Top 10 Most Disturbing Pokémon

#3 – Phantump

According to old tales, these Pokémon are stumps possessed by the spirits of children who died while lost in the forest. ~ Pokémon X Pokédex Entry

This next entry may very well solve the mystery of what happens to all the missing children spoken of within the pages of the Pokédex…and it’s not good. Phantump is perhaps one of the most tragic Pokémon to exist. It’s said that these little creatures come to life when a child, lost in the woods, perishes and its wandering spirit inhabits a stump. Considering how dangerous the world is just in the perspective of this short top ten it isn’t surprising that this is a Pokémon that likely has a decent population within the various forests of the world. Sending ten year olds out to capture monsters that suck souls and carry them off could very well lead to them becoming one of said monsters, being captured by a more capable ten year old, and forced to battle for the rest of their lives.

All that aside, Phantump may have been inspired by the Deku from Legend of Zelda, in specific the departed Deku Sprout from Majora’s Mask. It’s a pretty cute little critter and while it doesn’t seem to have any direct maleficence against the living, its very existence is both depressing and carries with it a heavy implication for those living within this fantasy world.

#2 – Yveltal

When its life comes to an end, it absorbs the life energy of every living thing and turns into a cocoon once more. ~ Pokémon Y Pokédex Entry

When this legendary Pokémon’s wings and tail feathers spread wide and glow red, it absorbs the life force of living creatures. ~ Pokémon X Entry

I honestly tried to keep legendaries off this list because, let’s face it, any one of them could lead to the ultimate destruction of the world if they’re set off. Why did I include this one then? Well, this one will kill everything around it not if, but when, it nears the end of its own life. It’s not a matter of waking it up out of an ancient slumber or approaching it with a vile heart—no, this creature’s natural life cycle involves sucking the life out of everything so that it can slowly regenerate itself. In the Pokémon world, it’s dangerous enough to just walk out of your front door. Heck, given this list it’s dangerous to stay inside even! However, a clever trainer could avoid an untimely death if they play their cards just right. In regards to Yveltal, it’s just a matter of time.

#1 – Yamask

Artwork by yours truly.

Each of them carries a mask that used to be its face when it was human. Sometimes they look at it and cry. ~ Pokémon Black Pokédex Entry

These Pokémon arose from the spirits of people interred in graves in past ages. Each retains memories of its former life. ~ Pokémon White Pokédex Entry

Wrapping up our list is a Pokémon that, while it isn’t directly malicious, its very existence is both tragic and foreboding. Yamask appeared first in Pokémon Black and White within a desert area around the ancient ruins of a long departed civilization. This particular location was the heart of some controversy when the games first came out because the world map in Black and White resembled, very closely, the map of New York City. The site of this devastated land? Ground Zero. The area was inhabited with ghost-type Pokémon, the most numerous being the Yamask. Mind, there was a touching tribute in this location to the US, but that’s for another day.

Yamask begins its existence as a Pokémon when it ends its existence as a human. It’s a black bird-looking ghost that carries about a golden mask that bears the face of its former self. It retains all the memories of its former self, a characteristic that none of the prior ghost Pokémon have, and it spends its life in sorrowful reflection. Between the controversial implications behind Yamask and their location and their miserable existence, I couldn’t help but giving them the number one spot.