What comes after the Hall of Fame differs from game to game. Since the Elite Four are actual characters now and not just random people, they decided that this time around, the Elite Four will congratulate us on a job well done.
You gotta love Acerola running up late after the grown-ups do the dramatic walk in.
Hau and Lillie? They certainly illuminated my life, I'm just not sure that's a related thought to "having become Champion."
That, at least, is a statement.
Well, I sure had faith in them. Enough to see things through, at least.
While her "we're all" is incorrect, Kahili is right about one thing- if we re-challenge the Pokemon League (which it is possible to do), then the final foe will be randomly selected from a pool of possible candidates- this is new to SM, but it's funny they mention it now. The Elite Four never changes, though.
The sun is currently gnawing on a chew toy.
The Elite Four start chatting amongst themselves. I like to hope to imagine they're getting along between each other now.
I like how Professor Kukui's statement of encouragement for us is "Lillie will be there". Like he thought that would be a dealbreaker of some kind.
...I mean it would be, but...
We get taken to Iki Town, which even has a location banner appear. It turns out that this is relevant- the credits aren't rolling yet, as conclusive as this is.
Same Iki Town Festival theme as the opening. Nice and bookended there.
Wow, we barely got here and already there's a congregation waiting.
Hau rushes over, has a silent conversation with Hala, and then cheers for the news- once the shock wears off. There's a surprising amount of non-verbal conversations considering we're not officially in a credits state.
Yeah, that's Hau, all right.
There's a few scenes of characters coming up for some wordless congratulations. This is a bit new to SM- it was in credits images in BW, but using the credits time productively is still relatively new.
Even if this isn't actually credits time.
Hi, Professor Burnet! Weren't you supposed to be important?
And, on the note of "characters who should be important", Mum gets to attend the festival too. This is actually something hilarious in series history- XY threw the protagonist a parade after she beat the Champion (it was ostensibly for her beating Team Flare), and in that game, the mother was pointedly not invited.
Yeah, I prefer her being invited to not.
I love how this conversation happens to be only the girls. Feels kinda accidental, but at the same time, very fitting.
Lillie came over with Hapu. I guess she's lending a hand for Lillie's well-being- and probably Lusamine's, too.
You reckon they could've compressed Hapu and Burnet into the same character?
Once again, that "from Alola" wording obfuscating things. It's the "we're the first Champion" bit that's throwing them, isn't it?
This setup is also begging for Bethany to be able to get words out.
Or for these characters to either have cheers or noises..
There's a neat scene here where Gladion watches the festivities from afar that I didn't fully manage to capture- the timings are weird.
Basically, the camera cuts from Gladion to Lillie, who is looking around the festival with this adorable smile, and it cuts to Gladion content pose before he walks off. The intent is obvious in motion, but it just kinda looks like Lillie is acknowledging Gladion's presence in someway when it's just screenshots. No, Lillie isn't aware Gladion's there.
Kiawe does some (fire-less) bone-twirling, and gets photo-bombed by Acerola. Poor guy.
This scene's pretty charming, though. All the kahunas and captains gather on the stage, and ready a Z-Pose.
And they all throw out their type-specific Z-Poses.
Nanu doing his thing in the background. Or did you not notice he hasn't actually been part of this party yet?
He does have a moment to come up to us and congratulate us too, but he's not interested in staying long. Frankly, I'm amazed he bothered doing so during the party at all.
Hala knows what's what.
Acerola just waves him away, as she does.
And then cue the fireworks.
It's time for Lillie to get her words in, while everyone's distracted.
Thank you, Lillie.
Never had a party, Lils? You deserve one.
...That does tell us the Aether Foundation coming in is relatively recent. Or are you talking about leaving the Paradise and coming to the archipelago?
This part, though, sounds a lot more like she's talking about coming to the archipelago.
Coming to think of it, though, she hasn't mentioned Kukui and Burnet's role in a while.
...Yes, Lils?
OK, I'm sure they had to know how it would sound to have a pretty girl ask us that. I'm a little less sure Lillie knows, though.
