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Lapras

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Lapras
Pokémon character
File:Pokémon Lapras art.png
National Pokédex
Gyarados - Lapras (#0131) - Ditto
First gamePokémon Red and Blue (1996)
Designed byKen Sugimori[1]
Voiced byRikako Aikawa
In-universe information
SpeciesPokémon
TypeWater/Ice

Lapras (ラプラス, Rapurasu, /ˈlæprɪs/) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Lapras first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise. Lapras made its debut in the show in Season 2 Episode 30 of the Pokémon (TV series). Lapras is a water-type large Pokémon that resembles a plesiosaur. Lapras was voiced by Rikako Aikawa in both the Japanese and English-language versions of the anime.

Concept and characteristics

Developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo, the Pokémon series began in Japan in 1996 with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue for the Game Boy. In these games, the player assumes the role of a Pokémon Trainer whose goal is to capture and train creatures called Pokémon. Players use the creatures' special abilities to combat other Pokémon,[2]: 6–7, 11  and some can transform into stronger species, or evolve, once they gain enough experience or through other methods.[2]: 31, 35  The ultimate goal is to complete the Pokémon index (Pokédex), a comprehensive Pokémon encyclopedia, by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain creatures from all Pokémon species.[2]: 6–7 

Lapras was one of 151 different designs conceived by Game Freak's character development team and finalized by Ken Sugimori for the first generation of Pocket Monsters games Red and Green, which were localized outside Japan as Pokémon Red and Blue.[3][4] Its English name is a romanization of the Japanese name Rapurasu, subsequently revealed to be the Japanese way of writing Laplace, a name likely based after the mathematician Pierre-Simon Laplace.[5][6] In the Pokémon Red and Blue beta version, Lapras was named "Ness".[7]

Lapras, known as the Transport Pokémon, is a large sea creature which resembles a plesiosaur. It may also be inspired by placodonts. It has four flippers, however its front ones are notably larger than its hind flippers. It has a long neck, and large black eyes. Lapras has unusual curled ears and a short horn in the middle of its forehead. The majority of its body is blue, while its underside is a light cream-yellow color. Its most distinguishing feature is the gray shell on its back, which is largely dotted with blunt knobs. Lapras is most known for its fondness of moving people and Pokémon across bodies of water.[8] Some Lapras are able to develop Psychic abilities such as telepathy,[9] which makes them able to understand human speech.[10] They keep track of their fellow pod members through use of high-pitched songs they constantly sing,[11] much like whales. Unfortunately due to their docile nature they do not like to fight, and this has made them an easy target for hunters,[12] which has made them very rare in the wild, due to being over hunted.[13]

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, Lapras received a Gigantamax form with access to the unique G-Max Move G-Max Resonance, the only Ice-type G-Max Move.[14]

Appearances

Lapras first appears in Pokémon Red and Blue, and appears in all subsequent entries in the series. It is obtained as a gift from another character in Red and Blue. It is initially not available in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, but is made available through The Indigo Disk DLC. Lapras has also appeared in multiple spin-off titles, including Pokémon Snap, the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series, and Pokémon Go. It also appears in the crossover game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a collectible Spirit that can be used to cross a body of water.[15]

In the anime, Ash travels to the Orange Islands and finds a young Lapras which has been accidentally left behind by its pod. It joins him after he rescues it from three abusive trainers and Team Rocket. It is mainly used for transportation between the various islands, but he uses it in some battles. Lapras eventually reunites with its pod and leaves Ash. They meet up again in Johto where Lapras rescues its entire pod from Team Rocket and becomes their leader. Lapras also appears in the second part of the anime special Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time & Darkness where she takes Piplup and Chimchar on a ride. In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Pryce lost two of his favorite Lapras in an avalanche, just as the egg born by them hatched. Unable to get over his loss, Pryce swore to save his Lapras and thus began researching into time travel, setting the events of the Johto saga in motion in which he tries to capture a Celebi for its time travel capabilities.

