User:Cukie Gherkin/Blaziken

Blaziken is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon media franchise, and the evolved form of Combusken, which evolves from Torchic. It is first available in Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, with Torchic being one of the first Pokemon available to the player. Since their initial appearance, they have appeared in multiple games including Pokémon Go and the Pokémon Trading Card Game, as well as various merchandise. It is classified as both a Fire and Fighting-type Pokémon, and is given a new form called Mega Blaziken in Pokemon X and Y.

Conception and development
Blaziken is a fictional 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 Pokémon. Players use the creatures' special abilities to combat other Pokémon, and some can transform into stronger species through a process called evolution via various means, such as exposure to specific items.

Blaziken was the first design created for Pokemon Ruby and ''Sapphire, with artist Ken Sugimori intending to see if people be okay with a humanoid Pokemon or would instead just put it in the box when they get it. They wanted to "weaken the idea of what can't be a Pokemon." When designing Blaziken and its first two forms, Torchic and Combusken, artist Ken Sugimori made Torchic orange to resemble a colored chick. He stated that a lot of people his age had a colored chick and experienced them growing up to become "something fierce and hard to look at," which they wanted to reflect in the line's design. An earlier design of Blaziken combined elements of Blaziken with Latias.

Critical reception
USgamer writer Kat Bailey, despite begrudging Game Freak for making Blaziken the premier Fire-and-Fighting Pokemon, regarded it as one of the best Pokemon species. She felt that the Mega Evolution made it "hideously overpowered," noting how its debut in the anime was a strong showing with it battling Ash Ketchum's Charizard to a draw. She called it an iconic Pokemon from the third generation, feeling it was among the best examples of the design philosophy of Ruby and Sapphire, which involved "sharp angles and clean lines that make it stand apart from the more naturalistic monsters of the first two generations." Comic Book writer Megan Peters noted that, despite the intention to make Blaziken "hard to look at" compared to Torchic, Blaziken was "perfect in its own right," having developed a fan following. IGN writer Audrey Drake felt disappointed with Torchic's evolution into Blaziken; she felt lukewarm toward Torchic, but found Blaziken's design "terrible" and first starter she "actively disliked." Vice writer Sarah Kurchak compared Blaziken's fighting style to Muay Thai and kickboxing, noting that these were the most similar to these fighting styles despite effectively using 12 limbs to fight when the fire from its wrists and ankles are counted. Gaming Bolt writer Pramath felt that anyone who was into martial arts, wrestling, or kickboxing would be interested in Blaziken, noting how cool it was and how unique a type combination Fire and Fighting was at the time.

Blaziken has been noted for its competitive viability, with Paste writers Kevin Slackie and Moises Taveras noting that its Mega Evolution was a large part of why Blaziken became powerful enough to be counted among the most powerful Pokemon ever. Comic Book Resource writer Adam Aguilar noted how competitively overwhelming Blaziken's Mega Evolution was, but argued that even without its Mega Evolution, its Hidden Ability of Speed Boost and use of the move Protect - which protects Blaziken from most moves - made it too powerful, leading to it being banned.