This is the moment that the bridge is fixed in SM. Going to the Ruins of Conflict is postgame locked, because that's when things happen.
...I'm sure Tapu Koko has more important things to be doing than talking to me. Like fighting things.
...I'm things now, aren't I?
Lillie won't take "I'd rather attend the festival in my name" lying down. Considering Lillie doesn't mention the Tapu Koko stuff until after the question is asked, refusing at this point is hilarious.
I'm sure we're not leaving unnoticed. Everyone who notices either knows exactly what we're up to, or knows not to interrupt what they think we're up to.
The festival music does give way to the standard theme for Mahalo Trail at this point. The expected "Ruins of Conflict" theme won't be until we actually get there.
Of course we get to have a conversation with Lillie on Mahalo Trail. USUM adding the Nebby moment is because we're not going to get this moment during the credits there.
So desperate for something for Nebby- and for her family- that she couldn't even see what was right in front of her.
Mahalo really is the right name for this place. This is where Lillie, Bethany, and Nebby all met the people who would help them solve their respective conundrums.
And of course, this is where we say mahalo for the favour.
Off we go.
Now we get the themes for the ruins. That Zygarde Cell is just going to taunt us.
All we really know about said connection is that Tapu Koko met a Solgaleo before. I prefer to imagine it had more to do with us than it did with Nebby, but even that's an element of "Tapu Koko knew we'd get good.
Into the Ruins. As they were in USUM, there are no Machamp Puzzles to solve.
The comparison to Hapu's meeting with Tapu Fini is apt. Except this time, nobody has an appointment with Tapu Koko...
Lillie turns around and walks into the Ruins. Despite the fact the establishing shot, and to a lesser extent this one, imply that she is walking directly into a hole in the ground. That would be an anti-climactic way to end the date, wouldn't it?
We are making our own.
...You don't think the Spearow would've killed him, do you? Fainted him, yes. That being an unpleasant situation for him, yes. But killed him?
...I guess he would have fallen into a few rapids...
I've heard that speaking with the gods is less about their feelings and more about yours. Getting this reaction shot from a literal stone does emphasise that feeling.
...That turn of phrase typically leads to only one result in series history...
Yup. She totally intends for us to get into a fight.
I'm not sure if Lillie is meant to have touched the statue and animations just denied that, or if we're having an extra layer of impertinence.
Tapu Koko's appearance here does a lot of flickering in and out. You're gonna have to take my word for that.
This scene is actually different depending on whether or not you brought Nebby with you to fight Kukui. It's mostly an addition, though.
Nebby walks up behind us, and roars in a challenge that Tapu Koko accepts.
SUDDENLY SPEAKING! Legendary Pokemon often speak through telepathy in the anime, in order to give them personalities and motivations (since they often serve as focal characters in movies), but this is something that the game lore has almost never shown. It is, in fact, the inability of Pokemon to speak that often betrays the ones that pass themselves off as human.
You might think this is some weirdness involved with the Nebby event. It is not- without Nebby, Tapu Koko will still say "IT IS TIME..." before the battle.
We are indeed thrust into battle against our own guardian deity! Tapu Koko has his own battle theme, remixing the Ruins theme into something that can passably be called a battle theme- although it does definitely lean more into the mystical, with a side dash of "you are intruding by challenging us, human". I don't think Koko minds, though.
Tapu Koko (Moon): It confuses its enemies by flying too quickly for the eye to follow. It has a hair-trigger temper but forgets what made it angry an instant later.
Despite the fact I am fairly sure this is sacrilege of the highest order, we are allowed to catch Tapu Koko and add it to our team. The way I usually justify it to myself is that this isn't actually Tapu Koko, but an avatar the actual Tapu Koko has created to reward us. Pokemon: Legends Arceus implies that the Arceus that appears in battle is doing the same thing. Anyway, as a Pokemon, Tapu Koko is an Electric/Fairy type (the only one other than Dedenne) with high Speed and Atk. Bulk's medicore- Tapu Koko has a BST of 570- but Tapu Koko has his uses. Unfortunately, it does not have particularly fantastic Physical STAB options, but it does have ways to be devastating.
