>>55595311>>55595324>>55595542>>55596751I doubt the waterfall is necessary in an evolution. I imagine climbing a waterfall can be interchanged with any strength based test. Only magikarp with an inner fire, a desire to succeed and become the strongest shall become a gyrados. an alpha of the school sort of deal. perhaps magikarp have a social hierarchy and evolving requires consent from the magikarp elders in a group. gyrados are destructive inherently, so only the most dedicated and best magikarp that have the discipline are awarded the necessary teachings to become a protector of the river. those level 50 magikarp simply dont have the guts, and only gain passive experience while never actually having the strength to evolve.
or maybe its something more mundane, like the faster currents of a waterfall trigger a natural response to evolve to deal with the pressure. perhaps gyrados is secretly a temporary form, like a mega, like magikarp tap into in order to survive harsh waters
