As the series progress—starting from If Pokédex Entries Were 100% Literal
—it gradually started having mini story arcs instead of just randomness for the sake of humor.
This Pokédex contains Pokémon entries of:
- And I Must Scream: In If Pokédex Entries Were EVEN MORE Literal, someone who is burned by the flames a Houndoom shoots from its mouth feels the pain forever. Sure enough, a Squirtle is burned in such a way and is shown to be screaming in agony seventy years later!Squirtle's Trainer (as an old man): "Will you just SHUT UP!"
- Apocalypse How: A class 2 happens in If Pokédex Entries Were 100% Literal with Entei barking causing multiple erupting volcanoes to spawn throughout the world, Alazakam telling his friend Vanilluxe how he liked the series finale of Lost, angering him into covering the entire Alola region in a blizzard and is implied to have ended all life in there even if the lava from Entei's barking did not, and a Charizard caused a glacier to have suddenly melted. The newscaster even lampshaded on how there was even a world still surviving despite having all these Pokémon roaming around.
- Black Comedy: The whole series is an exercise in showing just what a chaotic and hellish existence living in an actual monster infested world would be by taking all the dangerous powers pokemon have to their literal horrifying conclusion. Naturally, because this is a pokemon spoof nearly all of the various deadly and wicked little creatures featured are either cute as a button or harmless and nonthreatening-looking until they show their darker side. Even the saddest scenes often have a tinge of pitch black humor underlining them to keep the series from becoming too depressing and people/pokemon being horribly maimed and killed are almost always played for grim laughs.
- Blessed with Suck: Not all of the cool abilities and powers pokemon have are practical or even desirable when applied to real world logic. Take Slurpuff's super sense of smell for example, which backfires horribly when a sentient trashbag walks by with a fragrance so bad the poor mon immediately blows its own brains out to escape the horrid smell.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall: If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 34): This:Lopunny's researcher: This might be the most upsetting thing that's ever happened in a Literal Pokédex video. (sees a full-body Diglett) Oh, right. Nevermind.
- But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Garchomp quotes the Trope Namer in If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 60) when confronted by Taillow twenty years after he killed his mother.Garchomp: I ate your ma or something years ago? Don't take it personal, son. For you, the day Garchomp graced the sky was the most important day of your life. For me... it was a Tuesday.Taillow: It was a Wednesday!Garchomp: I'm quoting Raúl Juliá, little guy. Jeez.
- Canon Welding: The series takes place post-Pokémon Rusty, since Bibarel is hoping Peanut Butter would return to her.
- Even Evil Has Standards: In If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 28), the Satan of Double Hell calls Drifloon out on all the kidnappings it did.
- Exact Words: The "If Pokédex Entries Were Literal" series runs on this trope.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: Doubles as a Continuity Nod in "If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 28)". When the camera pans downward during Jolteon's entry, we see that Shuckle's corpse is still pinned to a cave wall.
- Numbered Sequels: Earlier entries in the series were given more unique titles such as If PokeDex Entries Were Literal (Volume 1), If PokeDex Entries Were EVEN MORE Literal (Volume 2), If PokeDex Entries Were SUPER Literal (Volume 3), If PokeDex Entries Were EXTREMELY Literal (Volume 4) and If PokeDex Entires Were THE MOST LITERAL EVER (Volume 5). After a dozen or so of these the names were all changed to the much more simple "If PokeDex Entries Were Literal (Volume X)" format going forward. (Except Volume 52 which is known as If PokeDex Entries Were Literal (Volume ???) instead.)
- Papa Wolf: Do not hurt one of Regigigas' children. His response to one of them being Bitch Slapped is to "unmake" the offender.
- Seen It All: The Weatherman in "If Pokédex Entries Were 100% Literal" casually points out how a giant lizard (Charizard) melted a large glacier, reported 4 new volcanoes which he pinned the creation to a dog barking (Entei), and a blizzard in Alola because someone made an ice cream cone angry (Vanilluxe).
- Sudden Morbid Monologue: In If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 32), Gothitelle is described as being able to predict the future based on the movement of the stars, and see the lifespan of their trainers. The scene cuts to a battle between Gothitelle and Hitmonchan, where Gothitelle predicts in great and graphic detail how Hitmonchan will die.
Gothitelle: You're going to die in six months. A Solrock falls on you after accidentally falling asleep and entering Earth's atmosphere. It renders you in twain but does not kill you immediately. You spend seven hours in agony trying in vain to return your innards to their rightful place before you are dragged to a Pokécenter by a small child on a bicycle as he only has three Poké Balls and is not willing to lose any of his level two Caterpie for some Pokémon he's never met before. Sadly, you are beyond help by the time they process your insurance information four hours later.
Hitmonchan: I'm um, I'm just going to go now.
- Take That!:
- "If Pokédex Entries Were 100% Literal" has Vanilluxe get super angry, and cover the entirety of Alola in a blizzard over his friend Alakazam mentioning how he liked the series finale of Lost.
- Tranquil Fury: Regigigas' response to a Mr. Mime slapping Regice is to drop out of the sky onto the Mime) and calmly swear to destroy them - all in his usual deadpan Machine Monotone.Regigigas: You have struck my child, Mime. Prepare to be unmade.
(Screen glitches out violently and cuts to the next Pokédex entry.) - Was Once a Man: Occurs twice in "If Pokédex Entries Were EVEN MORE Literal".
- Yamasks used to be human and carry around masks that used to be their faces.
- Jason Smith, a research assistant at the Beige Town science center, went to bed one night and woke up as a Kadabra.
- Wouldn't Hurt a Child: The Hitmonchan in "If Pokédex Entries Were Literal (Volume 32)" is disturbed by having to fight a Gothita, the baby in the Gothitelle line. He has no problem with Mega Punching a fully grown Gothitelle however.