We have not had player control since we fought Kukui, which means I'm still leading with Sturm. Also, we can't save. Most people tend to throw this fight and come back later to catch Tapu Koko when they have the ability to freely re-attempt the fight. Or if they don't care about Koko's stats, just use Gladion's Master Ball on it.
I'm going to try and snag it here the normal way.
Ah, yes, Tapu Koko's Ability. Electric Surge sets the Electric Terrain field when Tapu Koko is sent out- since it's been ages since I mentioned Terrains, it's worth re-mentioning their effects- they last for five turns (like weathers), and while Electric Terrain is up, Electric types do 50% more damage, and nobody is able to be put to Sleep. It's probably one of the harder Terrains to make effective use out of, owing to its small selection of bonuses, but Tapu Koko is typically considered good enough that it doesn't really need to be helping its team to be worth the team slot.
Tapu Koko has a defined Hidden Ability, Telepathy. It is only available through special events and is never useful. Unless you really want Tapu Koko to be on a team planning on exploiting the move Earthquake.
Anyway, you want a battle with Nebby? Then it is a battle with Nebby you shall get.
Tapu Koko is given the default moveset of Agility, Discharge, Electro Ball, and Nature's Madness. Nature's Madness is a signature move, Special Fairy, with the special effect of always dealing half of the target's current HP. Somewhat ironically, this makes Tapu Koko a pretty good Pokemon to use as a catcher.
That's off the back of one Discharge. STAB and Electric Terrain are doing a lot of heavy lifting, but also, I would like to point out that Nebby is lower levelled and does not enjoy a Resist to Electric.
If Nebby wanted to, it could probably handily deal with Tapu Koko.
I need Tapu Koko not fainted if I plan on acquiring it.
That looks like a good number. Tapu Koko is hard to status, especially with a team that doesn't really apply them, so this will probably have to do.
Once Electric Terrain wears off, you can Sleep it, but Tapu Koko is impervious to paralysis.
Catch Rate of 3. This could be a while.
Electric Surge wore off. It feels weird when the battlefield does this against Tapu Koko. Kinda reinforces the... mortality of the being?
Thanks to those Agilities and Parlaysis, this is still an dangerous Electro Ball even without the Terrain. Poor Nebby is going to have to live with only winning in theory.
Nature's Madness. It has a pretty strange sound effect that really lives up to the Fairy typing.
Tapu Koko acquired. Similarly to Nebby, this is a legendary that feels slightly wrong to just throw in my box, so I may consider it a team member unto itself. What I do with it remains to be seen.
...In retrospect, there was really no beating around the bush on this one. Yes, Tapu Koko is not the only Guardian Deity we can add to our collection- the guardians of the other islands can be likewise persuaded. The part of me that's OK with catching Tapu Koko is not necessarily OK with catching the other three- especially Bulu, who has objections with humanity, and Fini, a deity which Hapu was depicted explicitly worshipping during the main story. I'm planning on throwing those three on the non-canon "we had to give them to the player" pile.
Out of a sense of fairness to the other kids, I am planning on letting each kid use one of the Guardian Deities. This probably does make me a hypocrite, but it's not like any of them really have a good idea of what they're going to do with their respective choices.
Oh, excuse me, Land Spirit. Most people stick with Tapu or Guardian Deity.
And yep, the Guardian Deities are the 100th percentage point for each Island Pokedex. This is both fitting and insane from a "did Kukui really expect me to catch his gods when he asked me to complete this thing?" perspective. Not that catching deities is news to Pokedex completionists.
...You know what I think pushes the Guardian Deities over the edge in a way the Pokemon of Myth don't quite reach? The Guardian Deities are based on the actual Hawai'ian gods. Kuka'ilimoku, or simply Ku, is the Hawai'ian god of forestry, farming, and war, depending on what part of the archipelago you're in, and there are indeed four such deities lying around. As far as I can tell, it's not as clear cut "Oahu worships Ku, Maui worships Kane, etc" in the Hawai'ian lore, nor am I really sure how that works in Pokemon, but since when was Pokemon a series in answering mythology questions?
