Ash's Pikachu

Ash's Pikachu サトシのピカチュウ Satoshi's Pikachu

Ash's Pikachu

Debuts in Pokémon - I Choose You! Caught at Pallet Town Gender Male Ability Static Current location With Ash

This Pokémon has not evolved.

Voice actor Japanese English As Pikachu Ikue Ohtani Ikue Ohtani Rachael Lillis*

Ash's Pikachu (Japanese: サトシのピカチュウ Satoshi's Pikachu) is the first Pokémon obtained by Ash on his journey as a Pokémon Trainer.

In the anime

History

Ash and Pikachu meeting for the first time

Original series

Kanto

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 selflessnes, 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. It faced Onix, but since his Electric-type attacks were ineffective, 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's Thunderbolt attack managed to turn on the gym's sprinkler system, severely harming Onix. 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. Raichu's Electric moves did prove to be overwhelming for Pikachu, and he 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. In Ash's rematch with Lt. Surge, Pikachu once again struggled. However, 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, it managed to gain the upper hand. Raichu responded with an extremely powerful Thunderbolt attack that Lt. Surge was sure could defeat Pikachu. Luckily, Pikachu used his tail as an anchor to absorb the shock, and used its 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 move. After a period of intense battling, Abra evolved into Kadabra, making it much stronger. In the end Pikachu was defeated. In Ash's rematch with Sabrina in Haunter versus Kadabra, before Haunter showed up, Pikachu selflessly fought Kadabra, only to struggle again. Pikachu learned how to punch, taught by Ash in The Punchy Pokémon.

Pikachu's Poké Ball, with a lightning bolt mark, at Professor Oak's Laboratory

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 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 faced off against Blaine's Rhydon for his seventh gym badge. Despite being immune to Electric moves, Rhydon was defeated when Pikachu aimed his Thunderbolt attack at the horn on Rhydon's head. Pikachu briefly faced Blaine's Magmar, but was recalled when Magmar almost pushed Pikachu in the lava below.

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 managaed to defeat Arcanine. In The Fourth Round Rumble he fought against Jeanette Fisher's Bellsprout, who already had defeated Ash's Bulbasaur, and despite trying his best, he was easily defeated by the skilled Pokémon.

Pikachu later faced off against Richie's Butterfree in Friend and Foe Alike where it managed to defeat it with a Thunderbolt attack. It then faced off against Zippo. Richie's Charmander, but due to being exhausted by battling Team Rocket earlier Pikachu was quickly overwhelmed by Charmander's Flamethrower and was knocked out.

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

Orange Archipelago

In Pikachu Re-Volts, Butch and Cassidy used a Drowzee to take over the minds of many Pokémon on Mandarin Island North, including Pikachu. In order to rescue the Pokémon, Ash taunts Pikachu into using Thunderbolt on him, which then hits the machine that Drowzee is wired to, freeing all of the Pokémon from its grasp.

In Navel Maneuvers, Ash called on Pikachu to help mold a block of ice into a sled, as part of his competition against Danny. It later rode in the sled along with Bulbasaur and Squirtle in a race against Danny and his team. In the end, Ash managed to win the coveted Sea Ruby Badge.

In Misty Meets Her Match, Pikachu participated in the first part of Ash's battle with Rudy, using his Thunderbolt to blast targets. He then faced off against Rudy's Electabuzz. Pikachu fought well, but was defeated after being hit with a powerful Thunder Punch.

In the following episode, Team Rocket hatched a plan to capture Pikachu that involves tying him up with Meowth. This succeeds at first, but Meowth and Pikachu get sepreated from Jessie and James. In the end, the two Pokémon have to work together to defeat powerful Pokémon on the island and get to safety. Ash, Misty and Tracey manage to find the duo first, and separate them.

In Pokémon Double Trouble, Pikachu was used in Ash's gym battle against Luana, where it had to fight alongside Charizard. Although Pikachu and Charizard didn't work well together at first, they eventually worked together and managed to defeat Luana's Alakazam and Marowak, winning Ash the Jade Star Badge.

In Hello, Pummelo!, Pikachu was Ash's first Pokémon used in his battle against Drake, where it faced off against Drake's Ditto. Despite Ditto being able to copy Pikachu's attacks, it wasn't in good shape as Pikachu and so Pikachu managed to defeat it. Later Pikachu faced off against Drake's powerful Dragonite, who already had defeated three of Ash's Pokémon. After getting hit by Dragonite's tail, he was attacked by a Hyper Beam. Pikachu however managed to jump on Dragonite's head by using his tail as a spring board to dodge the attack and finally defeat it with a powerful Thunder, earning Ash the Orange League Trophy and a spot in the Orange League Hall of Fame.

In The Rivalry Revival, Pikachu was used against Gary's Eevee, but was easily defeated by the Evolution Pokémon without landing a single hit. Later in the episode Ash decided to take Pikachu, along with many of his other Pokémon, to Johto with him.

Johto

In The Double Trouble Header, Ash used Pikachu in his second battle against Casey, where he faced her Chikorita. Despite Casey having only recently obtained Chikorita, it quickly gained the upper hand. The battle got interrupted by Team Rocket however.

In Fighting Flyer with Fire, Pikachu was used in Ash's gym battle against Falkner, where it quickly defeated Falkner's Hoothoot. Pikachu then faced Falkner's Dodrio. Dodrio showed to be as fast as Pikachu and having good jumping abilities. Pikachu eventually managed to defeat it with a super-effective Thunder. Pikachu briefly faced Falkner's Pidgeot, but as he was already tired from his previous matches he was quickly defeated.

In Gettin' The Bugs Out, Ash used Pikachu as his third Pokémon in his Azalea Gym Battle, he went up against Bugsy's Metapod. Metapod used its jumping ability to jump high and use Tackle, although Pikachu dodged, it created a dust cloud and used the leaves of a nearby tree to make Pikachu unable to see it. Pikachu however managed to spot Metapod by using his hearing and after dodging a series of Tackles Pikachu managed to jump on Metapod's back and defeated it with Thunderbolt. He then went up against Bugsy's last and most powerful Pokémon, Scyther. Despite Pikachu having the type-advantage his Thunderbolt attacks constantly missed, because of Scyther using Double Team. The real Scyther then appeared behind Pikachu and hit him with Fury Cutter, with each Fury Cutter doubling in battle causing Pikachu to be knocked out.

In A Goldenrod Opportunity, Pikachu faced off against Whitney's powerful Miltank, but he was unable to stand up against Miltank's Rollout and was quickly defeated, causing Ash to lose the battle. In the following episode, Pikachu battled Miltank again in Ash's rematch against Whitney. Thanks to Ash's strategy, Pikachu managed to defeat Miltank by throwing her in the air and finished it off with a Thunderbolt.

Pikachu befriended a bunch of Pichu in The Apple Corp!. At first they framed Pikachu into eating apples, while they actually ate them. When the Pichu were attacked by a Fearow, Pikachu scared the Fearow off with a Thunderbolt. Later Pikachu's electricity was sucked away by Team Rocket and got kidnapped. The Pichu eventually managed to restore Pikachu's electricity and together they blasted Team Rocket off.

In From Ghost to Ghost, Pikachu was used in Ash's gym battle against Morty, where it faced off against Morty's Gastly. Pikachu managed to hit Gastly with a Quick Attack after Ash had Noctowl use Foresight earlier in the match. Despite this Gastly used its great speed to dodge Pikachu's Thunderbolt and defeated him with a single Night Shade.

In Fight for the Light!, Pikachu was sent out to battle Janina's Onix. The match was interrupted by Jasmine.

In Machoke, Machoke Man!, Ash chose Pikachu as his first Pokémon in his gym battle against Chuck. Pikachu battled Chuck's Poliwrath and managed to hit it with a super-effective Thunderbolt. Despite this Poliwrath was still standing and after absorbing a Quick Attack with its muscled body it hit Pikachu hard with a series of Double Slap attacks, knocking Pikachu out.

In Nerves of Steelix!, Ash sent out Pikachu to battle Jasmine's Magnemite. Both Pokémon proved to be equal in speed by constantly dodging each other's attacks. Finally Ash decided to let Pikachu take a Thunder Wave from Magnemite so Magnemite could get hit by a Thunderbolt, causing a lot of damage. After dodging another attack from Magnemite, Pikachu finished it off with a Quick Attack, crashing it into a wall. Next Pikachu faced off against Jasmine strongest Pokémon Steelix. Due to his previous battle against Magnemite Pikachu was tired and was quickly defeated by a powerful Iron Tail.

In As Cold as Pryce, Pikachu was seen aiding Cyndaquil in reviving Pryce's Piloswine. In the following episode, Nice Pryce, Baby!, Pikachu was sent out to battle Piloswine, who already had defeated Ash's Cyndaquil. Due to the icy field Pikachu constantly slipped causing his Agility to be ineffective and almost unable to avoid Piloswine's attacks. Ash then got the idea to use the ice pillars to change Pikachu's direction while sliding on the ice. Using this tactic Pikachu gained a big amount of speed and slid under Piloswine giving him the opportunity to hit Piloswine hard with Thunder. Piloswine then started to use Rest in order to return to full health. Pikachu tried to finish it off with a Quick Attack, but was too late and got hit hard by a Take Down. Pikachu was still able to battle and countered Piloswine's next Take Down with a Quick Attack and hit it with Thunder. This caused the ice under Piloswine to break causing Piloswine to fall into the water. Pikachu then hit Piloswine with Thunderbolt which caused massive damage due to Piloswine's wet fur. Despite this Piloswine was still standing and constantly hit Pikachu with Fury Attack. Seeing no other option to escape Pikachu used a close-range Thunder causing a massive explosion. Pikachu got knocked down while Piloswine still seemed to be able to battle. Pikachu still managed to stand up and as he was about to attack again Pryce threw in the towel resulting into a T.K.O., giving Ash the win and earning him the Glacier Badge

In Great Bowls of Fire!, Pikachu helped calming down the rampaging Dragonite that belonged to the old Blackthorn Gym Leader. In the next episode, Pikachu was used in Ash's last Johto Gym Battle against Clair's Gyarados. Despite the double type advantage Gyarados proved to be quite a match for Pikachu, using its Dragon Breath to block Pikachu's electric attacks. After getting hit by a Hydro Pump, Pikachu got wrapped by Gyarados. This however allowed Pikachu to hit Gyarados hard with a Thunderbolt. Gyarados quickly managed to recover and launched a barrage of Bite attacks, causing Pikachu to get cornered. As Clair was ready to finish the battle with a close-range Hydro Pump, Ash had Pikachu use Agility to get onto Gyarados's Hydro Pump, and defeated the Atrocious Pokémon with a Thunderbolt. Clair then sent out her Dragonair to battle Pikachu, who managed to dodge Pikachu's attacks and knock him out with a point-blank Hyper Beam.

