The Pokemon franchise contains some of the most talented fan artists, writers, and other creators in the world. Over the years, it's inspired many incredible tribute works based on the adorable, awe-inspiring, and even creepy pocket monster designs. Now, one Pokemon fan makes an impressive Lucario animation using the program Blender.
Blender is a free and open-source 3D software program used to render 3D models, animations, and art. This isn't the first time Pokemon fans have used Blender to create models of their favorite Pokemon, but it may be one of the most impressive creations. Lucario is a fan-favorite Pokemon, so it may not be a surprise that it's gotten attention from Blender-using Pokemon fans.
Redditor Tedx11 recently shared a four-second-long video showcasing a brief 3D animation starring the Fighting/Steel-type Pokemon Lucario. Introduced in the Gen 4 games, Lucario is the evolution of Riolu, and both Pokemon resemble bipedal blue canines. In Tedx11's video, a Lucario is shown standing inside a transparent jar on a dark blue, earth-like surface. The creature goes through a short idle animation before raising its spiky fists and striking a dramatic, battle-ready pose.
According to Tedx11, this Lucario is in a jar so that it can be delivered to the people it was made for. They also state that they cleaned up the 3DS model for Lucario and then used Rigify to help rig the model properly. Additionally, they reportedly used Mixamo to fix up the animation and then tweaked the lighting and overall environment. This suggests that the artist did not create the core animation, although Lucario's idle animation and fighting poses are quite well known. Not only does the Pokemon typically default to the same poses in merchandise, Lucario often falls back on the same body language in official productions as well.
Fans may find Tedx11's representation of Lucario's subtle movements to be interesting if perhaps a little overdramatic, particularly toward the end of the video. Lucario's appearances in Super Smash Bros. and more recently in Pokemon Unite have given fans some good information on the way the Pokemon moves when standing still, fighting, running, or playing sports. However, Lucario also appears in several mainline Pokemon games and in the 2005 movie Pokemon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. Especially dedicated fans can also find reference for Lucario's movements in the various Pokemon manga, so Tedx11 is drawing on a wealth of data for this animation.