Now that it is October it is time to get into the fall festivities! This means pumpkin spiced everything, leaves changing, and best of all it's time to get spooky! Now Pokemon might seem like a game for young children to play, but it is so much more than that.
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Based on the anime, manga, and games, there have been numerous creepy conspiracy theories that have arisen from the Pokemon community that have a bit of evidence to back them up. While many of them may seem a bit Farfetch'd, here are some of the ones that may just make sense.
Updated June 2, 2021, by Tom Bowen: Despite its family-friendly image, the Pokemon series has some pretty dark themes hidden throughout its games and the accompanying anime and manga. There are plenty of mysteries too, which has inspired some fans to come up with their own theories and suggestions to explain away some of the inconsistencies and question marks that punctuate the overarching narrative. Some are a lot more plausible than others, although that's not to say that they can't all be true. In all likelihood, fans will never know for certain, although it can still be fun to speculate nonetheless.
15 The Player Murders Gary's Raticate
During the rival battle on board the S.S. Anne in Pokemon Red & Blue, Gary uses a Raticate as part of his team. This makes sense, as he's shown to have caught a Rattata during the early stages of the game. When players next encounter Gary, however, the Raticate is nowhere to be seen, leading many to question whether it died as a result of the injuries it sustained during the previous battle.
Some have suggested that Gary simply swapped it out for a stronger Pokemon, but this seems unlikely given that he only has a team of five. That the battle also takes place in Lavender Town's Pokemon Tower - a place where the souls of departed Pokemon are laid to rest - further strengthens the idea that Gary was unable to get poor Raticate to a Pokemon Center in time following the battle on the S.S. Anne.
14 N Is A Zoroark
N is one of the more interesting characters to have been introduced in Pokemon Black & White, largely due to the strong connection that he shares with both trainers and Pokemon. If a popular fan theory is to be believed though, there's far more to the mysterious character than first meets the eye.
Many believe that N is not actually a human, but instead the Pokemon Zoroark in disguise and there's a surprising amount of evidence to support this idea. As well as him looking a little like the Pokemon, there are also several instances in the games where players encounter a Zoroark shortly before or after meeting N. There's even a point where interacting with Zoroarc triggers a flashback in N, which, at the very least, suggests that there's a very strong bond between them.
13 Wobbuffet Is Just A Tail
There are a few fan theories surrounding Wobbuffet's tail, the first of which suggests that the Pokemon is actually an evolved form of Unown and that its tail is a remnant of its previous form. The second and more popular theory is not too dissimilar, although is perhaps a bit more difficult to believe.
Some series fans have suggested that Wobbuffet's tail is the main body of the Pokemon and that the large blue structure is just a decoy of sorts. This would certainly explain why the tail appears to have a face of its own, as well as why some of the Pokemon's Pokedex entries talk about how it desperately tries to hide its tail.
12 Humans Are An Invasive Species
One of the biggest criticisms people have of the Pokemon series is that new species of Pokemon are constantly being introduced. Though it's possible that evolution simply happens at a much faster rate in the games' world than it does in reality, some players have come up with another, somewhat plausible theory to explain the phenomenon.
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The theory proposes that humans colonized the Pokemon planet at some point in the not-too-distant past after the Earth became uninhabitable. This would certainly explain why new Pokemon are still being discovered on a regular basis, as well as the fairly drastic differences between people and Pokemon. It could even shed light on why there are so few adults in the games, with children presumably far more likely to have been rescued from the dying Earth than adults.
11 MissingNo Are Corrupted Pokemon
Those who played the original Pokemon games will likely remember MissingNo. The glitched Pokemon allowed players to duplicate any item in Red & Blue, effectively providing players with an unlimited amount of rare candy and master balls. Though many consider it to have been a simple programming error or the remnants of a removed Pokemon, some have other ideas about the origins of MissingNo.
It has long been believed that Pokemon are stored as digital data while in their Pokeballs or a PC box and one theory takes this idea a step further. It suggests that if stored digitally for too long, the data can become corrupt, causing the Pokemon to become MissingNo. Others have suggested that they could be failed Mew clones, which would also make sense given that they show up so close to the Pokemon Mansion where other cloning experiments are known to have taken place.
10 Ash Ketchum Is Actually DEAD In The Anime
While the anime follows Ash on his Pokemon journey, the first episode shows Ash meeting his first ever Pokemon, Pikachu. In one particular scene in the first episode, Pikachu shocks Ash and a herd of Spearows to save them both from getting attacked. But in this theory, instead of Ash getting hurt, he actually dies from the powerful thundershock. The anime truly follows Ash as a ghost.
This theory would make sense for several reasons. Firstly, it would justify why Ash does not age in the show, he stays 10 years old for the entirety of it. It also makes sense because Ash is always asking questions and being very forgetful when it comes to basic Pokemon knowledge, this could be because he can't remember a lot of information from his past life.
9 Ditto Is A Failed Mew Clone
This theory states that Ditto was a failed attempt by scientists to try to make a clone of the legendary Pokemon Mew. It is stated in the theory that Ditto was made right before the infamous Mewtwo. There are several reasons that people think that this is plausible.
