Not all Pokémon are created equal. What’s worse, not all of them are treated equally by the fan base either. While there are certainly many Pokémon that get more than the credit they deserve, some of the strongest and and coolest Pokémon are criminally underrated for a variety of reasons.
Pokémon is often a popularity contest. Some of the older and more well-known pocket monsters will consistently be added to players' teams regardless of their actual competitive viability simply because they're more easily recognizable. While everyone has the right to use whichever Pokémon they like best, the immense popularity surrounding the more famous Pokémon can lead players to overlook some of the franchise's best Pokémon.
10 Raichu Reminds Trainers That Lightening Isn't Cute
As Pikachu's less popular older sibling, Raichu doesn't have it easy. Despite the fact that Raichu has considerably higher stats than Pikachu, it still doesn't get the same amount of love. Not only is Raichu much stronger than its un-evolved form, but its recently introduced Alolan variant gave Raichu even more competitive viability than ever.
A Psychic-typing combined with Surge Surfer makes Alolan Raichu practically a no-brainer for Electric Terrain. While Pikachu will likely continue to be the Pokémon mascot for the foreseeable future, Raichu at least deserves a bit of recognition for being Pikachu's strongest form.
9 Flygon Brings Dragon-Types Down To Earth
Dragon type Pokémon always seems to get a lot of love. However, one that just doesn't get enough is Flygon. Its unique Ground/Dragon typing makes it effective against Pokémon that other dragons tend to struggle against, both offensively and defensively.
Flygon's Levitate ability only adds to its typing advantage, making it even harder to take out than some of its other dragon counterparts. Access to U-turn and Defog transforms Flygon into a viable tactician. Combining that with Roost and Leftovers can make it extremely difficult to faint.
8 Aggron Is A Mega-Overlooked Threat
Aggron is an extremely bulky STAB attacker that is difficult to take down. Still, it's largely overlooked as a viable option on most teams, despite the fact that it has access to strong physical moves like Head Smash and Heavy Slam, which take advantage of its high attack.
Not only is Aggron a competitively viable attacker, it also touts an incredibly high physical defense stat. In its Mega form, Aggron's defensive becomes even more unbreakable, and its attack becomes even more devastating.
7 Exeggutor Deserves Its Time In The Sun Once Again
Exeggutor was once viewed as one of the worst plant type Pokémon on the block back in Pokémon's early days. As time has gone on and more viable plant types have come to take its place, Exeggutor has fallen from favor.
Still, despite what popular trends say, Exeggutor is a viable option due to its awesome special attack stats and high HP. Its psychic typing also makes it much more unpredictable than other grass type Pokémon. Exeggutor can either conceivably be a sweeper in the sun or STAB monster with Leaf Storm and a trick room team.
6 Nidoqueen Is The Queen Everyone Needs
While it would be easy to write off Nidoking’s over use as gender bias, the snuffing of Nidoqueen runs even deeper than that. Nidoking may be superior to the Queen in terms of physical attack strength, but Nidoqueen's superior bulk can actually make it beneficial to a wider variety of teams.
Nidoqueen carves out in its own niche in being a defensive wall that can also use STAB boosted Earth Power and Sludge Wave. Giving it Ice Beam or Fire Blast can also help it cover all bases and really make it one of the most underrated wall-breakers around.
5 Delphox Is The Black Mage Of Pokémon
Everyone loves Greninja, and understandably so. A ninja Pokémon is a really cool concept. However, this often causes Delphox to be overlooked, despite being a starter of its generation and arguably just as cool.
Delphox’s design makes it look like the classic RPG mage, which would already add grant it bonus points in most gamers' books. Not only that, but it’s a really powerful Pokémon. Its fire/psychic typing only adding to its unique usefulness, which many fans only wish was stronger. Delphox's signature ability, Magician, can steal an opponent's item, deconstructing a potentially threatening build.
4 Palkia Is In Its Own Dimension
Palkia is a mythical Pokémon whose lore depicts it using abilities which distort space and even living in a parallel dimension. These interesting facts, combined with its cool look, should make it a much more popular Pokémon than it is. However, Palkia it is often upstaged by its fellow legendary, Dialga.
Palkia can use a STAB boosted Hydro Pump, and running with Fire Blast can give it coverage against Grass Types. Lustrous Orb also makes its water and dragon type attacks due additional damage, making Palkia a truly underrated threat in competitive play.
3 Mimikyu Is More Than Meets The Eye
No one seems to be more aware of Pikachu's popularity than Mimikyu. That's likely why it chooses to hide behind Pikachu's form in an attempt to look unassuming to predators. Mimikyu's useful Fairy/Ghost Typing, coupled with its Disguise ability, can make it much harder to defeat than it looks.
Disguise makes Mimikyu take only 1/8 of its HP of damage from the first attack it takes. When facing off against strong sweepers, Disguise can allow Mimikyu to tank the first hit, providing it with an extra turn to set up where other Pokémon of similar bulk would have been quickly dealt with.
2 Serperior Is A Threat, Contrary To Popular Belief
Gen 5's Serperior has often been overshadowed by Pokémon like Samurott, but its usefulness in battle exceeds expectations. Its pure grass typing is normally seen as a weakness compared to most starters that have had duel typing. However, that can also give Serperior a defensive edge in some situations.
The coolest thing about Serperior is its OP ability, Contrary. Contrary takes a super strong grass move, Leaf Storm, and makes it even more powerful by allowing it to raise Serperior's Sp Atk by 2 every time it's used. This transforms Serperior from a passing threat to a STAB powerhouse that grows stronger over time.
1 Togekiss Is Master Of The Infinite Flinch
Togepi has been a beloved Pokémon ever since Ash hatched one back in the Pokémon anime’s early days. However, while Togepi was loved for its cuteness and overly powerful metronome, Togekiss was sorely overlooked in the Pokémon meta game.
Combining its ability "Serene Grace," — which doubles the chance of secondary effects — with Air Slash means that Togekiss has a 60% chance of causing opposing Pokémon to flinch each turn. That’s an uncomfortably high probability. After increasing its Sp ATK with Nasty Plot, Togekiss can become a fierce competitor that shouldn’t be underestimated.