Only once a year is the time when ghosts and spirits love to come out and play. But what if I told you that not all ghosts are set to scare or even kill anyone? What if there are creatures out there that are just widely misunderstood and just want a friend? Such is the case with these five Ghost-type Pokémon, as we not only explore their amazing designs and potential in battle, but also their tragic backstories that are sure to make you reach for the tissue box. 

5. Annihilape

After all these years, GameFreak finally decided to give Primeape an evolution, and it is an absolute fit for the Mankey line in every way possible. First, let’s get the obvious reason out of the way: it’s an absolute BEAST in battle! Not only does its unique Ghost/Fighting type make it a huge advantage against other Pokémon, but it has very high attack stats, meaning that its physical attacks like Drain Punch or Close Combat have an extra oomph to them.

However, that’s not all that Annihilape brings to the table. For instance, Primeape is widely known for its insanely strong temper, but it never occurred to me that it could actually die from that. In its Pokédex entry, Primape can literally get so angry that it will die and evolve into Annihilape, which just adds a lot more lore to that of its previous evolutions. In turn, this provides a bigger peak behind the curtain of what makes this Pokémon tick, further increasing our satisfaction and curiosity of this fantastic world and its creatures. 

4. Greavard

Out of all the new Pokémon introduced in Scarlet and Violet, this fluffy little dog is by far one of the most unique. Its small size and the long hair covering its eyes already make it pretty adorable, but we need to acknowledge the Donphan in the room: its candle. It not only sits on top of its head but it’s also attached to its head, making Greavard the more distinctive of its canine brethren.  Plus, when you mix the color and texture of its fur with those of the candle, it gives the pup the appearance of a walking candlestick. However, in spite of its adorable appearance, this is sadly a Pokémon that most people would go out of their way to avoid. 

This is mainly due to the aforementioned candle, which is lit by the life force it slowly drains from those around it. What people misunderstand is that Greavard doesn’t intentionally drain life energy, but it’s more like breathing for them, as if their brains are on autopilot. The only reason it follows people around is because it never got any love and affection from humans in life, and therefore died in the wilderness as an unknown dog Pokémon. After coming back as a Ghost type, it now seeks the only thing it was robbed of, but at a terrible cost that it can’t prevent. 

3. Mimikyu

This Pokémon may look like a five-year-old scribbled on a paper bag, but Mimikyu has an important yet tragic reason for it. The thing about this Ghost and Fairy type is the fact that no one knows its true form underneath that bag, because anyone who actually sees it either falls into a coma or straight up dies. The rag it uses to hide itself is a form of protection on the humans’ part, so anyone wouldn’t be afraid to approach it. 

As for why it looks like terrible Pikachu fan art, it’s because Mimikyu know how insanely popular Pikachu is. It knows people love Pikachu to death and back, jealously watching these electric rodents hog all the attention and love from kids and adults alike. Therefore, in a desperate attempt to win a human’s heart, it tries its best to look like the mascot of the Pokémon franchise just so it won’t be alone. 

2. Banette

If Toy Story was a horror movie, this Pokémon would most likely be what it would look like. That’s because Banette literally used to be a doll in life, but after being abandoned by its owner and left to rot for a long enough time, it will reanimate as a Ghost type. However, while most of its Pokédex entries claim it will seek revenge for being left behind, I personally don’t believe this is always the case. 

For instance, in a particular episode of “Pokémon: To Be A Master,” Ash, Misty, and Brock arrive in a town where a Banette is stealing heart-shaped objects. As we later find out, Nurse Joy accidentally left her beloved doll behind as she moved, and the doll became a Banette after many years. Instead of seeking revenge, it searched for its owner, but after accidentally scaring a child away, it believed that it needed its old heart band which it always wore as a toy. After it broke, that’s when it started stealing anything that looked like a heart, in the hopes its old owner will come back for it one day. 

1. Gengar

This purple, furry blob is known for hiding in people’s shadows and draining their life energy, hence its categorization as “The Shadow Pokémon.” However, much like Banette, I refuse to believe that all Gengar are like this. Many times throughout the anime, we mainly see Gengar as more of a mischievous prankster, like the time when Ash found a haunted tower inhabited by a Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar. They mainly either messed with him or played with him, but never meant any harm.

But there’s one episode that paints this misunderstood ghost in a completely different light, which is much later in the “Pokémon Journeys” episode. Here, we find a more thorough backstory behind the Gengar that always haunted Professor Cerise’s lab, and it’s very heartbreaking. It turns out that, before the lab was even a lab, a horrible trainer abandoned Gengar there after blaming it for all his failures. After waiting there for who-knows-how-long, Gengar eventually grew to distrust humans and harboring a bitter hatred for them, until Ash came along and helped save it from Team Rocket. But just think about it for a second: unlike Banette, Gengar was intentionally abandoned by its trainer, left alone for years believing that it had no one it could count on. Does that really sound like a life-draining shadow monster to you?

Conclusion

Not that there aren’t any Ghost-types that aren’t as nice as these ones, but it doesn’t automatically mean that every single one of them is out to get you. Nine times out of ten, any Ghost-type is just misunderstood, rejected, avoided, or forgotten. They only seek the same companionship that we humans do, so keep that in mind next time you find one.