Whenever someone thinks of Pokémon, an image of Pikachu is sure to pop into their minds. The electric mouse Pokémon has long been the franchise's de-facto mascot, known mostly as the constant companion to Ash Ketchum in the numerous anime series. What many overlook when it comes to Ash's Pikachu is that it's not only an adorable, loyal, and clever little guy who's highly experienced in battle, but also a master impressionist as well.
At different points throughout each series, Pikachu has displayed an uncanny ability to mimic the appearance of several other Pokémon usually for fun, but also to communicate something to Ash or other humans. These impressions have included other Pokémon owned by Ash, members of Team Rocket, or random Pokémon that Ash and his friends come across. These impressions are so good that it makes everyone wonder if Ash actually has a Ditto rather than a Pikachu!
10 Its Take On Jessie's Seviper Is Impressive
Jessie of Team Rocket had a Seviper during Pokémon: Advanced up through Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl, and there was no shortage of encounters between that Pokémon and Pikachu's group. This gave Pikachu ample time to perfect this impression from the short film Gotta Dance!, in which it stretches its face out just right to capture the same conniving expression as Seviper, right down to the crescent-shaped eyes. It's undeniably impressive, though it's a good thing Pikachu hasn't used it around a Zangoose. That could be dangerous.
9 Its Impression Of Ash's Squirtle Is All In The Eyes
Pikachu's impressions often entertained Misty's Togepi, and Pikachu can be seen imitating Ash's Squirtle, much to the egg-shaped Pokémon's delight, in a scene from Pikachu's Winter Vacation. As shown in several other instances, Pikachu is especially good at mimicking the facial characteristics of other Pokémon, and here it expertly captures Squirtle's full eyes and distinctive smile, not to mention mirroring Squirtle's own number of fingers on each hand. Unfortunately, this hasn't led to Pikachu getting an honorary spot on the Squirtle Squad!
8 Its Take On Ash's Treecko Is Clever & Inventive
As the series went on, Pikachu would soon up its impression game, as it often physically altered its body to accurately impersonate other Pokémon. This is demonstrated in its impression of Ash's Treecko in a segment from Gotta Dance!.
For this one, Pikachu first pulls down both ears to match the distinct shape of Treecko's own ears. It then makes its own eyes somewhat half-lidded, snubs its nose just right, and curls its smaller tail in a way that makes it look similar to Treecko's tail. It then tops it off by adding a toothpick-style stick in its mouth, just like the one that the laid-back Treecko is almost never seen without. That's pure dedication to an impression right there.
7 Its Mudkip Impression Is Adorable & Crafty
Pikachu does another physical transformation for its impression of Mudkip, also from Gotta Dance!. It gets on all fours, adjusts its eyes and the shape of its mouth to match Mudkip's usually friendly expression, and moves both of its ears together to imitate the Water-type Pokémon's head fin. While Pikachu isn't able to replicate the spiked pouches on Mudkip's cheeks or its tail, this impression gets points for how adorable it is.
6 Its Loudred Impression Is Pitch-Perfect
In the Diamond and Pearl episode "All Dressed Up With Somewhere To Go!" Ash and friends each enter one of their Pokémon into a Pokémon Dress-Up Contest, in which a Pokémon is judged on how closely it can imitate another Pokémon. Pikachu proves to Ash that it should compete by displaying several of its impressions, including one of Loudred. Here, Pikachu craftily mimics both the wide-eyed and wide-mouthed appearance of Loudred, complete with curling its ears in such a way that it resembles Loudred's own loudspeaker-esque antennae.
5 Its Version of James's Cacnea Is Spot-On
James of Team Rocket had a Cacnea that squared off against Pikachu's group a number of times, from its first appearance in Pokémon: Advanced Challenge through Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl. Like with Jessie's Seviper, Pikachu's numerous encounters with Cacnea were beneficial in shaping its impression of the spike-covered Pokémon, as seen in Gotta Dance!. While Pikachu lacks Cacnea's spikes and crown atop its head, it more than makes up for it by nailing its stout body and large eyes.
4 Its Budew Impression Is the Spitting Image of the Real Thing
Pikachu goes all out for its impression of Budew in "All Dressed Up With Somewhere To Go!" as it wraps its ears around each other in such a way that it seems like a spitting image of the vines on top of a Budew's head. This is complemented by Pikachu's mimicry of Budew's slitted eyes and slightly hunched over posture. It's likely that if Pikachu was painted green, white, and yellow and placed in a group of Budew, it might be hard to tell it apart from the others!
3 Its Impression of Misty's Psyduck Is Hysterical
Misty's Psyduck has always been a great source of comic relief throughout the Pokémon series, with its constantly befuddled actions and clumsiness that often infuriate Misty and the others.
Pikachu surely took notice of Psyduck during these instances, as it showed off a pretty spot-on impression for Togepi in the short Stantler's Little Helpers. Pikachu stretches its face out just right to mimic not only Psyduck's large bill but also its perpetually blank-faced expression. This one's sure to make anyone laugh though, not just Togepi!
2 Its Impression Of Jessie's Wobbuffet Is Comedy Gold
Another consistent source of comic relief in the Pokémon franchise has been Wobbuffet—a running gag is that it constantly pops out of its Poké Ball at the worst moments, or somehow makes things worse for Team Rocket by its clumsy and bizarre nature. As seen in "All Dressed Up With Somewhere To Go!" Pikachu nails the wacky Pokémon's iconic facial expression and stance. As good as this impression is, it's a shame that Pikachu hasn't imitated Wobbuffet to its face in battle to confuse it, before being yelled at by Jessie for not recognizing that it's just Pikachu. That would be comedy gold.
1 It Captures The Essence Of Team Rocket's Meowth In This Impression
Team Rocket's Meowth has been a thorn in the side of Pikachu and friends from the beginning of the series up to the present. Despite the usual animosity between the two Pokémon, at times, Pikachu and Meowth have been forced to team up when the situation demands it. From these experiences, Pikachu is all too aware of how Meowth operates, and its impression from Gotta Dance! captures all the right nuances of the talking cat-like Pokémon, from its large and expressive eyes to its two front teeth that give off a scheming and somewhat untrustworthy demeanor, with the curled-up tail being a nice touch as well.