Ever since the early days of the Pokémon franchise, Pikachu put the Electric-type on the map. People over the years have fallen in love with Electric-type Pokémon, with many of them being Pikachu clones from every generation passed the first.
The type itself is home to many lovable creatures, but it's not without its fair share of ugly ducklings. For every Pikachu, there's a Stunfisk out there waiting to be loved.
10 Cute: Pichu
Depending on where you fall in terms of the love or hate of the introduction of the pre-evolutionary forms, known as baby Pokémon in Pokémon Gold & Silver, Pichu is either a gift or a curse. The baby form of Pikachu takes all of its lovable characteristics and presses them into an even smaller package. Pichu weighs around 4 pounds and stands no taller than 12 inches. Some people like medium dogs and others love small dogs. Pichu is the small dog version of Pikachu and carries with it indescribable cuteness.
9 Ugly: Magnezone
If everyone was honest with themselves there's a case to be made that Magnemite's entire evolutionary line can make up this entry, but there is one clear winner out of the 3 in terms of the ugliest of the bunch. Magnezone might be the most powerful Electric-type Pokémon of the 3, but boy is it tough to look at. It takes the simple magnet concept and turns the creature into an otherworldly UFO of sorts that happens to be sentient. Compared to Lickilicky and Magmortar it's a real winner, but these Pokémon weren't made in a vacuum.
8 Cute: Shinx
Shinx is very much the Electric-type equivalent of Growlithe, the beloved Fire-type canine/feline hybrid native to the Kanto region. It eventually evolves into a proud and capable large Pokémon known as Luxray, but in its base form, it's simply a pastel blue baby lion cub.
Like Growlithe, Shinx perfectly walks that line between kitten and puppy and embraces their best parts. Its joyous expression mixed with its large fluffy ears and star-like tail will have trainers across the globe scrambling to cuddle with this adorable beast.
7 Ugly: Electrike
Electrike is an example of something that's a no-brainer place to start when designing something cute, being over-designed. The Lightning Pokémon is meant to mimic the look of a canine, and though that inspiration is obvious, it lacks any of the appealing parts humans find in dogs. Its eyes are rather aggressive, its head is elongated like a horse, and its body looks rigid and sharp. If it was a real animal it'd be the type of dog your friend owned that you'd pretend was cute, but inside you knew how ugly it was.
6 Cute: Emolga
As far as Pikachu clones go in the Pokémon franchise Emolga feels like one of the more unique and equally adorable examples of it being done right. It still features the Electric-types go-to colors of black and yellow, but those are used as accents to a predominantly white-furred body. This flying squirrel matches its big optimistic eyes with equally large ears and cheeks. Emolga, known as the Sky Squirrel Pokémon, is adorable underneath and outside of Pikachu's cascading shadow.
5 Ugly: Electabuzz
Electabuzz has been considered one of the Pokémon franchise's ugliest designs since the release of Pokémon Red & Blue. Most of why this Electric-type Pokémon is considered hard on the eyes is due to how uncanny its human-like anatomy is.
Most Pokémon can be traced back to a real-life animal or cultural counterpart that makes it easier for the human brain to digest. Electabuzz is an electrified sasquatch, which happens to be a creature most imagine as a blurry photo walking in the middle of the woods.
4 Cute: Yamper
Whether you grew up watching Cowboy Bebop, or simply love dogs, the love people have for corgis is sky-high. These cute pudgy dogs have found a way into human hearts and part of it is due to how cute and tiny their stubby bodies are. Yamper, on top of simply being a corgi, happens to have a heart-shaped pattern on its buttocks that makes it even more lovable than it already was. Do yourself a favor and give Yamper an everstone as there are zero incentives to evolve it into a Boltund.
3 Ugly: Eelektross
You may be wondering why Eelektross isn't #1 on the list of ugliest Electric-type Pokémon considering it has a pretty strong case. The reason it comes in just shy of the top honor is that it being ugly seems to be the intention. It reads as a deep-sea Pokémon that has evolved in such a way to facilitate its livelihood. This thing looks like the thing of nightmares and is likely the image kids had in their heads when they were scared of the giant eel in Super Mario 64 when they were kids.
2 Cute: Pikachu
When considering which Electric-type Pokémon is the cutest it's hard not to put the franchise mascot, Pikachu, at the #1 spot. Originally the design for the electrified mouse was a bit more bulbous and chubby.
As it morphed into the iconic symbol of the Pokémon franchise its design was slimmed down to inspire fitness and a healthy lifestyle among children. Over the years Pikachu has been dressed up and decorated with some of the cutest accessories and clothing which have pushed the bounds of its cuteness to new heights.
1 Ugly: Stunfisk
Stunfisk recently received a Galarian form in Pokémon Sword & Shield that removed its Electric-typing but made it even uglier than it already was. In its Ground/Electric-type common form it isn't super hideous but it does come across as uninspired and lame. Knowing that it's a flatfish with both of its eyes on the same side of its head also doesn't help the situation. Fans are still holding out hope that it eventually receives a glow-up evolutionary form in one of the new generations that will release in the coming years.