In A Claim to Flame!, Pikachu was used by Ash in the Athlete's Round of the Silver Conference against Salvador and his Furret. Furret proved to be a tough opponent by repeatedly using Dig to confuse and attack Pikachu. Eventually Pikachu managed to grab onto Furret's back and as it dove back into one of its holes, Pikachu unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt and finally finished the match with a Quick Attack.

Pikachu was used again in Tie One On!, where he faced off against Jackson's Azumarill. Azumarill started off using Water Gun. Pikachu evaded this attack using Quick Attack and reversed to hit Azumarill, which it nearly dodged. After a collision of Thunderbolt and Bubble Beam, Pikachu got hit by Icy Wind. Azumarill then hit Pikachu with Iron Tail, but Pikachu managed to hold on its tail and launched a super-effective Thunder knocking out Azumarill. Next Pikachu go up against Jackson's Shiny Magneton. After exchanging hits from each other's Thunderbolt, Magneton dodged Pikachu's Quick Attack and stunned Pikachu with Thunder Wave before defeating him with Tri Attack.

In Playing with Fire!, Pikachu was Ash's first Pokémon used in his battle against Harrison. Pikachu battled Harrison's Kecleon, which used its Color Change Ability to hide itself in the tall grass while hitting Pikachu with its tongue. Eventually Pikachu managed to grab Kecleon's tongue and defeated it with Thunderbolt. Harrison then sent out his Sneasel. Sneasel managed to avoid Pikachu's Thunderbolt and defeated him with a single Metal Claw.

After saying farewell to Misty and Brock in Gotta Catch Ya Later!, Ash decided to only take Pikachu with him to Hoenn and left Pallet Town with him at the end of the episode. In the the following episode, while getting ready to depart for Hoenn by ship, Ash and Pikachu got attacked by Team Rocket, who used an electromagnet to stick Pikachu to it and drain his electricity. Eventually Pikachu got saved thanks to the help of some wild Pokémon and Officer Jenny. The next day Ash tries to wake Pikachu up, but soon he sees Pikachu is suffering from a severe illness caused by the electromagnet.

Advanced Generation series

Hoenn

Pikachu performing in a Pokémon Contest

In Get the Show on the Road!, Ash was willing to take Pikachu for some help in taking care of the illness. Professor Birch takes Pikachu in to the lab. Even though they were able to strap him to the machine to drain out the overload electricity it received, the machine exploded as the electricity levels were too high. Eventually, when Team Rocket arrived for Pikachu, the mecha they used accidentally cured him of his illness and Pikachu was able to blast them off, destroying May's bike in the process.

In No Place like Hoenn, Ash used Pikachu in an unofficial one vs one Gym Battle against Norman, since Ash only had one Pokémon at the time instead of the three required, Norman sent out his Vigoroth, and both were intimidated by it. Vigoroth hit Pikachu with Scratch, and then it hit him again with another after dodging one, Pikachu used Quick Attack but this was dodged and he was hit with Scratch. Pikachu used multiple Thunderbolts, all of which were dodged, he then successfully hit Vigoroth with Quick Attack, Vigoroth used Scratch again and he was then defeated by another Scratch. After their match, Team Rocket tried to steal Pikachu and Vigoroth but accidently stole Torchic. After using Thunderbolt to get rid of Weezing's Smokescreen, Pikachu accidentally hits Max in the process. Later they chased Team Rocket and he helped defeat them and rescue Torchic.

In The Winner by a Nosepass, Pikachu battled Roxanne's Geodude and Nosepass and wins earning Ash the Stone Badge. Also in the process, Pikachu masters Iron Tail.

In Watt's with Wattson?, Pikachu was used in Gym Battle against Wattson. But due to Pikachu being overcharged by that Robot Raikou, he easily overpowers Wattson's Voltorb, Magnemite and Magneton.

In Cheer Pressure, he was used to battle Jessie's Seviper, but was having a hard time when the Cheer Squad, led by Sheridan, cheated by having his Shroomish and Makuhita use Helping Hand and his Roselia and Vileplume use Aromatherapy on Seviper. After Pikachu repeatedly attack Seviper, he was getting tired and despite the struggling from Seviper's Wrap, Pikachu hang in there in the last second and knocked out the Fang Snake Pokémon with Thunder.

In Going, Going, Yawn, Ash used Pikachu as his third Pokémon in his Lavaridge Gym Battle after volunteering to battle Flannery's Slugma after it burned Treecko and put Corphish to Sleep. After using Quick Attack to dodge Flamethrower, he hit Slugma, finally breaking Magcargo's Reflect that was affecting previous battles. After Slugma used Smog to cover itself, Pikachu was able to sense where it was and used Iron Tail, but Slugma dodged and jumped into the Smog again and hit him with a Flamethrower. Pikachu used Thunderbolt and although it looked like it initially missed, it electrified the Smog, harming Slugma. Flannery called for Yawn, but Ash unwilling for that to happen, had Pikachu used Quick Attack, hitting it before Yawn could appear, he then finished off Slugma with Thunder. Ash kept Pikachu in when Flannery used her last Pokémon, Torkoal. Pikachu used Thunderbolt, but it was blocked by Iron Defense. Pikachu dodged a Flamethrower and used Iron Tail, but it was blocked by Iron Defense. Torkoal then used Sludge Bomb, which hit Pikachu. He used Thunder but was blocked by Iron Defense once again. Torkoal then used Overheat, defeating Pikachu.

In Balance of Power, Ash uses Pikachu as his first Pokémon in his Petalburg Gym Battle against Norman. He went up against Slakoth, Pikachu used Quick Attack on Slakoth which was dodged, Slakoth then used Shadow Ball, which Pikachu dodged and then used Iron Tail, which was also dodged making Pikachu dizzy. Slakoth used Hidden Power, Pikachu tried to destroy them with Thunderbolt but failed and was hit by the circling Hidden Power. Pikachu then used Thunder which was dodged and was hit by Slakoth's powerful Blizzard, Ash called for a Thunder again but Pikachu was unable to move. Ash then recalled Pikachu. Later Pikachu was sent out against Norman's Vigoroth, Pikachu used Thunderbolt but Vigoroth was very speedy dodging it and launching a Scratch attack, Pikachu successfully blocked the attack with Iron Tail but Vigoroth quickly recovered and launched a Flamethrower. Pikachu's electricity gave Ash and idea, he got Pikachu to use Quick Attack, Vigoroth used Flamethrower but Pikachu dodged them all. Vigoroth launched another Scratch and Ash got Pikachu to stop and let him get hit, activating Pikachu's ability Static, paralyzing Vigoroth, this allowed Pikachu to defeat Vigoroth with Iron Tail, but he was knocked out afterwards, ending the battle in a draw.

In Solid as a Solrock, Ash uses Pikachu and Swellow in the Double Battle between Tate and Liza with their respective Solrock and Lunatone. Solrock unleashes a powerful Tackle against Pikachu. While the twins quarrel, Ash seizes the opportunity and has Pikachu use Iron Tail on Tate's Solrock. After Team Rocket destroys the gym, all agree to battle on what appears to be Route 124. The twins manage to put their differences aside to launch a barrage of combinations against Ash. Ash thinks about how to negate the dual attacks and has Pikachu use Thunder on the clouds. The Thunder hits Pikachu and Swellow. Once clear, Pikachu and Swellow are coated in what Max dubs "Thunder Armor". This improvised technique, despite the minimal effectiveness on Ash's end, deals severe damage to Lunatone and Solrock, thus earning Ash the Mind Badge.

In The Great Eight Fate! Ash chose Pikachu as well has his Snorunt as his first two Pokémon in a Double Battle in the first round of the Sootopolis Gym battle, they went up against Juan's Sealeo and Seaking. Pikachu used his Thunderbolt on Sealeo but Seaking used Horn Drill to reflect it back to Snorunt. Pikachu then used Thunder, but Seaking used Horn Drill against to reflect the attack to Snorunt again but this time Pikachu protected Snorunt taking most of the damage. Sealeo then used Blizzard on the two, Pikachu took a lot of damage but Snorunt barely felt the attack being part Ice-type. Snorunt then used its Icy Wind to stop the Blizzard creating an Ice Pillar blocking everyone's view but Sealeo and Seaking destroyed it with their Aurora Beam and Hyper Beam respectively, this created ice shards which Ash had Snorunt and Pikachu jump on, Snorunt used Headbutt whilst Pikachu used Iron Tail, Seaking then used Hyper Beam on Snorunt and Sealeo used Aurora Beam on Pikachu, whilst Pikachu was able to dodge the attack, Snorunt wasn't and the Hyper Beam knocked it out. Ash then sent out his Corphish. After dodging Corphish's Bubble Beam, both of Juan's Pokémon attacked from below with Sealeo using Aurora Beam on Pikachu's platform, which he was able to dodge, after Corphish was damaged by Seaking, Pikachu used Iron Tail on it whilst Sealeo used Aurora Beam on Pikachu, Iron Tail knocked out Seaking whilst Aurora Beam missed. Pikachu then rode on Corphish like a surfboard. Whilst they rode towards Sealeo, it used Ice Ball, which was getting stronger with each attack, Corphish blocked the first two with Harden and Vice Grip whilst Pikachu destroyed the third one with Iron Tail, the fourth one then hit them both. Sealeo then launched a fifth Ice Ball at them both, which was very large and powerful, Pikachu launched a Thunder at the Ice Ball and after increasing its power, he was able to break it, while the falling ice shards were distracting Sealeo, Corphish was able to defeat Sealeo with its Crabhammer, knocking it out ending the first round of the Sootopolis Gym in Ash's favour. Both were then recalled. In the next episode, Pikachu is used as Ash's last Pokémon in the second round of the Sootopolis Gym battle, going up against Juan's last and strongest Pokémon, his Milotic. Ash knew regular electric attacks would just get blocked so he had Pikachu use Thunder, his most powerful attack, though it dealt a lot of damage to Milotic, it nullified the damage by using Recover, healing Milotic. Both Pokémon then used Iron Tail, in which Milotic's overpowered Pikachu's. Milotic quickly used Twister, which was powered up by the water, much to Juan's surprise, Pikachu was able to break through with Thunder, Pikachu followed with up with a powerful Quick Attack. Milotic used Hydro Pump, which Pikachu dodged and used Thunderbolt, which Milotic shook off and then used Recover, healing itself but it didn't recover completely. Milotic went underwater, making both Ash and Pikachu unable to see. Talking about water gave Ash an idea. Milotic used Iron Tail which Pikachu dodged and he began climbing up Milotic's body, Milotic used Hydro Pump, but Pikachu dodged and grabbed onto its eyebrows and flipped Milotic into the water, whilst underwater, Pikachu used Thunder, shocking the water, dealing major damage to Milotic as water is a better conductor of electricity than air, as later explained by Brock, knocking it out whilst Pikachu remained okay, winning Ash the battle and earning him the Rain Badge.

