7. Squirtle

Squirtle: Pokémon’s ambassador of cool.

Again I have to uncharacteristically credit Season 1 of the anime for bringing out the badass in this previously innocuous little guy. His first two in-game sprites are so simple and cute it’s like they shouldn’t even be pokemon. or like there dittos pretending to be squirtles LOL

But we know better: as seen above, there’s an O-face provoking rebel under that shell. Faced with the task of doing that rebel justice, but unable to just draw him with sunglasses in-game (that would be a cop-out), future games all made sure to give Squirtle at least a pair of angry eyebrows to accompany his grin. I think Ruby and Sapphire’s pose gets the most of his attitude: he holds up a finger to the right, as if saying to someone offscreen, “Just a second bitch I gotta win this pokemon battle”

HOWEVER I don’t think the definitive Squirtle sprite should necessarily be shown from the side, amusing though it may be. He seems more like the kind of guy who takes things head-on. Yellow’s sprite looks a bit too fat. Gold and Silver’s look a bit too thin, off-balance, and not really complimented by the color palette (Squirtle’s shell, underbody, tongue and eyes all being the same color just isn’t going to work).

The Winner:
FireRed and LeafGreen

And so the last three sprites work the best for me. I’ve been going back and forth on this, since HG/SS’s is the most actiony, but ultimately I think it looks a bit too excited, and D/P’s arms are up in the air instead of anywhere they’d be useful. But FireRed and LeafGreen’s has poise, the same great face from the Ruby/Sapphire sprite, and his arms are out in a prepared, all-right-let’s-do-this manner. Plus it’s from a game Squirtle is actually in without trading, you know, that does count for something.