🐺 @superbwerewolfpost - Tumblr Blog

superbwerewolfpost

Mar 3

casual-praxis

The Colress fixation is real

So here's some rapid fire thoughts I have about him so I can get them out of my head

Not in any particular order and not particularly coherent

The list gets long so uh, prepare to scroll if you peek below the cut

He's presumably right handed, since he throws with his right hand and adjusts his glasses with his right, but he seems to prioritize using his left hand for almost everything else. He holds his tablet thing in his left during BW2 and hides his right behind his back (which could be a shared habit with Ghetsis if Masters is to be trusted).

He types on his console with his left hand in USUM and only moves his right hand when doing that "adjusting" motion, or otherwise banishing Ghetsis to the shadow realm (also hands over things with his right). He holds an ultraball(?) in his left hand during his pre-battle portrait, but again throws with his right. He also starts typing on his left console if you beat him, which makes me think the two screens are for different notes.

He tends to be holding things or gesturing with his left hand in most of his TCG cards, with only one exception that I've been able to find. Most importantly. Holds sandwich in left hand. While still reaching for things with his right, so tbh he's either ambidextrous or cross-dominant.

Side note, I think it's interesting that both Colress and Ghetsis, according to Masters EX, hold their right hand behind their backs while holding things in their left. Whereas Colress holds his tablet up, Ghetsis obviously holds his cane downwards. There's probably some kinda symbolism there if you think hard enough about it, but I lack the brain power.

They fact they have similar poses and outfits is something I think about a lot. We should really do more with the fact they're so similar, I think.

I love that he actually uses his pockets in the various medias he's in. Not so much the games, but for the longest time I did think that was part of his sprite animation when he hides his hand behind his back. I think I didn't figure it out until like the second or third time you battle him, was dissapointed.

But the anime and manga have me covered at least. I dunno, I just like when characters who have big ass pockets on their designs actually use them. Seriously, he has like three in total on his BW2 coat. They take up so much room but can potentially store so much stuff in them.

Anime Colress actually seems to keep things in there for practicality whereas manga Colress...might keep things in there? I feel like he does but I can't remember off the top of my head. He definitely has his hands there casually whenever his coat was on at least. Same with the TCG cards, there's at least one where Colress is just chillin'.

It really gives him a more laid back vibe. Either he has cold hands, or it's just comfortable. Secret third thing where he has a hand on a weapon at all times. Wouldn't put it past manga Colress. His coat didn't pass inspection hence why he ditched it (also made him look way friendlier than he's supposed to be in that iteration lmao).

Personal hc is that he keeps snacks in there.

Considering we know the beta design for Colress had a yellow hair swoop instead of a blue one, the idea it's meant to look like a halo is all the more interesting to consider. Like, what else is it supposed to look like.

I've heard it's meant to reference Klinklang's outer ring, but two things can be true at once.

Following that line of thought is pretty fun, considering the cult vibes of Team Plasma. You can go so many directions with it. Like, is that why he only really shows up to talk about Team Plasma and then leave for a few hours until it's time to remind you he exists? Are those his divine messages. Because he's pretty bad at it ngl. "Oh look, a legendary. How curious it should appear here before you. By the way, are you going to square up with Plasma? Here's a taser."

Wonder if the reason Ghetsis trusted this dude to take the reigns with Plasma is because of some misplaced trust that Colress' "pure" devotion to science wouldn't drag them down. Colress has an almost otherworldly detachment from the things around him, making him seem unaffected by things that trip up the average human. An angel to the cause.

That didn't work out since Colress is only devoted to science, but it is pretty ironic to consider even the "angel" turned his back on Ghetsis' corrupt faith. Something something betrayed by the person who embodies your operation (seriously, Colress is a walking Plasma logo).

This one wanders more into hc territory, but alas. A few of these will probably be scattered throughout here.