In Saved by the Beldum, Ash used Pikachu for the first round in the Ever Grande Conference, he went up against Gilbert and his Hitmonlee. Hitmonlee used Rolling Kick, but Pikachu's Iron Tail hit first, after dodging a Hi Jump Kick, which caused damage to Hitmonlee, it used Mega Kick, it hit but Pikachu used Iron Tail, knocking Hitmonlee out and advancing to the next round of the tournament.

In Shocks and Bonds, Ash used Pikachu as his second Pokémon in his Full Battle against Katie in the Victory Tournament part of the Ever Grande Conference. He went up against Katie's Golduck and was sent out due to the type-advantage, however Katie immediately switched to Dugtrio, who had a type-advantage of its own. Pikachu used Quick Attack and Dugtrio used Dig, Dugtrio then used Sand Tomb, expanding the hole, Pikachu tried to escape but couldn't and fell down the hole. Ash mentioned that he couldn't use Quick Attack, so Ash had Pikachu use Thunderbolt, which had no effect on Dugtrio since it was a Ground-type Pokémon. Dugtrio used Double-Edge and Pikachu attempted to block with Iron Tail, but when both moves collided, Pikachu was knocked out whilst Dugtrio emerged unscathed.

In Choose It or Lose It!, Ash used Pikachu as his second Pokémon in his Full Battle against Morrison in the Victory Tournament. He went up against his Steelix, Steelix used Dragon Breath, but Pikachu used dodged and used Quick Attack, but Steelix countered with Iron Tail, hitting Pikachu. Steelix then used Dig, hitting Pikachu from underneath. Pikachu used Iron Tail but Steelix dodged that with another Dig. Pikachu dodged Dig and hit Steelix with Quick Attack. Both Pokémon used Iron Tail, but Steelix's overwhelmed Pikachu's, knocking him out.

In At the End of the Fray, Ash used Pikachu as his sixth and last Pokémon in his Full Battle against Tyson in the Victory Tournament. He went up against Tyson's Metagross, which had already defeated Swellow and Grovyle, but had a crack in its armor as a result. Pikachu used Thunderbolt on the crack, but it didn't do much to Metagross, it then used Psychic on Pikachu, but he was able to use Iron Tail to escape and hit Metagross. Pikachu climbed onto Metagross, and it was unable to shake him off. Pikachu then used Thunder, defeating it. Pikachu then went up against Tyson's last Pokémon, his Meowth, after dodging its Slash, Pikachu used Thunderbolt whilst Meowth did the same, Pikachu launched Thunder whilst Meowth countered with Thunderbolt again, with Brock realizing Tyson was using Thunderbolt to defend against Pikachu's electrical attacks making them useless. Pikachu went close range with Quick Attack but Meowth dodged it with Double Team and used Iron Tail and Pikachu countered with the same. Quick Attack then collided with Slash, and both Pokémon look exhausted. Pikachu's Thunder collided with Meowth's Thunderbolt again. Both Pokémon used Iron Tail, with both Pokémon taking damage, knocking them both down. Though they both got up, Pikachu was knocked out from exhaustion causing Ash to end up in the Top 8 of the Ever Grande Conference.

Kanto Battle Frontier

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: One episode. (AG190)

In The Scheme Team, Ash used Pikachu in his battle against Agatha of the Elite Four and her Gengar at the Viridian Gym. Pikachu uses Quick Attack but fails since Gengar is a Ghost-type Pokémon. It was too fast for Pikachu's Thunderbolt but after dodging a Shadow Ball Pikachu was able to hit Gengar with an Iron Tail. After dodging a Shadow Ball, his Iron Tail was stopped by Double Team. He was able to destroy all the copies with Thunderbolt and dodge Shadow Ball and hit it with Iron Tail, when it looked like Pikachu was going to win with Thunder, Gengar used Hypnosis, putting Pikachu to sleep and he was defeated with Dream Eater. Afterwards he helped to defeat Team Rocket along with Agatha's Golbat, Ash later decided to enter the Kanto Battle Frontier along with Pikachu and his other Pokémon. He was later reunited with Misty.

In May's Egg-Cellent Adventure, whilst battling Team Rocket's mecha, he used Quick Attack but it transformed into Volt Tackle, easily destroying the mecha and sending Team Rocket blasting off.

In Queen of the Serpentine!, when going to the Battle Pike, Pikachu was captured by Team Rocket using their fake Battle Pike until rescued by Lucy and her Seviper from the real Battle Pike. Later Ash used Pikachu as his second and last Pokémon in his Battle Pike challenge against Lucy, Pikachu went up against her Milotic. Pikachu used Thunderbolt, but Lucy, not using defensive strategies, had it taken the attack and counter with Hydro Pump. Both Pokémon used Iron Tail, but Milotic's was stronger. His Quick Attack was countered by Twister and then he was hit with Hydro Pump. Milotic used iron Tail, but Pikachu countered with Volt Tackle, blocking Iron Tail and causing Milotic to become paralyzed due to its secondary effect, although as mentioned by Scott, it dealt damage to Pikachu, wearing him out. Pikachu used Quick Attack, but Milotic used Facade, since Milotic was paralyzed, its power doubled, dealing major damage to Pikachu. Ash noticed the major difference in power, so he came up with an idea and had Pikachu use Thunderbolt on himself, Lucy's supporters mocked him, and Lucy used Twister. However Ash was waiting for this, and with the boost from using Thunderbolt on himself, had Pikachu jump into the Twister, spin and use Volt Tackle, increasing his power and knocking out Milotic, winning Ash the battle and earning him the Luck Symbol.

In Talking a Good Game!, Pikachu was the third Pokémon to battle against Anabel. He went up against her Alakazam. Even though Pikachu was having a hard time, he was able to beat Alakazam with Thunderbolt after overpowering its Psybeam. He went up against Metagross next, but got defeated in the process, making Ash lose the battle. In the next episode, Pikachu was used in a rematch, this time against Espeon. Despite Espeon's speed and power, Pikachu was to able to hang in there and use Thunderbolt to turn the lights off, making Espeon hard to see. After all the lights went back on, Pikachu was able to defeat Espeon with Volt Tackle, earning Ash the Ability Symbol.

In Gathering the Gang of Four!, in preparation for Ash's rematch against Brandon for his final frontier symbol, Pikachu reunites with Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charizard. Using Quick Attack to round up leaves created by Squirtle's Rapid Spin and Bulbasaur's Vine Whip, they were able to make a den to sleep. However he got in a fight with the other Pokémon but later calms down. The next day they all continued to train. Pikachu was later captured by Team Rocket but was rescued due to the efforts by Ash and the other Pokémon. They then combined their attacks to send Team Rocket blasting off. Afterwards they met up with Brandon again and he agreed to have a 4v4 rematch with Pikachu and the other Pokémon at the Battle Pyramid.

In Once More With Reeling, Ash used Pikachu in the unoffical Terracotta Town Pokémon Contest in the appeals round. He used Quick Attack and Thunderbolt as the same time to create thunder rings and then sent them off with Iron Tail, when they collided it created a firework like effect, this performance allowed Ash to go onto the next round.

In Home is Where the Start Is!, Ash uses Pikachu in a friendly battle against Gary, who uses his powerful Electivire, a Sinnoh region Pokémon. Both Pokémon used Thunderbolt and were even, Pikachu used Quick Attack but it was dodged by Electivire using its tails, both Pokémon used Iron Tail, and they were even again, but Electivire looked unscathed. Pikachu used a close range Thunderbolt, and Electivire dodged by jumping, however this is what Ash wanted and had Pikachu use Volt Tackle since it was now defenseless, however Electivire blocked the attack with Protect and launched its powerful Thunder Punch, defeating Pikachu. Later he went with Ash to the Sinnoh region, intending for him to be the only Pokémon to go with him, as he left his other Pokémon at Professor Oak's laboratory, however Aipom, snuck on board and she went with them to the Sinnoh region.

Diamond & Pearl series

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: First five episodes. (DP004 and DP005)

In Following a Maiden's Voyage!, Pikachu temporarily got separated from his trainer thanks to Team Rocket's plan. Eventually, in Two Degrees of Separation!, Dawn found Pikachu and tried to capture him. She also protected him from Team Rocket. Pikachu was eventually reunited with Ash in When Pokémon Worlds Collide!.

Ash and Pikachu, as seen in Diamond & Pearl series artwork

In Sinnoh, he defeated Roark's Onix in the Oreburgh Gym rematch. Pikachu battled again in the Pastoria Gym battle, where he battled Crasher Wake's Gyarados and defeated it with a Volt Tackle to the face. He also battled Crasher Wake's Floatzel for a moment, allowing Buizel time to recover.

In Shield with a Twist!, Pikachu was Ash's third Pokémon in his Hearthome Gym battle. He went up against Fantina's Drifblim. Pikachu used a Thunderbolt Counter Shield, which Drifblim immediately broke with Psychic. Drifblim then used a combination of Will-O-Wisp and Psychic to create a Counter Shield of its own, Pikachu used Counter Shield again but it was overwhelmed as Drifblim's lasted longer due to it being supported by Psychic. Their Counter Shield surrounded him, and he was hit by Hypnosis putting him to sleep, which Pikachu was unable to repel with Thunderbolt due to the Counter Shield. Pikachu was then knocked out by Ominous Wind.

