Water-types are so often generic. Much like the three-stage bird Pokemon we always find on Route 1, every generation of Pokemon brings a new fish. Scarlet & Violet added Veluza, which is based on a swordfish (cool) but ruins your day when you’re trying to shiny hunt for Dratini or Tatsugiri on Casseroya Lake (not cool). It also brought Dondozo, which looks like it should evolve from Whiscash but doesn’t, and a dolphin that evolves into exactly the same dolphin. What a waste.
All fish Pokemon are unimaginative and interchangeable. Magikarp, Goldeen, Feebas, Finneon, Barraskewda, Alolmomola, Wishiwashi, they’re all the same. Yes, the likes of Magikarp and Feebas evolve into cool monsters, and Wishiwashi has a nice gimmick, but from a design perspective, I’ve never been so bored than when scrolling through a list of fish Pokemon. I’d rather replay Gen 4 than do this, and that’s saying something.
Related: Check Out The Unused Sketches Of Legendary Pokemon Designer Muneo Saito
Enter Bruxish. On the surface, it’s just another fish, but Game Freak decided to actually make an effort with this one. Or maybe they gave Noel Fielding a pen and a particularly strong herbal tea, who’s to say? Bruxish’s design is inspired by ‘80s raves and lots of acid. This psychedelic sea creature feels like it was designed as a normal, regular, Goldeen-ass fish, and then dipped in a vat of acid, Joker style, except with the trippy, illegal one instead of the corrosive stuff. That’s probably illegal too, thinking about it.
A fish made up of pinks and yellows is a bold statement, but it fits with the Alolan vibe. Hawai’i is one of the few places in the world with a living coral reef, and the biodiversity of the Pacific islands leads to extravagant colourations that would look more like aliens than aquatic life if spotted in the grey sludge that the English call the River Mersey. Hawai’i, and the Alola region that’s based on it, is a place of crystal clear seas lapping gently upon white beaches, and the wildlife there reflects the beauty of its biomes. Bruxish doesn’t just look wacky for the sake of it, and if you don’t get annoyed by Alolan Exeggutor or Lurantis, you shouldn’t get mad at Bruxish.
Bruxish is about more than just pretty colours, though. I think a lot of the disrespect that people throw at it comes from its feminine design. It has big eyelashes and pouting lips that cover its pearly whites, earning it unfair comparisons to Kim Kardashian when Sun & Moon released. Sure, maybe Bruxish has had some work done, but why is a little botox and some fillers such a bad thing? She’s been down the salon to get dolled up ahead of a big Saturday night, and she’s ready to eat up the Hau’oli Strip.
I’m not calling every Bruxish hater a sexist, but, well… I’m not not saying that. Pokemon fans love female-coded Pokemon, so long as they’re slender like Gardevoir, saucy like Tsareena, and graceful like Latias. Bruxish is a real woman who’s proud of how she looks, and so she should be. If you can’t accept that, then maybe you need to analyse your own internal fish biases before hopping on the Bruxish hate train, first station Lips.
And yet for some reason, Bruxish was one of only 63 Pokemon never added to Gen 8. Its recent addition to Pokemon Go has been met with outcry due to its perceived ugliness. This is vastly unfair. Bruxish is the most visually interesting fish Pokemon the series has ever created. It may not be very good in battle, but I’m not telling you to use it competitively here, I’m telling you to pair it with Oinkologne and Dachsbun for a bit of fun on your playthrough. You’ve used Gyarados a hundred times before, and Scope Lens Veluza just isn’t fun for anyone involved.
Bruxish isn’t glamorous like Milotic or iconic like Gyarados. It’s not going to rule the competitive ladder like Dondozo. But it doesn’t care. Bruxish deserves your love, but it’ll do just fine without it.
Next: Why Is Suicune A Dinosaur Now?
