How did your favourite Pokemon become your favourite?

What is your favourite Pokemon AND WHY? How did that Pokemon become your favourite? Anime? In-game? Competitive battling? Or any other reason?

My favourite Pokemon is the adorable Johto grass starter Bayleef.

Well, I got into Pokemon when I was five years old. It was 1999 and the anime started airing in the Netherlands. The fourth episode, in which Ash's Metapod evolved into Butterfree, was the first episode I ever saw. I was hooked. I became a major PokeManiac, which I still am. Thanks to that episode, Butterfree became my favourite Pokemon. I cried when Ash released him, and I still cry when I even think about that episode.

However, when Gen 2 was just new, I got introduced to Chikorita. TCG card, a flippo and then Ash's Chikorita in the anime... I had a new favourite Pokemon. Her sheer cuteness, her crush on Ash, her jealousy towards Pikachu, her personality... Perfect.

Then, in 2002, Ash's Chikorita evolved in the anime. I immediately loved Bayleef. SO CUTE!!! Since the day I saw the episode in which Ash's Chikorita evolved, Bayleef has been my favourite Pokemon for eightteen years and still is, and always will be.

Gen 3 introduced Altaria and Milotic, two Pokemon I also adore. However, they cannot even come close to Bayleef's awesomeness.

Using Bayleef in Pokemon Crystal and Pokemon Colosseum, and getting a Bayleef plushie and figurine, only strenghtened my Bayleef favourism.

I love the entire Chikorita line, but Bayleef the most. Now, in 2020, I have three Bayleef plushies, several TCG cards and figurines, and even wrote a fanfic from Ash's Bayleef's perspective a few years ago.

In most of my playthroughs of any game in which Chikorita is available (which includes breeding it in another game and trading the egg to the game I'm playing), I use Bayleef on my team. Not Meganium, but Bayleef. I love Meganium, but nowhere as much as Bayleef. And yes, I EV train the Bayleef and make sure to get a good nature and IV's, to make sure it doesn't hold my team back.

What is your favourite Pokemon? And why? How did that Pokemon become your favourite?

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I've always been a fan of Bug-type Pokemon. When I was little, my favorite Pokemon were Scyther and Scizor. I thought they super cool-looking, I thought the trivia of them being an evolutionary family with the same BST was super neat, and I loved how they stood out against most other Bug-types. Bug had a reputation of being a weak type, with the only purpose of Bug Pokemon to be caught on route 1, evolved quickly, and then discarded. Scyther and Scizor defied that reputation. They proved that there was more to Bug Pokemon than fodder. The Bug type was the rough, and Scyther and Scizor were diamonds.

And then Gen 5 happened.

So many cool strong new Bug Pokemon!
Scolipede!
Crustle!
Escavalier!
Accelgor!
Not you, Leavanny
Galvantula!
Durant!
Genesect!

And from the heavens, shining down upon them all, came Volcarona. Such beauty. Such grace. Such power. With just a single turn, a single dance, Volcarona could boost its stats to monstrous levels. Then with different dance, Volcarona could reduce all opposition to cinders, growing stronger and stronger until nothing could stand up to its divine inferno. Like the Israelites living under Egyptian tyranny, Bug Pokemon had long been oppressed, but now Volcarona had descended from its solar perch to tenfold unleash a plague of fire upon all who spat at the Bug type and regarded it as a symbol of weakness.

I was smitten.
 

CTNC

Doesn't know how to attack
Jrose11 (the guy that made the is it possible to beat Pokemon Red with just a Magikarp video) has said his favorite Pokemon is Kadabra because he was amazed how strong it was when he used it in Gold. Well, my favorite is one I thought was strong. Key word, though.

I had trouble beating one Pokmemon in Emerald, so I figured it must be a really strong species. I caught its pre-evolution, even though it was only available at Level 15 and my team was in the 30s, and trained it until it evolved and gained a cool type I'd never seen before, Dragon. While training, accidentally used Dragonbreath twice in a row against a Kecleon and was amazed that it was Super Effective. That was pretty interesting because I didn't think any type weak to itself. My Altaria was able to beat Winona's Altaria and I soloed the rest of the game with it. I was a little annoyed when I found out Altaria was the weakest Dragon. -_- That didn't stop me from using it against the Battle Frontier at Level 100 when my second highest Pokemon was about Level 72! (Levels scaled with your highest Level in the Emerald Frontier. Needless to say, I didn't do very good.)

Funny off topic thing from that playthough: Did you know that Return has two animations in Gen 3? If you did, did you know it can change in the middle of battle? There's a stronger looking animation if they love you enough and I had trouble against Glacia, so I got to see Altaria use both in the same battle because of way too many Revival Herbs. (Walrein became another of my favorite Pokemon when I decided to get one after that, but it almost felt like a shame to evolve Spheal into something way less cute.)
 
