Machoke appear as larger, taillessMachop with red marks along their muscular arms. Their faces are more reptilian than before. The marks actually look like places where the skin has stretched apart because it can barely contain its huge muscles. Machoke wear black wrestling tights for better movement and a large, golden belt with a little red P on the buckle.
Gender differences
None.
Special abilities
Machoke are Pokémon of immense strength. In fact, they are so strong that even with the power-save belt they constantly wear to control their power they are able to lift a dump truck with one hand.
Behavior
Strong and capable, Machoke helps people with labor.
Machoke live in mountains, in foreboding areas where they can hone their skills. They can also be found in urban areas, as they are often employed for manual labor. They are most common in Kanto, Johto and Sinnoh.
Blue also had a Machoke that evolved into Machamp under Red's care, but was traded back afterwards..
Machoke was seen again in Volume 18 as one of Brawly's Pokémon; it is unconfirmed if this Machoke evolved from the Machop he had in Volume 16. Machoke attempted to fight Mack's fiery illusions in Volume 20 at the Lilycove Museum, but failed miserably and ended up getting burned. His Hariyama succeeded in doing so, however.
Machoke's thoroughly toned muscles possess the hardness of steel. This Pokémon has so much strength, it can easily hold aloft a sumo wrestler on just one finger.
Machoke undertakes bodybuilding every day even as it helps people with tough, physically demanding labor. On its days off, this Pokémon heads to the fields and mountains to exercise and train.
In the Pokémon Red and Blue beta, Machoke was originally known as "Kung-Foo". This name is a corruption of kung fu, a Chinese martial art.
In The Official Pokémon Handbook, Machoke is described as being extremely narcissistic; "Machoke, [...]likes its own body way too much. Sometimes it's too busy looking at itself in the mirror to train", which is exactly the opposite of the description given in Pokémon Stadium; "Although it is incredibly strong, it is always modest".
In the anime, Machoke appears to have a greenish skin pigment, while it keeps a purple color in the games and in Ken Sugimori's official artwork.
Machoke appears to be based on a bodybuilder or wrestler with some reptilian traits.
Name origin
Machoke may be a combination of macho (Spanish for overly masculine or chauvinist) and choke. Macho has come to mean tough or masculine in English. Akin to Mr. Mime, the masculine attribute has no reflection on gender assignment, as both species can be male and female; however, Machop's evolutionary line does have a 3:1 male:female ratio, making the species predominantly—but not entirely—male.
Goriky is a corruption of 剛力 gōriki (herculean strength).
This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon species, as well as Pokémon groups and forms.