Thread: Is Charizard Overrated?

Originally Posted by Dralcax

Starter-wise, it's outclassed by Bulbasaur, which pretty much kills every gym leader except Blaine and Koga, but by then you should have better Pokemon. Charmander loses to Brock and Misty right off the bat. Not even all the Caterpies in the tall grass could justify picking Charmander.

I beat Brock and Misty with Charmander. @3@

Originally Posted by Otika

Originally Posted by Dralcax

Starter-wise, it's outclassed by Bulbasaur, which pretty much kills every gym leader except Blaine and Koga, but by then you should have better Pokemon. Charmander loses to Brock and Misty right off the bat. Not even all the Caterpies in the tall grass could justify picking Charmander.

I beat Brock and Misty with Charmander. @3@

In RB or FRLG?

I very rarely battle out side the game so really i dont care how weak it is i never picked pokemon based on how strong they are anyway.. I like charizard the most out of any starter its the only line where i adore all 3 versions so i will always pick it even if the other 2 are stronger. I also rerember loving charizad in the anime it was so badass i couldent wait for it show up and flamethrower ash, i dont care if its overrated on the competitive batttling scene that dosent intest me and even if it did i would still love charizard as use it in battles.

Originally Posted by Dralcax

In RB or FRLG?

Blue. That being said, it wasn't my ONLY Pokémon... I also used Pikachu. @3@

But to be honest, he might have been a Charmeleon by that point due to my OCD for having all my Pokémon at a relatively even level.

Originally Posted by Otika

also, you're forgetting Jigglypuff. That seems to be one that people seem to instantly remember.

Jigglypuff is nowhere as popular as Charizard. It just is more popular than other pokémon, specially on gaming sites because of Smash Bros.
But in no way as popular as Charizard.

just because he's one of the few Pokémon a non-Pokémon fans recognizes doesn't mean he's "overhyped."

You misinterpreted, I am not saying that is the reason, that is an effect.

The reason is its former crazy exposition and marketability everywhere, beggining with the players, which I reasoned later on.

This left a mark on most people who experienced Gen I, directly or indirectly, so he's been a long-time favorite for many, many, MANY people.


Whatever messageboards on the internet say isn't as relevant as you think on the grand scale of things. The two thousands of people that say Charizard sucks are people that share some opinions and thus go to similar places. Merely a fraction of the millions of players. (Although, the old fans of Charizard are also a fraction. Just a larger one, though)

And honestly, I don't see why people get upset for their favorite pokémon being said to be overhyped. It just means it's so popular it overshadows others. Which in the end makes sense. It's reasonable to be upset for say, not enough Venusaur merchandise while Charizard is everywhere. Or to get bored of fighting fifteen Charizard every day. Or to make a "what's your favorite pokémon" poll to see the diverse likes of a community and be disappointed when Charizard comes in first.
But how's this any bad if you like it?

I mean, I like Charizard. Nowhere as much as other people, but I still like it. This isn't some "everyone gets together to hate on charizard", it's merely recognizing it as a massively popular pokémon.


Although...
Despite all of that, thinking more about it Charizard's popularity indeed has faded now, simply by the pass of time. A random kid won't know much of charizard, you'll have to talk to someone who was around during the Pokémon fever.

Originally Posted by Infinity Mk-II

Originally Posted by Otika

also, you're forgetting Jigglypuff. That seems to be one that people seem to instantly remember.

Jigglypuff is nowhere as popular as Charizard. It just is more popular than other pokémon, specially on gaming sites because of Smash Bros.
But in no way as popular as Charizard.

True, but then, Charizard is no way as popular as Pikachu, so that doesn't negate my point, really. Also, I wouldn't attribute Jigglypuff's fame to Smash Bros. I mean, that is a factor, but the name in itself is memorable. That, combined with a cute, pink fluff ball and its high-pitched voice make it extremely iconic.

And honestly, I don't see why people get upset for their favorite pokémon being said to be overhyped. It just means it's so popular it overshadows others. Which in the end makes sense. It's reasonable to be upset for say, not enough Venusaur merchandise while Charizard is everywhere. Or to get bored of fighting fifteen Charizard every day. Or to make a "what's your favorite pokémon" poll to see the diverse likes of a community and be disappointed when Charizard comes in first.
But how's this any bad if you like it?

Then that wouldn't make Charizard "overhyped," that would make Venusaur and Blastoise "underhyped." Although I can see your point with the too much Charizard merchandise and not enough of other, less popular Pokémon as well as getting bored of fighting yet another Charizard online, I don't see why seeing a "what's your favorite Pokémon poll" and then seeing Charizard gain the lead would be problematic. I mean, unless it's like that legendary Pokémon contest Nintendo had a while back where the winner got a t-shirt, it's just fan opinion and things are usually popular for a reason. That being said, I'm usually the minority when it comes to poplular opinion as well, but when I see that something is more popular than something I favor, I just shrug and let people be happy about whatever it is.