Following the split between the Mystery Dungeon and Ranger games for gen 3, me and my sister each got one of Diamond and Pearl. I was still stupid and reliant on my starter, so I was second place through the Elite Four and needed some help from trades against things that could handle Infernape. Some time later, after some transfers from Emerald and evolutions among our friend groups, we took on the Multi Battle Tower. Despite my original incompetence, I was the one that knew the full type chart and was picking through our respective rosters for what we had over level 50. My first unconscious realization that there was truly depth in these games came here, with my lightningrod rhyperior using earthquake next to her freshly-caught skarmory. While I do still like rhyperior, I always thought of skarm as the spotlight of that experience. There were several trades back and forth as we experimented with different teams, and I ended up holding onto the skarmory. My sister didn't really care, it was just something she had in her box at level 52-ish. But when time passed all the way to gen 5 and I was starting to look at Battle Subway doubles. I didn't think of any other flying-type to partner with my ingame excadrill. I thought of transferring up that exact same skarmory that had already proven itself. At the time, Skarmory had to compete with several other steel-types, such as the newcomers klinklang and excadrill, and the perennial Aggron. It would be another two generations that it would really rise to the top, and it came as a result of a deeper understanding of both Skarmory and myself.

In team games, people are obviously going to focus on the playstyle they enjoy most. Part of that enjoyment may come from a power fantasy, with people enjoying more things that let them feel strong. There was some discussion in a tabletop RPG forum about the viability of healers that cued me in that that doesn't just mean breaking down the door and kicking butt, sometimes it can be saving the rest of the team from certain death. But what about me, what was my imagined moment of power? I thought on it, and realized my fantasies were defensive, but not in the way a healer is. They were about holding the line while meticulously set up devices thinned the incoming hordes. I liked the current state of the game where there wasn't much in-combat healing just because it lets a tank handle the defenses all by themselves. Eventually my attention turned back to pokemon, and to my knowledge of battling acquired in the meantime. Skarmory, with its double hazards, tough defenses, and self-sufficient recovery, I realized, embodied my fantasy. It was an ideal I would be bringing, intentionally or not, to every game I played. And I'm okay with that.
 
I've always been a fan of Bug-type Pokemon. When I was little, my favorite Pokemon were Scyther and Scizor. I thought they super cool-looking, I thought the trivia of them being an evolutionary family with the same BST was super neat, and I loved how they stood out against most other Bug-types. Bug had a reputation of being a weak type, with the only purpose of Bug Pokemon to be caught on route 1, evolved quickly, and then discarded. Scyther and Scizor defied that reputation. They proved that there was more to Bug Pokemon than fodder. The Bug type was the rough, and Scyther and Scizor were diamonds.

And then Gen 5 happened.

So many cool strong new Bug Pokemon!
Scolipede!
Crustle!
Escavalier!
Accelgor!
Not you, Leavanny
Galvantula!
Durant!
Genesect!

And from the heavens, shining down upon them all, came Volcarona. Such beauty. Such grace. Such power. With just a single turn, a single dance, Volcarona could boost its stats to monstrous levels. Then with different dance, Volcarona could reduce all opposition to cinders, growing stronger and stronger until nothing could stand up to its divine inferno. Like the Israelites living under Egyptian tyranny, Bug Pokemon had long been oppressed, but now Volcarona had descended from its solar perch to tenfold unleash a plague of fire upon all who spat at the Bug type and regarded it as a symbol of weakness.

I was smitten.
Very nice! I like quite some bugs too, mostly cute ones. Butterfree, Ledyba and Ledian. And Yanma and Venomoth. I know they're weak, but they're so cute! But I also like Scyther.

Very nice story about Volcarona. One of the cooler Gen 5 Pokemon, for sure. :)

Jrose11 (the guy that made the is it possible to beat Pokemon Red with just a Magikarp video) has said his favorite Pokemon is Kadabra because he was amazed how strong it was when he used it in Gold. Well, my favorite is one I thought was strong. Key word, though.

I had trouble beating one Pokmemon in Emerald, so I figured it must be a really strong species. I caught its pre-evolution, even though it was only available at Level 15 and my team was in the 30s, and trained it until it evolved and gained a cool type I'd never seen before, Dragon. While training, accidentally used Dragonbreath twice in a row against a Kecleon and was amazed that it was Super Effective. That was pretty interesting because I didn't think any type weak to itself. My Altaria was able to beat Winona's Altaria and I soloed the rest of the game with it. I was a little annoyed when I found out Altaria was the weakest Dragon. -_- That didn't stop me from using it against the Battle Frontier at Level 100 when my second highest Pokemon was about Level 72! (Levels scaled with your highest Level in the Emerald Frontier. Needless to say, I didn't do very good.)

Funny off topic thing from that playthough: Did you know that Return has two animations in Gen 3? If you did, did you know it can change in the middle of battle? There's a stronger looking animation if they love you enough and I had trouble against Glacia, so I got to see Altaria use both in the same battle because of way too many Revival Herbs. (Walrein became another of my favorite Pokemon when I decided to get one after that, but it almost felt like a shame to evolve Spheal into something way less cute.)
Altaria is awesome. It's my fourth favourite Pokemon, only behind Chikorita, Bayleef and Meganium. Altaria is the first Pokemon I ever EV trained properly, my in-game Altaria in Emerald. Adamant Dragon Dancer with Earthquake, Aerial Ace, Rest and Dragon Dance.

Altaria being weaker than other Dragons... It doesn't matter. It's your favourite. That's all that matters. If you like it, use it. At least in-game, and even competitively in the lower tiers if you can make it work. In Gen III and IV, Altaria was amazing in UU. With the other Dragons being locked away in BL, OU and Uber, Altaria was the only Dragon left in UU. It was a great Dragon Dancer in those tiers. I've used it competitively in that tier back then, and did very well with it. My best competitive achievement ever, #4 on the Gen 4 UU ShoddyBattle leaderboard... I reached it with Dragon Dance Altaria being the cornerstone of my team. :)
 
The first Pokemon I ever saw was a sad little misplaced Jigglypuff plushie at the local PX.
It was so cute that I just had to have it!
I later asked one of the other kids what it was (since it didn't have a tag on it), and they told me it was a Pokemon.

