How GOOD was Swellow ACTUALLY? - History of Swellow in Competitive Pokemon (Gens 3-7)

[@cristhianmlr]

From support to physical attacker to special attacker, Swellow is truly THE migratory bird of the competitive Pokémon world.

[@seenl6eight258]

Dude, ever heard of Nidoking or Infernape? They’re also mixed attackers that are fast. Although Nidoking’ afar slower than both Swellow and Infernape.

[@thunderknight4149]

@@seenl6eight258 they don't migrate

[@rlycervano8934]

@@seenl6eight258 and not birds either hahaha

[@gamingpolice589]

In gen 3 the best swellow set was a choice band set

[@bimblor9858]

Monty Python lied, the african swallow is migratory

[@alexroth67]

I love how Swellow has managed to stay competitively relevant in the lower tiers throughout the years. Its shift in playstyle is really fascinating, and its buff in the later gens is a great example of how you don't have to give a Pokémon some new crazy form or evolution in order for it to stay relevant.

[@Drakorre]

Him and venomoth are the best examples. Small buffs,new moves and they are ready to go

[@lynxfresh5214]

Exactly, now if ONLY Game Freak would realize small buffs like that is what allows mons to remain relevant not introducing pointless mid-battle buffs (that get scrapped 1 or 2 gens later) and constantly pandering to "fan-favourite" Kanto mons.

[@elijahdooley5697]

Yea, i love watching pokemon rise up the tiering rung as oppose to falling further and further into obscurity

[@kaptainKrill]

IMO, that’s debatable. A 140 base power move with 100% accuracy is a pretty massive power creep, and was introduced in the same generation as the mega evolutions. It’s not like Swellow was given access to an old move that it used in a new way. Nothing that existed prior to Gen 6 would have allowed it to keep up.

[@mrboerger1620]

Cough cough megas shouldn't have existed

[@buttpiratesbuttpirate5913]

Swellow: *has a higher base attack than special attack, but uses special attack set* GameFreak: *Have some more Special Attack*

[@germanrodriguez496]

*Cries in Nidoking*

[@malexthegreat]

@@germanrodriguez496 yes as nidoking is a much better special attacker due to it's brilliant special coverage and sheer force life orb combo. It makes nido the lower tier equivalent of landorus incarnate I mean last gen a notable thing was unless it was max speed groundon primal it was just outsped and ohkoed by earth power from nidoking. If nidoking had like 20 more speed and 15 more spa it would be on every ou team pretty much due to it having a much better speed tier than it does now.

[@germanrodriguez496]

@@malexthegreat he is my favourite Pokemon, and he is REAAAALLY strong, but i think the comparison is a bit exaggerated. I mean, Lando T?

[@malexthegreat]

@@germanrodriguez496 lando incarnate not t it has sheer force and life orb as well with better stats

[@malexthegreat]

@@germanrodriguez496 lando t Is ou and lando i is uber but lando t is nothing like nido in it's play style.

[@shinymetagross1666]

Swellow, Staraptor, and Talonflame: the holy trinity of early game birds that stay viable, with Corviknight soon to join them.

[@gengarzilla1685]

I've found that Swellow kinda taps out eventually, though it lasts much longer than the average basic bird. Personally I'd hunt for the rare Skarmory in that route with ash covered grass.

[@godsu]

Was Briavary not viable?

[@shinymetagross1666]

@@godsu "Early Game"

[@godsu]

@@shinymetagross1666 You get Briavary pretty early in B/W though

[@shinymetagross1666]

@@godsu The braviary you can find in White 2 is unique. They normally can't be caught until after the 7th or 8th gym

[@keyonj8815]

I always thought that the “thunder armor” was just swallows guts ability

[@sliced8669]

WAIT THIS MAKES SENSE

[@zealiouszone8861]

I've been thinking that for years now.

[@AudioGAWD]

I guess that's the anime version of it.

[@arbetor12]

SO PIKACHU USED THUNDER WAVE??!

[@Sailed_away]

@@arbetor12 nope he used thunder on swallow as I remember -_-

[@Cerbleur07]

Swellow, the underdog pokémon. Not top tier, low tier, but still quite threatening and not something to laugh at.