Firstly, they are very similar in color, but not only that, they both have similar shiny forms as well (light blue) and they both weigh 8.8 lbs. Ditto is just a blob that looks like it could be a failed experiment, but it just couldn't take the actual form of Mew, therefore it stays as its usual blobby self. Another piece of evidence is that both Mew and Ditto are the only Pokemon that learn the move Transform.
8 Ditto Was Made To Breed Pokemon Close To Extinction
One of the most popular theories about Ditto is that it is a failed experiment by scientists to try and clone Mew. But what if that was only partially true? Ditto may be a man-made Pokemon, but instead of it being a failed Mew clone, Ditto was made to breed with extinct Pokemon. This theory makes sense for many reasons. Firstly, in the game, Ditto is mainly used to breed other Pokemon.
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But in the first Pokemon games, there was an area called the Safari Zone where only some Pokemon were available like Kangaskhan. It is assumed that because those Pokemon were only available in that area that they were close to extinction. It is assumed in this theory that Ditto was made to make offspring with Pokemon that were close to extinction to save that Pokemon breed. It really isn't such a crazy theory once all of the facts have been weighed up.
7 Mimikyu Are Dead Pichu
When Mimikyu was released, it got a lot of love for its backstory. It was always said that Mimikyu wanted to be as popular as Pikachu, and it dressed up as Pikachu. This theory dwells deeper into why Mimikyu wanted to dress as Pikachu, rather than just popularity.
It states that Mimikyu are just Pichu that passed away before becoming a Pikachu, and now that its moved on, it still wants to evolve. The evidence to back this theory up is that Mimikyu is a Ghost/Fairy type for the deceased Pichu. Mimikyu also knows the move Thunderbolt, and shares multiple moves with Pichu, making the theory make more sense than it should.
6 The Pokemon War Killed Many Adults In The Pokemon World
In both the show and the game, there are multiple hints at a "Great Pokemon War" that had happened in the past. Lt. Surge, the Electric type gym leader, talks about battling in the Pokemon War with his Electabuzz. While it is never truly talked about, there is no doubt that something happened, even if it doesn't go into it much.
There is no doubt that the war was real, but it would make sense as to why there are not many adults in the Pokemon world, and how there are mainly kids around. It is because all of the adults went to war and lost their lives. This is why we never see Ash's dad in the Pokemon anime, but instead, his mother is shown.
5 Ash's Dad Is Pikachu
Ash's dad is never seen throughout the anime, he's talked about by others saying he was a great Pokemon trainer who went out on a great journey, but that is essentially all the information that is given about him. It is never said that Ash's father is even dead, but he's just not to be heard from. This theory is that Ash's dad was a part of an experiment that would transfer a human's mind into a Pokemon's body, but the effects were irreversible.
This theory isn't far off from Pokemon's Detective Pikachu movie, while in the manga, a scientist named Bill accidentally switches minds with a Rattata. The reason that Professor Oak gave Pikachu to Ash was that he knew it was the child's father but didn't want to tell him.
4 People Eat Pokemon
In the real world, humans eat plants and animals. But what do people eat in the Pokemon world? With no real animals around and only Pokemon, it can be assumed that people in the Pokemon universe eat Pokemon. It is known already that people drink "MooMoo Milk" which is milk from Miltank, but as far as meat goes, Pokemon does not go into what they do eat.
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In the anime, it is shown that Brock makes a variety of dishes, some that even include meat in them. But where does the meat come from? It is clear that there are either animals in Pokemon that aren't shown, or that Pokemon trainers really eat Pokemon for their meat source.
3 Cubone Is Originally A Baby Kangaskhan
With yet another theory involving Kangaskhan, this one comes with a twist. Kangaskhan are known to be motherly Pokemon that always care for their young, much like the majestic kangaroo. If theorists are to be believed though, this bond works both ways when it comes to Kangaskhan and led to the creation of a brand new Pokemon.
The story goes that one day a baby Kangaskhan saw its mother killed by Team Rocket, and was so overcome by sorrow that it stayed by its mother's body until it decayed. After it decayed, it wore its mother's skull like a hat, thus "evolving" into Cubone. While the theory may seem a bit dark, Pokemon die in both the anime and manga (in the manga it is more detailed) and so it does make sense.
2 Dark Pokemon Trading Theory
In the Pokemon world, there are many Pokemon that need to be traded in order to evolve into their final form (Haunter to Gengar, Machoke to Machamp, etc). With that in mind, many players have found themselves wondering how exactly Pokemon like Gengar show up in the wild.
As far as anybody knows, Pokemon like Gengar and Machamp can't evolve without first being traded. This means that the trainer of any wild final form Pokemon has either released the Pokemon, or that the trainer has passed away. While this theory is very dark, it also is very sad and is probably true.
1 Every Lost Child In The Woods Turns Into A Phantump
In Phantump's Pokédex entry, it states, "These Pokemon are spirits of children who have gotten lost in the forest." While it is very sad to think about, it is also highly possible that Phantump really are just the ghosts of dead children who got lost and probably died afraid and lonely.
Though it's possible to hatch Phantump from eggs, many consider the Pokedex entry to be proof enough, making it one of several Pokemon to share a connection with missing or dead children. While Phantump may look cute, players should perhaps remember why they exist in the first place before they think about catching one.