Whatever you do to deal with Tapu Koko, a series of lights paints the pattern of a Z, and you are given a piece of Tapunium Z. A Tapunium Z, given to a Guardian Deity, allows the use of the Z-Move Guardian of Alola when powered off Nature's Madness. This somehow manages to surpass all other Z Moves in being impractical, but it is too cool to judge it purely on that.
There are a total of four possible outcomes of the Tapu Koko battle, and Lillie has a response to each one.
- Player caught Tapu Koko: Tapu Koko... I know it will aspire to ever greater heights at your side from now on, Bethany!
- Player defeats Tapu Koko: Tapu Koko... It may have lost that battle to you, but I don't think it was sad about that. I'm sure that the two of you will meet in battle again someday!
- Player is defeated by Tapu Koko: The great Tapu Koko... It really is fantastically strong, isn't it! No wonder it is the guardian of all Melemele!
- Player ran from Tapu Koko: So you'll challenge Tapu Koko another day... I suppose Trainers must know how to judge the strength of their opponents and must also understand their own limits.
Not sure which outcome I like most here, from a thematic perspective. I like the "catch Tapu Koko" as part of a "everyone helps each other" message for Lillie, while the "run from Tapu Koko has a nice message.
Your capacity to be concerned about the feelings of others is nice, but I am worried about just how comprehensive it is. Did you really have to talk to Tapu Koko in person?
I think we're worried about people noticing that for different reasons.
Fortunately, anyone who might've noticed our absence has been distracted by the commencement of a Battle Royale.
...
I think Mum knows.
But... since Nanu's not here, who's fourth?
Ah yeah, of course, the Masked Royal.
To Professor Burnet's pleasure.
...You know, in hindsight, it's funny that Hala is associated with Tauros despite being a Fighting type expert. Tauros would gain a Fighting type regional form in the Paldea region. It's almost like Hala is too early to have his ace be Paldean Tauros instead of Crabominable.
And the Masked Royal brought... the family cat.
The worst part is? I believe he can win this.
...Maybe we should've left during this. Everyone looks much more distracted right now.
And then we get... this scene.
Professor Burnet hallucinates Professor Kukui over the Masked Royal, and gets flustered.
I was... relatively OK with the idea of Professor Burnet having a Masked Royal kink, but I'm absolutely not into the idea that she's not aware of the fact that the Royal and Kukui are the same person. I'm also, entirely separately, annoyed that Professor Burnet has spent more time on her Masked Royal kink than she has on being Lillie's mother figure, but that's entirely unrelated to whether or not Burnet knows what's going on here.
From here, it's mainly a cue for more celebration.
The kids hanging out, what I think are my Mum and Hau's Mum having a chat...
Kukui and Hala doing their jobs for these kids, in some way.
And what I think is Lana and Mallow pranking Kiawe when he sleeps. I could not tell you what they did, though.
Well, YMMV on Kiawe. Although I suppose whether he's happy is a question for when he wakes up.
...Look, Lillie, I'm really not sure how much longer we can keep this up before we lose the right to play the platonic card. I'm receptive to your crush, but also I'm not entirely sure you know it's there.
And yet, at the same time, that isn't exactly my reaction to the idea of bringing Lusamine here. Even in her kinder moments, she never struck me as the type to enjoy this sort of situation.
Things I'm not nearly as happy to hear about as Lillie is. First thing she does when she's well enough to figure out which way up is is ask if she can come to a party in Lillie's girlfriend's honour. While she can be doing this as a good person, it's... not exactly something I'd want her to do unless her first order of business was a substantial apology.
A lot of people will be quite happy to inform you that "gently" is not necessary in her case. The damage she's dealt to you is so deeply internalised that you're still feeling it even now that you think it's past.
...Know that I'll do my best to support you, Lillie...
...Lillie, did you get closer?
Whatever she was about to say was interrupted by the fireworks starting up again. Twice in one celebration?
