Pokemon fans have a long history of creating tributes to the franchise, including designing their own unique Pokemon. A total of about 900 different creature designs have been released over the years. One Pokemon fan recently got a tattoo artist to tattoo a Pokemon version of the client's dog on their arm, which was recorded in a viral video.
Tattoo artist and Twitch streamer Bobby Douglas shared a short video of his work highlighting the unusual concept behind the tattoo. This isn't the first time a Pokemon fan has gotten a creature tattooed on them, but it may be one of the most stylish.
Douglas posted the clip to his official TikTok account, where it serves as an example of both his technical skill and his artistic vision and has gotten significant attention. The video opens with a few seconds of the artist explaining the set-up before showing the viewer a picture of the client's dog, a fluffy black animal with a friendly-looking face. Next, the camera focuses on Douglas' reinterpretation of the dog as a Pokemon already tattooed on the client's arm.
The tattoo shows a fluffy brown canine shape caught in the motion of pouncing forward, captured in the iconic rounded yet spiky art style of classic Pokemon art. While this piece doesn't appear to be a perfect parallel to any existing Pokemon, it does bear a strong resemblance to one Pokemon in particular: Arcanine. Arcanine is a large, orange and white Pokemon that sports jagged black stripes. It is the evolution of Growlithe, the Puppy Pokemon. Both have proven to be some of the most popular Pokemon in the series since its inception.
A Fire/Rock-type variant of Arcanine is also featured in Pokemon Legends: Arceus, where most of the orange fur is replaced by red and black. Despite this tattoo design bearing a strong resemblance to Hisuian Arcanine's color scheme, the overall design is closer to the original Kanto Arcanine. The tattoo also features a background of soft pink smoke to make the new Pokemon's colors pop out and a small Poke Ball floating near the dog's mouth. A deep red rose with vivid green leaves is located underneath the dog's rear feet, as though it is jumping over--or out of--the flower.