That's Celebi in the top middle, by the way. Looking like a desiccated corpse.
I'll wait for people to unpack everything and create some appropriate artwork, but I definitely intend to take a look at these peeps, too!
Saturday, April 25, 2020
MORE Betamons
So apparently they found ANOTHER early build of Gold/Silver, with even more Betamon designs! Some completely original ones, some early versions of existing ones, and some earlier versions of beta designs that ended up being cut anyway!
That's Celebi in the top middle, by the way. Looking like a desiccated corpse.
I'll wait for people to unpack everything and create some appropriate artwork, but I definitely intend to take a look at these peeps, too!
That's Celebi in the top middle, by the way. Looking like a desiccated corpse.
I'll wait for people to unpack everything and create some appropriate artwork, but I definitely intend to take a look at these peeps, too!
No. 836: Boltund
Remember that Bolt movie from Disney? me neither
Unfortunately, Boltund doesn't manage to look badass enough to be truly "cool", or remain cute enough to work that way, either. It's got a doofy look on its face, and doesn't even resemble any specific breed anymore. It's just a generic dog, but with a crazy-go-nuts coloration pattern.
I think it's especially weird that the spots around its eyes now have hard lines, instead of the soft fade of Yamper.
Overall: 4/10
Unfortunately, Boltund doesn't manage to look badass enough to be truly "cool", or remain cute enough to work that way, either. It's got a doofy look on its face, and doesn't even resemble any specific breed anymore. It's just a generic dog, but with a crazy-go-nuts coloration pattern.
I think it's especially weird that the spots around its eyes now have hard lines, instead of the soft fade of Yamper.
Overall: 4/10
Friday, April 24, 2020
No. 835: Yamper
from the people who brought you Wocket in my Pocket comes Yamper in my Camper
another cutie! Corgis were a meme dog for a while, (though not as much as the legendary doge) but I'm not gonna take points away for that. While Electrike fills the same niche and aimed to be a generic weirdo dog-thing, Yamper tries to resemble a specific breed and does so pretty well. I like how its ruff sparks out when it attacks, too.
Not the goodest boy ever, but still a good boy.
Overall: 7/10
another cutie! Corgis were a meme dog for a while, (though not as much as the legendary doge) but I'm not gonna take points away for that. While Electrike fills the same niche and aimed to be a generic weirdo dog-thing, Yamper tries to resemble a specific breed and does so pretty well. I like how its ruff sparks out when it attacks, too.
Not the goodest boy ever, but still a good boy.
Overall: 7/10
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
No. 834: Drednaw
Friend of All Children!
Drednaw almost gets it. It's so damn close. I love its shell and horn, they look rugged with bumpy linework that we hardly ever see these days. The overall shape is solid, it has potential for the classic Venusaur or Rhyhorn energy of just being a big fat bastard who stomps his way through anything. And even the name is boss - DREDNAW
and yet... and yet............ that face. Ok, the mouth is cool, and the cheeks are fine even! It's really just the eyes. Now tell me, what the hell kind of shape is that for an eyeball? If it was just flattened off, or a smooth slope, or better yet that classic triangular eye, we'd be all set. But instead, it's a baffling "5/8ths of a pizza" shape. And then the arbitrary line that doesn't have any definition so it can't represent a fold or a contour, it's just a holdover unibrow line that gets broken by the horn so it's not even a unibrow anymore. It's pointless and distracting.
I don't often do this, because my job is to critique, not fix. But in this case the fix is SO simple and goes SO far, I can't resist.
Overall: 5/10 (would be a 9/10 with the fix)
Drednaw almost gets it. It's so damn close. I love its shell and horn, they look rugged with bumpy linework that we hardly ever see these days. The overall shape is solid, it has potential for the classic Venusaur or Rhyhorn energy of just being a big fat bastard who stomps his way through anything. And even the name is boss - DREDNAW
and yet... and yet............ that face. Ok, the mouth is cool, and the cheeks are fine even! It's really just the eyes. Now tell me, what the hell kind of shape is that for an eyeball? If it was just flattened off, or a smooth slope, or better yet that classic triangular eye, we'd be all set. But instead, it's a baffling "5/8ths of a pizza" shape. And then the arbitrary line that doesn't have any definition so it can't represent a fold or a contour, it's just a holdover unibrow line that gets broken by the horn so it's not even a unibrow anymore. It's pointless and distracting.
