Gotta Review 'Em All - Abilities [Generation V]

More abilities! We're ramping down after Generation IV in terms of Ability volume, or at least the amount of abilities given to lots of Pokemon. Generation V's more of an interesting transition period -- where there are a lot of redundant moves that I felt were introduced in this one, as far as abilities go,  they had a bit more restraint. There are a lot less 'signature abilities' introduced this generation, but the ones that were introduced were really memorable!

I think Generation V is the generation that introduces 'Hidden Abilities', further buffing a lot of older Pokemon (notably the older starters) by giving them 'Hidden' abilities. Any Pokemon you find in the wild tend to only have one of the two 'regular' abilities, but the Hidden Grotto and Dream World gimmicks introduced in this generation, as well as certain specific event Pokemon, are able to access particularly useful or powerful hidden abilities. This rounds up almost every Pokemon to retroactively have three abilities, with the exceptions being those like Slaking or Regigigas that are necessarily nerfed by their regular abilities. 

Anyway, not too much to say. On with the commentary!

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• Prankster (Itazura-gokoro/Teasing Heart) One of my favourite abilities in terms of flavour, Prankster gives priority to status moves... which is actually rather devastating despite its seemingly non-damaging nature. Priority is the name of the game, and setting up a bunch of moves that would seriously screw up the enemy's turn. Klefki, Sableye, Whimsicott... they do a lot of annoying things if moves like Will-o-Wisp or Swagger or Tailwind could be unleashed early on in the battle. I really love that the flavour for this move is also that the user is such a gigantic troll and jackass that their 'pranking' or 'teasing' moves become extra-efficient!
• Magic Bounce (Majikku Mira/Magic Miror) An interesting ability -- Magic Bounce (or 'Magic Mirror' in the original Japanese) basically creates a magical mirror that 'bounces' back status moves back at its original user. It's basically a better version of Synchronize -- and in fact, Xatu and Espeon basically can have a strict 'upgrade' from Synchronize to Magic Bounce. It's also an ability that they are gave to no less than three Mega-Evolutions (Banette, Diancie and Absol). Status moves can make or break a battle, and I do find it interesting that outside of mega-evolutions, Magic Bounce is limited to basically just Xatu, Espeon and the Hattena line! 
• Infiltrator (Surinuke/Slip Through) Originally 'naturally' possessed by the Cottonee line, this ability was given as a hidden ability to a lot of older Pokemon. The idea is that Pokemon that can 'infiltrate' or 'slip through' can break through moves like Protect, Mist or Substitute. I do like that most of the Pokemon that can do this are either ghosts or suitably 'tricky' Pokemon like Ninjask, Golbat and Seviper; or 'soft' ones like Jumpluff and Whimsicott. 

• Justified (Seigi no Kokoro/Heart of Justice) Only the four Musketeers learn this ability 'naturally', although a lot of other 'heroic' Pokemon like Gallade and Lucario have this ability as well. The Pokemon with Justified gets an Attack boost if they're hit with a Dark-type move. I love that from Generation VII onwards, the description specifically notes that it's "for justice"! Anyway, pretty understandable ability, a heroic knight gets enraged at underhanded tactics and gets even more powerful to beat down enemies with the power of pure justice.
• Moxie (Jishin Kajo/Overconfident) Moxie is an ability that's particularly memorable for me! It's basically a 'killing spree' style of buff, where the Pokemon gets a massive Attack buff after knocking out a Pokemon, and continues getting buffs as it continues to beat down other Pokemon. Most of the Pokemon that are given this ability are either Dark-types or ones that are brutal-looking enough, like Gyarados or the Pinsir/Heracross duo. Pretty fun, and despite the Japanese name being 'overconfident', I suppose that overconfidence is rewarded because the Pokemon just becomes stronger and stronger with no drawback!
• Moody (Murakke/Sudden Impulse) An Ability that's exclusively a hidden ability, Moody randomly lowers one stat and raises another -- with the raised stat always getting more points. I don't know much about the competitive landscape, but I do know that Moody was one of the abilities that was banned? I guess that's too much RNG for the competitive scene?

