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Orchid's Ordinary Backyard (pokémon headcanons and other things)

Introduction
Joined
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Messages
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Pronouns
  1. He/Him
❦ Welcome to... the backyard! ❦

As the title says, this is where I'll be putting my headcanons and any other theories/analyses I may have about the Pokémon world. (Your mileage may vary as to how plausible they are.)
The stuff you'll find here will most likely be related to the anime and its characters, but there'll be some posts related to the games, the locations, and the Pokémon themselves as well.
I might talk about shipping stuff too, so you've been warned...

(any empty/unlinked spots are those I would like to write about in the future)

Characters
Ash: [1]
Misty: [1] [2]
Gary: [1]
Tokio: [1]

Locations
Weather in the Kanto region

Pokémon
-

Misc.
-

❦ Requests are currently... open!
You're welcome to ask about anything you want to hear about.

❗Beware of potential Journeys spoilers ahead!❗

This post will be updated periodically.
Thanks!
˚₊· ♡ ˚₊·
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Watching this one like a hawk :bulbaLove:

I'm already constantly clamoring to get more headcanons out of you, so I'm very excited to see all of them and your thoughts. . . and to bother you with questions about them! >=3
 
1.
  • Thread starter
  • Staff
  • #6
you guys are all too nice :bulbaLove:

Uhh I don't know how else to start this, so here's some that I've thought about for a while...

Climates and common weather conditions for the towns/cities of the Kanto region:
  • Pallet Town has very hot summers and somewhat brisk winters. The town and the surrounding area are prone to heavy rainfall, and lots of sudden thunderstorms in the warmer months due to the humidity. This also means it cools down a lot at night.
  • Viridian City is similar, but less extreme when it comes to heat and rain. It occasionally gets cold snaps or even snow flurries due to being directly west of Mt. Silver - Pallet Town gets these too, but they're more uncommon and usually of a lesser degree.
  • Pewter City, in contrast to the humid places surrounding it, is extremely dry and gets a ton of sunshine, similarly to its real-world counterpart in the city of Maebashi (see here).
  • Cerulean City gets a lot of sun as well, but also above average amounts of rain. Colder on average, due to being further north; but never anything too unpleasant.
  • Vermilion City is warm but very mild, and often has crisp, breezy, spring-like temperatures regardless of season; mostly due to being situated on the water and having lots of greenery. Unfortunately, it can sometimes have long spells of cloudy weather.
  • Lavender Town is often overcast and always eerily cold. Somewhat damp in the summer, but bitterly dry in the winter. It's more prone to snowfall than other areas of the region, and the air quality is below average here due to the nearby Power Plant.
  • Celadon City is similar to Vermilion City; fairly warm, but extreme temperatures or odd weather events don't really happen here. The air is very clean thanks to the abundance of trees and other plants to be found.
  • Saffron City is much the same, however it is a little hotter overall than its eastern neighbor Celadon, accompanied by colder nights and drier winters more like its western neighbor Lavender.
  • Fuchsia City is very cloudy and gets the heaviest amounts of rainfall throughout the year, just beating out Pallet and Cerulean. Pretty average temperatures, though it gets a little chilly on windier days as it's located near the Seafoam Islands.
  • Cinnabar Island used to be of a nearly tropical climate, but after the volcano's eruption it's now the coldest place on average in the entire region. The air quality is still very poor, but has only been getting better with time.
Surrounding routes generally have similar conditions to the cities they're connected to.

