Now reading...
Ice-type Reviews – Generation 1 (Part 1)

Even though Ice-types existed in Generation 1, you don’t normally see them because they are either rare Pokémon or they are only found on evolved Pokémon. It’s not uncommon to hear of people not knowing of the existence of actual Ice-types due to how rare they are. They are also spread rather thinly, only having one member per line (two of the Pokémon here have two members, but the first one are not Ice-types). Without anything else to say, let’s proceed to the Pokémon themselves.

Dewgong

The first Ice-type of Generation 1 is Dewgong, who is the evolved form of Seel. Unlike Dewgong, Seel is not an Ice-type, although it could very well be one, which it is oddly not. Naming is not something they are well-known for; the etymology of their names is quite simple (Dewgong is Dugong with “dew” in it).

Dewgong falls under the category of being an animal that lives in cold places, which, as discussed in the opening, is one of the characteristics of being an Ice-type. Indeed, it is mentioned often in the PokéDex that it prefers cold places. While it is based on a marine animal known as a dugong (of course), dugongs live the lives in the warmer water. However, in Pokémon, Dewgong lives in cold areas, such as the Seafoam Islands. Since there are other pinnipeds living in cold places, such as seals that live in cold places and walruses (which another Pokémon in the future is based on). Thick Fat is a cool ability to have, because it helps them keep warm in cold places, as well as aiding buoyancy and forming their hydrodynamic shape.

One of Dewgong’s abilities, as mentioned in the PokéDex, is the ability to swim more properly in colder times, at the speed of 8 knots. That’s about 14.8 km/h, which doesn’t sound too fast, but for swimming, it’s faster compared to how fast humans swim (at this time). Dewgong’s white fur is supposed to help it camouflage itself from predators, which I guess include carnivores living in icy places such as Beartic. There are several Pokémon that blend well with their surroundings, but not many of them learn Camouflage, which is odd, but probably understandable since they don’t actively change their skin colour.

As a marine animal, Dewgong is more suited to swim, thanks to its fin arms for changing the swimming direction, as well as its fin tail, which helps for propulsion. In fact, there are pinnipeds that don’t have traditional legs, but rather, their legs resemble fins to facilitate swimming. One thing that Dewgong has is that horn, which Seel also has. For what purpose that serves is not really known, although the only attack that is horn-related is Horn Drill and Drill Run, which it learns through breeding and Move Tutor respectively. If you are talking about Seel, then there is a purpose: to break through ice should it need some air when it spent too long underwater.

One misconception with dugongs is their shape. They’re mistaken as mermaids by sailors of the past because of their shape, which is similar in a way that they have fin tails and their bodies are roundish. I imagine is only mistaken when viewed as a silhouette, because the resemblance between a mermaid and dugongs are nothing alike at all. As you might have guessed, this story carries over to the actual Pokémon too, as mentioned in the ‘Dex.

In terms of appearances in other media, there aren’t plenty of them. The notable ones involve usage by Lorelei and Pryce, which I guess is because there weren’t many interesting Ice-types back then. It’s worth mentioning that in the first battle with Pryce, he has both a Seel and a Dewgong. Remember that Seel is not an Ice-type, but it shares its affinity for cold climates with Dewgong. Considering that there were a few other Ice-types by Generation 2, it’s surprising that Pryce doesn’t take advantage of the variety among his three Pokémon. Speaking of that, in the anime, there is a Seel or Dewgong in Cerulean Gym, in which it started out as the former for 54 episodes since it was first introduced.

In battling, it is not easy to find something that Dewgong excels in, because a lot of its potential is done better by Walrein, another Pokémon of a similar typing due to its higher defences and being an overall better attacker, although Walrein is a bit slower. However, Dewgong has some things it could do that Walrein couldn’t, since Dewgong has Hydration, which makes it heal from status when it’s raining.

In my opinion, I don’t particularly find Dewgong impressive. Everything about Dewgong is basic: name, design, origin and battling. There are some interesting details here and there, such as its horn and how its animal origin isn’t based on a single animal, but otherwise, I thought of Dewgong to be one of the more forgettable Pokémon to newer fans as the variety of Pokémon increases.

Cloyster

The next Ice-type is also part-Water, and like Dewgong, Cloyster evolves from a pure Water-type. In case you don’t know, Cloyster evolves from Shellder using a Water Stone. Due to this evolution method, it is possible to evolve Shellder any time, although you lose out on moves that Shellder could only learn. As a Pokémon on its own merits, Cloyster is cool because of its smile, and its shell looks rough and hard, so it’s not a Pokémon you want to mess with.

Cloyster, based on appearance, is obviously based on an oyster. However, this oyster has a lot of spikes and a really big and hard shell, with a pearl inside. This pearl is its face, and presumably the brain. Presumably, the head is attached to the shell because it could move its shell around and close it. One interesting thing about Cloyster’s head is how it resembles Gastly’s head, but because they are located very closely on the PokéDex, there are some people who came to the wrong conclusion that they are related. I assure you that they may look like they are related, but the most certainly are not.

