Ash's Pikachu (Shining Bonds)

**Ash's Pikachu** (Japanese: *Satoshi's Pikachu*) is a signature Pokémon of *Shining Bonds a la Mode*. He is Ash's Starter Pokémon and his primary ace partner.

## Bio

### **Personality**

After Ash gained Pikachu's loyalty in their debut, Pikachu became extremely loyal to Ash and has maintained this loyalty, and while he is not always immediately trusting of strangers, he is generally friendly to humans and Pokémon alike. He acts as a 'supporting guardian' to Dragonet's babies, and has been seen meditating and even breaking up fights among other Pokémon. Contrary to his distrusting nature, Pikachu took a liking to Nanette very early in the series, and he has retained this liking of her throughout the story. On several occasions, Pikachu has developed an "electric flu" causing him to become overcharged and extremely powerful. During these instances, Pikachu will sometimes accidentally let off electric outbursts which can be set off on anyone, including Ash. In all of these cases, Pikachu did not mean harm upon anyone.

As shown in a handful of episodes, Pikachu has a special fondness for ketchup, but he will eat and enjoy almost any other human or Pokémon food. Pikachu also displays a fondness for orange juice, but has a distaste for Poni Island radishes.

Pikachu, like his Trainer, is always happy to battle. He often tries his very best, but when he loses, he doesn't complain or feel bad about himself, especially when Ash reassures him. Ash and Pikachu are almost identical personality-wise, and thus are the perfect match for one another. Most others agree, except for Bailey. Though rare, the two can still butt heads at times. When they first met, Pikachu would shock Ash with electricity out of vitriol. While being zapped by Pikachu still happens regularly for poor Ash, it's usually when he angers his buddy (such as when Ash rubs and pulls Pikachu's cheeks), or by accident (when Ash grabs Pikachu's tail by mistake).

In general, Pikachu as a species are not particularly powerful, but Ash's Pikachu is a notable anomaly, overcoming odds in battle numerous times. In fact, Meowth once remarked that Pikachu's power "exceeds its evolutionary level". Ash's Pikachu has also triumphed over some very powerful Pokémon that had previously defeated several of Ash's other Pokémon. He has helped Ash win countless battles and Gym and League matches. However, at times, Pikachu has lived up to his species' frail and brittle strengths, particularly in Gym battles, where he was defeated with relative ease by his opponent. In addition, Pikachu tends to noticeably struggle when an opponent hinders his mobility in some fashion.

Pikachu, along with Riolu, is also the only one of Ash's Pokémon to accompany him to all of the regions. Following their first encounter with him, the Team Rocket trio made it their life's mission to capture Pikachu for their boss. Sometimes, they succeed with nets, cages, capsules or one of their mechas, but most of the time their plans always fail by Ash and his friends or something else involved. Whenever Pikachu gets released from their trap and reunites with Ash, he and the other major main/signature Pokémon send Team Rocket blasting off with a combo attack. Sometimes, Pikachu sends them away even when he didn't get stolen. On other occasions, he battles them with Ash. Even with his high level of electrical power, Pikachu has not stopped learning new attacks. In addition to his repertoire of moves, Pikachu has used his Ability (Static), has an affinity for Z-Moves, and is capable of Gigantamaxing.

## History

### **Pre-Series**

Pikachu was once a lonely wild Pichu who lived in the woods in the outskirts of Pallet Town. After falling off a cliff, he was saved by a mother Kangaskhan, who, after realizing Pichu had nowhere to go, placed Pichu in her pouch and took him into her care. Eventually, Pichu and the child Kangaskhan grew bigger, and carrying them both became a burden to the mother. Realizing this, Pichu left his adoptive mother's pouch in the middle of the night while Kangaskhan's pack was asleep. Turning back to say goodbye to his family, his feelings of gratitude caused him to evolve into Pikachu. After taking a moment to realize what had just happened to him, Pikachu finished his goodbyes and left for parts unknown.

At some point after his departure, Pikachu was caught and eventually came under the possession of Professor Oak.

### **Meeting Ash**

Ash woke up late the day he was supposed to go to Professor Oak's Laboratory to obtain his first Pokémon. When he arrived at the lab, the three available starter Pokémon, Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle, had already been taken by other Trainers who had arrived on time. Seeing Ash's disappointment, Professor Oak gave him Pikachu, who, at first, did not care at all for his new Trainer, constantly zapping him and anyone else nearby. He refused to go into his Poké Ball, and when Nanette and Ash accidentally fought over a single Pidgey (and who should keep it), he laughed at them, much to Gigi's annoyance. However, during his Trainer's first fight against Event Horizon, Ash gained Pikachu's trust by vowing to protect him from any harm. Seeing this act of selflessness, Pikachu helped and defended Ash, and the two of them became inseparable friends, a moment that was capitalized on by catching a glimpse of a Ho-Oh flying by.

## Moves Used

* Thunder Shock
* Thunderbolt
* Agility
* Quick Attack
* Thunder
* Double-Edge
* Tackle
* Leer

* Iron Tail

* Volt Tackle

* Electro Ball
* Electroweb

## Z-Moves Used

* Gigavolt Havoc
* Breakneck Blitz
* 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt
* Corkscrew Crash

## Max Moves and G-Max Moves Used

* Max Steelspike
* G-Max Volt Crash
* Max Strike

## Trivia

* Pikachu often gets into fights with Bailey due to her not thinking him and Ash are a perfect match for each other. He also often gets into fights with Sunflower Smile due to their similar color schemes, as bright Pikachu-yellow ponies are not exactly very common.
* Like his Trainer, Pikachu is extremely skeptical of villains who actually have a change of heart due to Meowth pretending to have a change of heart in season 2. After Necrosis permanently became Nicole, he would often repeatedly attack her, and after Event Horizon came to her senses, he initially refused to believe that she was brainwashed, thinking Katrina was faking it.