• Sheer Force (Chikara Zuku/Sheer Force) This is always a very interesting Ability! Sheer Force is... basically, you reduce moves to just their sheer, undiluted attacking power (in the form of an additional bonus) and nothing else. It's kind of interesting, and honestly you don't really need the random bonus chance to flinch or whatever if you can maximize power and just murder the enemy. Pretty fun, and this was given to a lot of older Pokemon as a hidden ability.  
• Pickpocket (Waruite Guse/Bad Habit) There's a lot of 'stealing' Abilities and Moves, huh? Pickpocket is mostly a hidden ability with the exception of the recent Shroodle, and it's... not the best hidden ability. Pickpocket basically allows your Pokemon to 'pick the pocket' of an enemy that makes contact move, stealing their held item... but having your Pokemon not hold an item is kind of terrible!
• Unnerve (Kinchokan/Tension) Flavour-wise, this is kinda like Intimidate -- but the usage isn't particularly useful. Unnerve causes the opposing party to be so scared that they can't eat their berries, and... berry-related Abilities just aren't that useful. It frankly is bizarre how many older Pokemon got this as their hidden ability as opposed to something more useful. Shame! 
• Harvest (Shukaku/Harvest) Another Berry-related one, Harvest makes the chance of creating a second Berry after one is consumed. Not too much to say, at this point I'm kind of out of things to say about Berry-related Abilities. It is cute that all the Pokemon that have Harvest are all the Grass-types based on trees -- Exeggutor, Tropius, Trevenant and Arboliva!

• Cursed Body (Noroware Bodi/Cursed Body) Kind of an interesting ability. Cursed Body has a chance to basically cast Disable (the 'curse') on any enemy that makes physical contact. Originally only learned by the Frillish line (and a very annoying one at that!) this move remained mostly as a hidden ability otherwise, with only Alolan Marowak and post-nerf Gengar receiving this instead of Levitate as an ability. Not the most powerful ability, but a very annoying one when it does trigger!
• Healer (Iyashi no Kokoro/Healing Heart) An Ability that's shared alongside a lot of different 'healing' Pokemon, particularly Audino and Alomomola. Not the most useful ability, though, because it's a random chance to maybe heal an ally's status conditions -- only really useful in double battles and is randomly triggered as well.
• Friend Guard (Furendo Gado/Friend Guard) A little more interesting in multi-battles, Friend Guard basically reduces damage dealt to allies by 25%. It's not intercepting the damage, so I guess the flavour is like a passive aura buff or something? Interestingly, while the three 'pink babies' learn this as a hidden ability, only Cleffa keeps it as she grows up while Igglybuff and Happiny trade Friend Guard in for other abilities. 
• Defiant (Makenki/Competitive Spirit) Originally only naturally learned by the Pawniard line, this one is given as a hidden ability to some Pokemon like Purugly and Primeape. Love the flavour of this one -- whenever a Pokemon with Defiant gets their stats lowered, they're so angry and defiant that they get an additional stat boost out of it. 

• Weak Armor (Kudakeru Yoroi/Broken Armour) I really like this move's flavour. A lot of Pokemon with 'hard' exterior body parts like rock, steel, shell, coral, or even things like garbage or teapot cups have this ability. It's also something that gets given to a lot of pre-Gen-V Pokemon as a Hidden Ability! The flavour of this one is very fun, representing armour being shed. Physical attacks on Pokemon with Weak Armour lower its defense stat, but increases its speed, representing a Pokemon dropping chunks of its armour and going faster and faster. Pretty cool!
• Heavy Metal (Hebi Metaru/Heavy Metal) and Light Metal (Raito Metaru/Light Metal) A pair of abilities that affect the Pokemon's weight, usually the ones with Steel-type. Not too much to say about this, Heavy Metal doubles the weight and Light Metal halves the weight, which only really matters for the damage calculation done by some moves like Low Kick and Heat Crash. Interesting that Duraludon can get either one of these, though. 
• Multiscale (Maruchisukeiru/Multiscale) The hidden ability of specifically only two Pokemon -- Dragonite and Lugia -- Multiscale will reduce damage received if the HP is full. Okay? I honestly don't quite 'get' the flavour behind this one, and why it doesn't apply to other kinds of draconic Pokemon? The effect is cute, I guess. 

• Telepathy (Terepashi/Telepathy) Telepathy is originally the signature ability of the Elgyem line, and is given as a Hidden Ability to a lot of older Psychic-type Pokemon... and the legendary Sinnoh dragons for some reason! This one is something that kind of shows up a lot in media, where a lot of Pokemon are just shown to be able to communicate with telepathy. It would be something if every single one of the non-Psychic legendary Pokemon that speaks to our heroes gets this ability, but eh. The effect of Telepathy causes a Pokemon to dodge AOE damaging moves casted by its allies, which... is only really useful in double battles, and while it's cute, I don't think it's the best ability out there. Cute, though. 
• Contrary (Ama no Jaku/Devil's Advocate) A weird one, and a very interesting one! Contrary switches the effects of stat increases and decreases. There are a lot of funny stuff you could do with Contrary in addition with moves or Abilities that trade stat changes or whatever (which is why at the time of writing the only Pokemon that 'naturally' learns this is , but one use is like spamming Leaf Storm with Serperior, turning a high-damage move with a drawback into a high-damage move with a Special Attack boost. Very fun, and I also like that a lot of the Pokemon that learns this are tricksy weirdoes like Malamar, Spinda and Lurantis!
• Regenerator (Saiseiryoku/Regeneration) This one gives a brief HP healing when a Pokemon is switched out, which isn't too significant in the grand scheme of things, but I do really like that the Pokemon that have this are either healing Pokemon like Audino and Alomomola, or Pokemon based on creatures that can regenerate their lost limbs like Tangela, Mareanie, Klawf, Amoongus or Corsola. Or Slowpoke, who's shown to be able to regrow lost tails over time. I guess Mienfoo and Meinshao just learn some healing skills in their martial arts training or something?

