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A weekly Pokédex Podcast from Bald Man in Japan Luke Summerhayes. A different Pokémon family every week.
I’m Luke Summerhayes and I love Mareanie.
A factoid you’ll often hear is that we’ve mapped more of the surface of the moon than of our own ocean floors. Now to be fair, the thing about space is that there’s nothing there, so it’s quite easy to take pictures through it. The ocean, on the other hand, has loads of water, so it’s quite hard to take pictures through that. Still, it serves as a good short hand for the fact that the ocean depths still contain many mysteries, and life forms which would appear alien to us.
You don’t need to plunge the briny depths, though. Even in comparatively shallow waters, like coral reefs, we can find bizarre life forms. Even common five-pointed starfish are strange, as we’ve discussed, by the Crown-of-thorns starfish is something else. It is covered in a hedgehog-like coat of sharp, venomous barbs. It feeds on coral reefs and can regrow lost limbs easily. It’s as strange as a space alien, and thanks to rising water temperatures, it invades like a fleet of martians.
Mareanie is a water and poison type Pokemon with a small, slightly cute face hiding under the spikey hide of a starfish, here resembling a punk haircut.
Sun
It plunges the poison spike on its head into its prey. When the prey has weakened, Mareanie deals the finishing blow with its 10 tentacles.
Sword
The first symptom of its sting is numbness. The next is an itching sensation so intense that it's impossible to resist the urge to claw at your skin.
Like a real-life crown of thorns starfish, mareanie feeds on coral – in this case, the pokemon Corsola.
Moon
It's found crawling on beaches and seafloors. The coral that grows on Corsola's head is as good as a five-star banquet to this Pokémon.
Ultra Sun
They eat Corsola branches, so Mareanie are hated by craftsmen who work with Corsola branches that have naturally fallen off.
This is the behavior of a marine meanie, no doubt about it, or a cruel sea star as implied by Mareanie’s Japanese name Hiroide.
Ultra Moon
Aside from its head, its body parts regenerate quickly if they're cut off. After a good night's sleep, Mareanie is back to normal.
This self-regeneration, again reminiscent of the real-life inspiration, is reflected in the ability Regenerator, letting it restore a third of its health any time its switched out of battle. This will be put to devastatingly good use when, at level 38, Mareanie evolves into Toxapex.
Toxapex’ tentacles have grown so large that the head dangles inside like a small chandelier in a large concert hall. Like real Starfish, it resembles a rocky, inanimate object when stationery but a terrifying alien when in motion.
Sun
Toxapex crawls along the ocean floor on its 12 legs. It leaves a trail of Corsola bits scattered in its wake.
Ultra Moon
With its 12 legs, it creates a dome to shelter within. The flow of the tides doesn't affect Toxapex in there, so it's very comfortable.
Sword
To survive in the cold waters of Galar, this Pokémon forms a dome with its legs, enclosing its body so it can capture its own body heat.
With the regenerator ability inherited from its time as a Mareanie, as well as the natural bulk of a water type, this sounds like a Pokemon content to sit still. Naturally, it finds itself used in stall tactics for competitive play. Don’t take that to mean it’s entirely passive, though.
Moon
Those attacked by Toxapex's poison will suffer intense pain for three days and three nights. Post-recovery, there will be some aftereffects.
Ultra Sun
To attack, this Pokémon sends toxic spikes flying at its enemies. Ones that come close get mown down by the claws on its feet.
Shield
Within the poison sac in its body is a poison so toxic that Pokémon as large as Wailord will still be suffering three days after it first takes effect.
Toxapex’ ability to dish out poison, as well as burns with the move scald, combine with its defensive and regenerative prowess to make an infuriating opponent to face.
It is a toxic apex predator, as the English name implies, and also a very cruel starfish, as the Japanese name Dohidoide adds.
In real life, though crown of thorns starfish are a disaster for coral populations, they are of course not without predators.
Violet
Toxapex gets into fierce battles with Bruxish over areas where warm ocean currents flow, but the odds are always against it.
As Qui-gon Jin once said: there’s always a bigger fish.
Music for Luke Loves Pokemon was composed by Jonathan Cromie. Artwork for the show is by Katie Groves. Funding is by supporters at patreon.com/podcastiopodcastius.
I love hearing from listeners! Get in touch on youtube, social media or email and let me know about your favorite monsters. Coming up next are Mudbray and Dewpider, so let me know your thoughts about those or any other monsters.
Even if you don’t feel like doing any of that, thank you so much for listening.
I love Mareanie. And remember, I love you too.