It's the mid-stage evolution for this Pokemon (Sprigatito being the first, and Meowscarada being the final, shown here). I like the design too, and I went with Sprigatito for my starting Pokemon in Violet.

#2 gets my vote too because Meowscarada is like mascarada/masquerade, so putting the mask on over its Floragato face makes a lot of sense.