Pikachu activating his Static Ability

Pikachu's next major battle after Fantina, was when he was used against Paul in Evolving Strategies!. First he went up against Magmortar; however, when he attacked with Quick Attack, he was burned by Magmortar's Flame Body and Pikachu was recalled. Later, he went up against Paul's very powerful Ursaring and paralyzed it with Static. This actually made things worse for Pikachu as being paralyzed activated Ursaring's Guts Ability, and Pikachu found himself completely outmatched by Ursaring's massive power and was defeated and thrown into Lake Acuity, taking him out of the match as well as injuring him. This defeat meant that Ash had to defeat Paul's remaining five Pokémon with only Chimchar.

Ash used him during the Pokémon Ping Pong Tournament.

Later, in Flint Sparks the Fire!, Pikachu battled Flint's Infernape, but he was defeated after a long fight.

In The Eighth Wonder of the Sinnoh World!, Pikachu battled against Volkner's Electivire, Pikachu launched a Quick Attack which was dodged and Electivire launched a Fire Punch and Ice Punch, both of which were dodged but Electivire absorbed two Thunderbolts due to its ability Motor Drive, due to its increased speed it dodged Iron Tail, Volkner then revealed the effects of Motor Drive to Ash. Pikachu was hit by Fire Punch, then Ice Punch which activated Pikachu's ability, Static, which caused Paralysis, slowing Electivire down, Pikachu then dodged one Ice Punch, countered another with Iron Tail. On the third Ice Punch, Pikachu hit Electivire with Iron Tail, knocking Electivire out. He was then recalled. He later went up against Luxray, his Quick Attack was blocked with Shock Wave which was powerful. Pikachu then launched three successful Iron Tail's but the fourth was countered by Thunder Fang. He was then knocked out by Shock Wave.

In the Lily of the Valley Conference, Ash used Pikachu in his battle against Paul in Familiarity Breeds Strategy!. He was used against Paul's Aggron, where he put up a good fight and weakened Aggron before he was recalled in place of Infernape. Pikachu was also used in the continuation of Ash's battle against Paul in A Real Rival Rouser!. He went against Paul's Froslass where he was seen having some trouble at first, but by the end, he was able to pull through and defeat Froslass with a powerful Volt Tackle attack. This gave Pikachu his first win against one of Paul's Pokémon and also gave Ash the lead in the battle. In Battling a Thaw in Relations!, he battled Paul's Electivire, but had trouble due to Electivire's Motor Drive Ability, and was soon defeated by a Brick Break. In The Semi-Final Frontier!, Pikachu was the last Pokémon chosen by Ash to battle Tobias in the semi-finals. Despite Ash losing five of his Pokémon, Pikachu tried his best to defeat Tobias's Latios. Almost none of the attacks hit or did any damage to Latios in the beginning, however, Pikachu finally managed to jump on top of Latios and used Thunderbolt several times before he was shaken off. As Pikachu was about to land, Latios used Luster Purge. Pikachu used Volt Tackle and Iron Tail, taking against the force of the Luster Purge. However, he was tied with Latios as both fainted. As Ash's last Pokémon also fainted, Tobias was crowned the winner of their battle.

Best Wishes series

Unova

Ash decided to just bring Pikachu to Unova with him, just like he did in Hoenn. In In The Shadow of Zekrom!, Pikachu had an encounter with Zekrom, which unaware by Ash, caused Pikachu to lose his ability to use Electric-type moves. Ash finally noticed during his battle against Trip and his Snivy, causing Ash to forfeit. Pikachu soon recovered his electric-type moves, however this incident appeared to cause Pikachu to suffer a loss in his overall power, as he was seen struggling in battles which, given his past experience, he should have had little trouble with (although this was never explicitly stated to be the case).

In Triple Leaders, Team Threats!, Ash used Pikachu in his second battle at the Striaton Gym, where he faced Cress and his Panpour. Pikachu's Quick Attack was countered with Double Team, it was then hit with Scratch. After dodging Water Gun, Pikachu tried to use Thunderbolt but Panpour aimed Water Gun at his feet, causing him to slip. He was then attacked by multiple Water Gun and Scratch attacks. Pikachu got up and attempted to use Volt Tackle, but this was countered with Mud Sport, causing Pikachu to slip, Panpour then finished him off with Water Gun.

In A Rival Battle for Club Champ!, he battled Trip's Tranquill, who had already taken out Ash's Oshawott and Tepig. He took a beating from multiple Aerial Aces, but showed Trip the power of his electrical attacks by defeating Tranquill with Volt Tackle. He then battled Snivy again, who by then had evolved into Servine. However, despite not being incapacitated, he was once again defeated.

In Minccino-Neat and Tidy!, Ash used Pikachu in a battle against Bianca and her Pignite. Even though he had some trouble at first, Pikachu was able to pull through in the end and defeat Pignite with a powerful Volt Tackle. He was also used to battle against Minccino and he was able to stand up to his Tickle and Double Slap combo when Bianca's Pignite couldn't, and since Snivy got infatuated by Minccino's Attract, and he was able to knock out Minccino using his powerful Thunderbolt.

In Dancing With the Ducklett Trio!, a trio of Ducklett stole Ash's hat and Sandile's sunglasses. Pikachu assisted Sandile in defeating them, and during the incident learned how to use Electro Ball. He learned electro ball because he was stuck in a beach umbrella. his suffering made him angry and suddenly the power started to rise in his tail and he learned electro ball. Later on, he battled against the Sunglasses Sandile. Even though Sandile evolved into Krokorok, Pikachu used Electro Ball and sent Stone Edge right back at Krokorok to defeat him.

Ash used Pikachu as his last Pokémon in his Nacrene Gym battle, in Battling For The Love of Big-Types!, instead of Oshawott, who volunteered himself. He went up against Burgh's Leavanny. Pikachu used Thunderbolt, which was dodged and he used Iron Tail, which was blocked by Leavanny's Protect. Leavanny's Leaf Storm drew with Pikachu's Thunderbolt, it then used String Shot on Pikachu binding his tail, making him unable to dodge Leaf Storm with Quick Attack, since Pikachu's tail is used for balance. He tried and failed to break the strings and was then hit with Leaf Storm, he tried a Thunderbolt but missed due to his loss of balance. He was hit by Hyper Beam but refused to surrender. When Leavanny used Leaf Storm, Pikachu span and charged into the Leaf Storm, breaking the threads. Pikachu then dodged Leavanny's String Shot's with Quick Attack. After countering another String Shot with Thunderbolt, he hit Leavanny with Iron Tail and finished off the Nurturing Pokémon with Electro Ball, earning Ash the Insect Badge.

In Movie Time! Zorua and the Pokémon Knight! Pikachu played a movie role as Ash's assistant. He battled Iris's Axew in order to gain the power to defeat the villain and his assistant. He succeeded with a Thunderbolt-Electro Ball combo. He later defeated the villain and rescued the princess.

Ash used Pikachu in the final round in the Club Battle in Club Battle Finale: A Hero's Outcome! against Iris. Pikachu went up against Iris's Excadrill. Pikachu did surprisingly well, but unfortunately, Pikachu fainted first, and Iris won the tournament.

In Dazzling the Nimbasa Gym!, Ash chose to use Pikachu in his Gym Battle against Elesa. He went up against her powerful Emolga, who Pikachu defeated with a single Quick Attack. Later, Pikachu battled Elesa's Tynamo, defeating him with a powerful Iron Tail attack, winning Ash the Bolt Badge.

In Stopping the Rage of Legends! Part 1, Pikachu teamed up with Cilan's Stunfisk to battle Tornadus and Thundurus. Stunfisk used his amazing jumping ability to get them both into the air so that they could launch a Thunderbolt—Thunder Shock combination at the two legendary Pokémon. Later, in Stopping the Rage of Legends! Part 2, Pikachu helped rescue the Forces of Nature from Team Rocket.

In An Amazing Aerial Battle!, Ash used Pikachu against Skyla's Unfezant, and Pikachu defeated him with an Electro Ball. Pikachu stayed in the battle to fight Skyla's last Pokémon, Swanna, but was defeated with a powerful Hurricane and a brutal Brave Bird.

In Rocking the Virbank Gym! Part 2, Ash chose Pikachu as his final Pokémon in his Gym battle with Roxie and her strongest Pokémon, Garbodor. It was a very hard fought battle, but to Ash's luck, all the physical contact Pikachu made with Garbodor, had caused Pikachu's Static Ability to activate and paralyze Garbodor. Despite still being able to withstand a Thunderbolt, the Trash Heap Pokémon was unable to take a hit from the following Electro Ball, and was knocked out, making Ash victorious and earning him his eighth and final Unova Badge, the Toxic Badge, thus allowing him to enter the Unova League.

In Meloetta and the Undersea Temple!, Ash battled Giovanni with Pikachu trying to protect Meloetta, but was defeated by his Persian and Giovanni successfully captured Meloetta, and took it, along with the imprisoned Ash and Pikachu, to the Abyssal Ruins. In the next episode, Pikachu managed to break Team Rocket's force field prison by striking it repeatedly with Iron Tail, freeing both Ash and himself. Later, during the battle against the mind-controlled Therian Forme Forces of Nature, as Thundurus aimed a Thunder attack at Iris's Dragonite and Iris stepped in its way to protect her Pokémon, Pikachu jumped in, and absorbed the massive blast of electricity himself. This gave Pikachu a tremendous power boost, as seen later, when Ash told Pikachu to use Electro Ball on Team Rocket. The supercharged attack grew into amazingly massive proportions, inflicting notable damage on the Abyssal Ruins, sending Team Rocket flying, and freeing Meloetta.

In Curtain Up, Unova League!, Ash used Pikachu in the preliminary round of the Vertress Conference against Trip's Serperior, and Pikachu defeated him after a very hard fought battle with an Electro Ball-Iron Tail combo.

In Cameron's Secret Weapon!, Ash used Pikachu against Cameron's Samurott. Samurott blocked many attacks with his Razor Shell, but Pikachu eventually defeated him with an Iron Tail. Cameron then sent out his next Pokémon, Swanna, attempting to keep distance to Pikachu, but Pikachu ended it with an Electro Ball. Later during the battle, Ash sent Pikachu out to face Cameron's newly-evolved Lucario, which had just defeated Snivy, leaving Pikachu as Ash's last Pokémon. At the end of the climactic fight, Pikachu and Lucario fired blasts of Electro Ball and Aura Sphere, and Aura Sphere overpowered Electro Ball, knocking Pikachu out, and thus eliminating Ash from the Vertress Conference, placing him in Top 8.

