Yes, I used the title of a classic novel, bite me.
Anyway. One of the more interesting types of Pokemon to write into the fictional arena. Our visions of them vary, and most of us don't like thinking that simply because they're dark doesn't mean that they're evil. Despite this, whenever there is an evil Pokemon in writing, it is commonly a dark-type. Why? Simply because most of them look so sinister. We can't help but see Houndoom as Satan's guard dog, or Tyranitar as the destroyer of worlds, or Weavile as the thing that'll stab you to death in the dark and then make you watch it lick your blood off of its claws while you die.
To be perfectly fair, Dark-type is essentially called Evil-type in Japan, where the series originated. We also cannot deny that while most Dark-types do not seem all that evil, most of them do tend to lean towards the more mischievous and brutal end of the spectrum. If we look at them all, we can see that there are different kinds or classes, if you will, of Dark-types. There's the mischievous types, which are common and what we typical think of first. There's a neutral class, which is where many Dark-types also fall into. There is a small mysterious/misunderstood class. There is an aggressive/violent class. Finally there is also a properly malicious class.
These are different classes that I can make out right more, but I have no doubt that there are more, and that we could break down these current ones into more specific definitions. There are many Dark-types that also fall into more than one of these classes. Let's go with what we have for now, but before we even do that let's discuss the the common aspects of Dark-types.
On top of what the above classes offer, such as mischievous and violent, Dark-types also tend to be a lot more cunning than other Pokemon. They use deceit and conniving plans to get what they want. Many of them are feared, either for the folklore that surrounds them or for how they look. They are commonly associated with actual darkness, shadows, and the moon. They are also often associated with bad feelings such as unease, nightmares, and prophecies of doom or bad luck. Sounds all pretty dark to me - let's take a look at those classes.
Mischievous class
As stated above, these are fairly common and what we often think of when we hear the term "Dark-type". While not necessarily evil, those in this class do lean towards playing pranks, scaring, stealing, and perhaps inflicting very minor injury. Pokemon in this class tend to be selfish and otherwise self-centered, but in the end ultimately tend to be good. Examples are:
Aggressive and Violent class
The title of this class is fairly self explanatory. Dark-types that fall into this class are the violent ones that will injure you without much thought. Despite this, some of these cases can't actually be classified as "evil" as most of these injuries would occur due to a Pokemon protecting its territory, being competitive, or something similar. Few of the Pokemon on this list actually seek to injure people or other Pokemon for sheer malicious intent. This is the largest class and so it proves that a violent or aggressive nature is a common theme amongst Dark-types.
-Sneasel
-Tyranitar
-Poochyena
-Carvanha
-Sharpedo
-Crawdaunt
-Spiritomb
-Drapion
-Weavile
-Krookodile
-Scraggy
-Scrafty
-Deino
-Zweilous
-Hydreigon
Mysterious and Misunderstood class
This is a small group of Dark-types, where, again, the title is self-explanatory. Pokemon in this group actually tend to be rather good-natured, but are feared for their dark-qualities. In essence, any Dark-type Pokemon could technically fall into this group, but it is most common with these four:
-Umbreon
-Shiftry
-Absol
-Darkrai
Downright Malicious class
This group is very small, but the Pokemon in this group are more than likely to be creatures you never want to encounter without your trusty Pokemon at your side, and even then... Pokemon in this group will seek to harm you for no reason other than because they can and could be properly befitting of the "evil" characteristic.
-Cacturne
-Spiritomb
-Hydreigon
Neutral class
Dark-types in this class are more easily described as being like "everyone else", in that they're not majorly different from the rest of the Pokemon world. They could be as evil as Satan himself or as heavenly as Mother Teresa, and obviously anywhere in-between. A few of these don't even seem to have any of the common "Dark" characteristics at all, and we do have to allow for those Dark-types that are only Dark-types because the creators wanted them to be so.
-Houndour
-Houndoom
-Poochyena
-Mightyena
-Nuzleaf
-Shiftry
-Stunky
-Skuntank
-Drapion
-Liepard
-Sandile
-Krokorok
-Zorua
-Zoroark
-Pawniard
-Bisharp
-Vullaby
-Mandibuzz
I would say that I agree with these above lists, and that this does make Dark-types unique amongst the other types. Don't think that I would abide by these strictly though. I realized that there could be a Murkrow that is the sickest most murderous dastard to ever exist, and I also believe that there are Hydreigon that barf rainbows and Butterfrees. Gyarados is also said to go on rampages similar to Spiritomb and Hydreigon, which also classify it as one evil mofo even though it's not a Dark-type. The Litwik line and other Ghost-types are equally as sinister as some Dark-types as well. Psychic-types also tend to wander into this "evil" sector.
The writing world is flexible, but I'm really just spilling out my overall views on the type itself. Attacks are also a funny matter, as it's sometimes difficult to describe them, such as Nasty Plot. We could say that a lot of Dark-type attacks utilized Dark-type energy, but the nature of the energy is questionable. Is the energy evil incarnate or is it more benign? Is it produced by dark-thoughts and willpower or is it more like literal darkness? I'd personally wager for a combination depending on the attack.
Thoughts? I'd like to see what other people think on this matter, and specifically in response to my thoughts and whether they agree or disagree.
