In celebration of April 22nd’s release of Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl for the Nintendo DS, we’ve decided to give you our picks for the top 25 Pokémon of all-time. We’ve gone through the first three generations’ entire list of 386 different Pokémon, and we’ll be listing out a few of our picks each day over the course of the week until we reach our undisputed #1 pick for our favorite Pokémon of all-time on Saturday evening!

Pokémon #3 and #2 on our list tonight! Our list is nearing its end, and even as our forum members are pretty sure they know the remaining Pokémon, we’re here to provide the surprise and disputes as always! Which Pokémon did we decide on ranking as third and second? Click on to find out!

#3 - Celebi

Who’s That Pokémon?
Celebi’s name is derived from a word meaning “beauty.” It is the protector of the Ilex Forest, where a shrine was built in its honor. If a GS Ball is brought to and placed in the shrine, Celebi will appear and give the visitor a chance to capture it in battle. Celebi’s appearance is commonly accepted to mean a bright and shining future for the world. If it leaves this world, it generally causes the forest it was in to flourish with plant life and may occasionally leave behind a Pokémon egg from the future. When it leaves, it travels to another point in time. Up until now, it was the only Pokémon with the ability to travel through time. With Pokémon Diamond and Pearl’s introduction of Dialga, it may be possible that Dialga created Celebi or, at the very least, gave Celebi its power.

In the video games, Celebi was introduced to the world in the Pokémon Gold and Silver games. However, it was not made available in these games to anyone outside of Japan or the UK. It was not until the Game Boy Advance games that Celebi was available for American trainers to obtain. Japanese players were able to use the Pokémon Colosseum bonus disk to transfer Celebi to their Pokémon games, while Americans were able to obtain Celebi through either random luck at the Nintendo World store in New York City, or by attending the 2006 Journey Across America anniversary celebration.

Why did we pick it?
While I never had a real Celebi in my games until recently, I’ve always had a thing for super rare/legendary psychic Pokémon. Celebi was also the first Pokémon able to break the barrier of time to travel and meet both a young Professor Oak and Ash Ketchum 40 years later. Also, while this Grass/Psychic Pokémon doesn’t learn great moves through leveling, it can learn several power TMs, including Psychic and Hyper Beam. Celebi is a very balanced Pokémon in terms of stats, as all of its base stats are 120.
–Christian

#2 - Zapdos

Who’s That Pokémon?
Zapdos is the second of the legendary bird trio from Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow, and the highest ranked bird on our list. It lives among thunderclouds, where it seems to charge itself by allowing itself to be struck by lightning. Zapdos naturally has the ability to create and manipulate electricity and lightning, and sparks as it flies across the night sky. In fact, you can hear the snaps and crackles from Zapdos’ overflowing amount of electricity when it is in your presence.

In the video games, a single Zapdos is available in Pokémon Red, Blue, Yellow, and the Advance generation games based on them. Zapdos is found in the power plant, and potentially provides its capturer with a top-tier Pokémon with a unique type combination. In the movie, Pokémon the Movie 2000, Zapdos was the legendary bird to communicate with Pikachu and explain to Ash & Co. as to why he was found at the island home of Articuno. Shortly after, however, he was captured by Lawrence III. When the legendary birds finally entered into their quarrel, all three of the birds caused their guardian, Lugia, to go down unconscious before they were eventually suppressed by the commanding power of a revived Lugia.

Why did we pick it?
Certainly the most angular of all the legendary birds, the high-voltage powerhouse called Zapdos certainly takes the cake. With its body pulsing with electricity, Zapdos could take on Zeus any day, as he is known to appear in the clouds and rain down thunderbolts! The wicked combonation of electricity and flying, along with Zapdos’ amazing attack power proved most beneficial in battle–after I outfitted my Zapdos with both Drill Peck and Thunder, I was almost unstoppable!
–Beeks

On a bit of a personal note, Zapdos holds a very dear place in my heart. Back when I started my Pokemon card obsession, Zapdos was one of the very first holofoils that I found in a booster pack for the original base set! Even to this day, absolutely nothing beats the excitement I felt before opening a booster pack of cards. Nothing.
–Matthew

We’re almost there! Tomorrow night, we bring you a full-length feature article for The Tanooki’s choice for our #1 favorite Pokémon of all-time! Think you know it? Head over to the forums and speculate away. The article will be up early Saturday evening, finally prepping you for Pokémon Diamond and Pearl this Sunday, April 22!

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