As we enter the month of October, right in the heart of Spooky Season, it’s only appropriate to revisit the realm of ghosts and ghouls. Last year, we had the opportunity to meet five Ghost-type Pokémon that have been deeply misunderstood and neglected. But this year, we’re going to shine the spotlight on Ghost-types who have also been neglected or overlooked, but not for the same reasons as the previous list. Instead, it’s more along the lines of things such as stats or overall opinions, but I still believe these Pokémon should not be slept on.
(Dis)Honorable Mention: Cursola
Corsola was already a largely unpopular Pokémon from the Gold and Silver games, so Gamefreak attempted to rectify this with a Galarian regional form and evolution. However, this attempt would ultimately fall flat among many players and fans. This is mainly due to Cursola’s abysmal Defense and Speed stats, leaving it extremely vulnerable to spam moves like Knock Off. While its Weak Armor ability (more on that later) tries to make up for it, it’s not enough to be considered qualifiable for competitive play, and people actually prefer using Galarian Corsola more than its evolved form.
However, despite these traits, I actually admire this Pokémon. First of all, I love the inspiration behind the design. Both Galarian Corsola and Cursola are designed after dying coral in the real world, making them not only unique in appearance but also serving as a tragic reminder of how we need to take care of our planet. Aside from that, though, I love how Cursola expands on its pre-evolved form’s design by looking like it’s bursting out of a broken shell at the base. From there, its ghostly shell almost looks like a cloud from an explosion, but a lot more menacing with those branches, and also tragic with its head peeking out of openings that resemble a face in agony. Finally, I really appreciate the lore that its shell is composed of ectoplasm that can paralyze anyone who touches it, further embodying the general nature and depiction of ghosts in its existence.
5. Oricorio (Sensu Style)
Introduced in the Sun and Moon games, Oricorio is a beautiful bird Pokémon that can change forms, colors, and dance styles depending on what nectar it drinks. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always work to its favor in some cases. In the case of its Sensu Style form, it becomes a Ghost and Flying type, but weirdly enough, it doesn’t have any other Ghost-type moves aside from Revelation Dance. As if that weren’t enough, its ability Dancer is very painful and difficult to truly master, because it can only replicate dance-based moves like Quiver Dance. This makes it difficult to set up in double battles, plus rare to encounter if you’re trying to replicate an opponent’s dance move (if they actually have one) in single battles. Finally, its meh stats and worse moveset make it easily forgettable and worthless to many fans.
While I admittedly don’t look twice at it either, I believe there are at least a few redeemable qualities. For instance, I love how the colors and design of the fan-like wings make Oricorio look more mysterious and borderline ominous, and its dance moves look like they have a spiritual connection. This is actually very fitting, as the Pokédex states that this particular Oricorio’s dance moves can summon spirits and absorb their power! Aside from that, this form is based on Geisha, a form of Japanese theater dancing that incorporates fans in the movements. This not only makes Oricorio interesting in many respects, but also makes it very unique among its fellow bird Pokémon. So, love it or hate it, we can at least appreciate this beautiful yet mysterious Ghost-type bird.
4. Mismagius
In Gen IV, when GameFreak decided to give late evolutions to several Johto and Kanto Pokémon, Mismagius emerged as the evolved form of the forgotten Misdreavus. However, while evolutions are meant to help a Pokémon get stronger, it unfortunately met the fate of Cursola. Unlike Cursola, though, its Speed stats are actually pretty decent. Yet, somehow, its Special Attack and Defense stats are considerably lower than Cursola’s, leaving it extremely weak and vulnerable. Also, just like Cursola, its Attack and Defense stats leave very much to be desired. Further, while it actually possesses more Ghost-type moves than Sensu Oricorio, it still doesn’t have enough of them to be considered a viable choice for competitive play. Of course, it doesn’t help that its Paradox counterpart, Flutter Mane, has higher stats and the added Fairy-type, which both make it much more popular than Mismagius.
But again, I would argue that this Pokémon isn’t completely terrible. After all, I looked up its moveset, and it can be very versatile depending on the circumstances of the battle. For instance, it has powerful moves such as Shadow Ball and Dazzling Gleam to counter other Ghost-types and Dark-types, and it also has stat-lowering moves such as Icy Wind or Energy Ball. In addition, its Levitate ability could come very much in handy, especially if you terastalize it into an Electric-type so you can avoid devastating Ground-type attacks. Finally, I love the lore behind this creature: “Its cry sounds like an incantation. It is said the cry may rarely be imbued with happiness-giving power” (pokemon.com). This especially sticks out to me because I remember an episode I watched as a kid where a Mismagius trapped Ash, Dawn, and Brock in a dream world where they got everything they wished for, until it turned into a nightmare. Not only does this perfectly embody the trickster aspect of ghosts in general, but it also embodies the witchy inspirations behind its design and “incantation cries.”
3. Dhelmise
Oddly enough, the reasons people don’t like Dhelmise aren’t like the previous entries on this list. While yes, its collective stats are pretty mediocre, fans mainly have issues with its overall appearance and lore. For example, Dhelmise is a Grass and Ghost-type, which people struggle to understand since it’s literally living debris from a sunken ship. If anything, it should’ve been a Water and Ghost-type, or at the very least part Steel. In addition, its lore is kind of strange even for a Ghost-type. According to the Dex, “a piece of seaweed merged with debris from a sunken ship, it was reborn as this ghost Pokémon” (pokemon.com). While this is somewhat interesting, it’s incredibly vague and doesn’t even include a spirit bonding to the seaweed, which is usually a key aspect of Ghost-type lore, where spirits are reborn as Pokémon. Finally, it doesn’t help that the Pokémon is incredibly hard to find, so most players don’t even bother trying to catch one.
