| Geodude, Graveler, and Golem | |
|---|---|
| Series | Pokémon series |
| First game | Pokémon Red and Blue |
| Designed by | Ken Sugimori |
Geodude, Graveler, and Golem, known in Japan as Ishitsubute (イシツブテ), Golone (ゴローン Gorōn), and Golonya (ゴローニャ Gorōnya) are three Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Geodude and its evolutions first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spin off titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise.
The three Pokémon are known as Rock Pokémon.Geodude is a levitating boulder; Graveler a larger version of Geodude made out of gravel and with four arms; and Golem is a reptile-like Pokémon composed of rocks that has a rock shell around much of its body. Players may only evolve Graveler into Golem by trading it to another player first. Geodude is a common Pokémon in the Pokémon anime where it appears as one of the main character's Pokémon.
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Geodude, Graveler, and Golem were three of several 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 of Japan as Pokémon Red and Blue.[1][2] Originally called "Ishitsubute", "Golone", and "Golonya" in Japanese, Nintendo decided to give the various Pokémon species "clever and descriptive names" related to their appearance or features when translating the game for western audiences as a means to make the characters more relatable to American children.[3] As a result, their names were changed to Geodude, Graveler, and Golem respectively. IGN wrote that Geodude's name comes from a combination of the Greek word "geo" meaning "earth" and "dude",[4] that Graveler's is derived from the word "gravel",[5] and Golem's is based on the Jewish mythological creature of the same name.[6]
Geodude, known as the Rock Pokémon, is a gray levitating boulder with bulging rocky eyebrows, brown irises, and muscular five-fingered arms. Geodude are very common Pokémon, usually found on mountain trails, fields, or in caves.[7][8] Geodude usually sit still, and are often mistaken for rocks, as people often step or trip on them,[8] which angers the Geodude.[9] When angered, Geodude uses its arms to swing its fists around.[10] Geodude uses its arms to steadily climb steep mountain paths, hoisting itself over.[10] Geodude are proud of their sturdy bodies and bash against each other in a contest of sorts to prove whose body is harder.[11] When Geodude sleeps deeply, it buries itself halfway into the ground, and will not awaken even if it is stepped upon.[12] In the morning Geodude rolls downhill in search of food.[12] The longer a Geodude lives, the more its edges are chipped and worn away, making it more rounded in appearance.[13] However, this Pokémon's heart will remain hard, craggy, and rough always.[13] Because of its round shape, it is easy to pick up, and are often thrown by people.[14]
Graveler resembles a large boulder with four arms and two legs. It lives and feeds on rocky mountains. It will climb the slope of a mountain daily, snacking on small rocks along the way, and roll back down once it has reached the peak. Though it is not very fast when walking, a Graveler rolling down a mountain trail is a very dangerous thing to encounter. Carefree by nature, Graveler ignores most obstacles that may appear in its path, such as grass, trees, boulders or even people, since it can roll through or over them more often than not. It is not essentially harmed rolling down the slope, even if the odd jutting piece of its body gets broken off. Machop are known to use Graveler as training weights. It evolves into Golem when traded.
Golem is a megaton Pokémon made from living stone, and one of the heaviest of all Pokémon species. Golem inhabits rocky mountains and volcanoes, often disguising itself as an inanimate boulder. It will annually shed its skin like a reptile, with its new shell often being bigger than the one before. Its body is almost impenetrable, able to withstand dynamite blasts; it can even detonate its own body, launching itself great distances in order to travel from mountain to mountain. When earthquakes occur near where Golem live, they will tumble down mountains, rolling at an incredible speed.
In the video games, Geodude is commonly found inside caves and mountains, and sometimes appears when Rock Smash is used. It and its evolution first appeared in Pokémon Red and Blue; Geodude eventually evolves into Graveler, while Graveler evolves into Golem once it is traded to another person's game. It is commonplace in every main Pokémon title since and is commonly available in all of them except for Black and White. Outside of the main games, Geodude and its evolutions appear in the Pokémon Pinball titles, Pokémon Trozei!, the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon titles, the Pokémon Ranger titles, and Pokémon Rumble. By themselves, Geodude and Graveler appear in Pokémon Snap while Geodude and Golem appear in PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure. Geodude are also found in Pokémon Snap, hanging from mountainsides by their arms. In the Super Smash Bros. Melee battlefield "Poké Floats", a Geodude is the last float the fighters ride on before returning to the Squirtle float.
Geodude is a recurring character in the Pokémon anime. Brock had a Geodude that he used many times before giving it to his brother, Forrest, on his departure to Hoenn. Roxanne used one in her battle with Ash in Winner by a Nosepass. Geodude and its evolved forms were the loyal subjects of King Onix in Hooked on Onix. Roark used his Geodude against Paul in Shapes of Things to Come and Ash in O'er the Rampardos we Watched. In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Brock is seen with eight Geodude, attempting to halt the Magnet Train with a combined Magnitude attack. Golem has made numerous appearances in the Pokémon anime. It first appeared in the episode "The Bridge Bike Gang," in which Chopper, the leader of a bicycle gang, uses one to battle Ash's Charmander.
Also Geodude can breathe, he has lungs, he is a living creature that needs oxygen.
IGN wrote that "no trainer should be without a Geodude".[4] The Escapist's John Funk called Geodude a "familiar face".[15] GamesRadar's Brett Elston wrote that Geodude was one of the more famous Pokémon and would remain useful to players.[16] IGN's Mark Bozon wrote that if he sees another Geodude in Diamond and Pearl he is going to "freak out".[17] IGN's Jack DeVries, Kristine Steimer, and Nick Kolan hoped that Geodude would be gotten rid of in Pokémon Black and White and described it as "a ball with arms", making it easy to replace.[18] Destructoid's Jonathan Holmes wrote that it was frustrating to encounter Geodudes and that while it was nice to see returning Pokémon, "not the second that you boot up a new purchase".[19] GamesRadar's Carolyn Gudmundson described Roggenrola as a "neo-Geodude" and that it looked "more like a Geode than Geodude himself". She added that the entire Roggenrola line shares similarities with Geodude and its line, including both of them being three-stage Pokémon.[20] Author Harry Schlesinger wrote that Geodude was popular among boys.[21]
IGN's Pokémon Chick called Graveler the "definitive" Rock type along with Geodude and Golem. While she writes that it is not the best of its type, it is the one that people will think of when the Rock type is mentioned. She also described its speed as something "that would evoke pity from a snail" and its Rock/Ground type combination as a "particularly boring type combo".[22] Destructoid's Jim Sterling named it one of the 30 "rubbish" Pokémon in Red and Blue and wrote that it "takes no imagination to draw a face and arms on a boulder".[23] IGN's Pokémon Chick called Golem the "poster-child" of the Rock/Ground type combination and "far more popular than one might expect".[24] IGN wrote that Golem "rocks" and that it is the best Ground type Pokémon.[4][6] Elston wrote that Golem was an "extremely effective" Pokémon due to its high attack and defense.[25] Author Loredana Lipperini called Golem the "magnum version" of the Geodude line.[26]
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