Wing Attack - Flying [Physical]
60/35PP/100%
The target is struck with large, imposing wings spread wide to inflict damage.
Before Gust was changed to a Flying-type attack in Generation II, Wing Attack was the first move for me at least that I associated with Flying-type Pokemon and, boy, looking back really surprised me---I forgot that Wing Attack only had 35 Power in Generation I. It was tied with Peck, but its distribution was absolutely bizarre. Every Pokemon who can learn Peck, such as Spearow, pick it up at Level 1. Those who learn Wing Attack, such as Pidgey, pick it up around Level 30 excluding Aerodactyl, who has it as their Level 1 move, and Scyther, who gets it at Level 50 exclusively in Yellow. Generation II thankfully gave it a good boost to a respectable 60 Power making it a nice mid-game move, but overtime as power creep has occurred Game Freak have given Wing Attack to newer Pokemon at lower levels, and went back and changed most of the older Pokemon to learn it earlier as well.
Except for Pidgey. Game Freak HATES Pidgey. Though you have Pokemon like Charizard and Dragonite who still learn it late, that's only because they're the first members of their line to have wings and learn it upon evolving. Scyther went from Level 50 in Gen I to Level 20 in Gen VII. Zubat went from Level 28 in Gen I to Level 13 in Gen VII. As for Pidgey? It learned Wing Attack at 28 in Gen I if you didn't evolve it. In Gen VII? Level 33. And that's assuming you keep it as Pidgey for that long, if you evolve it to Pidgeot it's Level 38. Playing a Nuzlocke recently in Pokemon Y and using Pidgey this really hit me, as all you basically have is Gust for the longest time and nothing else. This is like a sick joke at this point, Game Freak refusing to make this line viable in-game despite the power creep. The show lied by placing Pidgeotto as the "face" and Fearow and Dodrio as the "heels", it sucks. Anyway this has become less about Wing Attack and more about Pidgey, but, hey it's not me who has kept Pidgey's Wing Attack at such a high level.
Anyway, besides the weirdness with Pidgey (and Yanma, who gets it at 43 currently and loses out if you evolve it!) there's not much else to say about Wing Attack. There's no oddity in terms of who learns it, all the Pokemon who do have visible wings. Now we'll get to another wing-based attack later on where this isn't true. Do you know what it is? And no, I'm not talking about the Aerial Ace issue.
Whirlwind - Normal [Status]
20PP
The target is blown away, and a different Pokémon is dragged out. In the wild, this ends a battle against a single Pokémon.
If powered up by a Normalium Z into Z-Whirlwind, the user's Special Defense stat raises one stage.
The Japanese name of this move is a bit blander, basically "Blow Away", but I think Whirlwind is a nice localization that keeps the general idea behind the move even if it does sound a bit more powerful---like you have a Pokemon with Gust, and then they learn Whirlwind, and that kind of sounds like it'd be a more powerful Gust but, nope, it doesn't do any damage. Whirlwind perhaps could've been turned into a Flying-type move, but I guess since it was a general support move Game Freak realized it didn't really matter what Type it was and left it as is.
So, on the surface, Whirlwind is rather easy to understand. When you use it against a Wild Pokemon, the battle immediately ends. Most folks probably go with a fast Pokemon as their lead-in anyway who can escape battles simply through spamming Run, so its usefulness in that regard is debatable. Maybe it can save your ass in say a Nuzlocke run where failing to run away from a fight can cost you, but for most casual players Whirlwind is a gimmick and nothing more. Against Pokemon Trainers it allows you to forcibly switch their Pokemon, though it couldn't do this in Generation I, which leads to a lot of interesting strategies known as "phazing" in which you force the opponent to switch Pokemon. This is useful for canceling out the opponent's stat boosts, as well as triggering Entry Hazards and thus Whirlwind is quite useful in the competitive scene to this day. Most people probably don't need to rely on this level of strategy in single player, but it's pretty easy to mess with the CPU by forcing them to constantly switch out their Pokemon.
Behind the scenes, there's been a lot of changes to how Whirlwind works over the years. It now has perfect accuracy as long as the opponent isn't in an invulnerable state, though in Gen II it could actually knock away Pokemon who had used Fly, but previously Whirlwind had an actual accuracy percentage, but had a chance of still failing even if it technically hit the foe. This chance of failure was based on if you were of a lower level than the opponent, and in some cases this was calculated differently depending on whether or not it was a Wild Pokemon or a Trainer Pokemon. Game Freak have since greatly simplified Whirlwind and made it a reliable move, but honestly reading through its page on Bulbapedia made me feel stupid. Most of the complexity of this move though only came into play when using it during the main game, where levels aren't even, and in the competitive scene the move has always been more straight-forward so much of the little tidbits and such don't really matter in the long run.