And just a few mundane things about Misty:
  • Her Staryu is a Pokémon that initially belonged to her parents, and it's actually older than she is.
    • I might get into this in more detail at a later point, but I've had this sort of theory for a while that the lifespans of Pokémon vary based on size, biology, type, and other factors. Therefore, certain species of Pokémon have much longer lifespans than others, and the Staryu line is one of them.
    • Also, I don't subscribe to everything mentioned in the Pocket Monsters: The Animation books, since their canon status could be questioned... but one of the things I do accept as canon from them is the reasoning for her and her sisters' parents being absent.
  • Her all-time least favorite, most despised color is purple.
    • This one only got into my mind because of the bit in EP012 where she gets furious about Meowth threatening to dye her hair purple. It's 100% a dub line, of course, but I do think it's a funny explanation for why she almost never uses her Starmie...
    • I also think that, had they interacted more in the original series, her and Gary just wouldn't have gotten along - maybe in part because she didn't care for his fashion sense. :wynaut:
  • I do have much more to say about her but it's late, I've been writing for ages, and I want to save some of it for other posts LOL
 
Climate and Misty headcanons let's gooooooo

Climate/world stuff is really interesting (Also I have an... interesting relationship with Pocket Monsters: The Animation. A lot of the stuff in it contradicts other media and especially the anime, but from an angst writing perspective... :enzap:
 
  • Thread starter
  • Staff
  • #8
Also I have an... interesting relationship with Pocket Monsters: The Animation. A lot of the stuff in it contradicts other media and especially the anime, but from an angst writing perspective... :enzap:
HA I understand. For the most part I just think of it as an alternate timeline sort of thing — but the pieces from it that aren't contradicted by something else can have very very interesting potential. Nothing here is canon (except for the angsty parts that I like).

...In that sense, it's kind of like the Newspaper Strip to me... just on the total opposite end of the same thing. Nothing here is canon (except for the ridiculous parts that I think are funny).
 
Nothing here is canon (except for the angsty parts that I like).
The best mindset for interpreting Pokémon canon imo
...In that sense, it's kind of like the Newspaper Strip to me... just on the total opposite end of the same thing. Nothing here is canon (except for the ridiculous parts that I think are funny).
Oh my goodness the Newspaper Strip. A classic of obscure Pokémon media.
 
2.
I haven't forgotten about this place, I've just been thinking intently about what I want to say.
(To be honest, every time I try to write here I get distracted by my own thoughts and go to write fanfic instead. It's a struggle. xP But I'll try to be more active around here soon.)

Anyway, here's a handful of headcanons - with a touch of character analysis - for a handful of anime characters. I guess I would describe the element that connects these as "things that are probably pretty personal to them, but are intrinsic to them as a person." So they'll obviously be a little more serious than my last ones lol.

Some recent JN spoilers beware.
(Also a very mild TW for nondescript mentions of: implied transphobia; illness; and possibly implied death. Just to be safe!)

  • Ash and Misty are, respectively, a trans boy and a trans girl. Hence why Misty's name doesn't match the same floral convention as her sisters; she chose it because of her love for the Water type, and the urge to distance herself from her family. (Ash picked his name because it sounded cool.)
    • Delia, of course, loves and accepts her son - but unfortunately the bullying Misty already faced from her sisters didn't change when she did.
      • Direct quote from Lily in The Water Flowers of Cerulean City: "There are only three Sensational Sisters, and one runt."
    • Part of the reason why she decided to follow Ash after leaving home was because she knew they had that in common, and wouldn't risk being judged by him.
    • Naturally, they're each other's biggest supporter :)

  • Tokio has a natural predisposition to illness, sometimes pretty sudden - this was what brought on the fever that caused him to break his promise to Gou.
    • As a result, the Pokémon he's trained were actually specifically chosen by him to help him manage that:
      • Bayleef: "A spicy aroma emanates from around its neck. The aroma acts as a stimulant to restore health." (Silver dex entry)
      • Gardevoir: "It will try to guard its trusted Trainer with its life. It has the ability to see the future." (DP dex entry)
      • Indeedee (): "They diligently serve people and Pokémon so they can gather feelings of gratitude. The females are particularly good at babysitting." (Shield dex entry)
    • Between this fact, and his aforementioned broken promise to meet again, his kind and somewhat passive disposition stems from a general mindset of "tell your friends you love them - you don't know if it'll be the last time you see them".