That being said, I hope you don't think I'm getting UPSET that you or anyone else is calling Charizard overhyped. He's not exactly my favorite, either. In general, I tend to prefer the more cute and cuddly or otherwise more elegant Pokémon, so whilst I do like Charizard in its own right, I don't have much higher feelings for him than "Wow! That's one of the first Pokémon I ever saw!" You and everyone else are entitled to your own thoughts and perspective.

Although...
Despite all of that, thinking more about it Charizard's popularity indeed has faded now, simply by the pass of time. A random kid won't know much of charizard, you'll have to talk to someone who was around during the Pokémon fever.

Such is the way time goes on. =( - My heart was warmed with nostalgic bliss when my friend and I were coming out of the theater after seeing the Victini movie and a group of kids who were on a school outing of sorts saw the goody bags that were handed out and shouted "POKEMON!!" Brought back memories of being one of those kids. Good times.

Yes, but Charizard really looks like a Dragon. If GF ever wants to retype, they're gonna need to make Charizard Fire/Dragon.

It's understandable why people would think Charizard is overrated, but I'm gonna say he isn't partially because people hating on him kind of cancels out the extra love on the whole (if that made any sense). And the people who hate Charizard give him extra attention anyway. Also he is popular for good, reasons, Ash's in the anime was great fun to watch, he was many (including myself) people's first pokemon ever (well Charmander to be precise) which is pretty damn special.

But I would agree he is slightly overrated in the sense he overshadows pretty much any other starter pokemon in terms of fame.

I honestly wouldn't say Charizard is overrated; I've never really loved it and now can't see a reason why anyone would want to use it. That being said, most boys choose Charmadner as their first starter and have a bit of a love affair with them.

no I don't find him overrated. I find Pikachu to be more overrated than him tbh.

No, I don't feel Charizard is overrated. Overexposed, yes, but not overrated. Things were different back in the earlier days. Charizard is fairly iconic nowadays, as it's one of the most well-known Pokemon to date. However, Pikachu, Lucario, Mewtwo, and even Jigglypuff are just as well noted as Charizard (if you don't believe me, play the SSB series, as all four were, at one time or another, used in those games). The fact is Charizard looks like a fierce, fire-breathing dragon. What little kid doesn't like a fierce, fire-breathing dragon? I know I love them. But I picked Bulbasaur as my starter in Red and Blue. Don't ask me why, I just did. I had not clue what I was doing then, but Bulbasaur had a clear-cut advantage that Charmander didn't. I didn't know that off the bat, and even though my Venasaur could murder Blue's team with little effort, somehow, Charizard did earn a place in my heart.

Nowadays, there are much better Fire-types, as (competitively) Charizard can get owned by a single Stealth Rock, and Pokemon like Blaziken and Infernape tend to fare better anyway. Speaking non-competitively, Charizard does have a decent selection of moves and a fairly well-balanced stat. Again, Pokemon like Blaziken, Infernape, Arcanine, Volcarona, and other fare better in more situations than Charizard, but Charizard has earned it place. After all, the anime was the biggest driving force for the marketing of Pokemon, and Ash getting a big, bad Charizard while his other two starters (Bulbasaur and Squirtle) stayed in their base forms made it stand out more. Ash had to put the most effort into Charizard, especially since in the early days he hate to admit he was wrong and was stubborn to a fault, so it tested his character as well as gave the flame-tailed draconian-like Fire/Flying-type a lot of screen time. Ash's Charizard is easily his strongest, as even a "god-level" Pikachu gets crushed by supposedly "rookie" Mons (I'm lookin' and you, Trip's Snivy). Charizard has only lost a few battles, most of them (like Harrison's Blaziken) were power-packed, nail-bitter, edge-of-your-seat epic battles.

Again, other monster-based series like Digimon thrive on such things, as Agumon as been in three different Digimon anime series (Adventure 01, 02, and Data Squad), so would you call Agumon overrated? It's a fire-breathing dragon-like monster, and it's the staple of the Digimon series (personally, I feel Angemon and Angewomon were more powerful, since they were much stronger for their respective levels... if you don't believe me, watch the episodes with Devimon's defeat to Angemon, Myotismon's first encounter with Angemon and later Angewomon, and MagnaAngemon vs. Piedmon). So it's only natural the marketing would use such an iconic monster, one that even newbies to the series would know, to more heavily expose and promote the series. Again, would you say Pikachu, Mewtwo, Lucario, and even Jigglypuff are overrated since they're well-known to the same degree as Charizard? Charizard is what Charizard is; a fire-breathing dragon-like monster who has had plenty of time in the spotlight to earn its name engraved in the stone of the series.

