50 Fun Facts About Pikachu

Pikachu's designer was obsessed with which animal's 'comical' movements while creating the Pokémon?

Squirrel antics fascinated the artist, who was obsessed with the animals at the time. With the rat-like Rattata already in the game, a different rodent became the model.

Which actor gave the title character of the film Detective Pikachu both his voice and his facial movements?

Ryan Reynolds was rarely on set, so his human co-stars often performed to a puppet standing in for Pikachu. His motion-captured expressions were then applied to the furry sleuth.

Which Pokémon took the blame for an anime episode whose seizure-causing flashes came from Pikachu's attack?

Porygon and its evolutions have never featured in the anime since, though the 1997 strobing came from Pikachu blasting missiles. Pokémon's official account later joked that it 'did nothing wrong'.

Which lonely Ghost-type Pokémon hides under a crude, home-made Pikachu costume in the hope of being loved?

Mimikyu copies the mascot because Pikachu is so adored, a sly joke about the franchise's own marketing. In the anime, one grew to hate Pikachu and attacks him on sight.

A giant Pikachu balloon has flown above a New York department store's parade on which holiday since 2001?

Thanksgiving crowds at the Macy's parade first saw 'Flying Pikachu' in 2001. After it retired, the balloon was used to test wind conditions in Times Square following an accident with another balloon.

Which Pokémon does Pikachu evolve into when exposed to a Thunder Stone, a change Ash's partner famously refused?

Raichu was designed as a stronger counterpart to Pikachu. In the anime, Ash's Pikachu rejected the stone after losing to one, then won the rematch without evolving.

The 'chu' in Pikachu's name copies the Japanese word for the sound made by which animal?

Mouse squeaks are written 'chū' in Japanese, while 'pika' is the sound of something sparkling. Series director Junichi Masuda called the name one of the hardest to create.

Pikachu co-stars in the music video for 'Electric', a 2021 single by which American pop star?

Katy Perry and Pikachu spend the video in Hawaii, guiding younger versions of themselves towards her first club performance. The song was made for a Pokémon anniversary album.

Scalpers mobbed which painter's Amsterdam museum for a promo card of Pikachu in a grey felt hat?

Van Gogh's own grey felt hat sits on Pikachu's head on the card. The museum pulled the giveaway over safety fears, and several staff were later suspended over missing cards.

In 1999, Time magazine called Pikachu 'the most beloved animated character since' which other Japanese icon?

Hello Kitty was the yardstick as the magazine ranked Pikachu the second-best 'person' of 1999. Only singer Ricky Martin placed higher, with author J.K. Rowling behind.

Which baby Pokémon, first seen in Pokémon Gold and Silver, is the pre-evolved form of Pikachu?

Pichu was created by Ken Sugimori in the hope of repeating Pikachu's success. It is more playful than its famous relative and struggles to control its own electricity.

Which Pokémon type is the Electric-type Pikachu's only weakness and takes no damage at all from its shocks?

Ground is the one type that hits Electric Pokémon for extra damage, and Ground-types are immune to Electric moves. Early anime episodes wrongly gave Rock-types the same protection.

Jessie, James and Meowth spend the Pokémon anime trying to steal Ash's Pikachu for which criminal organisation?

Team Rocket's trio made capturing Pikachu their life's mission after first meeting him in the anime's second episode. They want the unusually strong Pikachu as a prize for their boss.

Which professor handed a late-arriving Ash Ketchum a rebellious Pikachu because all three starter Pokémon were taken?

Professor Oak had only Pikachu left after Ash overslept and ran to the lab in his pyjamas. The anime's makers skipped the three starters so that no viewer's own first pick was left out.

In the Pokémon anime's first episode, Pikachu warms to Ash after he shields it from a flock of which bird Pokémon?

Spearow swarmed the pair after Ash threw a rock at one, mistaking it for a Pidgey. The injured Pikachu then scattered the whole flock with a single huge lightning blast.

Whose bicycle does Ash's Pikachu char with a lightning attack in the Pokémon anime's very first episode?

Misty vowed not to leave Ash alone until he replaced the bike, which is how she came to join his journey. She finally got it back, repaired, at the end of the Johto adventures.

In the Pokémon anime, Ash's Pikachu has a fondness for which condiment, first shown in 'Showdown at Dark City'?

