Quoted By:
if youre drawing an OC of a Pokemon i think you can go as off model as you want.
if youre trying to just have like.. a picture of a pokemon that is supposed to appeal to the general crowd, or be used for artists merch (i.e. prints, keychains, stickers, etc) that just anyone can get, i think it should be on model.
personally i greatly dislike off model Pokemon especially when theyre drawn "super western" style like this. This example in particular doesnt even have the traits I like about Typhlosion anymore.
I've gotten asked in the past to draw things like Go Diego Go, Dora, Paw patrol, etc for little kids and if you go off model for those I greatly feel like the kid will not see it as the character they asked for a drawing of. I wouldn't hand a kid a picture of anime-fied Dora or uber kawaii desu furry Paw Patrol characters.
If it's recognizable to the types of fans that are 'less involved" in the fanbase than most of us for example, i think you're 'doing it right'. Like my dad knows gen 1 and 2 and I can guarantee he would not recognize this as even being a Pokemon.
