Buzzwole is one of the Ultra Beasts found in the post-game adventure and is known by the code name UB-02 Absorption. It is a bug and fighting-type Pokemon that resembles a muscular mosquito. As an Ultra Beast, Buzzwole can be caught after the events of the main game when the player is asked to assist the International Police, who have tracked Ultra Beasts under a secret division known as the UB Task Force. This is because the first reported sighting of Buzzwole occurs after the incident at Aether Paradise where President Lusamine forced Cosmog to create an Ultra Wormhole in order to travel to Ultra Space. Buzzwole is the second Ultra Beast that the player is instructed to catch and although the Ultra Beasts are not Legendary, they share characteristics with Legendary Pokemon: they all have unknown genders, they are in the Undiscovered egg group, they are scripted encounters, they have special battle music, they have at least three IVs of 31 and they have special Rotom Pokedex pages.
About Buzzwole
| First appearance in anime | Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon (A Mission of Ultra Urgency!) |
| First appearance in game | Sun and Moon |
| Region | Alola |
| Evolution | N/A |
| 1st Evo level | N/A |
| 2nd Evo level | N/A |
| Pokedex Entry | Buzzwole goes around showing off its abnormally swollen muscles. It is one kind of Ultra Beast. Although it's alien to this world and a danger here, it's apparently a common organism in the world where it normally lives. |
Buzzwole Base stats
| HP | 107 |
| ATTACK | 139 |
| DEFENCE | 139 |
| SP. ATTACK | 53 |
| SP. DEFENCE | 53 |
| SPEED | 79 |
| TOTAL | 570 |
Appearance
Buzzwole is an Ultra Beast resembling a muscular anthropomorphic mosquito with a small and flat head with a black ridge down the center. It has two black, spherical basal joints for its red and black antennae between its two red compound eyes. Buzzwole has a silver proboscis protruding from under these basal joints with bulging muscles all over its body that appear to be sacs full of a red fluid with small white bubbles inside. The muscles on Buzzwole’s chest and some of the muscles on its arms and waist have thin gray lines resembling tendons. There are three sacs on each of its arms, two on each of its legs, two on its chest, and several sacs on its shoulders and down its back. It has three rings of smaller sacs wrapped around its waist, four pointed legs, and large, five-fingered hands with red knuckles. There is also a small black spike on each side of its head, two small black spikes on each shoulder, one small black spike on each elbow, and one small black spike on each leg. Buzzwole has two pairs of pale orange wings with slightly darker veins on its back and the portions of its body between its muscles are dark red or black.
Behavior
As an Ultra Beast, Buzzwole is known to possess power that transcends humans' understanding of the world due to its origins in Ultra Space. Like other Ultra Beasts, they are drawn to people who have passed through an Ultra Wormhole, due to the residual wormhole energy these people possessed. Ultra Beasts tend to be combative due to their entrance into Alola being unexpected for the Ultra Beasts themselves. Buzzwole’s most notable feature is its ability to strengthen itself since it can absorb the foe's energy by stabbing its proboscis into them.
This attack then triggers a chemical reaction within its body fluids which then causes its muscles to grow at explosive rates, successfully increasing its already considerable strength. It strikes bodybuilding poses before it performs any sort of action and it is thought to be its main form of communication, though the actual message it is communicating is not known. Buzzwole is still surrounded in mystery, despite research being done by the Aether Foundation and the International Police's UB Task Force.
Strengths and Weaknesses
As an Ultra Beast, Buzzwole has high stats resembling those of a legendary Pokemon, with especially high physical attack and defence stats. Despite this, Buzzole’s special attack and special defence stats are pretty low. As a fighting and bug-type Pokemon, Buzzwole is weak to flying, fire, psychic, and fairy-types and resistant to fighting, ground, bug, grass, and dark-types.
Shiny Buzzwole
Shiny Buzzwole is a shiny version of Buzzwole which has lime green accents. Shiny Buzzwole is very rare, since it cannot be bred and is left completely up to chance. Like all shiny Pokemon, Shiny Buzzwole gains a starry animation upon entering battle.
