Pokemon Takes Place in a Post-War Society

The Pokemon Post-War Society Theory Hold on to your childhood, things are about to get dark. Welcome to MojoPlays – today, we are delving deep into one of the most popular Pokémon fan theories: Do the Pokémon games take place in a post-war society? Being one of the most beloved children’s franchises of all time, it’s only natural for people to enjoy shining a light on the darker corners of the Pokémon world; from the subconscious effects of the Lavender Town theme music to the idea that you - the player - may have accidentally murdered your rival’s Raticate on the S.S. Anne. The theory that the current time period in the games take place in happens just after a devastating war is one of the oldest. It’s also one that’s strongly supported by canonical content. It all started with Lt. Surge, the Leader of Vermillion City’s Gym in “Pokémon Red & Blue.” Right off the bat, it’s a bit out-of-place seeing a dude with a military title and camo pants in the peaceful world of Kanto. There aren’t even any army bases around. Then, he drops this bombshell: “I tell you, kid, electric Pokémon saved me during the war!” Wait… what war? Further information provided by “FireRed” and “LeafGreen” reveals that he was an American pilot who used his electric Pokémon to power his plane. The Gentlemen and Sailor trainers in his Gym also regale you with tales of their army days with him. The question of which war Surge and his fellow veterans are referring to is left frustratingly unanswered, resulting in the birth of an entire creepypasta on the subject. This particular Internet-powered urban legend corroborates Surge’s backstory by pointing out the suspicious generational gap in Kanto between children and teenagers, and much older citizens. The few younger adults who are around have lives entirely dedicated to Pokémon, either through Fan Clubs, schools, Gyms, or organized crime syndicates like Team Rocket. There also seems to be little else around in terms of leisure. Just basic general stores and hospitals. The creepypasta goes on to suggest that you - the player - and your rival have missing parents because they were conscripted to and died in the war Surge mentioned, leaving the both of you to become part of the first generation raised in a peaceful society. The PBS Idea Channel’s video covering the theory adds that this may explain why so many kids feel compelled to leave home at such young ages for a life of battling - and why no-one seems to think unsupervised kids running around is bad parenting. It also sheds a different light on why they’re entrusted with cataloguing missions. Professor Oak isn’t just sending you off to fill your Dex for the fun of it - he wants you to find out how many creatures survived the carnage. The more you think about this theory, the more sense it starts to make. It explains why there are so many wild Pokémon lurking around ready to jump you the moment you step outside of your hometown. Wild animals are usually much more wary of humans; Pokémon had to have learned to see us as threats from somewhere, right? Then there’s the strange lack of any governmental presence in Kanto or every other region. Instead, we have a world largely dominated by business people, scientists, criminals, and an independent police force and hospital network. Though there’s evidence in Kalos that a monarchy existed hundreds of years ago, the highest figures of authority left now are Gym Leaders and Pokémon League representatives. That’s why it’s left up to you - a ten-year-old child from a tiny village - to put a stop to terrorism and rogue Legendary Pokémon. Trainers seem to be the cowboys of a lawless world where the strongest of the bunch act as sheriffs of their towns or regions. The League Champion is whoever can best all of them in combat, which sounds a lot like a structure born out of war and implemented in a power vacuum to restore order. In the Pokémon manga, a lot of Gym Leaders and Elite Four members even side with groups like Team Rocket, demonstrating how deeply flawed this system is without any government oversight. When unsupervised children with trained animals are your last line of defence against crime, something’s clearly gone wrong. With the steady release of more Pokémon games, the post-war society theory has only been expanding. The Orre region from “Pokémon Colosseum” and “XD: Gale Of Darkness,” for instance, has been speculated to be a post-nuclear wasteland, while the “Mystery Dungeon” series - which is disturbingly devoid of humans - could be an alternate timeline where human conflict left nothing but Pokémon behind. Nowhere is war more explicit, however, than in the Kalos region’s history. Remember the 300-year-old monarchy we mentioned earlier? Well, we know about this because of Parfum Palace. The French-inspired chateau was built by an unnamed king and features a statue of a Bisharp general who commanded a legion of Pawniard. Adding to this history is the existence of Kalos-native Pokémon, Honedge, which is literally just an enchanted medieval sword. It’s not hard to imagine that this monster came into being by imitating a common man-made item of a particular era, especially when you consider that ice cream cones, house keys, and bags of rubbish have also served as design inspiration. Go back 3,000 years prior to the events of “Pokémon X & Y” and you’ll discover a different war broke out surrounding the creation of a doomsday device called the “ultimate weapon.” The remnants of it still stand in Geosenge Town and form a big part of the games’ main story. Battles from the war were also referenced in the “Pokémon Generations” anime miniseries. Now! Here’s where things get interesting. The Mythic Pokémon, Meltan introduced to “Pokémon Go!” dates back to the start of the ancient Kalos war according to Let’ Go Pikachu/Eevee’s Pokédex. Its mechanical metallic form almost looks like it was manufactured for combat in an era of primitive technology. Its evolved form, Melmetal, was apparently revered for being able to create iron from nothing, much like the golems of Jewish mythology who were the precursors to artificial intelligence. Does its mysterious awakening now forecast the return of war? If true, the rumored Armored Evolutions for the upcoming games, “Pokémon Sword & Shield” would certainly indicate the Pokémon world is gearing up for something bad to happen again. Furthermore, there are theories spreading that “Sword & Shield’s” Galar region boarders the Kalos region, leading to theories that the two nations have a long history of conflict, based on their real life influences of the UK and France respectively. Obviously, core aspects of the Pokémon world like the battling system exist because of game mechanics. But this is also a world that’s blatantly mirrored on our own, so it’s not too farfetched to apply real-world logic to in-universe lore. Plus, it’s all right there in the source material. We may never know exactly which conflict Lt. Surge took part in and why, but evidence of it - and past wars - are everywhere if you just look hard enough.