Although many hoped for it, not too many fully expected a Pokemon Gen 9 reveal at February 27’s Pokemon Presents. In fact, the entire trailer for it seemed like something for Detective Pikachu 2 at first, but then it was announced to be Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is set to release in late 2022, likely meaning sometime in November. There are still a lot more questions than answers, but fans got a first look at their starters. Opinions are varied, of course, but the Fire-Starter Fuecoco’s design—a fire crocodile whose design seemingly takes influence from an apple or perhaps a chili pepper—stands out. In fact, it breaks a major franchise tradition 26 years in the making.
Pokemon Fire Starters Zodiac Theory Explained
Quite a few generations back, Pokemon players began looking at the starters closely. While there never seems to be much rhyme or reason to each region’s Pokemon Starters, fans did realize there is one that the Fire Starters go by – the Chinese Zodiac. Every animal that a Fire Starter in Pokemon is based on appears on the Chinese Zodiac, as seen here:
- Dragon – Charmander
- Rat – Cyndaquil
- Rooster – Torchic
- Monkey – Chimchar
- Pig – Tepig
- Dog – Fennekin
- Tiger – Litten
- Rabbit – Scorbunny
One could argue that Charmander is more of a lizard until his final form, while Cyndaquil’s final form is less “fire mouse”-like, but this theory holds up, or has held up, pretty strongly. This has led many to believe that the Gen 9 Fire starter for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, before its announcement, would either be a Fire ox, Fire snake, Fire horse, or Fire sheep.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Fuecoco Evolutions?
Well, now that Fuecoco has been revealed to the world and officially classified as a Fire Croc Pokemon, that breaks the Chinese Zodiac tradition. A crocodile does not appear on the Chinese Zodiac, and it’s not likely Fuecoco’s final form will take it from a croc to an ox, horse, or sheep. That said, there is some precedent to suggest that Fuecoco’s final form in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet could be a snake.
It’s a bit of a stretch, but both crocodiles and Snakes are reptiles. Fuecoco doesn’t have much in the way of arms and feet as it stands, and Snivy’s final form Serperior ditches the appendages of its first two forms. So, it doesn’t rule out this possible Zodiac tradition entirely, but it does not necessarily feel like this is in the direction that Fuecoco will take in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will release in late 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
