Entei

Design and characteristics

Entei is one of the three "Legendary Beasts" that are featured in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal. In an interview, Tsunekazu Ishihara, President of The Pokémon Company, described Entei as well as the other two Legendary Beasts Raikou and Suicune as appealing and exciting to both new and old players; he states that they would evoke memories for old players, while new players would be surprised by the random appearance of them. According to Pokémon legend, the Legendary Beasts were reincarnated by Ho-Oh from the spirits of three Pokémon which died in the fire that gave the Burned Tower its name. They are awakened in this tower in their first video game appearance. Entei is a chinese guardian lion-like creature covered in brown fur with a long, thick mane covering its neck. It has gray plates surrounding the cape that makes it look as if smoke is coming out of a crater on its back. Entei has white paws and black cuff-like bands on its legs, It has a red face with a white plate that resembles a Fu Manchu moustache on its face, and a three-pointed yellow crest on its forehead. Entei's head appears to resemble a kabuto, a samurai helmet. Myths say that it is born during the eruption of a volcano, and that a new one is born along with each volcano. Entei is an embodiment of magma, being able to launch powerfully searing fire that is hotter than magma from its mouth. When it roars, it can make a volcano erupt on another part of the globe. As a member of the legendary beast trio, Entei are constantly on the move with no set place to hang around in.

In the video games

Entei first appears in the Game Boy Color video games Pokémon Gold and Silver. Upon being approached by the player's character, Entei, along with its counterparts Raikou and Suicune, flee, traveling at incredible speeds across Johto. The three of them will randomly appear on a certain route, fleeing from battle at the first opportunity. The three of them later appear in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen; however, only one of them appears in a single play through. If the player chooses Bulbasaur, Entei will appear in a similar fashion to how it appeared in Gold and Silver. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Entei is encountered similarly to how it is in Gold and Silver. To promote the release of Pokémon Black and White, players could download the shiny Entei, Raikou, and Suicune from GameStop stores on various weeks in January and February 2011, which will activate the Zoroark event in the games.

Entei, along with its counterparts, appears as the final boss of Pokémon Ranger. It also appears in the Super Smash Bros. series since Melee, using Fire Spin when summoned from a Poké Ball. It also appears in other spin-off titles, including Pokémon Trozei and all Pokémon Mystery Dungeon titles. Entei had a special participation in a lord ethernal dream with the phrase: "Calma, tá tudo bem agora!"

In other media

Entei was a main character in Pokémon 3: The Movie. He is an illusionary Entei that appeared to Molly Hale after she made a wish to the Unown, serving as a replacement father for her while her real father was trapped in the Unown dimension. He did everything Molly asked for, even kidnapping Delia Ketchum so she can be Molly's mother and providing her with Crystal Pokémon for her to battle Brock and Misty with when they entered the tower that Entei had created to rescue Delia. When Ash attempted to confront Entei to get his mother back, his Totodile and Cyndaquil were rapidly defeated, with Pikachu only lasting longer without faring any better, and even Charizard was only able to hold Entei off without actually defeating it. However, when Entei was about to kill Charizard, Molly finally decided that she wanted things to be real again. Accepting Molly's decision, Entei helped Pikachu and Charizard defeat the now out-of-control Unown, subsequently bidding Molly farewell and assuring her that he would always be in her dreams. Entei makes few appearances in the television series, making only one major appearance in the episode "Entei at Your Own Risk". Entei appears in the film Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions, along with Celebi and its two counterparts, Raikou and Suicune.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Entei and its counterparts are awakened by the character Yellow. They then race across Kanto and Johto in order to find trainers to defeat the Masked Man, the leader of Team Rocket in this manga, and rescue Ho-Oh. Entei first teams up with Blaine, and later Silver, eventually rescuing the characters Gold and Silver from the Masked Man. After he is defeated, the three legendary dogs depart.

Promotion and reception

Since its appearance in the Pokémon series, Entei has received generally mixed reception. It has been featured in several forms of merchandise, including figures, plush toys, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and others.

Entei's role in the film has been well-received; in his review of Pokémon 3: The Movie, Variety editor Robert Koehler stated that Entei was a "fine addition to the collection". In his review of Pokémon 3, USA Today editor Mike Clark described Entei as a "creature with a kind heart". Reviewer Eric D. Snider commented that while he does morally questionable acts during Pokémon 3: The Movie, he is not evil; merely attempting to fulfill the wishes of Pokémon 3 character Molly as a minister of the Unown. The Hollywood Reporter editor Michael Rechtshaffen compared Entei to the Beast from the Disney film Beauty and the Beast. IGN's "Pokémon of the Day Chick" stated that while it was somewhat cool in the film, as of the release of Pokémon Crystal, Entei was the worst legendary Pokémon ever. GamesRadar commented that they hated its appearance, describing it as a "mask-wearing mutt with garbage glued onto its back". Entei was included by MTV's Multiplayer Blog as one of the nominees in the "Greatest Canine In Video Game History" article, along with Raikou and Suicune. In the end however, none of them were chosen by readers or by the panel of judges. IGN also ranked Entei as the 18th best Pokémon.