[@kstanni87]

its like a younger cousin to staraptor and talonflame.

[@fardin_king6817]

@@kstanni87 But I still think swellow looks cooler than talonflame or staraptor not as cool as mega pidgeot it looks likes it went ssj3 .wish it had thunder armor as an ability to buff either its special side or physical. I said either to make it balanced.

[@lildrawhub1025]

@@bananaguy8078 No. All birds are dogs fyi.

[@irvinolmos7521]

Even if you use him in a upper tier you will be okay, with specs and heat wave can destroy a ferrothorn

[@devinsanders8596]

Sort of like Durant now days😏

[@avibi]

Been a while since Blunder last featured in one of FSG's videos, but that shout-out keeps my hopes alive.

[@Stony2103]

Yo I didn't even know FSG was cool with Blunder, but that Agency shoutout hit me hard

[@PrismaAce]

agency agency

[@G-Force7]

a while? when was the last time

[@Joseph-zd8jw]

@@Stony2103 BKC, one of the best singles players ever, writes for FSG and knows blunder.

[@whydoiexist2180]

i dont get it can someone explain

[@deltalord6969]

Swellow should have an ability that makes it immune to electric type attacks cause thats apparently what happens in the anime.

[@Gemini090693]

Lightning Rod. Switching into a Manectric and you have a Specs Swellow that can switch moves. Ooh, scary!

[@PkmnTrainerEmerald]

Seemed like it had guts by how strong it got lol. Then again it was never confirmed unlike other abilities.

[@justafrog3167]

maybe a attact boost lighting rod, like +1 to att stage..

[@boopersindoopers]

Motor Drive

[@darkraimaster]

Anime logic

[@petercross1879]

Thunder Armor. Checkmate

[@birdjesus018]

He can even stop a Donphan mid-rollout with his talons.

[@cintronproductions9430]

@Sonam Gaming Yt WTF?

[@arta1924]

That's just a copy pasta it says: God asked me what do you want so I smiled and said whoever is reading my comments may you give their parents a longer life. One subscribe or share is good.

[@lavenderhearts]

@Sonam Gaming Yt facts

[@snurfornuttin6947]

@Sonam Gaming Yt is just a bot, don’t worry about him

[@butteredsalmonella]

Gen 6: But what if you can shout? Swellow: yes! yes! yes! yes! Gen 7: But what if you can shout harder? Swellow: YES!!

[@jaschabull2365]

Chatot: *cries in corner*

[@TaintedNimbus]

@@jaschabull2365 Chatot has higher special attack and nasty plot. While being slower, it certainly hits a lot harder.

[@Hyper_Drud]

@@TaintedNimbus but can Chatot shout at ghosts with Boomburst?

[@TaintedNimbus]

@@Hyper_Drud No but it uses Chatter for that.

[@Mr.Tw1sty]

*CAW CAW*

[@SemiProHawk707]

The Agency is getting the recognition it deserves, it truly does provide 👏🏻

[@nineicytails4287]

I mean FSG and Blunder did kind of already team up for a video on Ice types.

[@SemiProHawk707]

@@nineicytails4287 True, but that was a while back though

[@PrismaAce]

agency agency

[@nineicytails4287]

@@SemiProHawk707 Yeah. It made me sad that they never continued that series honestly.

[@SemiProHawk707]

@@nineicytails4287 I’d still love to see a return for it. There’s some interesting types I would like to know more about, especially Dragon (my favorite, though I know they were competitively dominant in Gens 4-5 for the most part)

[@berrydoofenshmirtz3216]

best bird, it literally carried me throughout emerald

[@rondoudoushiney3868]

Staraptor best bird ever, he is way too strong for the aventure

[@prodjoshkta]

@@rondoudoushiney3868 definitely the best early game bird. He’s not just okay, he’s up there late game mons.

