Pallet Town (Japanese: マサラタウンMasara Town) is located in western Kanto and serves as the hometown of Red, the protagonist of the Generation Igames, as well as several other notable Pokémon Trainers who begin their Pokémon journeys in Kanto. Professor Oak's Laboratory is in Pallet Town, where the famous Pokémon Prof. conducts his research.
In the southeast corner of town is Professor Oak's Lab. Here, Pokémon Trainers just beginning their quest are given the choice to receive either a Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle from Professor Oak. On the occasion that Professor Oak is out of the previously listed Pokémon, he has been seen to hand out Pikachu and Eevee. This is also the location of Red's first battle, one which taken between Blue.
The lab is a small building near the player's house that has been slightly modified in every game. In Pokémon Red and Blue the sign says "Here is the Institute of Dr. Okido." in Japanese, and "Oak Pokémon Research Lab" in the English language versions. Inside are three of Professor Oak's aides, two men and one woman, a couple of shelves full of books, a table with three Poké Balls, a computer, two blank Pokédexes, and two tips for the player. In Pokémon Yellow the lab is the same as Red and Blue, except there is only one Poké Ball on the table, and next to the table stands a trash can. In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, other than the significant graphical enhancements, the laboratory also has two plants in the entrance, a mysterious machine, books on the floor, two regular machines in the corner, and a window.
Inside Red's house in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
Generations I and III
In GenerationsI and III, this house is where the player lives before beginning their journey. The player's mother lives here, and after the player has left town for the first time, going home and talking to her will fully rest/restore all of the player's Pokémon, just like a Pokémon Center. In Generation I, the player's bedroom has a PC, a bed, and a TV with an SNES hooked up to it. It serves no other purpose, although the PC can be used to access the player's item storage. In Generation III, the player house features an enhanced version of the bedroom from Generation I. The only difference is the SNES being replaced with a NES.
Before going down the stairs, there is a sign on the wall that reminds the player how to open the bag. A movie is been shown on the player television involving four boys walking on railroad tracks, possibly a reference to the film Stand by Me, which is screened during Generation I, however, during Generation III, this will only appear if the player is a male. If the player is a female, the television will display a girl in pigtails walking down a yellow brick road, possibly a reference to the film The Wizard of Oz.
Generations II and IV
In GenerationsII and IV, Red's mother is alone in the house, telling the player how worried she is about Red, but also how proud she is of him. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, the graphical features have also been updated to the Generation IV standard since Gold, Silver, and Crystal. On the ground floor, there is a table with a large mug of tea sitting on it, a bigger TV, bookshelves and a kitchen area located on the north-western side of the room containing a refrigerator and a sink. On the upstairs floor is Red's bedroom, with contains a study desk with a laptop computer sitting on it, a Nintendo 64 or Wii,depending on the Generation, three bookshelves and a single bed in the south-western corner. Examining the laptop shows that the items in the room are collecting dust, as if they haven't been used in a long time.
Rival's house
In Generations I and III, after the Pokédex has been given to the player by Professor Oak, the rival's sister will give the player a Town Map. In GenerationsII and IV, the sister of the rival will help the player comb his/her Pokémon, causing its friendship to be raised. In Generation IV, she'll give the player Blue's Pokégear phone number so the player can call and arrange a rematch with him at the Fighting Dojo. Also returning from previous generations, Daisy will groom one of the player's Pokémon for free once daily between 3:00 and 4:00 PM. As in Generation II, it will raise a Pokémon's friendship greatly, however, it will also raise the Pokémon's Beauty stat. This is not displayed anywhere in-game, and the Pokémon must be seen from the point of view of Diamond, Pearl, or Platinum to notice. Despite this, Feebas whose Beauty is maxed out this way can evolve into Milotic, unlike in FireRed and LeafGreen, where the Beauty stat did not exist in any shape or form. As a reference to her enjoyment of tea in Generation III, a large mug of tea sits on her table. In the first three generations, the rival's house has always been one story, but in Generation IV, the rival's house has a second story that mirror's the player's house, much like their Hoenn and Sinnoh counterparts.