I'm of the opinion that Colress is lying when he says he despises Ghetsis. Not because I think Colress actually likes him, but because I don't think Colress cares at all. We know he's supposed to be a neutral character by design, so him hating anyone seems to go against that concept.

The only way I can see this being true is if it's in a "you are too similar to me," kinda way. Apparently people tend to dislike those of similar personalities to themselves, which would be pretty neat to see portrayed here.

We don't really know their history, just that they know each other from before the events of BW2 at the very least (as confirmed by the alt-universe Ghetsis recognizing Colress despite being from an alt-BW1). It's possible Ghetsis did something to specifically piss off Colress and we just don't know about it, but I really doubt any of the things of Ghetsis got up to during BW2 crossed a line for Colress.

From what we know about Colress, I'm of the opinion that if given the motivation to, Colress would commit the same crimes as Ghetsis without hesitation. They're really not that different. Colress isn't above trying to manipulate kids, he does it to the player character in most of their interactions via positive reinforcement (giving useful gifts, "helping" proceed through an obstacle he likely had a hand in placing, discrediting Team Plasma at every turn, etc) all so they trust him more once his big reveal pops up.

As we learn from Generations, it was Colress who called for the canon to fire on Opelucid City and then strengthened the blast while knowingly putting Kyurem in pain. Torturing pokemon and manipulating people are both things in his wheelhouse, so unless he thinks Ghetsis is just annoying (always a possibility), we don't really know enough about their dynamic to point to anything in particular.

I think it's just more convenient to say he hates Ghetsis then explain to people who genuinely dislike/hate Ghetsis how he couldn't care less, actually. It also nips a few problems in the bud, such as having to explain why it's so surprising he'd oppose Ghetsis/Team Plasma (USUM/Masters), or reassuring the kid he's been building rapport with that he's not actually the bad guy here, see, he hates Ghetsis, too (BW2).

I really want to know what their actual dynamic was, alas, they're rarely ever in the same room as each other. Maybe they're just the same person.

In USUM, it wasn't the same Ghetsis, and the interaction is over after Colress yeets him through dimensions (without ever changing expressions once??). Colress did say some questionable things afterwards, but that's pretty usual for him (mentioned hoping Ghetsis stays out of trouble while also mildly complimenting him in a roundabout way). The accidental slip up when saying the whole situation was interesting was pretty funny though ("it's all very interesting--I mean a pain," something to that effect).

In Masters I was looking forward to seeing them interact since they're both prominent in the Unova Villain arc, but Colress literally has zero lines in the confrontation scene. Neither of them acknowledge the other. Which does raise a few questions, like whether or not Ghetsis had even been informed of Colress' betrayal yet, or if he was already aware from the events of BW2. At least Colress has a line that specifically addresses Ghetsis if you put them on the same team together, though I think it's just what USUM Colress said to Ghetsis when he first appeared.

They just don't talk in BW2. I think Colress doesn't even mention Ghetsis by name until the post-game, but I might be wrong.

At least in the anime and manga they interact. Anime Colress says questionable shit as always and manga Colress definitely has that vibe of wanting to stab your boss more and more as time goes on. I believe manga Colress doesn't care about Ghetsis 100%. Anime Colress went to jail with the guy and was willing to sit next to him, so. Probably doesn't mind him that much tbh. It's probably anime Ghetsis that doesn't like Colress.

Which makes me wonder how game Ghetsis feels about Colress, given the whole betryal thing. I have no idea on that front. He seemed to move on from it pretty quickly, so either he just knew it was always a risk, or he figured he'd have time to deal with it later.

My personal hc for how they know each other is that they met in university or something, back when Ghetsis was still interested in being a researcher and Colress was being Colress. Over time they drifted apart because Ghetsis began to pour more time into his royal-history-dragon-prince-region-takeover thing and Colress wasn't interested, hence why he also didn't partner up during BW1 (perhaps he wasn't even in Unova at this time). The roles reverse in BW2 and it's Colress who puts his own interests before their friendship/situationship/whateverthefuck, even after initially agreeing because hey, free funding and unrestricted unethical testing abound.