  • Gary blamed himself far too harshly for his loss in the Indigo League Conference, and it gave him a sense of perfectionism he's still trying to fully recover from.
    The following are the events from the canon that lead me to that conclusion:
    • After going back home at the end of the Orange Islands arc, he claimed that since then, he had gotten "better, but not good enough".
    • Later, when entering the Silver Conference, he said that this conference meant a lot to him, saying that it was first place for him or nothing. As such, when he got eliminated from the tournament, he went ahead and told everyone that he was becoming a Pokémon researcher, so he was never going to enter a competition ever again.
      • (And speaking of the Silver Conference, I have to mention the long, foreshadowing monologue he gave under the full moon in A Claim to Flame!, talking about how just one thing being different could have changed the paths that him and Ash were on...)
    • But soon after this, in Chronicles, he expressed doubt about ever becoming a researcher in the first place - claiming he only ever did it because he wanted to "be the best" and make his grandpa proud of him. Hearing what Ash had been up to in Hoenn, he wondered if maybe he should have just stayed a Trainer, and never changed his path at all.
  • In short, I always interpreted this entire sequence of events to mean Gary had made a decision before the Silver Conference that if he didn't come out of it the winner, he was going to retire - basically accepting nothing less than perfection after his previous loss, and if he failed, he'd simply give up and take after his family profession (perhaps there was some pressure on him to do so early on).
    As of Journeys, he's come a long way since then; but deep down, he still sometimes feels regret about the decision.
    • In JN102, he said the following: "Sometimes, kindness can be a cruelty. Accepting someone who isn't ready, allowing them hopes and dreams, and forcing them beyond their means can lead to the worst possible outcome."
      • Obviously, this was supposed to be directed at Gou... but I can't help but think he was speaking from personal experience here, how he'd had his dreams crushed early on and had to learn how to cope with the aftermath.
      • (and just as a side note, how on earth are they gonna phrase this in the dub??!)
  • At the very least, this mindset of perfectionism still drives him forward to this day.
    To repeat the recent quote of his from my signature: "Even if the path turns out to be a dead end, I'm gonna keep on keepin' on." Despite this strict attitude, he's aware he can always move on from (what he might perceive as) failure. This was reinforced by how he'd apparently taken Tsurugi's death threats advice to heart in JN113.
    • And arguably, it's made him a better Trainer than ever, because that same attitude has led to him being a huge overachiever in Project Mew (outperforming everyone else and being way ahead of every other challenger in token count, right to the very end).
    • ...But seriously, that's not really a good thing. He needs to learn to relax once in a while...
      • (and if Project Mew really does turn out to be a front for an evil scheme, uh... somebody keep an eye on him?)
I didn't mean for this last one to become an essay but would you really expect anything less of me LOL

Please ignore how I mix dub and sub names at random, it's a problem of mine that I refuse to fix >_>
 
3.
Some of those headcanon prompt questions, because a certain Subway Boss, a certain Coordinator idol, and a fuzzy orange bird made me do it.

