I voted for Pikachu being a girl. I'm not sure where the other vote came from, but thank you, whoever voted for that option. ^_^
And thanks Blackjack, for pointing out to everyone what Pikachu's VA said about the subject of Pikachu's gender and that it "hasn't been decided yet" (at least not at that time, anyway).
Personally, I believe Ash's Pikachu is a female. I've seen every episode of the dub, and since the first episode, I have always believed it to be a female. It just seems like it's a girl to me by the way it always acts around Ash.
Of course, I'm a huge Pikashipper, so my opinion may be a bit biased as far as that's concerned. And I have my own personal theories towards Pikashipping as well.
Anyway though, I think the theory that Pikachu is a male is overrated. Too many people think this, and that's another reason why I chose *not* to believe it's a male. Also, I really hate how
nearly everyone just assumes Ash's Pikachu is a male (because everyone else believes this), and doesn't seem to be open to the possibility that Ash's Pikachu could very well be a female.
The way I see it is this. The debate about Pikachu's gender is a never-ending debate, because there is no solid proof either way. There's only been a few hints in the anime. But even then, most of those hints were only in the first season, and everyone knows the writers made a ton of mistakes back then. So, no one really knows what gender Pikachu really is. All we've been doing so far is speculating, and agreeing with the majority (of course that's only true for the gazillions of people who think Pikachu is a male - the few of us who do think Pikachu is a female or are open to that possibility are in the minority).
And another thing, please don't try to convince me otherwise that Pikachu is a male. I believe Ash's Pikachu is a female, and that's that. Like I said, all we're doing is speculating anyway, cause none of us know the true gender of Ash's Pikachu. And again, Pikachu's gender has not been confirmed or revealed in the anime. For all we know, Pikachu's gender may never be confirmed.
So really, what's the point in debating this? I'm not saying that anyone *has* started a debate, but rather, I'm just saying a debate on this subject would be very pointless. And overall, unless either side has conclusive proof, and I'm talking real evidence here (of something that was either said by one of the characters on the show, or something that was said by the writers), then no side has any sort of proof whatsoever.
I mean, I'm fine with a topic like this being here, and everything. I have nothing against people stating their own opinions. But I just don't want to get involved in another endless debate about Pikachu's gender (which whenever those debates do come up they're always one-sided, and it is always in favor of the "majority", unfortunately).
You can't use
that as evidence for Pikachu being a male. That doesn't make any sense.
The writers have not revealed Buneary's gender either, for that matter. So therefore, you cannot make the claim that: because Buneary has a crush on Pikachu, it must be a male.
And by the way, I don't watch the Japanese version of Pokemon (I only watch the dub). But from what I've heard about Buneary, it acts very feminine or something....
Actually, now that I think about it, because there's no proof for Buneary either, there's no reason why it couldn't be a male. It could be, afterall, no one knows the genders of Pokemon in the anime. Of course, I'm not saying that I think Buneary is a male (I have no opinion on that Pokemon yet, because I haven't seen those episodes), I'm just saying that people should be
more open to other possibilities when it comes to the genders of Pokemon.
And by the way, I hate the fact that whenever a gender topic comes up about any Pokemon, more often than not the majority of people will lean towards one gender, then completely forgot about the other gender. For example, if more people believe in the male side, then everyone else follows and agrees with it. Or alternatively, if more people go for the female side, everyone agrees with that side. Honestly, these gender topics just aren't fair because: 1. The few people who go with "the other side" usually go unnoticed in the discussion 2. The "majority" people think they're right most of the time, and some people believe this so strongly that they think there IS evidence for the Pokemon's gender when the fact is, there is no evidence in the anime whatsoever.
No, the way you addressed that statement is false.
Yes, there were two episodes where Pikachu was shown wearing *male* dominant clothing, and they were "March of the Exeggutor Squad" and "Go West Young Meowth". But in the first season, there was also an episode where Misty imagined Pikachu wearing a female's clothing, and that was in "Pokemon Fashion Flash".
And this all goes back to what I said earlier, the writers made a lot of mistakes in the first season. I think one of the biggest mistakes made by the writers (back then) was how they confused the viewers many times by contradicting themselves about Pikachu's gender. Even though I personally view Pikachu as a female, it was clear to me that the writers showed evidence both for Pikachu being a male and for it also being a female. Now obviously, Pikachu cannot be both genders. It has to be either one. So therefore, like I said, the writers contradicted themselves back in the first season.
This is one of the many reasons why I dislike the first season. It just had too many mistakes in it.
Actually, I can't think of
any episode where Ash ever referred to Pikachu as being a male. However, feel free to post any lines, if you have concrete evidence of this.
Anyway, in the dub, Ash and his friends have either called Pikachu by its name - Pikachu or simply by using the pronoun "it" (which could be used for either gender, you know). ^^
I know for a fact I've never heard Ash refer to Pikachu by the masculine pronouns "he" or "him". It's always either Pikachu, or it. The writers of the dub (and probaby the Japanese version too) have always kept Pikachu's gender a mystery to us, and therefore, they continue to refer to Pikachu as an "it".
Of course, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I mean, I for one, actually think this way would better, than the writers confirming either gender. Because when you think about it, it's more fun for the viewers and the fans if they get to decide Pikachu's gender in their own minds (and have their own unique opinions on the matter). At least that's what I think, anyway.