I've seen a few people say that BW2 and X/Y happen concurrently in the timeline, which would mean Colress was in Kalos before the events of BW2. There's a backpacker on route 10 that will mention Colress by name, which implies he was studying the area at some point, but as he can't be found anywhere in the region, has already left.

What I'm getting at is that Colress could have potentially hit us with mega evolution for the lols.

Ignoring the fact we don't actually know when he was Kalos, just that he was sometime in the past, and probably missed out on the mega evolution uprising...as well as how he likely wouldn't have gotten a metagrossite from there...also probably didn't know any of his pokemon could mega evolve. But hey, it's a neat thought.

Also where the heck does he keep his key stone at, I've just been assuming he built it into his console.

Sometimes I think about how manga Colress chided Blake for "not teaching [his] pokemon to follow through" in regards to literally killing him?? From what I understand? Dude got stabbed in the chest and survived only because he for some reason kept the Reveal Glass under his uniform?

The fact he shortly after tanked a point blank sheer cold from Kyurem made me think for a while that it was foreshadowing. Like, how crazy would it be if they actually killed Colress off right there?

Somehow he survived, but still.

I sometimes wonder if killing off Team Plasma in the anime would have been better than what they ended up with. Like, just bring in the frigate and have it blow up Hunter J style.

If they really wanted to it could just be left ambiguous on if everyone died, but given the reason the Plasma arc was dropped to begin with, I get not wanting to portray something on the darker side.

The tablet thing Colress is holding in BW2--is that also a Colress Machine? I know it has some text written next to it on his character sheet, but to my knowledge it’s never been translated (or at least not anywhere I could find).

It would make sense it's something he invented himself, I just never really thought about it until pretty much just now. If his wonky naming scheme is to be believed, he's invented at least three other Colress Machines prior to the one he hands the player character in BW2.

Not to mention the fact he's apparently made it into the 1000's by USUM.

I like to think he simply can't be bothered to think of more complex names for his inventions, hence why he names them all "Colress Machine" and then a number, but the more likely answer is that he's just somewhat vain. The anime and manga portrayals of him have to be pulling from something, so I wouldn't be surprised if it's in his character notes and we just don't see it too often in the games.

It's also possible his inventions have two names, considering the N-Solarizer and N-Lunarizer are also stated to be Colress Machines. Maybe he has a standard name picked out, along with the numbered one to keep track of them.

There is also his coat in USUM. It's not called a Colress Machine, but rather the Achromatic Wearable Console. So at least there's a bit of variety. Still technically has his name in it, but that raises two different nonsensical questions in my mind.

If the coat were to be referred to by name in game, would they change "Achromatic" into "Colorless" for the English translations? The coat's name is already in English from the looks of it, so is it even worth changing?

Also, since his name is Achroma in most other translations, and he's named the coat "Achromatic", does that imply his full name is actually Achromatic and he just drops the "tic" part? That's not very likely, but the idea he introduces himself with what's basically a nickname is kinda funny. Doesn't really work in English, but who knows, maybe his real name is Colorless and he simply took out a few letters to be quirky.

The fact Colress can casually create devices that warp reality and turn himself invisible is actually kinda terrifying when you think about it. Especially considering how it doesn't seem to take him all that long to develop working models.

What could the anime and manga versions of him have gotten up to had they simply had more time to roam free??

I have no idea which came first, but that one Kyurem TCG card that mentions attacking Colress cards specifically on the first turn almost feels like a nod to the manga, or vise versa.

They're probably associated only because both appear prominently in BW2, but it's funnier to imagine Kyurem just hates this dude. Fair enough. Considering the torture.

It seems like Colress isn't the type to stay in one place for very long, given how he pops up all over the map in BW2 and only really becomes stationary after the main story is over (but even then he moves around in the Frigate at least once after you initially battle him post-game).

