>>55775107Oh! I can answer that from a couple different angles, actually.
The long of it will actually be given a full answer and conclusion in the main series, while the topic continues to get danced around in my usual breadcrumbs style in the gaiden episodes.
The short of it is
a response to extreme mental trauma. From a design perspective, it came about during the initial sketch back in early January when I was still working with MS Paint. I based the foundation of her appearance (an acrobatic BDSM anarchist) on Aeon Flux, then that bedrock got buried under Kamina because I was listening to the TTGL soundtrack as I worked and my focus started to drift. You can still see some of those core elements with the straps across her torso, her heels, and her exposed hips. From the very beginning before I even started drawing and thought this would be a one-and-done character, I already knew what her full Pokemon team--Scrafty, Malamar, Murkrow, and Zoroark--was going to be, and so incorporated parts of their design motifs into her appearance. This ended up being Zoroark's long hair, Murkrow's crest becoming her bangs, Malamar's vampire (squid) count collar, and Scrafty holding up its pants. Prankster Murkrow's bag of tricks was incorporated into her glove. Throw all these ideas into a blender, and Phos comes out on the other side.
