t67443

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,607
My rule is every Pokémon is someone's favorite Pokémon. People even love dunsparce.
 

Zomba13

#1 Waluigi Fan! Current Status: Crying
Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,528
Incineroar is so good. I kind of love that there was fear going into the gen of ANOTHER Fire/Fighting. Then it evolved into a WRESTLER. BUT IT'S A HEEL! BAH GAWD IT'S GOT A STEEL CHAIR! Fire/Dark wooooooooo!
 

Titantodd

Member
May 3, 2023
2,469
Not my favourite Pokemon with a wrestling gimmick (that would be Hawlucha) but it's still pretty good. Probably my favourite starter from that gen.
 

Kinsei

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
21,142
They definitely bet on the wrong horse that gen.

It sucks that the two cat starters we've gotten so far have both had awful evolutions.
 

DoctorPlayer MD

"This guy are sick"
Member
Feb 4, 2021
2,445
Brazil
Not by me it isn't. Thankfully Decidueye is more popular despite Incineroar's heavy push. I'd also rank Primarina higer but it's not as pkpular.
 

Bard

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
13,347
The issue I have with Meowscarada is that I don't really think its design and its conceit link up very well. I don't usually think "GIANT GO NAGAI VILLAIN FACE MASK" when I think of a magician, and its back wings...tails...trailing thingies...similarly don't evoke magician either.

Fucker needed, at bare minimum, something evoking the imagery of a top hat as part of its baseline design. Right now it looks like a Mazinger Z villain from 1973 and not the "theatre kid wannabe magician" it's clearly supposed to be.
Yeah, I don't think the theme comes through that well either. It being freakishly horrifying to look at doesn't help either.
 

Kangi

Profile Styler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,023
Meowscarada sits in the 3k range, which bodes well for it given Incineroar's head start.

Cinderace is at 6k, somehow
Cinder and its line are really popular for fursonas; helps that it's a more personable design than Incineroar. It also benefits from being strongly associated with Lucario, but most of all it's just that it's a very gender neutral design compared to Incineroar, which is also why Meowscarada will blow past it
 

Zyrox

One Winged Slayer Corrupted by Vengeance
Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,901
I can't speak for anyone else but I'm not a fan of the "person in a mascot suit" aesthetic that many starters have adopted (Incineroar included). There's a degree of anthropomorphism that's fine to me but some of the starters are a little too much.
 

HMS_Pinafore

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,381
Straya M8
I like them. I think Smash really sold me on them as they are really fun to play as.

Plus it's arguably the best Pokemon of all time in competitive VGC. So that's got to be worth something.

Also, this image cracks me up every time.

F_Opi4aaIAAnQaL
 
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Cipher Peon

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,650
Love Litten, dislike Torracat, hate Incineroar.

I hate wrestling so Incineroar was always going to be bad news for me.
 

Bardoon

Member
May 27, 2018
2,621
England
Both Incineroar and Meowscarada are weird and not my sort of thing. But at least they aren't Cinderace. Cinderace is the absolute worst.
 

RockmanBN

Visited by Knack - One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
29,640
Cornfields
Incineroar is goated, especially after Smash and the Pokemon metagame. They really are the Heel
 

Stencil

Mailing Out Their Business
Member
Oct 30, 2017
11,570
USA
I was so excited to see Litten when the starters were announced, but then I eventually saw Incineroar and logged off the internet
 

Kneefoil

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,646
Meowscarada sits in the 3k range, which bodes well for it given Incineroar's head start.

Cinderace is at 6k, somehow

I'm not much of an Incineroar fan, but like, I get it. I can understand why someone could find Incineroar appealing. Them Meowscarada enjoyers, though, I don't get them at all. It is a loathsome creature, and I can't imagine where the popularity stems from.
 

YellowBara

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,242
Part of it is the Smash effect too, but yeah, he is real popular. Also Incineroar being a heel is so fitting considering how good it has been in competitive Pokemon for so long and how sick of it some people are as a result lol. I love it.

It's better than the ugly ass Rowlett-line and even uglier Popplio-line, so I like how popular it is.
 

Antrax

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,858
Litten falls into my "don't evolve this Pokémon" category. It goes from a cute little fire kitty to some stupid bipedal wrestler.

Yeah, it's way too much of a furry thing for me. Litten is great though.

I don't usually think "GIANT GO NAGAI VILLAIN FACE MASK" when I think of a magician, and its back wings...tails...trailing thingies...similarly don't evoke magician either.
You might not be as familiar with it but that style of magician is definitely a thing:
R.76af8a4208ad1889a4ac350a6e9694ea
 

Delio

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,560
I love Incineroar. One of my favorite fire starters next to Typhlosion and Skeledirge.
 

Kebiinu

Member
Sep 15, 2023
26
NYC
He's definitely popular, lol. I grew on him after watching the Alola series, and even grew fond of Torracat.

The anime does a pretty good job adding personality to these creatures.

