can find something that fits for sure.
And since we no longer have to honor the “no Electric types” rule, Electrode works amazingly well. The “hey, a Poké Ball!” scene previous to the capture would be hilarious in my books. Oak would periodically mention Voltorb has blown something up, then Ash brings him into the League, and its speed and unpredictability would grant him the wins.
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Primeape -> Dodrio
A volatile athlete that can be showcased as angry, physical and incredibly energetic. Don’t need to be too concerned with the specific battle mechanics since it will leave for specialized training and never return (I miss you, Primeape).
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Muk -> Lickitung
An absurdly affectionate creature that smothers Ash and Oak and feels fundamentally different to anything in the team?, gimme Lickitung. Before being caught, it steals food and wraps people up with its tongue. Now with Oak, every call to the guy ends with him being dragged offscreen by a giant tongue.
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The thirty Tauros -> thirty Rhyhorns
The only quadrupedal Pokémon I believe in this context. The joke survives because they are a stampeding species by nature, and don’t need to be too characterized (opposite to say, Gravelers). If you want one of them to shine specially (famous Tauros Number X that Ash brings every now and then), you can perhaps have him evolve?, but idk, Rhydon doesn’t work quite as well.
Lapras -> Mantine
Lapras is the Surf Pokémon, and I honestly can’t think of anything better than a Mantine to replace that. Not much else to add.
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Snorlax -> Ursaring
Please trust me on this one. I have to allow myself some early-revealed ‘mons. There’s no proper replacement for what Snorlax actually entails, but I can imagine a laid-back Ursaring to be funny enough to work.
Believe me I’ve analyzed all the Kantonian alternatives and none quite make it for me.
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OMG this took so long, will share the others as I do them.
By popular demand..., let's see if this gets traction and, if it does, I'll keep it up!
Day 1: what’s the Normal-type move you’d be least likely to think of when it comes to Normal-type moves? Not the worst, but the one that feels the least important, memorable, or relevant to the type.
Most upvoted comment wins!
Tackle's 35-50BP were more than enough to surpass any and all competitors, and was chosen as the quintessential Pokémon move! Congrats to u/Green_Boot_136 for having the most upvoted comment!
The first image attached is the final grid, while the second image is the final ranking with every redditor that won more than one day in the competition. Congrats to u/Fit_Use9941 and u/freteccion for their shared first place, and huge props to u/Training_Pirate1000, u/AltraSP, u/DudefromSC234, u/LoganW21406, u/thatboarder_guy, u/cricket_chef29, u/ANCEST0R, u/rainy_pines, u/inreallife12001, u/Confident-Ad-7888 and u/sisdom-weeker for making it into our podium!
And that's the end of the series, everybody! Thanks for tagging along these two and a half months, hope y'all had fun with it!
Annihilape is replacing Brute Bonnet as the Gen IX Pokémon that most feels like a Gen IV Pokémon! Congrats to u/NightKeo0 for having the most upvoted comment!
The first image attached is the final grid, while the second image is the final ranking with every redditor that won more than one day in the competition. Congrats to u/NightKeo0 for quite the sweep, and huge props to u/ChiefRudd, u/Training_Pirate_1000, u/Hoockus_Pocus and u/Leather_Crazy_5950 for making it into our podium.
And that's the end of the series, everybody! Thanks for tagging along these >80 days, hope y'all had fun with it!
Tackle knocked the competition down and was chosen as the quintessential Physical type move! Congrats to u/Yet2638273 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 74: Out of the 18 nominees, which is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Special moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Moonblast was the star of the show and was chosen as the quintessential Fairy type move! Congrats to u/LoganW21406 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 73: Out of the 18 nominees, which is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Physical moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
I get Ursaluna Bloodmoon "used to live in the Hisui region a long time ago", but it can only be found on Kitakami — would you really count it as Hisuian then?
It's like saying that, whenever an Indian region is released, Copperajah should count as being from there too. idk.
Draco Meteor spared no Special Attack to be chosen as the quintessential Dragon type move! Congrats to u/150andmore2c for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 71: Bite, Dark Pulse, or Taunt? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Dark type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Ice Beam was never on thin ice, and was chosen as the quintessential Ice type move! Congrats to u/freteccion for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 70: Dragon Claw, Draco Meteor, or Dragon Dance? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Dragon type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Razor Leaf landed a critical hit and was chosen as the quintessential Grass type move! Congrats to u/Facetious-49 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 67: Volt Tackle, Thunderbolt, or Thunder Wave? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Electric type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Surf drowns any shadow of doubt and has been chosen as the quintessential Water type move! Congrats to u/cricket_chef29 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 66: Razor Leaf, Solar Beam, or Leech Seed? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Water type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
>Goal: to stay true to the base Pokémon's identity as much as possible while giving them realistic-where-possible changes. Other buffs, including moveset additions, are not mentioned unless very specific.
The more the merrier. Dugtrio is a fast one to get through: it’s supposed to be this blazing fast physical attacker, and that’s what it’s going to be. You cannot give defenses to a being with 35 base HP, so might as well go all in.