[@gmk9321]

Jaiden animations should react to this. She did use this for her first Pokémon nuzlocke and wholesomly names it Ari(her bird) and lasted through the whole game

[@masch7000]

@@rondoudoushiney3868 no joke, corviknight best early bird ever made

[@daigustoemeral3710]

@@rondoudoushiney3868 gen 6 gale wings talonflame b4 nerf the best bird

[@xalm2066]

Swellow being as good as it is with a base 50 special attack never ceases to baffle me. Thanks STAB Choice Specs Boomburst!

[@davidlarkin1040]

Then it gets the 25 increase. Incredible.

[@zjzr08]

People who say Game Freak cares about battle balance, should look at a 140 BP/100 acc/10 PP/no drawback move as proof that they don't. I personally don't, and Game Freak should embrace that and give players options to balance matches themselves IMO.

[@GD-ep5fl]

@@zjzr08 and goes through substitute

[@Traysandor]

I once made a Specs/Life Orb Gyrados as a joke pick. Turns out you can surprise a lot of potential checks with a wide variety of special attack TMs that it gets access to.

[@DrGandW]

@@zjzr08 Not really a good example since it doesn’t really mess stuff up at higher tiers plus it’s a normal type move so it’ll never hit super effective either. There are much better examples why GF barely cares about balance.

[@shaler419]

10:00, did my man FSG shoutout the agency? Blunder would be proud

[@glacierwolf2155]

The Agency truly provides.

[@Dankyjrthethird]

agent Kellen really does it for the gang

[@littleratfella6857]

Agency Agency

[@archandset]

Shoutouts to the agency

[@noble0155]

I can imagine it now. “Yo, yall sleeping on specs Swellow. What an agent, puttin in that work”

[@PKSparkxxDH]

Random fun fact no one asked for; I always get Swellow as shiny and name it "Starburst". I've always been a fan of this "starter bird".

[@danielolivierpepin]

L

[@RuthlessXD]

That’s a unique name I like it

[@sawyer6431]

Ive gotten swellow as a shiny more than any other Pokémon

[@unclebenandcracka]

@@sawyer6431 same. two swellows from ultra wormhole and then hatched one taillow

[@xJC4Rx]

I name mine Aerosmith

[@musicman8371]

I'll never forget OR/AS Swellow. Growing up, I'd laugh at the fact that it knew Boomburst and ignored it. Then I battled a friend and he proceeded to wipe half my team out with it.

[@Mike-uy5ml]

Almost all of swellow's viable moves are basically just kicking and screaming at the opponent saying I'm not gonna lose

[@kirbydude2523]

BREAKING NEWS: Man Literally Too Angry to Die

[@icantbelieveyoudonethis4059]

I’m gonna name all my Swellow Asta or Naruto from now on cause of that

[@darkness74185]

Or Natsu, especially because it carries heat wave a lot

[@icantbelieveyoudonethis4059]

@@darkness74185 Nah Natsu will be Infernape cause it gets stronger when it’s almost dead with Blaze

[@illusion9423]

@@icantbelieveyoudonethis4059 Madada!

[@rajt9996]

So weird that most of swellows moves are used by screaming, shouting, scratching at your opponent

[@mamutepeq]

Just like a real swallow

[@islamandchristianityhater5713]

jaiden?

[@beta511ee4]

I wish this was immune to Electricity like Ash’s.

[@GLIEPNIR]

They could've given it a special ability... But I guess even the Gamedevs realized how ludicrous that was and said no.

[@JTLDrago94]

Maybe lighting rod would do

[@RedDragonForce2]

Not necessarily immune, just incredibly resistant in the anime. But Lightning Rod would be amazing!!

[@RBatman5000]

Lightning rod would be great considering it helps its weakness and because it uses special moves anyway

[@lildrawhub1025]

@@RBatman5000 Nah Lightning rod is too weak. They should give in Thunder armor and have it's attack, special attack and speed quintuple every time it gets hit by an electric move. And it should also automatically win the match too because why not?

[@sephikong8323]

9:58 True Agency move right there

[@FriexMau5]

The Agency truly provides.

[@John-wv9iw]

yo im new to the pokemon community, whats the Agency reference?

