When first released, no one was quite sure what to make of Detective Pikachu. Though unconventional, it gained a following in its own right. Pikachu has, againt expectations, arguably taken his place as one of the great video game detectives.
One of the most fascinating parts of the film adaptation of the Detective Pikachu film is its art direction. Bringing Pokemon into the real world in a way that made sense should have been impossible, but it was done surprisingly well. Major credit is due the art team, including freelance concept artist RJ Palmer. In many ways, Palmer is the perfect choice for making realistic monsters out of cartoons, though a recent tweet from him shows this talent in reverse.
Palmer’s art is filled to the brim with realistic looking fantastic creatures. This includes dinosaurs as the most realistic, with winged tigers and dragons also prominently featured. Palmer’s illustrations of realistic Pokemon range from the beautiful to the disturbing, and the influence of these works can be seen in Detective Pikachu. It makes sense that real-world Pokemon would look bizarre considering their proportions and evolutions alone. In fact, several Pokemon have been compared to Godzilla universe Kaiju. Palmer’s latest designs have taken this in the exact opposite direction: turning Godzilla into a Pokemon.
The specific version of Godzilla chose to adapt into Pokemon form is Shin Godzilla. This variant of Godzilla debuted in the film of the same name back in 2016. Shin Godzilla is unlike any other Godzilla before or since, being a mutant able to change its own DNA, rather than an ancient creature that mutated into a stronger version of itself. Nuclear waste is still to blame for the transformation, and Shin Godzilla is truly terrifying. Even with fan input on the next Detective Pikachu, odds are nothing this scary could find its way in, even if they put in Giratina.
The first two forms that Palmer depicts are actually from the movie. Palmer names the Pokemon forms after the fan names for Shin Godzilla’s early appearances: Kamata Kun and Shinagawa Kun, named for where the forms appear in the film. Make no mistake, as a collectible monster, Shin Godzilla might be more at home in the darker Monster Crown than in Pokemon. Shin Godzilla was created to represent the atrocity of nuclear devastation, something not seen in the kaiju for years.
That said, this kind of terrifying entity is not exactly out of place in Pokemon. Other legendaries, as well as more common Pokemon, have had terrifying connotations as well. If Godzilla can cross over with Magic: The Gathering, perhaps a Pokemon really will be created one day reflecting Godzilla’s darkest side.
Detective Pikachu is available on the Nintendo 3DS.
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