Whatever it was Lillie had to say, she no longer desires to say it.
We've got one more scene to have before the ceremony is over.
Kukui has figured, if we've been able to sneak away with Lillie for a date with Tapu Koko, then the party has clearly not been sufficiently about us.
Have you still not beat Hala in SM? Now I kinda feel bad for you.
Hau is one of the possible opponents for the title of Champion. Whether he'll live up to it there, though, remains to be seen.
Hala seems proud of his confidence.
No, Bethany is OK.
...
So, uh, I sent Sturm back to the PC to add Tapu Koko to the party, is it OK if I...
This is going to be real funny when Ray has to do it...
Everyone cheers us on, but of all people, it's Mum who gets the last word. I like it, but I wish she got a bit more substantive one.
No, they're not actually going to go to the trouble of animating us sending out six Pokemon, that could truly be whatever. That would be too much trouble.
In quite possible the greatest display of "wait, the credits still aren't rolling yet?", this strangely unprofessional yet still final title card for Pokemon Sun is not the prelude to the credits finally beginning to roll.
We get some narration. This starts as external observer narration...
But then turns out to be first-person in-character narration. Although it is not yet 100% clear who.
Now, they don't textually acknowledge it yet, but it's worth pointing out- we have spent enough time in Alola for me to become the League Champion, and Mum still hasn't finished unpacking.
Since I'm mostly showing the top screen (since that's the only important screen during this sequence), I didn't fully catch an odd moment that's about to show up here- the Rotom Dex, complete with map, shows up for a few seconds here before the next scene starts. We are never given actual control over Bethany for any part of this update except maybe the Tapu Koko fight, and yet this psuedo-credits sequence is apparently close enough to actual gameplay they almost trip and make it so.
Turns out it wasn't Kukui, but he did inherit Kukui's disinterest in waiting to be let in.
At least he was kind enough to use the doorbell.
...Who am I angry at?
I love how Hau is calmed down for exactly long enough to politely greet my mother. Even his panic has ADHD.
And Hau refuses to explain any further before going too.
Bethany only gives a glance at her mother before following Hau. I was expecting Mum to have some sort of comment, but clearly she's learned that's how Hau works.
It's off to the Marina, where Kukui and Lillie are already there...
Lillie's the one going? And all the way to Kanto?
I am grateful that Burnet finally expressed an actual opinion about Lillie as a maternal figure, although the fact that it has expressed itself as deciding not to actually do so on screen will not pass without comment.
I'll forgive her when I see the two women on screen at the same time. That has barely happened- just before the Olivia fight.
How nice, she gets a permanent spot in Kukui's lab. I'm starting to think Lillie had a point about us being the point where she had a real family figure to point to.
...Actually, who told you? You live in Iki Town, and Lillie doesn't have to go anywhere near there to organise boat travel.
The game's going to act like Lillie is more torn up about leaving Hau behind, which is half "trying not to sway the player influence" and half one little insult-to-injury "trying to make sure this girl remains strictly heterosexual."
They have a justification for why Lillie going to Kanto will make her mother get better, but for some reason, they don't explain it during this farewell scene, only in a dialogue in the postgame that's only incidentally mandatory. Basically, as part of RBY's "this is the first game, we haven't figured this tone stuff out", there was a one-off joke scene where Bill, inventor of the PC, has gone and got himself "fused" with a Pokemon (either a Nidorino or a Clefairy, depending on which remake you're playing- in the original, it wasn't possible to tell what the sprite was meant to be depicting) as some malfunction of one of his new inventions. The player was required to press a button, allowing Bill to safely return to normal (the Pokemon he fused with is not shown), and he would thank you by giving you the S.S. Ticket. The "fusion", it is worth mentioning, does not bear any elements of Bill except for the capacity to talk. Even in LGPE, which comes out after this, limits Nidorino's changes to "is capable of standing on two legs".
