Clover's Top 10 Pokemon

With over 1,000 Pokemon to choose from, making this list was difficult to say the least. I used the favorite sorter from Dragonflycave.com to help me narrow down some choices, but I realized I kept wanting to add more to the list so I had to make a “runner’s up” category in the end. Click an icon to warp:


My TOP 10 pokemon are based on multiple factors. Although I’ve had all of these Pokemon on a team at some point or another in the games, I didn’t pick them based on in-game performance alone. Overall design is very important to me. I realize I tend to like pinks, blues, and greens in my designs. I lean towards humanoid and quadrupedal forms. I like “nature” types like grass and water, but also “mystical” types like psychic, ghost, and even fairy. I like Pokemon that I feel like I could have in or around my house and be a friend to, and one that would protect me out in the wilderness on our adventures. 

#1. Bulbasaur

This was my starter Pokemon in the original games, so it has that special place in my heart. I thought that Bulbasaur was the most loyal and was a good leader for other Pokemon to follow. He was quiet, but took action when he needed to. I even have a little Bulbasaur line collection that I’ve slowly added to over time! Finally, I like the fan drawings of different versions of the plant on Bulbasaur’s back. So interesting to see Pokemon done in new ways, and I love all the iterations I see…especially Rose and Pumpkin bulbasaur!

#2. Vaporeon

I have always loved swimming pools, sitting in the jacuzzi, playing at the beach, and watching waterfalls, rivers, and so on. I wanted to be a mermaid so much when I was little (I still do to be honest lol) so Vaporeon was a natural pick for my original favorite Eeveelution! She’s very graceful and would be such a fun Pokemon to have while lounging around in the pool or riding waves in the ocean.

#3. Bellossom

Bellossom was one of the first Pokemon I saw online when I was just hearing about the second generation. Not a ton was known about it yet, at least in America, but there were images floating around of a few new Pokemon including her. I thought she was very pretty and unique compared to a lot of what I saw in the first generation, and I don’t think I realized she was related to Oddish at all at the time! Originally I only knew her as “kirei hana” which I knew meant beautiful flower in Japanese…and that she is! I also got a holographic Japanese Pokemon card of her very early on, which I still have to this day.

#4. Mew

Mew just has so much interesting backstory behind it in regards to its creation, both in the anime/manga, but also with how it was added to the game essentially at the last minute. There were always interesting rumors going around about how to catch a mew, and finding any merchandise back in the day with Mew on it was just so cool and rare-feeling. The overall design is very sweet, although I’ve heard that Mew is actually very mean to MewTwo in the Japanese version of the first movie! Maybe it should be looked at like a trickster god like Loki…

#5. Dragonite / Dragonair

Dragonair is always a beauty to see. She has the allure of a mythical water dragon who only allows you to see her at certain times. Her fluffy white wings remind me of Card Captor Sakura designs, and her gems have a mystical quality to them. I also love Dragonite, though it has a very different overall feel to it. I think of Dragonite as a loyal messenger and a companion who you could fly anywhere with. If you own a Dragonite, you are very fortunate.

#6. Flaaffy

If you saw my Top 10 favorite Digimon list, you know what I tend to like pink creatures XD How could I resist this dragon-like-sheep-like pokemon? It’s hair is so cute and fluffy, and it has a magical looking orb on the tail. Compared to the first stage and final stage, it almost looks like it was supposed to be a shiny with its bright pink coloring. I actually have a small collection growing of Pokemon cards from the mareep line because I like Flaaffy so much. I could just see it being a fun companion.

#7. Jirachi

Jirachi was the mascot of the Pokemon forum I used to run back in the day. I called it “The Dream League” because it was a place where you could be creative, and let your dreams come true *sparkly eyes* Jirachi is known as the Wish Maker pokemon, so I thought it fit the theme of having your dreaming or something great, or wishing upon a star…I grew to like the design more and more over time, especially the paper on its head resembling Tanzaku (strips of paper where wishes are written, then hung on a tree during the Japanese festival Tanabata) and its mysterious third eye on its stomach that mostly stays closed…

#8. Chikorita / Meganium

So many people give hate to this little leafy bean (her design IS rather simple) but I think that’s what I like about it! She’s a little blob that grows up to be a super cute dino-like Pokemon. The softness of MEganium’s design kind of reminds me of the original My Little Pony toys, particularly Cutesaurus (which is a dream item for me by the way) Chikorita was one of my first glimpses into the second generation of Pokemon as well.

#9. Gengar

How can I not like Gengar? In the shows, he’s always hamming it up, but he’s also quite terrifying at times due to his size and mean looking eyes. There is an adorable Pokemon animated short where a girl becomes a Gengar temporarily and hangs out with other ghost type Pokemon, and it just added to how much I like the design. Plus, Gengar gets some really sick merch and is kind of the face of Halloween for Pokemon when the holiday rolls around. I also like the fan theory of Clefable being sort of the “good” version of Gengar due to their similar body shapes. Kind of like an angel/demon thing going on.

#10. Hattrem

Again, a cute round pinkish creature makes a top 10 list for Clover XD This is almost too cute to be a Pokemon...It’s more on the level of a San-x/Sanrio or maybe a character from Kirby. I absolutely love the little witch hat that this Pokemon has and how the hat also has two pigtails coming off of it. This is an example of a pokemon where I don’t care for the first form, nor the final form too much, but the middle stage is too cute for me to handle.

Honorable Mention: Pikachu

I know some people don’t like the literal mascot of the franchise, but I do! I have an extra affinity to Pikachu because I mained him in Smash Brothers for many years. I also enjoyed the Pokemon Yellow game where he could follow you around, and have little facial expressions when you checked in on him. It was so unique! Plus, one of my favorite virtual pets growing up was the Pocket Pikachu. I carried it around everywhere. So yes, I love me a classic Pikachu.

Runners up:
Chansey/Blissey - THEY PINK and related to health care/nursing ;)
Clefairy/Clefable - THEY PINK and have wings~
Starmie - Very unique as there is no face…could be an alien?
Togekiss - Friend-shaped happy Pokemon
Lopunny - I love bunnies and this one is no exception
Banette - Awesome cute-but-goth looking toy doll Pokmon