Decolore Islands

Pikachu was reunited with the entire Unova team at Professor Oak's Laboratory in The Dream Continues!. He joined the others in a group attack on Team Rocket with his Thunderbolt to send them blasting off for the last time in the Best Wishes series. Pikachu rejoined Ash when he sets off for the Kalos region.

XY series

In Kalos, Where Dreams and Adventures Begin!, Ash and Pikachu arrived in Kalos by plane along with Alexa. After being thrown out of the Lumiose Gym for not having enough Gym Badges, Ash was saved by Clemont while Pikachu was saved by Bonnie. Bonnie was excited to be holding Pikachu, leading to him shocking her because she was holding him too tightly. After becoming acquainted with their rescuers, Ash challenged Clemont to a battle, which Clemont reluctantly agreed to.

Ash and Pikachu

In the battle, Pikachu faced Clemont's Bunnelby. Despite Clemont admitting that he only recently caught Bunnelby, they proved to be a match for Pikachu. The battle was interuppted by Team Rocket, who once again attempted to steal Pikachu for their plans. Ash attempted to stop them, but Jessie had her Wobbuffet reflect Pikachu's attacks with Mirror Coat. Pikachu was saved by a Froakie, who shielded Pikachu with its body at the cost of being injured. With Bunnelby and Froakie's help, Pikachu was used to blast off the villains. Froakie soon collapsed from its injuries, so Ash, Pikachu, and their new friends went to Professor Sycamore to heal Froakie back to health.

In Lumiose City Pursuit!, Ash and Pikachu managed to get Froakie to Professor Sycamore so that he could be healed. When a Garchomp went crazy from one of Team Rocket's devices, Pikachu and Ash pursued her to get the device off and free her. After chasing her to the top of Prism Tower, Pikachu removed the device from Garchomp's neck with Iron Tail. However, due to the fight damaging the tower, the ground Pikachu was standing on broke off, causing him to fall off with Ash immediately leaping in to save his best friend. They were both saved by a Mega Blaziken, who intercepted them in the air and put the two safely back onto the ground.

In A Blustery Santalune Gym Battle!, Pikachu was the first Pokémon Ash used during his Santalune Gym battle with Viola, sending him out to face her Surskit. His Quick Attack was blocked by Protect and his Iron Tail was dodged, Surskit used its skating power to move quickly. After blocking Pikachu's Electro Ball with Ice Beam, it used Ice Beam on the field, freezing it. Whilst Pikachu slipped on the ice, Surskit was able to skate on it, although Pikachu did get a successful hit with Iron Tail, his Thunderbolt was overpowered by Ice Beam and he was knocked out by Signal Beam. After he was healed at the Pokémon Center, he trained with Fletchling for their rematch by using Alexa's Noivern's Gust to help them withstand Vivillon's Gust, who beat Fletchling in the first battle.

In Battling on Thin Ice!, continuing its training along with Fletchling. it was able to withstand Noivern's Gust well, later using one of Clemont's inventions, they practiced to avoid Surskit's Sticky Web, after it broke, they used Froakie and its frubbles instead to practice. Later Pikachu was Ash's first Pokémon for his Gym Battle rematch against Viola, it went up against her Surskit, using his training he was able to dodge Sticky Web, and after having his Thunderbolt avoided by Surskit's Protect and dodging its Signal Beam, he was able to hit with Iron Tail. Afterwards Pikachu tried to stop Surskit from using Ice Beam on the field by climbing on it and using Thunderbolt, but it failed causing the ice field to appear as well as freezing the area. Using his tail, he was able to stabilize himself on the ice field, his Thunderbolt overpowered Surskit's Signal Beam, defeating the Pond Skater Pokémon. Ash recalled Pikachu and substituted him for Fletchling. It was called out again to battle Vivillon, who beat Fletchling. After being hit with Gust, Pikachu looked tired, but Ash had Pikachu use Iron Tail to anchor himself to the ice field. Vivillon's Solar Beam was countered with Thunderbolt, then Vivillon used Sleep Powder, and due to Iron Tail being anchored into the ground, he was unable to dodge it. While Pikachu was struggling to stay awake, Vivillon used Solar Beam, but Pikachu used Electro Ball on himself to keep him awake. Vivillon launched the Solar Beam, but Pikachu was able to overpower it with Electro Ball, causing Vivillon to crash into the lamps which were frozen by Surskit's Ice Beam misfire, freezing its wing allowing Pikachu to defeat the Scale Pokémon with Thunderbolt, earning Ash the Bug Badge.

In Climbing the Walls!, Ash used Pikachu as his third and final Pokémon in his Cyllage Gym Battle against Grant. He went up against his Tyrunt. Pikachu was at a type-disadvantage since Tyrunt was part Dragon-type. Pikachu used Quick Attack and jumped and attacked from above to avoid Crunch and hit Tyrunt. It used its signature Draco Meteor but Pikachu dodged and used Iron Tail, then the meteor shower came but Pikachu used Iron Tail to jump on the Draco Meteor and perform the Draco Meteor Climb, which he based on the Rock Tomb Climb Froakie previously used, Tyrunt used its jumping abilities to jump high and use Dragon Tail and tied with Pikachu's Iron Tail. Grant used his favorite move Rock Tomb but Pikachu deflected the projectiles with Iron Tail, knocking one into Tyrunt's mouth, disabling Crunch and allowing Pikachu to move close and finish with Ash's favorite move, Thunderbolt, defeating Tyrunt, winning the battle and earning Ash the Cliff Badge.

In The Bonds of Evolution!, Pikachu was used in the Ash's battle against Diantha, the Kalos League Champion, where he faced her Gardevoir. Gardevoir managed to dodge all of Pikachu's attacks and hit him hard with a Shadow Ball. The battle was interrupted by Team Rocket.

In Mega Revelations!, Pikachu battled against Korrina's Lucario. Pikachu was quickly overwhelmed by Lucario's fast attacks and was easily defeated. Pikachu battled Lucario again in The Aura Storm!, but this time against Lucario's Mega Evolved form. Pikachu battled well, but got attacked aggressively when Mega Lucario started to go out of control, forcing Ash to protect Pikachu. When Mega Lucario was stopped by Gurkinn's Lucario, the battle was called off.

In Battling Into the Hall of Fame!, Pikachu was used in a Triple Tag Battle alongside with Serena's Fennekin and Clemont's Chespin against Tierno's Squirtle, Shauna's Bulbasaur and Trevor's Charmander. Pikachu and the others was having a hard time due to their opponents great teamwork, which led to Fennekin being defeated by Squirtle. When Pikachu was using Quick Attack, Squirtle used Rapid Spin to block and send Pikachu flying. He also took damage from Charmander and Bulbasaur's attacks. Bulbasaur fired a Solar Beam at Pikachu, but, much to Shauna and her friends's surprise, Chespin used Vine Whip to pull Pikachu up, giving Pikachu the perfect opportunity to defeat Charmander with Thunderbolt. When Squirtle uses Rapid Spin, Chespin used Vine Whip to stop it while Pikachu managed to defeat Bulbasaur with Electro Ball. After avoiding Squirtle's Aqua Tail, Pikachu also defeated it with Thunderbolt giving Ash, Serena and Clemont the win and the spot on the Hall of Fame.

In Showdown at the Shalour Gym!, Pikachu was the last Pokémon Ash used during his Shalour Gym battle with Korrina, sending him out to face Korrina's Mega Lucario. Ash was convinced that Korrina wasn't the only one who trained, both Pokémon stared off as this was going to be the final battle. Pikachu used Quick Attack and combined it with Electro Ball, launcing Electro Ball but this was deflected with Bone Rush, Pikachu's Iron Tail was blocked and Mega Lucario kicked him into the air, but Pikachu hit Mega Lucario with Thunderbolt, but it hit him back with Aura Sphere. Pikachu was able to get to up and show his strength, Mega Lucario used Metal Sound, which Pikachu drowned out using his Thunderbolt hitting Mega Lucario as well, then Mega Lucario used Aura Sphere, but Pikachu used Iron Tail to bounce off it and jump, similar to the Draco Meteor Tomb, Mega Lucario jumped and used Bone Rush, but Pikachu countered with Iron Tail, but Mega Lucario clashed with Bone Rush to reduce Iron Tail's power, then both Pokémon crashed into the ground, but both were standing but weak, Mega Lucario's Power-Up Punch was countered with Iron Tail, and its Aura Sphere with Electro Ball, Pikachu then used Thunderbolt finally defeating the Aura Pokémon, thus giving Ash the victory and earning him the Rumble Badge. As the group prepared to depart for Coumarine City, Pikachu and Lucario bumped fists as a promise to battle again someday.

In A Slippery Encounter!, Pikachu helped out a Goomy after they were stolen by Team Rocket. Knowing that his Thunderbolt won't break their cage, Pikachu tries to ram it but keeps getting hurt until the cage make a hole. Goomy manages to escape, but Pikachu couldn't go through until Goomy uses its slimy body around Pikachu making him slip right through the cage. After getting out, they both run off until they were noticed by Team Rocket, who gives chase. When Pikachu and Goomy was about to be hit by Jessie's Pumpkaboo's Shadow Ball, Ash came by to protect them. When Team Rocket was about to steal Pikachu in the same cage again, Ash tells him to use Iron Tail, destroying the cage in the process. Then while battling their foes, Ash tells Pikachu to use Electro Ball, countering Pumpkaboo's Shadow Ball. Then Inkay uses Psybeam, confusing Pikachu which makes him attack Fletchinder instead. As they were about to be finished by Pumpkaboo and Inkay's Dark Pulse and Psybeam, Goomy protected them and uses Bide to send it back at Team Rocket's Pokémon. As the confusion wore off, Ash tells Pikachu to finish off Team Rocket with Thunderbolt. Later, Pikachu informed to Ash that Goomy wants to go with them, allowing him to capture it.

In XY065, Pikachu alongside with Sliggoo was used in a Tag Battle against Tierno's Wartortle and Raichu. Before the battle can start, he was grabbed by a mecha created by Team Rocket. But Sliggoo was able to save Pikachu with Dragon Breath. After the mecha took Sliggoo, along with Tierno's Wartortle and Raichu, Pikachu split up with Ash and Serena to look for them. After Sliggoo evolved into Goodra to save Ash and Pikachu, they restarted their Double Battle, and after a hard fight, Pikachu and Goodra won with a Thunderbolt and Dragon Pulse combo.

