Top 10 Pokemon that Could Replace Pikachu as the Face of the Franchise

Hey there everyone! It's us again, the Pokemon Experts of SuperCheats, and this time we're bringing you something a little different. Now Pikachu has been the Face of the Pokemon Franchise ever since the Original Anime, but the thought recently occurred to us as to what if the Pokemon Creators finally decided to roll with a different Pokemon; who could take on this role with a seamless transition? And it was from these thoughts how this piece came to be. In this article we will rank ten Pokemon who we think could actually replace Pikachu (if such a thing will ever be realistically possible).

Now many factors will go into these rankings, mainly how popular the Pokemon is AND how they would fit in the franchise role. No bias opinions will be shown here; we'll let the Pokemon do the earning of their ranking.

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We usually like to list - before we officially get started - the few Pokemon that just missed our rankings. Unfortunately, this time around, we could really only think of ten Pokemon that could honestly replace Pikachu. Perhaps Snivy and Aipom, but that's about it.

So with that being said, let's begin!

#10 - Raichu

This wouldn't be a realistic if Raichu wasn't even mentioned on this list. It would be an easy transition, especially since all the Pokemon Creators would have to do is just evolve Pikachu. Sounds simple enough, right? And it would actually make a lot of sense too. For a while, Raichu was actually just as popular as Pikachu. It was statistically better than Pikachu, that is until the Light Orb was introduced in the Third Generation. With this new item, Raichu just paled in comparison to its Pre-Evolution. Pikachu was fast and could now destroy teams, and all Raichu had better than it was its defensive stats. Unfortunately, there are WAY better defensive Pokemon than Raichu in existence.

It's at a point now where Raichu REALLY needs a Mega Evolution; there's just really no other option for it. Raichu is just SO BAD, and a Mega Evolution would be just what the doctor ordered. But if it doesn't get a Mega Evolution, then odds are Raichu can never become the franchise Pokemon. A Franchise Pokemon should have a certain niche in play - Pikachu has the Light Orb - and Raichu's needs to be a Mega Evolution.

But that's not to say Raichu still can't become Ash's Lead Pokemon, or a new main character's, if it doesn't receive one. Pikachu isn't the best Pokemon in the world, and Raichu is no different. So why can't it be one?

It makes a ton of sense for Raichu to become the new Franchise Pokemon, but it's going to be hard to overthrown Pikachu. A Mega Evolution would definitely help, but it still might not have the popularity it needs to do it. It takes a lot to be the face of such a glorified Gaming Series, and Raichu just might not have what it takes.

#9 - Pichu

So if Raichu is a possible option as a replacement for Pikachu, then it's only fair that Pichu (or the Pichu Bros) should be mentioned. We for one would be thrilled if the Pichu Bros could be reintroduced into the Franchise, but it would obviously mean that Ash and Pikachu would BOTH need to be replaced. Pikachu just can't revert back into a Pichu, so it would have to go. But Ash... He actually has the possibility to stay. If they somehow killed off Pikachu (even with how sad that would be), he could get a new Pichu (or the Pichu Bros) and start all over. Or the Creators could off Ash and show what had happened with Pikachu before it evolved into one. Perhaps it had a previous trainer when it was yet still a Pichu, and evolved for said trainer when it learned to love him/her THAT much. In the end, that trainer would have to be cut from the script and abandoned Pikachu. Pikachu would then have been found by Professor Oak and given to Ash, explaining the reasoning as to why Pikachu was in such a bad mood when first given to Ash and why it took Ash risking his life for Pikachu to learn to trust him.

Both plots would take a lot of guts to produce, especially since Pikachu is such an iconic figure in the Gaming World. Pichu has just a bit more cuteness than Pikachu, but Pikachu has just about everything else; Pikachu is still very cute, has some power behind the Light Orb, and has the all necessary fame. It would be difficult for any Pokemon of this list to actually supersede Pikachu and take its place, but Pichu - as the examples just given prove - could definitely get the job done.