That little Jigglypuff was my first experience with the series and started my love of video games in general.
I still have it, and have purchased a few more Jigglypuff plushies over the years (along with dozens of others).
I used to collect all the TCG cards that had Jigglypuff on them, and I was amazed to see it in the Super Smash Bros. series!

It may not be very good for in-game use, but I like using one in casual runs.
(I have an EV-trained, HA-bred one, so it's not completely useless!)
 
Following the split between the Mystery Dungeon and Ranger games for gen 3, me and my sister each got one of Diamond and Pearl. I was still stupid and reliant on my starter, so I was second place through the Elite Four and needed some help from trades against things that could handle Infernape. Some time later, after some transfers from Emerald and evolutions among our friend groups, we took on the Multi Battle Tower. Despite my original incompetence, I was the one that knew the full type chart and was picking through our respective rosters for what we had over level 50. My first unconscious realization that there was truly depth in these games came here, with my lightningrod rhyperior using earthquake next to her freshly-caught skarmory. While I do still like rhyperior, I always thought of skarm as the spotlight of that experience. There were several trades back and forth as we experimented with different teams, and I ended up holding onto the skarmory. My sister didn't really care, it was just something she had in her box at level 52-ish. But when time passed all the way to gen 5 and I was starting to look at Battle Subway doubles. I didn't think of any other flying-type to partner with my ingame excadrill. I thought of transferring up that exact same skarmory that had already proven itself. At the time, Skarmory had to compete with several other steel-types, such as the newcomers klinklang and excadrill, and the perennial Aggron. It would be another two generations that it would really rise to the top, and it came as a result of a deeper understanding of both Skarmory and myself.

In team games, people are obviously going to focus on the playstyle they enjoy most. Part of that enjoyment may come from a power fantasy, with people enjoying more things that let them feel strong. There was some discussion in a tabletop RPG forum about the viability of healers that cued me in that that doesn't just mean breaking down the door and kicking butt, sometimes it can be saving the rest of the team from certain death. But what about me, what was my imagined moment of power? I thought on it, and realized my fantasies were defensive, but not in the way a healer is. They were about holding the line while meticulously set up devices thinned the incoming hordes. I liked the current state of the game where there wasn't much in-combat healing just because it lets a tank handle the defenses all by themselves. Eventually my attention turned back to pokemon, and to my knowledge of battling acquired in the meantime. Skarmory, with its double hazards, tough defenses, and self-sufficient recovery, I realized, embodied my fantasy. It was an ideal I would be bringing, intentionally or not, to every game I played. And I'm okay with that.
Nice how you like Skarmory. Competitively very popular since Gen 2 and 3, but not very popular as a favourite Pokemon. I like it when people have less 'standard' favourites. :)

The first Pokemon I ever saw was a sad little misplaced Jigglypuff plushie at the local PX.
It was so cute that I just had to have it!
I later asked one of the other kids what it was (since it didn't have a tag on it), and they told me it was a Pokemon.

That little Jigglypuff was my first experience with the series and started my love of video games in general.
I still have it, and have purchased a few more Jigglypuff plushies over the years (along with dozens of others).
I used to collect all the TCG cards that had Jigglypuff on them, and I was amazed to see it in the Super Smash Bros. series!

It may not be very good for in-game use, but I like using one in casual runs.
(I have an EV-trained, HA-bred one, so it's not completely useless!)
Aww, such a cute story. Very nice how Jigglypuff was your first favourite ever and always stayed your favourite. And nothing wrong with using it in-game casually. I mean, I do the same with Bayleef in-game. Breed it in one game, to give it egg moves (Ancientpower, Hidden Power), IV's and a nice nature, and hatch it in the game I'm playing. Then, I actually EV train it. That way, Bayleef doesn't hold the team back and actually holds its own in mid- and late-game boss battles. I like how you do the same with Jigglypuff. :)

Oh, and about your username... Celebi is also one of my favourites. Favourite legendary. <3
 
I don’t have a single favorite, but I do like some Pokémon more than others. Usually it boils down to two reasons:

1) Memories using one in-game: Cyndaquil line, Torchic line, Venipede line, Snivy line, the list goes on (and it’s not all starters lol. Heck I have a soft spot for the Spritzee line from using it in Y). One standout is the Mareep line: back when I was first playing Gold, I was having trouble beating his Croconaw with my Quilava and Geodude. After a quick search, I found Mateo, a Pokémon that seemed tailor-made to help with my plight. Thanks to it, I could move on, and thus the Mareep line became a mainstay of Gold, and was insta-earmarked for my HG run when I got that (and my Gold battery died :c), and if I didn’t have a ‘only use it once’ rule for in-game I’d have used it again.

2) Looks: Sometimes I just like how a Pokémon looks:mehowth: Though often looks can determine what Pokémon I put on in-game teams so the two complement each other. One (non-starter) example off the top of my head is Clauncher; once I saw it, I told myself “that’s gonna be on my team”...though since I ended up starting with Y that didn't quite pan out, but it is earmarked for my X team.
 