In XY067, Ash used Pikachu as his first Pokémon in his Lumiose Gym Battle against Clemont and went up against his Bunnelby. Pikachu used Thunderbolt, which was blocked by Bunnelby using its ears to create a mud shield. Bunnelby used Dig which was too fast for Pikachu to evade. Pikachu hit Bunnelby with Quick Attack, which Bunnelby quickly recovered from. It then used Double Slap but Pikachu used Iron Tail which Bunnelby caught with its ears. This reminded Bonnie of their first battle. Instead of letting Pikachu counter with Electro Ball, Bunnelby used its new move, Wild Charge, dealing major damage to Pikachu. Bunnelby then hit Pikachu with another Dig. He then responded with Quick Attack, but Bunnelby used Dig again. However, Ash had Pikachu use Iron Tail on the ground, forcing Bunnelby to emerge and dealing major damage. Pikachu then used another Iron Tail, defeating Bunnelby.

Personality and characteristics

Pikachu in a bad mood

After Ash gained Pikachu's loyalty in Pokémon - I Choose You!, Pikachu became extremely loyal to Ash and has maintained this loyalty, and while he is not always immediately trusting of strangers, he is generally friendly to humans and Pokémon alike. He acted as a guardian and big brother to Misty's Togepi, and has been seen mediating and even breaking up fights among other Pokémon, such as in Pikachu's Vacation. In Mewtwo Strikes Back, Pikachu, Meowth, and Meowth's clone were the only Pokémon not to participate in the giant battle; Pikachu stood motionless as his clone repeatedly slapped his face. Contrary to his distrusting nature, Pikachu took a liking to Misty very early in the series, and he has retained this liking of Misty throughout the series, such as when he was very happy to see her in The Scheme Team.

Pikachu and his love of ketchup

During the Hoenn saga, Pikachu temporarily developed amnesia and sided with Team Rocket for a while. On several occasions, Pikachu has developed an "electric flu" causing him to become overcharged and extremely powerful. During these instances, Pikachu will sometimes accidentally let off electric outbursts which can be set off on anyone, including Ash. In all of these cases, Pikachu did not mean harm upon anyone.

As shown in a handful of episodes, the first being Showdown at Dark City, Pikachu has a special fondness for ketchup, but he will eat and enjoy almost any other human or Pokémon food. A running joke in the anime also seems to be Pikachu using Thunderbolt at the beginning of each series to destroy a female companion's bike or shock the companion herself. This has happened to Misty, May, Dawn, Iris, and Bonnie.

Pikachu, like his Trainer, is always happy to battle. He often tries his very best, but when he loses, he doesn't complain or feel bad about himself, especially when Ash reassures him. Ash and Pikachu are almost identical personality-wise, and thus are the perfect match for one another. Most others agree, with the exception of Burgundy, who in A Connoisseur's Revenge! said that Ash had a terrible relationship with all of his Pokémon, though this is more due to her inexperience in determining such relationships.

In general, Pikachu as a species is not particularly powerful, but Ash's Pikachu is an anomaly, overcoming odds in battle numerous times. In Pokémon Emergency!, Meowth remarked that Pikachu's power "far exceeds its evolutionary level". In Showdown in Pewter City, he defeated Brock's Onix with an Electric-type attack that triggered the sprinkler system causing Onix to be drenched in water, one of its weaknesses. Ash's Pikachu has also defeated very powerful Pokémon that Ash's other Pokémon were unable to, such as Dragonite, Metagross and Mega Lucario. He was also the second of Ash's Pokémon to defeat a legendary Pokémon in battle, defeating Brandon's Regice to win the Brave Symbol. He later fought Tobias' Latios to a draw in the semi-finals of the Lily of the Valley Conference. He has helped Ash win countless battles and Gym and League matches.

The possibility of evolving into Raichu was first raised in the episode Electric Shock Showdown. After suffering a crushing defeat by Lt. Surge's Raichu, Nurse Joy presented Ash with a Thunder Stone. Ash allowed Pikachu to decide, but it smacked the stone away with his tail, choosing to become stronger as it is, and defeated Raichu using its superior speed. In the Sinnoh region, Pikachu battled a Raichu belonging to a trainer named Sho. The two were evenly matched, until Raichu used Hyper Beam to secure victory, a move Pikachu could not learn. At a Pokémon Center, Ash revealed that he kept the Thunder Stone he acquired in Vermilion City in case Pikachu changed his mind about evolving. Once again, Pikachu chose not to evolve, and defeated Sho's Raichu in a rematch with a combination of speed and spinning techniques learned from Dawn. In the interim, Team Rocket stole the Thunder Stone, as they also liked Pikachu to stay as he is.

However, at times, Pikachu has lived up to his species' frail and brittle strengths, particularly in Gym battles where he was defeated with relative ease by his opponent; for example, he was overpowered very easily by Lt. Surge's Raichu, Sabrina's Kadabra, Blaine's Magmar, Bugsy's Scyther, Whitney's Miltank, Chuck's Poliwrath, Roark's Rampardos, Fantina's Drifblim, Cress's Panpour, and Viola's Surskit, despite having a type advantage with Panpour, Scyther, Poliwrath, Drifblim, and Surskit. He also drew against Winona's Pelipper and Norman's Vigoroth, and struggled against Crasher Wake's Floatzel. Furthermore, he has lost twice to Trip's Serperior, as a Snivy in In the Shadow of Zekrom! and a Servine in A Rival Battle for Club Champ!, despite Trip being a starting Trainer and recently having obtained Serperior.

Pikachu became the second non-legendary Pokémon to defeat a legendary Pokémon in the anime after Charizard, beating Brandon's Regice in Pace - The Final Frontier!, giving Ash his final Frontier Symbol.

Pikachu is also the only one of Ash's Pokémon to accompany him to the Hoenn, Unova, and Kalos regions, and was intended to be the only Pokémon to accompany him to Sinnoh before Aipom was discovered to have stowed away on the ship Ash was taking. Up until the capture of Dawn's Pachirisu, Pikachu was the only Electric-type Pokémon in the anime owned by a main character.

Pikachu is always becoming a constant target whenever he gets captured by Team Rocket. Sometimes they succeed with nets, cages or capsules, but most of the time their plans always failed by Ash and his friends or something else. Whenever Pikachu gets released from their trap and reunites with Ash, he sends Team Rocket blasting off with his Electric attacks. In this case, his Thunderbolt. Sometimes, Pikachu sends them away even when he's not captured.

Even with his high level of electrical power, Pikachu has not stopped learning new attacks. Upon learning that Roxanne, the Rustboro Gym Leader used Rock types, Ash had Pikachu begin learning Iron Tail in All Things Bright and Beautifly!. After training hard, Pikachu finally perfected it in The Winner by a Nosepass, where he used it to defeat Roxanne's Nosepass and earn Ash his first Hoenn Badge. In addition to giving Pikachu an advantage over Rock types, Iron Tail has allowed Pikachu to defeat many powerful opponents. In May's Egg-Cellent Adventure, during a battle with Team Rocket, Ash ordered Pikachu to do a Quick Attack. Much to the surprise of Ash and his friends, the Quick Attack morphed into Volt Tackle which sent Team Rocket blasting off. Until Dancing With the Ducklett Trio!, it has been one of Pikachu's signature moves, in which Pikachu replaced it with Electro Ball, which it learned while battling a trio of annoying Ducklett. Not only that, Pikachu has used his Ability, Static, a few times in the anime.

Moves used

Using Electro Ball Using Agility	Move First Used In Thunder Shock Pokémon - I Choose You! Thunderbolt † Showdown in Pewter City Agility Electric Shock Showdown Quick Attack † Electric Shock Showdown Thunder Abra and the Psychic Showdown Double-Edge Friend and Foe Alike Tackle × The Double Trouble Header Leer × Hour of the Houndour Iron Tail † All Things Bright and Beautifly! Volt Tackle May's Egg-Cellent Adventure Electro Ball † Dancing With the Ducklett Trio!
An × shows that the move cannot be legitimately known by this Pokémon in the games.
A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

Moves improvised

Pikachu using Rocket Punch

• Leer was first seen in The School of Hard Knocks. When Giselle called for Cubone to use Leer, Ash told Pikachu to "Leer right back" by making funny faces. He later used Leer in Hour of the Houndour; however, this was the actual move, albeit, an anime move error still.
• An attack where Pikachu stored electricity in his tail similar to Slam was used to defeat Lt. Surge's Raichu in Electric Shock Showdown. A similar move, referred to as "Shocking Tail" by the MC, was used to defeat Drake's Ditto in Hello, Pummelo!.
• Rocket Punch was a move that Pikachu used while "boxing" Anthony's Hitmonchan in The Punchy Pokémon. Pikachu glowed red and shot off his boxing gloves, leaving off a trail of smoke. Once the smoke disappears, Pikachu still has his boxing gloves on and flies towards Hitmonchan at high speed.
• Thunder Armor was a one-time technique in the episode Solid as a Solrock, Pikachu is seen using Thunder on himself while riding Ash's Swellow. This increased their attack power greatly, and they easily overpowered their opponents.
• Spin, originally made by Dawn and first used by her Piplup and Buneary, was also used by Turtwig and Aipom to avoid attacks in the episode O'er the Rampardos We Watched!, where he was able beat Roark and obtain the Coal Badge.
• Thunder-Volt Tackle is a move combination between Ash's Pikachu and Paul's Electabuzz. Pikachu starts by using Volt Tackle towards Paul's Electabuzz, who grabs him and uses Thunder on him to supercharge the Volt Tackle. This was used in Enter Galactic! to sever the cables with which Team Galactic's helicopters were carrying Veilstone City's meteorites.
• Swift-Quick Attack was a combination of Aipom's twirling Swift and Pikachu's Quick Attack that was used in A Stand-Up Sit-Down!. Aipom would use a twirling Swift that spins in the air and then Pikachu would jump in the Swift with Quick Attack and as he runs, the Swift stars would be surrounding the white light from the Quick Attack.

