Summary
The latest Pokemon Presents showcase gave fans a better look at what they can expect from the upcoming DLC forPokemon Scarlet and Violet, The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero. Among the new features shown were a handful of new critters including new Paradox Pokemon and new evolutions for previously introduced mons. Applin is the beneficiary of one of these new mons, receiving the new evolution Dipplin as shown in this latestPokemon Scarlet and VioletDLC trailer, but Game Freak missed a huge opportunity with this evolution continuing a problem that has plagued Applin and its other evolutions since their introduction.
Applin first appeared inGen 8’sPokemon Sword and Shieldas a new Grass/Dragon type for the Galar Region, and is notable for its split evolution line that changed depending on which type of apple was used with it; the Sweet Apple will evolve Applin into Appletun and the Tart Apple will evolve it into Flapple. This is a cool gimmick for the series, but Flapple and Appletun were left feeling a little indistinct since both retained Applin’s typing and had the same Gigantamax form. Now it seems like Dipplin, despite being a third evolution option for Applin, is destined to miss the same opportunities Flapple and Appletun had in regard to its typing.
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When Dipplin is initially shown in the newtrailer for thePokemon Scarlet and VioletDLC, players wouldn’t be faulted for thinking it was a new regional form of Applin. This new mon looks very similar to its pre-evolution only with a stick-like protrusion on its head and the look of a melting or dripping apple coating. Given that Dipplin is the Candy Apple Pokemon, this design concept makes sense and fits this theme quite well, but keeping the Grass/Dragon typing of Applin seems like a waste of such an interesting concept.
Applin and its evolutionsget their typing from the fact that an apple is a plant, hence the Grass typing, and the creature inside it is a wyrm, another word for dragon that is a play on the concept of a worm inside an apple. While this type combo makes sense for Applin, its evolutions expand upon the concept in different ways by changing aspects of the apple it inhabits, which warrants different typings for each concept. For example, Flapple evolves with the Tart Apple, so perhaps Poison/Dragon would have been more appropriate.
Although it could have also been used for Appletun, Dipplin should have set itself apart from Applin’s other evolutions by taking on the Fairy/Dragon typing. This type combo makes sense for Dipplin since it is based on a candy apple, and critters based on sweets like Alcremie and Slurpuff are usually associated with theFairy type. The concept of this mon has now evolved from Applin being a wyrm in an apple, to a wyrm in an apple that has been mostly overrun by the sugar of its candy coating, which should have caused Dipplin to lose the Grass type and gain the Fairy type instead.
Another reason to give Dipplin the Fairy/Dragon typing is because it would be the first non-Mega Evolution in the series to have it. Currently, onlyMega Altariapossess the Dragon/Fairy type combo, and it has not been obtainable since the Gen 7 games with a return unlikely in the future. While any new mon is going to be exciting for players, Dipplin could have been so much more than it is if only it would have had a better typing than Applin’s standard Grass/Dragon combo, and Fairy/Dragon makes the most sense given the mon’s design inspiration.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violetare available for Nintendo Switch.
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