Reception

IGN's Pokémon Chick wrote that Lapras was "amazing" and has "won the heart of many a trainer, including yours truly" due to its "great beauty, grace and gentleness".[16] UGO Networks' Chris Plante named Lapras one of the "most unconventional vehicles in games".[17] GamesRadar's Raymond Padilla wrote that it is "one of our favorite Pokémon from the original game".[18] Author Loredana Lipperini wrote that Lapras was "reliable", "placid", and "gentle".[19] Lapras has been compared to several creatures both real and mythological. IGN wrote that it was "loosely based on a plesiosaur, crossed with a tortoise".[6] Gamershell's David Jenkins compared Lapras to the Loch Ness Monster.[20] Author Ash Dekirk described it as a combination of a sea turtle and a dragon. He also described it as resembling a plesiosaur with a spiky tortoise shell on its back.[21] Official Nintendo Magazine's Thomas East compared it to a plesiosaur as well as Loosha from Professor Layton and the Last Specter.[22] Game Revolution's Johnny Liu described it as a "subservient Loch Ness monster".[23] IGN named it the 27th best Pokémon.[24] Game Informer also included it in its list of Pokémon at #29.[25] Official Nintendo Magazine's readers voted it the eighth best Water-type Pokémon.[22] Lapras was ranked 23rd in Complex's "The 50 Best Pokemon Up to Pokemon Crystal", with Elijah Watson saying "Lapras is still an incredible Pokemon."[26] Steven Bogos of The Escapist listed Lapras as his favorite Pokémon, stating that based on the infamous Loch Ness Monster, it also has a pretty sweet design.[27] Lyra Hale of The Mary Sue claimed that "it got absolutely wild Lapras was a swan boat ride."[28]

In the Pokémon of the Year poll held by The Pokémon Company, Lapras was voted the tenth most popular Generation I Pokémon, receiving 23,411 votes.[29] A Lapras-themed parfait was launched at the Pokémon Café in Tokyo in 2018.[30] In 2019, Miyagi Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan selected Lapras as its "official Pokémon"[31] as a tourism ambassador.[32] Lapras was later used on Pokémon Go to revive tourism near the coast of Iwate Prefecture, Miyagi Prefecture and Fukushima Prefecture after the impact of 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[33] A mascot of Lapras has already appeared Miyagi as part of new tourism ambassador role.[34] In 2020, people can now travel with Lapras on Miyagi.[35]

Lapras has been the subject of Pokémon Go-related incidents. In 2016, a man crashed his car after seeing a Lapras that he hadn’t encountered before,[36] and in 2017, a Singaporean player named Liang Weiming died from a heart attack after capturing a rare Lapras at Marina Bay Sands.[37]

Merchandise

A variety of merchandise[38] depicting Lapras have been produced such as the gigantic plush,[39] float,[40] hoody water bottle and tank top,[41] stationery,[42] T-shirt,[43] and mascot.[44]

