Pokemon GO's Team Mystic leader, Blanche, whose gender has been a subject of curiosity for fans, has been a fixture since the game's launch. Team Mystic, which can be chosen alongside two other teams once you reach lvl. 5, has frequently been featured in news of battles with Team GO Rocket's leaders.

Specializing in Water- and Ice-types, Blanche is a leader many trainers look up to — so what is their gender identity? Let's take a look at Blanche as a character to find out.

What Is Blanche's Gender In Pokemon GO?

Firstly, it can be noted that English social media accounts and official news of the game have used they/them pronouns when referring to Blanche. In a 2019 Willow Report, Blanche is stated to become upset "when things don’t go to their carefully curated plans," which served as an early allusion to their gender identity. Additionally, in a tweet by the official Pokémon GO account, Blanche is referred to as "the Team Mystic leader" rather than with gendered pronouns.

However, some translations of the game refer to Blanche as female. Notably, the German version of Pokémon GO recently switched its vocabulary to refer to Blanche with a gender-neutral title rather than a female one during the Season of Heritage in 2021. While several other versions of the game give Blanche female titles, this was seen as a deliberate move to establish their gender identity.

Lastly, Blanche's Bulbapedia entry refers to their gender as "unknown," perhaps due to conflicting uses of titles and pronouns. Ultimately, developers of the game haven't officially confirmed what their gender identity exactly is, and players usually have depended on their specific language version of the game to decide.

This article was originally published on dbltap as What Is Blanche's Gender in Pokémon GO?.