I don't often do this, because my job is to critique, not fix. But in this case the fix is SO simple and goes SO far, I can't resist.
Overall: 5/10 (would be a 9/10 with the fix)
Monday, April 13, 2020
No. 833: Chewtle
what is it with this generation and improbably large heads
When I first saw this guy I had to do a double-take. Is his head really that big? Or is it just a perspective thing, maybe he's got a long neck and his head is reaching out far. But no, that is just a huge noggin.
And I hate it. Chewtle can't even retract its head into its shell, the #1 calling card ability of all turtles. Its body is so small, I can't believe it wouldn't topple over immediately under the weight of its own oversized dome. The unibrow isn't doing him any favors, either. Dude looks like a grade-A dunce.
As is becoming a refrain - we've seen turtles before. Many times, in fact. Does the 8th gen spin offer anything new? In this case, it only offers us shit.
Overall: 1/10
When I first saw this guy I had to do a double-take. Is his head really that big? Or is it just a perspective thing, maybe he's got a long neck and his head is reaching out far. But no, that is just a huge noggin.
And I hate it. Chewtle can't even retract its head into its shell, the #1 calling card ability of all turtles. Its body is so small, I can't believe it wouldn't topple over immediately under the weight of its own oversized dome. The unibrow isn't doing him any favors, either. Dude looks like a grade-A dunce.
As is becoming a refrain - we've seen turtles before. Many times, in fact. Does the 8th gen spin offer anything new? In this case, it only offers us shit.
Overall: 1/10
Thursday, April 9, 2020
No. 832: Dubwool
Dubwool, dubwool toil and troubwool; fire burn, and cauldron bubwool
Somewhat disappointingly, after Wooloo was a wonderful little sheep, Dubwool is just a bigger sheep that lost all the charm. I don't like that its horns are obscured by its neck fur, they look like extra random spikes coming out of its armpits like Mamoswine's tusks. and I associate that color pattern with cows, not sheep.
see, I know I shouldn't be putting my own expectations ahead of reality here, but I kinda hoped it would evolve into a Steel Wool type Pokemon, y'know? Although the regional bird is already Steel, so maybe that would've been overkill.
Overall: 5/10
Somewhat disappointingly, after Wooloo was a wonderful little sheep, Dubwool is just a bigger sheep that lost all the charm. I don't like that its horns are obscured by its neck fur, they look like extra random spikes coming out of its armpits like Mamoswine's tusks. and I associate that color pattern with cows, not sheep.
see, I know I shouldn't be putting my own expectations ahead of reality here, but I kinda hoped it would evolve into a Steel Wool type Pokemon, y'know? Although the regional bird is already Steel, so maybe that would've been overkill.
Overall: 5/10
Wednesday, April 8, 2020
No. 831: Wooloo
Ducktales!
WOOLOO IS CUTE! CUTE!!!
Whew, sorry, had to get that out of my system. There's not much establishing Wooloo as anything other than a normal cartoon sheep, I'll admit. As opposed to Mareep, which established itself as being Electric-type by being blue and having a crystal ball on the end of its tail. But Wooloo is simply a Normal type, so it doesn't really have to do much of anything besides roll around and look cute.
And brother, lemme tell you, it does both of those things very well. Sometimes, round and cute is all you need.
Come to think of it, between Wooloo and Eldegoss, that's a one-two punch of comfy critters. Galar has access to both the highest-quality cotton and wool, so that explains their plentiful clothing options. If only they had native silk production.
Overall: 10/10
WOOLOO IS CUTE! CUTE!!!
Whew, sorry, had to get that out of my system. There's not much establishing Wooloo as anything other than a normal cartoon sheep, I'll admit. As opposed to Mareep, which established itself as being Electric-type by being blue and having a crystal ball on the end of its tail. But Wooloo is simply a Normal type, so it doesn't really have to do much of anything besides roll around and look cute.
And brother, lemme tell you, it does both of those things very well. Sometimes, round and cute is all you need.
Come to think of it, between Wooloo and Eldegoss, that's a one-two punch of comfy critters. Galar has access to both the highest-quality cotton and wool, so that explains their plentiful clothing options. If only they had native silk production.