[@sephikong8323]

@@John-wv9iw It is a reference to Blunder, a big competitive player and KZbinr. You can watch his content, he is definitely skilled and funny (although do not replicate at home, he is crazy and most of his plays make no sense whatsoever but they somehow work because the Agency truly provides)

[@12jswilson]

@@John-wv9iw Blunder and his supporters. He refers to mons that he considers slept on in OU as "agents." For example: Agent Daunt is Crawdaunt, one of his favorites. His fans frequently use alts that start with 4GNC to claim their role as part of the agency.

[@John-wv9iw]

@@12jswilson ty both, ima watch his videos

[@Dampharos]

How GOOD was the thunder armor bird will finally be answered!

[@RandalfElVikingo]

Swellow was always a badass Pokémon.

[@jwhite0398]

We don’t talk about that...😐

[@gmk9321]

Ari is now being tested on how good it is not only on a ruby nuzlocke but to the entire world

[@HaiderAli-nm6ce]

Nice Jaiden Reference

[@gmk9321]

@@HaiderAli-nm6ce yeah thank you that video was really good and easily one of my favorites from her

[@Dusk21]

Yes

[@rockettmotocorp1016]

Yes a good jaiden animations refrence

[@HaiderAli-nm6ce]

@@gmk9321 same here,easily brought me back to her channel!

[@sedricgranger]

0:05 👀 ayee thanks for putting my comment in the intro‼️that made my day!

[@RuthlessXD]

Hey I’m in the intro too buddy good job on getting in

[@sedricgranger]

RuthlessXD same to you! We did our part to get Swellow a video!

[@RuthlessXD]

@@sedricgranger And the king of being Swell got some attention with its unique sets every generation.

[@shadie1624]

The agency appreciates the recognition. 👌🏻

[@hunterotte4085]

Kinda funny, in Alpha Sapphire I was amazed and terrified when the pokemon tracker went off and my first Taillow caught, a level 4, had Boomburst. Reason I was terrified is it didn't tell me as I never seen or caught any before. It ripped through my team of Treeko, Wurmple, Poochyena, and Zigzagoon near effortlessly, a last ditch pokeball getting me a powerful early game ally.

[@Eltipoquevisteayer]

Imagine using your higher physical attack *This post was brought to you by the Swellow and Nidoking gang* PS: the Power gain between life orb+sheer force and specs Is only 12% More.

[@beanburrito4405]

10:00 AGENCY AGENCY

[@Blazewheat]

Agency really provides

[@gogomarioloshi]

AGENCY AGENCY

[@zebrakiwanuka5581]

And Agency mon

[@bru9383]

I don't get it.

[@rupertolp9269]

Agente swellow representing all the gangsters from across the world

[@YamatoFukkatsu]

Ash's Swellow was fucking hardcore and easily the best bird he's had to date. It's quite ironic too, because as a Taillow, it was about as neglected as his previous birds, but after evolving? Holy hell, what a turnaround. It even managed to be among the earliest of Ash's Pokemon to get a successful hit off on a legendary (Deoxys), which by the anime standards is nothing to scoff at.

[@maganhassan2627]

How was tailow neglected I only remember pidgeot being neglected

[@khalilnoelgevana3915]

Swellow will always have a special place in my heart. I always catch one whenever I pick Mudkip to shut down Sceptile

[@mrboerger1620]

Sceptile is love sceptile is life

[@phanix9210]

I dont like swampert so i never evolve my mudkip

[@rockettmotocorp1016]

@@phanix9210 that's bad u really need to evolve your pokemon so u have better stats and a better win rate

[@phanix9210]

@@rockettmotocorp1016 have you ever heard of a meme?

