Human–Pokémon transformation

The subject of this article has no official name. The name currently in use is a fan designator; see below for more information.

People and Pokémon have exhibited the ability to transform into each other's forms under special circumstances, such as due to human technology or the mystical abilities of Pokémon.

Human-to-Pokémon transformation

Bill transformed into Clefairy

Under various unusual circumstances, there have been humans who have transformed into Pokémon.

In the core series games

• In the Kanto-based games, Bill accidentally combines himself with a Pokémon and transforms into either Nidorino, Clefairy, or an indistinct Pokémon () while performing a teleportation experiment.
• In the Sinnoh-based games, a book in Canalave Library contains a folk story about a Pokémon living in a forest that sheds its hide to sleep as a human, and when awoken the human dons the Pokémon hide to roam villages.

Pokédex entries

A few Pokédex entries refer to Pokémon that were once human. It is uncertain how some of these Pokémon transformed or ended up the way they are.

Pokémon	Description
Kadabra	A Pokédex entry states that one morning a boy with extrasensory powers awoke in bed transformed into Kadabra. Pocket Monsters Encyclopedia expands the entry explaining it's only the plot of a book called "The Transformation".
Gengar	Gengar was once a human itself. It tries to create another one by taking the lives of other humans.
Cofagrigus	People say that Cofagrigus was once human but it no longer remembers it.
Iron Hands	Iron Hands is said to be a mortally wounded athelete who was kept alive by being made into a cyborg.

In spin-off games

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series

In the Mystery Dungeon series, the player character is a human who has been transformed into a Pokémon.

Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.

• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX: The hero was asked to save the world by Gardevoir. They volunteered to transform into a Pokémon, and voluntarily chose to erase their memories as a human.
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky: The hero, along with their partner Grovyle, was traveling to the past on a mission to collect the Time Gears and prevent the planet's paralysis. However, while traveling through time, they were attacked by Darkrai, who sought to stop them from changing the dark future. As a result of this incident, the hero was transformed into a Pokémon.
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity: The hero was asked to save the Pokémon world in a dream by Hydreigon, the Voice of Life. They transform into a Pokémon and fall from the sky into the Pokémon world.
• Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon: The hero was summoned to the Pokémon world by the spirit of Mew, who they defeated Dark Matter together with in the ancient past. However, after arriving in the Pokémon world, they were attacked by Nuzleaf and Beheeyem, who knocked them out. After waking up, they had lost all their memories, to which Nuzleaf took advantage of to deceive them.

	Spoilers end here.

In animation

• In the Pokémon the Series episode Hocus Pokémon, Ash was transformed into a Pikachu by a magic spell.
• In the tenth animated Pokémon movie The Rise of Darkrai, Baron Alberto was transformed into a Lickilicky.
• In the Pokétoon episode Help! I've Turned into a Gengar, Hilary somehow temporarily transforms into a Gengar.

In the novels

Pokémon Tales

In I'm Not Pikachu!, a boy who transformed into Pikachu meets a girl who transformed into Mew and a boy who transformed into Mewtwo. Several other children have also transformed into a group of other Pikachu, Mew, and Mewtwo. This happened because they all watched a Pokémon movie starring those three Pokémon species (the movie is not identified in the plot, but this book is a tie-in to Pokémon: The First Movie). The Pikachu boy mentions at some point: "The movie was so much fun, we all turned into Pokémon!", and later "I guess if you really love a movie, you can turn into the star!" In the end, the Pikachu boy tells the reader that they can turn into a Pokémon by watching a Pokémon movie too, but they will wake up as a human again after a good night's sleep.

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  The three main characters transformed into Pokémon

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  Other transformed children

Pokémon formed from human spirits

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it.

In the core series games

Pokédex entries

Several Pokémon, particularly Ghost types, are stated in the Pokédex to be formed from the spirits or souls of deceased humans.