Pikachu using Electro Iron Tail

• Volt Tail, a combination of Volt Tackle and Iron Tail, was used in Pika and Goliath! against Sho's Raichu and once again in The Semi-Final Frontier! against Tobias's Latios.
• Counter Shield can be used by Pikachu by utilizing Thunderbolt, similar to Ash's Buizel and Infernape who can do the technique with their own moves.
• Thunder Whirlpool was used in Arceus and the Jewel of Life where it was used by Pikachu and Dawn's Piplup in order to win a tag battle against Kato and Kiko's Heracross and Beautifly. First Piplup used Whirlpool which trapped Heracross and Beautifly inside at which point Pikachu used Thunderbolt to electrify it, knocking out both opponents at the same time.
• Hydro Volt Tackle is used as a finishing blow against Team Rocket in Memories are Made of Bliss!. It is a combination of Pikachu's Volt Tackle and Dawn's Piplup's Hydro Pump creating a massive Electric-Water shot that sent Team Rocket blasting off.
• Thunderbolt-Electro Ball is a combination used to power up Electro Ball, first seen in Movie Time! Zorua in "The Legend of the Pokémon Knight"!. Ash has Pikachu use Electro Ball, then tells him to use Thunderbolt on it to significantly increase the size and power of Electro Ball.
• Massive Electro Ball was a stronger variation of Electro Ball that Pikachu used in Unova's Survival Crisis!. While blocking Thundurus's Thunder attack to protect Iris, Pikachu absorbed some of its opponent's electricity. Later, when Ash told Pikachu use Electro Ball, it transferred Thundurus's excess energy into its attack, causing the Electro Ball to crackle with blue lightning and swell to incredibly massive proportions. This supercharged Electro Ball dealt great damage to the Abyssal Ruins after it was launched.
• Electro Iron Tail was a move combination Pikachu used to defeat Trip's Serperior in Mission: Defeat Your Rival!. First Pikachu forms an Electro Ball on his tail, and then uses Iron Tail, slamming both the Electro Ball and Iron Tail into the opponent at the same time, dealing a notable amount of damage.
• Draco Meteor Climb was a countering method Ash improvised during his Gym battle with Grant in Climbing the Walls!. By using Iron Tail, Pikachu was able to jump on and avoid being hit by Grant's Tyrunt's Draco Meteor. This was based on Ash's counter method to Rock Tomb, called "Rock Tomb Climb".
• Aura Sphere Climb*, similar to Draco Meteor Climb, was used in Showdown at the Shalour Gym! in order to counter Korrina's Mega Lucario's Aura Sphere.

In the games

Main article: Red's Pikachu (game)

In the main series, Red's Pikachu is noticeably based on Ash's Pikachu: not only does Red receive it from Professor Oak after his rival, Oak's grandson, takes the last starter Pokémon in Pokémon Yellow, but it follows Red around rather than being kept in a Poké Ball. In Generation II and Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Pikachu is the highest-leveled member of Red's team when he is encountered at Mt. Silver, and the highest leveled Pokémon owned by a Trainer in the entire series excluding battle arenas. His moves, notably in HeartGold and SoulSilver, are the four moves most used by Ash's Pikachu at the time of the games' release. Pikachu was one of Ash's three Pokémon in Pokémon Puzzle League. The Pikachu in the Super Smash Bros. series may be based on Ash's Pikachu.

A Japanese event distributed an in-game representation of Ash's Pikachu via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and at participating Japanese McDonald's locations which was held from July 15 through August 10, 2010. This Pikachu was distributed at participating American Toys 'R' Us locations from January 30 to February 13, 2011, and Canadian Toys 'R' Us locations from February 9 to February 20, 2011. This Pikachu's moveset was based on that of Ash's Pikachu during the Diamond & Pearl series.

Pokémon Info				Trainer Memo	Battle Moves		Ribbons
PIKACHU	♂	Dex No.	0025	Naughty nature.	Electric	Volt Tackle
Lv. 50		Type			Steel	Iron Tail
		Electric		Unknown	Pokémon Event	Normal		Quick Attack
		OT	Ash	Apparently had a	Electric	Thunderbolt
		ID No.	01301	fateful encounter at	This Pokémon was available in the United States and Canada in 2011.
Item		Ability		Lv. 50.
Light Ball		Static
The date this Pokémon was received is determined by the date on the DS when it was obtained from the Poké Mart.
This Pokémon is English in origin.
Can be obtained with: D P Pt HG SS
Obtained from: PBR Ranch Ra SoA GS Distribution

Pokémon Center Best Wishes Pokémon

From August 10 to September 6, 2013, Japanese Pokémon Centers distributed an in-game representation of Ash's Pikachu with its moveset based on the one known by Pikachu during the Best Wishes series. The distribution was split into four one-week periods; each week, players could receive one of four Best Wishes-themed Pokémon at random. The other three Pokémon distributed alongside Ash's Pikachu were Iris's Axew, Cilan's Pansage, and Professor Oak's Rotom.

Pokémon Info				Trainer Memo	Battle Moves		Ribbons
ピカチュウ	♂	Dex No.	0025	Brave nature.	Electric	Thunderbolt
Lv. 50		Type			Normal	Quick Attack
		Electric		Unknown	Pokémon Cartoon	Steel		Iron Tail
		OT	サトシ	Apparently had a	Electric	Electro Ball
		ID No.	08103	fateful encounter at	This Pokémon was available in Japan from August 10 to September 6, 2013.
Item		Ability		Lv. 50.
None		Static
The date this Pokémon was received is determined by the date on the DS when the Wonder Card is received.
This Pokémon is English in origin.
Can be obtained with: B W B2 W2

In the manga

In the Ash and Pikachu manga

Ash's Pikachu in the Ash and Pikachu manga

Ash's Pikachu is a starring character in the Ash and Pikachu manga series, which is based on the Johto and Hoenn seasons of the Pokémon anime. Like in the anime, Pikachu and Ash share a strong friendship.

Moves used

Using Tackle	Move First Used In Thunderbolt † Hoppip, the Wind Calls! Swift The Beginning Of Good Luck?! Pokémon Fortune Telling Thunder The Grand Rhydon Plan Quick Attack One Half Of A Poké Ball Tackle × One Half Of A Poké Ball Iron Tail † Trust In Each Other!! Volt Tackle † A 'Thank You' That Transcends Time
An × shows that the move cannot be legitimately known by this Pokémon in the games.
A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

In The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga

Ash's Pikachu in The Electric Tale of Pikachu

Ash's Pikachu is a starring character in the manga series The Electric Tale of Pikachu, which is loosely based on the Pokémon anime. Pikachu appears in every chapter of the manga.

Like in the anime, Pikachu was Ash's first Pokémon. However, Ash did not receive Pikachu from Professor Oak - instead, he finds Pikachu under the floorboards of his home, chewing on wires to eat the electricity. His mother asks him to take Pikachu outside, but when Gary Oak taunts Ash about how he has not yet become a Pokémon Trainer, Ash decides to keep Pikachu as his first Pokémon.

Like in the anime, Pikachu was originally unwilling to obey Ash, but after Ash protects Pikachu from a flock of wild Spearow and a Fearow, Pikachu gains respect for Ash, and after Ash defeats Brock, he is named Jean Luc Pikachu (Japanese ジャン＝リュック ピカチュウ Jean-Luc Pikachu).

Later on, when Ash is in a Gym battle with Misty, Pikachu is petrified by the sight of her Gyarados and does not battle, while in his Gym battle with Sabrina, he is easily bested by her Abra.

Pikachu likes Misty and greets her enthusiastically whenever she appears, often ignoring Ash in the process.

Moves used

Using Quick Attack	Move First Used In ThunderShock Pikachu, I See You! Agility Haunting My Dreams Thunder Haunting My Dreams Swift The Human Race and the Pokémon Race Quick Attack You Bet Your Wife Reflect The Orange Crew Supreme Gym Leader
A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

In the Magical Pokémon Journey manga

Ash's Pikachu in Magical Pokémon Journey

Ash's Pikachu in Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl

Ash's Pikachu, along with Ash, Misty and Brock, makes a cameo appearance in the bonus chapters at the end of every volume of the Magical Pokémon Journey manga series. In the bonus chapters, Ash and friends have mistakenly wandered into the Magical Pokémon Journey world and are trying to return back to the world of the anime, encountering many unusual situations along the way, including encounters of aspects of the Magical Pokémon Journey canon which are different in anime canon.

Ash's Pikachu shows a video to Pikachu of him bouncing a Poké Ball on his head in One Hundred Fifty-One.

In the Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl manga

Ash's Pikachu appears as a main character in the Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl manga, which is based on the Diamond & Pearl series of the anime.

Moves used

Using Iron Tail	Move First Used In Quick Attack Combine Power Thunderbolt Hurry Up! Dawn's Pinch!! Volt Tackle Ash's Shirt Iron Tail Stop the Landslide!
A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

In the movie adaptations

Ash's Pikachu in the movie 10 manga adaptation

As Ash and Pikachu have appeared in every Pokémon movie to date, Pikachu is a main character in every Pokémon movie manga adaptation.

Moves used

Manga versions

Using Iron Tail in White—Victini and Zekrom

Move First Used In Thunderbolt Emperor of the Crystal Tower: Entei Thunderbolt Jirachi: Wish Maker Thunderbolt Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea Volt Tackle Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea Thunderbolt The Rise of Darkrai Volt Tackle The Rise of Darkrai Thunderbolt Giratina and the Sky Warrior Thunderbolt Arceus and the Jewel of Life Quick Attack Arceus and the Jewel of Life Thunderbolt White—Victini and Zekrom Iron Tail White—Victini and Zekrom Electro Ball White—Victini and Zekrom Thunderbolt Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction

A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

Ani-Manga versions

Using Thunderbolt	Move First Used In Thunderbolt Giratina and the Sky Warrior
A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves.

In the TCG

Ash's Pikachu is featured in the Pokémon Trading Card Game as a Pokémon . The following is a list of related cards.

Ash's Pikachu Cards listed with a blue background are only legal to use in the current Expanded format. Cards listed with a green background are legal to use in both the current Standard and Expanded formats.
Card	Type	English Expansion	Rarity	#	Japanese Expansion	Rarity	#
Pikachu					Movie Commemoration Random Pack		012/022
Pikachu LV.X					DPt-P Promotional cards		043/DPt-P

In Tretta

Main article: Pikachu (05-01)

In Pokémon Tretta, Ash and his Pikachu appear as a Master-class Tretta in the Invasion! Mega Rayquaza expansion. When Pikachu is in play, he appears wearing Ash's hat from the XY series.

Trivia

Pikachu surfing

Pikachu disguised as a female

Pikachu imitating Loudred in Dealing With a Fierce Double Ditto Drama!

Pikachu imitating Azumarill in The Pirates of Decolore!

• 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 a cosplay competition. 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 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!.

