Gastly evolutionary line

Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar are among the 493 fictional species of Pokémon creatures from the multi-billion dollar Pokémon media franchise – a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, radio dramas and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. Their main purposes in the games, as with all other Pokémon, are to battle both "wild" Pokémon, which are untamed creatures encountered while the player passes through various environments, and "tamed" Pokémon that are owned by Pokémon trainers.

Biological Characteristics

Gastly

Gastly (ゴース, Gōsu, Ghos in original Japanese language versions) Spirit in the Beta versions of the English language versions of Pokémon Red and Blue consists of a dark sphere (its "head") surrounded by a light purple gas. A Gastly has two large eyes with tiny pupils and two vampire-like teeth. Its appearance is likely based on the Japanese concept of hitodama.

Gastly is made of a very thin, gas-like substance, which grants it certain powers and weaknesses. Some say it is an other-dimensional lifeform, while others believe it is formed from toxic gas. It can sneak into any place if it so wishes thanks to the invasive properties of gas molecules. It can render itself nearly invisible and approach enemies undetected, and can envelop said enemies regardless of their size and induce sleepiness, slow poisoning through the skin, or even suffocation.

On the other hand, Gastly's negligible weight and gaseous nature make it very easy for it to be blown off or even scattered to nothingness under a strong wind (although it is presumed the molecules can regroup later). A Gastly will not appear in windy weather if it can help it, but when it finds itself threatened by a strong wind, it clusters in groups under the eaves of houses to protect itself.

Gastly is said to frequent decrepit, deserted buildings.

Haunter

Haunter (ゴースト, Gōsuto, Ghost in original Japanese language versions) Spectre in the beta versions of Red/Blue takes the shape of an angular floating face with disembodied hands. It has a sinister look, complete with fangs and claws. However, when approached by people, it has a habit of reverting to a spherical form that obscures its eyes, mouth, and hands (as seen in Pokémon Snap). In this state, the attack Foresight can reveal it. Haunter is considered in the Pokédex to be a 'gas type' Pokémon, because of the overall structure of his body. Because of its ability to slip through block walls, Haunter is said to be from another dimension. They seem to eat by first paralyzing their opponent with Lick, then draining a bit of their life force, although it's possible they may eat other food as well, such things like Pokéblocks. It is also said to eat people's dreams by going inside them and scaring them to death.

In total darkness, where nothing is visible, it lurks, silently stalking its next victim. Its tongue is made of gas, yet by licking, it can sap its victim's life. It causes shaking that will not stop until the victim's demise. On rare occasions, after a windy night, a Haunter may be seen trapped in the day's shadows.

Gengar

Gengar (ゲンガー, Gengā, Phantom in the beta versions of Red/Blue) often has a rather sinister personality, especially when in the wild. It inhabits remote mountainous locations and urban environments alike, being a dangerous Pokémon to encounter in either case. Fortunately, Gengar is a nocturnal Pokémon, so its attacks are limited to the hours of darkness. It has the shape of a spectre or a shadow demon, and appears black or purple.

Gengar tends to stalk its prospective prey, which includes human beings, and hide in their shadow. It is said that in this way, it has the opportunity to absorb the "vital force"/life of its victims. Gengar acts like a heat sink while doing this, so that its malevolent presence can be given away by a feeling of cold and a shivering sensation.

Another favorite pastime of Gengar is to mimic the shadows of people. A common prank is to take the shape of one's shadow and run past him, giving him the impression that his shadow has come alive and overtaken him. Gengar especially loves to frighten people that way during the nights of a full moon.

In the Pokémon video games

Along with most Pokémon creatures, Gastly and Haunter can be found and captured in random encounters in various Pokémon games. Gastly and Haunter are almost exclusively found within old buildings and at night whenever applicable. Gengar can only be found in random encounters in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, and only under certain conditions.

Gastly can metamorphosize into Haunter through a process called Pokémon evolution when it reaches a particular level. Haunter is statistically superior to Gastly in every way. Haunter can also evolve into Gengar. To do so, Haunter must be traded to a different player, at which point it will evolve automatically and can be either kept or traded back. Gengar's Special Attack, a statistic that affects the potency of energy-based, mental, and fluid attacks (in other words, magical power), is notoriously high, and its speed is well above average.

Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar are all Ghost- and Poison-type Pokémon. They all share the Levitate ability, which eliminates one of their weaknesses. Gastly's evolutionary line is notable for having the only Ghost-type Pokémon in Green, Red, Blue, and Yellow. Elite Fours Agatha from Red, Blue and Yellow and Karen from Gold, Silver and Crystal use a Gengar each. Also, a Gym Leader from Gold, Silver and Crystal named Morty has a Gengar.

All three appear in Pokémon Ranger and have the ability to steal the player's Pokémon if they come into contact. Gengar plays a lead role in the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series for both Nintendo GBA and DS. In it, a Gengar is the leader of the rival rescue team commonly known as the Team Meanies. The Gengar at the beginning plays as a naughty liar and attempts to exile the protagonist of the game from his/her rescue team. He does so by falsely accusing him or her of being a bad human from a Ninetales' Legend that supposedly pulled Ninetales' tail, causing the natural disasters in the Pokémon world. The whole reason he does that is to trick the townsfolk into thinking getting rid of them would stop the disasters, but he really does it in an attempt to get payback on the player's team and to hide the fact that he is actually the cursed human from the story.