(Again, a very mild TW for nondescript mentions of: death, and implied violence/injury. Juuuust in case!)
  • How do they feel about people shorter/taller than them?
Gary is, all things considered, a fairly average height... but by the standards of those he knows, he is ridiculously tall. He can see right over the heads of the majority of his friends (often much to their dismay). Though, somewhat shockingly, he doesn't lord his height over those shorter than him... much. It's not something he really sees as an "achievement"; it's moreso just the way he is.
Similarly, around those taller than him — like his friendly colleague Danika, or his acquaintance-turned-frenemy-turned-honorary-older-brother Tracey, or even that girl Misty once upon a time — he's quite honestly not all that bothered.
  • What’s their sleeping schedule?
Goes to bed late and wakes up early. Think 3:00 AM - 6:00 AM, give or take. (Ouch.)
Even before setting out on his Pokémon journey, Gary often stayed up later than anyone else, because it seemed to be the only time he ever got any peace and quiet from living in his terrible stifling household. After enough nights are spent doing that, it obviously becomes a habit. Looking up at the sky to see the moon and the stars is something he finds to be a comforting constant; one that still makes him feel like everything's gonna be okay, no matter what.
Regardless of the hour he goes to bed, he will always wake up at the crack of dawn, usually before the sun has even risen. That was what he was always taught to do, after all; if he wakes up any later in the day, he feels as though he's already wasted his time. Maybe it's not healthy, but it's all he really knows how to do.
  • Favorite music?
Something a bit on the lighter side, please.
Not a fan of anything too abrasive (unlike some people he knows), he tends to lean more towards the genre of... 90s pop ballads. Are they corny? You betcha. Does he love 'em anyway? Of course he does. Would he ever admit it? Never! But he'd prefer to listen to something relaxing, mind you, rather than the cringeworthy nu-metal Ash always insists on blaring, or that awful "three-oh-three" or whatever the hell it is that Gou listens to. Uh, well... actually, maybe that second one ain't so bad...
  • How’s their cooking?
Great, actually! Doesn't seem like the type, does he? Well, he's full of surprises, so get used to it.
After his parents passed, he ended up teaching himself how to cook. Lots of practice and some light studying later, and now he can make a wide variety of dishes that even Brock would compliment him on. He's a bit persnickety about ingredients and getting everything just right, but it all helps in cooking something truly amazing.
Ash cannot tell the difference between the crème brûlée that he spent hours perfecting and the cold chicken nugget that Pikachu chewed yesterday. They're both "uh, fine, I guess".
Sigh.
  • Something small that they enjoy?
On the topic of food — french toast. It's so simple that practically anyone could make it, but he's never once found himself sick of it yet. It probably reminds him of a time during his childhood when things were, in fact, a little simpler.
He also takes a quiet delight in seeing anything purple, violet, or indigo. Anything at all. It's his favorite color! It's an easy way to get a smile out of him.
  • How do they feel about physical contact by others?
Confused.
He can't recall being exposed to any physical contact throughout his life. Nothing positive, nothing negative; just none at all. He might instinctively recoil when one touches his shoulder, or startle when someone gets too near — but it's not necessarily out of a feeling of fear or disgust. He just isn't sure how to react in those rare instances, because he's never had to react before.
Surely, though, if someone he truly cared about were to put him on the receiving end of a hug, then that haughty, steely exterior of his might just melt away right then and there.
  • What is enough to bring them to tears?
Nothing, allegedly.
A heartrending movie that tells a touching story of love and loss? Nah. A miraculous, once in a lifetime event that anyone would be lucky to witness? Eh. Having your dreams of becoming a Champion suddenly pulled out from beneath you and crushed under the heel of a stranger? Nope, nothin' — see, everyone? Look how tough I am, he says!
He will allow stress, and shame, and guilt, and regret, and a profound loneliness to pile up on his shoulders before even daring to let a single tear slip. But when it finally does, it will very quickly become a waterfall. It's probably best you look away when that happens, because it's never a pretty sight.
