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Saturday, May 25, 2013

The Legend Revives! Pt. 3

I swear this people.... Jaggerjaquez R. here, I'm almost done with university, so I'm pretty much kinda ready to let go of everything, so in the meantime, I present to you, Pokégods :3 Sit tight, and enjoy the show ;)

(BTW this is NOT a Creepypasta, all here is the truth.)

THE POKEMON FACTORY


There was a website called "Pokemon Factory" which created fake screenshots of Pokegods and other made-up Pokemon, not necessarily with the intent to fool anyone. Even though these images were watermarked and obviously fake, many became widely circulated and contributed a lot to the spread of Pokegods rumors (sometimes being used as 'proof' that they existed).
MIST STONE USES


With a few exceptions, these seem to come from the idea that one could find the mist stone which was able to evolve every single Pokemon. Mewthree is a bit different because people also thought that pictures of Mewtwo wearing armor from the first movie was Mewthree... (detailed below).


Flareth is also an interesting case because of all the Eeveeloutions, it was the only one that was thought to evolve again (or at least, the only one that was so widely circulated)
Venusaur>Sapusaur/Sapasaur
Charizard>Charcoalt/Charcolt
Blastoise>Rainer
Butterfree>Locustud/Locustod
Beedrill>Beepin
Raticate>Raticlaw
Nidoking>Nidogod
Nidoqueen>Nidogoddess/Nidogodess
Golduck>Pearduck
Sandslash>Sandswipes
Hypno>Dream Master
Onix>Dimonix
Gengar>Spooky
Flareon>Flareth/Flarith
Eevee>Lunareon
Eevee>Solareon
Omanyte>Omnamist
Mew>Corona Mew*
Mewtwo>Mewthree


*(also called Cyro Mew, Chrona Mew, Chrono Mew, Crono Mew, or Cyber Mew)

MEWTHREE


While most PokeGods evolved from common Pokemon, and a few from uncommon or rare Pokemon, Mewthree was one of only two PokeGods rumored to evolve from a Legendary. This is unusual, as it would make sense for evolutions of legendary Pokemon to be more popular due to their relative small number at the time. The fact that only Mew and Mewtwo had any sort of official background may be the reason why they were chosen over the other legendaries to have their mythology developed further under the pretense of the PokeGods.


Mewtwo quickly fostered popularity for one reason: it was the most powerful Pokemon legally obtainable in the game. At a time when Mew was still largely whispered rumors, Mewtwo was a bonus Pokemon you could actually see and even catch. It became a rite of passage and instant fame for anyone to complete the game and encounter a Mewtwo, then add it to their team and show it off on the playground. With a Mewtwo's stats alone beating out many Pokemon, combined with its moves and psychic typing, any team would be near-unbeatable. It was simply so powerful that there was no competition-even more so since "real" competitive battling was even less known.



However, rumors soon began to crop of up of a Pokemon even more powerful than Mewtwo. People rationalized that since there was already Mew ("Mewone"), and a MewTWO, there might likely be further numbers of even greater power. Compounded with Mewtwo's already-mysterious origin in the game, the idea of a "Mewthree" became a popular notion.


While the idea of Mewthree briefly coincided with Mewtwo's armored appearance in Mewtwo Strikes Back, it should be noted that the two aren't mutually exclusive. Rumors of Mewthree continued on (albeit less widely-believed) as they did before the movie, while the armored Mewtwo seen in the movie developed its own rumors on how to evolve Mewtwo into that form, which usually had names other than Mewthree to describe it. (More on Mewthree as inspired by the anime can be read under the "From other Official Media" section)


Although Mewthree was the most popular rumored evolution of Mewtwo, there were other rumors for a Mewfour and even higher, though those were typically ignored as too ridiculous to be believed. An evolution with the name "Altanes" was also mentioned which carried a little more weight than the others, but its connection (if any) to Mewthree is impossible to determine.

FLARETH
Flareth is an interesting PokeGod, as it was the only one widely circulated as a further evolution of an "Eeveelution" rather than directly from Eevee itself. One would assume that as Flareth was praised as being "The evolved form of Flareon" that use of the Mist Stone would be the method for acquiring it, as was true for many other PokeGods said to evolve from an existing Pokemon. However, not a single code for obtaining Flareth required the use of the Mist Stone. Even more unusual was that Flareon, the Pokemon it was said to evolve from, also wasn't needed. Flareth was simply treated as if it was a "basic" in and of itself and unrelated to any other Pokemon.This treatment is especially unusual considering Eevee's status as the only Pokemon of the Red and Blue versions with the ability to evolve into more than one Pokemon, and the fact that these evolutions didn't evolve any further. Jolteon, Vaporeon, and Flareon were all second-stage evolutions and, unlike most PokeGods, could have easily had another stage while remaining within the established three-stage limit. Evolutions for all three should have easily been rumored, yet it appears only Flareon held this distinction.


