Changes: Ash's Pikachu

Revision as of 19:50, 18 January 2021

Pikachu is the protagonist of the Pokemon franchise. He is Ash Ketchum's best friend and parnter. He travels everywhere with him and is always being captured by Jessie, James, and his arch-nemesis, Team Rocket's Meowth.

Attacks

Iron Tail
Quick Attack
Thunderbolt
Thundershock
Thunder
Volt Tackle

History

In the first episode of the Pokémon anime, Pokémon I Choose You! Ash woke up late the day he was supposed to go to Professor Oak's Laboratory to obtain his first Pokémon. When he arrived at the lab, the three available starter Pokémon, Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle, had already been taken by other Trainers who had arrived on time. Seeing Ash's disappointment, Professor Oak gave him Pikachu, who, at first, did not care at all for his new Trainer, constantly zapping him and anyone else nearby. He refused to go into his Poké Ball, and when Ash failed to catch a Pidgey, he laughed at him. However, by the end of the episode, Ash gained Pikachu's trust by protecting him from an attack by a flock of Spearow. Seeing this act of selflessness, Pikachu defended Ash from the Spearow as well and the two of them became inseparable friends, a moment that was capitalized on by catching a glimpse of an unknown Pokémon flying by. Ash then rushed to the next town in order to get Pikachu hospitalized quickly, as he had received multiple life threatening wounds in the fight.

In Pokémon Emergency! Ash managed to get to the Viridian City Pokémon Center just in time with the help of Officer Jenny, who scolded Ash for mistreating Pikachu. Nurse Joy agreed to heal Pikachu, and thanks to her, Pikachu managed to regain his health. At the end of the episode, Pikachu had regained enough of his strength to send Team Rocket blasting off for the very first time.

Pikachu participated in Ash's first Gym battle with Brock in Showdown in Pewter City. He faced Onix, but his Electric type attacks were ineffective. Onix then started binding Pikachu. Seeing no other option, Ash forfeited. Ash and Pikachu later trained with Flint in order to increase the strength of Pikachu's Electric moves. Ash later challenged Brock to a rematch, where Pikachu managed to defeat Brock's Geodude thanks to his training. Pikachu then faced Onix again. Onix was able to Bind Pikachu once again, but this time Pikachu's Electric attacks dealt quite some damage. However despite their training, Pikachu was still unable to defeat Onix, who was tightening its grip on Pikachu. As Ash was about to forfeit again. Pikachu's Thunderbolt managed to turn on the gym's sprinkler system, severely harming Onix. As Ash was about let Pikachu finish Onix off, Ash was stopped by Brock's siblings and Ash decided to forfeit again. Despite Ash forfeiting the match, Brock still gave him the Boulder Badge.

Pikachu's next major battle was against Lt. Surge's Raichu in Electric Shock Showdown. Lt. Surge laughed at Ash for attempting to defeat his Raichu with its pre-evolved form, angering Ash and Pikachu. Pikachu started off using Thunder Shock which seemed to do nothing to Raichu. Raichu then used its own Thunder Shock, which was much more powerful than Pikachu's attack, and dealt much damage. Following advice from Brock, Ash tried recalling Pikachu and forfeit. Pikachu however was determined to defeat Raichu and kept fighting. While trying to attack, Pikachu got overwhelmed by Raichu's Mega Punch and Mega Kick and was finally defeated by a powerful Thunderbolt. Due to all the damage he had taken during the battle Pikachu had to be hospitalized. Later in the episode, Ash offered to let Pikachu evolve into a Raichu with the Thunder Stone that Nurse Joy had given him. However, Pikachu refused, wanting to defeat Raichu on his own terms.

