Raichu

Raichu (ライチュウ) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon media franchise, and the evolved form of series mascot Pikachu. First introduced in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue, they were created by Atsuko Nishida at the request of lead designer Ken Sugimori, with the design finalized by Sugimori. Since their initial appearance, they have appeared in multiple games including Pokémon Go and the Pokémon Trading Card Game, as well as various merchandise. In media related to the franchise, Raichu has been voiced by various voice actors, including Kei Shindō, Fumiko Takekuma, and Casey Mongillo.

Classified as an Electric-type Pokémon, Raichu is a large brown mouse with a lightning bolt-shaped tail, and yellow sacs on its cheek that can generate large amounts of electricity. Designed to be the stronger counterpart to Pikachu, who evolves into Raichu through use of a "Thunder Stone" item, Raichu was intended to be able to evolve into 'Gorochu' before the latter was removed. A regional variant was added in Pokémon Sun and Moon called Alolan Raichu. Featuring a fluffier design with round ears and tail, it is able to levitate by riding its tail like a surfboard, and classified as both Electric and Psychic-type.

While early reactions from media outlets regarded it negatively in light of Pikachu's status as the franchise's main mascot, later examinations have been more favorable, showing preference for its design. Due to it often being portrayed as Pikachu's rival in the anime adaptation of the series and in some games a form Pikachu refuses to evolve into, critics have claimed Game Freak painted the species in a negative light and overall damaged its reputation. This has led to further discussion on Game Freak's overemphasis on Pikachu, as well as varying interpretations of the themes in the rivalry, including concepts of self-identity and portrayals of youth in anime media.

Conception and development
Raichu is a fictional species of Pokémon created for the Pokémon franchise. Developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo, the series began in Japan in 1996 with the release of the video games Pokémon Red and Blue for the Game Boy. In these games, the player assumes the role of a Pokémon Trainer whose goal is to capture and train Pokémon. Players use the creatures' special abilities to combat other Pokémon, and some can transform into stronger species through a process called evolution via various means, such as exposure to specific items.

Midway through Red and Blue's development, lead designer Ken Sugimori felt that the game needed more "cute" Pokémon and was struggling to conceive of such designs. Attributing it to his male perspective, he brought in female Game Freak staff including Atsuko Nishida to join the development team. Tasked with developing the Pikachu species and their evolutionary line, she was given specific guidelines to work with, namely its role as an Electric-type, that it evolved twice, and that its final form should "look strong." Pikachu evolves into Raichu through use of the game's "Thunder Stone" item, while Raichu was originally planned to evolve into a Pokémon dubbed Gorochu. However, the latter was cut due to cartridge space concerns, leaving Raichu to be Pikachu's sole evolution. Nishida developed the sprites, using a single color identity chosen in order to work within the Super Game Boy's hardware limitations. Afterwards, the design was finalized by Sugimori who, towards the end of development, drew the promotional art of all the species to give them a unified look and make any last-minute changes.

Design
Standing 2ft 7in (79cm) tall, Raichu is a bipedal rodent with long ears and feet but short arms, and significantly taller than Pikachu. They have orange skin, a white belly, brown paws, and tan-colored soles on their feet. Their bifurcated ears meanwhile are brown on the outside and yellow on the inside, and they have yellow cheek sacs. They were not originally intended to be based on mice, as the mouse Pokémon Rattata already existed at this point in development, and instead were modeled after squirrels. Nishida stated in an interview that she was obsessed with squirrels at the time due to their "comical" movement, and had the idea to have Pikachu and Raichu store electricity in their cheeks similar to how squirrels store food. Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri however chose to change the species to be a type of mouse when he was designing the setting. Raichu's name comes from the Japanese kanji "rai," meaning thunder, followed by "chū," which is the Japanese onomatopoeia for a mouse's squeak.

When developing sequel titles Pokémon Sun and Moon, "Alolan form" variants of several existing Pokémon were introduced, meant to be tied thematically to the game's region. According to game director Shigeru Ohmori, of all the regional forms introduced in the game, Raichu's was the hardest to create, as they felt the species was popular with fans of the franchise. A theme of it surfing on its tail was chosen due to the large amount of water surrounding the in-game region, a concept they had previous explored with Raichu in another game, Pokémon Stadium. Sugimori asked Nishida to design the form, who gave it a "soft and fluffy" appearance. Nishida felt that Raichu's original design was far cuter than people gave it credit for, and wanted to express this in the Alolan form. When Sugimori inquired about the finished design, Nishida explained that the "motif behind the design was bread", a statement that confused him as he didn't understand the correlation. The development team gave the species an affinity for pancakes to better tie it to its motif, as well as to "play up that cuteness." With Psychic as its secondary type, it has an ability called "Surge Surfer" that boosts its speed when it is on Electric Terrain.

Appearances
First found in Pokémon Red and Blue, they have appeared in most Pokémon titles since, including every major game. In the battle against one of the bosses, Lt. Surge, players fight against a Raichu. Typically, players must use a Thunder Stone item on a Pikachu to evolve it into Raichu. However, the Pikachu obtained at the start of Pokémon Yellow and Pokémon Let's Go Pikachu cannot evolve, and another Pikachu must be obtained instead. While the regular version was omitted from Pokémon Sun and Moon, their Alolan form can be obtained instead. Both have appeared in the mobile game Pokémon Go, and, in physical media, were in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Outside of games, Raichu has appeared on several pieces of merchandise, including plush toys, figurines, and as promotional material with companies such as Burger King.

