>>48232846you mean proto washi washi, basculin, and luvdisc?
>>48232849But Raichu and Copperajah settled their differences in a trial last year, now there is a class action lawsuit against Gastly
OK, seriously speaking, real animals were part of this franchise in early stages, as this fictional world expanded there was no need to continue using them, with each generation ecological niches were complemented either with a counterpart of the real animal or Similary. At present, the franchise has acquired its own identity and they have reconnected old references little by little, from entries in the Dex, to the background of certain characters.
A simple example, does anyone remember the seagulls from the first movie? PR is a post-credits scene from the remake movie, this exemplifies the direction that the franchise has decided to take.