One of the many new characters introduced in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet was Clavell, the headmaster of either Naranja or Uva Academy depending on which version of the game is played. Clavell introduces the player to the school and is the one to give them their very first Pokemon. Later, he plays a major role in "Starfall Street," one of the game's three storylines. Shortly after the release of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, Clavell became a popular source of memes due to his unique dialogue and personality quirk of being an old-fashioned older man who tries (and usually fails) to connect with his more youthful students.
Although the game's official Pokemon Professors are either Professor Sada or Professor Turo - Sada appearing only in Pokemon Scarlet and Turo only in Pokemon Violet - they are busy investigating the Great Crater of Paldea, meaning that Clavell fulfills the traditional role of giving the player their Starter Pokemon. Afterward, he is frequently seen at the Academy, where he is concerned about Team Star's delinquent attitudes and low class attendance. The way Clavell speaks as well as his bizarre method of assisting the player during the "Starfall Street" storyline quickly caused players to insert Clavell into many existing popular memes.
Clavell's Dialogue Options and the "OK Boomer" Meme
Because of Clavell's age, he tends to speak in a very formal manner. He even refers to the player by the outdated title of either "Master" or "Miss," a fact that has left some fans feeling disappointed at Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's use of overly gendered language. Clavell also occasionally mentions the way things were "back in his day." For example, he tells the player character that, rather than having Pokedex data stored on a Rotom Phone, he had to write his own Pokedex by hand.
Due to this, Clavell has been frequently connected with the "OK Boomer" meme, a generally snarky response to an older, out-of-touch character insisting that things were better when they were younger. In the real world, "OK Boomer" is often used as a response when older adults - members of the "baby boomer" generation - talk about how they were able to find jobs and purchase houses more easily. In Clavell's case, he is often portrayed by fans as preferring Pokemon from earlier generations or avoiding technology such as Rotom Phones. Some fans have even connected Clavell to Pokemon Legends Arceus, a Pokemon game set in the past that was released earlier in 2022. He is often shown preferring Hisuian Voltorb and the "traditional" wooden Pokeballs over modern metal versions.
"How Do You Do, Fellow Kids?"
Although Clavell is old and out of touch, he does make attempts to connect with the player character, who is a student at either Naranja or Uva Academy in the Paldea region. During one of Clavell's very first conversations with the player, he asks them to define a slang term, "cheugy," for him. "Cheugy," a neologism that has recently become popular on the social media app TikTok, means "old and not trendy. Presumably, Clavell himself was called this by another student. Answering correctly earns the player friendship points with Clavell, but they can also choose to answer incorrectly and reassure Clavell that "cheugy" has a positive meaning.
Clavell's desire to "connect with the youth" becomes even more apparent during the "Starfall Street" storyline, during which he adopts a false persona called "Clive" in order to not-so-secretly help the player take down Team Star's five Bosses. "Clive" wears an over-the-top pompadour wig, dresses in short shorts, and insists that he is simply an ordinary Academy student. This has caused fans to connect Clive with "how do you do fellow kids," a meme from the TV show 30 Rock. The meme depicts a private detective, played by actor Steve Buscemi, attempting to blend in at a high school while dressed in a backward hat and generic band T-shirt and carrying a skateboard. Fans feel that Clavell's "Clive" disguise is similarly low-effort, and he makes no attempt to not look visibly old.
Treating Clive as a Separate Character
Although "Clive" is very obviously Director Clavell in disguise, in-game dialogue options allow players to pretend that they do not recognize him rather than seeing through his obvious ruse. Many fans have chosen to take this option, feeling that it is far more comedic than calling out Clavell for his attempts. Others have taken this joke further by treating Clive as a fully separate character who simply happens to look like Clavell - similar to an episode of the TV show The Simpsons in which Homer discovers that he has a doppelganger named "Guy Incognito." These players have expressed the desire to travel with Clive in the game's "Treasure Hunt" journey and pretended to show disappointment that Clive could not be battled as an opponent.
Some fans have even chosen to take this meme further and jokingly cast "Clive" as the protagonist of another Pokemon game, typically one set in Kanto or even Hisui due to his age. They have created stories and works of art depicting Clive going on his own Pokemon journey, often paired with Pokemon that resemble old men such as Drampa, Slaking, or Mr. Rime, a Mr. Mime evolution first introduced in the Galar region. Some have even drawn or written about Clavell meeting Clive and the two turning out to be completely unrelated to one another, rather than the former obviously disguising himself as the latter.
While reception to the new generation has been mixed due to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's graphic issues and frequent crashes, the character of Clavell is one element that has received a generally positive response. Fans feel that his old-fashioned nature and desperate attempts to be "hip" fit well with the "past vs. Future" theme of the game, and appreciate that his story is more unique and has more depth than simply being the school's stuffy headmaster. Given Clavell's popularity and the number of memes that were made starring him so shortly after the game's release, it is even possible that the Academy Director may make another appearance in a future Pokemon game - perhaps even in his "Clive" persona once more.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are currently available for the Nintendo Switch.