Iron Moth
So we get both a "prehistoric" and "futuristic" take on Volcarona, which is great for Lepidopterists I guess, but this isn't nearly as interesting a design as Slither Wing. Like our last two, it's a straightforward mechanical reskin of the original Pokemon, with the now repetitive gimmick of hovering body parts, in this case the wings.
And what's really disappointing is that this one has such a cool typing, too: whereas Slither Wing switches out the fire typing for fighting, Iron Moth switches out its bug typing for my beloved poison! It's not a bug Pokemon, but a machine in imitation of a bug Pokemon, and a poison/fire combo implies some kind of horrible radioactive aura or something, right?! Its typing was leaked well before its design, so for all we knew, it could have been some weird poisonous mutant moth creature. Even after we learned that these would all be mechas, a poisonous moth-shaped robot could have been pretty great.
Instead, this thing does absolutely nothing thematic with its typing. It's not really mentioned why or how it's poisonous at all, only the rumor that it's actually some kind of probe sent to our world by aliens. I really want to love it, it's actually quite pretty and the idea is solid, but it's conceptually one of the weakest poison types, it's the weakest design in Volcarona's extended family, and it's one of the weaker designs among the already underwhelming Paradox cyborgs. If you ask me, it should have just had no wings at all, but maybe a set of six ventilation tubes that give it a winged appearance only when they emit dust clouds or "poisonous" flames.
And what's really disappointing is that this one has such a cool typing, too: whereas Slither Wing switches out the fire typing for fighting, Iron Moth switches out its bug typing for my beloved poison! It's not a bug Pokemon, but a machine in imitation of a bug Pokemon, and a poison/fire combo implies some kind of horrible radioactive aura or something, right?! Its typing was leaked well before its design, so for all we knew, it could have been some weird poisonous mutant moth creature. Even after we learned that these would all be mechas, a poisonous moth-shaped robot could have been pretty great.
Instead, this thing does absolutely nothing thematic with its typing. It's not really mentioned why or how it's poisonous at all, only the rumor that it's actually some kind of probe sent to our world by aliens. I really want to love it, it's actually quite pretty and the idea is solid, but it's conceptually one of the weakest poison types, it's the weakest design in Volcarona's extended family, and it's one of the weaker designs among the already underwhelming Paradox cyborgs. If you ask me, it should have just had no wings at all, but maybe a set of six ventilation tubes that give it a winged appearance only when they emit dust clouds or "poisonous" flames.