"The many origins of Shiinotic: An overly long analysis of the most underappreciated Alolan Pokémon (tl;dr at the end)"

You may have forgotten what a Shiinotic is, but for me it is my favorite Pokémon of all time, and I'm about to go over all the reasons why through a Reddit post of excruciating length. Alas, Shiinotic is not a very popular Pokémon, and it's easy to see why: a lot of people find it too creepy or uncanny to like, especially compared to Morelull, most of its inspirations aren't immediately obvious, it's never been featured prominently in any of the games, and even in its first appearance it was horribly overshadowed by nearly every other new Grass- and Fairy-type Pokémon. To my knowledge, not one person has ever cared enough about this freaky mushroom-man to write a thorough analysis of its design and just what it's doing in Alola... until today.Part 1: Mycological RootsFirst, let's take a moment to talk about its heart-meltingly adorable pre-evolution Morelull, an empty-eyed bioluminescent mushroom whose name comes from "morel", a famous type of edible fungus, and "lull", referring to how its spores can induce sleep; hopefully you haven't been pronouncing it as "More-lull". While Morelull may sound innocuous, merely feeding on nutrients from tree roots and soil to sustain itself and never staying in one spot so as not to cause more harm than it needs to, it has potential to be as dangerous as any Fairy Pokémon: the Japanese Sun and Moon website speaks of an incident wherein a Morelull colony's spores flew into the vents of an airplane that was flying overhead, putting those on board to sleep and nearly causing a crash!Shiinotic is best described as "creepy cute": it's a taller, more humanoid mushroom with the same hollow eyes as Morelull, but the additions of a blank, off-putting smile and long, green mycelium fingers through which it drains the vitality of seemingly whomever it sees fit, making for one of the more unsettling Fairy-type Pokémon; or, it could be described as a cross between a Toad from Mario and the Landlord from Super Milk Chan. Dangerous as it may be, it's not completely cruel; the anime shows that Shiinotic can also share energy with those they take a liking to, in a similar manner to how mycorrhizal fungi provide nutrients from the soil to their botanic symbionts. Its name can be broken down into "shiitake", a common edible mushroom that grows on decaying wood; "shine", referring to its ability to produce phosphorescent light; and "hypnotic", referencing the idea of putting one to sleep through hypnotism, the mind-influencing psychoactive agents found within certain mushrooms, and how some bioluminescent animals beguile prey with their eye-catching lights.In most languages, Shiinotic's name pertains to mushrooms and light: in both Japanese and Korean, it is Mashade, and its French name is Lampignon, which reveals that its line also takes inspiration from night lights, lamps and lampshades. The Pokémon Company directly acknowledged this in the promotional artwork for the "Snorlax's Yawn" merchandise, which depicts a bedroom filled with all manner of Pokémon-themed furniture, including a Shiinotic bedside lamp situated atop an Aurorus dresser.Before going into detail about what inspired Bowling Pin Toad's appearance, it would be wise to first explain its typing. Grass is easy: prior to the revelation that fungi don't actually photosynthesize, they spent ages being conflated with and incorrectly classified as plants. As for Fairy, fairies have been associated with nature, and therefore mushrooms, for almost as long as the idea of fairies has been a thing. Over time, this has lead some lucky 'shrooms to be bestowed with such monikers as "dryad's saddle" and "fairy inkcap", as well as Shroomish and Breloom being placed in the Fairy Egg Group. During a time when people made less distinction between medical science and magic, the potential medicinal, toxic, or hallucinogenic properties of mushrooms earned them a history of use in "sorcery" and shamanic rituals, a trope that still persists in popular culture to this day. In fantasy stories, they're often used as potion ingredients by wizards and witches; funny enough, Shiinotic's design can be read as a literal "mushroom cloud" erupting from a cauldron, though it's hard to say whether or not this was deliberate.The mushroom most frequently depicted in fairy stories and paintings, and arguably the most recognizable fungus of all, is the poisonous and hallucinogenic Amanita muscaria, the red-and-white toadstool commonly known as the fly agaric. You know the one: sometimes it's shown being used as a seat or dwelling by a fairy