For... some reason, both Lillie and the developers are of the opinion that Bill is somehow enough of an expert on human/Pokemon fusion to have an idea on how to deal with Lusamine's time spent half-fused with a Nihilego. I don't think there is any one problem I have with this idea- there's something like five overlapping reasons I'm not on board with this plan on fundamental principles. The idea of Lillie ditching her friends to try and strike it alone in a brand new region as her first outing- or worse, going with Lusamine for company- presents its own few problems to add to that tangle.
Look, I'm OK with the idea of you getting to do a League Challenge of some description. The idea of you going to Kanto, which also happens to be the protagonist's home region, also adds a certain layer of rightness to the arrangement. But by leaving us behind, she has translated none of that significance into what's happening.
I hope they finally got around to importing a few new species since I left.
...I think it says a lot that I'm worried about that.
But also, you're not bringing Lusamine, right...?
Lillie has this "I'll be all right because I'll remember you" moment. Somehow, I feel like it would be slightly more impactful if the camera didn't pass behind this lamp post in the dramatic pan.
I think that was the last thing we were worried about.
Another desperate attempt to try and get Hau/Lillie to pick up enough steam to distract from the moderately compelling lesbian action they've been working on. Clearly their bravery in deciding to commit to this was balanced out by chickening out elsewhere. Pity that "elsewhere" was one of the more compelling ideas in this entire story.
I think the best part is that they do actually show Hau is capable of sitting still long enough to actually commit to writing this.
They do not show us what "this" is. Perhaps Hau might tell us later, but probably not.
That's not to say we go without, but Lillie is putting in a lot more effort to explain what it is she's giving us.
Her childhood memories. The thing she presumably used to survive tall grass before she got Repels.
An ordinary Poke Doll.
(I'm not sure if this being the Item "Poke Doll" is supposed to be relevant, but I do kinda wish we got a Key Item version, just because they could probably write something heart-crushing in the description.)
Bethany's Kuleshov face does no favours for this deeply personal and yet deeply baffling present. I'm seeing a lot more of the "baffling" side.
Fare well, Lillie.
She rides the same design of ship for the ferries.
...Pokemon does have planes- not only from Kukui's earlier "jetlag" comment, but there was a Gym Leader in BW who was a pilot. A female pilot, admittedly, so they had a few issues communicating that through design, but she was depicted flying a plane. Once.
Bethany and Kukui do the dramatic run-up for this. Bethany doesn't wave to match.
...And weird Hau's not getting in this.
Once Lillie is gone, the boys start to have a cry on the pier. Not Bethany, though. She had those facial muscles removed.
I feel kind of left out of proceedings here. On either side.
I mean, yeah, being included would require expressing opinions, but still. I'm the one who stuck around for so long.
Oh, is this what Molayne was calling back to earlier? The slightly off-colour advice reads loads differently between Molayne's use in USUM (where he was stepping down from Sophocles's support to take on a full-time job elsewhere) and Kukui's use here (where Lillie has already left for another region and has no intentions of returning anytime soon). I almost think Molayne was using it better.
He's probably better at emotions.
Kukui, I am the only person who should have been away from my family long enough for the dramatic tone you are trying to impart to that line- and even then, all of us did hang out with our families at the festival, remember?
Are you trying to relate to Lillie doing this quest for her mother? You know that doesn't help, right?
That seems to mollify Hau, for what it's worth.
And now the credits have... mostly started rolling.
In a stunning display of "you mean they could've done this the whole time?", this scene of Mum waiting for us to get home is fully animated in 3D. Like, this is a cutscene they have put a lot more effort into animating than they have into actually making it feel earned in the plot.
Kukui drops us off home on the way.
...Despite this also being where Hau stops, he's not here with us.
We take a few steps home, and are immediately besieged by cat. This feels more like how a Growlithe would react.
We end this story about reuniting Lillie with her estranged abusive mother by reuniting with our own mother, who uprooted our entire life to go chase a married man.
...I guess Lillie's not the only one with mother issues, huh?
Meowth's here too. Although why the claws are out is another question. Meowth doesn't normally have those out, right?
