Top 50 Pokémon: Rainbow Rocket blasts off again!

[Torzelbaum]

I had Squirtle at #10 but that vote really was mostly for this guy:

 

[Falselogic]

Squirtle Squad!

 

[Adrenaline]

He's a little turtle guy.

 

[Kirin]

12th
#130 Gyarados
Atrocious Pokémon
Water / Flying
First Discovered: Kanto Region (Gen I, Red/Blue/Green)
Score: 108 - Votes: 5 - Highest vote: 8th (JBear, Beta Metroid)​

A tale is told of a town that angered Gyarados. Before the sun rose the next day, flames utterly consumed the town, leaving not a trace behind.

Gyarados has been a fan favorite since the very beginning due to its power and accessibility – you can catch a Magikarp just about anywhere, after all. It has a fantastic stat distribution, great abilities in Intimidate and Moxie, and everyone’s favorite setup move, Dragon Dance. The last several generations have been less kind to Gyarados, since newer and better physical moves have been introduced to Water and Flying that Gyarados can’t use. Liquidation, Fishious Rend, and Acrobatics would be game-changers for the sea monster, but aside from the Grass-type Power Whip, it hasn’t received a new move since gen 3: it’s stuck with Waterfall and Bounce. In fact, Hurricane is the only other Flying-type move Gyarados can learn. Its shallow movepool has not prevented it from being one of the most popular Pokémon in the ’dex.

Well here’s what you get for your 400 Magikarp candies. Gyarados was a powerhouse in the early days, and continues to be quite usable even now. (Waterfall is a high-power fast move in GO, and it can also go Dark with Bite/Crunch or Dragon with DragonBreath/Outrage if needed.) The Mega form we got recently has given it another niche with the addition of Dark typing for STAB.

Useful but not as cute as Magicarp

Everybody loves an underdog story, and this underdog turns into a big scary flying water dragon who can learn a bunch of TMs. He was on my end-game team in the original game.

 

[Falselogic]

Gyarados would be the perfect pokemon if you just flailed around a little bit when he attacked. Another member of my final team in the original game.

 

[Beta Metroid]

One of Pokemon's coolest concepts. Wild that they adamantly refuse to give it Dragon typing, even in Mega form.

 

[Mogri]

Also that they adamantly refuse to give it Flying moves. It learns six Dragon-type attacks along with Dragon Dance, though!

But a Water/Dragon Gyarados would be truly terrifying, so perhaps it's for the best.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

WHERE DID MY MAGIKARP GO?! WHERE'S MY DUMB FISH BOI?!

 

[Mogri]

11th
#094 Gengar
Shadow Pokémon
Ghost / Poison
First Discovered: Kanto Region (Gen I, Red/Blue/Green)
Score: 109 - Votes: 5 - Highest vote: 1st (Kirin)​

Should you feel yourself attacked by a sudden chill, it is evidence of an approaching Gengar. There is no escaping it. Give up.

Did you know: a popular theory states that Gengar is Clefairy’s shadow. There’s no scientific evidence to support this, but the resemblance is striking.

I always thought Clefairy were a little freaky.

Gengar has enjoyed consistent popularity in the competitive scene from the very beginning. Pre-Alolan Gengar were blessed with the Levitate ability, but more recently, Gengar have been found to possess the relatively niche Cursed Body ability. All Gengar have incredible Speed and Sp. Attack, so even in doubles formats that tend to favor bulkier attackers, Gengar finds a place due to its high likelihood of knocking out an opponent before it goes down. Since Gengar often packs Focus Sash, it requires the attention of two enemies to take down reliably.

Another useful classic from Gen 1, Gengar has always been a go-to for glass cannon Ghost type damage, though the Poison sub-type can be a liability against Psychics and these days Chandelure gives it a run for its money. It also has a very cool and useful Mega form now, plus it’s gotten a few cool costumes for Halloween like Banette zippers and a swank witch hat.

Scary ghosts are cute.

The bestest Halloween mans

 

[Falselogic]

Gengar seems like they'd be fun.

 

[Torzelbaum]

Gengar seems like they'd be fun.

But also like they could cause you to get arrested.

 

[Falselogic]

That's the best kind of fun!

