In the World of Pokemon

[Polo]

If this is the case, what I mean by this, is "if Pokemon like to battle", then I wonder if certain Pokemon who WANT to be super strong go and find the best trainers? If Pokemon are intelligent, and they want to compete on a high level, do you think they would seek out a powerful trainer?

Let us use Lance as an example, head honcho of the Elite 4. Do you think, let's say, a Dratini who wants to become a Dragonite and unleash it's full power might go find him and sort of implicate it's willingness to be trained? I know Pokemon can't talk, except Meowth, for whatever reason, so it couldn't just say "Hey Lance, make me the best Dragonite" but it could certainly indicate it's desire.

If so, I wonder how many pokemon go in search of RED. I wonder if that could be entire new perspective on Pokemon. I can sort of see a determined Rhydon, who evolved from a Rhyhorn, traveling far and wide in search of RED, going through steaming, humid marshes, and frigid, icey Mountains, hot, baking deserts all in the search to unlock its maximum potential and make the ground tremble before its thunderous stomps.

If Pokemon like to battle, and are intelligent, surely this would indicate Pokemon can have dreams of being the best as much as trainers? I like to think my Wally (Feraligator) chose ME :3 (In game he was given to me by Professor Elm :/)

 

[Chewiana Jones]

Essentially, because the laws of physics don't really exist in the Pokemon world, so no Pokemon ever ends up getting injured worse than if they were in a full-contact karate match, even if a level 100 Zapdos uses Thunder on a level 1 Magikarp. This is also how Hydro Pump somehow does the same amount of damage as Thunder. Anyways, Pokemon are thus able to better themselves and enjoy the competition without being blown into a million tiny pieces.

 

[Chewiana Jones]

Essentially, because the laws of physics don't really exist in the Pokemon world, so no Pokemon ever ends up getting injured worse than if they were in a full-contact karate match, even if a level 100 Zapdos uses Thunder on a level 1 Magikarp. This is also how Hydro Pump somehow does the same amount of damage as Thunder. Anyways, Pokemon are thus able to better themselves and enjoy the competition without being blown into a million tiny pieces.

 

[Endolise]

While I agree with the fact that Pokemon do like to battle and bond with their trainers to get stronger, if you consider from a pokemon who doesn't want to be captured POV, its almost cruel. I mean, getting captured against your will and being forced to leave the place you call home? That's despressing. Never seeing your family again is even worse.

I believe this was addressed by a Sinnoh myth:

Long ago, when Sinnoh had just been
made, Pokémon and humans led
separate lives.
That is not to say they did not help
each other. No, indeed they did.
They supplied each other with goods,
and supported each other.
A Pokémon proposed to the others
to always be ready to help humans.
It asked that Pokémon be ready to
appear before humans always.
Thus, to this day, Pokémon appear
to us if we venture into tall grass.

Basically, if a Pokemon sees a human wandering around in the grass, they will come to them, assuming that the human is in search of help. However (and this is just my take), the Pokemon will want to make sure they will be in good hands, so they test the human's strength by battling them.

And I know, I know, "that's just a myth." Well, news-flash, it's a video game, so there's nothing preventing the myths from being true, and furthermore, Pokemon's myths are generally used in order to give us some insight toward the truth.

 

[flameswy]

Where on earth do people get this, "pokemon like fighting" garbage from?

I distinctly remember an early anime episode styled like a nature documentary, and in it they explicitly state pokemon never fight in the wild, preferring to settle their differences through races and contests...

I like this whole theme though, my fic is going to do a lot on it.

XD

 

[TheReckless1]

This is stupid. This sounds just like the stuff a ton of groups say. Some religious groups say that pokemon are demons and they're evil. (Please note I have nothing against any religion of any kind.) Some people say it's animal abuse while others say it's teaching kids to beat and torture animals for their own amusment. WHEN WILL PEOPLE LEARN IT'S NOT REAL AND THAT IT IS JUST A GAME/SHOW!

 

[BigThunderMan]

I guess if this was real Micheal Vick would be the Pokemon League Champion.

 

[Crimson Penguin]

I guess if this was real Micheal Vick would be the Pokemon League Champion.

Do not compare Pokemon to Michael Vick. They aren't even in the same league. Michael Vick did absolutely atrocious things to dogs. He tortured them when they didn't fight well, pulled their teeth if they were rebellious, forced females to breed almost constantly, and even killed the ones that weren't "good enough." I remember reading a story about one of the dogs that had been rescued from that kennel - it had been so traumatized that it was too afraid to bark. But trainers don't abuse or kill their Pokemon for not doing well in battle, and the Pokemon themselves get healed of all their wounds (none of which are life-threatening) at the Pokemon Center after the battle. The anime also does much to show how important positive bonds between Pokemon and trainer are, placing the values of people like Ash above those of people like Paul, for example. And when people do try to take advantage of Pokemon (like the villains in the movies), they are quickly brought to justice.

And as others have said, Pokemon is fictional. It abides by its own rules, and one of those rules is that Pokemon are not killed or maimed in battle; they just lose their energy for a while. What Michael Vick did was real, and it was morally and ethically reprehensible. He should have gotten far more time in jail than he did.