• Poison Touch (Dokushu/Underhanded Trick) A pun that only makes sense in the original Japanese, 'Dokushu' is a phrase that means an underhanded scheme or treachery, but it literally written with the kanji for 'poison hand/touch'. Hence, the English name. It still given to a bunch of Poison-type Pokemon, but interestingly enough also Seismitoad, which fits with the 'warty toads are poisonous' stereotype. 
• Big Pecks (Hato Mune/Pigeon's Breast) Oh. Get it? 'Big Pecks', as in 'big pecs'? As in the muscle? That's how they decide to translate an ability that was originally 'pigeon's breast'? The pun in Japanese, hatomune, is a phrase that refers to someone with a proud heart. A very fun pun translation! The effect isn't particularly interesting, just protection from defense-lowering moves, but the name pun is appreciated. 
• Rattled (Bibiri/Jitter) This one is hilariously silly, but I like the flavour! Rattled causes the Pokemon to get 'scared' of certain scary types, which are Bug, Dark and Ghost. All the scary types! And if the Pokemon gets hit by one of these types, their Speed gets buffed, because they're preparing to Scooby-Doo it out of there! I love this one. A lot of weaker, unevolved Pokemon have this as a hidden ability before they trade it in for a stronger one as they evolve, but chronic cowards like Sudowoodo and Granbull continue keeping it even as fully-evolved Pokemon!

• Wonder Skin (Mirakuru Sukin/Wonder Skin) Originally the signature ability of Sigilyph before being given as a hidden ability to some Pokemon like Skitty and Venomoth, Wonder Skin reduces the accuracy of status-inflicting moves. It's... honestly kind of just there. 
• Overcoat (Bojin/Dust Proof) Overcoat is interesting. I like that the Japanese name is 'dust proof', but it basically gives immunity from weather moves. Or, well, just Hail and Sandstorm, really. These are all Pokemon with some sort of shell -- Shelgon, Cloyster, Escavalier, Swadloon, Burmy... and even some hilariously fun definitions of 'armour' like Reuniclus! Cell parts apparently count as these dust-proofing overcoats. 
• Analytic (Anaraizu/Analyze) This one is fun in terms of flavour -- if the Pokemon moves last, they have 'analyzed' and '5D-chess'd' the battlefield, allowing them to deal a move with 30% more damage. Realistically, though, if you move last in a battle you probably have bigger things to worry about, but I do like that flavour-wise, this is given to some rather stereotypically smart-looking Pokemon (Beheeyem), 'robots' (Magnezone, Porygon) and those with big eyes like Watchog. 

• Sap Sipper (Soshoku/Herbivorous) A variation of Storm Drain and Lightning Rod, Sap Sipper nullifies Grass-type moves and increases the Attack stat. Originally it was exclusive to Sawsbuck and Bouffalant until it was made available to a bunch of older Pokemon as a Hidden Ability. It's... it's always one that frankly didn't make the most sense to me, either being a 'sap sipper' or 'herbivorous' doesn't really make you immune to every single plant attack out there, right? 
• Sand Force (Suna no Chikara/Sand Power) I guess they're trying to give more Sandstorm-synergy Abilities in Generation V? I guess Sand Veil isn't all that useful. Sand Force is, if you could easily guess, is the most offensive-oriented one of these Sandstorm-related Abilities. Basically Sand Force boosts the Rock, Ground and Steel moves in a Sandstorm. Pretty simple, but effective. Like Prankster, Sand Force is given to two Mega Evolutions -- Mega Steelix and Mega Garchomp. So this definitely is a pretty good ability! 
• Sand Rush (Sunakaki/Sand Paddle) Sand Rush, as its name also implies, just doubles the speed in a Sandstorm. I really don't have much for this, at some point 'X stat increases in weather' abilities kind of blur together. I am confused that Herdier and Stoutland are able to gain this ability -- are giant Saint Bernard dogs able to run quickly in the desert? Eh. Also, the Draco- fossils, Dracovish and Dracozolt, all have Sand Rush as a hidden ability. Is the original stegosaurid source a Ground/Dragon or Rock/Dragon originally? Hm!