[@rockettmotocorp1016]

@@phanix9210 Oh sorry I didn't get it XD It didn't sound like a meme Is it that meme oh I herd u liek MUDKIPs cause then I don't know

[@misterlinux9290]

Swellow in the game: ThunderBird (uahh uahhahhh) Swellow in the Manga: "Swellow aren't taxis" -someone somewhere

[@openinginawe5518]

This is one of Ash's best bird Pokémon Change my mind. It wreck house as an Swellow Also as a tailow it tanked about three thunderbolts No wonder it could use thunderarmor ...Still think that's guts Also scrappy boomburst

[@albabimam1114]

Yes Ash's best bird and 3rd best flying type (cuz Charizard and Dragonite exist). Staraptor outshines it so much yet Swellow is so much better

[@winter9242]

@@albabimam1114 staraptor is the better bird statwise and competitively but ash's swellow is better than his staraptor

[@albabimam1114]

@@winter9242 yeah. Staraptor is OP in Competitive but Ash's Swellow is better. Ash's Staraptor almost lost to a fricking Roserade

[@winter9242]

@@albabimam1114 yeah man ash's swellow is a beast esp in hoenn series and came in clutch multiple times

[@sheharyarkhan1531]

@@albabimam1114 can't talk about dragonite but as a flying type I don't remember charizard being that good. Don't think he even knew any flying type moves.

[@JB-bc2ry]

"I'm so excited about my Sp. Atk boost that will help my Boomburst that I wrote a song about it!" - Dr. S, Gen 7

[@JToon78]

If Swellow is able to hit hard with Boomburst with only 50 Sp. Att, imagine if Porygon-Z got Boomburst...

[@ShiningJudgment666]

STAB and high base power help. Plus the tier it's used in is less bulky and typical physical walls don't take special attacks well so even if they resist normal, they'll take a decent chunk and if they lack recovery, the damage is essentially permanent. Porygon-Z would probably be a little broken with that and Adaptability. 280 base power, base 135 Special Attack, I don't think much is coming in against it.

[@ducklett01god]

​​@@ShiningJudgment666ghosts and soundproof pokemon

[@ShiningJudgment666]

@@ducklett01god And it would have something for them most likely so they're not 100% safe.

[@ducklett01god]

@@ShiningJudgment666 it would be specs because it would be the same swelling set

[@krookking2237]

Fun Fact: I used Swellow in gen 7 Ubers to Counter Marshadow, with its Endeavor/Quick Attack/Pursuit nieche. Very funny

[@ReloGP14th]

Swellow: Who are you? Staraptor: I am you but stronger

[@BelartWright]

*Looks down at Swellow menacingly and keeps that same energy when it looks up at the taller Pidgeot.

[@V-Jes]

*Talonflame

[@yoel9396]

But not strong enough for OU

[@jasonsmashultimate3184]

What if Staraptor had guts?

[@Drakorre]

I mean,he Is still faster and guts Is Amazing (too bad he didn't have CC)Talonflame Is the Who really outclassed everything

[@ReloGP14th]

Swellow: You took everything from me! Staraptor: I don't even know who you are

[@daigustoemeral3710]

Gen 6 Talonflame: shhh peasants make way for the real bird

[@cintronproductions9430]

Corviknight: "Caw caw, madafakas!"

[@lildrawhub1025]

@@daigustoemeral3710 Gen 7 Gale wings nerf: You were saying?

[@SuperDanMan11100]

Funny because I don't really think that FSG mentioned Staraptor in this video.

[@daigustoemeral3710]

@@lildrawhub1025 still better than raptor

[@KageNoTenshi]

They need to make a ash version where it has the ability thunder armor, where it is immune to all electric attacks and paralysis, and double its attack and speed when hit with them

[@farukzengin3488]

And makes aerial ace super efective against rock types.

[@itsyaboychipsahoy.7989]

Pikachu (Swell Rider) Ability: As One (Thunder Armor)

[@BHRA78]

How is that suppose to work though. If he can't be hit by electric for the boost?

[@itsyaboychipsahoy.7989]

@@BHRA78 Lightning Rod + Motor Drive

[@BladeTNT2018]

That is what I was thinking

[@RedDragonForce2]

To help Swellow reach new heights, I’d give it +10 in Attack and +20 in Special Attack, allowing the physical guts and special Scrappy sets dish out more damage!!

[@DrGandW]

That seems fair as it’d still be pretty frail

[@MidoseitoAkage]

Plus +20 on his defence and sp.defence.

