Malamar

Malamar poses a great threat in the NU metagame thanks to the combination of Contrary and Superpower, which allows it to boost its Attack and Defense stat while attacking. Malamar also has great coverage in Fighting / Dark, making it very hard to check for offensive and defensive teams alike. With investment, Malamar is capable of tanking a lot of strong special attacks such as Swellow's Boomburst and Magmortar's Fire Blast. On the downside, while Malamar's defensive typing leaves it with few weaknesses, it provides no resistances and only an immunity to Psychic-type moves, hindering its defensive utility; this is further compounded by Malamar's lack of physical bulk. Additionally, Malamar's Psychic / Dark typing leaves it vulnerable to common Bug-type moves such as Scyther's U-turn, Mesprit's Signal Beam, and Samurott's Megahorn.