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Pokémon, like any large franchise, has attracted its share of controversies. Some have been based largely in fact, like {{bp|EP038|the seizures triggered by rapid flashes in an early episode of the anime}}. Some are based on opinion, like the argument that the games promote animal cruelty. And then there are the more... fringe objections to the series, consisting mostly of claims that Pokémon promotes Satanism, or Zionism, or Communism (I made that last one up, but I'm quite sure that there's a website ''somewhere'' putting forward that case). One of the biggest scandals of the series' history involves the design of Jynx, the Humanshape Pokémon. | Pokémon, like any large franchise, has attracted its share of controversies. Some have been based largely in fact, like {{bp|EP038|the seizures triggered by rapid flashes in an early episode of the anime}}. Some are based on opinion, like the argument that the games promote animal cruelty. And then there are the more... fringe objections to the series, consisting mostly of claims that Pokémon promotes Satanism, or Zionism, or Communism (I made that last one up, but I'm quite sure that there's a website ''somewhere'' putting forward that case). One of the biggest scandals of the series' history involves the design of Jynx, the Humanshape Pokémon. | ||
[[File:Controversial Jynx.jpg|200px|left|thumb|The original Jynx]]In 2000, the US cultural critic {{wp| | [[File:Controversial Jynx.jpg|200px|left|thumb|The original Jynx]]In 2000, the US cultural critic {{wp|Carole Boston Weatherford}} published an article entitled ''Politically Incorrect Pokémon'', in which she argued that: ''"The character Jynx, Pokémon #124, has decidedly human features: jet-black skin, huge pink lips, gaping eyes, a straight blonde mane and a full figure, complete with cleavage and wiggly hips. Put another way, Jynx resembles an overweight drag queen incarnation of Little Black Sambo, a racist stereotype from a children's book long ago purged from libraries."'' This wouldn't have been the first time that a {{wp|blackface}}-style character had shown up in a Japanese series: ''{{wp|Dragon Ball}}'''s Mr. Popo was another example cited by Weatherford. This article had significant repercussions within the Pokémon franchise, not least of which was the alteration of Jynx's skin to purple instead of black. | ||
So, is Jynx based on a racist stereotype? If not, what else has contributed to her design? There's no short answer to either of those questions, because Jynx most likely has no single specific origin. There are many things that ''may'' have contributed to her design to various degrees, and I'll be taking a look at each of them in turn. | So, is Jynx based on a racist stereotype? If not, what else has contributed to her design? There's no short answer to either of those questions, because Jynx most likely has no single specific origin. There are many things that ''may'' have contributed to her design to various degrees, and I'll be taking a look at each of them in turn. | ||