Later Ash challenged Lt. Surge for a rematch, where Pikachu once again faced Raichu. Trying to get close, Pikachu got smacked to the ground by Raichu's tail, followed up by repeating hits from its tail. Raichu then hit Pikachu hard with Body Slam. As Raichu was about to finish Pikachu off with another Body Slam, Pikachu managed to get up and dodge it. Ash soon found out that since Raichu was evolved so early, it did not learn any of the moves that it could only learn in the Pikachu stage, such as Agility and Quick Attack. Through Pikachu's use of these moves, Pikachu managed to gain the upper hand and dodge Raichu's attacks. Raichu responded with an extremely powerful Thunderbolt attack that Lt. Surge was sure could defeat Pikachu. Pikachu however used his tail as an anchor to absorb the shock. Raichu tried using Thunderbolt again but due to its previous attack it had run out of electricity. Raichu then tried to hit Pikachu with aTake Down, but was out-sped by Pikachu's Quick Attack. Pikachu then used his tail to slam Raichu and defeat it, earning Ash the Thunder Badge.

In Abra and the Psychic Showdown Pikachu was sent out to battle against Sabrina's Abra. It proved to be a tough foe, using Teleport to avoid Pikachu's Thunder Shock. Abra then suddenly evolved into Kadabra, making it much stronger. Pikachu tried filling the battlefield with lightining to prevent Kadabra from using Teleport, but Kadabra countered with Confusion to send the attack back at Pikachu. Kadabra then used Psychic to control Pikachu's body and started to repeatedly smash Pikachu to the ceiling and back down. Unwilling to see his friend suffer even more, Ash forfeited the match. In Ash's rematch with Sabrina inHaunter versus Kadabra, Pikachu selflessly fought Kadabra, since Haunter didn't show up and his other Pokémon were too terrified. Pikachu used Thunder Shock, which Kadabra avoided using Teleport. After taking a hit from Kadabra's Psybeam, Pikachu unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt which dealt major damage to Kadabra. Kadabra however quickly used Recover negating the damage it had taken. At that moment Haunter appeared and made Sabrina and Kadabra laugh. This gave Ash the win as well as earning the Marsh Badge.

In Pikachu's Goodbye, Ash and his friends ran into another group of Pikachu, which was a very rare find. Pikachu tried to make friends with the other Pikachu, but received a lukewarm response. After saving a baby Pikachu from falling down a waterfall, Ash's Pikachu was accepted by the group. Ash was overjoyed by this at first, but soon began to feel sad because he thought that Pikachu would be better off with the rest of his kind. After stopping Team Rocket from poaching his Pikachu and the wild Pikachu, Ash decided it was best to leave Pikachu behind with the others. Pikachu refused to leave Ash, however, and quickly ran to catch up with him, followed by the wild Pikachu, who supported Ash and Pikachu being together.

In Riddle Me This, Pikachu was Ash's last Pokémon in Ash's seventh Gym battle, where he faced off against Blaine's Rhydon. Pikachu used his fast movements to dodge Rhydon's Fury Attack and then used Thunderbolt, which was ineffctive. Despite being immune to electric moves, Rhydon was defeated when Pikachu aimed his Thunderbolt attack at the horn on Rhydon's head. Pikachu then facedBlaine's Magmar. Pikachu tried dodging Magmar's Fire Punch the same way it had dodged Rhydon's Fury Attack, but got hit. Pikachu then tried hitting Magmar with an electric attack but it proved to be ineffective due to Magmar's Air Lens ability, which heats the air surrounding Magmar making electric attacks ineffective. Magmar then attacked with a series of Fire Punches driving Pikachu to the edge of the battlefield. Magmar then unleashed its Fire Blast, which managed to push Pikachu back and almost caused him to fall of the battlefield in the lava. Ash then decided to forfeit the match.

In The Battle of the Badge, Ash had Pikachu attack Team Rocket and their Pokémon after they sent out Arbok and Weezing to attack during their Gym battle. Using Thunderbolt, Pikachu hit all the opposing Pokémon at once, causing Machamp, Rhydon and Kingler to run away in fear and defeating Arbok and Weezing. Later, after Team Rocket got blasted off, Ash got the Earth Badge.

Pikachu made friends with another Pikachu, named Puka, in The Pi-Kahuna. This particular Pikachu had blue eyes and was an excellent surfer. Ash and his friends had to save both Pikachu when Team Rocket tried to steal them both.