Anyway. One of the more interesting types of Pokemon to write into the fictional arena. Our visions of them vary, and most of us don't like thinking that simply because they're dark doesn't mean that they're evil. Despite this, whenever there is an evil Pokemon in writing, it is commonly a dark-type. Why? Simply because most of them look so sinister. We can't help but see Houndoom as Satan's guard dog, or Tyranitar as the destroyer of worlds, or Weavile as the thing that'll stab you to death in the dark and then make you watch it lick your blood off of its claws while you die.
To be perfectly fair, Dark-type is essentially called Evil-type in Japan, where the series originated. We also cannot deny that while most Dark-types do not seem all that evil, most of them do tend to lean towards the more mischievous and brutal end of the spectrum. If we look at them all, we can see that there are different kinds or classes, if you will, of Dark-types. There's the mischievous types, which are common and what we typical think of first. There's a neutral class, which is where many Dark-types also fall into. There is a small mysterious/misunderstood class. There is an aggressive/violent class. Finally there is also a properly malicious class.
These are different classes that I can make out right more, but I have no doubt that there are more, and that we could break down these current ones into more specific definitions. There are many Dark-types that also fall into more than one of these classes. Let's go with what we have for now, but before we even do that let's discuss the the common aspects of Dark-types.
On top of what the above classes offer, such as mischievous and violent, Dark-types also tend to be a lot more cunning than other Pokemon. They use deceit and conniving plans to get what they want. Many of them are feared, either for the folklore that surrounds them or for how they look. They are commonly associated with actual darkness, shadows, and the moon. They are also often associated with bad feelings such as unease, nightmares, and prophecies of doom or bad luck. Sounds all pretty dark to me - let's take a look at those classes.
Mischievous class
As stated above, these are fairly common and what we often think of when we hear the term "Dark-type". While not necessarily evil, those in this class do lean towards playing pranks, scaring, stealing, and perhaps inflicting very minor injury. Pokemon in this class tend to be selfish and otherwise self-centered, but in the end ultimately tend to be good. Examples are:
Aggressive and Violent class
The title of this class is fairly self explanatory. Dark-types that fall into this class are the violent ones that will injure you without much thought. Despite this, some of these cases can't actually be classified as "evil" as most of these injuries would occur due to a Pokemon protecting its territory, being competitive, or something similar. Few of the Pokemon on this list actually seek to injure people or other Pokemon for sheer malicious intent. This is the largest class and so it proves that a violent or aggressive nature is a common theme amongst Dark-types.
-Sneasel
-Tyranitar
-Poochyena
-Carvanha
-Sharpedo
-Crawdaunt
-Spiritomb
-Drapion
-Weavile
-Krookodile
-Scraggy
-Scrafty
-Deino
-Zweilous
-Hydreigon
Mysterious and Misunderstood class
This is a small group of Dark-types, where, again, the title is self-explanatory. Pokemon in this group actually tend to be rather good-natured, but are feared for their dark-qualities. In essence, any Dark-type Pokemon could technically fall into this group, but it is most common with these four:
-Umbreon
-Shiftry
-Absol
-Darkrai
Downright Malicious class
This group is very small, but the Pokemon in this group are more than likely to be creatures you never want to encounter without your trusty Pokemon at your side, and even then... Pokemon in this group will seek to harm you for no reason other than because they can and could be properly befitting of the "evil" characteristic.
-Cacturne
-Spiritomb
-Hydreigon
Neutral class
Dark-types in this class are more easily described as being like "everyone else", in that they're not majorly different from the rest of the Pokemon world. They could be as evil as Satan himself or as heavenly as Mother Teresa, and obviously anywhere in-between. A few of these don't even seem to have any of the common "Dark" characteristics at all, and we do have to allow for those Dark-types that are only Dark-types because the creators wanted them to be so.
-Houndour
-Houndoom
-Poochyena
-Mightyena
-Nuzleaf
-Shiftry
-Stunky
-Skuntank
-Drapion
-Liepard
-Sandile
-Krokorok
-Zorua
-Zoroark
-Pawniard
-Bisharp
-Vullaby
-Mandibuzz
I would say that I agree with these above lists, and that this does make Dark-types unique amongst the other types. Don't think that I would abide by these strictly though. I realized that there could be a Murkrow that is the sickest most murderous dastard to ever exist, and I also believe that there are Hydreigon that barf rainbows and Butterfrees. Gyarados is also said to go on rampages similar to Spiritomb and Hydreigon, which also classify it as one evil mofo even though it's not a Dark-type. The Litwik line and other Ghost-types are equally as sinister as some Dark-types as well. Psychic-types also tend to wander into this "evil" sector.
The writing world is flexible, but I'm really just spilling out my overall views on the type itself. Attacks are also a funny matter, as it's sometimes difficult to describe them, such as Nasty Plot. We could say that a lot of Dark-type attacks utilized Dark-type energy, but the nature of the energy is questionable. Is the energy evil incarnate or is it more benign? Is it produced by dark-thoughts and willpower or is it more like literal darkness? I'd personally wager for a combination depending on the attack.
Thoughts? I'd like to see what other people think on this matter, and specifically in response to my thoughts and whether they agree or disagree.
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