Jynx

Jynx (known as Rougela in the original Japanese) is a fictional Pokémon.

Name origin

Jynx is a play on the English word "jinx." The reasoning behind this isn't immediately clear; it may be that she's styled after a Yuki-Onna (Snow witch of Japanese legend), or because her kiss puts people and Pokemon to sleep.

Rougela comes from "Rouge" and "la", actually meant "lipstick" in Japanese.

Controversy

Jynx's original design bore a striking, but likely coincidental, resemblence to entertainers in blackface. (Likely it was a parody of or homage to the Japanese ganguro fashion trend, which was popular when Pokemon was first released.) As Pokemon became more popular in the US, this similarity to a particularly racist image from America's past offended some. In response to this controversy, in 2002 Nintendo changed Jynx's hands and face from black to purple in Pokemon games, a change which would be reflected in the anime three years later in Pokémon Advanced Generation (AG).

Anime Appearances

Jynx made an appearance in the episode The Ice Cave, which was not aired in English-speaking countries, and in the episode Holiday Hi-Jynx, which isn't re-aired in English, both because of the above controversy. She later appears Pokémon Orange Islands series, in episodes still present in American rotations.

Her 13-second apperance in Pokemon AG episode 23 All Things Bright and Beautifly was cut out when the episode was localized for English-speaking countries. She later appears in episodes 116 and 117 of Pokemon AG, with the inoffensive purple skin color.