For the past few days, Pokémon fans have been sharing photos of their torn Pikachu plush toys online. That is to say, I’ve been having a really good time lately indulging in an abundance of disfigured Pikachu.
It all started when the Twitter account Out of Context Pokemon shared a screenshot of a post it turned out to be a storefront made entirely of strange Pikachu toys. Polygon couldn’t find a source for the images, but regardless of whether or not this is a legitimate store, people in the answers hugged the hugs.
Any of these Pikachu would put Mimikyu to shame. Some, with their weird proportions, look like knock-offs. Others look like the result of some horrible lab accident, missing entire body parts. But many are just worn out and have spent their time as beloved stuffed animals! Regardless of everyone’s supposed “ flaws, ” they make me want to scoop and love them all.
While the post is great on its own, this is even better because in the replies people started flooding the original tweet with pictures of their own beautiful little babies. As it turns out, abnormal Pikachu is strangely common.
Perhaps the most horrifying one I found was this Pikachu, whose head is turned completely like an owl. It will haunt me in my dreams for years to come.
Some are just loved, as any Pikachu should be. I like this one because I swear it stares into infinity with its big black eyes.
This one might have been torn apart by a pet? I don’t know, but the current state is strangely recognizable.
This one looks like it will try to sell you illegal goods.
After poring over these works of art, I suddenly remembered my own childhood toys. So I asked my mom to send me pictures of my amazing little goblins. The large image in the main image of this article is a permanent part of our basement and hallway, greeting every person who comes to my family’s home.
I have another Pikachu that is orange that my mom ordered from any Amazon retailer. I’ve only had him for four years, and he’s already breaking a seam in his ass. Unfortunately, I had no choice but to lock it up in a storage space – all too often during video calls to story resources, they just wanted to talk about the giant Pikachu behind my head.
Aside from that, I appreciate my stuffed Pikachu and people’s responses online. Whichever way you cut it, Pikachu is the best-known mascot of one of the biggest media franchises since the turn of the millennium. We see Pikachu the way The Pokémon Company wants us to see it. These stuffed animals are great because I love seeing their beloved symbol all distorted and melted.
No matter what people say I will always love these damn little Pika babies.