Cubone<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Name<\/strong>: Cubone\u2019s name is very cute and fitting. I honestly didn\u2019t know what the \u201cCu\u201d part stood for until now. Apparently, it\u2019s for \u201cCub\u201d which\u2026.eh? Okay. I mean, it is a child, but it\u2019s also a dinosaur, and I don\u2019t tend to think of baby dinos as cubs.<\/p>\n In Japan, it\u2019s known as Karakara, which is the onomatopoeia for light clattering, like a bone makes against another.<\/p>\n Fun Fact\u2026.Or not so fun<\/em>: In the beta of Red and Green, Cubone was going to be named Orphon, like orphan.<\/p>\n Design<\/strong>: Cubone is adorable, and I love it, but I always feel awkward calling it adorable because\u2026\u2026it wears the skull of its mothers on its head. That\u2019s just\u2026.uncomfortable. But it\u2019s also confusing for a couple factors. We\u2019ll talk more about that later.<\/p>\n I never saw this angle of Cubone before from a Japanese trading card, and it looks really cute under the skull too.<\/p>\n Sprite-wise, R\/G looks off, like its skull helmet is askew or something.<\/p>\n Crystal\u2019s kinda cool, throwing and catching its bone.<\/p>\n D\/P\/P I have no idea what the heck it\u2019s doing.<\/p>\n B\/W\/B2\/W2 is kinda fun the way it\u2019s playing with the bone.<\/p>\n Everything else is fine.<\/p>\n Shiny<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Oh wonderful. Another baby poop green shiny. Next.<\/p>\n Dex Entries and Backstory<\/strong>: Cubone just might have the most well-known and saddest backstory of any Pokemon, in Gen I anyway. The skull it wears on its head is that of its mother, who died shortly after it was born. Cubone very frequently cries as it mourns the loss of its mother. The sound of its crying will resonate within the skull creating a mournful sound. There are stain marks on the skull from its tears. On the nights of full moons, they tend to get even sadder and cry louder because it sees the likeness of its mother in the moon.<\/p>\n As a result of its grief, Cubone tend to avoid social situations and prefer to be alone. Only when it has finally worked through its feelings of grief over its mother\u2019s death will it finally evolve into Marowak.<\/p>\n This is all horribly tragic and sad, but\u2026.ya know\u2026.it also makes no sense. Cubone are born with the skull mask on. And, what, do all Cubone\/Marowak mothers just die at childbirth? I guess it wouldn\u2019t be unheard of, but then what\u2019s Alolan Marowak\u2019s deal with revenge if its mother died naturally? Unless Mandibuzz kill all Cubone\/Marowak mothers. But then you have the old \u201cTeam Rocket killed Cubone\u2019s mother.\u201d It is a very memorable backstory, but when applied to every single Cubone it falls apart a bit.<\/p>\n Some other notes about Cubone;<\/p>\n \u2013 It never takes off its signature skull mask, so no one has ever seen the full face of a Cubone.<\/p>\n \u2013 Mandibuzz are Cubone\u2019s natural enemies. When they hear the mournful cries of Cubone, they attack\u2026..Fuck Mandibuzz.<\/p>\n \u2013 Each tear Cubone sheds supposedly makes it stronger\u2026.for some reason.<\/p>\n \u2013 Legends Z-A says Cubone mothers die shortly after giving birth, which makes more sense, to a degree, like I said, but is also just terribly tragic.<\/p>\n \u2013 Oh and let\u2019s not forget Pikachu\u2019s Vacation Dex entry where Dexter says it cares only for itself\u2026.<\/p>\n \u2013 A Pokemon Journeys Dex entry is the only one that mentions that it also carries around a bone\u2026.but nothing explains where THAT bone came from. Is it also its mother\u2019s bone?<\/p>\n \u2013 Cubone was created on the thought of how sad it would be if a Pokemon died. Again, fun. I also enjoyed my adventures in Lavender Town. Bundles of joy.<\/p>\n In terms of design, Cubone is based on bipedal dinosaurs. The bone aspect is said to come from primitive cultures that would repurpose bones for weapons and body decorations. The Bonemerang aspect is said to be inspired by how boomerangs were used as a weapon for hunting in Australia. Interestingly, I did find that an ancient boomerang made from mammoth tusks was found in Oblazowa Cave in Poland<\/a>. It\u2019s the oldest boomerang in the world.<\/p>\n Tusks are teeth not bone, so maybe that doesn\u2019t fully count as a bonemerang, but it\u2019s cool nonetheless.<\/p>\n Marowak<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Name<\/strong>: A combination of \u201cmarrow\u201d like bone marrow, and \u201cwhack\u201d Marowak has a pretty cool name. Extremely snappy, fitting, and memorable \u2013 even a little fun.<\/p>\n In Japan, it\u2019s called Garagara, \u201cheavy clattering\u201d to complement Cubone\u2019s Karakara.<\/p>\n Fun Fact<\/em>: In the beta of Red and Green, it was going to be called Guardia, which\u2026.I don\u2019t think works nearly as well.<\/p>\n Design<\/strong>: Honestly. I\u2019ve never liked Marowak as much as Cubone. Absolutely no hate to Marowak, but Cubone is just much cuter. I wouldn\u2019t even say Marowak is all that more intimidating, either. It\u2019s more like Cubone\u2019s skull helmet fused to its face and that\u2019s about it.