| Latias and Latios | |
|---|---|
National Pokédex Registeel - Latias (#380) - Latios (#381) - Kyogre |
|
| Series | Pokémon series |
| First game | Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire |
| Designed by | Ken Sugimori |
| Voiced by (English) | Megumi Hayashibara (Latios)Tomoko Kawakami (Both, SSBB) |
| Voiced by (Japanese) | Megumi Hayashibara (Latias) Masashi Ebara (Latios) |
Latias (ラティアス Ratiasu) and Latios (ラティオス Ratiosu) are Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Latias and Latios first appeared as a central character in the film Pokémon Heroes, and later appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, also appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise. They are voiced in Japan by Megumi Hayashibara and Masashi Ebara respectively.
Known as the Eon Pokémon, Latias and Latios are two legendary Pokémon originating from the Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald series of games. They are female and male respectively, and the first legendary Pokémon to have genders. While Latias is red and white, Latios is blue and white, as well as being larger and more angular. While Latias and Latios have received significant criticism for their role in the film Pokémon Heroes, critics citing their voices as well as Latias' human transformation, they have received positive reception for their role in the video games.
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As with all the characters introduced in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, Latias and Latios were designed by Ken Sugimori with the help of Ruby and Sapphire's development team. Latias and Latios are bird-like dragon Pokémon vaguely resembling Lugia. Latios has mostly the same body shape as Latias, but he is larger. The lower half of Latias body is red and Latios body is blue, respectively, with jet-plane wings and short arms. Their arms have three small claws at the end. Latias have a blue and Latios has a red triangle-shaped ring on their chest. The upper-half of Latias's body is white, while Latios has a darker upper-body. Latias has a red face with a pentagon like white spot in the middle, while, Latios has a blue face with a oval with a sharp point white spot. They have ears that ends in two points. Latias ear points is separated but Latias are close together.
Latias is highly intelligent and can understand human speech.[1] She can telepathically communicate with others.[2][3][3] If Latias senses hostility towards herself, she will ruffle the feathers all over her body and cry shrilly to intimidate her foe.[4] However, she will usually disappear if she senses an enemy,[3] as they are able to use a form of active camouflage by enfolding their bodies with their glass-like coat of down and refracting light in unique ways, allowing them to become invisible or even take on the appearance of a human.[1]
Latios is able to fold in his arms and fly at the speed of a jet.[5] He can make foes see images he has seen or what he imagines in his head. He can understand human speech.[6] Even if he is hiding, Latios can detect the locations and emotions of others using telepathy.[7] Latios has a very protective nature, especially towards his relative, Latias. He has a docile temperament and dislikes fighting.[8] He will open his heart if he finds a Trainer with a compassionate spirit.[5]
Latios and Latias first appear in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire respectively, after completing the Pokémon League. They are found on a random-encounter basis, similar to that of Raikou, Entei, and Suicune in Gold, Silver, and Crystal. She can also be found in Pokémon Emerald, a remake of Ruby and Sapphire, after completing the Pokémon League. In Emerald, the player's mother tells him or her to watch a TV news story, which explains that a Pokémon has been seen; the player may answer that the Pokémon was red or blue, which chooses which one will appear. They can also be obtained in their partner's respective version via the Eon Ticket, an e-Card given to the player after attending a Nintendo promotional event or in an issue of Nintendo Power. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Latias or Latios will roam Kanto, after receiving the National Pokédex. The other can be obtained through a Wi-Fi event or trade.
In Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire, if the ball drops out of the field while the "Ball Saver" is active, Latias or Latios will rescue it and place it on Spoink without the ball being lost. Latias also appears in the non-Pokémon-exclusive video game Super Smash Bros. Brawl appearing in tandem with Latios as Pokémon appearing from Poké Ball items, alternately zooming onto the stage, damaging any opponent that collides with them.
Latias and Latios have a starring role in the movie Pokémon Heroes as guardians of Altomare, a city modeled after Venice, Italy. Latias and her brother, Latios were the targets of Annie and Oakley. Latias assisted Ash in the mission to save Latios. Latios did not trust humans as his sister did, but at the end of the film, Latios sacrifices himself to protect Altomare from a tremendous tsunami showing his loyalty and love to his friends there, marking the first actual Pokémon death in the anime series. After his death Latios becomes a new Soul Dew and is placed as the new guardian of Altomare. Latios sacrificed his life to save Altomore and reincarnated as the Soul Dew. Latias and Latios also appeared in Pikachu's Ocean Adventure where, they used their powers to help Pikachu, Meowth and the other Pokémon search for the legendary 'Wailord's Tear' beneath the ocean. They are voiced in Japan by Megumi Hayashibara and Masashi Ebara respectively.
In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Latias, along with Latios, was befriended by Emerald and took the young Trainer to the Battle Frontier. She appeared in a human a few times by using her ability to reflect light. Latios helped Todd watch the events going on on top of the Battle Pyramid.
Since appearing in the Pokémon series, Latias and Latios have received mixed reception. They have been featured in several forms of merchandise, including figures, plush toys, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and others. Latias and Latios have been featured in a number of promotional items, including figurines and plush toys.[9][10][11] A Game Boy Advance model was created to promote the release of the film Pokémon Heroes, featuring white silhouettes of Latias and Latios on it.[12]
Austin Chronicle editor Marc Savlov described the two of them as "vaguely equine", as well as looking similar to "poorly realized Ultraman foes". He also describes the transformation of Latias into a "sexy, short-skirted schoolgirl" as both creepy and "straight out of the popular Japanese hentai series La Blue Girl.[13] Critic Doctor editor Peter Sobczynski described the befriending of Latias and series protagonist Ash Ketchum as a "moppet version of Mandingo."[14] While reception for their role in the film was mostly negative, San Francisco Gate editor Mick LaSelle stated that the improved animation of the film worked best with the two of them.[15] The Cincinnati Enquirer editor Chris Hewitt criticized their voices as "squeaky", jokingly describing them as sound like "Melanie Griffith giving birth to twin sea gulls".[16] Seattle Times editor Doug Knoop similarly criticized their voices, describing it as "seagull-like cawing".[17] In its review of Pokémon Heroes, Screenit.com described the two of them as resembling "sleek red and blue jets", yet sounding like "wounded dolphins".[18] Mountainx.com editor Ken Hanke stated that neither were appealing to look at, as well as comparing the "grating, high-pitched voices" to Saturday Night Live character Mr. Bill.[19] IGN editor "Pokémon of the Day Chick" describes Latios as "hot-blooded offensive Pokémon" due to him being the male Pokémon of the duo, while also describing him as a powerful and intimidating monster in spite of his poor defense. She further describes it as being "one cool legendary".[20] Amongst the legendary Pokémon found in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, she describes Latias as being her favourite of them, due in part to Latias being the first female legendary as well as being a "cuddly clairvoyant cutie".[21] Authors Tracey West and Katherine Noll called Latias and Latios the ninth and eighth best Pokémon, respectively.[22]