I love Pokémon, it’s my special interest, I’ve been playing since Gen 1 and have pretty extensive knowledge about the Pokémon world.

However since becoming a communist I’ve realized that a lot of things are missing from the world, including basic functions on how everything works. Just the presence of police implies there are laws that have to be enforced, which in turn implies people write those laws, etc. We know that there was an industrial revolution, which led to capitalism, being the economic system in all Pokémon regions, meaning all of the contradictions that come with it. There was a war that took place, as alluded to by Lt. Surge, who might actually be from Unova.

In the manga there’s the Pokémon Association (PA), a legislative body that determines the laws involving Pokémon, similar to Congress here in the U.S., with each region apparently having its own PA.

In the anime they have the Pokémon Inspection Agency (PIA) that inspects Gyms to see if they’re up to par.

They don’t explicitly talk about politics and political views (obviously because the series is marketed to kids) but I think exploring these mechanisms could be really interesting, if not for the fact that Pokémon adds another layer to politics because they’re creatures with a material effect on the world.

Some people might be more left leaning when it comes to economics and social issues, but might be more right leaning when it comes to trainer regulations.

I’m curious to know what other people think, I’m actually writing a story that explores some of these themes so I’d love to get some ideas!

  • Water Bowl Slime@lemmygrad.ml
    1·
    1 year ago

    Pollution Pokemon can’t be exterminated? I thought there was a Pokedex entry that said one of them is soon to go extinct but I could be wrong.

    Which elite four do you mean? Are you talking about the plot from black and white with Ghetsis and stuff? Tbh he makes good points about Pokemon cockfighting that go unaddressed.

    • taiphlosion@lemmygrad.mlOP
      1·
      1 year ago

      I mean…why would they do that? There’s no active extermination campaign going on as far as I’m aware. Instead they leave places like the Power Plant in Kanto as a wild habitat. I’m not sure which one you could be referring to besides prehistoric Pokémon.

      The Kanto Elite Four served as the primary antagonists for Yellow in the manga, seeking to wipe out most of humanity in order to create a utopia for Pokémon.

      Also…no, Ghetsis does not make any good points because 1) Pokémon battling isn’t just cockfighting as they already battle in nature, it’s humans that are able to bring out their fullest potential, and 2) because the idea of “is it okay to own Pokémon” has probably long since been talked about before and addressed already, and the fact that humans and Pokémon have been living together for thousands of years even before modern battling and the Pokémon League.

      Quoting Drayden, Gym Leader of Opelucid:

      The cooperation of people and Pokémon is how Unova came to exist to begin with. If a Pokémon really didn’t want anything to do with humans, it would simply leave… Capturing a Pokémon in a Poké Ball doesn’t mean you’ve captured its heart.

      • Water Bowl Slime@lemmygrad.ml
        2·
        1 year ago

        The Pokemon I was thinking of is OG Muk in the Alolan games. Here’s its entry in Moon:

        After recent environmental improvements, this Pokémon is now hardly seen at all. People speculate that it may go extinct at some point.

        And in Ultra Moon it says that people are trying to kill them all:

        Because they scatter germs everywhere, they’ve long been targeted for extermination, leading to a steep decline in their population.

        But in Ultra Sun, it says that people pollute on purpose to keep them around:

        Their food sources have decreased, and their numbers have declined sharply. Sludge ponds are being built to prevent their extinction.

        It’s kinda funny how in the Pokemon world, dumping trash helps wildlife and cleaning up kills them.

        Anyway I find it very questionable how much consent Pokemon really have after they’re captured. I mean, aren’t all of team plasma’s Pokemon stolen and being used against their will? Plus I doubt that the hundreds of creatures that I’ve got rotting away in my computer are happy about that. Or all the competitive incest breeding…