Baoba

Baoba バオバ Baoba
Baoba in Pokémon Adventures
Gender	Male
Hometown	Unknown, possibly Fuchsia City
Region	Kanto, Johto
Relatives	Son, Granddaughter
Generation	I, III, and IV
Games	Red, Blue, Yellow, FireRed, LeafGreen, HeartGold and SoulSilver

Baoba (Japanese: バオバ Baoba) is a non-player character that first appeared in Pokémon Red and Blue. At that time, he was the owner and warden of the Kanto Safari Zone in Fuchsia City and was known simply as Safari Zone Warden. (Japanese: 園長 Park Head). He also used to be nicknamed Warden Slowpoke, due to his vacant look. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver it was revealed that the warden had built a new Safari Zone west of Cianwood City.

The warden has also appeared in the anime, where he was named Kaiser.

In the games

Baoba and Lyra

The warden plays the same role in each of Pokémon Red, Blue, Yellow, FireRed, and LeafGreen. He is first encountered in his house east of Fuchsia City's Pokémon Center. When spoken with, he can only mumble: the false teeth he wears have been lost deep in the Safari Zone. If they are returned to him, he will reward the finder with HM04 (Strength).

To encourage interest in the Safari Zone, the Warden runs a special promotion. Pokémon Trainers who are able to locate the Secret House at the far end of the Zone within the allotted step limit were given HM03 (Surf). This Hidden Machine is required to progress to Cinnabar Island.

The Warden cannot speak clearly without his false teeth.

The locals of Fuchsia City nicknamed him "Warden Slowpoke" because of his vacant look similar to that of a Slowpoke. Despite this, he's actually very knowledgeable about Pokémon. He takes care of all the Pokémon in the Safari Zone and Zoo, and has a large collection of Pokémon Fossils as well. The warden is good friends with Koga, the Gym Leader of Fuchsia City. Koga will sometimes patrol the Safari Zone as security.

Three years after the initial defeat of Team Rocket, Baoba closes the Safari Zone and goes traveling. In Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal the Safari Zone simply cannot be accessed; however, in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver a Pal Park is in its place. It is stated by Baoba's grandchild that Baoba's son runs the Pal Park. On his travels, Baoba decides to open a new Safari Zone in Johto; the site he chooses is at the northern end of Route 48. As part of the games' plot, the player will meet with Baoba on Route 39, who promises to inform the player as soon as the Safari Zone is open for business. He will call, announcing the opening of the Safari Zone, once Amphy the Ampharos of the Glitter Lighthouse has been healed.

Throughout the remainder of the game, Baoba will issue two challenges to the player: catch a Geodude in the Safari Zone and catch a Sandshrew in the Safari Zone. By completing these challenges, the Safari Zone will gradually become customizable, and the player will be able to arrange the six areas in any way he or she chooses. The amount and variety of Pokémon available will also change. Baoba will always call the player via the Pokégear to announce that these changes have been activated.

The signs outside his house remained the same throughout the first three generations, only changing significantly in Generation IV due to the replacement of the Safari Zone with Pal Park.

Generation I

Generation II

Generation III

Generation IV

Quotes

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Quotes from other games, earlier ones from HGSS

Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow

• If talked to before finding the Gold Teeth

"Hif fuff hefifoo! Ha lof ha feef ee hafahi ho. Heff hee fwee!"

No: "Ha? He ohay heh ha hoo ee haheh!"

Yes: "Ah howhee ho hoo! Eef ee hafahi ho!

• After finding the Gold Teeth

"Thanks, kid! No one could understand a word that I said. I couldn't work that way. Let me give you something for your trouble."

"HM04 teaches Strength. It lets Pokémon move boulders when you're outside of battle. Oh yes, did you find Secret House in Safari Zone? If you do, you win an HM! I hear it's the rare Surf HM."

• If talked to again

"HM04 teaches Strength. It lets Pokémon move boulders when you're outside of battle. Oh yes, did you find Secret House in Safari Zone? If you do, you win an HM! I hear it's the rare Surf HM."

Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver

Pokégear Call

• After giving Amphy the SecretPotion

"Oh hi, <player>! This is Baoba. Sorry to have kept you waiting! We've finally opened the Safari Zone! Do you know where it is? You know the Gate inside the cavern in Cianwood City? If you go through there and walk for a short while, you should soon see the Safari Zone! We're a little out of the way, but please come visit!"

• If called by the player

"Hello? Oh hi, <player>! The Safari Zone is now open! Come visit anytime! Do you know where it is? You know the Gate inside the cavern in Cianwood City? If you go through there and walk for a little ways, you should soon see the Safari Zone! Well, see you then!"

• If called by the player after the second challenge has been completed but prior to Baoba calling the player

"Hello? Oh hi, <player>! I'm trying to come up with a new way to play in the Safari Zone. If I come up with something, I'll be sure to give you a call!"

• Sometime after completing the second challenge

"Oh hi, <player>! This is Baoba. Sorry to have kept you waiting! I thought of a new way to play! It's called Object Arrangement! I'll give you more details as the Safari Zone. See you there!"

Sprites

		File:Baoba OD.png
Overworld sprite from Generation I	Overworld sprite from FireRed and LeafGreen	Overworld sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver

In the anime

Main article: Kaiser

The Safari Warden in the anime

The Safari Zone warden is known as Kaiser in the anime, because he had no official first name when his episode was made. He appeared in the thirty-fifth episode. He found a Dratini in the Safari Zone as a boy, but as a result of media hype surrounding the event the Dratini retreated into a lake and Kaiser resolved to protecting the Safari Zone and the Pokémon that live within it. Professor Oak states that he knows the warden well.

When Ash and his friends visit the Safari Zone, Kaiser acts violently because he fears they may harm the Pokémon within. He aims a gun at Ash, which led the episode to be banned worldwide. It has not been aired in any country other than Japan (leading to confusion in other parts of the world in how Ash obtained all of his 30 Tauros, which he caught in this episode, because every time he threw a Safari Ball, a group of Tauros would run in front of him).

In the manga

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Pokémon Adventures info

In the Pokémon Adventures manga

Baoba is the warden of the Kanto and Johto Safari Zones. In the original arc, he is unnamed and referred to simply as the Safari Warden. He owns a robotic Pidgey called Pidgebot which accompanies Red when he decides to play the Safari Game. After Red breaks the rules by catching a Safari Zone Pokémon with a normal Poké Ball, Baoba has to look for Red. He only does so in the next morning, and collapses in shock when Red shows Baoba his Safari Balls, all with Pokémon in them.

Baoba, still unnamed, makes a cameo in the FireRed & LeafGreen arc, seeing the stalling Team Rocket airship fly past Fuchsia towards Vermilion.

Baoba is finally named when he appears in the HeartGold & SoulSilver arc, opening Johto's new Safari Zone near Cianwood. Team Rocket General Petrel was able to disguise as Baoba to break free of Silver who had battled him there and was about to silence him.

In the Pokémon Zensho manga

The Safari Zone warden appears in the sixth chapter of Pokémon Zensho. His role in the manga follows the plot of Red and Blue: the warden loses his teeth in the Safari Zone and the protagonist, Satoshi, retrieves them. While he is searching for the teeth, Satoshi sees a Slowpoke, and is reminded of the warden.

Trivia

• The missing dentures the player must find is similar to the Ape Inc. RPG Mother, where the player must find the Healer's Dentures so people can understand him.

Names

This game character article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games.