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Red's canon starter is Bulbasaur

PineapplePizza

Well-Known Member
I know most fans seem to associate Red with Charmander because of the origins miniseries and Charizard being on the Pokemon Red Box Art and Charizard being the most popular of the Kanto starters but I think if you really think about it it is obvious his starter is actually suppose to be Bulbasaur.

First, let's get into the really obvious; why it's not Pikachu or Squirtle

It's not Pikachu because Pikachu isn't an actual starter. Some fans I think point to Pikachu being his lead Pokemon in Gold/Silver and remakes as evidence that it might be Pikachu but I think its obvious Game Freak made Pikachu his lead Pokemon as an acknowledgement of Pikachu being the face of the franchise and a nod to Red's anime counterpart having Pikachu as a starter. That doesn't mean Pikachu is who he received as Professor Oak's lab. Just that he caught one (probably in the Viridian Forest) and ended up favoring it.

And Squirtle... has anyone ever argued that Squirtle is his canonical starter? I can't think of one variation that gave him Squirtle.

Now let's get into why it's not Charmander despite what appears to be popular opinion ever since Pokemon Origins existed...

*Charizard is on the cover of Pokemon RED- By that logic that makes the rival's canon starter Bulbasaur since Venusaur is on the cover of Pokemon GREEN and the rivals identified as Green Oak. But we all know the rival chooses the Pokemon that a type advantage over the Player Character. But there's a certain poetic irony to the Red character choosing the Green Pokemon and the Green Character choosing the Red Pokemon.

*Charmander was his starter in Pokemon Origins!- Origins is just one telling of the games much like the anime series (which gave Red's starter as Pikachu to avoid giving him one of the 3 choices at first I guess) Charmander was obviously chosen by that series writers because A. Charizard was the Break Out Mon by that point and this was suppose to hit in the nostalgia B. The mini series was really just a cross promotion for Pokemon XY and they obviously wanted to show off Charizard X's sleek design.

Now here's why I think it's obviously Bulbasaur that Red picked as his starter in the games canon
1. Like I said before there's an interesting irony for the Red character to pick the Green Pokemon and the Green characer picked the Red Pokemon. Instead of Red choosing the Red Pokemon and Green chose...the Blue Pokemon

2. Bulbasaur's index number is #1 I know that sound dumb but come on.

3. Pokemon Adventures which is closer to the games and doesn't have the hang ups that origins had gave him Bulbasaur as his Kanto starter. So did Pokemon Generations (which is also showed the idea of Pikachu becoming his lead after capturing it)

4. In the anime Ash, who is adapted from the player character in the games, goes gaga over Bulbasaur in a way he does not with Charmander or Squirtle (he's excited to get those two but compare his fan boy reaction to seeing a wild Bulbasaur over his comparatively subdued reaction to the other two) I think this could be viewed as a nod to Bulbasaur being his game counterpart's starter. (I also think that Ash was only suppose to get Bulbasaur and the anime had plans to give Charmander to Brock and Squirtle to Misty but that's a theory for another day)


5. This official artwork:
images



But I'm curious to see what everyone else thinks
 
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Aduro

Mt.BtlMaster
Smart choice, i always go with Bulbasaur. There are so many great fire and water types to choose, with very few really good grass types. Plus Charmander seems like the rival's natural choice given his attitude.
Still, given that the pokemon you choose is pretty much the only choice you get in games that railroad you as much as pokemon, I think the real canonical starter for the games is whichever one the player chooses.
 

LusoTrainer

Retro Trainer
There's no "canon" single starter. Only that his starter is one of the three Kanto starters. That's why he has all three in his "canon" team.

Red's team in the sequels is meant to represent every player's journey through Kanto. Hence the three Kanto starters, Pikachu (not just a Pokémon found in all versions, but a nod to those that played Yellow) and the event/gift Pokémon from his adventure that every player finds and gets (Snorlax, and Eevee/Lapras).

You could argue that Yellow was an anime tie-in, which is true. But it was also an adaptation of Red/Green/Blue and follows the same basic adventure.
 
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shoz999

Back when Tigers used to smoke.
You forgot the most important reason why Red's canon starter is often considered to be Bulbasaur. That's the theme.

Some fans already know that early Japaense marketing showed Red with Bulbasaur and Green with Charmander but why? Why was it green and red and not red and blue, Charizard and Blastoise, like the west? The thing is red and blue together symbolize conflict, opposing sides of the coin in Japan which is why Japan never went with red and blue for the remakes. The other reason is what green and red symbolizes in Japan. The color green symbolizes serenity and kindness (that's literally Red) and the color red symbolizes power and passion (that's literally Green). GameFreak explained why they chose the colors of Red and Green, can't remember where though, and it's because of these reasons which reflects not only onto Bulbasaur and Charmander but also the characters Red and Green.
 
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Prof. SALTY

The Scruffy Professor
Literally all pieces of art showing OG Red with any of the starters or with Blue confirm that Red's starter is Bulbasaur.

Here are some examples:
Charizard_red_stuff.jpg

Red_Green_and_Blue_Guide.jpg
Rival_artwork.png
Japanese_Pokemon_Battle_Artwork.png
 
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