  • Biggest pet peeve?
People who don't listen. Can't stand them! People who are naive, and impulsive, and way too arrogant. So annoying! People who don't have a clue what they're doing, but act like they know everything. Ugh, who the heck do they think they are?
Eh? Now why are you lookin' at me like that?!
  • How well do they take care of themselves?
Depends on how you might interpret that.
Yes, his bedroom is organized down to the bookcases and dressers, with everything tucked away in its proper place. Yes, his hair is carefully brushed and styled, and his nails are neatly manicured; he flicks even the smallest piece of dust off of his spotless clothes. He's very tidy, and keeps up appearances very well!
On the other hand, the poor guy has learned to live on just a few hours sleep every night — and not uncommonly, he might not get any sleep at all. In addition, being the hard worker he is, oftentimes when he's absorbed in his research he'll forget to do something as simple as eat. It's an honest mistake, or so he says with a grin when friends and family scold him about it; but after a certain point, it's hard not to worry about him.
  • Any bad habits that they have?
Interrupting people before they finish speaking. Avoiding eye contact altogether during a conversation. Sharing what he thinks is a "fun fact" or "something interesting" about Pokémon, only to come off like a complete know-it-all to whoever it is he's talking to. Being a stickler for rules, routine, and rigidity; being "stuck in his ways" to the point of bossing others around if they're not doing things the way he'd planned.
...hmm, wonder if any of those are related.
  • What’s something they like that may be surprising to others?
Finding beauty in his everyday surroundings.
Perhaps you'll notice him stop his confident stride in its tracks to admire, for a moment, a small flower that has sprouted from a crack in the asphalt. Perhaps you'll run into him one night looking out over the water, deep in thought under the full moon. He might turn to whoever's there with a smile and say, look, isn't that nice? ...and what choice do you have but to agree?
  • Do they get lost easily? Will they ask for directions if they are?
Not particularly — he has a fantastic sense of direction, and tends to know in advance exactly where he's going and how to get there. On the rare instances he does find himself turned around, hell would probably freeze over before he asked for help. A mistake as embarrassing as that? Forget about it! He always figures it out eventually.
  • How much do they swear?
Hardly ever.
He was raised to be "polite" and "dignified" by his parents and his grandfather, and of course, that included never speaking any so-called bad words. While he's obviously quite a bit looser with his tone around those he feels comfortable with, he still finds it hard to swear around, say... even somebody like Ash. It's not really something that comes naturally to his manner of speech. It's just too awkward!
Now, while it's certainly not an easy feat, if you somehow well and truly manage to infuriate him... please cover your ears, because that's another story altogether.
  • Is there anything they’re bad at?
You ever tried to get him to just be honest? It's like he barely knows the meaning of the word.
Gary seems to struggle with being upfront about his feelings, regardless of whether they're good or bad. There's some sort of metaphorical wall he puts up when he's around most people that prevents him from ever opening up too much. No matter how hard he tries, the words he wants to say just can't come out of his mouth. He's grateful, at least, to have an old friend who understands.
Oh, also, he can't whistle. Or sing. It sounds godawful. Horrendous.
  • Any past injuries?
Of note, just one.
There was one afternoon a long, long time ago that he visited the Gym in Viridian City. His memory of the event only gets blurrier with each passing day, but he still swears on his life that he encountered an unnaturally, indescribably powerful Pokémon behind the doors of that Gym; one that he'd never seen before or since. Press him for further details, and he tenses up, falling eerily silent.
He was lucky enough to have made it out of there with minimal injuries — some part of him thinks he was lucky to have made it out alive at all — but look at the back of his hand and you'll still find a single scar, existing only to serve as a permanent reminder of the first battle he ever lost.