In the Pokémon anime

Gengar was the first Pokemon to appear in the series, as Ash watched him battle a Nidorino and later Onix on televised match at the beginning of the first episode. (Recreating the opening scene from Pokemon Red Version since Blue replaces Nidorino with Jigglypuff)

Next was in episode #20 (The Ghost at Maiden's Peak). According to legend, a young lady was said to have leaped to her death from there after waiting several long years for her true love to return (In the dub, it was said she was turned into stone instead). The legend turns out to be true, however it is not the Maiden that haunts the Peak, but a unique talking Gastly who apparently has an unfeasibly high power level. Each year, during a local celebration, Gastly takes the form of the Maiden's spirit and entices males into falling in love with it, whereupon it captures them. It seems that the Gastly's purpose for this is not sinister, but merely an effort to keep the Maiden's legend alive, and make some money selling fake spirit wards to victims of the maiden form. This supposedly means that its capture is meant to be short-lived. The Gastly's benevolent nature is further seen when it promises the real Maiden's ghost to look for the spirit of her true love to tell him she is still waiting for him.

Despite having supposedly malevolent natures, many Ghost-type Pokémon in the anime (and especially Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar) are instead depicted as playfully mischievous. This is especially evident in Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar's first appearance together. The three play the role of poltergeists, levitating objects and pulling pranks on anyone who dared to enter their tower in Lavender town. When Ash Ketchum and his Pikachu are knocked out, or possibly killed, by a falling chandelier, the trio continues to play with their ghosts until Ash and Pikachu return to their bodies.

The Haunter from this episode follows Ash through to the next episode to aid in his battle against Sabrina. Though it does not truly fight, Haunter earns Ash a victory by entertaining Sabrina and awakening her once-happy self, which had been buried under layers of malevolence stemming from her psychic training.

Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar make several more appearances throughout the series. An ancient, giant Gengar combats an equally large Alakazam in a later Season 1 episode. Gastly and Haunter appear in the Orange Islands, guarding a sunken pirate ship. Drake, Ash's opponent in the Orange League, uses a Gengar in his lineup. All three Ghosts are used by Morty during his gym battle with Ash, and his Gengar makes another appearance when Ash backtracks later on. Agatha also uses a Gengar when she temporarily takes over a Pokémon gym. Ash is unable to defeat this Gengar.

Keeping close to their flavor text, Gastly and its evolutions are given extra abilities associated with actual Ghosts, abilities which are rarely given to other Ghost-type Pokémon in the anime. In nearly all of their appearances, Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar have displayed the ability to render themselves invisible and incorporeal. Furthermore, the Gastly at Maiden's Peak claims to be photosensitive, though this is not reflected in Gastly's later appearances, nor those of Haunter and Gengar.

This Gastly is also extremely notable in that it is one of the only Pokémon other than Team Rocket's Meowth who can talk naturally. The few other Pokémon that can communicate in human language, such as Mewtwo, Lugia, are Legendary and speak through telepathy. This Gastly is also strangely powerful for a Basic Pokémon. It fought by scaring its enemy. For example, it became a fire extinguisher to scare Charmander. When Bulbasaur and Squirtle teamed up against it, it combined their final evolutions into one, calling the product "Venustoise." Gastly creates an actual mongoose to take out Jessie's Ekans. The first Haunter seen in the anime also demonstrates the ability to remove a person's soul from his or her body, and does so to Ash and Pikachu once they are knocked out. This same Haunter has also been known to produce bombs from its mouth, survive explosions, and rearrange its own face into silly designs in a manner reminiscent of Looney Toons gags.

References

• The following games and their instruction manuals: Pokémon Red, Green, and Blue; Pokémon Yellow; Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2; Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal; Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald; Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen; Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness

Publications

• Barbo, Maria. The Official Pokémon Handbook. Scholastic Publishing, 1999. ISBN 0-439-15404-9.
• Loe, Casey, ed. Pokémon Special Pikachu Edition Official Perfect Guide. Sunnydale, CA: Empire 21 Publishing, 1999. ISBN 1-930206-15-1.
• Nintendo Power. Official Nintendo Pokémon FireRed & Pokémon LeafGreen Player’s Guide. Nintendo of America Inc., August 2004. ISBN 1-930206-50-X
• Mylonas, Eric. Pokémon Pokédex Collector’s Edition: Prima’s Official Pokémon Guide. Prima Games, September 21, 2004. ISBN 0-7615-4761-4
• Nintendo Power. Official Nintendo Pokémon Emerald Version Player’s Guide. Nintendo of America Inc., April 2005. ISBN 1-930206-58-5

External links

• Official Pokémon website
• Bulbapedia (a Pokémon-centric Wiki)’s article about Gastly as a species
• Bulbapedia (a Pokémon-centric Wiki)’s article about Haunter as a species
• Bulbapedia (a Pokémon-centric Wiki)’s article about Gengar as a species
• Template:Serebiidex
• Template:Serebiidex
• Template:Serebiidex
• Pokémon Dungeon - Gastly's Pokédex entry, full of statistics analysis for the first- and second-generation games.
• Pokémon Dungeon - Haunter's Pokédex entry, full of statistics analysis for the first- and second-generation games.
• Pokémon Dungeon - Gengar's Pokédex entry, full of statistics analysis for the first- and second-generation games.
• PsyPoke - Gastly Pokédex entry and Usage Overview
• PsyPoke - Haunter Pokédex entry and Usage Overview
• PsyPoke - Gengar Pokédex entry and Usage Overview