I love Pokémon ♥
 

alexlf

The Fallen
Nov 1, 2017
775
I really dislike Incineroar. I dislike most humanoid pokemon. And that's not to be a gen one stan, I hate Hypno too for example. Ah well, plenty of cool pokemon.
 

Cheat Code

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,064
Cats are objectively the worst animal so both Incineroar and Meowscarada and bottom tiers starters
 

GTOAkira

Member
Sep 1, 2018
11,135
Sun and Moon had some amazing starter design. Way better than Gen 5 and 6. I also dont think anything has come close since then.
 

jerk

Member
Nov 6, 2017
751
as a general rule i dont like pokemon that look like they have to pay taxes.

give me a cat dragon. i'm tired of just Dudes in suits.
 

Nocturnowl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
27,226
Litten is a good kitty among strong competition

Torracat is secretly a top tier middle form and might be the best cat that's just a cat in the series

Smash bros made Incineroar pretty based, that's on top of heel pro wrestler being something I already marked out for.

But the Rowlet line is just too good, no bias, just facts

In any case the Alola starters>>>the rest
All three trios are pretty tops
 

Dolce

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,445
Making it a biped AGAIN was a boring move. Goes for every starter. Meowscarada is also snore for me.

I mean it's a Pokemon based on Tiger Mask, which has half a century worth of pop culture importance in Japan. You can't really get more inspired than that. Its also just a reality that most Pokemon are biped, because they are based on monsters. Go look at gen 1 and you'll see there are very few quadrupeds.

That aside, cats and grass Pokemon have a pretty varied history, so I don't see what is wrong with Meowscarada being biped. Cats have Umbreon, Espeon, skitty, Persian, delcatty etc etc who are quadrupeds. And grass starters have had a ton of variety from no legs, to multiple lines that end in quadrupeds.

The issue I have with Meowscarada is that I don't really think its design and its conceit link up very well. I don't usually think "GIANT GO NAGAI VILLAIN FACE MASK" when I think of a magician, and its back wings...tails...trailing thingies...similarly don't evoke magician either.

It is a jester mask, and it is wearing a cape.
 
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Viale

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,781
Gen 7 starters are all legit great imo. Probs the best gen of starters the series has ever had, including, of course, incineroar.
 

jerk

Member
Nov 6, 2017
751
I mean it's a Pokemon based on Tiger Mask, which has half a century worth of pop culture importance in Japan. You can't really get more inspired than that. Its also just a reality that most Pokemon are biped, because they are based on monsters. Go look at gen 1 and you'll see there are very few quadrupeds.

That aside, cats and grass Pokemon have a pretty varied history, so I don't see what is wrong with Meowscarada being biped. Cats have Umbreon, Espeon, skitty, Persian, Umbreon, delcatty etc etc who are quadrupeds. And grass starters have had a ton of variety from no legs, to multiple lines that end in quadrupeds.
i just don't like em. i don't think any responsible parent would allow their child to have a litten without an everstone. he could challenge for custody.

and it's just depressing to think about, inceneroar and Meowscarada. what wretched lives do they lead if they don't want to be a professional wrestler or a magician? they can't survive in the wild any more.

there are of course a variety of pokemon that go against what id prefer design wise. thats fine. still dont like em though. i like pokemon as a concept to be mostly mysterious magical animals/beings to get lost into a world of wonder and adventure. inceneroar and company are pokemon that break that illusion for me. theyre so specialized and human in design and character that they become something else in my eyes.
 

Saito Hikari

Member
Jul 3, 2021
3,467
Incineroar is badass. Actually all of the gen 7 starters are great, it's just the Rowlet line occupies a niche that isn't seen anywhere else in Pokemon, while Iceineroar has to deal with being lumped in with the THREE Fire/Fighting starters despite being Fire/Dark.
 

Spinosaurus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,055
Where's the idea VGC players hate Incineroar come from lol I feel the consensus is it brings more good than bad. It's the best kind of mon to be the most used.
 

Dolce

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,445
there are of course a variety of pokemon that go against what id prefer design wise. thats fine. still dont like em though. i like pokemon as a concept to be mostly mysterious magical animals/beings to get lost into a world of wonder and adventure. inceneroar and company are pokemon that break that illusion for me. theyre so specialized and human in design and character that they become something else in my eyes.

For me I just like new and unique designs and variety. The Pokemon that caught me first was Blastoise, which is a bipedal turtle that has two metal cannons in its shell. Hitmonchan was another, which is literally wearing boxing gloves and clothes. It also helps that I see humans as animals so designs closer to that dont really stand out to me.
 

TyraZaurus

Member
Nov 6, 2017
4,607
All the people who drag Incineroar and design fanmon to "replace" him just turn the line into a "it gets bigger" cat. None of the personality starters are actually supposed to have
 

Astral

Member
Oct 27, 2017
30,909
People hate Incineroar? How? He oozes personality. He's cool. I called mine InCenaroar.