[@RedDragonForce2]

@@MidoseitoAkage it wouldn’t help enough. The speed allows it to move first outside priority moves, so more damage would help more than survivability, but I like what you’re going for.

[@luiseduardo8806]

@@RedDragonForce2 it's as they say: PUNCH THEM BEFORE THEY CAN PUNCH YOU! Or, should I say: SHOUT AT EM BEFORE THEY CAN SHOUT AT YOU!

[@gabr.7878]

This series has taught me so many things about Pokemon

[@seelo3709]

I'm genuinely surprised that it was this good honestly, I usually doubt the route 1 birds but this shows that I was wrong to skip over it in my Emerald playthroughs.

[@omarkn7506]

Dude Swellow survived with a base Stat total of 430 later 455. That's impressive. Give it more attack and special attack and a tiny bit of speed and BOOM! Possible UU threat

[@joeylo958]

Me in double battle trying to recreating the tactical genius move by ash Pikachu: use thunderbolt on Swellow Swellow: fainted Me : Surprised pikachu face

[@tarunyadav3567]

it was thunder i think not even thunderbolt

[@Eeveethegamer26]

Taillow was a god during my Emerald runs, definitely against Brawly too. I love this birb so much

[@IschmarVI]

what I also like about swellow - it synergizes extremely well with Swampert both typing-wise and in double battles

[@ghostlywolf4302]

This is why I loved to see Ash’s Swellow. He just demolished his enemies.

[@NanaKyoto]

It's not often you get to see a Pokémon that used power creep to its favor, AND get a considerable buff in a later generation.

[@Magiron.]

When early-route birds started getting good.

[@goGothitaLOL]

Unfazant and Toucannon: -_- we're bad, despite being from later gens

[@samparin]

Gen 4, then stopped in gen 5 then all good

[@AudioGAWD]

@@goGothitaLOL Toucannon wasn't that bad. It was just sooooo slow.

[@pride_mitochondria3921]

Noctowl =(

[@agentblackbird9435]

@@AudioGAWD Meanwhile Unfezant has been UT until Gen 8 where its PU

[@thomasmurrell9832]

Bruh I've been WAITING for this one for so long!!!

[@tommasobaggio2518]

The moment when you start to learn about meta and realize that Ash's swellow had Lighting rod as an ability

[@mozkebab8260]

9:59 the ageny provides

[@theMOCmaster]

Finally a good 1st route bird! And what a transformation, went from a guts physical attacker to scrappy boomburst with specs! And that was even before they buffed its SpA.

[@Pigggles]

I mean he made a video about staraptor which is the most consistently good out of all the route 1 birds

[@melissaalcala1211]

HOW GOOD WAS DAMAINATIAN? 2 interesting abilities AND a galar form. I will never give up

[@matthaisstupidus]

FUNKY MODE ACTIVATED. STALLERS SHALL BE DESTROYED. NONE SHALL ESCAPE MONKEY

[@skimaskedabi]

Icicle crash go brrrrrr

[@arandomstranger6954]

@@matthaisstupidus I want to save this comment

[@joshburcham8466]

YES!!!!! I’m so glad that this was finally made

[@MrTigracho]

9:59 AGENCY AGENCY

[@denayshselvakkumar3966]

Thanks so much for the shout out! Glad I could help contribute to the video ☺️

[@widowpeak6142]

Oh boy, endeavor. I once managed to get my Swampert to Lv100 and miss a very early game trainer. When I encountered him while grinding a weak pokemon, I decided to do some overkill and swapped to Swampert, only to get endeavor-ed in the face. My expression at that moment must have been photo-worthy.

[@mordet2]

oh, hey ari!

[@nicholasroy9540]

Ya im shocked too

[@nicholasroy9540]

Wait wrong comment my bad

[@lildrawhub1025]

Aggressive and screams when hungry? Oh yeah... we know her name.

[@KRC75]

@@lildrawhub1025 yep

[@PkmnTrainerEmerald]

Jaiden would be so proud of Ari just like how Ash is proud

[@0RatedChess]

GameFreak: Oh Swellow you have this powerful move? *let’s buff it a lot* Imagine if they did the same buff again

[@krislee3155]

I remember when I made a Boomburst Swellow, ah the look on my friend's faces when all three of their Pokémon were knocked out.