Let's get a bunch of signature abilities out of the way first, with a bunch that are owned by Legendaries. Surprisingly, considering the amount of legendaries in Gen V, we don't actually have too many legendary-specific abilities. 

• Victory Star (Shori no Hoshi/Star of Victory) Victini's ability, Victory Star is an interesting way to do the 'good luck for victory' vibe that Victini had. It increases the accuracy of moves used by Victini as well as his allies. Not too overpowered, and not too boring, I guess? It's thematic enough!
• Turboblaze (Tabobureizu/Turboblaze) and Teravolt (Teraboruteji/Teravoltage) these are the abilities of Reshiram and Zekrom respectively, the mascots of the Generation V games, as well as their respective fused forms with Kyurem. The abilities are basically Mold Breaker, but reskinned as the 'blazing/bursting aura' of the legendary Pokemon. Previously, I thought that it's supposed to symbolize when these dragons' tail-engines are activated. 
• Imposter (Kawari Mono/Changer) Imposter, meanwhile, is the new hidden ability and is only available to Ditto. Imposter basically auto-casts Transform at the beginning of all turns, which was, prior to this, Ditto's biggest weakness -- Ditto's crappy stats causes it to be out-sped and knocked out by its opponent basically within the first turn. Of course, it still doesn't make Ditto particularly competitive, but at least you could use it a lot more easily now, giving Ditto a fraction of the power that its anime/manga counterparts show off!

• Illusion (Iryujon/Illusion) This is one of the abilities that, like I said, really makes a Pokemon's gimmick work. Illusion is Zorua and Zoroark's signature ability, which allows them to take the appearance (but not the typing or whatever) of the sixth Pokemon in your party. It's very cool in theory, but not too useful in practice because Zoroark's a fragile Pokemon that will be unable to trick and 'tank' any attack other than Psychic-type moves. So I guess you could disguise one as a Toxicroak or something? But the flavour of Illusion is basically everything relating to a kitsune's tricky shapeshifting ability, and the tie-in media and Zoroark's out-of-battle cutscenes make great use of this one!
• Defeatist (Yowaki/Timid) The only ability able to be obtained by the Archen line, Defeatist causes Archen and Archeops to have their attack stats be halved if their HP is half or less. Archeops doesn't even have a particularly spectacular stat pool, so this is kind of a death sentence for the poor feathered dinosaur. This is kinda meant to show just why the Archen line got extinct, which is nice from a story standpoint, but not so nice for the poor line's competitive viability. 
• Zen Mode (Daruma Modo/Daruma Mode) Not really a showcase of an ability that 'transforms', since Castform, Cherrim and Arceus did that already, but this showcases the gimmick of a 'hidden ability'. Zen Mode is only available to specific Darmanitan that have its hidden ability -- though thankfully the original Gen V games made a bunch of Darmanitan with this unique ability. This changes Darmanitan into its 'Zen Mode' once its HP is halved, turning regular Darmanitan into Fire/Psychic, and Galarian Darmanitan into Ice/Fire. Again, hard to really talk about the 'flavour' of this one without discussing Darmanitan as a whole!

• Mummy (Mira/Mummy) Oh, this one is one of my favourites, and another reason why Cofagrigus is so cool beyond just being a badass sentient ghost-coffin monster. Mummy basically simulates like a 'zombie' or a 'vampire' plague, which I don't think is normally associated with mummies... but mummies are bandaged zombies, right? Bulbapedia notes that there's a specific Japanese expression (the mummy taker becomes the mummy), 
• Toxic Boost (Doku Boso/Poison Rampage) and Flare Boost (Netsu Boso/Burn Rampage) These two do a similar thing -- an attack boost if the Pokemon is Poisoned or Burned respectively. Toxic Boost is the signature ability of Zangoose, which represents how mongooses have a venom immunity to prey on snakes and reflects Zangoose's rivalry with Seviper. Meanwhile, Flare Boost is the signature ability of the Drifloon line, which I guess reflects how its fuel gas is being ignited and causes it to get even more... powerful? It floats up higher and faster before it burns up, I guess?
• Iron Barbs (Tetsu no Toge/Iron Barbs) This one belonged to Ferrothorn, and later just Togedemaru, though I really think this should retroactively given to some older Pokemon too? Surely Aggron would classify for this? This is a rather useful ability, though, dealing physical damage to any Pokemon that attacks the already-defensive Ferrothorn with a physical move. Makes sense, you try to punch an iron durian, and you get hurt!