References

  1. ^ "ピカチュウは大福？ 初めて明かされる誕生秘話". Yomiuri (in Japanese). 2 May 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Game Freak (30 September 1998). Pokémon Red and Blue, Instruction manual. Nintendo.
  3. ^ Staff. "2. 一新されたポケモンの世界". Nintendo.com (in Japanese). Nintendo. p. 2. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  4. ^ Stuart Bishop (30 May 2003). "Game Freak on Pokémon!". CVG. Archived from the original on 16 January 2008. Retrieved 7 February 2008.
  5. ^ Names of Pokémon section of the official Battle Dictionary.
  6. ^ a b Description of the French translation of Pokémon names from the translator Julien Bardakoff.
  7. ^ "BBC - The Social - 25 Years of Pokémon: Five things you didn't know". 22 February 2021. Archived from the original on 22 February 2021.
  8. ^ Game Freak (29 July 2001). Pokémon Crystal (Game Boy Color). Nintendo. Pokédex: This gentle Pokémon loves to give people rides and provides a very comfortable way to get around.
  9. ^ Game Freak (19 October 1999). Pokémon Yellow (Game Boy). Nintendo. Pokédex: A gentle soul that can read the minds of people. It can ferry people across the sea on its back.
  10. ^ Game Freak (7 September 2004). Pokémon FireRed (Game Boy Advance). Nintendo. Pokédex: Its high intelligence enables it to understand human speech. It likes to ferry people on its back.
  11. ^ Game Freak (17 March 2003). Pokémon Ruby (Game Boy Advance). Nintendo. Pokédex: People have driven Lapras almost to the point of extinction. In the evenings, this Pokémon is said to sing plaintively as it seeks what few others of its kind still remain.
  12. ^ Game Freak (15 October 2000). Pokémon Gold (Game Boy Color). Nintendo. Pokédex: They have gentle hearts. Because they rarely fight, many have been caught. Their number has dwindled.
  13. ^ Game Freak (30 September 1998). Pokémon Red (Game Boy). Nintendo. Pokédex: A Pokémon that has been overhunted almost to extinction. It can ferry people across the water.
  14. ^ Cole, Gene (8 April 2020). "Pokemon: The 10 Best G-Max Moves, Ranked". Archived from the original on 6 January 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  15. ^ "Super Smash Bros Ultimate: World of Light is the game's insane new story mode". November 2018.
  16. ^ "Pok¿mon of the Day: Lapras (#131) - IGN" – via www.ign.com.
  17. ^ "Most Unconventional Vehicles - Lapras - UGO.com". Archived from the original on 2 October 2010.
  18. ^ Pokemusings, week 26 | GamesRadar
  19. ^ Lipperini, Loredana (10 July 2000). Generazione Pokémon: i bambini e l'invasione planetaria dei nuovi giocattoli di ruolo. Castelvecchi. ISBN 9788882102494 – via Google Books.
  20. ^ "Pokemon Dash DS Game Index Page".
  21. ^ Dekirk, Ash; Zell-Ravenheart, Oberon (2006). Dragonlore: From the Archives of the Grey School of Wizardry - Ash Dekirk - Google Boeken. Red Wheel/Weiser. ISBN 9781564148681.[permanent dead link‍]
  22. ^ a b East, Thomas (10 February 2012). "Best Water Pokemon". Official Nintendo Magazine. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  23. ^ Pokemon Dash Review
  24. ^ Drake, Audrey. "Lapras - #27 Top Pokemon". IGN. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  25. ^ Harmon, O'Dell (21 November 2012). "Top 50 Pokémon Of All Time". Game Informer. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  26. ^ "The 50 Best Pokemon Up to "Pokemon Crystal"". Complex.
  27. ^ "Top 100 Pokemon - from 100 to 86". 21 February 2016.
  28. ^ "Pokemon's Iconic Intro Gets a Stock Footage Makeover". 8 April 2021.
  29. ^ "Pokémon of the Year 2020 | Pokémon Vote Results". pokemon2020.pokemon.com.
  30. ^ "20 Must-See Food Items Sold At The Pokémon Cafe | TheRecipe". 31 July 2019. Archived from the original on 31 July 2019.
  31. ^ Dennison, Kara. "Lapras Is Now the Official Pokémon of Miyagi Prefecture". Crunchyroll. Archived from the original on 10 July 2019. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  32. ^ "Lapras, The Pokemon Has Been Named Japan's Official Tourism Ambassador". 17 July 2019.
  33. ^ Ajima, Shinya (11 November 2016). "Rare Pokemon deployed to help recovery in Tohoku quake zones". The Japan Times.
  34. ^ "Pokémon Lapras appears on streets, in lakes of Miyagi as part of new tourism ambassador role". 9 July 2019.
  35. ^ "Travel Japan's Miyagi Prefecture Together With Pokémon's Lapras". MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON | もしもしにっぽん. 29 October 2020.
  36. ^ Cary, Steven (5 August 2016). "I crashed my car playing Pokémon Go". the Guardian.
  37. ^ "Singaporean man dies from a heart attack after finally catching a coveted Lapras in Pokémon GO". 4 March 2017.
  38. ^ "Singapore Pokémon Center anniversary merchandise unveiled". Nintendo Wire. 7 August 2020.
  39. ^ Frank, Allegra (8 March 2018). "This gigantic Lapras plush is the only friend we need". Polygon.
  40. ^ "Pokemon Fans Can Now Buy A Lapras Pool Float Online".
  41. ^ "Lapras Surf Collection Now Available in Pokémon Center Range". Nintendo Life. 9 May 2017.
  42. ^ Tan, Trevor (12 April 2019). "First Pokemon Centre in Asia outside Japan opens doors as part of Singapore's Jewel Changi Airport preview". The Straits Times.
  43. ^ December 2019, Austin Wood 16 (16 December 2019). "These custom-made Pokemon shirts are to die for, and they're now available in the US and UK". gamesradar.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  44. ^ "Stop everything you're doing and watch this waddling Lapras mascot". Nintendo Wire. 8 July 2019.
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