About

Smoliv is a small, Grass/Normal-type Pokémon set to appear in 2022's Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. After the Pokémon appeared in the games' June 2022 release date trailer, it developed a significant fandom online due to its diminutive size and highly-anxious expression.

Origin

Smoliv first appeared in the June 1st, 2022 trailer for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet (shown below)

According to the Pokémon Twitter account, "In the fruit on its head, Smoliv stores oil made from nutrients it gathers through photosynthesis. It prefers dry and sunny climates, and it seems to spend its days sunbathing."^[1]

Spread

Fans were drawn to the character's anxious expression, as fan art and memes relating to Smoliv appeared on Twitter shortly after the trailer was released. Many of them featured pre-existing memes related to the slang term "Smol." For example, user @pudumaro^[2] posted a Basically, I'm Very Smol meme with the character, gaining over 5,100 retweets and 31,000 likes (shown below, left). User @jupy314^[3] posted a meme making Smoliv the mascot of restaurant chain Olive Garden, gaining over 24,000 retweets and 126,000 likes (shown below, right).

Other popular pieces of fan art include a post by @wennchu_art^[4] that dubbed a bottle of olive oil "Smoliv Oil," gaining over 6,500 retweets and 31,000 likes (shown below, left). User @Norue67^[5] posted art of Smoliv and Sobble crying together, gaining over 25,000 retweets and 138,000 likes (shown below, right). The bevy of fan artwork and memes was covered by Polygon.^[6]

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References