Electric rodents
- Pikachu clone redirects here. For the Pikachu that is a clone, see Pikachutwo.
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The subject of this article has no official name. The name currently in use is a fan designator; see below for more information. |
Electric rodents is a fan term referring to a group of Electric-type Pokémon based on rodents.
This group is also referred to by fans as the Pikachu family, Pikachu clones, or Pikaclones, though these terms are sometimes used to include other Pokémon such as Marill or Mimikyu, which are not Electric types, but otherwise resemble Pikachu in design. An equivalent term used within the Japanese Pokémon fandom is 電気袋組 Electric Pouch Group, referencing the electric pouches on these Pokémon's cheeks.
The terms "electric mice" and "electric mouse Pokémon" are used informally to describe this group in a post on the official Pokémon Singapore Facebook page, promoting the "HOPPE DAISHŪGO" collection of Pokémon Center merchandise. HOPPE DAISHŪGO can be translated as Great Gathering of Cheeks, referencing the common trait these Pokémon have.
Pokémon art director and character designer Ken Sugimori acknowledged the concept of the recurring "electric rodents" theme in an interview published in Volume 201 of the Nintendo Dream magazine.[1] Atsuko Nishida was responsible for designing six of the electric rodents, namely Pikachu, Raichu,[2][3] Alolan Raichu,[4] Pawmi, Pawmo, and Pawmot.[5]
List of electric rodents
There are 13 Pokémon considered to be electric rodents, with every generation introducing at least one.
Design-wise, all of these Pokémon are designed to resemble Pikachu,[1] with big round heads, black or brown button-like eyes (except for Alolan Raichu, whose eyes are blue), and electric pouches on their cheeks. All are in the Fairy and/or Field Egg Groups, except for Pichu and certain special forms of Pikachu, which are in the No Eggs Discovered Egg Group. Additionally, all of these Pokémon have English names very close to being pure transliterations of their Japanese names. Prior to Generation VIII, this group included the only Pokémon capable of learning Nuzzle, with Morpeko being the only member who cannot learn it. Most of the electric rodents have an Ability that gives them an immunity to Electric-type moves, such as Motor Drive, Lightning Rod, or Volt Absorb, with Dedenne, Alolan Raichu, Morpeko, and Pawmi being the exceptions (though Pawmi's evolved forms, Pawmo and Pawmot, gain Volt Absorb as a possible Ability). Every electric rodent has a gender ratio of one male to one female, save for special forms of Pikachu and Pichu that are exclusively a single gender. Every electric rodent in Pokémon Sleep also belongs to the Snoozing sleep type, except for Pichu, whose sleep type is Slumbering.
Pachirisu is the only member of this group revealed to actually be biologically related to Pikachu's evolutionary line.[6] Pawmi is the only one (aside from Pikachu itself) to have an evolutionary line, having three stages, mirroring Pikachu's—although Pikachu's evolutionary line includes a baby Pokémon, while Pawmi's lacks one.
The Pawmi line, being introduced in Generation IX, have yet to be directly grouped with the electric rodents officially, though they share the same design theme and other overall similarities. Alolan Raichu and other forms of the Pikachu line are also not typically depicted with this group.
Listed below are the 13 species included in this group, as well as Alolan Raichu.
Similar Pokémon
Marill and Mimikyu are often viewed as "Pikachu clones" by fans, although neither of them are Electric types.
Marill has similar design traits to Pikachu, being a cute, round Pokémon with black button-like eyes. Marill and Pikachu are also both in the Fairy Egg Group, and were both initially the first stage in a two-stage evolutionary line before gaining a pre-Evolution in the next generation which is a baby Pokémon that evolves via friendship Evolution. Prior to the release of Pokémon Gold and Silver, Marill was often referred to as "Pikablu" by fans, and it was erroneously referred to as such on the Topps trading cards for the first movie. However, Marill has never officially been acknowledged as related to the electric rodents.
Mimikyu's design is directly inspired by Pikachu, and it is sometimes featured in official artwork showcasing these Pokémon. The Japanese web page for the "HOPPE DAISHŪGO" merchandise states: "よく見ると、でんきタイプではないポケモンが1匹、こっそり仲間入りしているね" ("If you look closely, you'll see that one Pokemon that is not an Electric type has secretly joined the group.") This references Mimikyu's behavior of pretending to be a Pikachu.
In the games
Pachirisu's Pokédex entry in Pokémon HeartGold, SoulSilver, and Scarlet states "It's one of the kinds of Pokémon with electric cheek pouches", which likely refers to this group.