I want to do these for a few more of my favorite characters, hopefully. Again, I gotta use this darn blog more!
 
It feels somehow wrong for me to post here, but I have a question and since it's something I've wondered about for a long time, I just have to ask. So, I hope it's O.K.
...existing only to serve as a permanent reminder of the first battle he ever lost.
Is this part also "just" your headcanon? The thing is that in the Czech dub, his cheerleaders literally say "he has never ever lost" in their cheer, so I and my sister believed them, until we've seen EP074 - their cheer was still the same, although we all knew it wasn't true anymore! So we came to the conclusion that EP063 was just the first time Gary has lost onscreen and that the "never ever lost" line was a lie the whole time (especially since it's dub exclusive).
Your headcanons are amazingly written
do I, a non-native English speaker, have permission to evaluate such a thing?
and interesting, I love them :bulbaLove: :bulbaLove:
 
Is this part also "just" your headcanon? The thing is that in the Czech dub, his cheerleaders literally say "he has never ever lost" in their cheer, so I and my sister believed them, until we've seen EP074 - their cheer was still the same, although we all knew it wasn't true anymore! So we came to the conclusion that EP063 was just the first time Gary has lost onscreen and that the "never ever lost" line was a lie the whole time (especially since it's dub exclusive).
Oh wow, I didn't know that! In English, his cheerleaders never say anything of the sort, but that's actually very interesting to hear.
But yes, it's not confirmed anywhere or anything, but I personally always have headcanoned/assumed that EP063 was the first battle he'd ever lost, not just onscreen. In the English dub, one of the cheerleaders says afterwards that she "can't believe Gary lost", and I took that to imply they'd never seen him lose a battle before. And with that kind of confidence, maybe his track record was perfect up until that point? Of course, it's entirely up to how you interpret that line (and his own reaction as well).

Your headcanons are amazingly written and interesting, I love them :bulbaLove: :bulbaLove:
Thank you Hydro!! I appreciate you stopping by (and no worries, you're always more than welcome to post/ask stuff here too). :bulbaLove:
 
4.
I've got at least two or three other posts in the works for this blog right now, much longer and about various different things... but I've just needed to get this random extra tidbit of character analysis off my chest recently. (And I promise I think about other characters too, OK? T_T)

I kind of wonder why it is — and, by extension, if it was ever an intentional choice — that Gary's character has a rather noticeable association with the moon. :unsure:

For a little perspective:
  • In EP266, "A Claim to Flame!", he's found sitting outside and remarks how beautiful the full moon is that night. (This turns into a tangent about how there was a full moon the night he left on his journey, and blah blah blah... the point is, there's a lot of emphasis put on this scene.)
  • The Pokémon that he's usually associated with, other than his starter Blastoise, is Umbreon.
    • "On the night of a full moon, or when it gets excited, the ring patterns on its body glow yellow." —Crystal dex entry
    • "The light of the moon changed Eevee's genetic structure. It lurks in darkness for prey." —DP dex entry
  • He owns a Nidoking and Nidoqueen, two Pokémon that evolve via the use of a Moon Stone.
Coincidence? Maybe.
Significance? ...I'm still figuring that part out.
(I like to think it's meant as a parallel; that is, if his former rival/narrative foil could be construed to have an association with the sun or daytime. Something something following in each other's footsteps, two sides of the same coin, the expression "like night and day" to mean contrast or difference...
...or maybe he just thinks it's cool, I don't know???)


Anyway, it's just something to think about.
 
mmm...Dig those Digglet, Illusion Confusion and Power Play all feature Gary and also are of those rare episodes which take place at night, so you may be onto something.

Also, fun fact, the Japanese Opening "Ok" shows Gary and also has the line "Golden Sun and Silver Moon, lord and lady", make of that what you will.
 
mmm...Dig those Digglet, Illusion Confusion and Power Play all feature Gary and also are of those rare episodes which take place at night, so you may be onto something.
I actually considered including that too! I only decided against it because I thought it might have been too far of a reach, lol. If I'm remembering correctly part of The Rivalry Revival also takes place at night (but only a small part of it, unlike those other three).
But I hadn't really thought about "OK!" before, that's a good point!

Late to responding but I was just looking at your headcanons yesterday and I'm so glad you're back to doing them :bulbaLove:
aww you are too kind Pip T_T
Thank you for stopping by; knowing that gives me motivation to keep writing my thoughts out on (metaphorical) paper. :bulbaLove:
 
5.
A while ago I brought up the following on this blog:
I might get into this in more detail at a later point, but I've had this sort of theory for a while that the lifespans of Pokémon vary based on size, biology, type, and other factors. Therefore, certain species of Pokémon have much longer lifespans than others, and the Staryu line is one of them.
So here you go, a short essay for some insight into how I interpret my Poké-universe to work.

