Gengar

Gengar (ゲンガー) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon media franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, since their initial appearance they have appeared in multiple games including Pokémon GO and the Pokémon Trading Card Game, as well as various merchandise related to the franchise. In Japanese, Gengar has been voiced by multiple actors which include Kiyonobu Suzuki, Kōichi Sakaguchi, Nobutoshi Canna and Yasuhiro Mamiya. Meanwhile, in English, the species was voiced by Ted Lewis and Marc Thompson.

Gengar has received a mostly positive response since its debut, primarily for its design, which has been noted for its popularity and iconicity. It has frequently ranked highly in popularity polls for the series, and its design has been highlighted for its impact on the series as a whole.

Conception and development
Gengar is a species of Pokémon created for the Pokémon franchise. Developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo, the series began in Japan in 1996 with the release of the video games Pokémon Red and Blue for the Game Boy. In these games, the player assumes the role of a Pokémon Trainer whose goal is to capture and train creatures called Pokémon. Players use the creatures' special abilities to combat other Pokémon, and some can transform into stronger species through a process called evolution. A major goal in each game is to complete the Pokédex, a comprehensive Pokémon encyclopedia, by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain individuals from all Pokémon species.

Created by Ken Sugimori, Gengar was one of the earliest Pokémon designed during the planning stages of Red and Blue, back when the games were intended to be called Capsule Monsters, appearing on early concept art for the game. As work on the game progressed a single color identity was chosen in order to work within the Super Game Boy's hardware limitations, and once development was complete Sugimori re-drew the species along with the others in his own artstyle in order to give the game a unified look and finalize any design elements. Sugimori has described Gengar as his favorite Pokémon due to its simplicity to draw. In another interview he elaborated further, stating that while it's designed to be a ghost and a little bit scary, it was also funny and had the necessary elements for a Pokémon, utilizing simple shapes and a "charming" grin he quite liked.

Design
Standing 4 ft 11 in (150 cm) tall, Gengar has a round purple body, short arms and legs, two red eyes, and a perpetual toothy grin. Along its back are multiple spikes, ending in a small tail. Early on, Gengar's design went through multiple designs, with its body changed to a solid color, while its teeth were changed from singular fangs to a long solid row of teeth. While the finalized in-game sprites depicted it with a more shaggy appearance, as the series has progressed, its body became smoother and rounder. These spikes were also diminished, while its face became more pronounced. These changes are often attributed to its appearances in the anime influencing its design, giving it a more "chibi" aesthetic. It has a rarer, "shiny" version as well, which features a slightly de-saturated purple instead. Classified as both a "Ghost" and "Poison" type species, Gengar is the third and final part of a three-stage evolution line, with the Pokémon Gastly and Haunter in order evolving into Gengar.

In the sequel games Pokémon X and Y, Gengar can temporarily transform into a new form called Mega Gengar. In this form, it becomes significantly larger with his legs embedded into the ground, while its spikes become more pronounced. In addition its arms become longer, with the forearms more pronounced and also embedded into the ground. Lastly, a gold-colored third eye appears upon its forehead. A second form, called Gigantamax Gengar, was added in Pokémon Sword and Shield. Created by then-lead Pokémon designer James Turner, its body is also partially submerged into the ground, but its appearance is primarily unaltered save for its massive open mouth having a swirling vortex instead, while its lengthened arms jut from the ground on either side of it. The shiny variants of both are completely different from the base Gengar's design, making their bodies appear mostly white while their eyes become black.

Appearances
Gengar first appeared in Pokémon Red and Blue. Gengar later appeared in several sequels, including Pokémon Gold and Silver, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, Pokémon X and Y, and Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon. In Pokémon X and Y, Gengar can become Mega Gengar, an in-battle transformation, and in Pokémon Sword and Shield it can transform into Gigantamax Gengar in battle, a form it can undertake using the game's "Dynamax" mechanic.

