Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Welcome to Pokemon Tabletop. We hope you enjoy your visit.


You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free.


Join our community!


If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features:

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
Controlling Pokémon; What do PokéBalls do?
Topic Started: Apr 25 2016, 10:22 AM (838 Views)
rlrichey
Member Avatar
Rival
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
This has probably been discussed before, but I wasn't able to find anything with a quick search.

Today while watching the Pokémon anime, I saw "Episode 196 - Control Freak." There was a lot of talk about how characters could use a magic mask and staff to "control Pokémon without capturing them."

This claim has a lot of subtext, and the changes Pokémon undergo when exposed to the mask and staff might infer a lot about what actually happens to a Pokémon when it is captured.

Throughout the episode, lots of Pokémon were given commands and forced to act on them to the best of their ability. Some Pokémon were able to disobey, but most of them did what was asked of them. Sounds a lot like a magnified version of a Poké Ball's effect—or at least it could be.

And that got me thinking about how a Pokémon obeys commands at all. In this video, a drunk guy named Chaz cleverly inquires about the Pokémon/Trainer language barrier. Here's the gist of it:

Chaz
 
So I’m confused. Does being in a PokéBall give you the ability to understand English? Because Ash told them all to run away and they did nothing. So he threw out his Pidgeotto to tell them to tell them to run away.


Perhaps it's because a PokéBall somehow deepens a Pokémon's intellect or intuition, allowing it to immediately learn and understand the words of its trainer. That's pretty tricky because Alakazam, for example, with its high intelligence, it not shown to understand human languages by default.

Or maybe it's because a PokéBall is a subtle form of mind control; a Pokémon doesn't need to understand the language of its trainer to obey.

Besides, when does a Pokémon learn its moves anyway? What do you have to do to a Pokémon to get it to understand what its moves are? How much time has to pass?

Step 1. Pokémon with no language skills is captured.
Step 2. ???
Step 3. Pokémon is able to "understand," enact, and convey complex orders based on its trainer's language.

This happens with all Pokémon, and it's a pretty big jump.

Further evidence for the Mind Control theory:
- Pokémon begin following trainers' orders and battling with them in spite of previous hostility toward them.
- Having more badges increases the "mind control" effect of a PokéBall, extending a trainer's control and thus a Pokémon's willingness to follow orders. They're actually considered magical in some games and in the manga.

There is, of course, some counter evidence. For example, Pikachu hated Ash for a brief while even after being captured (although the effect may have grown over time). Plus Pokémon are evidenced to be able to leave their balls at will (which, I might add, are just hollowed-out fruit).

Maybe it's not straight-up mind control. Maybe the technology that "controls" Pokémon is actually more of a sedative. Being captured brings out the best in a Pokémon and dissolves some of the dangerous and primal parts of their nature. At this point, friendship and loyalty become the key part in relationships with Pokémon because, frankly, now they're listening.

Imagine for the sake of argument that almost all Pokémon are born with rabies. They're unreasonably hostile, they crave combat, they don't think straight, and their disease makes them agitated. That's not too different from the state of a hostile wild Pokémon.

Now imagine that PokéBall technology is the treatment/vaccine for this disease. Suddenly capturing Pokémon seems like more of a good deed, while still helping drawing a sharp distinction between trained and wild Pokémon. The Pokémon's primal hostility is suppressed, and it becomes more open to suggestion. And it could simply be that the stronger the ball, the more powerful the sedation.

That still doesn't account for the part about the language barrier, but it's something.

What do you think?
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Soly
Pokémon Trainer
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
Oh gosh Pokeballs are so confusing; they are basically the magic that makes the whole setting work but at the same time, who knows how they work.

If we're going to talk about the anime then I think it's safe to say that Pokeballs are mind control in that cannon. There is a special relatively late in the gen 5 anime that introduced Mega Mewtwo Y. There was a poacher hunting Mewtwo and Mewtwo crushed the Pokeballs of the Pokemon he was using; and they just walked away without a care in the world where before they were oddly aggressive like they had lost the will to fight.

You know now that I'm thinking about it; in both the anime and the games people point out that Pokemon start to take on the attributes of their trainers after awhile. This is not enough to overwrite their original personality but it's notisabul enough where people in the games will say that your Pokemon somehow resemble you. Or in the anime how it's been pointed out that Pikachu has started to take on some of Ash's characteristics even though he didn't have them to begin with. Maybe a Pokeball is a magic device that forms some sort of emphatic link between trainer and Pokemon. Perhaps maybe this link can form without a Pokeball but it takes more time then it does with a Pokeball.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Nacho_Rocket
Member Avatar
Pokémon Trainer
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
The mind altering powers of Pokeballs happen the instant they are captured, as shone when Ash captures his Caterpie in Ep 3. It first showed very little interest in being with a trainer, but as soon as it was captured and let out of its Pokeball it was very friendly to its new traveling partners.

Another example would be the Dark Balls from the Celebi movie. These Pokeballs will capture any Pokemon (including already owned ones) and make them more powerful, at the cost of completely stripping the captured Pokemon's free will. The Bulbapedia article on them actually says "The Pokémon loses its freedom and will obey all commands of its master." These effects also happen immediately. Putting some thought into it, you could explain that the Iron-Masked Marauder tinkered with a normal Pokeballs mind altering capabilities to completely dominate the captured creatures' will and make them fully obedient.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
GrayGriffin
Member Avatar
"Ah, you unmasked me. Whatever shall I do."
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
Soly
Apr 28 2016, 04:49 PM
You know now that I'm thinking about it; in both the anime and the games people point out that Pokemon start to take on the attributes of their trainers after awhile. This is not enough to overwrite their original personality but it's notisabul enough where people in the games will say that your Pokemon somehow resemble you. Or in the anime how it's been pointed out that Pikachu has started to take on some of Ash's characteristics even though he didn't have them to begin with. Maybe a Pokeball is a magic device that forms some sort of emphatic link between trainer and Pokemon. Perhaps maybe this link can form without a Pokeball but it takes more time then it does with a Pokeball.
Dude...I'm pretty sure that's a natural result of spending time together. I use phrases from books I love and good friends of mine all the time, and I'm pretty sure none of us have been brainwashed.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
rlrichey
Member Avatar
Rival
[ *  *  *  *  * ]
I agree, Soly. Pokéballs are the central mechanic of the Pokémon universe. How can you possibly run a game wherein your PCs interact with their Pokémon unless you first understand how a Pokéball affects that relationship?

Remember, though, it doesn't have to be mind control. It's basic psychology to take on the characteristics of the people closest to you. On a small scale, "you are who you hang out with," and on the more serious end you have Stockholm Syndrome. With a few simple assumptions you can definitely justify the relationship as at least moderately ethical.

I've actually been giving it a lot of thought and discussing it with a lot of my friends to try to come up with some ideas that work. My ultimate goal is to create a system that does not contradict the anime, manga, or games, while simultaneously supporting them. Bonus points if I can actually use the anime, manga, and/or games to justify a few of my points. It's a little bit contrived, but it's a theory that technically covers all the bases.

Here's what I have so far:

My PokéBall Theory


On Loyalty


Am I missing anything?
Because if you have this in mind while referring to the games, anime, or manga, it makes a lot of sense. It's definitely what I'm going to use unless there are any major holes.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
« Previous Topic · Pokemon General · Next Topic »
Add Reply

Pokéball created by Sarah & Delirium of the ZNR