One likely explanation behind this is that while Fire has always been a popular type, Fire-type Pokemon in the Red and Blue versions were few and far between. Combined with the tendency of people to relate any 'new' pokemon to one that already exists, it can be understood how any PokeGod that had a name suggestive of fire would be attached to a pre-existing Fire-type Pokemon. This theory is supported by another Fire-type PokeGod, Charcolt, which was mainly said to evolve from Charizard, but on occasion would instead be said to evolve from Rapidash. Likewise, Flareth was also attached to various existing Fire-type Pokemon. While Flareth was predominately said to evolve from Flareon, less circulated codes stated it could alternatively evolve from Arcanine, Charizard, or Rapidash. Several times the name was offered as the actual name for MissingNo. or Ho-Oh (yet another Fire-type PokeGod). These things considered, it seems that the reason only Flareon was singled out and given a further evolution was because of its popularity as a Fire-type Pokemon.


Another possible explanation can be found in what may have been a possible inspiration for the creation of Flareth: Pikaflare. Or, rather, the early Gold/Silver "Honoguma" artwork which inspired the PokeGod Pikaflare. While the name "Honoguma" does not seem to have been commonly circulated alongside its artwork (which wasn't that well circulated either), it is possible that this discrepancy in its fabled "origin" in comparison to how it is actually obtained could come from it originally being an alternate name for Pikaflare/Honoguma, which at some point became an entirely separate PokeGod. If this is the case, it is likely that once this distinction was made and the connection lost, Flareth was later attributed to being a Flareon evolution due to the "flare" in its name and the popularity of "evolved from" PokeGods.
Despite either of these possible origins for Flareth, the Pokemon Factory decided to go in a completely different direction with their fake Pokedex sprite. As Flareth was still one of the most popular PokeGods of the Second Wave, it was only fitting for the site to attempt a visualization for it. This visualization (as seen to the left) is that of a fiery dragon, which is clearly a color-edit of Ridley from the Metroid series. As many people didn't consider the Pokemon Factory sprites to be real, this depiction was often disregarded, but is still notable in that it was yet another variation in how Flareth was interpreted. It should be mentioned that while this interpretation was not particularly popular for its time (possibly for being recognized by many as fake), "modern" interpretations of Flareth seem to favor this version and tend to interpret Flareth as some sort of flying creature.
While there were many codes for obtaining Flareth, as suggested by the numerous Pokemon it was said to evolve from or be, the vast majority of them were never circulated and thus had little bearing on what people thought of the PokeGod. For many, there was only one true code for obtaining Flareth, and it was from this code that many of the variations and alternatives originated. The code involved talking to the thirsty girl on the top level of the Celadon department store with either the three legendary birds in your party or four Moltres, with some variations requiring three Geodudes as well. After fulfilling this prerequisite, you would then need to talk to the girl for a high number of times (usually 100, with the 101st activating the code) which would cause her to become annoyed with you and give you Flareth if you would "leave her alone", with talking to her again often warned to have consequences. The code would sometimes be expanded to have one of two required activation codes: the first would require first using the Item Finder to locate a bottle or note in the Unknown Dungeon directing you to the girl, while the other advised having all 150 Pokemon (a common requirement).


This code seems to be one of the most popular and well remembered of all the PokeGod rumors, most likely because of its simplicity and almost pure usage of established code archetypes. It is also notable for its similarity to both the Mr. Psychic access code and the code for obtaining Charcolt (which even took place in the Celadon department store). All three required having some variation of the three legendary birds and three Geodudes in your active party. The three were sometimes grouped together, which suggests they may have been written by the same person, or that one existed first and inspired the other two.


Either way, Flareth and the various codes to obtain it mark it as one of the definitive PokeGods of the entire phenomenon. The steps of its code closely follow the archetypes that served as the foundation of the most circulated and believed codes, while the sheer number of variations of the code demonstrate the impact a PokeGod's popularity can have on its circulation and evolution. Taking all of this into consideration, Flareth can certainly be considered one of the prime examples of the height of the PokeGod phenomenon. What Mew and Pikablu were for the very beginnings of the First Wave, Flareth was to the Second Wave.