(Warning, obviously, for the implication and mention of death; but it's nothing any more "intense" than, say, what's mentioned in some of the games or dex entries. Nothing grim, I promise.)

Size:​

Much like animals in the "real world", smaller species of Pokémon generally have shorter lifespans when compared to larger species of Pokémon. (This is due to most smaller Pokémon having to expend more energy to support themselves.)

Additionally, fully-evolved Pokémon typically have slightly greater longevity than their unevolved relatives with the capability of evolving. While the average Sceptile in the wild can be expected to live to about 90, the oldest known Treecko was documented to be approximately 75.


Biology:​

Pokémon that resemble objects or other nondescript entities generally have much longer lifespans than Pokémon that resemble real-world animals (mammals, birds, fish, insects, amphibians, etc.).
For instance, Staraptor, a large, fully-evolved birdlike Pokémon, typically lives for up to 70 years in its natural habitat; while a single wild Magnemite can live for up to around 125 years. As another example, Arbok is an evolved, two-stage Poison-type Pokémon, and lives for roughly 50 years under good care — Weezing shares all of those same traits, but it's been recorded to live for up to twice as long.

Additionally, Pokémon that resemble animals often reflect their real-world equivalent to a degree; just with a slightly bloated number:
  • Small feline Pokémon like Meowth or Delcatty, when owned by a Trainer, have a maximum lifespan of about 30-35 years.
  • Tortoise-like Pokémon, such as Torterra or Blastoise, are speculated to have a lifespan of several hundred years.
  • Bugs (Wurmple, Yanma, Butterfree) and rodents (Raticate, Pachirisu, Patrat) are typically the shortest-lived of all, with some of the oldest known ones being only 11 or 12.
(Of course, this is not a rule. Espeon, while also feline and quite small, has been known to live to over 100 years old; presumably due to its Psychic typing. Staryu, a pure Water-type starfish Pokémon, lives for an estimated 55-65 years in the wild, due to the healing properties of its central core.)

Plant-based Pokémon tend to vary drastically depending on their genetic makeup. Those that are more equivalent to flowers, berries, leaves, or seeds (Sunkern/Sunflora, Roselia, Cherubi/Cherrim, Lilligant, etc.) tend to live for only about a decade at the most — but those that have the density and sturdiness of trees (Exeggutor, Snover/Abomasnow, etc.) have been known to exceed centuries.

Type:​

As the findings are still recent, the specifics of it are yet unknown — but ever since the revolutionary discovery of the Fairy type, it was subsequently proposed that a Pokémon's type could be a factor in influencing said Pokémon's lifespan.
Most species of Dragon, Steel, and Fairy-type Pokémon live far longer than many species of Bug, Normal, and Grass-type Pokémon, for example.

From what has been studied, and with the exception of the Ghost type, these are the known types sorted from longest to shortest life expectancies of their members on average:
  1. Dragon (avg. 890 yr)
  2. Steel (avg. 650 yr)
  3. Fairy (avg. 300 yr)
  4. Psychic
  5. Rock
  6. Dark
  7. Ice
  8. Water
  9. Ground
  10. Fighting
  11. Electric
  12. Poison
  13. Fire
  14. Flying
  15. Grass (avg. 30 yr)
  16. Normal (avg. 25 yr)
  17. Bug (avg. 12 yr)
To demonstrate, Charizard is a large, fully-evolved, three-stage Pokémon, known to live to about 100 years old under the care of a Trainer. Togekiss is a Pokémon of roughly the same size and origin, but there have been Togekiss found in the wild that were estimated to be 150 to 200 years old.
While they are both very similar, both even being part Flying-type, conclusions can be drawn that Togekiss typically lives longer due to being part Fairy, instead of Fire.

Some scientists argue that this is mere coincidence, and there are other, more verifiable explanations as to why Dragons live longer than Bugs; but the new evidence does seem to indicate that a Pokémon's type notably affects species on an individual level.

