Thanks to Wolfman for helping with edits.
I always choose my Pokémon Day topic a few months in advance. This time the process was slightly more complicated, though. Originally, I was leaning towards Goh or a Jessie / James twofer, but I was already working on a few particularly demanding articles, so another wasn’t appealing. Then I considered revisiting my nostalgic stomping grounds of Kanto or Johto, perhaps to discuss a baby Pokémon. Elekid, my favorite tyke, sprung to mind… and was promptly rejected, since there are better outlets with which to discuss that concept. But then a lightbulb lit up: what about Electivire, its final stage? Coincidentally, I chronicled a third generation Pokémon last year, a second generation one the year before that, and the years preceding that were characters from the first generation. Let’s keep this pattern going!
Electivire, seen in a climactic episode of Pokémon the Series: Diamond & Pearl (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire tried making a clean break from the previous games’ Pokémon, and though it ultimately brought in familiar faces, most of its new monsters were unrelated to them. In contrast, a noticeable percentage of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl’s newcomers link to older ‘Mons. To my friends, this was comforting (especially after the following titles, Black & White, boldly followed through on Ruby & Sapphire’s initial goal by having only new Pokémon). And of these revitalized comrades, I remember many making a fuss over Electivire…
Electivire’s History
Our first look at Electivire came through the Yahoo! Japan Kids Web portal in July 2006, where it was shown battling film star Lucario. Additional details came the following month, and the Pokémon made its formal debut that September when Diamond & Pearl hit. Strangely, the Electabuzz family is not included within their regional Pokédex; like several of these new evolutions, it’s only after beating the games can you obtain them. However, their 2008 “third version,” Pokémon Platinum, and 2021 remakes Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl allow you to obtain one beforehand. Gym Leader Volkner even uses an Electivire as his ace in the latter games, demoting his Luxray.
Electivire is called Elekible in Japan. Kenta Miyake is the species’ usual voice actor there, a role Bill Rogers assumes in English. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
While Electivire isn’t a part of every game’s regional Pokédex, it is nevertheless obtainable in Pokémon HeartGold, SoulSilver, Black, White, Black 2, White 2, X, Y, Omega Ruby, Alpha Sapphire, Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, Ultra Moon, the Sword & Shield expansion pass, Legends: Arceus, and Scarlet & Violet’s Area Zero DLC. Currently, Pokémon Yellow reimaginings Let’s Go, Pikachu & Let’s Go, Eevee are the only mainline outings Electivire is outright unavailable in.
Naturally, the Thunderbolt Pokémon’s accrued a respectable résumé of supplemental roles. Pokémon Battle Revolution gifts players an Electivire upon entering a code and features a character who dresses like one. Select Mystery Dungeon, Ranger, and Rumble entries feature it, as do both PokéParks, Shuffle, and Battle Trozei. Volkner’s Electivire appears in the Adventures manga, Masters EX, and the anime. Recurring rivals Gary and Paul of the latter each own an Electivire, too. Super Smash Bros. Brawl honors the Electric-type through a trophy and cameo on the Pokémon Stadium 2 arena; its two console sequels retain the latter. Plenty of merch is modeled after the monster. And a shiny Electivire is one of my own aces in smartphone sensation Pokémon GO.
So, what’re my thoughts on Electivire?
Although it wasn’t as widespread as Lucario or even Weavile, Electivire sightings were fairly common at the onset of the fourth generation. Sadly, it couldn’t maintain that momentum. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
One luxury newer Pokémon games indulge in is sprucing up older creatures. Not every Pokemon‘s potential was answered in their debut, while others may start strong but get overshadowed by contemporaries in sequels. It’s also instructive when Game Freak revisits oldbies, as it exemplifies how the studio’s design philosophies evolve. More practically to the company, several of these characters can act as all-new mascots: Azurill, Weavile, Farigiraf, Pichu, Steelix, and every new “Eeveelution.” And every Pokémon is someone’s favorite, so a familiar one receiving attention is always a positive, right?
Gold & Silver, the first mainline sequels, began this trend by giving select Pokémon pre-evolutions and evolutions, the two most obvious means of revisiting older designs. Electabuzz, one of the rarer, more striking Pokémon hailing from Red & Blue, was a natural choice for such an honor—and it spawned Elekid, the bluntly named kid Electabuzz (its Fire-type counterpart, Magmar, scored a baby in Magby, too).
A handful of Gold & Silver’s new Pokémon were revealed prior to their release. Between the novelty of seeing “newly discovered” creatures and Elekid’s scrappy nature, it quickly became a personal favorite. It was one of the first babies I bred in FireRed, too. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
Regardless, Electabuzz struggled to set battlefields ablaze. Even within those games’ comparatively small Pokémon pools, other Electric-types—most notably Zapdos, a Legendary—eclipsed it. Still, the yellow yeti was popular, so giving it a new evolution in Diamond & Pearl made sense. The family could, in theory, now rival its fiercest peers via a new fan-favorite. People were eager to see Electivire take charge!
Unfortunately, the punk carried little momentum competitively. Like Electabuzz, Electivire is capable of learning a diverse array of attacks that take advantage of its physical strength. Overall, its stats are solid… except solid, well, isn’t good enough. See, its speed stat is “only” above average—a litany of Pokémon will knock it out before it gets the chance to retaliate! What’s frustrating, too, is that its speed stat is worse than its predecessor’s (potential Motor Drive shenanigans notwithstanding; perhaps Game Freak expected the new, speed-buffing Ability to close the gap?). Players have attempted to haggle some use out of the thing, though it was ultimately for naught and fellow Sinnoh native Rotom became Diamond & Pearl’s Electric-type star (likewise, Magmar also scored an evolution, Magmortar, who fell by the wayside).
