Two peas in a pod. Marill and Togepi. No other Pokémon pair has the ability to cheer me up quite like these two. Their soft eyes and smiley faces just make problems seem to fade away. Perhaps it’s their innocent baby-like nature that strikes a chord with me. Regardless the reason, I know I feel happier when I see art featuring Marill and Togepi. So many of Keiko Fukuyama’s artwork depicts these two together.
Marill has been with us since before Gen II even arrived. There was a mysticism around the blue water-mouse we first knew as Pikablu. These unknown beginnings helped endear Marill to the fans. So, once it became known that Marill had an evolutionary form, Azumarill resonated a little bit differently. But in time, Azumarill has been highlighted in some amazing TCG artwork, providing the Pokémon some much deserved appreciation.
A similar story can be told of Togetic. Togepi is a cute little egg. A baby hatchling that was under Misty’s care for much of the original anime. People got to see Togepi grow up. But while Togetic may have gotten less time in the spotlight, the design and artwork remain top notch. Togetic still maintains a round egg-shaped body but now has a pair of wings reminiscent of an angel or a fairy. And in one of the most touching moments of the anime, Misty releases Togetic into the wild. A nice callback to Ash releasing Butterfree.
With those two evolutionary tales in mind, I decided for my Gen II binder to dedicate just a few more artworks of Togetic and Azumarill as an homage to their design and story.