or gnome, other times it is but one detail in an enchanted forest filled with wonder. It has since been adopted by popular culture as the go-to look for a wild mushroom, starting with Renaissance paintings and working its way up through Alice in Wonderland, to The Smurfs, to Mario, to even Pokémon's fifth generation of games, which used it as a basis for Foongus and Amoonguss. Some have also speculated the fly agaric to have religious connotations of varying levels of plausibility, from being the Soma described in ancient Hindu texts, to even being the forbidden fruit consumed by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.The Amanita genus is best known for its poisonous species, including some of the most toxic toadstools known to man; while some are in fact safe to eat provided they are correctly identified, others contain downright deadly levels of toxins. Though Shiinotic may not be poisonous, lacking the type and only learning one Poison-type move, it shares some of the other trademarks of mushrooms in this genus, including a wide convex cap covered in patches or warts, and a volva - that's the pink, sack-like structure that forms the lower part of Shiinotic's body, a remnant of the universal veil that envelops the mushroom during its infancy.In addition to Amanita, Shiinotic is based on Mycena fungi, of which 59 species are known to produce fairy fire. Fairy fire is one of the three names for the phosphorescent light created by fungi on decaying wood, the others being foxfire and chimpanzee fire. In particular, Shiinotic's pink cap is reminiscent of species such as Mycena rosella, Mycena pura and Mycena purpureofusca; if we branch out to other families, another close match is the Pink Waxcap, Porpolomopsis calyptriformis. While foxfire-producing fungi mainly emit it from the mycelium, the fruitbody, or both, the slippery mycena (Roridomyces roridus) specifically only has bioluminescent spores. The anime shows that this isn't true of Morelull nor Shiinotic, but nevertheless their Pokédex entries mainly describe their light as being emitted from their spores. Other Mycena species that may hold relevance here include Mycena interrupta and Mycena nargan, also known as the pixies' parasol and the spotted pixie cap respectively; as well as several species that go by variations of "fairy helmet", such as the bleeding fairy helmet (Mycena haematopus).All of this is, of course, a perfect fit for Alola: bioluminescent fungi are most common in temperate and tropical climates, and Hawaii is known as the Rainbow State (hence Team Rainbow Rocket, the light-themed legendaries, Minior's many colors and the bedazzling Bruxish). Hawaii is home to many species capable of producing light - mostly aquatic animals and bacteria, but also the fungus Armillaria nabsnona, whose mycelium is bioluminescent. Armillaria are better known as honey fungi, for many of their species have yellow, yellowish-brown or straight-up brown caps that match up with shiny Shiinotic's, such as Armillaria ostoyae, Armillaria luteobubalina and Armillaria mellea.Honey fungi are an example of a facultative parasite: they grow in the roots of living trees and eventually kill them, but they've adapted to eat both living and dead organic matter - they'll continue to feed on their host even after it perishes, regardless of whether it was actually the fungus that did it in. While Shiinotic's signature move, Strength Sap, is obviously based on how fungi "sap" nutrients from their environment through their mycelia, the fact that it drains the opponent of its strength yet gives them nothing in return brings to mind parasitic fungi which derive all of their nutrients from their hosts, such as honey fungi. Shiinotic's default color scheme also gives it the most "psychedelic" vibe of all fungal Pokémon: on top of its fly agaric inspiration, magic mushrooms - yes, the ones with hallucinogenic alkaloids - mainly occur in the tropics and subtropics, including Hawaii, where you may come across Panaeolus bisporus and Panaeolus cambodginiensis.Yet another potential mycological reference lies in Hachijō-jima, the southernmost of Tokyo's Izu islands. From the end of World War II through the end of the 1960s, the government made efforts to promote it as the "Hawaii of Japan" to increase investment and property development. It just so happens that multiple species of Mycena fungus known to produce a pale green light are abdundant on this island, including Mycena chlorophos and Mycena lux-coeli, the latter of which was long considered to be endemic to Hachijō-jima until it was found on other Japanese islands decades later.Part 2: Mythological RootsAs mentioned