In Electabuzz and Scyther’s anime debut, they go irate when laying eyes on anything that’s red. Ironically, their evolutions flaunt the color. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
The method with which you evolve Electabuzz in most games is tedious, too. It requires a new item, an Electirizer, and a friend to trade with. Now, trade evolutions always unfairly prevented unfortunate players from evolving their partners. But at least during the Red & Blue days, the franchise was still figuring itself out, so experimentation was understandable, and trade evolutions gave elusive critters like Gengar a certain mystique. Any fleeting novelty they held had long since dissipated by Diamond & Pearl, however. For whatever it’s worth, the Electirizer also preserves continuity: you couldn’t acquire an Electivire in the earlier games because you couldn’t acquire an Electirizer. But why bother with the trading element, then? Giving your Electabuzz the box alone should suffice; the extra step’s superfluous.
That’s all disappointing. Yet it isn’t a dealbreaker, because the Electivire clan boasts fun designs. Their black stripes starkly contrast their yellow fur, invoking a tiger or wasp or caution tape. Fitting given how brutal these beasts are. But they also carry a charming center: Electabuzz’s stomach is shaped like an egg while the others’ are ovals. Overall, ‘buzz looks the most wild: the inelegant thunder bolt symbol on its chest, asymmetrical stripes, bulging fangs, and the fact its head doesn’t blend into its torso convey it’s a monster. But Electivire’s still strong: its shaggier fur, studier legs, and thicker forearms suit the brute, while its cable-esque tails and the socket symbol on its back are embellishments Red & Blue’s rudimentary roster lacks (Elekid’s head is also adorned with plugs). Its red accents add a subtle, violent undercurrent. But my favorite aspect of ‘vire’s veneer is its mischievous grin: it, along with its round frame and mustache-like fluff, invokes Dr. Eggman, one of the medium’s most enduring, entertaining villains.
Elekid, ‘buzz, and ‘vire all sport different fingers. What distinguishes Electivire the most, however, is how it abandons their angular white eyes for circular red ones. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
Another quality that links the three together is the anime’s aggressive characterization of them. Electabuzz debuted in a season-best episode about a glorified turf war, one where Ash’s Pikachu even learned what was its strongest attack. Another appears under the charge of Team Rocket during Johto; it wore headgear that accentuated its aggression. That Electabuzz and Gym Leader Rudy’s both battled Pikachu, who lost to the latter and only beat the former as it was a two-on-one. Pikachu may be the franchise mascot, but Electabuzz was repeatedly positioned as a notch above.
Diamond & Pearl highlighting its family felt appropriate, then. Technically, this started in Ruby & Sapphire’s finale: Ash’s former rival Gary returns home, his absence across several seasons now contextualized by him studying in Sinnoh. And, look, he caught a cool new Pokémon, an Electivire who casually eviscerates Ash’s Pikachu! It’s no coincidence that the new rival Paul debuted alongside an Elekid. He was Ash’s ideological opposite and greatest challenge yet; complementing him with Pikachu’s fit.
Motor Drive even nullifies Pikachu’s Electric-type attacks. Although both Pokémon are Electric-types, this immunity sorta emulates how rivals in the games often get starters that are strong against yours. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
We see his Elekid evolve—both literally, as it winds up an Electivire, and metaphorically. Initially, it bullies Ash’s Pikachu and Chimchar (who was previously on Paul’s team, where it was abused). While under the temporary care of Paul’s kinder brother Reggie, however, the ruffian softens while watching Ash train and allies itself with Pikachu against Team Galactic; the testy Sasquatch comes to respect Ash, his team, and their methods. But the electric yeti’s affection for Paul never wavers: the guy has an oddly more positive rapport with Electivire than he does with his Torterra, his starter. That’s no surprise, though, considering how alike Electivire and Paul are: they’re aloof and rough and their respect’s hard to earn.
Things didn’t go exactly as I initially expected: Pikachu beat Volkner’s Electivire, not Paul’s, who still posed as Ash’s final obstacle. And Pikachu’s defeat set the stage for Ash’s Infernape to heroically rise up, another appropriate outcome. These Pokémon are former teammates; this feud’s deeply personal for the fire-fighter. They’re the Pokémon each Trainer respectively spent the most time raising during Diamond & Pearl. They watched each other evolve and even teamed up. These two are the leads of their respective teams.
Battles in this silly show are at their best when they take advantage of the medium. Watching Ash—or, in this case, Paul—utilize the terrain is always fun. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
That all conveys a huge advantage the anime has: the games are bound to their internal logic and limited animations, but the cartoon can employ an artistic license to make even “weak” specimens shine and bustle with personality or presence. Honestly, I liked Electivire from the moment it was revealed and vowed to raise one (I was crestfallen upon learning it’s a trade evolution). But it’s through the anime that it became one of Diamond & Pearl’s stars and a personal favorite.
Today, Electivire is “just” another Pokémon, as it was the moment it formally debuted in the games themselves. It’s available in most games, though never gets the spotlight—no Mega Evolution, Gigantamax, regional variant, or what have you. A few more have appeared in the anime and the three from Diamond & Pearl got encores in Journeys. But the species embodies those Diamond & Pearl years, from their focus on revamping classic critters to its place within the anime’s climax. Which is fine; I like the choleric oni and the fun, engaging generation it represents.
Congratulations, Electivire! Stand by for battle!
Ash’s rivalry with Paul is the most compelling one he ever had; associating it with Electivire elevates it. And the fact Pokémon GO finally let me obtain one is a feather in its cap. (Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company)
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