<\/p>\n Speaking of which\u2026<\/p>\n Sprite-wise\u2026.Look at R\/G\/B.<\/p>\n That basically is just literally what I was just saying. It\u2019s Cubone with a full-face skull helmet. It\u2019s actually super cute in this version, but don\u2019t get used to it.<\/p>\n Also, the back sprite for Gen I has spikes along its back, which is weird.<\/p>\n Gold is pretty damn intimidating.<\/p>\n Is Silver going to do a tap dance routine?<\/p>\n Crystal has an awesome animation on the bone.<\/p>\n Emerald goes BAMBAM BAM!<\/p>\n Everything else is pretty cool, but not worth mentioning individually.<\/p>\n Alolan Marowak<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019ve been pretty harsh on some of the Alolan and other alt versions of classic Pokemon, but, goddamn, Alolan Marowak has impressed me since the instant I first saw it. The type change to Fire and Ghost, the dark purple\/eggplant color palette, the blue-green flames on the bone, the badass \u2018scar\u2019 on the skull \u2013 it\u2019s by far my favorite Alolan version I\u2019ve seen so far. It\u2019s incredible.<\/p>\n Shiny<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Shiny Marowak is a very nice lime green color. Even the Gen II version isn\u2019t a blech green color. It\u2019s more like a pea green.<\/p>\n Shiny Alolan Marowak\u2026\u2026Is still purple, but now it\u2019s a brighter green like candy grape purple. It\u2019s cool.<\/p>\n Dex Entries and Backstory<\/strong>: Marowak has now grown past the grief of its mother\u2019s passing, and it\u2019s much more violent than its pre-evo. FireRed notes \u201cIts temperament turned ferocious when it began using bones.\u201d But\u2026Cubone uses bones too.<\/p>\n Marowak seeks out vengeance against Mandibuzz for targeting Cubone. It will throw its bone to take it down. Ultra Sun notes that this might be because it\u2019s trying to avenge its parent, so maybe there\u2019s some retconning going on here\u2026\u2026Actually, I just thought of something, where is any Cubone\u2019s father?<\/p>\n The skull it wore as Cubone has now fused into its head.<\/p>\n It will hit boulders in 50 different Morse Code-esque manners to send messages to others.<\/p>\n It also collects bones from a mysterious secret Marowak graveyard.<\/p>\n The mothers of Alolan Marowak have become vengeful spirits protecting their children. The spirit takes the form of flames that cling to its bone. These flames pass on to their opponents in battle, and water cannot stop the flames from burning. The mental and physical anguish from the burns will never fade. (Yeesh.)<\/p>\n According to Ultra Sun, the rich green landscapes of Alola with tons of Grass Pokemon were difficult for original Marowak so they evolved to have a new form that was strong against them. Alolan Marowak needs fire to survive as a trade off, though.<\/p>\n While regular Marowak seems to have moved on from mourning, Alolan Marowak frequently engages in mourning practices. It will bury its deceased companions in mounds of dirt that line the roads. Additionally, it performs fire dances with its bone to further mourn its mother and its fallen allies.<\/p>\n Marowak\u2019s design origins are the same as Cubone\u2019s, so let\u2019s talk about Alolan Marowak. Obviously fire dancers had a heavy influence on Alolan Marowak, with its bone representing the fire staff or fire knife usually used by the Samoan performers.<\/p>\n The Wiki also notes that the Polynesian concept of mana was also used. Mana is a spiritual energy in all beings and objects. In certain cases, mana can be imbued into an object for the sake of protection or seeking vengeance.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also possible they\u2019re based on nightmarchers<\/a> \u2013 mythological Hawaiian spirits who march on old battlegrounds and burial sites at night while carrying torches. If you see one or act in defiance of them, you will die violently. But if you lie face down on the ground, showing fear and respect to the nightmarchers, you\u2019ll be spared. Fire is also associated with nightmarchers. In addition to the signature torches they carry, if you look upon the sacred body parts of a king or chief, you\u2019ll be killed via bolts of intense light and heat that incinerates a human instantly.<\/p>\n They sound incredibly cool and also have a kickass name. Why am I just hearing about these now?<\/p>\n It\u2019s also unclear what the new marking on its skull is supposed to signify besides that it looks like flames.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n And that was the Bone line! This has always been a cute and cool Ground Type line, and now they\u2019ve added a sick Fire\/Ghost Type to the mix to make it even cooler. However, Cubone and Marowak\u2019s whole lore is just dripping in tragedy and mourning. Not matter how cool it may be, there\u2019s always a bittersweet aspect of this Pokemon line.<\/p>\n Next time, the Hitmon line!\u2026.and Tyrogue, who ruins the naming scheme.<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/9xzd8Zj.png\")
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