Pokemon’s most classic guard dogs are next on the docket, with one of the most iconic Kanto fan favourites alongside the first of the hugely exciting Hisuian Pokemon to cover here.

Growlithe is a pretty cute little puppy Pokemon that stands out for its inspiration lying with shisa and komainu statues, as well as similar architecture found throughout Japanese and Chinese history. The Fire typing seems fairly rudimentary and mostly here as a way of accentuating that this is a bold and brave Pokemon with strong personality. I think the inspiration is strong and works into the design since it is simple enough that it can be acknowledged as dog-like while weaving in other features, but generally it’s one of those first stages that’s just a pleasant enough springboard into better things.

Arcanine takes this assignment and provides the requisite better things in strong supply. Known as the ‘Legendary Pokemon’ despite not being legendary itself, it has often inspired speculation among fans that Arcanine was supposed to be among the original set of legendary Pokemon, possibly in lieu of Moltres before Game Freak decided to go with three birds for consistency’s sake. Whether or not that’s true, I think it’s fairly well reflected in Arcanine’s design just leaving such a strong impression. It leans more into its shisa inspirations with slightly more lion-like features like the mane, but it knows its audience and remains very distinctly canine so that this resplendent beast of flame can still be showered with compliments of being such a good boy. I’ve always had a soft spot for Arcanine because I used one that a very close friend traded to me for my second run through SoulSilver, and as such Arcanine has become symbolic of friendship in Pokemon to me personally. The lovable dog side of its design helps reinforce this, of course, and it’s a testament to any design that it can make such an impression. At its worst, Arcanine can look a little too puffy and stiff in some depictions if the fur definition is lacking or it stands too rigidly with some 3D appearances, but at its best this is a fantastic, awe-inspiring design that really works as a stalwart companion of any trainer.

Hisuian Growlithe is an interesting one among regional forms: while most regional forms take inspiration from somewhere new and use that to just relate or iterate on the original concept, Hisuian Growlithe takes the already existing inspiration of komainu statues and commits more fully to it. While this would be a bit weird for most Pokemon and for most kinds of forms, I think it makes perfect sense here. A Hisuian form that existed in the past being a more complete representation of a kind of statue known for having eroded and lost its features over the past few centuries is a great way to tie together the themes of Hisui and take another run at Growlithe without losing what made it lovable to so many. This Growlithe form, in addition to being a dog with tiger-like patterns that acts as a guardian, adds in a Rock typing, collar of fur and horn resembling stone architecture, and even patrols its habitats seen almost exclusively in pairs. In-universe, its change in typing is attributed to volcanic activity in Firespit Island in Hisui and I really appreciate the inspiration of volcanic rock being used for this typing in a slightly more abstract way than the very unsubtle Magcargo. The rock being stylised to look like small billows of smoke makes this a very classical, majestic design and the fact its eyes can’t be seen through the fur on its head adds a delightful dopey charm I can’t help but adore. It’s so cute that it does a good job of reinforcing the implicit tragedy of Legends Arceus that so many wonderful Pokemon of great historical significance to the region’s culture have since died out and been mostly lost to time, but it’s nice to see them thriving in their time.

Hisuian Arcanine is definitely a less drastic change from its base form than Hisuian Growlithe is but still offers the same charm. The volcanic rock angle of its design becomes the focus here and its plumage is a lot more styled than Kantonian Arcanine’s fluffier look. The darker colour schemes, billowing volcanic smoke-like tail, proud horn, and posture give this a distinct personality shift from regular Arcanine as a wilder counterpart with a furious disposition. Hisuian Arcanine also makes a particularly strong impression as the Noble Pokemon of the Cobalt Coastlands in Legends Arceus, where Its wilder side is also reflected in game mechanics with moves like Raging Fury and its Hidden Ability Rock Head affording it more mileage with otherwise high risk recoil moves like Head Smash and Flare Blitz, which I think is just nice theming on top of being the aggressive STAB Head Smash spammer of many competitive players’ dreams. There’s a classic, nostalgic feeling to regular Arcanine that I don’t think Hisuian Arcanine quite recaptures in full, but in tandem with its adorable pre-evolution it takes on an exciting new flavour all its own despite what may at first seem like one of the more restrained regional forms. Overall this is a really nice introduction to the fascinating concept of the lost species of old Sinnoh.

Kantonian Final Verdict: 9/10 – the classic huggable big animal of the series: a real trailblazer for that kind of Pokemon
Hisuian Final Verdict: 9/10 – trades nostalgic comfort for wild flare, a really nice design