In the related anime and manga, Raichu appears as a repeated rival of protagonist Ash Ketchum's Pikachu. First appearing alongside Lt. Surge, Raichu quickly overpowers Pikachu, leaving Ash to consider evolving it. However, Pikachu rejects the Thunder Stone, and fights Raichu again. Using skills it acquired that Surge's Raichu lacked, due to the latter evolving his as quickly as possible, Pikachu defeats Raichu. Another Raichu appears in the short Pikachu's Vacation, goading Pikachu into fighting it and racing across the island they are on. In another episode, Pikachu comes into conflict with an Alolan Raichu, engaging in a race where they carry stacks of pancakes. Later in the anime series, a female Raichu is owned by Ash's friend, Goh. Raichu has been voiced by various actors, including Kei Shindō, Fumiko Takekuma, and Casey Mongillo.

Critical reception
Early reactions to the species were negative due to Pikachu's popularity as the series mascot, with IGN in their "Pokémon of the Day Chick" series of articles argued Raichu was "loved by many and despised by more," and GamesRadar+ editor Brett Elston adding that it was "easy to forget Raichu even exists." Later articles, such as Nintendo Life's retrospective of Pokémon from Red and Blue, spoke more favorably of the species, with Jon Cartwright describing them as a "step up" from Pikachu. Alex Olney agreed that Raichu is "hugely underrated," ranking it higher than Pikachu, while Zion Grassl felt it was unfair to players of Pokémon Yellow to be denied access to Raichu without losing a core feature of the game.

Other articles also praised the species. Kenneth Shephard of Kotaku criticized The Pokémon Company's handling of the species, stating that they would either use Raichu as a "punching bag" or ending up not using them at all. He blamed it on Raichu's debut episode in the Pokémon anime, feeling that while the episode by itself was good, it helped set the tone for how the species was perceived by the audience, with Pikachu being the superior of the two. Raichu's negative reception compounded in the Pokémon video games; while Pikachu would be given items or new forms available to it to improve its effectiveness, these were omitted from Raichu, giving players the underlying message that evolving Pikachu would be a disadvantage, or, in some titles, prevent Pikachu from evolving at all. In an article for Fanbyte, he further explained that Raichu, compared to other final evolution Pokémon such as Charizard or Blastoise, was treated with less recognition, and added "it feels like Raichu can't get out from under its little brother's shadow, even as he towers over him."

Isaiah McCall of The Gamer held similar sentiments, stating "people worship the throne that Pikachu built, ignoring anything Raichu had to offer," and expressing his confusion at the reaction. He argued that Raichu was simply a stronger counterpart to Pikachu, and felt Raichu would have been far more popular if it evolved from any other Pokémon. Evan Valentine of ComicBook.com argued that while Raichu was overshadowed by their "smaller, [...] cuter" counterpart, its existence and portrayal helped give better insight to Pikachu's character in the anime. ScreenRant's Niki Fakhoori stated that despite The Pokémon Company's emphasis on Pikachu, Raichu was overall more effective in the franchise's competitive scene, needing less forced support and able to utilize a wider array of items. She further called it one of the franchise's "best designs," highlighting Raichu's "sleek" legs and "iconic" tail. In a 2022 article, she expressed her belief that the franchise abandoned the species.

Other sources have read different meanings into Pikachu's rivalry with his evolved form, such as the book La Culture de l'Enfance à l'Heure de la Mondialisation, which compared it to the story of David and Goliath. Gina O'Melia in the book Japanese Influence on American Children's Television drew a comparison to Ash's idealized childlike state instead of maturing in Pikachu's refusal to evolve into Raichu and how this displayed that they drew power from their younger states respectively. The theme was something she felt was also a common trope in other anime media targeting children. Meanwhile, journalist Nicole Hill, in an interview with Kotaku, felt Pikachu's refusal to evolve and why resonated well with the LGBTQ community, acting as an example of self-expression and self-identity. On characterization, Fakhoori felt the anime's repeated portrayal of Raichu as "an ill-natured Pokémon used by unkind Trainers" significantly damaged how the species was viewed by the public, especially in light of Pikachu being emphasized as "reasonable and heroic" when the two come into conflict.

Polygon writer Allegra Frank noted that Raichu's Alolan form had proven popular with the fandom, some of which had made the connection between its design and pancakes and that its presentation in the Pokémon anime may have been in response to memes that arose from such. Fakhoori appreciated how it maintained similar aspects to Raichu's original design, ranking Alolan Raichu as "one of the cutest alternate forms" across the Pokémon series, and added regardless of form, felt that it is "always shaped like a friend." Shephard, on the other hand, voiced disdain. While he praised the fact Raichu had finally gotten some acknowledgement, he felt it was in part the company trying to shelve the original design. Despite praising the design on its own aspects, the form came across as a reminder that "if Raichu is to get any spotlight," it would be "as a kind of canvas" for new ideas instead.