[@pocaitul78nr1]

How good was Oddish actually? A Little Cup episode would be very interesting!

[@samwisedidier7312]

great idea

[@ren5883]

How*

[@PkmnTrainerEmerald]

He should do a little cup episode especially since in the players cup that took place this year the commentators actually played with little cup rules it was so cool

[@Frenemies.]

He did one on wynaut

[@jjc4924]

People say Staraptor was the start of an good Flying type u can get early in the game. But I think Swellow did it first. Yeah. Staraptor, Talonflame ( for Gen. 6 anyway ) & Corviknight are better early bird Pokemons than Swellow. But Swellow was still pretty solid overall and proves that an beginners typical; yet solid Pokemon can be an big help early in the game.

[@IschmarVI]

well, I know that it didn't start in generation 2 right, Noctuh?

[@Kristalya]

Fearow was not that bad tho 😊

[@Obsidian8R]

unfeazant sucks, having an awful special attack stat and getting no good physical moves

[@jjc4924]

Isch. Ohhhhh! Hoot Hoot! 😁

[@DavideKuras]

@@Kristalya it was the worse not bad right

[@plabcentral630]

When he said let’s go agency I felt that

[@julianchrobak-prince1915]

Swellow is my favorite early-game bird. My brother had Fire Red and Emerald when I was little and he’d always name the early-game birds after me. I always thought hidden power and fly looked really badass. Nostalgia really rubbed it off on me. Glad it’s one of the objectively better birds.

[@JohnNovakovich]

One of my favorite pokemon! I felt so smart as a kid pairing Guts with Facade and STAB. Glad to finally see Swellow on the board :)

[@iosifstalin2501]

You were smart for doing it :D

[@videakias3000]

A fun combo in double battles is to use choice band electrode with explosion in the first together with either a ghost type or a bulky physical wall which knows toxic and use toxic on the swellow and in the next turn the swellow will use facade and kill everything that isn't rock/steel/ghost type.

[@alagass6466]

Hearing about boomburst just makes me wonder how good was Exploud

[@abdulbaten9537]

"DD-tar" put an image of a tyranitar with blonde pigtails in my head, and idk wether I should be laughing or be even more terrified

[@iCABALi]

Guts Swellow was one of the best mons for the main game in gen 3

[@snurfornuttin6947]

Swallow was the second Pokémon I’ve ever got to level 100, this is actually awesome🤩

[@mildlydispleased3221]

I laughed out loud when I saw its attack stat, I thought it would have a beefier one to match its beefy design.

[@byronclarkson9447]

It's such a surprisingly great pokemon, I loved using it in 4th gen and recon again in 7th gen

[@SantiagoCR17]

I wish the aura guardian commented "how good was the bs strategy bird actually"

[@AudioGAWD]

If it worked, it worked haha

[@mrboerger1620]

It was suppose to represent swellows guts ability if they just reworded the script that scene would've been fine

[@ningenslayer6306]

@@mrboerger1620 You’d still have to change Pikachu firing at the sky without being told to, along with it gaining the Thunder Armor along with Swellow. But even just saying the Ability was Guts would make it better.

[@BigKlingy]

9:31 Oh hey, I actually know that guy! It's kind of surreal when people you know irl get shout-outs.

[@martydahley1821]

I always wondered why would you ever use a toxic orb over a flame orb on a guts Pokémon? Guts negates the burn attack nerf and does less damage over time than toxic orb.

[@IntrusiveThot420]

Toxic does less damage over 1 or 2 turns, so if you pop in, smack someone, and leave, it's less damage overall

[@martydahley1821]

@@IntrusiveThot420 oh yea I forgot how burn did more damage in past gens but nowadays running flame orb will always be better

[@beta511ee4]

@@IntrusiveThot420 No longer true as of Gen 7.