Anyway, TL;DR: you’re not escaping Dugtrio. It’s landing a hit no matter what, that’s its goal. Unless, you know, it’s hit by any sort of priority move. You know how it is. For that purpose, it’s preserving Arena Trap. Once in front of it, there’s little you can do other than pray. Might be going overboard, this is a Dugtrio after all.
Dugtrio’s Alolan counterpart will be getting a different treatment despite the fact the base forms are so, so similar. Main reason being each Pokémon must find a reason why to exist. Not saying it’s an easy task.
So Alolan Dugtrio has a bit more Defense, is a tad slower, and gets the signature ability Tangling Hair, which is its main feature and we obviously want to preserve if possible. So maybe Kantonian Dugtrio is an immediate trap-and-kill ‘mon, while Alolan Dugtrio becomes a more passive wait-to-catch-prey-then-attack sort of being.
That translates to a seemingly unnatural stat distribution that focuses on its defenses, neglecting its Speed (as, once Tangling Hair affects the foe, Mega Alolan Dugtrio will be likely to outspeed it regardless).
But, as we discussed earlier, there’s no way a 35 Base HP ‘mon works defensively, right? Well, sure! But it’s what I’ve got, man, what do you want me to tell you.
In sum, Mega Alolan Dugtrio is our third Ground&Steel mega: a Defense higher than Excadrill’s but lower than Sandslash’s, a higher Special Defense, an Attack slightly below Sandslash’s, and a Speed a few points behind Excadrill’s. Not amazing by any means, but there’s only so much one can do for this guy.
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Would love to know what you think of these!
Iron Defense shielded itself from opposition and was chosen as the quintessential Steel type move! Congrats to u/sisdom-weeker for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 64: Flare Blitz, Flamethrower, or Will-o-Wisp? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Steel type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Brute Bonnet won for the Gen IX Pokémon that most feels like a Gen IV Pokémon! Congrats to u/JustConsoleLogIt for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 70: which Gen 1 Pokémon's design looks like they are from Gen 7?
IMPORTANT: When suggesting a Pokémon, you MUST also mention why their DESIGN makes you think of another gen. No need for a long paragraph, just a short reason why (shape, color palette, design influences, resemblances..., literally whatever). A comment without a proper design reason will NOT be considered. No repeats allowed!
Most upvoted (valid) comment wins!
Rock Slide made the competition flinch and was chosen as the quintessential Rock type move! Congrats to u/AltraSP for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 61: U-Turn, Bug Buzz, or String Shot? Which out of these 3 is the move that comes to mind when it comes to Ground type moves? Not the best, but the most important / memorable one to the best of your knowledge!
Most upvoted comment wins!
Salamence won for the Gen III Pokémon that most feels like a Gen VIII Pokémon! Congrats to u/NightKeo0 for having the most upvoted comment!
Day 67: which Gen 8 Pokémon's design looks like they are from Gen 3?
IMPORTANT: When suggesting a Pokémon, you MUST also mention why their DESIGN makes you think of another gen. No need for a long paragraph, just a short reason why (shape, color palette, design influences, resemblances..., literally whatever). A comment without a proper design reason will NOT be considered. No repeats allowed!
Most upvoted (valid) comment wins!
>Goal: to stay true to the base Pokémon's identity as much as possible while giving them realistic-where-possible changes. Other buffs, including moveset additions, are not mentioned unless very specific.
I’ll admit I forgot I had to work out this fella too.
Parasect is infamous for sporting one of the worst type combos ever, alongside a stat spread that feels like a joke. A very slow, Trick Room prone Physical attacker, sure, but is it any of that, really? IS IT?
So yeah, this very much deserves a bump to its Attack so it can, once and for all, do something. Its defense stats are not awful, all things considered?, so I guess the investment that doesn’t go to the Attack can go there for a change, but its 60HP are gonna make the defense kind of hard to pull off, since the investment won’t be in any case huge.
As for other major changes, I feel like Parasect’s natural next stage is just straight up admitting death, and thus adopting Ghost type alongside the original Grass — the bug is officially just a carcass now, and so what’s left of it is the Ghost of it, not the bug itself.
The ghost type also removes many weaknesses Parasect has and makes it possible for us to try and use those somewhat decent defensive stats? I do understand Parasect gets no Ghost type moves at all, so I’d give it the likes of Shadow Claw and Poltergeist to make it work for real.
Last but not least, the ability! I don’t know just how popular the decision might be, but this to me screams Perish Body. Just, you know — the parasite is looking for someone new to infect?, so it will leave Parasect’s body and infect the foe — thus, both faint. And you will say: well, that seems like throwing Parasect under a motherfucking bus!, but AGAIN, it’s WAY too good of a concept to scrap just because the gameplay isn’t 100% compliant.
I’ll admit I’m somewhat afraid this doesn’t solve any of the existing issues with Parasect, but how much better can you make this? It’s not bulky, it’s not the strongest ‘mon in the world, but it’s Parasect!, what else could you ask for?
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Would love to know what you think of it!