Pikachu's language

Some of Pikachu's speech is consistent enough that it seems that some phrases actually mean something. (In Stealing The Conversation!, Team Rocket refers to this language as "PikaSpeak," however, this most likely isn't official.) For instance, Pikachu always uses "Pikapi" when referring to Ash (notice that it sounds somewhat similar to "Satoshi"). Other speech includes:

• Pi-Kachu: Pochama (Piplup)
• Pikachu-Pi: Kasumi (Misty)
• Pika-Chu: Takeshi (Brock), Kibago (Axew)
• Pikaka: Hikari (Dawn)
• PiPiPi: Togepy (Togepi)
• Pikachu-Pika: Fushigidane (Bulbasaur)
• PikaPika: Zenigame (Squirtle), Mukuhawk (Staraptor), Goukazaru (Infernape) Gamagaru (Palpitoad) or Marilli (Azumarill)
• PiPi-kachu: Rocket-dan (Team Rocket)
• Pi-Pikachu: Get da ze! (He says this after Ash wins a Badge, catches a new Pokémon or anything similar.)
  • Pikachu may not be the only one to use this phrase, as other Pokémon do this as well. For example, when Iris caught Emolga, Axew said Ax-Axew (Ki-Kibago in the Japanese).
• Pika-Pikachu: When referring to or introducing himself.
• Chaa: Anything he says happily or excitedly, or when yawning.
• Pika!: "Matte!", or saying "Wait!"
• Pi-kaPika: "Sayōnara," or saying "Good-bye."

Voice actors

Language Voice actor Japanese 大谷育江 Ikue Ohtani English Ikue Ohtani Rachael Lillis* German Sabine Bohlmann (SE01)

Related articles

• For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Pikachu.
• Episodes focusing on Pikachu

Ash's Pokémon
On hand:	Pikachu
Traveling with:	Rotom Phone
At Oak's/In rotation:	Pidgeot	Bulbasaur	Charizard	Kingler	Muk	Tauros (×30)
	Snorlax	Heracross	Bayleef	Quilava	Totodile	Noctowl
	Donphan	Swellow	Sceptile	Corphish	Torkoal	Glalie
	Staraptor	Torterra	Infernape	Buizel	Gliscor	Gible
	Unfezant	Oshawott	Pignite	Snivy	Scraggy	Leavanny
	Palpitoad	Boldore	Krookodile	Talonflame	Hawlucha	Noivern
	Dragonite	Gengar	Lucario	Sirfetch'd	Dracovish
With Kukui/In rotation:	Rowlet	Lycanroc	Incineroar	Melmetal
At home:	Mr. Mime
In training:	Squirtle	Primeape
Released:	Butterfree	Lapras	Larvitar	Greninja	Goodra	Nebby
	Naganadel
Temporarily owned:	Seaking	Buzzwole	Stakataka	Pheromosa	Rowlet
Traded away:	Raticate	Aipom
Given away:	Beedrill
Traveled with:	Haunter	Azelf	Meowth	Meloetta	Rotom Pokédex	Latias
The Power of Us only:	Ekans	Sentret
EToP only:	Fearow	Oddish	Mankey	Slowpoke
Newspaper Strip only:	Starmie	Clefairy
For a list of Pokémon Ash has temporarily owned, used, or commanded, see here

Misty's Pokémon
In rotation:	Staryu	Starmie	Psyduck	Politoed	Gyarados	Azurill
	Clauncher
At Cerulean Gym:	Goldeen	Horsea	Corsola	Caserin
Released:	Togetic	Seaking
Other:	Dewgong	Seaking	Goldeen (multiple)	Shellder (multiple)	Seel	Luverin
Borrowed:	Pikachu	Vulpix	Bulbasaur	Scyther	Marill
Befriended:	Golduck
Ride Pokémon:	Mantine	Dragonair
Adventures only:	Krabby	Chinchou	Lanturn	Omanyte	Suicune
Electric Tale only:	Shellder	Lapras
Pocket Monsters only:	Blastoise	Jigglypuff
Newspaper Strip only:	Squirtle	Butterfree

Dawn's Pokémon
On hand:	Piplup	Buneary	Pachirisu	Mamoswine	Quilava	Togekiss
In training:	Ambipom
Traded away:	Buizel
Released:	Oshawott
Temporary:	Pikachu	Croagunk	Chimchar	Staravia	Grimer	Dodrio
	Sharpedo
Befriended:	Mesprit

Officer Jenny's Pokémon
Recurring:	Growlithe	Squirtle Squad	Arcanine	Stunky	Swanna	Herdier
	Manectric	Gumshoos
Other:	Gastly	Spinarak	Wobbuffet	Jumpluff	Pidgeot	Parasect
	Tangela	Meganium	Blastoise	Luxray	Buddy	Duosion
	Ferrothorn	Croconaw	Azumarill	Octillery	Ducklett	Granbull
	Oricorio
Temporary:	Malamar	Pumpkaboo	Inkay	Wobbuffet	Pikachu	Dedenne
	Beedrill	Noivern	Scolipede	Exploud	Pangoro

Pokémon the Series characters
Protagonists Ash Ketchum (Pikachu) • Misty (Togetic) • Brock • Tracey Sketchit • May • Max • Dawn (Piplup) • Iris (Haxorus) • Cilan • Serena • Clemont • Bonnie (Dedenne) • Lana • Kiawe • Lillie • Sophocles • Mallow • Rotom Pokédex • Goh (Grookey) Rivals Gary • Ritchie • Harrison • Drew • Harley • Morrison • Tyson • Solidad • Paul • Nando • Zoey • Kenny • Conway • Barry • Ursula • Trip • Bianca • Burgundy • Stephan • Georgia • Cameron • Aria • Alain • Miette • Tierno • Shauna • Trevor • Nini • Sawyer • Gladion • Horacio • Hau • Leon • Raihan • Horace • Bea • League Conference participants • Coordinators • Performers • World Coronation Series participants Antagonists Jessie (Wobbuffet) • James • Meowth • Giovanni • Butch • Cassidy • Dr. Namba • Matori • Pierce • Dr. Zager • Gozu • Tabitha • Maxie • Shelly • Archie • Hunter J • Saturn • Cyrus • Mars • Jupiter • Charon • Colress • Aldith • Ghetsis • Barret • Malamar • Lysandre • Mable • Celosia • Aliana • Xerosic • Bryony • Tupp • Zipp • Rapp • Plumeria • Guzma • Viren • Rose • Oleana Professors Professor Oak • Professor Ivy • Professor Elm • Professor Birch • Professor Rowan • Professor Carolina • Professor Juniper • Dr. Fennel • Cedric Juniper • Professor Sycamore • Professor Kukui • Professor Burnet • Professor Cerise • Professor Magnolia • Sonia • Professor Amaranth Relatives Delia Ketchum • Daisy • Violet • Lily • James's parents • Flint • Lola • Forrest • Brock's siblings • Norman • Caroline • Johanna • Chili • Cress • Grace • Meyer • Lana's father • Lana's mother • Harper and Sarah • Rango • Sima • Mimo • Kiawe's grandfather • Mohn • Lusamine • Gladion • Sophocles's parents • Molayne • Abe • Mallow's mother • Ulu • Walker • Camille • Halta Supporting Officer Jenny • Nurse Joy • Magikarp salesman • Todd Snap • Charles Goodshow • Casey • Liza • Sakura • Lance • Clair • Raoul Contesta • Mr. Sukizo • Steven Stone • Vivian Meridian • Robert • Scott • Lilian Meridian • Solana • Brandon • Marian • Yuzo • Rhonda • Cynthia • Reggie • Angie • Looker • Izzy and Cara • Lyra • Khoury • Tobias • Don George • Elder • Alder • Luke • Freddy O'Martian • Ingo • Emmet • Jervis • Virgil • N • Anthea and Concordia • Porter • Alexa • Sophie • Cosette • Clembot • Sanpei • Mairin • Astrid • Diantha • Korrina • Gurkinn • Monsieur Pierre • Palermo • Keanan • Malva • Samson Oak • Anela • Hobbes • Nina • Anna • Laki • Dana • Yansu • Wicke • Faba • Ilima • Acerola • Dia • Chloe • Chrysa • Ren • Parker • Talia • Lei • Danika • Quillon • Hop • Gym Leaders • Elite Four • Frontier Brains • Island kahunas • Many temporary characters Supporting Pokémon Fearow • Ho-Oh • Squirtle Squad • Pink Butterfree • Haunter • Jigglypuff • Mewtwo • Mimey • Lapras herd • Granbull • Pichu Brothers • Lugia • Silver • Delibird • Wynaut • Larvitar • Kyogre and Groudon • Articuno • Deoxys • Lake guardians • Forces of nature • Meloetta • Reshiram • Super-ancient Pokémon • Wooper • Florges • Squishy • Z2 • Guardian deities • Bewear • Toucannon's flock • Stoutland • Oranguru • Nebby • Stufful • Ultra Beasts • Grandpa Forest • Necrozma • Lunala • Shaymin • Mew • Rotom Phones • Pelipper • Thievul trio • Eternatus • Drone Rotom • Legendary heroes • Latias • Recurring wild Pokémon
See also: Pokémon Horizons characters

Ash & Pikachu characters Main characters Ash Ketchum • Pikachu • Misty • Togepi • Brock • May • Max • Jessie • James • Meowth Rivals Gary Oak • Drew • Morrison Gym Leaders and Frontier Brains Whitney • Clair • Roxanne • Norman • Noland • Greta • Lucy Other Anna • Azusa • Professor Birch • Calista • Caroline • Professor Cozmo • Drake • Eriko Eriko's grandmother • Mrs. Grimm • Hiroto • Jack Pollockson • Kaburagi • Kiyo • Lily • Professor Oak Oliver • Robert • Shelly • Solana • Susie • Tabitha • Team Rocket Scientist • Timmy Whitney's grandmother • Winstrate family

The Electric Tale of Pikachu characters Main characters Ash Ketchum • Pikachu • Gary Oak • Ritchie • May Oak • Professor Oak • Delia Ketchum • Jessie • James • Meowth Gym Leaders Brock • Misty • Koga • Sabrina • Giovanni • Rudy • Drake Other A.J. • Aya • Bill • Damian • Dario • Duplica • Eevee brothers • Giselle • Jeanette Fisher • Officer Jenny • Joe • Nurse Joy Lara Laramie • Mahri • Melanie • Mikey • Mimi • Professor Orville • Potter • Florinda Showers • Ruby • Samurai • Tommy

This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation.