Rhydon is a large, gray, bipedal Pokémon with features of both dinosaurs and rhinoceroses. It has a cream-colored, drill-like horn on its snout, the female having a smaller horn than the male. There are other protrusions on the head as well, including a spike curving forward from the middle of its head, two triangular, point resembling ears to the sides of the spike, a wide, wavy crest under the ears, and spiky ridges on its cheeks. It has red eyes and two fangs protruding from its upper jaw. It has a cream-colored stomach and a row of spikes down its back. Rhydon has a long tail with skinny, black stripes.
Rhydon is a physically powerful Pokémon. It is recorded as being able to topple buildings with a sweeping blow of its tail, and its horn is able to bore through solid rock and shatter diamonds. Rhydon is protected from heat and physical blows by its armor-like hide. It is stated to be capable of passing unscathed through streams of magma and withstanding a direct blow from a cannonball without being harmed. However, because of this tough hide, it is insensitive. Rhydon has a well-developed brain, but can also be forgetful. It lives in rough terrain.
In the anime
Rhydon in the anime
Major appearances
Rhydon's first major role was in Riddle Me This, being one of Blaine's Pokémon. Blaine used a Rhydon against Ash during the first battle for Ash's Volcano Badge. While normally tough against electric attacks, Rhydon was defeated when Ash's Pikachu struck Rhydon's horn, which acted like a lightning rod. It reappeared in a flashback in Volcanic Panic and Bad to the Bone.
In Rock, Paper...Scizor, Blue captures a Rhydon outside the Viridian Gym. He uses it to defeat Chuck in Heckled by Hitmontop, as well as Orm in Don't Doubt Deoxys. Near the end of the FireRed and LeafGreen saga, Blue remarks on a footnote Giovanni included in his handbook: Rhydon possibly possessed a stronger form. This is a reference to Rhydon's new evolution, Rhyperior, an evolution that succeeded in occurring thanks to Silver's knowledge of Pokémon trading, resulting in the same Rhydon, as Rhyperior, being on hand with him until being returned to Blue later on.
Rhydon debuts in the Red, Green & Blue arc in its own round, Raging Rhydon, as Koga's Pokémon that is forced to evolve by its Trainer with a mysterious injection, being the first evolution shown in the manga due to Red's Poliwhirl and Blue's Charmander evolving off-screen at the time.
Later in Tauros the Tyrant a Team Rocket Grunt used a Rhydon in an attempt to catch Green.
In How Do You Do, Sudowoodo?Gold encounters a wild Rhydon during his race with Whitney. The Rhydon in question was hunting down a Sudowoodo hiding from it, and kidnapped Whitney when she interfered with her Miltank, breaking her arm in the process. Gold tells Sudowoodo to stand up for itself and, with assistance from his billiard cue, helps Sudowoodo defeat the Rhydon with a strong punch to the gut.
In the Pokémon Zensho manga
Giovanni's Rhydon was Satoshi's opponent for his final Gym battle. It went up against his Charizard and was defeated.
Rhydon's horn can crush even uncut diamonds. One sweeping blow of its tail can topple a building. This Pokémon's hide is extremely tough. Even direct cannon hits don't leave a scratch.
Rhydon has a horn that serves as a drill. It is used for destroying rocks and boulders. This Pokémon occasionally rams into streams of magma, but the armor-like hide prevents it from feeling the heat.
Rhydon's horn can crush even uncut diamonds. One sweeping blow of its tail can topple a building. This Pokémon's hide is extremely tough. Even direct cannon hits don't leave a scratch.
Rhydon has a horn that serves as a drill. It is used for destroying rocks and boulders. This Pokémon occasionally rams into streams of magma, but the armor-like hide prevents it from feeling the heat.
Ash's Pikachu fought Blaine's Rhydon in the anime and defeated it, despite it being a Ground-type immune to Electric attacks. Rhydon's horn also serves as a lightning rod which negates electric attacks as of the rules for the Pokémon effect. Since then, that battle has been brought up frequently in comparisons between the games and anime and has spawned the popular (albeit misquoted) Pokémon Internet meme, "Pikachu! Aim for the horn!"
Rhydon and its evolutionary relatives are the only Rock-type Pokémon that belong in the Field Egg Group.
Origin
It appears to draw much of its inspiration from a rhinoceros and some aspects of various dinosaurs, such as ceratopsids.
Name origin
Rhydon may be a combination of rhinoceros and don. Rhy may also derive from the igneous rock called rhyolite, alluding to Rhydon's Ground/Rock type combination. Don may mean lord in Latin—emphasizing it being the final evolution of its line pre-Generation IV—or tooth in Ancient Greek—as it is a suffix commonly used in dinosaur names, so it could be a reference to those prehistoric creatures as well.
Sidon is a combination of 犀 sai (rhinoceros) and don.