previously, shiny Shiinotic takes its color scheme from various honey fungi, making it the second Pokémon inspired by a parasitic fungus. The first was Parasect, and these two are linked in more ways than just sharing the same base stat total and evolution level: in Pokémon Sun, the Pokémon that attacks when you collect the Tiny Mushroom for the Lush Jungle trial is a Parasect, whereas in Pokémon Moon it is a Shiinotic. In Alola, Paras can only be found during the day, while Morelull is a night-only encounter. The cherry on top is this Shiinotic Pokédex entry:Ultra Moon: When it starts fighting for territory with Parasect, the entire area gets completely coated in spores!Paras only appearing during the day is accurate to real cicadas, most of which are diurnal, but what about Morelull? Well, fairies in general have long been thought to come out exclusively or more often at night, including and up to the Menehune, a seldom-seen race spoken of in Hawaiian mythology. Though considered fairies, Menehune have more in common with dwarves, including their short, stocky build and exceptional craftsmanship. According to legend, the Menehune reside deep within the mountain forests and caves of Hawaii, away from any human civilization; stand at about 2–3 feet tall, barely shorter than Shiinotic (3'03"); and only be active at night, during which time they would establish fantastic fish ponds, roads, houses and temples. They've been credited with building some of Hawaii's finest ancient architecture before even the first Polynesian settlers arrived there.In contemporary Hawaii, the term "Menehune rings" is sometimes used to refer to fairy rings, perfect circles of mushrooms which can cause rings of grass around them to either grow taller or wither and darken, depending on the fungus (ironically, these necrotic zones are the exact thing Morelull tries to avoid creating). It's certainly no coincidence that three of the fungi able to grow in fairy rings are in the Amanita genus, which Shiinotic is already known to draw inspiration from. Even outside of Hawaii, fairy rings lend their name to the vast folklore surrounding them. Let's take a look at some more Pokédex entries:Sun: Forests where Shiinotic live are treacherous to enter at night. People confused by its strange lights can never find their way home again.Moon: It emits flickering spores that cause drowsiness. When its prey succumb to sleep, this Pokémon feeds on them by sucking in their energy.Sword: Its flickering spores lure in prey and put them to sleep. Once this Pokémon has its prey snoozing, it drains their vitality with its fingertips.Shield: If you see a light deep in a forest at night, don't go near. Shiinotic will make you fall fast asleep.This is bog-standard fairy behavior. Many mythological fairies such as redcaps, boggarts, dullahans, rusalki and the nuckelavee were highly dangerous to those they crossed paths with; others were said to be or utilize will-o'-the-wisps - known in Welsh folklore as fairy fire - which would entrance or bewilder travelers who saw them at night. To summarize, Shiinotic's territory is generally not worth the risk of encroaching on when it's dark out, just as European folktales would often warn not to step in fairy rings.Since science hadn't yet advanced enough to disprove it, the appearance of fairy rings was attributed to supernatural beings such as elves, witches or fairies dancing in circles, and could be a sign of either good or bad luck depending on the tradition. At worst, consequences for entering them could range from being transported to the land of the fae, to unwillingly joining in on the nightly dances until your body gives out. Legends would often paint them as being all but impossible to escape from on one's own, and since time was said to pass differently in the otherworld, your trip to Fairyland could have equated to weeks or even years elapsed in the mortal realm, potentially resulting in a near-instant death from old age after breaking free. The only way to safely investigate a fairy ring was to run around it nine times, specifically under the full moon according to a Northumberland tradition. Other creatures said to be linked to fairy rings include dragons, giant bug-eyed toads, and even the Devil himself.At this point, you may have remembered that fairy rings are not the only mysterious circles associated with night and the paranormal. One could say that crop circles are the contemporary equivalent of fairy rings, even if they aren't created naturally. In some ways, aliens are the spiritual successors to traditional fairies in today's popular culture and urban legends, sharing their unknowability, alien