Ketchup is the one treat Pikachu truly prizes, though he will happily eat almost any human or Pokémon food. The running gag resurfaces in a handful of later episodes.

Pikachu stores its electricity in small pouches found in which part of its body?

Cheeks charge up overnight while Pikachu sleeps, so a drowsy one may let off a shock on waking. Touch the red pouches and you may feel a small jolt yourself.

In which Game Boy game does the starter Pikachu refuse its Poké Ball and trail behind the player instead?

Pokémon Yellow was designed to resemble the anime, so its starter behaves like Ash's partner. Players can turn and speak to it, and it reacts to how well it has been treated.

Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! launched in 2018 alongside a twin version starring which other partner Pokémon?

Eevee is the partner in the twin version, riding along with the player just as Pikachu does. Neither starting partner is able to evolve during the adventure.

Which Japanese voice actor has played Pikachu since 1997 in every language's dub of the Pokémon anime?

Ikue Ōtani is heard in every dub because the makers wanted Pikachu's name to sound the same in every country. She still records fresh lines rather than relying on old takes.

Which pink Pokémon was considered alongside Pikachu as the lead character for the franchise's early merchandising?

Clefairy lost out once Pikachu proved a hit with schoolchildren and appealed to boys and girls alike. The anime's team even kept a checklist that favoured a face able to show emotion.

Pokémon boss Tsunekazu Ishihara said a proposed American redesign of Pikachu resembled a character from which musical?

Cats came to mind because the pitch looked 'something like a tiger', he recalled. The idea was scrapped, and Pikachu kept the same design in the West as it had in Japan.

Which cut Pokémon, drawn with horns and fangs, was planned as a third stage of Pikachu's evolutionary line?

Gorochu was dropped from the very first Pokémon games, when tight cartridge space forced cuts. Ken Sugimori said there was nothing wrong with the design itself.

Female Pikachu can be told apart from males by a heart-shaped notch at the end of which body part?

Tail tips on female Pikachu have a V-shaped notch that looks like the top of a heart. Cosplay Pikachu, which is always female, goes further with a heart-shaped spot there.

Which number does Pikachu hold in the National Pokédex, sitting one place after the snake Pokémon Arbok?

025 is also Pikachu's number in the Alola Pokédex of Pokémon Sun and Moon. Its evolved form follows at the very next number.

Which standard ability of Pikachu can paralyse an attacker that makes direct contact with it?

Static means the Pokémon is charged with electricity, so a foe that strikes it directly may be left paralysed. Pikachu's rarer hidden ability, Lightning Rod, works differently.

Which held item, useless to every other Pokémon, doubles both the Attack and Special Attack of a Pikachu?

Light Ball is described in the games as a puzzling orb. The legendary Trainer Red's Pikachu holds one in later games, making his best-known Pokémon far more dangerous.

Which powerful recoil move is the signature attack of Pikachu and its evolutionary relatives, who alone can learn it?

Volt Tackle hurts its user with recoil equal to a third of the damage dealt. Ash's Pikachu stumbled on it mid-battle, when a Quick Attack morphed into the new move.

Ash's Pikachu usually sends the Pokémon anime's bungling villains 'blasting off' with which Electric-type move?

Thunderbolt is the usual send-off for the scheming trio. A running joke also has it frying a new travelling companion's bike at the start of a series.

Ash became world champion when Pikachu outlasted the Charizard of which reigning champion in the final?

Leon's long winning streak ended when Pikachu stayed standing as his Charizard fell. The win earned Ash the title of Monarch, shortly before the pair bowed out as the anime's leads.

In Pokémon Horizons, which adventurer made his Pikachu partner the captain of the airship Brave Olivine?

Friede named his partner captain of the ship after learning that the unusual Pikachu longed to fly. 'Cap' keeps the species in a starring role now that Ash has left the anime.

In the manga Electric Tale of Pikachu, Ash names his partner 'Jean Luc Pikachu' in a nod to which sci-fi franchise?

Star Trek's Captain Jean-Luc Picard supplied the pun. The same manga shows Pikachu chewing through telephone poles and wires.

The short film Pikachu's Vacation was shown in cinemas as a bonus side story with which animated feature?

