Some cats spend their days napping in sunbeams and watching birds through the window. Leo has apparently chosen a much more demanding career path. With a little help from his mom, Ruby, Leo regularly transforms into characters from the world of Pokémon. Ruby creates the costumes, Leo supplies the face, and together they make a pretty convincing argument that perhaps Pokémon have been cats all along.
On Instagram, the pair appropriately go by Pokémon Baddies. And once Leo gets into costume, an ordinary cat can suddenly look ready to leave the living room and head straight into battle. From Umbreon to Bulbasaur, you’re never sure who Leo will become next!
Leo Has a Very Important Job
Ruby is the creative force behind Leo’s transformations, dreaming up Pokémon-inspired looks and then figuring out how to make them work on an actual cat. Leo’s responsibilities appear somewhat different because his main contribution is being Leo.
That turns out to be more than enough. Put the right handmade pieces around those whiskers, and suddenly there’s a tiny Pokémon staring back at the camera with exactly the kind of serious expression you’d expect from someone preparing for battle.
The costumes are especially fun because Ruby isn’t simply putting Leo into something she picked up at a store. She makes the pieces herself, tailoring them to her furry model and figuring out how to turn familiar Pokémon details into something that works on four legs.
Leo, meanwhile, has mastered the essential art of looking like none of this is particularly unusual. Perhaps after you’ve been transformed into enough Pokémon, another elaborate costume is simply another day at the office.
Then Leo Became Charizard
One of Ruby’s creations turns Leo into Charizard, complete with the character’s unmistakable orange head, wings and flame-tipped tail. If anyone looked at the finished costume and wondered how on earth she made it, Ruby has an answer for that, too.
She created an entire YouTube tutorial showing other pet parents how to make their own version. Better yet, the project starts with something considerably less magical than a Poké Ball: cardboard.
Ruby begins by freehanding Charizard’s wings onto cardboard before cutting, painting and outlining them. She admits getting the shape right took some trial and error, which somehow makes the finished Leo-sized transformation even more impressive.
And this isn’t a one-size-fits-all dragon situation. Ruby actually measured Leo’s back while constructing the piece that holds the wings, then measured his head so she could build the Charizard headpiece around those extremely important cat ears.
The Tiny Tail Might Be the Best Part
Of course, a Charizard costume wouldn’t be complete without a tail. Ruby rolls the material into shape, adds the colorful flame at the end and attaches it with twine so the finished tail trails behind the pet wearing it.
Once everything is assembled, the wings stick out from Leo’s back while the headpiece completes his transformation. Ruby ends her tutorial by revealing Leo fully dressed and “ready to go,” which feels like a reasonable warning to any nearby Pokémon Trainers.
The whole project involves cardboard, paper, paint or markers, scissors, tape, staples and twine. In Ruby’s hands, those basic craft supplies somehow become a costume worthy of a very tiny, very furry Charizard.
Leo Might Have the Best Closet of Any Cat
Charizard isn’t where the fun ends for Leo and Ruby. Their Pokémon Baddies account is built around Ruby’s creative Pokémon-themed transformations, with Leo serving as her wonderfully patient feline star.
There’s something inherently funny about seeing a cat transformed into a powerful fantasy creature while the unmistakable expression of “yes, I am still a cat” remains underneath. No matter how elaborate the costume becomes, Leo’s face keeps the whole thing grounded in feline reality.
That may be what makes the pair so entertaining. Ruby can add wings, tails, and all the Pokémon details she wants, but Leo still brings his own unmistakable energy to every transformation.
You Can Actually Make Leo’s Charizard Look at Home
Ruby didn’t keep the secrets of Leo’s fiery transformation to herself. Her step-by-step Charizard tutorial is designed so other people can adjust the measurements for their own pets, meaning Leo could theoretically inspire an entire army of tiny Charizards.
There is one important difference between following the tutorial and recreating the original, however. Cardboard, paint, and twine are easy enough to find, but every aspiring Pokémon costumer will still need a willing furry model.
Ruby already has hers, and Leo appears to have found his niche. Some cats chase bugs, some supervise laptops, and one very fashionable cat gets transformed into Pokémon while his mom teaches the internet how she did it.