[@shadowwingstudio9010]

Crazy to see swellow taking out so many strong steel and Rick types

[@chrisf.9595]

Swellow: "You took everything from me!" Staraptor: "I don't even know who you are."

[@NightmareZerogbs]

Wow, I had absolutely no idea they buffed its special attack to the point of being more viable on the special side

[@Matt-ub5yc]

How i'd buff swellow 1.HP60

[@bladewingmcowl5842]

Swellow is Hoenn's warrior of the skies 😎

[@snapclub8751]

This video sure was SWELL 😎 Now to wait for How Good was Noctowl Actually & How Bad was Unfezant Actually.

[@r.a.c.5754]

Gen 3, when the early route birds starting getting good. Now... How good was Ursaring actually?

[@Yuuerin]

Such a good handsome bird! I had no clue about the mechanics of envador back in the day, all I knew is it killed everything 😂

[@b2j135]

I've been begging for this mon since I found your channel back in 2017. It took 3 years but FINALLY we all know how good Swellow was actually. Had no idea about that sick Gen 3 subpass set...that's cool lol Now I can retire my Swellow campaign and begin the Deoxys one 😋

[@PapaTaurean]

10 to 1, if Swellow could be available in Gen 8, it would get access to Hurricane. Which would be awesome.

[@thejuic3b0i64]

Would’ve been the best in competitive if it got access to the legendary Thunder Armor, which got rid of its weaknesses and buffed its Attack and Speed stats.

[@microwave8931]

Swellow is my favorite normal/flying mon, so majestic

[@supershmueli]

If you don’t do Electrode, I will explode

[@umbraluna8387]

Competitive swellow was not what I expected in gen 3, but it's really cool how one of my favorite regional birbs had a niche like that. Swellow is quite swell, isn't it?

[@joeligmacandace9356]

Still asking for Darmanitan, I’m not gonna stop asking

[@matthaisstupidus]

Reject stalling, embrace MONKE

[@dhruvhosali2416]

9:59 w...w...was that a blunder reference? Shoutouts the Agency tho.

[@jwanie366]

I was pleasantly surprised to see ONE notable finish for Swellow in VGC. The fact that its video is only 14 minutes long shows that it wasn’t very viable overall though

[@HowlingOneify]

"Wasn't very viable" *was an overall great lower tier mon through its life* Did you even pay attention?

[@frozen2ninja]

I remember giving my dream world Swellow giga impact specifically to destroy my brothers Gengar

[@hungryfoodies8870]

Missed Opportunity to say "How SWELL was Swellow ACUALLY?"

[@jacksbrow182]

We'll have to wait for the remake xD

[@PranavGadge31]

Hi manectric fan :)

[@RediteTheGemBoy]

the fourth generation

[@xandermarron6914]

My one request is for my favorite legendary Pokémon, Deoxys, including his various forms, I think it will make a great and in depth video

[@wario5080]

Next: How good was Primeape ACTUALLY? I will never give up!

[@jacobwhelan45]

I knew Swellow was surprisingly good but I got scared from the videos length. Thankfully I was proven right despite the length minus its lack of VGC excluding the one placement. I also did not realize how few gens it has appeared in

[@crimson7427]

Maybe do an episode on Kadabra, seeing as it's been unbanned from the TCG.

[@captainsunshine64]

Could we get a behind the scenes look at how these videos are made? Would really love to see the process

[@BromanderInChief]

The virgin talonflame vs. the chad swellow vs. the gigachad staraptor

[@IvenHor123]

Corviknight in OU looks down at three of them: "Pathetic. "

[@aisadal2521]

Yaaaasss! So good to see a video on Swellow! I loved running Burn Orb-Guts-Facade on my Swellow; it was strong enough to KO most of my opponents that didn't resist Normal type The only that sucked was that I couldn't give it a Flying move, since I had Protect, Facade, Quick Attack and Steel Wing

[@MrLuizilla]

Swellow should've been given a Mega Evolution with an ability that makes it immune to Electric type moves and raises it's defenses. Call it... T H U N D E R A R M O R

[@mystrenula3911]

I'm pretty sure the thunder armor was the anime's interpretation of guts