Demographics
Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen
Pallet Town's population is 8 (not including the player and the rival, who leave Pallet Town at the beginning of the game). This low number is likely due to its lack of amenities like a Gym or Pokémon Center and its isolation from the center of Kanto.
Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
Pallet Town's population is 8, the same number found in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
Pallet Town is very consistent in the way of layout, the square shaped town with three buildings remain the same between Generation I and III, only enhancing aesthetic features. Trees have become bigger, flowers are more visible, and most other sprites have been upgraded to Generation III standards. Most of the towns residents remain the same, and will tell Trainers the same message. However, there is an woman in front of signpost on the south western field that will move out of a Trainer's way when interacted with. In the Generation I to III transition, the garden in front of Professor Oak's Lab is removed, while other houses in Pallet have mailboxes instead of signs.
Professor Oak's Lab has gone through some slight remodeling. In Generation I, inside are three of Professor Oak's aides, two men and one woman, a couple of shelves full of books, a table with three Poké Balls, a computer, two blank Pokédexes, and two tips for the player, while, in Generation III, other than the significant graphical enhancements, the laboratory also has two plants in the entrance, a mysterious machine, books on the floor, two regular machines in the corner, and a window. Changes in Red and Blue's house also sufficed. In Generation III, the player's bedroom features an enhanced version of the bedroom from Generation I with the SNES being replaced with a NES.
Generation II
During Generation II, Pallet Town surprisingly had little change down to the layout. Despite the graphical updates, the town remained totally unchanged save for the move of the tall grass in the north. Daisy, the sister of the rival, who is living in the rival house, will help the player comb his/her Pokémon, causing its friendship to be raised. Daisy will groom one of the player's Pokémon for free once daily between 3:00 and 4:00 PM. Red's mom also appears in Generation II telling the player how worried she is about Red, but also how proud she is of him.
Generation IV
During Generation IV, Pallet Town also had surprisingly little change down to the layout. Despite the graphical updates, the town remained totally unchanged. As in Generation II, Daisy, Blue's sister, will groom the player's Pokémon between 3 and 4 PM, and will give away his Pokégear number if she is shown a Pokémon that is already very friendly and has a high Beauty condition.
Pallet Town is the home town of the main character Ash Ketchum and his rival Gary Oak. As in the games, Professor Oak's Laboratory is located in Pallet Town. Ash always returns here before visiting a new region. Pallet Town is depicted in the anime as having dirt trails and wide open grass fields. Pallet Town debuted in the first episode, Pokémon - I Choose You!, when Ash received his Pikachu. Since then, it has been seen in many episodes, mostly in the start and ending of a region adventure, but also in Pokémon Chronicles and in the movies.
Professor Oak's Laboratory stands out in Pallet Town for its wind turbine, the three windows of the inner balcony, and for the four windows of the second floor. Every time Ash captures a Pokémon when he has six already with him, the new Pokémon is automatically transported here. Ash also has a habit of leaving all of his Pokémon besides Pikachu here each time he leaves for a new region, starting with Hoenn. The lab is composed of two floors. Inside the entrance door is a hallway with several doors, and to the left is a chest of drawers and the stairway to the second floor. The Oak Corral is a natural environment for Pokémon development. It is divided into regions according to type; there are areas that are perfect for Rock Pokémon, desert areas for Ground and Template:Type2s, grassy regions, and several lakes. Sometimes the Pokémon don't get along; for this reason, some Pokémon, such as Ash's Bulbasaur, act as mediators between quarreling Pokémon.
The Xanadu Nursery is another location close to Pallet Town. The nursery is a large greenhouse that is home to various flowers and plants. Among them is a flower that contains Stun Spore. Two of the nursery's employees are Florinda Showers and Potter. Along with Florinda's Gloom, they help to make sure the operations at Xanadu run smoothly. While training for the Pokémon League in Make Room for Gloom, Ash's mom requested that her son help her run some errands and visit the nursery. Ash and company took off, not wanting to help with Delia's plans. Eventually, they ended up at the very place she requested them to be at. Pallet Town may have an airport due to the fact that Ash, Delia and Professor Oak left for Unova on an airplane in In The Shadow of Zekrom!.
