Appreciation number seven - Oddish!

A Pokemon after my own heart. The adorable, jolly Oddish.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

I can't help it. Oddish is my favorite. He's too stinkin' cute! That calming blue body (I realize the sprite up there is black, but it's from the original Red and Blue Gameboy games so... no real color!), the perky blades of hair, the constant giant smile! 

My first experience with Oddish was actually through the original Pokemon TV show. It was the Pokemon sanctuary episode where Ash tries to catch the "wild" Oddish and the ferocious Growlithe stops him.

Every Oddish in existence had my heart from that moment on. No matter their faults, and no matter other powerful Grass Pokemon, Oddish will forever be my most beloved and favorite. Once I catch one, it will never leave my party. I even give it an Everstone because I can't stand the thought of it turning into a Gloom.

I realize these are foolish decisions, because I will forever have a technically weak and inferior Pokemon in my party. The real solution is to make lots of money and then buy a bunch of stat boosting candy in Saffron City. That solves all of the problems!

Back when Burger King had Pokemon toys I went everyday for about two weeks so I could get an Oddish. I finally got my Oddish, and ended up with a slew of other Pokemon as well, including a Muk, Dragonite and Shellder. Truly the best thing to ever come out of Burger King.

If I ever get a Pokemon tattoo, you can bet it'd be an Oddish. One year for my birthday a friend gave me a shiny Oddish that she had. Amazing gift.

My Shiny Oddish. It is green instead of blue!

That concludes this week's 151 Appreciation! So, did I hit any of your favorites? Do you have any deep hatred for my favorites? Pokemon can stir such passionate discussions; I know I get real cranky if anyone insults Oddish xD I hope you all enjoyed this series!

-MJ

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Appreciation number six - Dratini!

Mysterious, whimsical, perfect little Pokemon.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

What can I say about Dratini? It's one of the perfect Pokemon. The first time I saw it appear at the end of my line in the Safari Zone I was hooked (ha!). 

"What is it?!" I asked myself frantically, "Is it a snake?" I wondered. "It's so beautiful. What a perfect water Pokemon." The thoughts chased themselves around and around in my head as I frantically recast my line, fingers crossed that I would catch this marvelous creature before my steps (or Pokeballs) ran out.

At long last the shining, lithe monster was mine. I gazed eagerly at its stats, and was shocked to learn that it wasn't a water Pokemon. No no. It was a Dragon Pokemon. Celebration rose up inside of me, and I felt infinitely more triumphant in my capture.

The move set possessed by Dratini were impressive, and I received a chill every time I saw the word "dragon" in its character description. This was one of the few times where I actually put the move Agility to use, seeing as Dratini was so fast already; it made her nearly impossible to hit.

I definitely, definitely did not want to evolve her. Dragonair is gorgeous, to be sure, so I didn't mind that step so much. She's more refined, regal and fancy, but has lost her youthful charm. It was the Dragonite step that I could never manage to take. That final stage of beastly power was alluring, to be sure, but I couldn't handle the loss of my beautiful blue dragon. 

Tomorrow is the last day! Can you guess what the final Pokemon is? I saved my most favorite for last!

-MJ

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Appreciation number five - Venonat!

By all accounts, this is one freaky little Pokemon. Huge, nasty bug 

eyes, tiny pincers and long antenna. Yet he has an appeal all his own.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

By the time I encountered my first Venonat along route 15, I was sorely missing the Bug power that Beedrill had once offered. So I picked up this little guy and was surprised by its potential.

Venonat possesses a combination of Bug, Psychic, Poison and Grass possibilities. Considering Pokemasters can have only six Pokemon on them at a time, Venonat presents a powerful player in their arsenal. With the correct honing, the little bug can fill one of many voids in your team. I usually went with Psychic and Bug.

They seemed to have great accuracy, which came in handy when employing Poison Powder or Stun Spore. I recall the move Confusion doing a great deal of damage as well. Overall they had powerful starting stats and I believe posed too valuable an array of moves to be passed up by any trainers. 

It was never easy deciding on whether or not to allow my little Venonat to evolve into a Venomoth. Venomoth is hideous, but offered a great deal of stat boosts and moves more powerful than any Venonat could ever dream of. 

Ultimately I allowed the evolution, because I knew it was best for me and for him. It never became easy though, because I'll prefer a walking bug to a flying bug any day.

Only two days left of the 151 Appreciation Week! Be sure to come back tomorrow.