DEMONIX
"Dimonix" (sometimes "Diminox", "Dimondox", "Dmonix", or "Dimanonix") was a rumored evolution of Onix. It had the most variations of name than any other PokeGod, making it difficult to tell which was the original or most circulated version. However, all variations more or less indicate that this supposed evolution was composed of diamonds. For the purposes of this article, "Dimonix" will be the name used due to no reason other than personal preference.Dimonix, even counting its numerous names, was not a very popular or well-circulated PokeGod. References to it could often be found only on sites that didn't copy-and-paste whole code-lists wholesale. While this seclusion undoubtedly aided in Dimonix having a lack of publicity, it also resulted in the many variations of its name and code. This was likely due to site-owners writing the code down from memory after not being able to find it again.


While there were many variants, Dimonix only truly had one code. However, it was also prone to variation and would often be worded differently with each instance, though the basic method of the code remained a constant: A level 60 Onix would have to be traded for a certain number of times. Usually the Onix would have to be traded with another level 60 Onix, with the number of back-and-forth trades being 4, 6, or "a lot".
A few variations of this code added a short description of how Dimonix looked, with one suggesting it would have horns and another (possibly later one) wings as well as horns. This description could be found under a variation that used the name "Dmonix", which can be pronounced as either "De-men-ix" or "Dem-on-ix" (similar to "Demonic", but with an "x" end). This pronunciation is likely the source for the demonic appearance of horns and wings.Why exactly Onix had a PokeGod evolution at all is unusual in itself and calls to question its origin. Onix wasn't a particularly popular Pokemon, which begs the question why anyone felt it needed an evolution. As evidenced by several of the other PokeGods discussed on this site, many PokeGods were initially inspired due to official sources, popularity, or third-part sources. As just stated, Onix wasn't very popular, so we are left with two possible origins for Dimonix. Each will be discussed with points supporting and opposing their likelihood, though neither are entirely conclusive.
The most likely origin of Dimonix is the Pokemon Factory, which introduced a sprite showcasing a fake Pokemon of the name "Diminox" sometime in 1999. This sprite (as seen above) depicts a golem-like rock monster that was likely taken from an RPG game. The code for Dimonix was being circulated as early as May of 1999 (though possibly even earlier), so the years at least coincide. For many people, this sprite is the exact origin that inspired the evolution for Onix. However, the two look nothing alike and the Pokemon Factory itself assures us that if one of their fake Pokemon shared a name with a PokeGod, it was because the code inspired them to create it, not the other way around.
Another possible origin for Dimonix (this time from an official source) is the Crystal Onix appearing in the anime. While made-up of a different mineral, a younger viewer would easily be reminded of the more well-known diamond and believe that that was what the Crystal Onix was. The anime certainly was responsible for the introduction and popularity of several Pokemon before, so briefly causing interest in Onix in such a way where a "secret" evolution might exist is one of the more plausible origins for this PokeGod. However, like the Pokemon Factory as an origin, this, too, is called into question.


The first broadcast of The Crystal Onix in the United States, which featured the Pokemon, was February 5th of 2000. This is over half a year after the Dimonix codes were being circulated. One could argue that the PokeGod was inspired by the Japanese broadcast of that episode, which actually did precede the rumors by several months, though this is considered unlikely due to the relative "foreign media policy" Japan held at the time. The episode simply couldn't be seen earlier than when it was broadcast in the US due to the lack of inter-cultural media sharing. So is this possible origin debunked? Probably not. But its validity is certainly questioned, which only serves in continuing the mystery of this particular PokeGod.


All this aside, Dimonix largely stands out for one reason: its similarity to Steelix. While most codes for PokeGods at the time required the Mist Stone or simply catching them, Dimonix was one of the few PokeGods involving actual trade with another game. Comparing this with the actual method for evolving an Onix into a Steelix, one of the few Gold and Silver Pokemon to evolve upon trade, it seems like a strong coincidence. In fact, one site even name-switched two of the original Dimonix codes with the name Steelix. However, it is unlikely that Dimonix was ever inspired by Steelix, and that this one site simply believed they were "updating" the code.
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For now this is it, we're coming to the end, keep a close watch at this :D

See ya later Underworlders!!





The conditions in which we were born are not what define us, it's what we do with the gift of life what defines who we truly are.
Draconic Nightmare Rickz Jaggerjaquez