Shiftry (Tengu)

Here is Shiftry ダーテング, Pokémon unfortunately too underrated, despite he has awesome inspirations. I guess everyone forgets him because he sucks in battle, and it is true that his design is quite aging and particular (he deserves a redesign !).
Atypical design certainly, but clearly justified: Shiftry is a Tengu 天狗 (lit. "celestial dog, yes, don't look for logic). The Tengu is kind of humanoid bird with a red face and a long nose, is a fairly well-known yokai from Japanese folklore.

Shiftry therefore has many points in common with the yokai :
- an abnormally long nose (or beak, depending on the version)
- long hair, most of the time represented in white
- a ha-uchiwa 羽団扇, which is a magic uchiwa (Japanese fan) composed of leaves (or feathers), allowing them to create gusts of wind
- tengu-geta 天狗下駄 on the feet (atypical Japanese wooden sandals, which even bear his name)
- they live in the forest and are mischievous (justifies Grass and Dark types)
- we find the word Tengu in its French name (Tengalice = Tengu + malice (mischief in French)), Japanese (dirteng ダーテング = dirty + tengu) and even German (Tengulist = Tengu + List (cunning in German))

In short (it's already far too long!), all these explanations make him even more interesting in my opinion! And allow you to better understand the illustration and my choices in the composition. I added a maximum of Tengu references in the illustration, like the red mask, his hat and his very characteristic kimono. About the scenery, I was also inspired by him in New Pokémon Snap game.