Thanks to Wolfman and Hamada for helping with edits.
Ah, Pokémon Day is nearly here again. The multimedia juggernaut is very important to me, and I enjoy writing about it. Consequently, I’ve previously celebrated the day by discussing three of Pokémon’s most storied characters: Red, Ash, and Mewtwo. This year, however, is a smidge different; we’re eyeing a character who doesn’t quite match their notoriety, but is no less an essential part of my childhood.
Ken Sugimori art of Marill (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
Pokémon Red, Blue, & Yellow (and the Japan-exclusive Green) were the series’ first main installments, telling the story of a young underdog who becomes champion. Their followups, Gold & Silver, hit three years later, telling the story of a new underdog from the neighboring Johto region. It’s fairly obvious in retrospect, but work on them overlapped with their predecessors. Although the sequels’ development cycle was rocky, they became another massive success. They also set the standard for what a new “generation” of Pokémon entails, introducing a new region, gameplay mechanics, and, of course, new Pokémon…
Marill’s History
Two of the many Pokémon found within Gold & Silver are Marill and its evolution, Azumarill. About halfway through Johto, players arrive at Mt. Mortar, the cavern wild Marill call home. In the games’ enhanced “third version,” Crystal, Marill can also be found along Route 42. Curiously, a ROM leak of Gold & Silver’s 1997 Space World demo shows Marill was originally a vibrant pink and lacked an evolution. By the games’ 1999 demo, Marill bore its familiar blue hue (Azumarill, meanwhile, was yellow, which would ultimately become its shiny coloration).
Marill evolves into Azumarill once it reaches Level 18. Azurill, who debuted the following generation, evolves into Marill once its happiness is maximized. (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
Subsequently, wild Marill appear in Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, LeafGreen, Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, HeartGold, SoulSilver, Black 2, White 2, X, Y, Omega Ruby, Alpha Sapphire, Sun, Moon, Sword & Shield’s downloadable expansion, and finally Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. Occasionally, Marill even gets special attention. Ruby & Sapphire introduced Azurill, who also appears in several games — including White, meaning Marill’s still obtainable therein. Johto remakes HeartGold & SoulSilver reassert Marill’s prominence; it can also be caught in their new Safari Zone, and the protagonist you don’t play as keeps one as their partner. Finally, X &Y introduced the Fairy-type and retroactively gave it to a handful of older creatures, including the Marill family.
Pokémon’s ongoing anime helped raise Marill’s profile. A competitive one graced Pikachu’s Summer Vacation, a companion short to The First Movie. During the “Orange Island” arc, newcomer Tracey Sketchit uses a Marill, and countless more have appeared since. Unsurprisingly, the blue blob appears throughout various manga publications, and plenty of merchandise honors it. The Aqua Mouse Pokémon is usable in several Pokémon spin-offs, including Puzzle League and the Mystery Dungeon series. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, Marill is one of many possible Poké Ball summons (Piplup and Oshawott inherited this role for its sequels) and returns as a Spirit in Ultimate.
So, what’re my thoughts on Marill?
Kayzie Rogers was the default voice actress for Marill in English. (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
For those of us born during the early Nineties, the internet wasn’t this sprawling, essential component of everyday life. Sure, valuable information could be found there, but people weren’t seeing whole games leak months before their launch. Instead, our go-to sources of information were magazines and our social circles. Given the ubiquitous popularity of Pokémon and difficulty for a child to parse real factoids from falsities, urban myths concerning the series ran rampant. We all heard those rumors about the Mew hiding under that truck, right? That’s only the tip of this iceberg.
Now, imagine growing up with these massive role-playing games and their cartoon adaption, and then something incredible happens: new Pokémon are getting discovered! First, there was Ho-oh, who briefly cameos in the anime’s first episode, and later Ash stumbles upon an odd egg that hatches into the quirky Togepi. Then, we saw the franchise’s roster expand again during a theatrical event — and everyone was talking about these new critters. What is now a routine, new Pokémon generations introducing new monsters, was still alien during this nascent, experimental period of the franchise. It captivated us further, showing us there was more to see than just what could be captured in Red, Blue, or Yellow.
Notably, an English Topps trading card addresses Marill as “Pikablu.” (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
Well, okay, some of us didn’t quite understand or want to understand that these animals weren’t obtainable in those games — once we caught word of Gold & Silver, it was clear these newcomers were formally debuting there. Some kids, nevertheless, sought to capture the “PokéGods,” elusive specimens which Trainers must follow specific, goofy tasks to capture. During a friend’s birthday party, he enthusiastically told us about and vowed to catch “Raticlaw,” the secret Raticate evolution. Whether you bought into those myths or not, perhaps the most famous of these specimens was Pikablu — it was certainly the most eye-catching one to me. Its design was soft, charming, and memorable. And given the round mouse’s assumed connection to Pikachu, my mind was ablaze thinking about how, exactly, they relate. Was the Water-type’s existence suggesting new evolution methods, counterparts to Raichu who wield different elemental powers? Could a Pikachu or Raichu somehow give birth to a Pikablu?
Anticipation for the Johto games was extraordinarily high, knowing answers to my questions would soon come — along with a bevy of other new content to enjoy. And once I got Gold… there was one minor disappointment awaiting me: Marill was “just” another Pokémon. The species is simply found lurking a cave, only notable in how hard it is to get and lacking the fanfare my imagination built up for it. A trio of beasts and the birds who graced their covers were the real new big deals, the legends of whom Johto’s culture was based around.
In a unique quirk, for several generations female Azurill could change gender upon evolving. (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
However, my fondness for the aquatic ball did not wane. If anything, it’s only grown. Although the two aren’t directly related, Marill does lightly parallel Pikachu. They’re both cute, unassuming mice. Both were accompanied by evolutions during their introductory generations, and complemented with a baby counterpart the following ones. Neither are commonly found roaming the wild in their debut games. Marill’s still one of Johto’s most iconic residents, a franchise mascot in its own right. Altogether, Marill subtly brings Pikachu to mind while maintaining a distinct identity. That’s refreshing, especially considering how subsequent Pokémon generations introduce at least one small, Electric-type mammal who apes Pikachu’s groundbreaking design. It’s a practice I dislike, and Marill failing to adhere to it helps keep it special.
So much of what undergirded Marill’s mystique during its heyday isn’t applicable today. It’s also crowded in an even larger sea of Pokémon, just one of over nine hundred. Still, Marill and Azumarill are two of my favorites; always have been, and always will be. During my brief stint trying to make a competitive team, I even bred a Marill — named Pikablu, of course — who became one of the tankiest, strongest fighters I ever used. But more than anything, seeing Marill brings me back to my childhood, reminding me of how excited I was to soon explore a “whole new world.”
Congratulations, Marill! OK!
As a kid, seeing Japanese Pokémon cards was cool. None were more exotic than the Southern Island set, which flaunted one of my new favorites playing front and center. (Image: Nintendo/The Pokémon Company)
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