While part of me agrees for the most part, I can’t help but find the reasoning for disliking Dhelmise to be very stupid. I mean, come on! It’s a haunted steering wheel with a freaking anchor attached to it! Yes, it might not have a real face, but it doesn’t really need one, as its appearance is very intimidating and ominous. As for its typing, I personally find it interesting that a Pokémon with a certain type can live in hugely contrasting environments. After all, we’ve seen a Ground and Electric-type Stunfisk live in water, as well as a Poison and Dragon-type Dragalge live in water, too, so why not a Grass and Ghost-type Dhelmise? Plus, there’s another part of its lore that is incredibly insane and shouldn’t be ignored. For instance, it’s been stated numerous times to be able to KNOCK OUT A WAILORD with one blow! Think about that for a minute: one of the largest Pokémon in the world, a giant freaking whale, can be knocked out by something not even half its size! I don’t know about you guys, but if I’m snorkeling or diving in Pokémon seas, I don’t wanna cross a creature with that level of strength. Speaking of which, that strength can seriously come in handy when you combine its high Attack stats with its Steelworker ability, which strengthens the power of Steel-type moves. This means that moves like Gyro Ball, Iron Head, or Heavy Slam will pack a major wallop against most other Pokémon!
2. Polteageist
From what I could dig up, Polteageist isn’t hated per se, but no one talks about it enough for it to be hugely popular. This is most likely due to its pretty low Attack, Defense, and (definitely) Speed stats. Obviously, this means that it’s extremely weak against physical attackers, which can be very bad if it’s going against more powerful Ghost or Dark-types. The lack of speed is already frustrating enough, but its Weak Armor ability doesn’t really fix anything. The ability can lower a Pokémon’s Defense while simultaneously raising its Speed, but the ability becomes a liability when your Pokémon already has a low Defense to begin with. If it didn’t have enough of a high chance at getting knocked out in one hit, you’re certainly gambling with death the more times this ability is activated. Polteageist does have some tactical advantages if played correctly (which I’ll get into in a minute), but if you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s too big a risk.
However, this doesn’t mean that Polteageist is a terrible Pokémon overall. As I just said, this tea pot ghost can be very tactical if you play your cards right. For instance, it has very high Special Attack and Special Defense stats, which adds more oomph to moves like Shadow Ball or Giga Drain. Further, you can teach it TMs such as Trick Room (to make up for its abysmal speed), Phantom Force, and even Hyper Beam! And if you’re really feeling dangerous, you can even teach it Metronome, where Polteageist can literally do any Pokémon move! Battling aside, though, I believe its lore and design shouldn’t be overlooked either. For instance, I love how it inhabits a teapot and floats around in it, plus the lid-hat and arms casually hanging out make it look mischievous yet friendly. Plus, I find it fascinating how it can pour itself into other teacups to create its pre-evolved form, Sinistea. What makes this better is how it was considered a pest in Pokémon restaurants, further incorporating the creatures of this world with human lives, as if this were an average job with real-world exterminators vs. cockroaches. Finally, Polteageist’s last trait to fully embody its ghostly qualities comes with a borderline dark twist. In this case, the Pokédex states that its tea can be tasty, but too much of it can actually kill you or at least make you sick. So, while this isn’t my favorite Ghost-type, it’s definitely a unique and interesting one. And it doesn’t hurt that it has at least some battle potential, especially when I didn’t see it until now.
1. Gholdengo
Ah, yes, our golden ghost boy. One of the most controversial Pokémon ever created, as it divided fans on a scale that hasn’t been seen in a while. First off, there’s the design itself. Since this was gonna be the literal 1000th Pokémon, fans were expecting something epic or at least something that would honor this massive achievement. However, with Gholdengo looking more like the string cheese mascot on a surfboard, it’s not an understatement to say most people were severely disappointed. Some would even call it a disrespect, as the design is too goofy or ugly to deserve the title of “1000th Pokémon.” To make it worse, players had to spend countless hours finding 999 coins to evolve their little Gimmighoul, only for it to turn into this thing. On top of that, fans also find it frustrating how insanely OP it is in competitive play.
However, where one sees this as a downside, I see it as a reason to LOVE Gholdengo even more! Man, where do I even start with this Pokémon? I mean, it already has a great start with its typing alone, as Steel/Ghost is a very defensive type, as it’s immune to Normal, Fighting, and Poison-types! In addition, it’s also resistant to pretty much every single type except for Ghost, Dark, Ground, Fire, Electric, and Water-types. But if that’s not enough of a huge handicap, there’s its signature ability, Good as Gold. Not only does it block status moves’ effects (such as burns, paralysis, etc.), but it can also block the effects of stat-lowering moves! While I can understand why this would frustrate people in competitive play, I can’t for the life of me understand how anyone can hate an absolute BEAST like this! Seriously, why complain about a Pokémon that possesses all the qualities needed to win a tough battle? Now, as for its design, I must admit that I feel somewhat ambivalent about it myself. I find it strange that it looks like the string cheese mascot and doesn’t really fit what a Gimmighoul evolution should look like. But at the same time, it actually feels like it does fit the criteria, and I love how Gimmighoul’s speed and energy transitioned into Gholdengo through the usage of its surfboard and energetic battle animations. Overall, it looks like a fun, chill dude I can hang out with, so that’s always a plus for a Pokémon trainer.
Conclusion
Like I said in my last article about Ghost-types, they’re just poor and misunderstood creatures. But sometimes, being misunderstood and forgotten can mean many different things. Whether it’s their lore, appearances, or even their stats. Nevertheless, we shouldn’t always judge a book by its cover. You don’t even have to like any of these Ghost-types, but at least don’t disregard them like garbage. They might just surprise you!