Overall: 10/10
Sunday, April 5, 2020
No. 830: Eldegoss
the question is, will Eldegoss shrink in the wash?
Whimsicott was not enough, we have to take another stab at this cotton thing, and surprisingly I'm here for it. I gotta say that I love the way Eldegoss's cotton is drawn, with the soft coloring and broken lines. It has a very sketchy feeling to it, one we haven't seen in Pokemon drawings in a long time.
It looks like Roselia mixed with Swadloon, with of course that huge cotton ball on its head. Nothing related to its previous form, which I approve of, because that one sucked. But I like how it looks like it's got a big brain, or gigantic hairdo. I know cotton is light, which is why the design doesn't feel unbalanced. And its eyes slightly resemble the seeds, which is a neat touch.
Overall: 6/10
Whimsicott was not enough, we have to take another stab at this cotton thing, and surprisingly I'm here for it. I gotta say that I love the way Eldegoss's cotton is drawn, with the soft coloring and broken lines. It has a very sketchy feeling to it, one we haven't seen in Pokemon drawings in a long time.
It looks like Roselia mixed with Swadloon, with of course that huge cotton ball on its head. Nothing related to its previous form, which I approve of, because that one sucked. But I like how it looks like it's got a big brain, or gigantic hairdo. I know cotton is light, which is why the design doesn't feel unbalanced. And its eyes slightly resemble the seeds, which is a neat touch.
Overall: 6/10
Saturday, April 4, 2020
No. 829: Gossifleur
Remember that one Looney Toon named Gossamer? What the hell was that about, anyway?
So when Gossifleur was first revealed, I thought it was some sort of pepper. The red, green, and yellow. The curved shapes. The fact that everyone and their mother has been imagining a Grass/Fire hot pepper Pokemon for decades now.
And instead, as you'll see tomorrow, it's related to the cotton plant. I don't care enough to look up what a baby cotton plant looks like, but if it looks like a peck of pickled peppers I'll go berserk. I hate this.
Overall: 2/10
So when Gossifleur was first revealed, I thought it was some sort of pepper. The red, green, and yellow. The curved shapes. The fact that everyone and their mother has been imagining a Grass/Fire hot pepper Pokemon for decades now.
And instead, as you'll see tomorrow, it's related to the cotton plant. I don't care enough to look up what a baby cotton plant looks like, but if it looks like a peck of pickled peppers I'll go berserk. I hate this.
Overall: 2/10
Thursday, April 2, 2020
No. 828: Thievul
Swiper, no swiping!
Again, there's nothing overtly wrong with Thievul. The tail-as-a-bag gimmick is gone, but we have a full-on mask and mustache instead. And at the end of the day, it's just a fancy fox.
I wish it had a bigger mustache, though. Give me man something to really twirl, a full Salvador Dali or Snidely Whiplash. but again, I can't hate.
Overall: 5/10
Again, there's nothing overtly wrong with Thievul. The tail-as-a-bag gimmick is gone, but we have a full-on mask and mustache instead. And at the end of the day, it's just a fancy fox.
I wish it had a bigger mustache, though. Give me man something to really twirl, a full Salvador Dali or Snidely Whiplash. but again, I can't hate.
Overall: 5/10
Wednesday, April 1, 2020
No. 827: Nickit
Let's be honest, at this point the most surprising thing this blog could do is to begin posting regularly. Happy April Fools.
We've done foxes before with Vulpix and Zorua, so is this a well worth plumbing a third time? Well, aside from having the proportions common to modern starters, Nickit is fine. It's just a fox, whose tail kinda looks like a big sack of loot. Not trying to rock the boat.
I like the facial markings, and how much personality it's showing. That's about as much as I can say, "sly fox thief" is like easy mode when it comes to mashing up themes.
Overall: 10/10
okay, okay. I'm kidding. Had to get at least one in there!
Overall: 5/10
We've done foxes before with Vulpix and Zorua, so is this a well worth plumbing a third time? Well, aside from having the proportions common to modern starters, Nickit is fine. It's just a fox, whose tail kinda looks like a big sack of loot. Not trying to rock the boat.
I like the facial markings, and how much personality it's showing. That's about as much as I can say, "sly fox thief" is like easy mode when it comes to mashing up themes.
Overall: 10/10
okay, okay. I'm kidding. Had to get at least one in there!
Overall: 5/10
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