As many fans know, there has always been an astonishingly wide variety of differences between the Pokémon games and anime. Rather than the turn-based battles of the games that revolve around careful thought and deep strategy, the anime often breaks the rules of what Pokémon are capable of, making for more exciting and fast-paced battles.

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This can often result in certain moves being used in ridiculous ways, while other Pokémon use moves that they could never normally learn in the mainline games. Ash’s Pokémon have been especially notorious for this throughout the Pokémon anime, as many of his Pokémon have used several impossible moves.

10 Bulbasaur

As one of Ash's few Grass-types, Bulbasaur brings a lot to the table that his other partners can't do. From status moves to its powerful vines, there are tons of powers it has that no other Pokémon is capable of, but for the sake of spectacle there are some things it shouldn't even be capable of.

This is perhaps most true in a fight against a Butterfree, where Ash's Bulbasaur improvises a Whirlwind attack in order to blow it back. This move is usually specific to Flying-types, and has never been in Bulbasaur's aresenal in any game, making it a total oddity in the series.

9 Cyndaquil

Cyndaquil dangerously standing in a forest in the Pokemon anime

Agility works very differently in the Pokémon series than the games. Rather than doubling its overall speed, it tends to make the user more evasive by having them dart around the field, or pushing its speed limits to dash at an opponent from a long distance.

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Another of Ash’s starters, Cyndaquil, uses this inaccurate move just as improperly. This Fire-type is one of the fastest starters in the series that doesn’t need speed boosts to outrun opponents, but Ash nonetheless commands it to use Agility to dodge the Fury Attack of a Skarmory.

8 Charizard

The ability for Charizard to use Tackle isn’t one of the most ridiculous moves, but it’s just as impossible as any other way Ash Ketchum breaks the rules. Normally the first move most Pokémon learn, Tackle is an incredibly simple damage attack that Ash’s Charizard uses in a tag battle late in his Kanto adventures.

However, Charizard doesn’t learn this move in the games, and neither does Charmander and Charmeleon. This is because it starts with the move Scratch, a functionally identical move is functionally identical to Tackle. Since its claws are stronger than its head, it’s an even stranger choice for Ash to use.

7 Starly

Gust is one of the most common Flying-type moves in the entire game, but throughout the series, it’s become far less common between each region’s birds. More common in the past few games is Wing Attack, but Gust’s commonality has also disappeared thanks to more powerful Flying-type moves with secondary attacks.

One of the birds that doesn’t learn this move is Starly from Pokémon Diamond & Pearl, but in the anime, it’s one of the only moves that Ash’s Starly knows when it’s caught. That said, this is only in the Japanese version of the show, as it was changed to the learnable move Whirlwind in the English dub.

6 Pidgeot

Starly isn’t Ash’s only bird to get Gust and Whirlwind confused. His Pidgeot from Kanto is significantly older and does actually learn Gust, but much like Starly, it functions more like Whirlwind by creating wind to push Pokémon away.

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This is one of several moves that Ash’s Pokémon use that defies the logic of the games. Causing a strong wind makes for much more interesting action scenes, but it entirely ignores the raw damage that Gust is supposed to provide instead.

5 Kingler

Ash’s Kingler is an unusual case when it comes to impossible moves. It never learns any attacks that are physically impossible to learn, sticking primarily to Normal and Water-type moves that are usable through its strong claws and slow body.

Instead, it manages to break the rules of the games by having access to five different moves in a single battle, rather than the typical limit of four. In the first round of the Indigo League, Ash’s Kingler manages to use Vice Grip, Water Gun, Bubble, Crabhammer, and Hyper Beam all in the same fight, meaning at least one of these moves should be impossible to use.

4 Pidgeot, Again

Pidgeot has one other move that’s more properly impossible, which is the intense Normal-type attack Double Edge. It functions as intended by slamming into the opponent at full force, but is not a move that Pidgeot typically learns in any of the mainline games.

That said, there’s one odd exception to this long after Pidgeot used this move in Ash’s original Kanto adventures. Pokémon FireRed & LeafGreen features a move tutor in Victory Road that can teach Double Edge to several Pokémon, including Pidgeot. Besides this one tutor, the move is otherwise impossible for it to learn.

3 Gible

Ash’s Gible is another Pokémon that does use naturally learnable moves, but one of its most famous moves is used in completely impossible ways. This mainly involves the legendary move Draco Meteor, a powerful move that’s only accessible to Dragon-types and creates a barrage of deadly energy blasts.

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Gible’s version does do this, but two qualities make its usage completely incompatible with the games. Not only does it create a barrage that damages all opponents on the battlefield, but Gible can also use it while holding an opponent in its jaw and blasting them upwards to annihilate them instantly. As a result, it's uniquely overpowered and comes across as completely specific to Gible, even though all Dragon-types should be able to use it identically.

2 Litten

It seems slightly unusual that a cat with such prominent claws would be unable to learn an attack as fitting as Slash, but Litten learns a surprisingly small amount of moves that use its sharp nails. Much like Charmander, this Fire-type starter's first move is Scratch, and it can learn the powerful Shadow Claw later on, but it mostly uses its strength and firepower to take down foes.

Ash’s Litten shouldn’t be able to use Slash, but unlike many of these impossible moves, this one feels significantly more natural. It’s impossible for Litten to use it in the games, but is flavorful enough that it’s far less egregious than others.

1 Pikachu

As the flagship Pokémon of the series, Pikachu has always been known to learn several ridiculous moves that it has no right learning. This includes the ability to Surf, gaining the ability to use Iron Tail as an unusual Steel-type move, and several special moves from tutors in Pokémon Let’s Go! Pikachu that haven’t appeared in any other game.

As for Ash’s Pikachu, its least-possible move is extremely mundane, as it attempts to use Leer in a battle with a Houndour that leers back before both use their damage attacks against each other. It’s certainly entertaining to see a Pikachu be so aggressive, but never in the games can this adorable mouse learn such a spiteful move.

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