As for the Ghost type, the typical lifespans of Ghost-type Pokémon are still unclear. While they are not immortal, a Ghost-type Pokémon has never been recorded to have passed away of natural causes.
(Outlandish theorists insist that some Ghost-types have an ability not just to sense, but to outright control the life expectancy of humans; draining their life, restoring it, even granting the gifts of eternal youth or immortality to those who can communicate with them. For the most part, these claims have been scoffed at by researchers, but some seem eerily convinced that what they say may have some truth to it.)

Other factors:​

  • Pokémon under the ownership and care of a good Trainer have been observed to live longer than those in the wild or released. Wild Pikachu have been noted to have a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, while a trained Pikachu may live to over 25 years old.
    • Pokémon with highly unstable DNA, such as Eevee or Ditto, are extremely rare in the wild due to common medical complications. Under the proper care of humans, the patterns that cause these complications "even out", and they are able to lead happy and full lives.
    • These longterm benefits are, of course, entirely left in the hands of the Pokémon's Trainer; and Trainers are not always experienced nor kind. It is not enough to simply be caught; there are many things to take into account in the ownership of a Pokémon, such as its diet and proper nutrition, and the amount of exercise and rest (or lack thereof) that it receives. Overexertion during battles or training and poor emotional treatment from Trainers have been linked to worse overall health in most Pokémon.
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  • Based on loose, fossilized evidence that has been uncovered in the Sinnoh region, it's speculated that Legendary Pokémon (without any outside interference from humans) generally live for anywhere from tens of thousands to even millions of years. In more ways than one, a Legendary Pokémon's death is comparable to the death of a star — while there are very few records of such an event, there is some proof of a supernova-like occurrence unfolding when a Legendary's time has come to an end.
    • Most Legendary Pokémon come back after death in a form that is nearly identical to their last. The closest known equivalent to describe the phenomenon would be "reincarnation", but it's suspected that it could be something more than that; perhaps some sort of natural measure to keep the balance of the world in check. It is also theorized that a "reincarnated" Legendary is not merely a new one that has been born... it physically is, in every way, the very same Pokémon.
      • The same generally does not apply to Mythical Pokémon, nor Legendary Pokémon of which there are multiple of their species (e.g. Bird trio, Regis). While they do live an extraordinarily long time, and some may have the ability to revive or heal themselves in times of crisis, they are more similar to any average species of Pokémon; they tend to depart peacefully, and do not usually return.
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  • There are also some "exceptions" among regular, non-Legendary, non-Mythical species of Pokémon. Some have been noted to live far longer than their biology should dictate, potentially due to something yet undiscovered but inherent to their DNA. Ninetales is a well-known example of this, a mammalian Fire-type with some documented to have lived for 1,000 years or more. The possibility that this is the case for other species as well is something still being looked into.

Notes and Conclusions:​

"None of these things are the sole deciding trait as to how long a Pokémon may live. There are many, many factors to take into account for each and every species — and even then, the sheer amount of variables within those species can render some things entirely unpredictable. There are extraordinary, unexplainable cases of an average little Pokémon trottin' alongside its Trainer for their whole life.

The truth is, Pokémon are unique, mysterious, fantastical creatures, ones that we will likely never fully understand. Studying these creatures' longevity on this fine detail-oriented scale may be a fruitless effort in the end, but it's things like this that help us as humans feel slightly closer to them; not as outsiders looking in, but as friends.

Chances are that you have a Pokémon of your own, one that ya really love.
Take the time to understand it, as a friend, while you are both still here."

— An anonymous research contributor
 
I have to say something, like..

This has to be my favorite of all the headcanons you've done, like I really enjoy the research-summary style of writing you've done. And the information itself, wow.. it's super detailed, it makes sense, and it just really gives more of an 'immersion', I think, into the world of Pokémon even though this is a tough topic as it is.

And the little part at the end as Gary was really cute too..

thank you professor oki
 
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