I don’t have a single favorite, but I do like some Pokémon more than others. Usually it boils down to two reasons:

1) Memories using one in-game: Cyndaquil line, Torchic line, Venipede line, Snivy line, the list goes on (and it’s not all starters lol. Heck I have a soft spot for the Spritzee line from using it in Y). One standout is the Mareep line: back when I was first playing Gold, I was having trouble beating his Croconaw with my Quilava and Geodude. After a quick search, I found Mateo, a Pokémon that seemed tailor-made to help with my plight. Thanks to it, I could move on, and thus the Mareep line became a mainstay of Gold, and was insta-earmarked for my HG run when I got that (and my Gold battery died :c), and if I didn’t have a ‘only use it once’ rule for in-game I’d have used it again.

2) Looks: Sometimes I just like how a Pokémon looks:mehowth: Though often looks can determine what Pokémon I put on in-game teams so the two complement each other. One (non-starter) example off the top of my head is Clauncher; once I saw it, I told myself “that’s gonna be on my team”...though since I ended up starting with Y that didn't quite pan out, but it is earmarked for my X team.

Nice in-game experiences! :)
I had a similar thing with Colosseum. As a child, I got these Mantine and Misdreavus figurines and started loving these Pokemon. One year later, when getting Colosseum, I used both of them and had a ThunderDance combo. Swift Swim Mantine with Rain Dance and Water Pulse, and Misdreavus with Thunder. Using them in Colosseum soldified my love for these Pokemon. <3

Nice how Spritzee became one of your favourites, since most people just forget about it. I always like it when people have unusual favourites. :)
 

Yung Dramps

awesome gaming
I unfortunately don't remember when or why I decided I loved Drampa. What I do know is that to me it's the perfect blend of cute and cool, alongside a unique typing, funny stats (tfw more SpA than Latios and Tapu Lele). There's also a bit more of a "dark", personal-ish reason for me liking it so much but I don't feel like sharing it because it would make me look like a crazy edgelord
 
While I'd love to just plop down and offer the generic answer of 'Ivysaur because my first pokemon was a bulbasaur when my older brother let me play his old copy of Blue' I'll just say I don't really have favorites in the traditional sense. I love each pokemon for something different, whether it's purely their aesthetic, them serving me well on a team, or just for being charming in some vague way I can't quite explain.

Twist my arm though and I'd probably say some of my favorite non-starter/legendary pokemon are:
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Kaiju queen with a bevy of coverage options yes please
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Going on safari to find a dinosaur was just the best as a kid
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I just have fun using her as a glass cannon and corrosion plus venoshock can lay down some serious hurt in casual runs
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It's a hydra, that also flies. I need not say more
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If Hoenn did one thing right it was giving the pokemon more interesting lore surrounding them, and as a bit of a history nut, Claydol just oozes the kind of fascinating mystery about ancient times I adore from its design to its Pokedex entries!
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I'll admit, most of my love for Politoed comes from having run a rain team back in ORAS and the little dude served me well as my primary rain setter
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Just to round off this little list here's one of my favorite concepts for a pokemon, the spirit of an ancient fossil pokemon back from the grave to fight again, just an all around solid design imho
 
I would say, I actually have a rather... unique case scratch that, childish story. I remember big bro having played the original RBY (I didn't know which to be exact) and I just watched him.

But... before my juvenile mind could comprehend who Pikachu is, I caught eyes with a balloon (yes, this rubber toy thing) with print of certain mer-cat. Instantly fell in love with it, and wished I could have many balloons with this mer-cat. This would be when I started to learn and discover what "Pocket Monster" is. Arceus knows how long that had been....

Today, I could never find that balloon anymore. Back then I couldn't ask my House to buy me those. But it's ok, since now I have PokéCen lifesize plush of this merkitten (along with its purple kitten and ribbon bun sisters, among my plushes), and I actually managed to make my own print (though as of now, of Fennekin. Someone wanted Pokémon print balloons and I saw artistic medium potential), and had drawn arts of fluffy mons. My X playthrough (my first actual console play as I got my own 3DS) even took me time to find a female vee just for it, and in GO I'm known to take over gyms with them; Team Mystic's Vaporeon User.

Of course it is childish. I was literally a child. Though then again, pretty kitty~....

Yes, I believe this was what I saw that time. Could make this a black white print and ask a service to print balloons. Just to take back that childhood.

I don't think as of now I can fit my story on said purple kitten sister and a certain jetplane dragon, though yes, they came from certain movie.
 
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Tyrantrum. Conkeldurr. Infernape. Rhyperior. Alolan Golem. Drednaw. Mamoswine (which incidentally is my sister's own favorite). Rampardos. Hippowdon. Magmortar. Electivire. Coalossal. Kyogre.

I have always been hooked by big, brawly, stocky, somewhat menacing looking mons (guess Coalossal is the odd one out here, but to me it's a steaming volcano) that look like could pulverize a building with a single step. Better if there's fire and/or earth/terrain/rocks involved in their actions.

In hindsight, it's probably my innate passion for dinosaurs that hooked me into pokemon together with my interest in extreme natural phenomena such as eruptions and storms that resulted into this weird fetish of mine of scaring the hell out of everyone with overpowered, sentient tanks.

Now, this is the general preference. Here comes the original one, together with the mandatory childhood story.

My absolute favorite Pokemon is, and I think it always will be, Tyranitar.

