WOAH, after the Demo leaks I wasn't expecting anything exciting, but oh boy, was I wrong.
- Decidueye: who would've expected final Rowlet's evo to be Grass/Ghost, likely the only starter whose typing anyone took for granted (someone thought fire/fight for Litten3 and Water/Psychic for Popplio3, but no one doubted Grass/Flying for Rowlet3)... It's so random, I don't know... I mean, I love ghost types, but Decidueye (what a name...) doesn't really look "ghostly", on the contrary it looks much more a Flying type than anything else... That's cool though, I mean, it's a more unique and overall superior typing and it gets a ghost signature move (I hope it'll be decent, the effect is already great), and surely it isn't the first "flying" Pokémon that doesn't get the Flying type. It could be based on how silent and "ghostly" owls can be while hunting, or considering its long legs and "loss" of the flying type, it could be connected to the extinct (hence "dead") Hawaiian Stilt owl, a mostly terrestrial owl. Anyway, this is definitely one of my favorite starters ever, maybe even my favorite one.
- Inceneroar: hilarious name, hilarious poses, it really has a great personality in-game. I'm one of those who're a bit annoyed by the fact the most fire starters are anthropomorphic (and most of them fighters too), but actually this one is likely my favorite "anthropomorphic" one. Confirmed Fire/Dark is great, and if it'll be powerful enough it could distinguish itself fairly well from other fire types. Its signature move looks cool, as even this one has a cool effect and Dark Type too doesn't have many powerful moves (even if surely more useful ones than Ghost).
- Primarina: really beautiful and elegant, it's soo much better animated. It confirms too the Water/Fairy type, and it looks as the most "solid" of the Trio, hoping it'll get a good movepool (PLEASE get recover). Its signature move isn't that impressive at first (damages the target, but also cures burns... meh), I hope it'll be interesting enough to justify its drawback (except for niche applications like against status abusers, or to cure an ally if it works like Earthquake/Surf). On the other side, the animation when it attacks is SUPERB.
Overall, these new starters have the best dedicated animations ever appeared in a Pokémon game. I'm really really happy to see another trio with so much personality.
- Tapu Lele: incredibly cute and with a fearsome ability! It could easily become the best psychic/fairy so far, can't wait for its stats and movepool.
- Tapu Bulu: probably my least favorite of the Tapus, I do appreciate it though. Everyone was expecting Fire/Fairy, I had Fight/Fairy vibes but we got a Grass/Fairy instead... Well, it does make sense. It really wished for an immunity to priority as Tapu Lele, considering its x4 weakness to Flying...
- Tapu Fini: my favorite of the Tapus, it's just so fascinating and refined... Confirms Water/Fairy despite someone expecting Ghost/Fairy, definitely less cool but pretty much appropriate. As I expected it doesn't have Drizzle nor a non-sense "Water Terrain" inducing ability, it just uses a Misty Terrain inducing ability... Which isn't as interesting as Tapu Lele/Koko, but I guess it's pretty cool, especially in double.
So the Oricorio theory is definitely dismantled... not that I care much.
- Tapu Z move: OWH GOD THIS IS AMAZING! It's so exaggerated and powerful! I can't easily guess the typing though.
- Cosmog: wasn't expecting it to be presented as a random Pokémon... Are they pulling another "Carbink"? mh.. Don't know, doesn't look like. It's cute though.
- Alolan Persian: still doesn't look good, it's funny but we got enough jokes with alolan pokémons already... BUT it gets Fur Coat, and that's potentially amazing (not necessarily though, depending on its stats).
- The New League: this is an interesting concept, finally confirming the old rumours about it. It really screams "POSTGAME", I'm really excited about it.
- Battle Tree: this does looks connected to the League. It's a really fanservice-y touch but I appreciate it a lot... Seeing Blue and Red back as grown-up feels incredibly nostalgic. And CYNTHIA <3 Hope it'll be well managed.