#608 - Litwick
Ghost/Fire
Among the Ghost-type Pokemon introduced in Generation V Litwick is the closest to being a Gastly parallel due to being part of a three-stage line, inhabiting the game's cemetery area, and focusing on Special Attack but beyond that it's a fairly unique Pokemon---it still bothers me though that we got exact counterparts to Geodude and Machop in Roggenrola and Timburr, but Abra and Gastly, the other two original Link Evolutions, did not. At this point Litwick is far weaker than Gastly, who right out of the box could be quite powerful, due to rather paltry stats but stick with it long enough till it evolves (all the way at Level 41!) because it does end up becoming pretty good. Anyway it's the first, and only, Ghost/Fire line and combines the power of Fire-types moves with the trickery of Ghost-type moves which is an interesting pairing, since Fire traditionally has been very limited in terms of support moves to just Sunny Day and Will-O-Wisp (which thematically works as Litwick's signature attack) and has somewhat limited potential on its own. On the other hand the combination brings with it a lot of key weaknesses as well, which is bad news for a fairly slow Pokemon.
Litwick is yet another object Pokemon and one with a low-hanging Digimon comparison readily available, Candlemon anyone?, though it seems to be far better received than Klink likely due to having a unique Type in addition to cool lore---plus as I've said before it seems fans are more willing to accept the Ghost-type Pokemon based on objects since they could be seen as simply possessing a physical object as opposed to being the object itself. In fact based on the appearances of its evolutions one could possibly suspect that Litwick isn't the candle, rather the flame is the Pokemon's true body with the candle simply being a physical form it uses to interact with the world. This design also works over Klink due to being very cute and emotive, you'll notice that while it's smiling the way the shadow falls over its face gives it a somewhat sinister appearance which reflects its actual personality, and I like how it design also brings to mind the classic "sheet ghost" Pokemon hasn't really tackled yet.
So, yeah, the Litwick line is pretty dark. This friendly little guy is said to appear to folks and seemingly act as a guide for them, but in reality it uses its light to absorb the energy of people and Pokemon---this apparently is so it can survive, though one wonders if it does this merely because it's straight-up evil. One could see it as a twisted take on the idea of funeral processions involving candles, which in Japan tends to result in a person being cremated---here one may find themselves burned alive as well as they're led to an untimely death. Furthermore it may lurk around grave sites so that it can take advantage of grieving individuals, perhaps masquerading as the souls of their loved ones? And while the games tend to avoid actually utilizing the darker elements of the PokeDex, often being a case of the player simply ignoring the entries as being hyperbolic, Black 2 and White 2 actually references this fact through a minor NPC who uses Litwick in the Celestial Tower. After defeating her she will do something extremely unique---she'll actually move to a different location, a nearby Pokemon Center, claiming she ended up feeling worn out and tired.
Of course Best Wishes, being a children's anime and all (and aiming even lower it felt) completely ignored Litwick's villainy, instead casting them as playful Pokemon who befriended Team Rocket's Yamask and then unknowingly participated in Team Rocket's schemes to capture Pikachu. You know, silly ghost Pokemon and all---but hey, y'know, Team Rocket suddenly looks oddly skinny and tired? And, wait a second, even the gang's Pokemon look pretty sickly? Then things get pretty dark as the Litwick drop the charade of being playful Pokemon and literally open a portal to hell and try to suck everyone into it, the gang working their hardest to repel them and eventually succeeding, the Litwick being flung into the "Ghost World" for good. Yeah, this episode took everyone by surprise when it aired for abandoning the usual saccharine flavor of the show and playing up the darker parts of a Pokemon without censoring it, and that was really cool. It also happened to be one of the few Best Wishes episodes where Team Rocket had any semblance of their classic personality, even having a truce with the twerps, which basically disappeared after this episode for the rest of the series.
#609 - Lampent
Ghost/Fire
Litwick evolves into Lampent at the ridiculously high level of 41, and it's only the middle evolution! While this isn't that big of an issue if you catch Litwick in Black and White, since it'll be around Level 30 already, it makes raising one from an egg to use in the game rather difficult---and Lampent's stats aren't necessarily that great either for a Pokemon who evolves so late into the game. Thankfully it evolves again through a Stone Evolution so you'll probably want to do that straight-away, the only moves you'll miss out on really is Shadow Ball and Overheat but both of those can be taught through TMs so it's not a difficult choice to make.
Lampent falls into the same category as Eelectrik does, that awkward high-leveled middle evolution whose design isn't quite as good as what comes before or after and who you'll want to evolve ASAP, which is made easier due to the fact they evolve through Evolution Stones. Anyway despite being an "object" Pokemon Litwick doesn't quite evolve like one, having a more organic evolution where its shape changes drastically---or perhaps the flame, which may be its "soul", simply relocates to the street-lamp it's now inhabiting? Though Lampent doesn't appear to be made of metal like an actual lamp as you can tell going by the art as it seems to have great control over its arms and can bend them freely. One effect of the design I like is how the inner light of the flame gives the impression of Lampent's mouth, though it really does just seem to be the flame---a nice visual trick taking advantage of the cartoonier nature of Pokemon which Generation I did frequently such as the "negative space" Gastly and Tentacruel utilized. I also like how the top of the lamp gives it a little witch's hat.
