Detective Pikachu hit theaters in 2019 and did the unthinkable by delivering a video game movie that was actually good. Ryan Reynolds and company managed to take the world of Pokémon and craft a live-action mystery film based on a game of the same name that fans adored. The number of cameos by pokémon from numerous generations and regions was impressive and resulted in lists and easter egg videos popping up all over the internet.
Despite reaching over 130 different pokémon, there were at least 10 that fans felt deserved a cameo in Detective Pikachu. Let's take a look at them.
10 Rowlet, Litten, Or Popplio
The Pokémon Company is really good at marketing their previously released or upcoming games. They tend to use various forms of media and advertising in hopes of growing the already staggering amount of sales their Pokémon games see whenever they hit shelves and digital marketplaces.
Many fans expected to see either a tease of a new pokémon from the upcoming Pokémon Sword/Shield games or maybe just the starters from Pokémon Sun/Moon. Sadly Rowlet, Litten, Popplio, or their evolutionary forms were all absent from the film.
9 Meowth
The wise-cracking Meowth from the Pokémon anime likely wouldn't have made sense in a Pokémon universe where Pikachu talking to Tim was such a weird and unexplainable occurrence. Just because he wouldn't be poking fun at the protagonist or rolling his eyes at his Team Rocket co-workers, doesn't mean the Kanto feline couldn't have been seen sleeping on a cat tower, or cuddling a person waiting for the bus.
Meowth is one of the most known pokémon entirely thanks to his big part in the anime. It could have been a nice nod to fans.
8 Ekans/Arbok
A good portion of Detective Pikachu's 3rd act has Tim, Pikachu, and company traversing the wilderness among wildlife and nature. The best parts of the film seemed to be the moments between Tim and Pikachu that were either filled with quip-filled exchanges or emotional gut punches.
Tim and Pikachu almost stepping on a wild Ekans or Arbok could have been a moment where fans were treated to the fear-induced reactions and following jokes by both Tim and Ryan Reynold's Pikachu.
7 Cyndaquil
Who would have thought that mixing a small baby anteater with the element of fire could result in a cute little bundle of joy? Cyndaquil may conflict with the laws of physics and heat conservation, but he doesn't conflict with what people find irresistibly adorable.
There's an ongoing thing in the Pokémon community where a portion of people feel the original 151 pokémon get too much of the attention. Although starters from multiple generations made cameos, a larger focus on some of them could have gone a long way for fans.
6 Primeape
Getting featured on a poster for a championship fight is great, but the beauty of Detective Pikachu is that fans of up to 20+ years got to see their favorite fictitious pocket monsters come to life in live-action on the big screen.
Primeape has always been seen as a strong, sturdy, and aggressive pokémon so it makes sense that it would be successful in the battling circuit. It could have been a great inclusion during the underground fighting sequence whether in the ring or among the fleeing crowd towards the end of the sequence.
5 Teddiursa
When the 2nd generation of Pokémon games titled Pokémon Gold & Silver was released, fans were introduced to a new collection of fierce, cool, and adorable creatures. Teddiursa falls into the classic camp of a base pokémon that's one of the cutest things in existence, and upon evolution turns into one of the most terrifying and intimidating things roaming the land.
Despite the inclusion of some adorable pokémon, there seemed to a severe lack of cuddling between trainer and partner. A Teddiursa cameo could have shown how cuddly the adorable little bear cub truly is.
4 Ivysaur
Feeling like Ivysaur not making an appearance in Detective Pikachu was a bad thing should be surprising as the base and final evolutions of all Pokémon Red & Blue starters made an appearance in the film. There's a case to be made that Bulbasaur has the best-designed middle-evolution and its vines and its blossoming flower could have translated over to live-action in a beautiful way.
Thankfully fans didn't have to endure looking at the awkward middle stage known as Charmeleon. No one's perfect, so given the popularity of Charizard and Charmander, there had to a flaw.
3 Butterfree
It seems like bug-type pokémon were far and few between in Detective Pikachu and that's likely due to them not making the best transition over to live-action. There's a large portion of people who find real-life bugs disgusting, so seeing giant morphed versions of the same bugs could have been stress-inducing to moviegoers.
Butterfree is a butterfly though, an insect often thought of as graceful and beautiful, so it could have laid the groundwork for audiences to grow more comfortable with bug-type pokémon in general.
2 Mimikyu
In a movie centered around Pikachu, there could have been Mimikyu cameos that served as the setup for a scare that led to a defensive Ryan Reynold's voiced Pikachu deflecting and trying to play it off. The scene almost writes itself as Tim and Pikachu enter an old building, and Pikachu comes across a familiar face only to be baited into a scare by the ghost-type Pikachu doppelganger, Mimikyu.
Detective Pikachu was centered on the mystery, so it makes sense that they didn't focus on introducing horror elements, but with the mystery solved, ghosts could be the focus of the sequel.
1 Dragonite
Often the subject of jokes and teasing due to his aloof look, Dragonite making a cameo in a live-action film as a post messenger could have been another easy kick in the nostalgia muscle. In Pokémon: The First Movie, viewers were greeted by a Dragonite that was a messenger who delivered mail to people.
It's such a charming and memorable concept for Dragonite, that many people consider that the canonical job of most Dragonite. Seeing Tim or Pikachu be delivered a letter by a big goofy dragon could have set the stage for some great quips.