Ash used Pikachu many times during the Indigo League. In Fire and Ice , Pikachu fought against Pete Pebbleman's powerful Arcanine. Pikachu started off using Agility to confuse Arcanine, but this strategy was countered by Arcanine by melting the ice field using its Fire Blast, which caused to whole battlefield to be one big pool of water. Pikachu, however used this to his advantage by using the water to conduct his electricity and managed to defeat Arcanine with Thunderbolt.

In The Fourth Round Rumble he fought against Jeanette Fisher's Bellsprout, who already had defeated Ash's Bulbasaur. Pikachu tried using Thunder Shock, but Bellsprout dodged and used Razor Leaf. Managing to avoid Razor Leaf, Pikachu used Thunderbolt, but was ineffective since Bellsprout used its roots to conduct the electricity to the ground. Despite trying his best, he was easily defeated by the skilled Pokémon's Slam.

Pikachu later faced off against Happy, Ritchie's Butterfree, in Friend and Foe Alike. Despite being exhausted from battling Team Rocket earlier, he still wanted to participate in the battle. Pikachu started off with Double Edge, knocking Butterfree to the ground. As Butterfree tried flying up, Pikachu held on to it and defeated the Butterfly Pokémon with a Thunderbolt. He then faced off against Zippo, Ritchie's Charmander, but due to being exhausted by all his battles, Pikachu was quickly overwhelmed by Charmander's Flamethrower and was knocked out by its Tackle.

Ash decided to take Pikachu, along with his other Pokémon, to the Orange Archipelago with him.

Errors

In EP009 When Giselle is telling Ash how Pikachu should be kept in a Poké Ball, there is a close up of Pikachu; during this, Pikachu says its name, but its mouth does not move.

In EP009 When Giselle is laughing after telling Ash about Pikachu, Pikachu jumps between Ash and Misty and Starmie's leg from the star on its back is missing.

Trivia

Pikachu is Ash's only Electric type Pokémon and was the only Electric type owned by a main character in the anime until the capture of Pachirisu by Dawn.
For DP013, Professor Oak's lecture is about Ash's Pikachu. He writes this Pokémon senryū about him: パートナー　サトシとピカチュウ　いいかんじ Partners Satoshi and Pikachu a pleasant feeling.
Pikachu was the first of Ash's Pokémon to habitually disobey him. Other Pokémon that would do so, and are better remembered for their disobedience than Pikachu, are Primeape and Charizard.
Pikachu is the second Pokémon in the entire anime series to have managed to defeat a Legendary Pokémon, which he did by defeating Brandon's Regice in Pace - The Final Frontier!.
- Pikachu is also the only Pokémon in the entire series that has been able to defeat two Legendary Pokémon, being able to take out Brandon's Regice in Pace The Final Frontier! and Tobias's Latios in The Semi-Final Frontier! although in the latter case, it was a sacrificial win, as Pikachu knocked himself out in the process.
In Where No Togepi Has Gone Before! it was confirmed that Pikachu is male. His physical appearance could not be used as proof, since gender differences were not implemented until after he had debuted in the anime.
- Pikachu's gender had already been assumed male in the dub, where male pronouns such as he were used to refer to Pikachu. To a lesser extent, his gender was also previously implied in the Japanese versions, specifically in Island of the Giant Pokémon where he used masculine pronouns, and in The Battle of the Badge, where Brock referred to Ash and Pikachu as being those guys when touched by their loyalty.
  - There were also non-verbal hints as early as Princess vs. Princess, where Pikachu was seen carrying one of the packages immediately after the narrator mentioned that the males during Princess Day are relegated to carrying the packages.
- Pikachu's gender was also assumed male in the English translation of the Ash and Pikachu manga, in which Ash and other characters refer to Pikachu with male pronouns.
- The first time Pikachu's gender difference was pointed out was in Beauties Battling for Pride and Prestige! where Pikachu was disguised as a female by sticking a heart shaped piece of paper on his tail.
Pikachu is the only Pokémon of Ash's to be used in every Gym battle in a region.
In Latin America, Cartoon Network has a Biografía Toon Toon Biography segment, which consists of biographies and histories of cartoon characters. This segment has done a two part feature on Ash's Pikachu. According to the segment, Pikachu is the result of an experiment conducted by Professor Oak and allegedly destroyed the lab where he was created in a momentary loss of control.
An Elite Coverup! has been the only time when Ash does not use Pikachu against an Elite Four member.
Pikachu seems to have a talent for mimicking Pokémon, as seen from his performance during the Pokémon Dress-Up Contest. He will occasionally use pantomime to specify what he is talking about. He can contort his face and his ears to imitate Ash, his Turtwig, or Wobbuffet, among others. This capability of Pikachu's was also featured during part of the credits of Gotta Dance.
Pikachu is the first evolved Pokémon Ash obtained, although at the time Ash obtained Pikachu, he did not yet have a pre-evolved form.
Pikachu is Ash's only Pokémon capable of evolving by use of an evolutionary stone, not counting Snorunt who could not evolve through use of an evolution stone at the time of its capture and normal evolution.
Pikachu didn't learn any moves in the Diamond And Pearl series.
Pikachu is the first Pokémon in the anime to defeat a Mega Evolved Pokémon without Mega Evolving, defeating Korrina's Lucario in Showdown at the Shalour Gym!.
As Pikachu hates being in his Poké Ball, it is rarely ever seen, with a known total of only five confirmed appearances throughout the whole series flashbacks not included. These being in Pokémon I Choose You!, Showdown in Pewter City, A Corphish Out of Water! Breaking Titles at the Chateau!, and A Frenzied