It's the combination of a design that fits the criteria, an ability that resembles natural extreme conditions (this giant Rock Godzilla can also summon desert sand storms!?!?) and long, distant but fond childhood memories.

I was 11 when playing Gold on Game boy color (God I'm old), and me and a couple of friends living in the same condo ran through the story together and occasionally engaged in Link battles. Remember, no internet, no guides. Only life-long brotherhoods being forged by trusting the other on what to do to get through this and that Gym Leader, growing stronger and then testing each other in head to head, 6v6 battles.

The three of us got to Mt. Silver together and defeated a silent trainer that spent his time standing stoic in a blizzard after traversing a long cave-y dark mountain (the location fits my extreme condition trope, again). All that's left is to get our teams to level 100 and challenge each other brains' out (everything is allowed: Mewtwo, Lugia, Ho-oh, even 2 or 3 at a time).

The only difference is, in some remote obscure corner of the dark, threatening mountain, I found a baby dinosaur, and the other two didn't.

"Level 20 in a level 50+area? Weak, Bro!" "Ah ah, ground/rock, the trashiest of trash typings. Two thirds of starters can pulverize this weakling"

The other difference is that I am a massive grinder. I enjoy grinding for the sake of it and completing games to the literal 100%, while my friends didn't bother. This comes into play because of Dex completion. I started training Larvitar by beating the Pokemon League with my overlevelled team again and again, each time climbing the dreaded mountain to get some sweet extra EXP. There is something I enjoy in repeating a grind when it yields results whereas others get usually bored that pulls me in.

Larvitar evolved into Pupitar, and at that point I remember thinking that Dex 248 may not be hidden undiscovered legend but... maybe, maybe... I trained Pupitar for a lot of time, and I was beginning to lose hope when I hit level 55, and this never seen before, gigantic monster that looked like a mountain given life and shaped into a dinosaur appeared.

WOW number 1.

The Dex entry mentioned how it literally pulverizes mountains as a hobby.

WOW number 2.

Simple minded as I was, I didn't even check its typing. I literally thought it was a glorified, cool Rhydon. But then I challenge the League for the n-th time and I switched some weak mon out of Xatu, Tyranitar came in and... psychic attacks had no effect on it? It is Dark typed? I soon realized that it resisted Ho-oh Fire attacks and completely nullified Lugia, Mewtwo and Mew STAB attacks.

Wow number 3.

I literally realized that I could bring it to link battles and, coupled with my Snorlax (I accidentally was the only one to realize how broken GSC Snorlax was as I used a stupid Body Slam/Rest/Rollout/Snore set, every other kid thought Snorlax was hideous and lame), I was literally invincible.

And yes, I kept my mouth shut about Tyranitar weird typing as long as I could (checkmate), and enjoyed a brief, but uncontested, reign of terror over the block.

It didn't take long before everybody figured out how amazing Tyranitar actually was, but to me it looked unbelievable, it helped me beating the game strongest trainer in the most iconic location and was a staple of my few wins in link battles.

In gen3 it gained the ability to summon storms. As I got older and more into competitive battling and in-game facilities, I learned how it was not a brainless Hyper-Beaming Godzilla, but a Swiss-Army-Knife with the obliterating power of an army that learns almost everything. In gen 8 I can actually see him going around! In the DLC, it actually can follow me properly (sort of)!

It can tank, dragon dance, set rocks, trap, be a CB battering ram... it fits a role if you need it. And there is something cathartic to me in its absurd amount of weaknesses that makes a challenge to use it properly that only hooks me further.

It does everything and looks the best. It's a childhood memory and a powerhouse. My favourite all time-mon. Thanks Tyranitar, all different versions I've bred and kept, all of you are one preistoric being to me.

Now, the only thing that could possibily usurp Tyranitar's throne would be some crazy-cool Brachiosaur/Spinosaur (my favorite Dino) based fossil, which I both relish and fear (I feared this in SwSh as I heard of new fossils, then my sister showed me Arctozolt... you can figure the rest).

Mmm...re-reading this love letter to Tyranitar I realized that my childhood consisted of:
  1. Dreaming destructive powers.
  2. Being fascinated by natural calamities.
  3. Lying to my friends to win videogame matches.
I probably need to reassess my issues. (Just kidding)
 
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Despite my username, my favorite Pokémon is actually Blastoise (and Squirtle). Before I played the Pokemon games, I collected TCG cards. In the first booster pack that I had, I had Squirtle there and I found it so cute. Really, really cute. Due to my love for Squirtle, I asked for the Blastoise Storm Surge deck as a gift.


The first Pokemon game that I played was FireRed and Squirtle was my starter. It was hugely ahead in my team and was quite overleved that it got to its final evolution, Blastoise, at Rock Tunnel. Ever since, I had an attachment to Blastoise and beat the game with him, Pidgeot, Raichu, and Arcanine (I think there was a Zapdos there too I'm not sure). Unfortunately, my OG Blastoise didn't reach level 100 because my save file was accidentally deleted (GBA SP randomly crashed while I was saving the game). My first Pokemon that reached level 100 was a Charizard in my Pokemon LeafGreen game. He may not have been mentioned here but I love Wartortle too, just not on the level of love with Blastoise and Squirtle. I'm guilty.

Blastoise sadly isn't that popular in terms of merchandise but Squirtle is, so I have a lot of Squirtle shirts and figurines!