 

[Torzelbaum]

Note to self: Don't join False when they say they're going out to have fun.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

I like the ghost Pokémon and this one has a big, plump huggable body. He didn't make my list and now I kinda regret it. Clearly didn't need my vote but still.

 

[Mogri]

Oh my. It’s Ghetsis Harmonia Gropius, leader of Team Plasma.

“Gropius”?

Yes. It’s an unfortunate name.

No kidding. It’s just his name, though, right?

Ah… as far as I’m aware, that’s correct.

There are some evils that Rainbow Rocket won’t stoop to, after all.

10th
#399 Bidoof
Plump Mouse Pokémon
Normal
First Discovered: Sinnoh Region (Gen IV, Diamond/Pearl)
Score: 110 - Votes: 4 - Highest vote: 1st (JBear)​

Bidoof has an unsophisticated face and is rarely flustered by anything. There have been incidents involving Bidoof sauntering into villages and gnawing on the houses without a single care.

He brought a Bidoof? Really?

Bidoof is an unassuming sort of Pokémon. You’d be forgiven for overlooking its strength. In the hands of a strong trainer, however, Bidoof is a true terror, a destroyer of worlds.

I know better than to diss the ’doof.

Oh hello, little meme boy! As a normal-type un-evolved rodent, Bidoof wouldn’t normally stand out much in GO, but it has such a reputation on the internets that it got its very own April Fools event, which its usual set of low-power Normal moves got supplemented with the likes of Superpower, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, and Shadow Ball. Armed with its new toys it took part in a special all-Bidoof only-Bidoof battle league cup. That sure was a thing.

Just pinch those cheeks!

Nothing sparks joy for me like a Bidoof. I could look at Bidoof all day. When I started playing the new Pokemon Snap, it was just endless pictures of Bidoof.

 

[Torzelbaum]

Bidoof is an unassuming sort of Pokémon. You’d be forgiven for overlooking its strength. In the hands of a strong trainer, however, Bidoof is a true terror, a destroyer of worlds.

So are you saying that this is actually true?

Perfectly Ultimate Great Bidoof

 

[JBear]

*phew*
The higher that we were getting, the more I was worried that my very good boy wasn't going to place.

Just... look at him. The literal perfect Pokemon. I wuv him.

 

[Falselogic]

A fantastic 'doof. perfect. No notes.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

That's adorable but a little upsetting when my brain decided to compare it to The Woman in the Radiator from Eraserhead.

 

[Mogri]

9th
#039 Jigglypuff
Balloon Pokémon
Normal / Fairy
First Discovered: Kanto Region (Gen I, Red/Blue/Green)
Score: 124 - Votes: 4 - Highest vote: 1st (RT-55J)​

When this Pokémon sings, it never pauses to breathe. If it is in a battle against an opponent that does not easily fall asleep, Jigglypuff cannot breathe, endangering its life.

He brought a Jigglypuff? Really?

Admittedly, this is a more puzzling inclusion. Perhaps Ghetsis is confident that Bidoof will carry the team.

Ghetsis is… unpredictable. This makes him hard to get a hold of, so he received the details for this event later than everyone else. I’m unsure if this is a result of lack of time or if it’s just Ghetsis being, you know, unpredictable.

Jigglypuff actually has incredible amounts of HP, but its rock-bottom defenses leave it fairly frail. With the right training, Jigglypuff could serve as a decent support option.

If you wanted to run Jiggly in GO… well, you’d usually evolve it to Wiggly and use it as a decent Charmer (Charm being just a high-damage Fairy fast move in our world). I hear the ol’ ‘puff sings a mean Karaoke battle, though.

A jigglypuff was one of my main 6 in the original Pokemon that I took all the way to end-game, and he was the one I loaded up with all of my most powerful TMs. I later evolved him into Wigglytuff, but that guy's ugly, so I'm voting for his cute form. Also, I remember him being a pretty good recurring agent of chaos in the cartoon, and he's fun to play in Smash.

 

[Mogri]

Hello Poké-fans! We will take a short break for the rest of the week, since we are Americans doing our American thing this week. Thank you for your continued interest as we enter the home stretch.