In Pokémon X and Y, the "Stickers" battle menu background features all the members of the group that existed at the time.
In animation
These Pokémon are owned by several characters in the animated series. Pichu is the only member of this group that isn't owned or cared for by any of the major characters of the animated series, though it is confirmed in the first episode of Pokémon Journeys: The Series, Enter Pikachu!, that Ash's Pikachu used to be a Pichu before they met.
Pokémon the Series
In Pokémon the Series, Ash and his friends own a number of these Pokémon: Ash owns a Pikachu, Dawn owns a Pachirisu, Iris owns an Emolga, Bonnie cares for her brother Clemont's Dedenne, Sophocles owns a Togedemaru, and Goh owns a female Raichu that evolved from a Pikachu. Additionally, James of Team Rocket owns a Morpeko, and while it is not considered part of this group, Jessie owns a Mimikyu. Ash's friend Tracey owns a Marill, though Marill has never been officially connected to this group.
Additionally, Ash's rival in Alola, Hau, and in Galar, Marnie, own Alolan Raichu and Morpeko, respectively. Dawn's rival Ursula owns both Plusle and Minun.
Gallery
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Ash's Pikachu as Pichu -
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Pokémon Horizons: The Series
In Pokémon Horizons: The Series, Friede owns a Pikachu named Captain Pikachu, who mans the flying ship Brave Olivine with him; a wild Pawmi also resides on the vessel. Additionally, Nemona owns a Pawmot that evolved from a Pawmo. In the Rising Again arc, Lacey owns a Plusle and Minun.
Gallery
Trivia
- Emolga was the first electric rodent to be dual-type. After its introduction in Generation V, all subsequent generations have introduced dual-type electric rodents.
- Every unevolved dual-type electric rodent has a type immunity. Of these, Morpeko is the only one with an immunity to another electric rodent's type, being unaffected by Alolan Raichu's Psychic type.
- Alolan Raichu is the first dual-type electric rodent without any immunities. However, as the Psychic type was originally immune to Ghost-type moves in Generation I, this means that Pawmo and Pawmot are the only electric rodents whose secondary type have never had any immunities at any point in time.
- Pawmi is the first single-type electric rodent since Pachirisu, being introduced five generations later.
- Pawmo and Pawmot are the only electric rodents to share a type combination (Electric/Fighting-type), and subsequently, to have a type disadvantage against multiple electric rodents instead of one, those being Emolga, Dedenne, and Alolan Raichu. Due to being part Fighting-type, they are also the only electric rodents without a resistance to Flying-type moves.
- Pikachu is the only electric rodent to be a first partner Pokémon and to have a Gigantamax form, as well as to have an item unique to it (the Light Ball).
- Raichu is the only electric rodent to have a regional form and to be capable of undergoing Mega Evolution.
- Pichu is the only electric rodent to be a baby Pokémon.
- Emolga is the only electric rodent without a weakness to Ground-type moves or a resistance to Electric-type attacks, due to being part Flying-type.
- Alolan Raichu and Pikachu are the only electric rodents with unique Z-Moves (Catastropika for Pikachu, 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt for Pikachu in a cap, and Stoked Sparksurfer for Alolan Raichu).
- Togedemaru is the only electric rodent with a double weakness (to Ground-type moves) and double resistances (to Flying and Steel-type attacks).
- Morpeko is the first electric rodent since Pikachu's evolutionary line to have a signature move (Aura Wheel). It would be followed by Pawmot's Double Shock in Generation IX.
- Pawmi and Pawmo are the first electric rodents introduced since Pikachu to be capable of evolving.
- Cramorant is exclusive to The Teal Mask expansion in Scarlet, while Violet instead features Morpeko. This choice may be due to Cramorant's unique form that involves holding a Pikachu in its mouth, linking both Pokémon to Pikachu in different ways.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Nintendo Dream Vol. 201, January 2011 (Translation by Dr. Lava)
- ↑ Creator Profile: The Creators of Pikachu - Pokemon.com (archived)
- ↑ Interview with Atsuko Nishida on Game Freak's website
- ↑ "What It Takes to Create a Pokémon." Interview with Ken Sugimori in Pokémon Ultra Sun & Pokémon Ultra Moon Edition: The Official National Pokédex, p. xxi
- ↑ Instagram post by Atsuko Nishida (@coloatsu) on the Paldean Pokémon designed by her. Posted on December 1, 2024.
- ↑ Pokédex entry: A species related to the Pikachu line. [...] (Pokémon Legends: Arceus)
Related articles
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This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon species, as well as Pokémon groups and forms. |