My top 5 favorite Pokemon:
1) Blastoise
2) Squirtle
3) Mewtwo
4) Rhydon
5) Flareon

I also might share stories of how those other Pokémon became my favorites.
 
:gs/ampharos:

Emerald was the first main series game I played but Gold was the first one I actually completed. When I was randomly wandering through the grass on Route 32 a Mareep appeared and since I thought it looked pretty cool, I caught it. Surprisingly it turned out to be quite a powerhouse and carried me through the whole game, solo-ing the E4 and Lance and almost beating Red.

Interestingly I still have my save file.

IMG_20201006_202139.png
 
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I unfortunately don't remember when or why I decided I loved Drampa. What I do know is that to me it's the perfect blend of cute and cool, alongside a unique typing, funny stats (tfw more SpA than Latios and Tapu Lele). There's also a bit more of a "dark", personal-ish reason for me liking it so much but I don't feel like sharing it because it would make me look like a crazy edgelord
Drampa? Nice. Like I said to others, I love it when people have unusual favourites.

While I'd love to just plop down and offer the generic answer of 'Ivysaur because my first pokemon was a bulbasaur when my older brother let me play his old copy of Blue' I'll just say I don't really have favorites in the traditional sense. I love each pokemon for something different, whether it's purely their aesthetic, them serving me well on a team, or just for being charming in some vague way I can't quite explain.

Twist my arm though and I'd probably say some of my favorite non-starter/legendary pokemon are:
View attachment 280559 Kaiju queen with a bevy of coverage options yes please
View attachment 280560 Going on safari to find a dinosaur was just the best as a kid
View attachment 280561 I just have fun using her as a glass cannon and corrosion plus venoshock can lay down some serious hurt in casual runs
View attachment 280562 It's a hydra, that also flies. I need not say more
View attachment 280563 If Hoenn did one thing right it was giving the pokemon more interesting lore surrounding them, and as a bit of a history nut, Claydol just oozes the kind of fascinating mystery about ancient times I adore from its design to its Pokedex entries!
View attachment 280565 I'll admit, most of my love for Politoed comes from having run a rain team back in ORAS and the little dude served me well as my primary rain setter
View attachment 280566 Just to round off this little list here's one of my favorite concepts for a pokemon, the spirit of an ancient fossil pokemon back from the grave to fight again, just an all around solid design imho
Nothing wrong with that. Favourism works different for everybody. And Politoed is awesome.

I would say, I actually have a rather... unique case scratch that, childish story. I remember big bro having played the original RBY (I didn't know which to be exact) and I just watched him.

But... before my juvenile mind could comprehend who Pikachu is, I caught eyes with a balloon (yes, this rubber toy thing) with print of certain mer-cat. Instantly fell in love with it, and wished I could have many balloons with this mer-cat. This would be when I started to learn and discover what "Pocket Monster" is. Arceus knows how long that had been....

Today, I could never find that balloon anymore. Back then I couldn't ask my House to buy me those. But it's ok, since now I have PokéCen lifesize plush of this merkitten (along with its purple kitten and ribbon bun sisters, among my plushes), and I actually managed to make my own print (though as of now, of Fennekin. Someone wanted Pokémon print balloons and I saw artistic medium potential), and had drawn arts of fluffy mons. My X playthrough (my first actual console play as I got my own 3DS) even took me time to find a female vee just for it, and in GO I'm known to take over gyms with them; Team Mystic's Vaporeon User.

Of course it is childish. I was literally a child. Though then again, pretty kitty~....

Yes, I believe this was what I saw that time. Could make this a black white print and ask a service to print balloons. Just to take back that childhood.

I don't think as of now I can fit my story on said purple kitten sister and a certain jetplane dragon, though yes, they came from certain movie.
I love Vaporeon. Awesome story!

Tyrantrum. Conkeldurr. Infernape. Rhyperior. Alolan Golem. Drednaw. Mamoswine (which incidentally is my sister's own favorite). Rampardos. Hippowdon. Magmortar. Electivire. Coalossal. Kyogre.

I have always been hooked by big, brawly, stocky, somewhat menacing looking mons (guess Coalossal is the odd one out here, but to me it's a steaming volcano) that look like could pulverize a building with a single step. Better if there's fire and/or earth/terrain/rocks involved in their actions.

In hindsight, it's probably my innate passion for dinosaurs that hooked me into pokemon together with my interest in extreme natural phenomena such as eruptions and storms that resulted into this weird fetish of mine of scaring the hell out of everyone with overpowered, sentient tanks.

Now, this is the general preference. Here comes the original one, together with the mandatory childhood story.

My absolute favorite Pokemon is, and I think it always will be, Tyranitar.

It's the combination of a design that fits the criteria, an ability that resembles natural extreme conditions (this giant Rock Godzilla can also summon desert sand storms!?!?) and long, distant but fond childhood memories.

I was 11 when playing Gold on Game boy color (God I'm old), and me and a couple of friends living in the same condo ran through the story together and occasionally engaged in Link battles. Remember, no internet, no guides. Only life-long brotherhoods being forged by trusting the other on what to do to get through this and that Gym Leader, growing stronger and then testing each other in head to head, 6v6 battles.

The three of us got to Mt. Silver together and defeated a silent trainer that spent his time standing stoic in a blizzard after traversing a long cave-y dark mountain (the location fits my extreme condition trope, again). All that's left is to get our teams to level 100 and challenge each other brains' out (everything is allowed: Mewtwo, Lugia, Ho-oh, even 2 or 3 at a time).

