These electric-type Pokemon have some of the most interesting forms in the whole series.
In real life, electricity is the lifeblood of the world. In the Pokemon series, however, this power is used by many different animals. Electric-type Pokemon can be anything from electric sheep to legendary birds to cute little dogs with heart-shaped butts (looking at you, Yamper).
From the first Pokemon games to the latest ones, there are a lot of Electric-type Pokemon to choose from. Each one looks different and is based on a different animal or mythical creature. But there are only a few that really show how electricity can be used to make things happen that people wouldn’t think are possible.
Zebstrika
Game Freak finally gave players a zebra Pokemon, Zebstrika, after a long time, and they did a great job with it. It’s pretty easy to tell that this horse is an Electric-type because its white bands look like lightning bolts. Zebstrika’s spiky mane makes it look like it has lightning-bolt-shaped horns that flow down its hair and end in an explosive tail.
Zebstrika’s thunderous speed matches the way it looks. According to its Pokedex entry in Pokemon Black, when this Pokemon is moving at full speed, “the sound of thunder reverberates” around it.
Zapdos
Zapdos is one of Kanto’s three legendary birds. Its uneven yellow feathers show that it is an Electric-type. “This legendary Pokemon is said to only appear when a thundercloud splits in half,” its Pokedex record in Pokemon Silver says. This makes sense, since it is the personification of lightning.
Zapdos is based on the Native American tale of the Thunderbird. Like the Thunderbird, it represents “power and strength” and can make thunder sounds by flapping its wings. It can also shoot electricity out of its body like lightning.
Mareep
A Mareep-style electric sheep refers directly to Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?Blade Runner was based on a book by Philip K. Dick. One player on Reddit noticed that the first master to have Mareep in Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver is named Philip, which is the same name as the author of the dystopian science fiction book.
Mareep’s type is Electric, which makes sense because wool can make static energy. The orb that glows on its tail when its electricity is fully charged makes the black and yellow lines on its tail and ears look like a warning sign.
Luxray
Luxray is called the “Gleam Eyes” Pokemon because it looks most like a cat. But because it can see through things, there’s a chance the Pokemon is related to the lynx, which is known to have “good eyesight” and is thought to be able to “see what other people can’t see.”
Even though it doesn’t look like an electric Pokemon, the yellow and blue color scheme and the yellow-pointed star on the end of its tail, like Shinx and Luxio, give this Pokemon a sense of power.
Yamper
Yamper is one of the cutest Pokemon forms, and its real-life version is even cuter. This puppy Pokemon looks like a Welsh Corgi, a breed of dog that is a big part of British society because Queen Elizabeth II loved them.
Yamper takes the cute and caring nature of the Corgi to the next level with a tiny lightning bolt in the shape of a heart at the base of its tail. Yamper’s coat is the usual cream and beige color of a Corgi, but it also has yellow and green highlights that are linked to electricity.
Zeraora
Zerarora, the Pokemon with the Thunderclap move, is a powerful legendary. Zeraora is an event Pokemon that was first seen in Pokemon Ultra Sun and Pokemon Ultra Moon. It is known for its fierce fighting style, which is caused by the electricity running through its bright yellow fur.
According to Zeraora’s Pokedex article, its electric power lets it tear its opponents apart. This is shown by the blue accents on its paw pads, lightning-shaped whiskers, and tufts of hair. This Pokemon looks like a cat, and it has a link to Kane-Hekili, the Hawaiian god of thunder.
Miraidon
After Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet came out. It was pretty clear which box legendary was the most popular among fans. Miraidon just looks cool, whether it’s because of its deep violet color. Or because it looks like it was made with future technology in mind, especially its pixelated eyes.
Even though Moridion is a Paradox Pokemon from the future, the fact that it is an Electric-type suggests that its design may be partly based on the Spanish tale of el Cuélebre, a “mythological serpent-shaped dragon from Asturian, Leonese, and Cantabrian mythologies,” according to @chibisake on Twitter.
Jolteon
Jolteon’s rough fur shows that it is an Electric type, just like Zapdos and Zebstrika. Even though it’s not very big, the Pokedex entries for Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue say that this Pokemon can “blast out 10000-volt lightning bolts” from the energy made in its cells. Also, “by storing electricity in its body, it can shoot its bristle-like fur like a barrage of missiles,” as described in Geometry Dash Subzero and Pokemon White 2.
Jolteon’s design is based on the Raij, a legendary creature in Japanese lore that is said to be “the embodiment of lightning” in animal form and was thought to look like wolves, dogs, tanukis, or even weasels and cats.
Raikou
At first look, Raikou’s design seems complicated, but players may not have noticed. That the purple mane on its back is a rain cloud and its tail is a lightning strike. “The rain clouds [Raikou] carries let it fire thunderbolts at will,” Pokemon Gold says. The legendary dog is also said to have come from lightning.
Like Jolteon, Raikou’s design is based on Raij, which is said to have lived in the sky. And ridden “bolts of lightning to earth when thunder claps,” causing “mayhem wherever they land.”
Toxtricity & Gigantamax Toxtricity
Toxtricity is the most punk rock of all the Pokemon. Its form is based on the British punk scene and the instruments used in it. The organs that stick out of Toxtricity’s Amped and Low Key forms are like the electric and bass guitars. And when the Pokemon is strung, they are its main source of electric power. Toxtricity’s punk rock style is shown by its spiked bracelets and belts. As well as by its mohawk haircut and attitude. In Pokemon Scarlet, the Low Key form was liked because it “kept its cool no matter what opponent it faced.”
The Gigantamax style of Toxtricity takes the idea of punk rock and makes it ten times bigger. When the two forms come together, they make a monster. That can kill its enemies with lightning that looks like a guitar.