Involving the use of summoning wind, like Gust Whirlwind is learned by a lot of Flying-type Pokemon and those with wings, or some sort of appendage that works in a similar manner like Shiftry's fans. There's a few oddities though like Snorlax and Hariyama, though I imagine the latter may perhaps be a reference to how sumo wrestlers push opponents out of bounds, or perhaps the Japanese name is also the name of a sumo technique, I'm not sure. In Generation I it was a TM that most winged Pokemon could learn, but it hasn't returned as one since, nor as a Move Tutor, so it's a fairly rare move despite the fact that virtually any Pokemon could make good use of it due to its phazing capabilities. Whirlwind is pretty much considered the best phazing move I believe since it works on virtually everyone (Ghost-types included!), and that may be why Game Freak has kept its distribution limited.
So, yeah, in the Koga episode back in Kanto Bulbasaur apparently used "Whirlwind" despite not knowing it in the games---but from what I've read, it was a dub issue where in the Japanese version the verb "to blow away" was ordered and not the specific move. But it was clear that Bulbasaur was improvising here anyway so it's another example where I think a pass can be given. Years later, the dub (TPCI though instead of 4Kids) would do this once more, but this time turning an instance of Gust used by Starly into Whirlwind to be more game accurate.
Fly - Flying [Physical]
90/15PP/95%
The user soars and then strikes its target on the next turn.
The localization gave this move a rather simplistic verb name, but in Japan it's a bit more poetic as "Sora wo Tobu", basically "leap/soar into the air!". Thus a Pokemon flying isn't necessarily using this move, and I believe in the show going by Bulbapedia we never actually saw this move in action till Golurk in Generation V! That being said, Ash's Charizard apparently did know it since one episode he unsuccessfully ordered him to use it (though I'm not sure what he said in the original version) and the Japanese opening of Orange Islands has the move as part of the lyrics right as Charizard flies across the screen. Maybe the anime writers just figured it wasn't necessary in the show to actually tell a Pokemon capable of flight to use the move, Golurk the exception since its manner of flight is so much different than the other users, but the Japanese name being a bit more specific may explain why not every Pokemon capable of flight can necessarily learn it.
Fly was probably the most useful Flying-type move in Generation I for the majority of Flying-type Pokemon, delivering a respectable 70-power attack without any drawbacks plus a turn of invulnerability. Now against a human opponent it's pretty easy to take advantage of the invulnerable phase to set up for the actual attack, but against the CPU it's easy to manipulate and if you had a Charizard in Pokemon Yellow, you probably gave it this move. As HM02 up until Sun and Moon, Fly was actually pretty decent and not a total waste of space, and though you didn't need to use it to progress through the game most folks made sure to have a Pokemon who could use it always on hand as it provided the only way to quick travel around the map without having to constantly go back-and-forth to the PC. Later games buffed it to 90BP, and it remained a staple of the series. I for one would always make sure to carry a Flying-type Pokemon who could use it in every adventure bar ORAS and S&M where other options became available, and it's no surprised Game Freak kept it as a TM in Gen VII due to its legacy.
As an HM, Fly can be learned by a large majority of Flying-type Pokemon, and typically only Flying-type Pokemon, but as the years went on they gave it to a few Pokemon who could clearly fly, even if they weren't actually Flying-types. Except for Bug-type Pokemon. It's unknown why, but it wasn't till Generation V with Volcarona and Genesect (who can turn into a flying car-thing) that a Bug-type could have Fly, though Vibrava and Flygon who are in the Bug Egg Group could. Is this because Bug-type Pokemon are "too small"? Probably not, as there's plenty of tiny Bird-type Pokemon who can learn it. My best guess may be due to the fact that I believe bugs in real life can't fly as high as birds can, thus can't necessarily fly over to a nearby city, or because it's harder for someone to ride on a bug due to how their wings tend to beat very fast? Like Yanmega could probably carry a human, but considering its wings are said to be capable of destroying internal organs it'd be highly dangerous. That's just a theory though. From a gameplay standpoint, it's a shame more Bug-type Pokemon who can fly can't learn Fly because a lot of them I ended up skipping over in favor of a Flying-type Pokemon who could.
Three Pokemon can naturally learn Fly, though now that it isn't an HM I imagine we might see more who can obtain it. Despite being associated with mainly bird-based Pokemon, the three who learn it naturally are Dragon-types. First there's Salamence, who considering evolves from a Pokemon whose greatest wish is to fly this is a nice lore tie-in. Salamence actually learns Fly right as it evolves at Level 50, though in Sun and Moon with the new evolutionary move mechanic now Salamence will obtain it as soon as it evolves even if it's a later level. Second, Rayquaza, who is known as the guardian of the sky and everything so, yeah, that works. The third, well, it's Drampa of all things. He doesn't strike me as a Pokemon who can really fly, though maybe he uses his cloud-like hands to float or something like that? Dude's not even a Flying-type! I think Golurk is the one Pokemon who needs to learn it naturally, and have a unique animation when using it, since it has the coolest method of flight alongside Celesteela who also seems to fly in a similar manner.