The only difference is, in some remote obscure corner of the dark, threatening mountain, I found a baby dinosaur, and the other two didn't.

"Level 20 in a level 50+area? Weak, Bro!" "Ah ah, ground/rock, the trashiest of trash typings. Two thirds of starters can pulverize this weakling"

The other difference is that I am a massive grinder. I enjoy grinding for the sake of it and completing games to the literal 100%, while my friends didn't bother. This comes into play because of Dex completion. I started training Larvitar by beating the Pokemon League with my overlevelled team again and again, each time climbing the dreaded mountain to get some sweet extra EXP. There is something I enjoy in repeating a grind when it yields results whereas others get usually bored that pulls me in.

Larvitar evolved into Pupitar, and at that point I remember thinking that Dex 248 may not be hidden undiscovered legend but... maybe, maybe... I trained Pupitar for a lot of time, and I was beginning to lose hope when I hit level 55, and this never seen before, gigantic monster that looked like a mountain given life and shaped into a dinosaur appeared.

WOW number 1.

The Dex entry mentioned how it literally pulverizes mountains as a hobby.

WOW number 2.

Simple minded as I was, I didn't even check its typing. I literally thought it was a glorified, cool Rhydon. But then I challenge the League for the n-th time and I switched some weak mon out of Xatu, Tyranitar came in and... psychic attacks had no effect on it? It is Dark typed? I soon realized that it resisted Ho-oh Fire attacks and completely nullified Lugia, Mewtwo and Mew STAB attacks.

Wow number 3.

I literally realized that I could bring it to link battles and, coupled with my Snorlax (I accidentally was the only one to realize how broken GSC Snorlax was as I used a stupid Body Slam/Rest/Rollout/Snore set, every other kid thought Snorlax was hideous and lame), I was literally invincible.

And yes, I kept my mouth shut about Tyranitar weird typing as long as I could (checkmate), and enjoyed a brief, but uncontested, reign of terror over the block.

It didn't take long before everybody figured out how amazing Tyranitar actually was, but to me it looked unbelievable, it helped me beating the game strongest trainer in the most iconic location and was a staple of my few wins in link battles.

In gen3 it gained the ability to summon storms. As I got older and more into competitive battling and in-game facilities, I learned how it was not a brainless Hyper-Beaming Godzilla, but a Swiss-Army-Knife with the obliterating power of an army that learns almost everything. In gen 8 I can actually see him going around! In the DLC, it actually can follow me properly (sort of)!

It can tank, dragon dance, set rocks, trap, be a CB battering ram... it fits a role if you need it. And there is something cathartic to me in its absurd amount of weaknesses that makes a challenge to use it properly that only hooks me further.

It does everything and looks the best. It's a childhood memory and a powerhouse. My favourite all time-mon. Thanks Tyranitar, all different versions I've bred and kept, all of you are one preistoric being to me.

Now, the only thing that could possibily usurp Tyranitar's throne would be some crazy-cool Brachiosaur/Spinosaur (my favorite Dino) based fossil, which I both relish and fear (I feared this in SwSh as I heard of new fossils, then my sister showed me Arctozolt... you can figure the rest).

Mmm...re-reading this love letter to Tyranitar I realized that my childhood consisted of:
  1. Dreaming destructive powers.
  2. Being fascinated by natural calamities.
  3. Lying to my friends to win videogame matches.
I probably need to reassess my issues. (Just kidding)
Nice story. Always cool to discover those kind of things about a Pokemon when you're younger.

View attachment 280581
Despite my username, my favorite Pokémon is actually Blastoise (and Squirtle). Before I played the Pokemon games, I collected TCG cards. In the first booster pack that I had, I had Squirtle there and I found it so cute. Really, really cute. Due to my love for Squirtle, I asked for the Blastoise Storm Surge deck as a gift.


The first Pokemon game that I played was FireRed and Squirtle was my starter. It was hugely ahead in my team and was quite overleved that it got to its final evolution, Blastoise, at Rock Tunnel. Ever since, I had an attachment to Blastoise and beat the game with him, Pidgeot, Raichu, and Arcanine (I think there was a Zapdos there too I'm not sure). Unfortunately, my OG Blastoise didn't reach level 100 because my save file was accidentally deleted (GBA SP randomly crashed while I was saving the game). My first Pokemon that reached level 100 was a Charizard in my Pokemon LeafGreen game. He may not have been mentioned here but I love Wartortle too, just not on the level of love with Blastoise and Squirtle. I'm guilty.

Blastoise sadly isn't that popular in terms of merchandise but Squirtle is, so I have a lot of Squirtle shirts and figurines!

My top 5 favorite Pokemon:
1) Blastoise
2) Squirtle
3) Mewtwo
4) Rhydon
5) Flareon

I also might share stories of how those other Pokémon became my favorites.
Yeah, with your username, I was expecting Flareon. :P
But yeah, many people have their first starter ever as theirfavourite. This makes a lot of sense.
My Chikorita/Bayleef/Meganium love is actually because of the anime, not the games, but I did start with a Chikorita in Crystal. ;)
And I love it when people have a collection of a certain Pokemon or evolution line. Very nice!
And the stories about the others in your top 5? If I were you, I'd post them. :)

I was just interested in rock types and Golem just was fun as one. Nothing really more than that.
Golem? Did it become your favourite because of the games or because of the anime? Or another reason?

