>>51472826Yes there is some truth here. As we now know the construction of Pokémon to be perceived a certain way is intentional. Satoshi Tajiri biographical manga has a page where Ken Sugimori and Satoshi Tajiri are discussing what Pokémon are after discussing scenes sketched by Sugimori. One of the things mentioned by Tajiri is that Pokémon are "friendly and innocent", which he compares to real world pets in the illustration, in particular he says they're like cats and dogs.
This is a philosophy that is baked into the DNA of the Pokémon franchise. Pokémon are constructed to be cute, innocent critters that also make great pets. When you take into account other external sources Tajiri's statements start to ring true. Verily indeed Tajiri rewrote the entire script of the first games in 6 months and one of the things he mentions of Pokémon is the theme of their friendliness and naturally co-existing with humans. To this end the series employs imagery and actions to push this view, many which are lifted from our very own critters.
While many series retain some pet-like elements, Digimon for example has it's roots with v-pets like Tamagotchi, it's the way Pokémon are presented and constructed that give them their innocence and cuteness. While Pokémon are monsters in the sense that they're magical creatures there's ways the series downplays the monster angle such as with the way they construct ghost Pokémon. In some ways Pokémon aren't really monsters, monsters are perceived as scary or unnatural but Pokémon constructs Pokémon as the natural just like SMT constructs their creatures as spirits and demons or Digimon as digital, albeit not so in some iterations.
As such Pokémon have a sense of innocence that should be respected. Pokémon are constructs meant to appeal to children, not for grown ass men and their groomer fantasies.
