The Dark Side of Pokemon

Sticking with my japanese monster theme, today I'll be talking a bit about pokemon. This isn't a review, because there's thousands out there and I can't say anything more than the fact it's possibly the most popular franchise in gaming history. Instead, I'll talk a bit about the dark side of pokemon- things that make you think the franchise isn't just for little kids.

There are many things, such as literal ghosts in random places, the infamous Lavender Town theme that apparently induces hallucinations and feelings of unease when listened to with headphones, and the innumerable glitches like Missingno., but this article concerns the pokemon themselves- mostly cute and cuddly, but several have very dark stories behind them. Here's a few notable pokedex entries, and the implications:
"It uses its whiskers to maintain its balance and will slow down if they are cut off."- who decided it was a good idea to cut off a Raticate's whiskers, and why would they consider this valuable information for trainers?
"It keeps its tail raised to monitor its surroundings. If you yank its tail, it will try to bite you."- evidently the same person who's going around yanking Pikachu's tail. Incidentally, this is an entry from Pokemon Yellow- the game that has Pikachu follow you around right from the start and is meant to be your best friend.
"It is extremely vindictive. It is said to lay a 1,000-year long curse if its tail is pulled as a joke."- More tail pulling, this time on Ninetales.
"The bug host is drained of energy by the mushrooms on its back. They appear to do all the thinking."- one of the more infamous entries, for Parasect- a pokemon that's essentially become a zombie on evolving. Even more sinister when one anime episode revolved around trying to evolve a Paras who was terrified before evolving, and strangely compliant when it eventually did.
"Alakazam's brain continually grows, infinitely multiplying brain cells. This amazing brain gives this Pokémon an astoundingly high IQ of 5,000. It has a thorough memory of everything that has occurred in the world."- Do I need to say how implausible an IQ of 5000 is? Or what the implications of enslaving something that intelligent are?
"Deep in the night, your shadow cast by a streetlight may suddenly overtake you. It is actually a Gengar running past you, pretending to be your shadow."- a bit of a Vashta Nerada horror (Dr Who reference), especially when the other entries say Gengar hides in shadows to steal the victim's life force.
"Always wears the skull of its deceased mother on its head and never shows its face. It cries mournfully in the moonlight."- another infamous entry from Cubone, although horrifying in it's own right it gets even more so when the games introduced breeding mechanics.
"It was created by a scientist after years of horrific gene-splicing and DNA-engineering experiments."- Mewtwo's entry explicitly states it has a horrific origin story.
"Xatu stands rooted and still in one spot all day long. People believe that this Pokémon does so out of fear of the terrible things it has foreseen in the future."- because all life is ultimately futile and meaningless, apparently.
"The flames it breathes when angry contain toxins. If they cause a burn, it will hurt forever."- Don't make Houndooms angry.
"If it rampages, it knocks down mountains and buries rivers. Maps must be redrawn afterward."- There's actually a few pokemon that are cartographers nightmares, but Tyranitar is the most noteworthy.
"It unleashes psychokinetic energy at full power when protecting a Trainer it has bonded closely with."- horrifying in a different way, thanks to fan art of the human-like Gardevoir.
"A discarded bug shell that came to life. Peering into the crack on its back is said to steal one's spirit."- Guess what you're looking at as soon as you send a Shedinja into battle?
...I could go on, but there's just so many. Instead I'll finish with my top 3 most horrifying dex entries:
"A doll that became a Pokémon over its grudge from being junked. It seeks the child that disowned it."- If Banette was in Toy Story 3, it would be a cross between Child's Play and The Grudge. (someone please fund a remake of Toy Story 3 featuring Banette!)
"It is whispered that any child who mistakes Drifloon for a balloon and holds on to it could wind up missing."- the japanese entry is better, as it explicitly states that children are taken to the underworld. Other entries say it's too weak to actually drag children away, but they do get much bigger...
"Each of them carries a mask that used to be its face when it was human. Sometimes they look at it and cry."- No further explanation needed. Yamasks are enslaved deceased humans that remember their previous lives, making them depressed.