While Cloyster is a bivalve, it looks like a head, although the pearl of an oyster is normally a by-product of the bivalve’s nacre (a substance used to cover an irritant found in the oyster’s mouth), which is strong, resilient and iridescent. Basically, what I am saying is the pearl is inorganic, but it is Cloyster’s head. There may be a chance that Cloyster has innards similar to Shellder, though the eyes and tongue are not there. It’s interesting to note that real oysters or any bivalve are animals too, even though they don’t look like what we envision an animal since oysters are not active movers. Another interesting thing about bivalves is the way they eat. Because they don’t normally move, they rely on bringing in water into their mouth, and filter them for food which goes into their digestive system, while the water goes back out. Not that Cloyster eats that way, since it already has a mouth.

Looking like a heavily-armoured oyster, Cloyster has a reputation of having a “harder-than-diamonds” shell, since it has the quality of being difficult to pry open, even from something that is strong. In fact, the shell of Cloyster can withstand even powerful forces such as bombs. This would explain Cloyster’s gigantic Defence. Cloyster also has a horn on its head, whose main purpose is for attacking. It does this by shooting projectiles, and apparently it is good at it, because with Skill Link, it will do a lot of damage with Icicle Spear and Rock Blast. It is possible that it could also shoot spikes all over the ground, even toxic ones, based on the moves it learns. One aspect of Cloyster mentioned in the PokéDex is how its innards are never seen. Normally, when you think of a Pokémon who we never see the whole body, it would be Diglett or Dugtrio, so it is surprising that Cloyster holds this oddity too. Not surprising, actually, because it is commonly assumed that Cloyster is just a pearl head.

The main appearance for Cloyster in the manga and anime has to be ones that has Lorelei in it, despite not being her main Pokémon (that goes to Jynx and Lapras, based on how they have the highest level in the games). Still, Cloyster’s shown to be formidable based on the way it used some of its moves, such as using Spike Cannon in threatening ways and clamping to avoid a solid hit (though it still harms it in some way). In the anime, Cloyster is selected as the Pokémon of choice by Prima (Lorelei’s dub name) to battle with Ash’s Pikachu during his Orange Archipelago trip, and won despite the type disadvantage.

When it comes to battling, Cloyster is known these days as a set-up sweeper, thanks to a special move called Shell Smash. The way Shell Smash works is that it sharply raises the user’s Attack, Special Attack and Speed in exchange for reduced Defence and Special Defence. This move is fitting for Cloyster because not only does it have a shell, it could also make the best use of it, mainly because its Defence makes it easier to set up. Another thing that sets Cloyster apart from most Shell Smash users is its multi-hit attacks. Between Icicle Spear and Rock Blast, Cloyster could hit its opponents for high damage. However, should the opponent resist those moves, Cloyster could use its Water attack of choice, such as Razor Shell and Hydro Pump. Because of Cloyster’s Defence, it could opt to go on the defensive as well. One little known fact about Cloyster is that it is also an entry hazard controller, with Spikes, Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin. This could be a surprise to the opponent expecting Cloyster to be offensive. However, one thing to note about Cloyster is its low Special Defence. This makes it very vulnerable to Special Attacks that is not Ice-type (due to the double resistance). Another thing to watch out is Pokémon that resist Cloyster’s main moves, mainly those of the Water/Fighting-type or Empoleon.

There are some great qualities in Cloyster, such as its bivalve origins and how it is a wonderful Pokémon to use in battle for its sweeping ability or decent supporting potential. I consider oysters to be amazing animals because they don’t look like a traditional animal, and they have a different way of surviving in the wild, as well as their contributions, namely being food and providing nice pearls. Adding to Cloyster’s coolness is its tank-like appearance, with a tough shell and horn that shoots stuff that makes it something you don’t want to mess with. It’s doesn’t look like one of the best Ice-type out there, but its uniqueness makes up for it.

Jynx

Unlike the majority of Ice-types in here, Jynx is primarily an Ice-type. Unlike most of the Ice-types reviewed, Jynx’s appearance does not suggest that it would be an Ice-type, although guessing it would be a Psychic-type is more likely. Even though Jynx is not notable when it comes to finding one (it is obtained by trade), the controversy surrounding it surely made Jynx a more popular Pokémon than it would have been.

One of Jynx’s defining characteristics is its human-like behaviour. One of the things is that it speaks in a vaguely human language, which is mostly incomprehensible to the average human. It’s implied that only Jynx understand the meaning of what is said, but they seem to have another form of communication: dancing. The rhythm of its dancing is also dependent on how it is feeling, so it could be inferred that happiness means a faster rhythm than sadness. Its dancing is also mentioned to be very influential that it could get people to do the same. This action is described as “seductive”, and because Jynx is female-only, it’s not clear if this is male-only, or it doesn’t matter. This seems like a very good opportunity for it to learn Entrainment, but that didn’t happen.

