Pokemon Jynx Controversy: For These Reasons, Jynx Will Always Be the Most Controversial Pokémon!
Nintendo, just like any other company, has made some blunders in the past. Pokémon, one of the company’s most profitable properties, has also been criticized. From modifications to game mechanics, like as the removal of the National Pokédex, to religious issues connecting the use of Pokémon to the summoning of demons, the Pokémon franchise has been through a lot.
Pokémon has been teased and made fun of for years, but one of the series’ earliest problems was how Jynx (Pokémon 123) looked.
The dual Psychic/Ice Pokémon was instantly distinguishable from the many other Pokémon, which looked more like monsters, due to its highly humanoid shape when it emerged in the first generation of Pokémon. Jynx’s design made waves, but for all the wrong reasons. Surprisingly even for Nintendo, this Pokémon has received the most criticism for being racist.
The Design of Jynx Was Criticized as Being Racist.
It was widely panned when Jynx was redesigned for the first generation of Pokémon. The Pokémon was obviously a racist blackface caricature, what with its dark skin and overdrawn red lips.
One of the many people who condemned Nintendo over Jynx’s appearance was the African-American author and critic Carole Boston Weatherford. In an editorial from the year 2000, Weatherford criticized the design of Pokémon.
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Weatherford pointed out that “Jynx, Pokémon #123, has clearly human features,” such as “jet-black skin,” “big pink lips,” “gaping eyes,” a “straight blonde mane,” and “a sensual physique, complete with cleavage and wriggling hips.”Little Black Sambo is a racist stereotype from a children’s book that was banned decades ago; Jynx resembles an overweight drag queen version of this character.
In response to player comments, Nintendo updated Jynx. The second generation of Pokémon all have purple skin, and an episode of the Indigo League anime series that features the Pokémon in its pre-transformation look has been cut from both broadcast and home media editions.
When Pokémon Red and Blue were re-released in 2016, Jynx’s sprite was updated to match the new design.
Those who doubt it have a right to doubt, but I don’t blame them for believing what they witnessed. Jynx is often misinterpreted as a racial stereotype in the manner of the Little Black Sambo due to her dark skin and lips. They never considered that what they were watching might have been influenced by something from another culture. Evidently, we’ve learned our lesson, as “ism” claims are no longer being made with such blatant frequency.
Fortunately, Jynx’s dark complexion didn’t stand out too much. Nintendo modified her skin tone from white to purple and downplayed her role in future marketing materials. Despite her fascinating history, Jynx is one ugly duckling, so this is definitely for the best.
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