morals, and knack for abducting random humans without a thought only to bring them back different, sometimes with no memory of what occurred when they were kidnapped.One of the most common perpetrators of alleged alien abductions are the classic Gray Aliens, which Shiinotic lines up with surprisingly well. The Illuminating Pokémon shares the archetypal Grays' pitch-black eyes and short stature compared to humans; it has (hyp)notic in its name, potentially referencing the alien brainwashing trope; and its huge, dome-shaped cap could very well symbolize either an enlarged brain or a flying saucer from which an alien may descend upon Earthlings, or use a tractor beam to do the inverse. Aliens being associated with light is nothing new, either. Some of the very first UFO sightings of the 20th century described them as fiery balls of light in the sky; for somewhat more recent examples, just look at E.T.'s glowing finger, or the scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind in which colored lights are used to communicate with the extraterrestrial mothership.This is all but perfect for games titled Sun and Moon: not only are they literally named after celestial bodies, but they also introduced the Light Trio, the astronaut-like Dewpider, the miniature meteor Minior, the extradimensional aliens called the Ultra Beasts, and the seemingly alien NPC in Haina Desert who "returns to space" after being shown a Solrock/Lunatone. Moreover, Hawaii has had problems with alien (as in non-native) species for centuries, just not the extraterrestrial kind. Yungoos is based on invasive mongooses that were introduced to Hawaii to control the population of imported rats; the Ultra Beasts are extradimensional beings that are used to wildly different environments from Alola, making them too dangerous to belong there, and Shigeru Ohmori confirmed this to be what the Ultra Beasts symbolize in the first place.Though there are a couple fungi that are invasive to Hawaii, none seem like they could have inspired Shiinotic; if its creation was influenced by any invasive fungus in particular, it would likely be Saproamanita inopinata, one of the two species of Saproaminata agaric considered to be invasive by the time Sun and Moon would have started development. Saproamanita are in the same family as Amanita and were once considered to be the same genus; some species can even grow in fairy rings. S. inopinata has not been observed in Hawaii, but rather New Zealand, which has also struggled with invasive species, starting with dogs and rats introduced by Polynesian settlers. This would still fit Alola because some aspects of the region were in fact inspired by other Oceanian islands, most notably Komala.Going back to mythology, there's one last legendary creature that could hold relevance to Shiinotic, and if you're a Studio Ghibli fan, you may have already guessed what it is: the kodama, literally meaning "tree spirit" in Japanese. Kodama are a kind of nature deity, said to be the animated souls of the ancient trees they inhabit; the few reported sightings of kodama describe them faint wisps or orbs of light, or lights with tiny humanoids inside them. The Ghibli movie Princess Mononoke has what is by leaps and bounds the most famous portrayal of kodama, depicting them with entirely white skin and black dots for eyes and mouths. Pokémon is no stranger to referencing other modern media (case in point: Lokix and Baxcalibur; even the very foundation of the franchise, Poké Balls, are an Ultraman reference) so I could totally believe that the Ghibli kodama had an influence on Shiinotic's design.The VerdictWell, that's pretty much it. In conclusion, Shiinotic is one of the most inspired, well-thought out Pokémon that Generation VII has to offer, tying together a multitude of mycological and mythological references from Europe, Hawaii and Japan alike into an original forest sprite that wouldn't feel out of place in any number of fairy stories, yet also manages to remind us of more modern analogues of the fair folk. Taking into account all these different origins, it's hard to find a Pokémon more deserving of the Fairy type than Shiinotic.Tl;dr: Shiinotic's potential inspirations include lamps and lampshades; mushrooms' folkloric ties to fairies and magic; various fungi of the Amanita, Mycena, Porpolomopsis, Armillaria and Saproamanita genuses, some of which produce fairy fire; Parasect, serving as its nocturnal counterpart; Menehune; fairy rings, also known as Menehune rings; will o' the wisps, also known as fairy fire; gray aliens and UFOs; and kodama, specifically the ones from Princess Mononoke. via /r/pokemon https://ift.tt/YQdcUgm