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Ice-type Reviews – Generation 1 (Part 2)

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. Without anything else to say, let’s proceed to the rest of Generation 1’s Ice-types.

Lapras

The next Ice-type we will be looking at is Lapras, known as the “Transport Pokémon”. Players were first introduced to Lapras when the player successfully rescued Silph Co. from the clutches of Team Rocket, rewarded by the president of the company after battling your way through (as well as a Master Ball, but that’s not important here).

Lapras was conceptualised as a ferry in the water, as its species’ name suggest. In fact, if you play the Generation 2 games in the Game Boy, you will notice that the sprite used when surfing is Lapras (if you’re not using Pikachu to Surf, that is). The nice thing about Lapras is its gentleness. It indeed looks calm and non-threatening, which makes it a perfect companion Pokémon for surfing because it doesn’t give a bumpy ride. Of course, it gives the trainer a chance to savour the waters too.

Lapras is considered a rare species, the main reason being their near extinction, due to overhunting and not enough reproduction. The second part is theory, as well as their long egg cycles, but it would explain the dwindling numbers. It doesn’t help that they are not exactly aggressive fighters, which lends to their population shrinkage. There must be something with Lapras that makes them very lucrative to hunt, but what could it be? One possible theory is that they are hunted for their body parts, such as their shells. It’s kind of like real life where several animals (mostly ones with long life cycles) were hunted, but the overhunting makes their population less and less sustainable. Another theory in why they are hunted is because of their ability to transport people comfortably. The bonus part is their intelligence, as well as their ability to understand human speech. Because of this, there are a lot of captures going on that they are currently rare. Of course, they are very rare in the games too. One instance allows you to find one in the Union Cave every Friday, and in another, you have a 5% chance to find it in rippling water under the Village Bridge. Those with access to Lapras could breed for more, and they could even get rich for that because of how hard it is to obtain one in the first place!

Usually, it would let out a song if it’s happy, but because of its rarity (And thus, solitude), the Lapras would sing plaintively to seek out others of its own kind, which reminds me of a Doraemon long story (or movie) about Nobita and a plesiosaur that he befriended and had to bring it to its species in the past when it grew too big. Speaking of plesiosaurs, Lapras seems to be based on this Jurassic dinosaur, based on its similarities with one, such as the long neck, paddle limbs, a broad body that resembles a turtle and a short tail. The Loch Ness monster is another source of inspiration, being an elusive creature that is likely a hoax and a myth. This would explain its placement in the Monster Egg Group, which dinosaurs fall under.

Lapras’ most notable appearance in the anime is when Ash acquired one during his trip to the Orange Archipelago. It was first introduced when three punks (as they were called) abused Lapras with sticks, but were scared off by the power of Pikachu. Initially it didn’t trust humans (or is afraid of them), but at the end of the episode, it trusted Ash for his heroism (saving it from Team Rocket, no less). This is important because it provides a way for Ash and friends to move around the different islands, so at least it had some use. It was used in some Gyms there, but would be released nearing the end of the Orange Archipelago saga, where it was reunited with its herd, but not without its difficulties. Besides an appearance in Johto, that’s all we saw from Lapras. As for the Pokémon Special manga, it would involve some spoilers, so I will leave it at that and say that a scene involving them is touching.

When it comes to battling, Lapras seems like a great Pokémon on paper. For one, its Special coverage is one of the best, as it has Electric attacks or Freeze-Dry for Water-types. Curse is another option because Avalanche will hurt after enough boosts. There’s Dragon Dance too. Besides, its stats are good, having high HP and decent offences and defences. The problem is Lapras is difficult to use in practice. One problem is, Lapras is slow, which means it would likely take a hit from its opponent before it could retaliate. Sometimes Speed isn’t an issue with Pokémon, as their bulk keeps them healthy. However, Lapras is an Ice-type, which is detrimental because of the new weaknesses, especially to Rock and Fighting. While Water Absorb provides recovery, you can’t guarantee the opponent will activate it, meaning Lapras’ recovery is usually Rest (works best with Hydration). A support set could also be interesting, with Heal Bell to recover as well as Toxic for stalling (note that Lapras doesn’t learn Scald; in fact, none of the Ice-types do!). All in all, Lapras’ battling potential is one of greatness, but certain flaws prevented it from being a force.

Lapras is another interesting Ice-type. There are several points where it is mystical, from its inspiration from a mythical creature and dinosaur and its rarity. If there is one criticism I have to make, it is that Lapras hardly looks like an Ice-type, less so than Cloyster.

