Top 5 Suprising Pokemon Facts

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Written by Sean Harris

Top 5 Weird Facts About Pokémon


Some of these facts may seem Farfetch’d, others may appear to be of an Oddish nature, but we assure you they’re all 100% true. Welcome to WatchMojo’s Top 5 Facts. In today’s installment we’ll be counting down the most eye-opening and game-changing facts about everyone’s favorite TV series/trading card/video game hybrid, horrible Pokepuns aside. So without further ado, fact number five, let’s take a Pikachu.

#5: Pokémon Has Had an Issue with Sexual Content in the Past

Disney is well known for hidden sexual innuendos in its films, but Pokémon certainly gave Mickey Mouse a run for his money during the infamously banned “Beauty and the Beach” episode. The series inexplicably decided to throw more than a few adult themes into it’s half hour run time despite a target audience of younger children. Creepy old men, and a 10-year-old Misty entering in to a swimsuit contest don’t exactly make for kid-friendly television, but James dressing in drag, complete with inflatable boobs easily takes the sexually suggestive cake. There was also a deleted scene in the episode “The Kangaskhan Kid” where a kid living in the jungle says this to Misty: Wow!

#4: The 9/11 Terrorist Attacks Resulted in a Temporary Censorship

The September 11th terrorist attacks were of the most harrowing events in U.S. history, and its aftermath left the country in a vulnerable state, attempting everything in its collective power to heal as a nation. Many TV shows and movies were temporarily censored to avoid unnecessary reminders of the attack, including Pokémon episodes “The Tower of Terror” and “A Scare in the Air,” which changed their names to get around the censorship. One episode however was unable to pull such a maneuver, with a particular sequence in “Tentacool and Tentacruel” displaying the destruction of multiple buildings, which was deemed too sensitive for the time being. Nonetheless, one scene remained in the titular intro song, and the episode returned to syndication once Cartoon Network picked up the series.

#3: Pokémon has Sent Kids to the Hospital

No, we’re not talking about Pokécenters, Pokémon actually caused one of the most talked about TV controversies of the 90s.For the most part, “Electric Soldier Porygon” was a largely unremarkable episode. It takes place in cyberspace… like we said, “the 90s,” but a certain explosive scene that was intended to look virtual through a blue and red strobe pattern caused mass hospitalizations of viewers. Lasting around ten seconds, and with an unbelievably high frequency, in hindsight, it comes as no surprise that dozens and dozens of children were sent to the hospital with anything from nausea to seizures. This Pokéshock caused hysteria resulting in a hiatus of the series and an elimination of Porygon in future episodes. For those sensitive to light, we suggest looking away during this next sequence…

#2: People Hate on Pokémon for the Weirdest Reasons

“Lighten Up” currently is not an attack in the Pokémon Universe, but perhaps it should be. Since its inception, Pokémon has gained controversy from more than a few social advocacy groups. Most notably, claims have been made that it actively promotes animal cruelty, gambling, the occult, and racism. Many accusations come from a place of logic, such as the claim that Jynx has an uncanny resemblance to Blackface Minstrel Shows of the 19th century. Others are so ridiculous; they make it hard to even address; such as the claim that Pokémon conditions children to accept evolutionary principles, or that the games were a gateway to Satan. Maybe they were the inspiration for Pokemon Platinum’s distortion world? Hail Giratina!


#1: Pikachu Wasn’t Initially the Supposed to be the Pokémon Mascot

When you think of Pokémon, almost certainly, Pikachu is the first thing to come to mind. Forget everything you’ve ever known; Pikachu wasn’t initially supposed to be the mascot of Pokémon. Actually Clefairy was slated for this prestigious role until a few arbitrary factors changed executive’s decision. Most of all, Pikachu was yellow, aka gender neutral, aka a wider target audience. Clefairy’s 15 minutes of fame quickly dissipated, losing the coveted spot as “Series Mascot.” Now, the little pink fella is a small-time celebrity in Mt. Moon who forever missed their opportunity at stardom. Oh… and this Clefairy initially was supposed to be able to talk as well, how different things may have been!

So did any of these Ghastly facts blow you away? Has all this controversy surrounding the series made you Krabby? For more gender neutral Top 10s and Evolutionary Top 5s, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com. Now if you’ll excuse me I need to Hydro Pump whoever wrote this script.

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