Pokémon	Description
Ninetales	According to an enduring legend, nine noble saints were united and reincarnated as Ninetales.
Gastly	Poisonous gas comprises 95% of its body. It's said that the remaining 5% is made up of the souls of those who died from the gas.
Hitmonchan	The spirit of a pro boxer has infused this Pokémon. It is said to be the spirit of a boxer who aimed to become the world champion.
Lombre	Old folklore in Kitakami tells of a mischievous child who was reborn as a Pokémon.
Drifloon	Drifloon is a Pokémon formed by the spirits of people and Pokémon. It likes to steal away children to the afterlife and expands each time it leads someone away.
Drifblim	The raw material for the gas inside Drifblim's body is composed of souls.
Spiritomb	Spiritomb was formed from 108 spirits bound to a fissure in an Odd Keystone as punishment for misdeeds 500 years ago. It is uncertain if those spirits were humans.
Froslass	Froslass was born when the soul of a woman met her end on a snowy mountain bearing a grudge and regrets.
Yamask	Yamask is said to arose from the spirits of people interred in graves in past ages retaining memories of its former life. The mask they bear used to be its face when it was human.
Frillish	Legend has it that the residents of a sunken ancient city changed into these Pokémon.
Cryogonal	It is said that people and Pokémon who die on snowy mountains are reborn into these Pokémon.
Honedge	Honedge's soul once belonged to a person who was killed a long time ago by the sword that makes up Honedge's body.
Phantump	According to old tales, these Pokémon are stumps possessed by the spirits of children who died while lost in the forest.

Pokémon-to-human transformation

A wild Zorua transforming into Dawn, but keeping its tail

Some Pokémon have moves or Abilities, such as Transform and Illusion, that allow them to take the form of humans. Some notable examples of Pokémon shown doing this are Ditto, Mew, Latias, Zorua, and Zoroark.

In the core series games

• In the Unova-based games, a wild Zorua in Castelia City takes an appearance of a boy who does not talk.
• Similarly, a wild Zoroark in Lostlorn Forest utilizes its ability to create illusions, transforming itself first into a woman inside a mobile trailer, and then into a backpacker. It engages in a brief conversation with the player before revealing its true form.
• In the Alola-based games, at the Police Station on Alola Route 9 and Konikoni City, there's a sidequest where player needs to find and battle five Ditto transformed into humans.

In the spin-off series games

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the Ditto summoned from the Poké Ball transforms into a purple version of the fighter who used this item.

In animation

Pokémon the Series

• At the end of the episode A Way Off Day Off, in the Professor Oak's Big Pokémon Examination segment, a Ditto transforms itself into Professor Oak.
• In the third movie Spell of the Unown: Entei, a group of Unown creates an illusion where the father of Molly, Spencer Hale is transformed into Entei.
• In the fifth movie Pokémon Heroes: Latios & Latias, Latias changes its appearance and disguises itself as Bianca.
• In the ninth movie Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea, Manaphy swaps consciousness of Pokémon and human characters with the move Heart Swap.
• In the thirteenth movie Zoroark: Master of Illusions, a wild Zorua likes to use its illusions to transform into people it meets, though its tail is still visible and will revert back to its true form if it is grabbed.
• In the episode Movie Time! Zorua in "The Legend of the Pokémon Knight"!, Luke's Zorua plays tricks on characters like Georgia by transforming into them.

In live action

• In POKÉMON Detective Pikachu, Ms. Norman is a genetically modified Ditto who can transform into humans. It usually takes human form as Howard Clifford's female personal assistant, and is also seen transforming into Roger Clifford and Lucy Stevens.

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

• The Latias befriended by Emerald often disguises herself as a human in order to blend in with her surroundings.

The Electric Tale of Pikachu

• In a bonus comic published in the volume 2, Ditto transformed into Ash and harassed Misty.

Pokémon Newspaper Strip

• In Strip 35, Ditto transformed into a human girl.

Gallery

For more images of Latias, see Eon duo (Adventures) → Gallery

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  Latias as a Battle Pike maid

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  Ditto transformed into a human girl

Trivia

• Sometimes the emotions of humans can form into Pokémon:
  • Sandygast was created when grudges of the dead possessed a mound of sand and became a Pokémon.
  • The fiery blades on Ceruledge's arms burn fiercely with the lingering resentment of a sword wielder who fell before accomplishing their goal.
  • The four Pokémon of the treasures of ruin, Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu, are said to be born from the grudges, hate, fear, and envy of people.
  • Supposedly, Poltchageist was born from the regrets of a tea ceremony master who died before perfecting his craft.
• In Pokémon X and Y and Masters EX, Valerie expresses her desire to become a Pokémon and creates clothing to imitate one.
• At Pokéstar Studios, some movies rely on human characters acting like Pokémon, where they acquire properties of Pokémon like type, Ability, moves, and statistics. These humans are Black Belt, Brycen-Man, and Monica.
  • Similarly, Pokémon sometimes can become Trainers, like Ledian in the Timegate Traveler Series, or wild Oranguru.

See also

• Pokémorph