Articuno

Articuno is one of the only five legendary Pokémon in Kanto, but at that time only four were known (Mew was not known until months later). Together with Moltres and Zapdos, they are known as the legendary birds. They are also one to set the trend for future Generations to follow, where there will be three related Legendary Pokémon sharing a theme. The legendary beasts, the legendary golems (which have an Ice-type too) and other legendary trios owe their existence to this trend. The birds follow the traditional Fire-Ice-Lightning elements, and Articuno is obviously the Ice counterpart of the trio.

Since Articuno is an Ice Pokémon, it obviously has Ice powers. Its main power is to create blizzards out of moisture in the air by freezing it. Articuno is even said to be made of Ice, although it doesn’t appear as such since Articuno doesn’t look rigid, unlike Regice and Cryogonal, or its comrade Zapdos. Articuno’s long tail is another hallmark of this Pokémon, said to enhance its flying form. It is also said to appear whenever there are doomed travellers in the icy mountains. Even though that is said, what Articuno does to them is not mentioned. Does it help them? Does it eat them because they’re too weak? Does it just ignore them? The consequence is open-ended, so you can imagine what you want about what kind of Pokémon is. Whatever happened, those who live to tell the tale might not be believed due to the rarity of Articuno.

Articuno’s most notable appearance is in the second Pokémon movie, the Power of One. It is also the first time Lugia appeared. Lugia is considered the “trio master” of the three legendary birds. Trio masters are known to relate to the trio in some way, usually as a master or a leader, so Lugia is like a leader to the three birds, being able to quell the fighting between them in said movie. Another notable appearance in the anime is during the Battle Frontier saga, where Noland used one against Ash’s Charizard. In the Pokémon Special manga, there is a first instance of Pokémon fusion, where it was fused with Moltres and Zapdos to form a mix-and-match creature that managed to be strong (but not impossible to overcome). At that time, the legendary birds were under control, so once they were separated and free, they were gone until in the climax of Johto’s chapter, where they were used against Ho-oh and Lugia.

Based on Articuno’s name, one would expect it to be the first one because it ends with “uno”, Spanish for “one”. Based on the order you receive the Pokémon, this is normally true, but it is possible to get Zapdos (the “two” of the trio) before you could get Articuno. Still, Articuno’s turf is nearer (I think) than Zapdos. At Seafoam Cave, located between Fuchsia and Cinnabar, you need Surf to traverse and Strength to move rocks to prevent the fast flow of the water from impeding your progress. This has to be done in one go, because exiting the area will reset the rocks’ position and you have to do it all over again.

Articuno, in the first Generation, is one of the better Pokémon to use in-game, because its Blizzard is very powerful, thanks to Blizzard’s Base Power and its Special stat of 125 (remember it was just Special, not Special Attack and Special Defence). This helps in clearing some of the important trainers such as Giovanni and Lance. As for the real battle, while Articuno is indeed a strong Blizzard user, its Speed is not too fast, and its coverage is rather limited.

When Articuno Special stat is split, its Special Defence inherits the number. Considering how Ice is infamous as a defensive type, this didn’t bode well for Articuno. Not being weak to Fighting is a plus, but a double weakness to Rock would be a problem when Stealth Rock is introduced. However, that is not to say Articuno fails at being a defensive Pokémon, because it has some great things going for it. For one, its ability is Pressure, which will reduce a Pokémon’s PP faster (especially Stone Edge). Snow Cloak, a hidden ability, works well in Hail and avoiding a crucial hit could be important. It also gets Roost to heal its HP, so it could continue PP stalling. Moreover, Heal Bell helps it recover from status, although it’s a hard move to acquire since you need to get it from Pokémon XD, a Generation 3 game. Its offence took a turn for the better when it learned Freeze-Dry, and with Hurricane, it is good, though it does not yet have notable options for Steel-types.

So now that is done with, what do I think of Articuno? When Articuno was first introduced, I thought its appearance looked fine, like the other birds, and never really gave much thought about them. After all, I knew them first in that animated movie, so I never really used them in battle. It does make me curious when I learned that it is low on the tier list, since the thought of a legendary Pokémon being low on a tier list is peculiar. Of course, I learned that Articuno is just unable to utilise its qualities in battle well, so I thought that perhaps, treatment for each individual member of any trio is unequal. As an Ice-type, Articuno is not bad, due to having notable Ice-type characteristics. As a legendary Pokémon, Articuno fell short compared to the other, more interesting legendaries in the future.

That’s it for our run for Generation 1’s Ice-types. You might notice that I felt that a lot of Pokémon here do not resemble Ice-types. I do not know about you, but the only one that is easily identifiable as an Ice-type is Articuno, so at first glance, some might think that there are less Ice-types than there are. Other than that, the Pokémon we have here are not bad. Next time, we have Generation 2’s variety to look forward to. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I have writing them.

Thanks for reading.