Lampent doesn't quite kill people, but it's a very opportunistic and predatory Pokemon who wanders the streets at night searching for spirits of the fallen that it can absorb for energy. It is said to appear at the moment of one's death so that it can steal the spirit from the body, and will even hang around hospitals waiting for people to die which is to me one of the darkest entries in the entire series since this could really freak a little kid out---imagine reading this and having a family member in the hospital, I would've been terrified if I was young enough to believe such creatures existed. Furthermore if you train a Lampent, you've basically got an entire catalog of tormented souls trapped within your PokeBall who will never be able to pass over into the next life. That's some pretty heavy stuff to think about, but hey, Ghost/Fire is totally rad dude!
Poor Lampent suffered the worst fate to befall any Pokemon in Best Wishes---he ended up as Trip's, meaning outside of his initial appearance early on where he was used to repel Venipede from attacking Castelia City he completely disappeared afterwards. On a lighter note, just think---the day Trip finally dies and the world is free from the worst rival of all time Lampent will be there ready to steal his soul and prevent him from being reincarnated. One also appeared at the end of the Litwick episode as their leader, helping them attempt to pull Ash and Team Rocket into the ghost world.
#610 - Chandelure
Ghost/Fire
Like the Shiny Stone the Dusk Stone also sees some use in Black and White, evolving Lampent into Chandelure. While the rest of Chandelure's stats aren't anything to write home about, they work well enough but its stand out trait is its very high Special Attack of 145 which means even after using Overheat it can still wreck some serious damage. In the competitive scene Chandelure is a Pokemon a lot of people wanted to be good since it was cool looking and had a cool Type, though runs into a lot of issues due to its low defenses, various weaknesses, and poor Speed which makes it hard for it to take advantage of that glorious Special Attack---it's still good though, especially if you can protect it through the use of Substitute, and if you keep it alive long enough to make use of its attacks very few Pokemon will be able to resist it. Could Chandelure BE any more powerful? Actually, yes, as in Generation V the data had Shadow Tag as a Hidden Ability, an Ability that would've (as you've seen from how important it is to Wobbuffet and Gothitelle) possibly changed the game but Game Freak ultimately got cold feet it seems and never officially released it thus banning it from all legit tournaments. And as of Generation VI Shadow Tag was officially replaced with Infiltrator, meaning all hacked Shadow Tag Chandelure will now have that as their Ability and basically killing any chances of Shadow Tag Chandelure ever seeing the light of day.
In Japan Chandelure I recall was voted the most popular Unova Pokemon in a poll a Japanese magazine (once more it was either Nintendo Dream or Famitsu) ran shortly after the release of Black and White, and he also seems to be fairly well received by the majority of Western fans as well though perhaps not to the same extent---this popularity may have factored into it being chosen as a playable character in Pokken Tournament, a fact that shocked a lot of people since, well, it's a freaking chandelier! Still though many people quickly warmed up to him, a Generation V Pokemon finally getting into the game was nice to see, though some folks weren't happy since many were hoping for Swampert to be revealed to fit in alongside Sceptile and Blaziken and we already had multiple Fire-types and a Ghost-type included, with other Types such as Bug and Rock receiving no representation whatsoever. Chandelure is a very tricky character who despite that happens to be a Power category fighter, and seems to be one of the highest-ranking Pokemon due to its projectile game which can be quite difficult for the majority of players to avoid. It also happens to basically be Pokken's resident "moe" character, believe it or not...
We go from a ghostly candle, to a ghostly lamp, to a ghostly chandelier which for a Ghost/Fire Pokemon is a pretty logical progression if you ask me. Chandelier has a pretty interesting and visually distinct design, often being compared (both positively and negatively) to a Heartless from the Kingdom Hearts series and though it doesn't do anything particularly noteworthy with the chandelier motif (though you'll notice it's kind of a flipped Lampent almost) it's pretty neat regardless, the second coolest chandelier-based Nintendo monster behind Golden Sun's Crystallux. Like its other family members its PokeDex is also pretty dark, as it's said to use a special kind of flame that leaves the body untouched---but causes a person's soul to be engulfed in flames and forced to wander the world for all of eternity. Game Freak really went all with this line's lore, huh?
Japan's most popular Unova Pokemon, or so it seems, got shit in Best Wishes though---it appeared under the ownership of Ingo where it helped save the gang's Pokemon from Team Rocket, and later took on Ash and Cilan in a Double Battle where it used Psychic to hold Pansage and Tepig in place while Eelektross took them out, but apart from that had like two small cameo appearances. I really don't know what they were thinking when it came to showcasing Pokemon in Best Wishes...I'd take them getting bland filler episodes like in Johto over them basically being ignored any day.