Best moveset
Hammer Arm is a powerful STAB (same-type attack bonus) move which can grant a lot of physical damage, taking advantage of its physical bulk. Roost grants reliable recovery which keeps Buzzwole from being worn down. Finally Taunt and Earthquake both serve as reliable type coverage.
| Hammer Arm | Taunt |
| Roost | Earthquake |
How to catch Buzzwole in Pokemon Go?
Buzzwole is not yet available in Pokemon Go.
Trivia
- Buzzwole seems to be based on mosquitos and bodybuilders, specifically the invasive species, Aedes albopictus
- Buzzwole bears similarities to common superhero depictions in comic books, with the black portions of Buzzwole’s body resembling the shading in comic book illustrations which is meant to draw attention to a character's muscular physique
- Buzzwole has an effort value yield of 1 attack and 2 defense which is unique
- Buzzwole has the highest HP stat of any bug-type Pokemon
- Buzzwole is the heaviest of any bug-type Pokemon
- In its introduction game, Pokemon Sun and Moon, Buzzwole has a catch rate of 25 and a base experience yield of 114
- In version 1.0 of Pokemon Sun and Moon, Buzzwole's code name was spelled incorrectly in Japanese as (UBO2 Expansione), despite having been spelled correctly in pre-release material
- Buzzwole was designed by James Turner, the first Westerner to officially design Pokemon
- Buzzwole is a combination of the words buzz and swole (slang word for muscular)
- Buzzwole and Pheromosa are the only Ultra Beasts that share a type combination
- The base stats of the Ultra Beasts, and the levels at which they learn moves (except level 1) are all prime numbers and all Ultra Beasts except Poipole and Naganadel have a base stat total of 570
- The Ultra Beasts, along with the light trio (plus their pre-evolved forms Cosmog and Cosmoem) all share a unique sound frequency found within or after their cries, which is approximately 1.250 seconds in duration
- Buzzwole, Xurkitree, and Guzzlord's Ultra Sun Pokedex entries have exactly the same text, the only Pokemon with Pokedex entries identical to another Pokemon. The Pokedex entry reads as: "Although it's alien to this world and a danger here, it's apparently a common organism in the world where it normally lives."
- The Ultra Beasts are based on the idea of invasive species, according to Shigeru Ohmori in an interview in Pokemon Sun & Pokemon Moon: The Official Alola Region Pokedex & Postgame Adventure Guide
- Although the Ultra Beasts are not Legendary, they share characteristics with Legendary Pokemon: they all have unknown genders, they are in the Undiscovered egg group, they are scripted encounters, they have special battle music, they have at least three IVs of 31, and they have special Rotom Pokedex pages
- According to Pokemon Daisuki Club's Mystery File feature website, some researchers theorize that the Pokemon Unown may be related to Ultra Beasts
FAQs
Is Buzzwole a good Pokemon?
As an Ultra Beast, Buzzwole has high stats resembling those of a legendary Pokemon, with especially high physical attack and defence stats and generally high physical bulk.
What is Buzzwole weak to?
As a fighting and bug-type Pokemon, Buzzwole is weak to flying, fire, psychic, and fairy-types and resistant to fighting, ground, bug, grass, and dark-types.
Where is the Buzzwole in Pokemon Ultra Sun?
Buzzwole is a Pokemon Sun exclusive and can be found in the tall grass of Melemele Meadow. Two Buzzwoles can be found in this area.
Conclusion
Buzzwole is an Ultra Beast that also goes by the code name UB-02 Absorption, and is a bug and fighting-type Pokemon resembling a muscular mosquito. Like other Ultra Beasts, Buzzwole is based on invasive species, specifically the mosquito species, Aedes albopictus. Buzzwole is notable due to its high physical bulk and rare type combination, which both serve to make Buzzwole a useful addition to nearly any team.
