Quick Reads

The Mystery of the Dark-type Gym Leader

We’ve had Dark-type Elite Four members before. What about Gym Leaders?

It’s very interesting, really. Throughout all of Pokémon gaming’s history, we’ve had types for just about every single Gym Leader you can think of! That is… except the Dark-type.

What happened?

Truth be told, none of us really know. Even the most devout Pokémon gamers would give you a huge shrug as to why Dark-types keep getting the metaphorical cold shoulder as far as Gyms go. Something to consider though, is how we’ve had multiple Dark-type Elite Four members instead of Gym Leaders: Karen from Johto, Sidney from Hoenn, and Grimsley from Unova. So if we have had Dark-type Elite Four members in the past, then why is it that we haven’t had a Dark-type Gym Leader?

It’s certainly something worth pondering about. In future Pokémon games, are we ever going to see the presence of a Gym Leader, or something equivalent, that specializes in the Dark-type? For some, this may not be a huge deal; Game Freak will include the Dark-type when they see it necessary. This is definitely the logical approach, but since it’s been absent for six generations at this point, then who’s to say that it would be a thing in the future?

Are we going to have a Dark-type Trial Captain or a Dark-type Island Kahuna in Pokémon Sun and Moon? Well, who knows. At the time of writing, that information hasn’t been revealed yet. Perhaps it’ll be looked over this generation as it was in prior generations (hopefully not!). But one question remains to be asked: Will we ever see a Dark-type Gym Leader?

Edited by bobandbill, Nick Wilde, and Rivvon.