Quoted By:
What is your favorite move, ability or Pokemon based on some cultural reference or lore?
(I just wanted to share with you a few of these)
>Pay Day
The Japanese name of the move is an idiom equivalent to "to cast pearls before swine." The coins depicted in the move's animation are koban, gold coins used in the Edo period of feudal Japan, the same type of coin as the one on Meowth's head.
>Night Slash
The Japanese name つじぎり (Crossroad Killing) refers to the way in which some samurai would test new swords in feudal Japan, known as Tsujigiri. This was by hiding in wait by a road (typically a crossroads, thus its literal translation) and waiting for an unsuspecting commoner (i.e. lower class, and so with far fewer rights than the samurai class) to pass by. He would then strike to kill, and in this way learn how well his new sword could cut.
>Double Team
This move's Japanese name, かげぶんしん kage bunshin, is a reference to a ninja technique ubiquitous in manga, anime, and other fiction commonly known in English as shadow clone. A popular example of this is the Naruto series, where the main character, Naruto Uzumaki, has used Kage Bunshin no Jutsu throughout the series as one of his signature ninja techniques.
>Glare
Drampa, Druddigon, and Helioptile can learn this move, which is known as へびにらみ Hebinirami (Snake Glare) in Japanese, despite not being based on a snake. This may be because Western dragons and snakes are both sometimes depicted as being capable of influencing their victims with eye contact, either by using some magical ability to immobilize those that look into their eyes or simply paralyzing them with fear.
>Curse
Curse's differing effects are a play on its Japanese name, のろい Noroi, which can mean either "curse" (呪い) or "dull/slow" (鈍い), depending on the kanji used. This is why it bestows an actual curse when used by Ghost-type Pokémon but lowers Speed when used by non-Ghost-type Pokémon.