It’s not a Jynx article without mentioning the elephant in the room, the controversy. When Jynx was first made, Jynx had black skin. This won’t be an issue in the monochrome Game Boy, but the official artwork really showed Jynx with black skin. This attracted some controversy because black skin is a common portrayal of a stereotypical African American, in a distasteful way. Of course, there is the case that Jynx is human-like, so putting it in the position of a Pokémon implies slavery or putting certain control over people, which is unacceptable in real life (though there are still some people doing it).

In the perspective of the Japanese, there is nothing wrong with Jynx, because their view of said Pokémon is different. There is a trend called the Ganguro, which is basically Japanese people painting their skin dark and bleaching their hair in a brighter colour, as well as applying colourful makeup. This contrasts the Japanese’s view of what beauty entails: dark hair, pale skin and natural makeup tones. This is a trend found on the more “rebellious” teenagers, though. The cultural disparity had clashed, so Jynx needed a makeover that would work out with both sides. A more detailed article explaining Jynx is done by George Hutcheon, so if you are interested and have the time to spare, I encourage reading the article.

If there is one thing older fans noticed, it is that Jynx had a slight revision in appearance. Initially, Jynx had black skin and blue hands in the official artwork (and subsequently the games), but later on, Jynx was given purple skin and hands because of the offensive connotations surrounding it when it had black skin. On December 2012, an episode featuring Jynx (Holiday Hi-Jynx) was aired, but this time, its skin is recoloured to purple (http://dogasu.bulbagarden.net/comparisons/kanto/ep065/2012_edit_01.html), so it’s a good bet to say that this version will be used for any future showings. Speaking of purple skin, it is one of the symptoms of frostbite, so it is not like the choice of skin colour is unrelated.

For all I have said, Jynx isn’t completely based on Japanese fashion styles and possible blackfaces. For one, Jynx looks like a fat opera lady, or it could also be a common portrayal of a Nordic woman, based on the dress it is wearing. One possible inspiration for Jynx is the (female) ice spirit of Japanese lore, but I don’t see it as such, compared to another Pokémon whose inspiration to one is clearer (and it is also a female). One oddity with Jynx is that despite showing feet in one scene in the anime (Stage Fight!), it doesn’t have a footprint in the ‘Dex. Kissing is also one of Jynx’s many talents, based on some moves with this, mainly Sweet Kiss, Heart Stamp and most important of all: Lovely Kiss. The latter is a move puts the target to sleep, so it’s like a kiss of death (it’s known as Demon’s Kiss in Japanese), except less deadly. However, kissing is more of something Smoochum would do, which will be explained next time.

In battling, Jynx has decent stats. Its highest stat is Special Attack, which is very useful with its STABs (they are both Special-based). Jynx’s coverage is covered as well, with important moves such as Focus Blast and Energy Ball. Added to this, Nasty Plot is another tool in its arsenal to increase it further, or if you could afford to boost at a slower pace, Calm Mind would be neat. Perhaps the most dangerous tool in Jynx’s repertoire is its signature move Lovely Kiss, which, as explained, puts the opponent to sleep. This move is crucial because it gives Jynx a set-up opportunity. Its new ability this Generation is Dry Skin, which while has some unfortunate implication to certain people, serves well as a Water counter due to that immunity and Ice resistance. Of course, it works well with Rain, providing substantial recovery, as long as Sun is avoided. You have to be wary about Jynx’s flaws too. First of all, Jynx’s Defence is very low, so it is very vulnerable to Physical attacks. Another thing to watch out for is Jynx’s Speed, considering how it is short of the 100 benchmark.

Later on, Jynx would get a new baby form in Generation 2 known as Smoochum, which I guess is because in an effort to demonstrate baby Pokémon, Jynx was chosen among other Pokémon that could use a baby form. However, Smoochum would be taken a look at in the next article, considering how the environment Jynx was in is vastly different from Smoochum.

Jynx is certainly one of the more interesting Pokémon in the first Generation, thanks to its infamy as a controversial Pokémon in its first Generation. There are other Pokémon in the future that are subject to controversy as well, such as Houndoom’s demon inspiration, Wailord’s incredibly low density for its size, and Vanillish’s oddball design, but none are as well-known as Jynx’s one, because this controversy actually changed something. As for me, I am not terribly fond of Jynx, not because of that controversy, but human-like Pokémon doesn’t cut it for me, as they lack the intense variety found in the more amorphous or mineral variety.

That was a good start, taking on a few Ice-types. We will be looking at the rest of Generation 1’s Ice-types next time. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I have writing them.

Thanks for reading.