Celebi

The Time Travel Pokémon
#251 - Celebi
Debut	Pokémon: Gold Version Pokémon: Silver Version
Species Info
Type	+ +
Height	0.6 m (2'00")
Weight	5.0 kg (11.0 lbs.)
Color	Green
Gender Ratio	Genderless
Ability	Natural Cure
Hidden Ability
Egg Group	Unbreedable
Icon		Sprite
		File:251sprite.png
Footprint
30px
Base Statistics
Hit Points	100	Speed	100
Attack	100	Sp. Attack	100
Defense	100	Sp. Defense	100
Training Info
Catch Rate	045	Hatch Steps	30,720
Base Exp.	064	Effort Points	HP
Happiness	100		HP
To Lv.100	Slow		HP

Kanto #	Johto #	Hoenn #	Sinnoh #
< 251 >	< 251 >
Unova #	Johto (IV) #
	< 256 >

Celebi is the hidden Pokémon from the second generation games. Like the other hidden Pokémon, it is impossible to gain one in-game except in the Japanese version of Pokémon: Crystal Version (and a Japan-only Pokémon Colosseum bonus disk). The only legitimate way to acquire one is from a Nintendo representative, usually at some Nintendo event, although it was also made available for download over Nintendo Wi-Fi for the fourth generation games when the release of Pokémon: Black and White Versions neared.

Information

Celebi is a Pokémon with the ability to travel through time and is revered as the guardian of forests. Apparently, Celebi hails from the future. Whenever it goes deep into a forest, it is said to be bringing an egg from the future. Celebi wanders across the timestream and usually appears only in times of peace, and causes grass and trees to flourish when it is nearby. Celebi is often regarded as a sign of a bright and successful future. The sight of Celebi will cause a Pokémon to relive their fondest memory, and this process could instantly open the hearts of Shadow Pokémon and cure them.

Appearances

Mainstream Games

In Pokémon Crystal, Celebi will appear to the player after the GS Ball is placed in the shrine within the Ilex Forest. However, the GS Ball can only be obtained in the Japanese version of the game.

Other Games

Celebi appears in Pokémon Stadium 2 and Pokémon Colosseum. In the former game, Celebi appears as a Rental Pokémon in the R2 battles. In the latter game, Celebi played a large role with its ability to instantly purify Shadow Pokémon. This was due to the sight of Celebi triggering the Pokémon to experience its happiest memory. However, Celebi could only be summoned to the Relic Forest with the Time Flute. There were three Time Flutes in the game, and each could only be used to once (and Celebi would only purify one Pokémon after appearing). The Relic Forest also contained a Relic Stone which contained some of Celebi's power, and could purify Shadow Pokémon when the paths to their hearts were almost open. With a Japanese bonus disc, Celebi could be obtained (and traded any of the third generation color versions) after all of the game's Shadow Pokémon had been purified. It was also featured in the "Time Travel" e-Reader short. Celebi is found in Mr. Who's Den in Pokémon Trozei!. In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, Celebi is found at the end of the Pure Forest. Surprisingly, Celebi does not put up a fight and will immediately offer to join the player's rescue team. The hard part lies in reaching Celebi, as the Pure Forest must be completed using only one Pokémon that is reduced back to Level 1 without usage of any other Pokémon or items. In Pokémon Ranger, Celebi can be caught in Lyra Forest during the third event match, while in Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia it is found in Vien Forest after completing all 59 of the sidequests.

Celebi also takes on a storyline role in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness and Time, where a shiny Celebi was sought by the player, partner and Grovyle when they were trapped in the future, with the Celebi ultimately agreeing to return them to their time. As for recruiting Celebi, in Explorers of Time Celebi could only be found on the tenth floor of the Mystifying Forest after the player talked to Manaphy with the Secret Slab or Mystery Parts on them. In Explorers of Darkness, Celebi could only be obtained in Wonder Mail downloaded from Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. In Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs, Celebi once more plays a storyline role as it is the first boss battled in Cocona Village. It can send the player into the past as well as bringing certain Pokémon into the present if the player had correct Guardian Signs, and after the game was completed it could be captured (but could not join the party) at Rand's House. Celebi also appeared in PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure, where it could be challenged to a skill game at the PokéPark Entrance and could be befriended through Tangrowth's Swing-Along at the Haunted Zone.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• In the Super Smash Bros. series, Celebi appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Brawl as one of the Pokémon that could be summoned at random from the Poké Ball item. It was among the rarest Pokémon to appear, with the chances being one out of the total amount of Pokémon at the time (251 in Melee, 493 in Brawl), and its presence had to be unlocked in Melee by unlocking all characters/stages, completing all event matches and amassing over 5000 KOs. When summoned, like Mew, Celebi will simply appear and then fly away. Celebi's presence awards bonus points (and unlocks its trophy upon its first summoning) in Melee, while in Brawl, Celebi will leave behind three random trophies before flying away.
  • Celebi has also been represented by a trophy in Melee, a trophy and sticker in Brawl, a trophy in the 3DS game and a Legend-rank Support Spirit (with the Great Autoheal effect) in Ultimate. When fought against in a Spirit battle, Celebi's Spirit would possess Mewtwo and be battled in a stage covered in fog. Over the course of the battle, the Celebi-possessed Mewtwo would be able to gradually heal, while the player character would constantly receive damage from a flowery effect.

Other Media

• Celebi has made several appearances in the Pokémon anime, starting when it was featured in the fourth Pokémon movie. In that movie, it traveled forward in time from the past when attacked by a Pokémon hunter and brought the young Sammy with it. Ash and Sammy were able to earn its friendship and restore it at the Lake of Life, but the Masked Man pursued them. It captured Celebi with his Dark Ball which turned it into his evil slave, and he used Celebi to wreak destruction on the forest from within a monstrous wooden construct until Ash and Sammy were able to reach out to Celebi. Celebi than apparently died, but a swarm of Celebi from other times arrived and restored it. That Celebi than returned Sammy to his own time. Celebi also appeared in an episode of Pokémon Chronicles to help Richie change history and save a boy from dying. Celebi later appeared in one of the Battle Frontier episodes where it needed help from a Pokémon Ranger and was later featured again in the thirteenth movie, where it was hunted by a businessman and befriended a Zorua.
• Celebi has made occasional appearances in the Pokémon Adventures manga. First in the Gold/Silver/Crystal arc, Pryce's entire plan was centered around making a GS Ball from the feathers of Ho-Oh and Lugia so that he could use the ball to control Celebi and force it to take him back in time to save his beloved Lapras. However, Gold stops him within the time portal by having Pichu destroy the GS Ball, causing Celebi to abandon Pryce in the void of time. Celebi later made a surprise appearance at the end of the Ruby/Sapphire arc, where it was revealed that Brendan had caught it before he left Johto, but he never used it due to his hiding of his training skills. He releases it as a last-ditch effort at the end of the arc, and it succeeds in creating a slip in time which prevents Norman and Steven Stone from dying, as well as undoing most of the damage done by Team Aqua and Team Magma.

Trivia

• Celebi is available in a bonus disc available with preorder copies of Pokémon Colosseum, but in Japan only. The bonus disk was released in America, but contained Jirachi instead.
• Its name may be a play on "celestial" or possibly "cerebral", in reference to its psychic abilities. The second part of its name could be short for "being" (as in "celestial being") or possibly derived from "bii", the Japanese word for "beautiful".

See Also

• Mew
• Jirachi
• Manaphy