In the manga
In the The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga
As in the anime, Ash's hometown is Pallet Town in the The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga series. Professor Oak does not appear to live in Pallet Town full-time, as he is seen doing a field study of Clefairy in Clefairy Tale. It is, however, the hometown of Ash and Gary, as well as the current residence of Delia Ketchum and May Oak.
According to Gary, Pikachu are commonly found around Pallet Town.
The lab also appeared briefly in the Pokémon Adventures. In his search to be the best Trainer, Red went to see Professor Oak in A Glimpse of the Glow, but the laboratory, a one-floor building with a sign, was deserted and the door was open; Red entered anyway. The first view of the inside of the lab was seen in Bulbasaur, Come Home!, and was shown to have machines, tables, bookshelves, a glass container full of water and a Poké Ball storage area.
In the Pokémon Pocket Monsters manga
Pallet Town is the hometown of Isamu Akai and his rival, Kai Midorikawa. Professor Oak also resides in Pallet Town, offering the two boys their choice of starter Pokémon, though Isamu chooses a Clefairy that he met on the way to the laboratory instead.
Trivia
The town's motto is a reference to the color-named cities of Kanto.
The town's Japanese motto is マサラは まっしろ はじまりのいろ "Masara is the color of pure-white beginnings."
Pallet Town has had a different English-language motto in each generation it appeared in. In Generations I and III, it was "Shades of your journey await!", while in Generation II it was "A Tranquil Setting of Peace and Purity", likely to remove reference to the town being a starting area. In Generation IV, the motto is "A Pure White Beginning", a closer translation of the original Japanese.
Besides those stated above, there are two other Trainers that live in Pallet Town. These are the Trainers that began their journey on the same day as Ash Ketchum and received either Bulbasaur or Charmander as their starter Pokémon. It is unknown if they will ever appear in the anime, or if they've already appeared but never been named.
Although this town is quite small in the video games, it is shown as a somewhat spacious town in the anime and manga.
At the player's house in Generation III, the TV makes two movie references that don't appear from any other TV in the games:
If the player chooses to start with the male character, when the TV at home is inspected, it says, "There's a movie on TV. Four boys are walking on railroad tracks. ...I'd better go, too." This is most likely a reference to the classic coming-of-age movie, Stand by Me (1986). Paralleling the player leaving home and striking out on their own, the movie is about four boys who leave home to go on an adventure.
If the player chooses to start with the female character, the TV will say, "There's a movie on TV. A girl in pigtails is walking down a yellow brick road. ...I'd better go, too." This is most likely a reference to the movie The Wizard of Oz (1939) which depicts the fictional adventure of a young girl. Interestingly, the player's mother will remark that it means that all girls wish to go out on adventures someday, contradicting the point of the movie (in which the main character wished to return home).
In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Red's bedroom features an area rug around his bed that is red in color. Blue's bedroom features a similar area rug, which is instead green in color. This is likely an oversight from the Japanese release of this game, wherein Blue's name is Green.
In each generation, Pallet Town's theme music has been extended by 10 seconds, from 75 seconds in Generation I to 105 seconds in Generation IV.
In Generation I, when Professor Oak gives the player 5 Poké Balls, his dialog is slightly glitched, displaying one line of text on top of the previous line instead of jumping to a new line. This error may be due to the testers not noticing it, given the requirements for this piece of dialog to appear in the game. However, this does not occur in the Japanese versions, thus it appears to be an oversight in the English localizations.
Name origin
Language
Name
Origin
Japanese
マサラタウン Masara Town
May have been taken from 真っ新 massara (brand new) or 真っ白 masshiro (pure white).
English
Pallet Town
A palette is a set of colors, used in various means.
Danish
Palet By (Season 10 only)
Mistankenly translated.
French
Bourg Palette
From bourg, village, and palette.
Czech
Oblázkové město
Oblázek means pebble, and město means town (or city).
If the player chose Bulbasaur:
If the player chose Charmander:
