Pikachu, Raichu, Pichu, Alolan Raichu

So unlike Charizard, I don’t hate the actual mascot of Pokemon. The electric mouse is definitely overhyped, but it’s like just inoffensive enough that I still sorta like it. I do remember that brief time before it became the face of the series, and I actually really liked its design then. It was the first pokemon you really had to hunt for, since it had a low percentage change of showing up in Viridian Forest, and it was exciting because it was the first Electric type you came across. Plus it was CHUBBY.

Oh wow their ears are fully disappearing into the background here. Anyway, I KNOW this is a pretty common opinion and I understand why they made the design more articulated as time went on, but the early design was just so cute.

I also like playing Pikachu in Smash Bros and Pokken Tournament - they’ve done a good job of making it have really fun movement in those games. Lucha Pika is also hilarious and the thought of a Masked Pikachu going up against Hawlucha (as a heel?) is so perfect.

I do think it suffers from just HOW many costumes and such it gets. I do not understand why Pikachu needs thirty different hats in Pokemon Go. But if people really do like it? I guess that’s fine. Just seems excessive.

Raichu unfortunately got a lot less love after the adoption of Pikachu as Grand Mascot, BUT it did also get the slimming treatment which is also a shame to me.

I do think Raichu is nicer to look at than Pikachu, colors-wise, but it is pretty obnoxious from a design standpoint. The black-tipped paws, the weird swirls on the ears, the giant LONG tail now? I really like it cuz it is a wild design for a rodent, but I can see why they stuck with the much simpler Pikachu for their mascot.

Also this is going to be a good example of how wild the ordering for these articles is gonna be, since I’m going in release order for the most part.

It doesn’t look like Pichu got slimmed down so we can rest easy on this one. This little homie was one of the first baby pokemon we ever saw, and it’s appropriately adorable. It hurts itself every time it uses electricity which is so pathetically cute. Pichu was also weirdly featured in Smash Bros and was so fun to play. It was a super tiny, mostly terrible fighter that hurt itself? But the psychic damage it inflicted on your opponent if you even got one stock off them made it all worth it. Pichu also weirdly started the trend of having a new electric pokemon each generation that looks like Pikachu. I think it’s cuter and more fun than our mascot tho.

Sun and Moon brought Alolan regional variants, and Raichu got some love all by itself. It is a reference to the surfing Pikachu that showed up in Pokemon Snap and Yellow Version, and it is Psychic type now. The only real reflection of its Psychic type in-game is that it can floating around on its surfboard tail and apparently shoots star shaped electricity which feels a little arbitrary, but is cool I guess. I like it a little less than regular Raichu but I don’t hate it.

Gigantamax Pikachu is RETVRN TO CHVBBY which is fun, but it’s not much more than that. The tail is more wild, so that’s cool. Yay a big, fat Pikachu.

The Pikachu line is pretty cute. Overrated? Sure, but it does still stand strong on its own merits. It’s not just a fire-breathing dragon. An electric mouse is interesting and captures that unique Pokemon-ness that are why I like this games creatures at all.