 

[RT-55J]

JIGGLYPUFF!
JIGGLYPUFF!!!
JIGGLYPUFF!!!!!​

 

[Johnny Unusual]

JIGGLYPUFF!
JIGGLYPUFF!!!
JIGGLYPUFF!!!!!​

 

[Kirin]

8th
#158 Totodile
Big Jaw Pokémon
Water
First Discovered: Johto Region (Gen II, Gold/Silver)
Score: 131 - Votes: 5 - Highest vote: 1st (Daikaiju)​

Despite the smallness of its body, Totodile's jaws are very powerful. While the Pokémon may think it is just playfully nipping, its bite has enough power to cause serious injury.

Well, this is another “unpredictable” pick from Ghetsis.

You’ve never seen one of these clamp down on something! One time, a Totodile liked the look of Jessie’s hair, and we nearly got away stealing it just because we couldn’t get it to let go. You get this guy to bite one of the enemy Pokémon, it’s on there for good. Probably even knocking it out won’t get it off!

That’s certainly imaginative. I’m not sure it will even get the chance against the likes of Decidueye or Gyarados.

Perhaps Ghetsis is hard-countering Lysandre’s Ditto by ensuring it has no strong targets to copy.

Totodile is… maybe okay in a Little Cup? It’s a good bitey boy anyway.

 

[Mogri]

8th
#778 Mimikyu
Disguise Pokémon
Ghost / Fairy
First Discovered: Alola Region (Gen VII, Sun/Moon)
Score: 140 - Votes: 5 - Highest vote: 4th (pudik)​

Its actual appearance is unknown. A scholar who saw what was under its rag was overwhelmed by terror and died from the shock.

Mimikyu is a terrifying opponent. It has low HP and Sp. Attack, but the rest of its stats are quite good, and its Disguise ability ensures that it can take at least one hit, no matter how powerful.

I fear no man. But that thing… it scares me.

Perennially missing Kecleon aside, Mimikyu is probably one of the most anticipated ‘mons we haven’t yet discovered in GO. Its typing is fun, though its actual utility will of course depend totally on what move-set it eventually gets. Also it’s adori-terrifying.

Terrifying ghosts just wants to be loved.

 

[pudik]

legend

 

[Falselogic]

I bet they're a real cutie. Just give them the hugs they need!

 

[RT-55J]

(A couple days late for this) I'm not much of a "merch" collector, per se, but I make an exception for Jigglypuff:

(might not be much compared to others, but for me this is a lot)

In Violet I ended up evolving her to a Wigglytuff for pragmatic reasons, but in my heart she is stuff The Puff.

(I will say that Wigglytuff isn't a bad Pokemon by any means. I mean, I kinda dig the fact that she somehow has an even more chaotic aura about her, but imo I just prefer the elemental purity of a perfectly round, squishable sphere (also smash bros))

 

[Mogri]

7th
#143 Snorlax
Sleeping Pokémon
Normal
First Discovered: Kanto (Gen I, Red/Blue/Green)
Score: 143 - Votes: 5 - Highest vote: 2nd (Johnny Unusual)​

It is not satisfied unless it eats over 880 pounds of food every day. When it is done eating, it goes promptly to sleep.

Snorlax is a competitive staple thanks to its great Attack and incredible HP and Sp. Defense. Its popularity peaked in Alola’s 2017 tournament, where trainers used Snorlax’s Gluttony ability combined with Recycle to restore half its health each round. In case you were thinking of ignoring Snorlax and focusing down its partners, you should know that about half of 2017’s Snorlax carried Belly Drum, quickly turning it into the biggest threat on the field. A Snorlax who used Belly Drum would immediately return to full health thanks to its berry. More recent formats have not favored Snorlax as strongly, largely because the metagame has shifted back to physical attackers, but the big guy will always be waiting in the wings for the day that changes.

One time, we tried to steal a Snorlax by strapping it to our hot-air balloon.

Snorlax weigh half a ton…

Yeah, it went about as well as you’d expect.

Snorlax was *the* gym defense staple back in Gen 1 days, before Blissey stole its crown. Gym defense isn’t really as much of a thing these days, but the big ‘lax still has good use in PvP with the very fast Lick and spammy Body Slam. Also can be a little scary when used by GO Rockets if you’re not prepared for it.

Me too buddy, me too.

What an amazing, sleepy doofus. I love this guy.

 

[Falselogic]

Snorlax was in my final team for my first play through of Blue. Just a fantastic Thicc Boy.