Hey, look! It's a giant talking egg!

102: Exeggcute

After the Voltorb episode, you might have expected me to not be too keen on Exeggcute either. I mean, I'm not blown away by it but I like it at any rate. Though what I like about isn't necessarily related to its design so much as what it represents. “Why the heck are a half-dozen eggs Grass type?” 8 year-old me asked once or twice. The answer being they're “plant eggs”. Aka, seeds! That's unironically pretty dang clever.

Though decidedly they take their inspiration more from actual eggs than seeds. Most of them are cracked and one's head is even busted open, revealing a yolk-like yellow blob inside. That's rough, buddy. My main criticism with the design itself is that, while it is expressive, its face seems pretty default and uninspired. I feel like I'd like it a lot better if its face moreso played into its faces being made out of its cracks with jack-o-lantern-esque faces.

Personal Score: 6.5/10

Screw the rules! I have green hair!

103: Exeggutor

Exeggutor here is where they really shine. A coconut tree feels like a fitting evolution for the line that starts out as a collection of seeds. Coconuts are basically giant, hard seeds.

Exeggutor is also the other example of a Pokemon that can “De-evolve”, according to the Pokedex. As you'd expect of a coconut tree, the Exeggutor heads can fall and roll off, which eventually become Exeggcute again. Surprising that not a single Pokemon after this one (only half-counting Slowking of course) has an aspect to them that they de-evolve.

Along with the clear coconut tree roots, Exeggutor is also based on the jinmenju, a tree monster of Japanese mythology that grows human heads much like Exeggutor. The heads also fall off and roll away too. Suitably creepy for such a weirdo Pokemon.

Design-wise, Exeggutor is suitably a monstrous living tree, surprisingly stout for a palm tree but nonetheless oddly adorable in its proportions. I do like the faces this time around, which are at least a little more distinct while still being expressive and fun. Add in the palm tree leaves for hair and we got an all-around pretty solid design that I don't have any glaringly obvious crique for. About 6 years ago, I could've said there was a missed opportunity in not having Exeggutor be super long just to have it be the tallest Pokemon in the game. That said, it's understandable that a technical limitation, as well as the general limitation of sprites at the time, probably lead to Exeggutor getting shrunk to fit on a Gameboy screen. But even then, we got a tall Exeggutor now! So you can just enjoy both, if you want!

Also, this multi-headed coconut tree has psychic powers. 'Cause why not?