Donald Trump Arrives on the Internet as a New Pokemon Character?

By Peter Clarke, JD | Last updated on March 21, 2019

FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section on legal developments surrounding technology and the Internet.

The news reports lately have been grim in the wake of the Orlando massacre. And at the same time the Presidential candidates have been proclaiming that they each are best suited to combat terrorism going forward.

But, rather than delve into that morass, how about something on the lighter side for a moment? Let's talk about Pokemon characters, and how a newly introduced Pokemon character might bear a resemblance to one of the Presidential candidates whose initials are DT. We can thank a recent CNET article for bringing this to our attention.

As CNET points out, various Pokemon characters resemble animals or are inspired from "real life." Examples include Magikarp, which comes from the yellow rockfish. Another is Caterpie, which is derived from none other than the caterpillar.

And now comes Yungoos, just introduced last week. Yungoos appears to be inspired by the mongoose, at least in terms of its body. However, the head of Yungoos could be intended to resemble Donald Trump, according to CNET. Indeed, Yungoos' hair and teeth, in side by side comparisons, really do show a striking similarity to those of Mr. Trump.

The official Pokemon site talks about Yungoos like this: "It has strong fangs, so it can crush and consume the hardest of objects." Yungoos also "can deal twice the normal damage to any Pokemon that switch in or enter the field mid-battle." Hmm. Trump did crush his rivals from the GOP nomination ...

Not everyone agrees that Yungoos is best compared to Donald Trump. There has been the suggestion that Yungoos looks more like London Mayor Boris Johnson.

The mind reels ... We can only speculate as to whether Trump, who is clearly not one to shy away from litigation, has considered any legal action.

OK, so much for your light distraction. Plainly, the world has more urgent and pressing matters to address, but every once in a while we need a brief reprieve.

Eric Sinrod (@EricSinrod on Twitter) is a partner in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP, where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. You can read his professional biography here. To receive a weekly email link to Mr. Sinrod's columns, please email him at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com with Subscribe in the Subject line. This column is prepared and published for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author's law firm or its individual partners.

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