:gs/ampharos:

Emerald was the first main series game I played but Gold was the first one I actually completed. When I was randomly wandering through the grass on Route 32 a Mareep appeared and since I thought it looked pretty cool, I caught it. Surprisingly it turned out to be quite a powerhouse and carried me through the whole game, solo-ing the E4 and Lance and almost beating Red.

Interestingly I still have my save file.

View attachment 280647
Nice! That Special Attack is awesome! I used Ampharos in Pokemon XD - Gale of Darkness once, and it did very well. :)
 
I started to play Pokemon with Pokemon Blue and the N64 Pokemon Game. Charizard became my first favourite pokemon. Beside Charizard I did also like Starmie and Gyarados (although Gyarados wasn't that strong of a Pokemon in Gen 1), Gyarados especially because it evolved from the very weak Magikarp nobody liked.

After Gen 1 I took a longer break from pokemon until Gen 4 when I started to play a lot of Shoddy Battle and was deep into OU team building. In this time the pokemons I enjoyed using the most were Infernape, Scizor and Tyranitar.

As my "fever" for competitive Pokemon Battling fell off, I took another small break from Pokemon until Gen 7 were released. Then I had several playthroughs of Sun/Moon and UltraSun/UltraMoon. My favourite Pokemon in 7th gen is probably Primarina.

I am currently playing Pokemon Shield, and Mudsdale is probably my favourite pokemon right now, because it performs nicely in the story playthrough; and I also like it majestic looks. Close second place goes to Excadrill.
 
When I was younger I had no Internet so I didn't know about upcoming Pokemon news, just watched the anime and played the games I had. The Original Series ended with Ash travelling to a new region called Hoenn, the same one where those chameleon and fighting chicken mons come from, I thought. I didn't know what to expect, I have never seen anything about a Generation 3. I see some new seagulls, whales and shark creatures. Then, the Pokemon Advanced opening played and it blew me away. New characters, new villain teams, more Pokemon!!! But then, after two jet dragons flying through, a particular creature stood out...

BRzK.gif


WHAT WAS THAT?! IT CONTROL THE WINDS?! IT'S SO COOL! I WANT ONE! (yo how do i go to hoenn in pokemon gold?) Many questions I had but full of excitement. Afterwards I went to the Pokemon website and found out about gen 3 and all of the new mons from Treecko to Deoxys. Absol, that was its name, wasn't a legendary like I thought (the Jirachi Wishmaker poster didn't help matters) and it didn't evolve or had a pre-evo, but it was still awesome.

I got Emerald and found one quickly by sheer luck, added him to my team of course. It wasn't as strong as I hoped but I had lots of fun with its huge movepool. His role in the anime and 6th movie depict it as a despised mon because of his "disaster bringer" reputation, but this doesn't stop Absol from warning everyone to be safe, such a noble creature...It also has a role in the Hoenn arc of the Adventures manga and Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team, being as helpful as possible. Seriously, how it cannot be my favorite? (and it's coming back October 22th baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
 

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Started with Gen I and my first pick was my favorite and has remained since:

If I had to pick one it would be Charizard of course, but I do have a fondness for Charmander and Charmeleon too. Charmander was my Starter in Blue (I picked Blue because that's my favorite color, ironically my brother got Red and he picked Squirtle, lol) and since then I've never faltered on it being my favorite. Sure, other cool Pokemon have come along in later gens, but something with Charizard just clicks with me (probably helped by the anime making Charizard look like a badass).
 
Hmmm... I think my first favorite was Jigglypuff. I don’t really know why. Somewhere in my young child brain, something clicked with it. I had a little rubber jigglypuff toy that I took everywhere with me. I distinctly remember taking it hiking and dropping it off a mountain lol......

There were several that I loved as a kid. Persian was largely because it was a cat and I loved cats and that’s really it. Venomoth because it was purple and had pretty eyes/wings. I liked pretty things. I was terribly obsessed with Articuno as well because big pretty blue bird. Was also very much into ice types as a small person. I received the movie 2000 for my 8th birthday. I maintain that the scene where articuno wakes up after crash landing into his island where the music has a soft climax and sun beams shine down on him is one of the best scenes in any Pokémon movie.

As a big boy I’ve really favored water and poison types, mostly water. Of them Cloyster is number one. I’ve always been a sucker for sea creatures and shellfish. I think clams are adorable little goo blobs in pretty little shell houses. Except Cloyster is a danger clam, not so adorable, but I still love it. I like his physical leanings, and have always appreciated using a Pokémon in battle that has a bit of a gimmick, Cloyster’s being the skill link machine gun clam man. A man I worked with years ago gave me a Cloyster toy that you stick on your finger. I sometimes put it on while I’m sitting at my computer and tap my finger with it while I’m concentrating. Small pleasure haha.
 
When I was a teenager, before I really loved Pokemon, a family friend bought me a paperback guide to Generation I. I was aware there were more than 150 Pokemon at the time (cue me reaching the end and asking, "Where's Chikorita?" not realizing this was printed before that mon existed), but reading its entry on Lapras describing it as a gentle giant ferrying travelers across the sea but endangered by hunters got me hooked. Combined with successfully using it on a couple of in-game teams and watching VGC where its G-Max form exists as a perfectly solid pick, my love for the plesiosaur has never diminished.
 

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