Gengar has appeared in several spin-off games. In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team, Gengar is a major antagonist, and the leader of Team Meanies, a rival team to the player character. Gengar spends much of the game causing trouble, even convincing the village to exile the hero, blaming him or her for the natural disasters. However, it is later revealed that Gengar was a human turned-Pokémon, and the cursed human spoken of in the legend of Ninetales that is mentioned in the game. Gengar is also a playable character in Pokken Tournament, as well as Pokémon Unite. A Gengar-themed mini-CD-ROM was released by Mattel Interactive in 2000.

Gengar has additionally appeared in the Pokémon anime, most notably as a Pokémon used by series protagonist Ash Ketchum. This Gengar was abandoned by its former trainer, and lurked around the Cerise Institute. Ash befriended it and captured it, and went on to use it throughout Pokémon Journeys: The Series.

Promotion and reception
Frequently used in Halloween-themed promotions related to the franchise, Gengar has been featured on multiple items of Pokémon merchandise and media since their introduction, such as a Squishmallow plush. A Gengar-themed limited edition set of chocolate chip Eggo Waffles were made in a partnership between Nintendo and Kellogg's. A Gengar-themed bed, produced by Bandai, utilized the species' extra long tongue and wide mouth as cushioning. Preorders for the bed sold out in less than two hours after its announcement.

Described as "the most famous of the Ghost-type Pokémon" by GamesRadar+, since their introduction Gengar has been well received, placing 10th on The Pokémon Company's Pokémon of the Year poll which featured all Pokémon from throughout the franchise. In 2023, Centennial Media's The Ultimate Guide to Pokémon noted that after compiling monthly search histories of Google, Yahoo and Microsoft Bing, Gengar was the fifth highest searched Pokémon among internet users with an approximate total of 113,500 average searches per month. The book Pikachu's Global Adventure: The Rise and Fall of Pokémon noted the species was particularly popular with older male children who tend to be drawn to "tough or scary" characters. Cian Maher in an article for USA Today further described it as an instantly recognizable symbol of the franchise, and further "one of those precious few 'mons that is unanimously loved by Nintendo and fans alike".

Robert Grosso of TechRaptor praised their "sinister" design as one of the best of the original Pokémon games, feeling its Cheshire Cat-like grin and red eyes embodied the series more "malign nature". He further called it "simple done right", noting their resemblance to a human shadow and iconic face helped fit what he saw as a doppelganger design philosophy for their character, and added "Gengar is just simply well-designed from every facet of its being". Zack Zwiezen of Kotaku described Gengar as a great design, elaborating "It's simple, yet not boring or generic. Gengar is one of my favorite gen 1 designs." He further noted however that while he appreciated this aspect, its in-game Pokédex descriptions were often extremely unsettling in contrast to their described "prankster" nature, a sentiment reiterated by Alyse Stanley and Jhaan Elker for The Washington Post in their own analysis of the entries in contrast to the franchise's normally upbeat atmosphere. USgamer's Kat Bailey described it as the "Joker of the Pokémon universe: apt to turn on you at any moment", noting while its simplistic design and smile promised mischief, its Pokédex entries hinted at darker intentions. Polygon's Nicole Carpenter on the other hand acknowledged while aspects of the games could be dark, the descriptions given to Gengar left her conflicted with their cute appearance due to their short legs and round body, adding "I want to squeeze him and hug him but I’m also terrified by him. There is something sinister hiding behind his smile." The duality of their character has impacted projects such as the film Detective Pikachu, leaning into the "slightly scary" nature presented by their description while also presenting it as mischievous.

Kotaku's Kenneth Shepard noted that while it was not a personal favorite of his he acknowledged the impact the species had on the series, with Gengar serving as the blueprint for Ghost-type Pokémon that would be added later to the franchise and adding that while it had never appeared on the box art of any of the games, "Gengar’s arguably one of the most iconic Pokémon in the series’ long history." Meanwhile, The Gamer's editor in chief Stacey Henley described it as "wonderfully expressive", arguing that the species was charismatic and had enough personality to be able to be the star of their own standalone game. Citing their portrayal in New Pokémon Snap, where the species was demonstrated with more depth and allowed to play the role of a prankster with their powers, she felt it would be well suited for "the darker, gothic settings" not seen enough in the franchise. She added that while many Pokémon would shine with a proper focus from Nintendo, "few of them have the ingredients lined up as perfectly as Gengar does".