 

[Blivsey]

This got touched on pretty nicely in Black and White, and a bit of imagination can fill in the gaps.

While it's never stated directly in the games (the anime and manga border on confirming this), it's heavily implied that the Pokémon-trainer relationship is entirely voluntary on the Pokémon's part, and that Pokémon could rightfully leave their trainers if they felt the need to (after all, how would any human of reasonable size stop a half-ton lizard from doing anything?). Also, consider the fact that most Pokémon are shown to have a level of intelligence more comparable to humans than, say, the dogs that the OP uses as an example. In fact, some Pokémon that dislike their trainers have been shown to straight-up refuse to battle for their trainers if they disagree with the human's training methods. However, Pokémon by nature have a desire to get stronger through fighting, and training under humans is an incredibly effective way of accomplishing this goal. Humans in general have repeatedly been shown repeatedly to be immensely respectful of Pokémon both in the wild and under their care, and cases of abuse are almost universally condemned as unacceptable behavior.


In short, even within the scope of this fictional universe, inhuman treatment of Pokémon is not a wide concern.

 

[zozo]

I always supposed that the pokemon that appeared to trainers in tall grass were similar to humans that want to learn martial arts, or other forms of self-defence: they genuinely want to test and build their physical strength, and they're willing to take the risk of incurring some pain in order to achieve that goal

It makes sense, to me. Pokemon are usually depicted as having more acute senses that your average human, so it follows that they can see/hear/smell/feel humans approaching and make a choice: Run, if they don't want to get caught, or appear to test out that trainer in battle and see if he/she would be a good trainer

Then there's the fact that humans and pokemon are shown as being far tougher than ordinary humans and animals in our world. How many of us has been repeatedly electrocuted, burned, scalded, and drowned? Just one encounter like that could finish us off, but perpetually 10-year-old Ash has had all that happen and is still going strong. Then there's the pokemon. Again, electrocution, biting with charged fangs, freezing into a block of solid ice, scalding with boiling water, having energy leeched out through vines, being cursed, having dreams eaten, having nightmares that take physical damage, being slammed by massively heavy pokemon... and all that happens is they faint? That's some serious toughness! So it seems like the Thunder, Focus Blast, Heavy Slam, etc. of the Pokemon world is akin to punches, kicks, etc. martial artists endure in our world. They can be nasty if certain precautions are not taken, but the trainees accept those, voluntarily, as being necessary and acceptable risks for the reward of achieving ... ... well, whatever they set out to achieve. Similarly, eating those, to us, terrible and life-threatening attacks is taken in stride for trainee pokemon. It's all part of becoming stronger.

So no, I don't see it as an abusive relationship. Pokemon are not like our animals, humans are not like our humans, and damage is not incurred the way it is in our world. The way I see it, the Pokemon-Trainer relationship is much more akin to a Neophyte-Master relationship than a Dog-Dogfighter relationship.

 

[ricedonut]

I'm sick of things like this. Pokemon LIKE to battle. They LIKE their Trainers. Do you think they just brood nonstop, wishing they still had their boring lives at home instead of being able to see the world with a good friend? F*** NO. They enjoy their new, exciting, adventure-bound lives.

I agree with this. Isn't anyone else also sick of people saying that the pokemon are crammed into small balls, because it's obvious before they go into the ball they're converted into energy, both in the games and the anime.

 

[☭Secret_Shocker☭]

I'm sick of things like this. Pokemon LIKE to battle. They LIKE their Trainers. Do you think they just brood nonstop, wishing they still had their boring lives at home instead of being able to see the world with a good friend? F*** NO. They enjoy their new, exciting, adventure-bound lives.

Yeah, exactly this. Some Pokemon are made for battling perhaps.

 

[Dragalge]

Pokemon are connected to people, we are connected to pokemon, what about the Musketeer Trio, they hate humans, yet I hear this all the time.

 

[ViCx174]

Lol this sound's like a Team Plasma candidate.

 

[Polo]

I assume after awhile people didn't follow the thread and didn't read my replies, as such they responded only to the OP and not my questions where I clearly agreed that Pokemon ejoyed battling. I'm a team rocket member ;D

 

[32er]

The OP should go punch a rock and see if the rock gets hurt.

 

[Lord of Fire]

Oh boy. Another one of these threads? Really? Can't you just reason with yourself of these useless, already proved debates instead of wasting other people's times on serebii forums

 

[kavinwatts]

According to me Pokemon is amazing series.
Because this full of action & entertainment
drama. So i'm like this.

 

[Sceptile40]

I'm sick of things like this. Pokemon LIKE to battle. They LIKE their Trainers. Do you think they just brood nonstop, wishing they still had their boring lives at home instead of being able to see the world with a good friend? F*** NO. They enjoy their new, exciting, adventure-bound lives.

Couldn't have said it better. That's just what they do.

 

[The Outcast]

Pokemon Battling is in a mutual relationship.

For humans, we get entertainment, friendship, and a chance to prove our worth. For Pokemon, they get food, safety from predators and hunters, and a chance to evolved and grow stronger, as well as friendship.