Pokemon fan theory might have discovered origin of the Pikachu knock-offs

Pikachu has plenty of imitators spread across the Pokemon games, but one theory might explain why they’ve all appeared in the world at the same time.

Pikachu is the face of the Pokemon franchise, which has resulted in attempts to make lightning strike twice, with multiple copies of the concept. We’ve seen the so-called “electric rodents” appear in different games, each compared unfavorably to Pikachu.

The roster of Pikachu clones consists of Pichu, Plusle, Minum, Pachirisu, Emolga, Dedenne, Togedemaru, Morpeko, and the Pawmi line. While Mimikyu seems like it should be on this list – being a literal Pikachu imitator – it doesn’t have the key feature of being an Electric-type Pokemon.

A user on the Pokemon Reddit has shared a theory about an in-universe explanation for the Pikachu clones. It involves the abundance of Flying-type Pokemon in proximity to Normal-type Pokemon, which often include rodents, something players see a lot of in the early hours of the mainline entries in the series.

“Well if you look at regional variants, typings can change over time due to environmental or in defense against predators,” one user wrote, citing Alolan Marowak’s Pokedex entry as an example, as it gained a new type to face off against the many Grass-type Pokemon in the region.

“Pokemon’s equivalent of carcinization, except instead of crab, it’s electric rodents,” another user said, referring to creatures in nature evolving into beings similar to a crab, proving that Krabby and Kingler are still top-tier after all of these years.

This theory is one of many valiant attempts to patch up holes in the Pokemon lore. The real reason these Pokemon exist is arguably to try and evoke the same reaction from fans as Pikachu, even though it never works.

But at least this theory provides a good reason for the Pikachu clones’ existence, even tying it to the many times we fought birds and rats together in the early Routes. Maybe we’d love Rattata even more if it sports an Electric-type one day.