@@ Line 69: / Line 69: @@
 Electroweb Trampoline
+High-speed Iron Tail
-High-speed Iron Tail|clones = [[Pikatwo]]|killed = [[Mirage Mewtwo]]|nation = [[Kanto Region]]|tournament = [[Alola Pokémon League]]|title1=|image1=|caption1=|image2=|caption2=|adopted=|age=|archenemy=|chick_magnet=|children=|counterparts=|dimensions_traveled=|dude_magnet=|equipment=|clan/family=|future_life=|genius_iq=|home_planet=|in-laws=|legal_guardian=|love_interests=|martial_art_styles=|nicknames=|parents=|past_lifes=|row39=|planets_visited=|race=|rank=|relatives=|religion=|rival=|alma_matter=|siblings=|skills=|spouse=|step_family=|students=|powers=|teachers=|teams=|team_mates=[[Ash Ketchum]]|war=|weakness=|weapons=}}'''Pikachu''' is the protagonist of the ''Pokemon ''franchise. He is Ash Ketchum's best friend and parnter. He travels everywhere with him and is always being captured by [[Jessie]], [[James]], and his arch-nemesis, [[Team Rocket's Meowth]].
+Iron Tail|clones = [[Pikatwo]]|killed = [[Mirage Mewtwo]]|nation = [[Kanto Region]]|tournament = [[Alola Pokémon League]]|title1=|image1=|caption1=|image2=|caption2=|adopted=|age=|archenemy=|chick_magnet=|children=|counterparts=|dimensions_traveled=|dude_magnet=|equipment=|clan/family=|future_life=|genius_iq=|home_planet=|in-laws=|legal_guardian=|love_interests=|martial_art_styles=|nicknames=|parents=|past_lifes=|row39=|planets_visited=|race=|rank=|relatives=|religion=|rival=|alma_matter=|siblings=|skills=|spouse=|step_family=|students=|powers=|teachers=|teams=|team_mates=[[Ash Ketchum]]|war=|weakness=|weapons=}}'''Pikachu''' is the protagonist of the ''Pokemon ''franchise. He is Ash Ketchum's best friend and parnter. He travels everywhere with him and is always being captured by [[Jessie]], [[James]], and his arch-nemesis, [[Team Rocket's Meowth]].
 ==Attacks==