Time to kick off my Pokémon reviews with the first one in line: Bulbasaur!

This little guy has always been a common appearance in advertisements and merchandise. Bulbasaur is one of those Pokémon that other people can recognize without fail, and for good reasons! Its design is simple, clean, and adorable.

I may have largely ignored Bulbasaur as a child, but that doesn’t mean I never loved its design. Part of its charm comes from the difficulty to pinpoint exactly what it is as a creature. It looks somewhat like a dinosaur, but not of any particular species. Its face looks frog or toad-like, with ears that could be interpreted as horns because of the lack of definition. Indeed, Bulbasaur doesn’t explicitly look like anything found in the real world, instead drawing inspiration from nature to take its own shape. It definitely lives up to its title as a Pocket Monster!

Other reasons I love Bulbasaur’s design are found in the finer details. Rather than have spots on its skin in a repeating pattern, they’re all free form shapes placed semi-randomly. It creates a visually pleasing mix of asymmetrical elements against Bulbasaur’s otherwise symmetrical body.

I also enjoy that Bulbasaur’s pupils are white instead of the typical black. They don’t give off a ghoulish appearance like I’d expect them to be. On the contrary; I find they make Bulbasaur cuter! It’s a shame that later evolutions don’t have these eyes as well, but I’m glad that at least Bulbasaur has them.

And then there’s the giant bulb on its back. As every single Pokédex entry on Bulbasaur points out, this plant is where it gets its nourishment from. This information suggests that Bulbasaur either has a symbiotic relationship with the bulb, or that it’s literally a plant dinosaur… thing! It’s an interesting concept!

Another feature I’ve always liked about Bulbasaur’s family are the vines that extend from their bulb. Although not an ability exclusive to its family, Bulbasaur was the first Pokémon to showcase it.

I love that Bulbasaur can hone in on its plant-based powers and use vines as extendible arms. It can overcome any physical limitations brought by its stubby legs!

A solid Pokémon and a classic to the series. There isn’t much more I can add in closing that hasn’t been said before!

Through a little training, Bulbasaur becomes what I call… “Bulbasaur 2.0.”

Okay, that was admittedly a little harsh on Ivysaur. There’s nothing wrong that it looks like an adolescent Bulbasaur. Heck, that’s probably the point. Middle-stage Pokémon often follow a gradual, only somewhat bigger feel to them, typical of many animals in the real world. After all, there’s still another evolution for Ivysaur to undergo!

Rolling with the plant theme, Ivysaur’s bulb has opened into a flower bud. All its Pokédex entries simply state that it’s a sweet-smelling flower that absorbs sunlight. Typical flower stuff.

Ultimately, Ivysaur is an extension of Bulbasaur. While not a bad thing, it doesn’t give me a whole lot of material to commentate on.

I find that Venusaur’s design makes its Poison-Grass typing much more apparent. To me, the fully matured flower gives the notion of “harmful if touched.”

Bulbapedia suggests its shape and patterns are similar to the Rafflesia arnoldii (the “corpse flower”). For the longest time, I didn’t understand this connection aside from looks. After some quick research, I found that Rafflesia begins life as a parasite to a specie of rainforest vine. In the world of Pokémon, the Poison typing can loosely reference a symbiotic relationship between two entities. So while the Rafflesia isn’t necessarily toxic, its parasitic existence debilitates its host in a similar fashion to poisonous substances.

Even more, just before the Rafflesia blooms, its bud looks like a pinkish or flesh-colored cabbage. The color chosen for Ivysaur’s bud has a deeper connection than I thought!

(Photo Credit: Troy Davis)

But wait, there’s more cool plant information! Ever notice how Venusaur’s flower trunk looks similar to a palm tree’s? It turns out that every inch of the Sago Palm is toxic if ingested. That trunk on Venusaur’s back may have more meaning than simply being a support to the giant flower!

(Photo from Cold Hardy Palms & Bamboo)

Now that I’ve extensively rambled about Venusaur’s flower, it’s time to talk about the rest of its design. Just like its pre-evolutions, Venusaur may take cues from reptiles and amphibians, but it’s nothing clearly identifiable from the real world. It’s a menacing, hulking beast of its own!

Not to mention a little terrifying when unleashing an attack in Pokémon Stadium:

Sadly, those bloodshot eyes were removed around the time Pokémon Battle Revolution was released. But it’s one of those small touches that will remain forever ingrained in my brain.

The bumpy skin is a great detail on Venusaur. It adds extra texture and pop to its visual appeal. It’s also worth mentioning how its turtle-like jawline is represented by a continuous and curved line. It’s simple, but highly effective!

There really isn’t anything negative I can say about Venusaur. I only wish Bulbasaur’s horn “ears” were carried over instead of putting literal ears on Venusaur, but it’s not a deal breaker to the design as a whole.

Venusaur hits all those sweet spots when it comes to a strong and awesome-looking monster design. It’s a shame I was always obsessed with Charizard when I was younger; I should have considered this behemoth in at least one of my playthroughs!

Ah, but we’re not done yet! Venusaur was among the first wave of Pokémon that introduced Mega Evolutions!

Quite frankly, I can’t stand the wasted potential.

Venusaur doesn’t appear to have changed at all. Sure, its flower has grown into a miniature palm tree, but even then it looks exactly the same as before. And then there’s the one flower sitting on the poor thing’s head like a sticker to assure you that yes, Venusaur has in fact Mega Evolved.

How would I improve this design? Well, it would be unfair of me to reply with “everything,” as Mega Evolutions don’t have to be a complete overhaul of the Pokémon in question. They’re more often handled as “half” evolutions. Unfortunately, there are no clear concepts in my mind for my “better” Mega Venusaur, so instead I’ll rattle off some questions that come to mind:

Why must Mega Venusaur’s flower retain roughly the same patterns and colors as its previous form? What if the flower had a more wild shape to it? What if the entire plant was twisted or curved because of all the extra weight brought by those giant branches?

Why not have the flower on its forehead serve a bigger purpose than simply sit there?

Since it looks like Mega Venusaur has even more weight to carry on its back, why not bulk its body out more? Or better yet, what if it had to use additional plant-like growths on its body to brace that extra weight?

Questions like these are why Mega Venusaur is such a disappointment to me. Venusaur continuing to grow foliage makes sense, but I feel the concept could have been pushed further.

Gigantamax Review: Added January 31, 2021

A few years and a couple generations later, Game Freak coincidentally answered one of my propositions. Supersizing Venusaur’s flower – to the point it drapes over its body – is an instantly recognizable upgrade. This single change eclipses Mega Venusaur to an embarrassing degree.

But like many Pokemon designs first seen in the 3D games, this Venusaur’s full potential is held back by underwhelming animations. Its flower commands half of the screen, and yet each petal moves in a lethargic, synchronized up-down movement. It feels so mechanical and devoid of character.

(Venusaur is showcased during the first half of this video; screenshot above was taken from it)

The vines – while visually captivating in Sugimori’s art – are only present when Venusaur attacks. I can only hypothesize that Game Freak was worried about phallic imagery by having them constantly wave. That’s understandable, but takes away another point of interest, leaving the sea of pink to chew up the camera.

Not even the bioluminescent spots on Venusaur’s underbelly get a fair shake. By the time Venusaur hits the ground, Sword and Shield’s lighting obliterates most traces of their existence. Why even bother adding them at that point?

Purely on its looks, Gigantamax Venusaur gets a “thumbs up” from me. It’s just a shame that its animations can’t elevate it to be better.