Pokémon: The First Movie carried the short in its theatrical release, with Pikachu as the hero of his own side story. It was restored for a re-release marking the franchise's 20th anniversary.

Which actor played Tim Goodman, the only human able to understand the title character of the film Detective Pikachu?

Justice Smith often performed his scenes to a mere eyeline marker, because the film's Pikachu was created digitally. In the story, only Tim hears the Pokémon speak in full sentences.

Detective Pikachu is set in which metropolis, where humans and Pokémon live side by side and battles are banned?

Ryme City was founded by tycoon Howard Clifford, who is unmasked late in the film as its true villain. Even being a Pokémon Trainer is against the law there.

The gruff, talking sleuth of the Detective Pikachu video games is famously devoted to which drink?

Coffee is this Pikachu's great love, and one review praised the game's 'wonderful coffee-loving lead'. The developers built him around the idea of a talking middle-aged man.

Which genetically engineered Pokémon fuses Harry Goodman's mind with his Pikachu in the film Detective Pikachu?

Mewtwo merged the two while it healed the badly wounded detective, which is why this Pikachu talks like a grown man. Pikachu had volunteered so the investigation could go on.

The amnesiac Pikachu who teams up with Tim Goodman in the film Detective Pikachu wears which style of hat?

Deerstalker hats are the badge of the storybook detective, and this Pikachu is rarely seen without his. Tim first finds him, memory gone, in his missing father's apartment.

The eyes of the furry, realistic Pikachu in the film Detective Pikachu were modelled on those of which marsupial?

Sugar glider eyes inspired the character's wide stare. The effects team also visited zoos and built a full skeleton and muscle system so that he would move like a real animal.

The first Detective Pikachu game was released in Japan in 2016 as a download for which handheld console?

Nintendo 3DS owners in Japan got 'Great Detective Pikachu: Birth of a New Duo' through the eShop. An expanded version followed in other countries in 2018.

Hey You, Pikachu! for the N64 console let players give Pikachu orders using which kind of accessory?

Microphone commands passed through a Voice Recognition Unit that understood a database of 256 words. Players used it to guide Pikachu through mini-games.

The 1998 virtual pet Pokémon Pikachu clipped to a belt and rewarded its owner with 'watts' for doing what?

Walking was the whole point: the toy doubled as a pedometer and paid out one watt for every twenty steps. The watts were then spent on presents for Pikachu.

Which Pokémon, chosen for its likeness to Kirby, joined Pikachu in the roster of the first Super Smash Bros.?

Jigglypuff resembled Kirby closely enough for the team to reuse his model and many animations as a base. Like Pikachu, it has been playable in every game of the series.

Which Pokémon Sword and Shield transformation gives Pikachu a towering, chubby form recalling its original 1996 look?

Gigantamax Pikachu deliberately revives the rounder build that fans nicknamed 'Fat Pikachu'. The character had been slimmed down over the years because that made the anime easier to animate.

Which YouTuber acquired a 'Pikachu Illustrator' trading card, once a magazine contest prize, for $5.275 million?

Logan Paul later resold the card, the only kind of Pokémon card to say 'Illustrator' where others say 'Trainer'. It was created for winners of CoroCoro Comic's design contests in the late 1990s.

Pikachu and ten other Pokémon were the official mascots of Japan's national team at which tournament in Brazil?

FIFA World Cup duty in 2014 gave Japan a full eleven of Pokémon mascots. Pikachu later appeared in Los Angeles Dodgers jerseys at baseball's Tokyo Series in 2025.

Which American city renamed itself in Pikachu's honour for a day in 1998, a stunt it repeated in 2018?

Topeka became 'ToPikachu' for the day under Mayor Joan Wagnon. The Kansas capital revived the pun twenty years later to mark the release of the Let's Go games.

Pikachurin, a protein named after Pikachu by Japanese scientists in 2008, is found in which part of the body?

Retina cells rely on pikachurin where the eye's photoreceptors hand their signals on. Its discoverers chose the name for Pikachu's 'lightning-fast moves and shocking electric effects'.

Which airline unveiled the first Pokémon Jets, painted with Pikachu and friends, in the summer of 1998?

All Nippon Airways rolled out the painted planes on 1 July 1998 to tie in with a new Pokémon film. Other carriers, including Skymark and Scoot, have since flown Pokémon jets of their own.