-MJ

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Appreciation number four - Lapras!

A beautiful, mammoth, docile beast. Her icy demeanor is no 

reflection of the human loving soul within.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

Who doesn't love Lapras?! This is a serious question. The first time I laid eyes on her after that epic battle at Silph Co., it was love. Pure love.

First of all, she's gorgeous. Secondly, she can use Swim! This is especially important since, because of her size, she can keep you dry! So many other Pokemon that can learn Swim would have you drenched in the ocean. But not Lapras. She's nearly 500lbs of floating, dry awesome. (I realize this doesn't have any bearing on the game, but that aspect still always bothered me)

I know that I generally did not use Lapras to her fullest potential. She had the weight and strength on her size, sure, but she wasn't very fast and for that she should have been used as a stat alterer and not so much of a direct HP hitter. Mist is a move that I should have employed far more often. 

Lapras is one of the few original Pokemon that doesn't have an evolved state, and honestly that made me feel that I couldn't bond with her as well. I loved her all the same though! I'm pretty sure she was the only Ice Pokemon that I ever used, and she doesn't even know that many Ice moves on her own.

Part of her allure, aside from her striking blue complex, was that she reminded me of the Loch Ness monster. 

I've never been particularly good at forming strong teams.

We're halfway through the Appreciation! Have I touched on any of your favorites? Who do you think will be up next?

-MJ

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Appreciation number three - Diglett!

This innocuous little cutie will unleash some serious damage.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

My first encounter with a Diglett was surely met with coos of joy; he's just so adorable! I captured one for myself, pleased to have my first non-hideous ground Pokemon. I would catch Geodude, but he just didn't make me very happy.

Diglett is a great little fighter though. He comes equipped with Magnitude, which immediately made me see that he was more than just a pretty face. Also Dig is one of my favorite moves, and once Diglett learns it he becomes a real powerhouse!

I had reservations the first time the little guy evolved; he wasn't so cute anymore. I quickly saw the advantages related to his strength, however, and no longer mourned the loss of my tiny Diglett. Even though he eventually became a Dugtrio, Diglett is one of the Pokemon that I kept with me until the very end.

"Such subdued variety", you must be thinking to yourself. "Where are the cool Pokemon?!" Just check back in tomorrow!

-MJ

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Appreciation number two - Vulpix!

A gorgeous multi-tailed fox, ready to defend with Quick Attacks and flames.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

Through my original Pokemon adventures I owned a copy of Red, which meant I could only attain a Vulpix via trading. Perhaps that's what made this seemingly plain Pokemon so appealing to me.

I was wont to frequently swap out Pokemon for newer ones that I captured, and only a rare few would stick with me through the entire game. I recall ditching my Vulpix for a Growlithe once in the mansion on Cinnabar Island. I think this was just because the Growlithe was newer.

My time with my Vulpix was enjoyed though! This is definitely a, "It was cute" selection. Well, that combined with my inability to catch one on my own. I know I never managed to evolve one to a Ninetails, and this was because I felt bad "forcing" a Pokemon to evolve via stone. Shouldn't it have its own choice in the matter?

Ninetails was certainly gorgeous though...

We've seen bug and now fire. What will tomorrow bring?

-MJ


p.s. If you missed yesterday's, then don't fear! check out why I appreciate Beedrill!

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Appreciation number one - Beedrill!

IRL if I saw a giant hornet with huge stingers for front arms, 

well there's not enough space here for me to describe just how 

completely horrified I would be.
Sprite from Serebii.net

Important disclaimer!!: This is entirely my opinion! If I have insulted or forsaken one of your favorite Pokemon then I apologize and invite you to tell me why I shouldn't have overlooked it! :D

The original Red and Blue versions provided very little variety (and even fewer strong Pokemon) in the beginning two towns. It was Normal Pokemon as far as the eye could see, and none had a particularly great advantage; barring, of course, your beloved Starter.

Enter the Viridian Forest, and there you would find your first bug Pokemon! While Caterpie eventually became the much cuter Butterfree, Weedle became the immensely more powerful Beedrill! 

Beedrill is lightning fast and learned Fury Attack almost right away. Before your Pokemon adventures brought you to extreme and exotic locales, Beedrill was an invaluable asset to your party of six.

Generally I never kept my Beedrill all the way to the Elite Four, but it most definitely played a vital part in my progress!

Bee (see what I did there?) sure to check back tomorrow for another favorite of mine!

-MJ

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