A new piece of Pokémon fan art gives the electric Legendary Pokémon Raikou a mechanical makeover.
Artist Marcus Hii initially shared the work on Twitter, which was re-posted on Reddit, and it reimagines the iconic Thunder Pokémon as a mecha with armored, metal plating and electrical circuitry. Commentators have thought of it as a crossover with many other pop culture franchises, including Tomy's Zoids, Bandai and Toei Animation's Digimon and Guerrilla Games' Horizon Zero Dawn. Some have also posited that this mecha-version of Raikou may be the Pokémon's mega-evolution.
A second-generation Pokémon designed by Muneo Saitō, Raikou is one of the three beasts Ho-Oh resurrected alongside Entei and Suicune. It has appeared in several of the entries in the Pokémon multimedia franchise, including many of the films like Lucario and the Mystery of Mew, Arceus and the Jewel of Life and Zoroark: Master of Illusions. Raikou made its debut in the Pokémon trading card game as part of the Neo Revelation expansion and since then, it has featured on 21 different cards.
In recent Pokémon news, two new games, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, are scheduled to release later this year, introducing gamers to the ninth generation of pocket monsters. The new starters -- Fuecoco, Sprigatito and Quaxly -- have featured heavily in Scarlet and Violet's promotional material, and many individuals have already begun debating which of the three will be their companion at the start of the game. The three have also become the center of fan speculation, with one fan using a classic Spanish novel, Don Quijote de la Mancha, to make predictions about Fuecoco, Sprigatito and Quaxly's final forms.
Moreover, new episodes are on their way for the Pokémon Master Journeys anime series. While there currently isn't an official release date for the episodes, the trailer teases several upcoming story beats. These include Goh encountering the legendary Pokémon Suicune and Ash reuniting with his Greninja and preparing to battle the champion of the World Coronation Series, Leon. A new poster hints at a possible encounter with Mew as well.
Also, the Pokémon Company is teaming up with Japan's National Museum of Nature and Science to create an immense exhibition that details the natural history of the world of Pokémon, featuring fossil and skeleton versions of several of the franchise's iconic creatures. The exhibit will appear at three temporary locations over the course of 2022.
Several of the Pokémon anime series and films are available on Netflix.
Source: Reddit, Twitter