So, no, Charizard isn't overrated. It has been overexposed, yes, but that's not the same as overrated. Whether we like it or not, Charizard is what it is; a symbol of the series itself. There are better Fire-types nowadays, but in those earlier days, a fire-breathing dragon seemed a lot more powerful than a dino with a flower on its back or a turtle with two cannons in its shell. Pikachu, Mewtwo, and Lucario have gotten the same treatment. Heck, even Meowth has, thanks to Team Rocket's role in the anime. So, no, Charizard isn't overrated. It may have had a lot of punch at first, but newer Fire-types have outclassed it. But it's still a fun Mon to use. Bulbasaur may be my first choice for Starter in Kanto (though I'm pretty tired of Kanto), but Charmander and its family have gained what it wanted, whether we like it or not. So stop whining about it. It's not gonna go away anytime soon, so just blow it off and move on. At least Charizard was cooler than the "true" dragon of Kanto (Dragonite, what a ripoff). That's all for now.

I think it's a little silly to not like it just 'cause it's popular. That goes for anything in life really. If you like it, you like it. Sure, in this case, there are arguments that can perhaps be made against it with regards to its competitive battling abilities, but people who bang on about stuff like that are the reason I never got into competitive battling. It really isn't all that important haha.

To sum it up, Charizard might be overrated. It might not be. That in itself is a matter of opinion, along with whether Charizard is awesome or not, so... yeah. Fair enough discuss it, that's what forums are for and of course everyone's entitled to their opinions, but some people seem to be getting a little bent out of shape about it for no real reason.

i've always liked Charizard and it was the best starter or it's generation..
as for it being over-rated, yeah it is a bit, for some reason it's one of the most well known pokemon, even non-fans know of him..
as for all the comments about "well he's not as strong as..."
well in the games, i always pick my pokemon..based on how much i like the design..not the strength..i would take the extra time to train all my pokemon to keep up, so not everyone picks charizard because they think he's the most useful but simply because we like him.
though i have to say he's not exactly my favorite pokemon..

I like Charizard, I'm not head over heels in love with it though.

That being said, maybe nowadays he wouldn't be considered Overrated, as more people now know of Charizard's disabilities in the metagame, even if they don't play the newer games. But it is still overexposed because... it is, and still continues to be one of the most iconic pokémon out there.

The "Charizard is overrated" question... again. Absolutely nothing against you, OP. I just see this question asked and the opinions stated in almost every Pokemon forum. XD

For my answer and speaking as a big fan of Charizard, I would have to say no, he is not overrated. Is it bias? Probably. I wish there was a borderline answer other than 'yes' or 'no.' Yeah, I will admit, there are Pokemon that are completely overshadowed by him. It can be very frustrating especially if you have your favorites from gen 1 get very little attention while Charizard gets a huge role in the anime and movies (he is slated to come out in this summer's coming movie!), he gets all this cool merchandise (I have a shelf just for his stuff!), and you have all these drooling fans that are crazy for him just because he is a fire dragon, regardless of how useful he is competitively (thank you, stealth rock, you b****!).

However, I really dislike people hating something just because it is popular, and that seems to be the general consesus whenever this question is asked. The same question could be asked about, say, the new starter fire Pokemon (I won't mention his name nor what he resembles because I am not sure if there are people here who don't want spoilers). I see that thing overshadowing the other two and getting all this praise. The fan art is already popping up and all I see is the fire starter being done. However, I will not bash it. He's cute! He is popular for a reason and I can see why so many people like him! Same goes for Eevee!

I really do sympathize with those of you who wish your favorites in generation 1 or even other generations got better exposure. As a Charizard fan and a fan of other Pokeys who really got gypped in getting Game Freak/Nintendo to give them anything better than a cameo in the anime or a burger king toy (and then not even that), I can say I understand that frustration very well. I will also admit he is not good as a competitive battler and I do use aesthetically-pleasing OU Pokemon. That doesn't stop me from using him in online play, though stealth rock ruins him. I think stealth rock is incredibly broken and I wish it was never created. Oh well. What can you do? But I will say again, he is popular for a reason. Just like Pikachu is popular for a reason. I can sort of understand why that derpy Stunfisk is popular for a reason. He's so derpy, he's cute (yeah, I changed my opinion on him)! I am glad to see underappreciated Pokemon get attention from their fans and I enjoy that.

With that said, I am not going to stop liking Charizard just because some people feel he has too many fans. If he is simply not your cup of tea because there is something about him that you are not a big fan of (whether it is because of his looks or his usefullness in the metagame), fine, that's okay. Those are much better reasons to dislike something than just because it is "popular."

Just my two cents. I'm not mad or anything. I am just sharing an opinion. ^^