Bind - Normal [Physical]
15/20PP/85%
Things such as long bodies or tentacles are used to bind and squeeze the target for four to five turns.
Bind is the first partial-trapping move as they're called, or "binding moves". In Generation I these attacks were wicked as they hit you first, and then would continuously hit you over and over---when these moves were in effect, your Pokemon could not attack back. You could switch out, though quite a few people probably didn't realize this as you might've thought that was prevented too, but that would leave you vulnerable to getting stuck in the move with the new Pokemon if you weren't fast enough. But this was a double-edge sword, however, as these moves were also easy to abuse against the CPU who wouldn't attempt to switch out and would pretty much be putty in your hands. Of the Gen I moves Bind isn't necessarily the worst as its power wasn't that high and wasn't accurate, and rather weak Pokemon knew it, but could still be annoying. The worst part was probably waiting for the text to scroll, and I imagine this is probably the worst thing that could happen to an RBY speedrunner.
Since Generation II these moves were thankfully changed and became far less annoying---rather than hitting you with the move's attack at the end of every turn, it only hit you once, and instead you lost a small fraction of your health over the duration of the additional turns. This was originally a meager 1/16th, thus this move became kind of worthless in terms of power, though since Generation VI it now does 1/8th, and can be boosted higher with Binding Band Hold Item. But I still don't think anyone uses such a move for its power. The more important effect added was that a Pokemon binded could no longer switch out and escape, and that can be deadly if the trapped Pokemon is at a disadvantage. But now they can actually fight back, so overall it was far less tedious than Generation I's effect. The trap only lasts as long as Bind does, which is based on percentages unless a Grip Claw is held, and thus in the competitive scene more reliable trapping moves and Abilities are favored that don't have a turn limit, though those tend to be banned in some circles.
The original users of Bind were Onix, Tangela, and Pinsir, who weren't necessarily high-tier Pokemon. It's since been learned by a few other Pokemon, and typically it seems it's either binding with some sort of vine-like appendage (Tangela's vines, Heatmor's...tongue?) or binding with pure strength, like between Pinsir's pincers or Bewear hugging the opponent to death. Though weaker than Wrap, which is seen as the superior Bind, it almost feels like Bind should be the stronger one based on big Pokemon like Onix, Klinklang, and Zygarde knowing it. Bind was made a Move Tutor in Generation V and VI, but by then there were far better options. Maybe people make use of this in lower tiers, but honestly I always skipped over these moves when a Pokemon learned it in-game.
Slam - Normal [Physical]
80/20PP/75%
The target is slammed with a long tail, vines, or the like to inflict damage.
In Generation I, Slam was a fairly powerful move. It wasn't the most powerful Normal-type move out there, but for the time its power was respectable and its low accuracy wasn't as big of a deal back then because, well, people expected moves to constantly miss. For the handful of Pokemon who learned Slam, it was the best option available in some cases or the "cheapest one", other more powerful Normal-type attacks being TMs and thus valuable and not to be used lightly. That being said, this is a move that really should've have been buffed as time went on since while the power is still good enough, the low accuracy is just ridiculous now considering there are countless moves that do just as much damage with better accuracy or an additional effect, and no longer do Pokemon have to be conservative with their moves---Slam is no longer the best option available, but simply an option, and one most players probably won't choose if they have a choice.
When it debuted in Generation 1, the only Normal-type who learned it was Lickitung. Lickitung isn't the strongest Pokemon around, but it was a solid STAB. Unlike the other learners of Slam bar Dragonite though, Lickitung could learn Strength, which as an HM had infinite uses, and thus that was the preferable STAB attack. Slam's "shining moment" was probably when Pikachu gained it at Level 20 in Pokemon Yellow, quite low for such a powerful attack and likely a way to make you want to keep Pikachu in your party by giving it such a good attack. I'm not sure if Pikachu using Slam really was a huge boon for the player though since its Attack is paltry, and you can't even get it on Raichu unless you take the time to work around Yellow's anti-Thunder Stone mechanic. Slam is continued to be distributed to Pokemon to this day, still at rather high levels, and you can even breed it onto Pokemon for whatever reason. It's really such an antiquated move at this point, right? My favorite Slam distribution story is probably when after three Generations, Game Freak decided to give it Slam in Generation IV as a natural move instead of literally any other far better Normal-type attack. Like, Slash? I guess to be fair for little kids 80BP is still "cool", but most players will know that better accuracy and additional effects are what you should usually go with.