Mum does this happy little stomp for us. I can only assume she's talking about Lillie, but I'm not 100% sure what the message is.
And then we do a camera pan up. We've spent enough of this game's budget on cutscenes.
Timeskip time: The images that play over the credits are from that care package from Hau that he got around to sending.
We get a nice, slow credits roll of nice little artworks of the various characters. Little hard to get the shots in-game while the names roll past, though.
There we go. Hau and Hala competing in an event where Hau's got more of a sporting chance, apparently. Although with Hala taking the time to surf on his Tauros, maybe they need to keep looking.
...Hey, is that my Tapu Koko?
Ilima gets the boring one for the Normal expert. Probably the only reason he got one is because all the Captains get one.
Mallow finally gets the chance to feed Olivia! And I'm... still not 100% sure whether that expression is one of "she likes Mallow's cooking" or "she's just trying to be polite". Lycanroc's pretty thrilled.
It turns out that Lana has, indeed, caught a Wishiwashi this big. What's the ROI on that fishing line, by the way?
Kiawe practicing his fire-twirling with Marowak.
Inside his wooden house.
In the drywood and brush Paniola Town.
Mate, if you're not careful, it won't be studying abroad you're saving up for.
Sophocles and Molayne being gamer bros in Hokulani Observatory. That's a surprising amount of Togemaru focus considering this wasn't the game that made him important.
Acerola's made a new friend in the orphanage! Totem Mimikyu's going to be just fine.
Nanu staring at the moon moodily. Odds are this is the only way anyone catches a photo of the man before he notices and turns them away.
Even Mina gets to show up in the SM credits! Although she's an accessory to Hapu's farming rather than getting her own shot. Somehow, I think she prefers it this way.
Guzma making absolutely sure he is being depicted as cool. While still consenting to be included in the Lillie delivery pack.
Then again, even Faba is here. Even if he clearly isn't happy about it. Look at him, both Bewear and Wicke keeping him exactly where he is.
Although Lusamine isn't shown, the fact that her Clefable and Bewear are in this picture suggests she's still home. Because the alternative is that Lusamine is leaving with Lillie and without her Pokemon- also known as the worst possible version of this already terrible idea.
Plumeria showing off the new, no-longer-Team-Skull outfit to two former Team Skull Grunts, although her Salazzle looks a lot more enthused about it than her. This whole plot point is shown off better in USUM, but Team Skull formally disbanded after the events of the story. I think they're still friends, though.
Remember way back when, when I pointed out Plumeria's crotch tattoo? As part of the "no longer Team Skull" design, she's got that removed. Probably a temp.
Gladion gets to join in the Lillie care package, as her brother and all. It's kinda nice, how his biggest problem these days is being eaten by his former instrument of destruction. At least that means he's done a good job rehabilitating it.
There's one last image standalone, and it gets a nice in-game shot. Lillie giving a personal goodbye to Nebby. That's clearly an old one, but this probably comes from the Altar of the Sunne? Lillie didn't add a personal goodbye to Nebby when she was on the pier.
...Come to think of it, why didn't she?
...Since this is front of Lillie's picture, I think we're meant to read it as a Lillie line, but considering this came from Hau's care package, I almost think it's Hau's message to Lillie.
This certainly doesn't make things any more obvious one way or the other. Sounds equally like another attempt at trying to force Hau/Lillie and one last heartfelt moment between Lillie and Bethany.
I'd ask if you're getting your money's worth out of "default font game title", but I'm worried the answer is yes.
The real very last shot shows Lillie getting an Island Challenge Amulet, and her true treasured photo- the photo Rotom Dex "accidentally" took in Hau'oli City. Using Bethany's default design- if you'll remember, this photo-op happened exactly before we got access to the first opportunity to change our outfit.
Does kinda take the wind out of our sails, to point out that Lillie's shot is remembering us as she first met us, rather than seeing us as we are.
And yes, we did have to watch all of that to save our progress. I remember most Pokemon games being polite and saving before the credits roll, but I could just as easily be misremembering.
Next time: Surprisingly, Ailey only needs one update, I think.
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