Pokémon Sword & Shield - 10 Best New Pokémon
5. Grapploct
Yes, it seems utterly bonkers that Grapploct - an octopus - is not a Water type. Pure Fighting seems like a strange choice, but that aside Grapploct is a fantastically creative Pokémon. Its prevolution, Clobbopus, has the cute vibe while it brings the more fearsome design choices.
A boxing octopus is a clever idea, but it’s also one which could have easily gone awry. Fighting types are probably the most famously overdesigned, un-Pokémon like Pokémon of all, so Grapploct does well to avoid that.
The tentacles are cartoonish enough to not get gross, and all are put to great use. Two each side ready to box, three for waddling on, and the leftover one wrapped around as a sort of karate belt. With the Mexican wrestler mask style design of Grapploct’s face, it’s clearly ditching the pure boxing aesthetic of Cobbopus for a mishmash of fighting paraphernalia.
It could have ended up a mess, but it all works out perfectly.
The dark blue and black spotted with yellow makes for a distinctive style too, and the clever name guarantees this one will be long remembered. It’s bursting with personality, and a stellar anime cameo could cement its place in the fandom.