We know he's traveled to Kalos at some point and to our knowledge he's still in Alola, but even there, we know he's constantly moving around. Not so much in Kalos, though it can be assumed, but at least in USUM we know he's been to every island except for Melemele (that we know of).

You first technically encounter Colress on Route 8, but you can find him as soon you get to Akala Island if you pop into the Tide Song Hotel. There's also an NPC at the Paniola Ranch who will tell you, "I can tell how many times you've had opposing pokemon call for help during battle! If I use a mysterious machine that an enigmatic man gave to me, that is," which is probably safe to assume was Colress, given how that fits how he's usually described.

He doesn't pop up again for a while until after you've caught Necrozma in the crater on Mount Lanakila, but you can find an NPC that mentions him by name at the pokemon center in Tapu Village. That's how we find out his coat is water-cooled, somehow. The fact he also wandered up a mountain is kinda interesting--did he know Necrozma was there and was just waiting for the player character to show up and fight/catch it? Does his coat also regulate the cold? Or is he just unbothered by colder temps due to spending so much time around Kyurem/being from a colder region in general?

You can find him in the Battle Tree on Poni Island, and apparently he'll blow up his Metagross if you let him, so watch out for that?? He does that even if you partner up with him which is mildly hilarious. Have not encountered him yet. Either way, he's here.

We know he visits Aether Paradise during the credits of the game, as well as how he's around for most of the Rainbow Rocket episode, so that's four of the five islands that we've seen or heard that he's been to. No one mentions him on Melemele Island to my knowledge (I went and talked to every NPC in the game that I could in my most recent playthough of Ultra Sun, was very fun, I recommend doing that if you don't already).

In Pokemon Masters Ex it's not as noteworthy a trait since everyone in that game moves around a bunch, but apparently during the Villain Arc, when a bunch of professors and researchers are being targeted and need to be guarded, Colress wanders off on his own enough for Looker to comment, "I asked you so many times not to stray too far!" But from here on it's less of Colress wandering off and more of whoever is with him running on ahead, but he takes his time catching up and doesn't seem bothered.

His portrayal in Masters is something I find really fascinating, since it lets us see more of who he is, while still not technically being canon, though close enough. He looks offended that Paulo and Tina don't know who he is in 'Good or Evil Bonds', though it's for less than a second, and he goes right back to smiling and giving out his usual introduction. He pretty much smiles through the whole interaction, and doesn't even try to defend himself when Looker tells everyone Colress is a former Team Plasma member--it's actually Looker who has to scramble to tell Paulo and Tina that Colress isn't with them anymore and not to attack him. Dude does not care.

But yea, he's going to go where he wants, kidnapping risk be damned.

Feels like he prioritizes his focus dependent on how invested he is in the results. He'll go directly towards where he thinks he'll find the best data for his potential based research, but leave other people the work if it's not directly linked to that outright (such as the S.O.S tracker or most of his Plasma responsibilities). Somehow both hands on and hands off at the same time.

So like. Colress has a Klinklang in the Battle Tree that runs a pretty similar set-up to what Ghetsis does with his Cofagrigus in BW2. Toxic + Protect with Leftovers as a held item.. Why does he do that.

Side note, I like that the majority of pokemon Colress uses don't have gender. Seems really fitting for him tbh. If he were agender himself I wouldn't be surprised.

Annnnd that's probably enough for now.

I still have more thoughts, but that's usually how it goes when I lock onto a character like this. The rest aren't fully formed or are prone to changing around, so who knows, there could be a part 2 to this someday.

Either way, none of these thoughts are going to pay my bills, alas.

Feel free to reach out if anyone wants to chat about any of this! I like to yap, as y'all might have noticed. ^^

Also, here's some bonus alternative versions of the art I used at the top, because I am still eternally indecisive.

No Text Version: