Is Pokémon For Kids?

This is going to be one of those Pokémon articles that makes you really think about something, maybe. The title describes the content, is Pokémon really for kids? Of course, the Pokémon games and television series are made with the idea of children enjoying themselves. However, as the first gen children grew up, they started noticing things that troubled them as adults. This article explains a few of the darker parts of the Pokéverse in hopes to answer the question, is Pokémon really for kids?

Food

As we know, nature is a cruel mistress. The gazelle eats the grass, the lion eats the gazelle, and the human heartlessly shoots the lion. Some see it as nature, we see it as no different than Pokémon. For starters, Pokémon are animals. They have a food chain, predators and prey. Heck, even some of the Pokédex entries describe Pokémon hunting each other or feeding off each other.

What about the humans of the Pokéverse? If every animal is a Pokémon, and the traditional deer is a Stantler, what do the humans eat when they are devouring burgers and other meats? Even the vegetables are questionable. What if that head of lettuce is actually a Bulbasaur? Sound farfetch’d? It really isn’t.

Concept

Welcome to the Pokémon games, the cockfighting training session for children. We know, bold words and such. However, as an adult, what would you call capturing wild animals and training them to attack other animals? Dueling other trainers for titles and money? Throwing large competitions where you sport your wild animals in front of on lookers for notoriety.

Not to mention the fact that you fight until your Pokémon are unconscious, just to take them to a strange lady to be healed who wishes to see you again.

The Pokédex

Now you could be wondering how a Pokédex is harmful to our youth, but if you go through a completed Pokédex, you could write a horror story based off some of the entries. Drowzee, for example, feeds off the nightmares of children because they taste better. The Pokédex also explains that Phantump is the ghosts of children who were lost and passed away in the woods. That doesn’t sound too kid friendly. Those are just two examples of some majorly dark Pokédex entries in the Pokéverse.

Please keep in mind, this is merely speculation. We understand that these Pokémon games and television shows were made for kids, and as adults we tend to view things differently. But, what if the creators knew what they were doing, and knew that adults would find the morbidity of it all. We would like to know what you think, and also, do you think Pokémon is really a kid’s game anymore? Thank you for reading.