Electric is a popular type among Pokémon fans. Creatures of this type typically have a few distinct characteristics: sharp edges, lightning-bolt motifs, speed, and agility. Pokémon like Luxray, Jolteon, and Zeraora exemplify these design choices perfectly. Electric-type Pokémon look fast and intense, signifying their relation to lightning and electricity.
However, many Electric-types are actually pretty ugly, whether or not they match these motifs. They can fit into the mold of a typical Electric-type design but maybe miss the mark on the appeal, or they buck the trend entirely and are perplexing to look at. Here are some examples of Electric-type Pokémon that even a mother wouldn’t love.
10 Pincurchin
Was this thing necessary? Pokémon already has its fair-share of seabed-dwelling creatures like Mareanie, Toxapex, Corsola, Clamperl, and more. The Mareanie line also already covered the whole spiky-sea-monster thing only a single generation prior. Sure, the Mareanie line more closely resembles a sea star than an urchin like Pincurchin, but the latter just doesn’t seem super necessary.
Regardless of its importance, Pincurchin is just an ugly Pokémon. The color choices, like most of the Generation VIII Pokémon, seem random and uninspired. Plus, it always looks depressed. Maybe it’s the downturned triangles for eyes.
9 Flaaffy
Sure, Flaaffy is cute. It’s clearly a fluffy sheep with pink and white, which is a typically-cute color scheme. Its cute little eyes and smile are great and its part of an evolutionary line that many people love wholeheartedly. But its evolution line is also its downfall.
Mareep is adorable and arguably one of the cutest Pokémon in Generation II. Ampharos is awesome and widely-beloved by fans, often held as a fan-favorite. Where does that leave Flaaffy? It’s awkwardly stuck between both of these with no identity for itself. Also, the lack of wool from the chest down is weird. It’s like it’s pantsless.
8 Dracozolt & Arctozolt
These two Eldritch abominations are just half of Galar’s set of terrible fossil Pokémon. Dracovish and Arctovish have escaped persecution by this list because they are not Electric-types. However, these two are here because they are awful. It’s hard to decide which of the two is worse.
Is it Dracozolt, with its large rear-end and tiny, pathetic head and arms dangling like a forgotten tree branch? Or is it Arctozolt, which looks like an electric lizard was shoved into a snowbank and forgotten? These poor creatures should have never been revived from the fossils!
7 Xurkitree
We’ll be honest; most of the Ultra Beasts are ugly. Considering they’re extraterrestrial beings, it kind of seems like the point. But, that doesn’t mean they can’t be ranked as some the ugliest Pokémon of their respective types. Xurkitree is no exception here.
This pure Electric-type is no stranger to criticism. Many fans hate the appearance of this Pokémon, calling it lazy and bad. It’s basically a bunch of wires cobbled together with an electrical spark for a head. The play on words with “circuitry” and “tree” is clever, but this Pokémon’s design is obvious and not good.
6 Manectric
Manectric is not the worst Pokémon to ever exist. It’s an okay evolution from the well-designed Electrike, and it has obvious design choices that signify its typing. However, the “elemental dog” thing is tired and has already been done countless times.
Manectric didn’t really add anything to this cliché, instead opting for some strange elements that don’t really make sense. Why does it have two yellow pieces slapped on its hind legs? The strange “haircut” is also unfortunate. Mega Manectric built on these details and is truly a great design, but base-Manectric just falls short of the mark.
5 Mow Rotom
Rotom has a few different forms based on home appliances, which is a weird but interesting choice. It’s hard to decide which of these forms is the strangest-looking, but the Grass/Electric-type Mow Rotom is definitely the ugliest.
While the fridge, oven, washing machine, and fan forms are okay, the lawnmower on which Mow Rotom is based is terrifying. The terrible angry eyes and sharp, evil teeth are obviously meant to symbolize the blades of a lawnmower, but they’re still scary. It kind of looks like the ultra-creepy Wizzrobes from Breath of the Wild.
4 Charjabug
Like many other Electric-type Pokémon, the Grubbin line is made to be an obvious concept that plays out somewhat literally. Why do so many Electric-types have plugs as part of their design? Grubbin is clearly a bug with a slight reference to electricity in its fangs, and Vikavolt is clearly Electric-type with its zappers for pincers and fierce yellow eyes.
Charjabug, though, is awkwardly stuck between these. It’s basically a box with a plug on it. Some might even say it looks like a bus. It’s just too boxy and simple to be as great as its evolutionary relatives.
3 Gigantamax Pikachu
Pokémon’s mascot has been given many different forms over the years, from the Cosplay Pikachus of Generation VI to the different hats and outfits this little electric mouse can wear in Pokémon GO. But, its Gigantamax form is definitely the ugliest among them.
It’s clear that Game Freak wanted to evoke the design of the “thicc Pikachu” of the old days that many have joked about, but it’s just weird-looking and unnecessary. Luckily, they didn’t let Eevee escape the same fate as they usually do, also giving it a strangely-rotund Gigantamax form.
2 Morpeko (Hangry Mode)
Morpeko is a strange Pokémon. It’s hard to decide if it’s cute or ugly. It kind of resembles a Mighty Beanz from the early 2000s, but with arms and legs. The coloring is a bit off-putting too, with the zigzagged brown, black, and yellow leaving something to be desired.
What’s not hard to determine, though, is that its secondary form, “Hangry Mode,” is in fact ugly. Not only is it based on a tired meme from a few years ago, but the purple is also worse than the yellow and the red eyes are unsettling.
1 Stunfisk
It’s probably a surprise to nobody that Stunfisk is at the top of this list. This poor, dumb fish is often cited as one of the ugliest Pokémon ever made, and for good reason. It’s strangely flat and sad-looking, and the brown and yellow coloring is gross (like Morpeko).
Throw in its pathetic little fins and you’ve got a truly depressing design for a Pokémon. At least it has a fun typing and a Galarian form (which honestly is even uglier). Stunfisk is so ugly and terrible that it’s almost loveable. Almost, but not quite.
NEXT: 10 Ways To Level Up Fast In Pokémon Sword & Shield
