In the Pokémon anime, a Pokémon’s evolution is always an exciting moment. It not only offers them a new form, but new powers and abilities as well, marking a major power-up for the creature in question. Evolution in the anime often happens at exceptionally dramatic points in a battle, something that would be impossible in the games, but which makes for a far more interesting show to watch.

Pokémon can evolve for a number of reasons; sometimes their trainer is in danger, and they need to help, while other times it may be that an opponent has so infuriated them that they’ve found a new source of untapped power within. Evolution can also come about through friendship, special evolution stones, and a variety of other ways, although these are more rarely depicted in the anime. The most exciting evolutions tend to be those which happen in battle, but there are some exceptions to that rule. Without further ado, here are 10 of the coolest evolution scenes in the original Pokémon anime.

10

Lycanroc Evolved With the Help of a Legend

Episode: Pokémon Sun & Moon, “Rising from the Ruins!”

A restless Rockruff takes off at night and stumbles across the Legendary Pokémon Tapu Lele, deciding that it’d like to fight it. Rockruff is simply no match for Tapu Lele, however, and after several attacks, the Legendary Pokémon leaves, with Rockruff in bad shape. Ash discovers it, but it runs away again. Rockruff is found by Olivia and Gladion’s Lycanrocs, who attempt to protect it from further damage. Ash and co. finally find Rockruff, and are able to convince Tapu Lele to help heal it by donating energy, which Ash and the Lycanroc do.

Looking out over the horizon after being healed, Rockruff spots a strange green glimmer near the sun, and as Tapu Lele leaves, it evolves into the mysterious Dusk form of Lycanroc. The Pokédex has no data on this form of Lycanroc, and Ash is ecstatic about his newly evolved friend. They leave the island to return home, promising to return again some day.

9

Kingler Evolved at the Pokémon League Tournament

Episode: Pokémon The Original Series, “Round One – Begin!”

Ash’s Krabby rarely saw battle, but he decided to pull out all the stops and use his deeper catalog of Pokémon when he arrived at the Indigo Conference. Krabby’s first battle ends up being against an Exeggutor, putting Krabby at a major disadvantage. Ash attempts to recall Krabby, but it’s too late, as Krabby has already been caught in a whirlpool which Exeggutor created with its psychic powers. Krabby manages to escape the whirlpool on its own, however, and latches on to Exeggutor. Krabby hangs on and is able to debilitate it with Leer before taking out the Grass-type Pokémon with a Stomp attack.

Despite this being Krabby’s first battle, the experience of defeating Exeggutor was enough to cause it to evolve then and there, turning into Kingler. Ash proceeds to wipe the floor with his opponent’s next Pokémon, a Seadra, and then defeats a Golbat with an epic Hyper Beam, giving Ash a perfect victory in the first round, not losing a single Pokémon.

8

Infernape Conquered Its Berserk Power

Episode: Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, “Fighting Ire with Fire!”

One common opponent to draw out the true strength of Ash’s Pokémon is Team Rocket. In the episode, Team Rocket construct a mecha designed to steal Pikachu and various other Pokémon, which initially succeeds at trapping Pikachu, Dawn’s Piplup, and Barry’s Empoleon. Monferno became so agitated that it activated its Blaze ability, which began to cause it to lose control of its power. Ash ran up and hugged Monferno, trying to remind it of who it was. Monferno managed to regain control and charged forward with a Flame Wheel, saving a falling cage containing the trapped Pokémon, and suddenly evolving into Infernape.

Ash’s new Infernape destroys the cage, freeing the Pokémon. The mecha, already crumbling, falls apart entirely and Team Rocket is defeated. What makes this evolution so great is that his rival Paul, Infernape’s former owner, was there to see it, giving Ash the opportunity to prove what kind of trainer he really is to Paul.

7

Sirfetch’d Bested a Rival With Clever Strategy

Episode: Pokémon Journeys, “Beyond Chivalry… Aiming to be a Leek Master!”

Ash’s Galarian Farfetch’d got put through some intense training with the Kalos Elite Four’s Wikstrom, which turned out to be crucial preparation for its moment of evolution. In a battle against Rinto, another competitor in the World Coronation Series, Farfetch’d was up against a Gallade, which fought like a master swordsman. It even slashed Farfetch’d’s leak in two, stunning the Pokémon and almost causing it to give up. However, Ash’s clever thinking led him to order Farfetch’d to use the broken head of the leek as a shield, mimicking Wikstrom’s strategy with Aegislash.

Now better able to defend, Farfetch’d began to make a comeback, scoring critical hits on Gallade. Farfetch’d begins to glow as Gallade comes in for the counterattack and evolves into Sirfetch’d, with the leek stabilizing into a true offensive and defensive pair. Sirfetch’d was able to turn the tables on Gallade further, overpowering it with a Night Slash that ultimately knocked out the Pokémon and secured Ash’s victory.

6

Lucario Helped Prevent A Terrible Catastrophe

Episode: Pokémon Journeys, “Sword and Shield… The Legends Awaken!”

During the Darkest Day incident, Ash was left to battle Chairman Rose by himself, and used Riolu and Pikachu against the Chairman’s Copperajah and Ferrothorn. It was an uphill battle against the two Steel-types, and Ash found himself on the defensive very quickly. While Riolu and Pikachu initially manage to trick them into attacking each other, Pikachu was forced to retreat, while Riolu attempted to block an attack from hitting Pikachu and Ash. Trapped under the weight of the two enemy Pokémon, Riolu looks back at Ash with determination, and then begins to evolve.

Communicating with Ash using its Aura abilities, the new Lucario gets Ash to call out an Aura Sphere attack, which defeats both Pokémon, freeing Ash up to go help Leon against Eternatus. Lucario then goes on to help in the battle against Eternatus, even though it was hopelessly outmatched, and actually plays a role in saving the day.

5

Talonflame Faced Down a Legendary Bird

Episode: Pokémon XY, “A Legendary Photo Op!”

Ash and co. wind up at a place called Mt. Molteau, where the Legendary Bird Pokémon Moltres is said to live. They meet up with Trevor, who’s hoping to photograph Moltres, and decide to help him out. However, Team Rocket decide to steal Moltres and attack it unsuccessfully, angering the Legendary Pokémon and sending them blasting off. Left to deal with the angry Moltres, Ash and friends are forced to battle it. Ash sends out Fletchinder, saving Pikachu, but that draws attention to Ash’s group. Moltres attempts to attack Ash, sending fire his way. Fletchinder dramatically steps into block the attack, and evolves into Talonflame.

Talonflame uses its new attack Brave Bird on Moltres, dealing a fair amount of damage to it, but Talonflame is hit, and begins plummeting towards the magma. Ash leaps in to save it, and is himself saved by Frogadier’s frubbles. Moltres, watching the scene, realizes they mean it no harm, and it takes off, disappearing into the skies. Ash celebrates Talonflame’s evolution, although his friends chastise him for his dangerous stunt.

4

Incineroar Was Pushed to the Limit by Kukui

Episode: Pokémon Sun & Moon, “Fiery Surprises!”

During Ash’s post-championship exhibition match with Kukui, it eventually came down to Kukui’s Incineroar versus Ash’s Torracat. Torracat and Incineroar have a ferocious battle which culminates in Ash and Kukui each executing their own Fire-type Z-moves against one another, which clash in a fiery explosion. Torracat is barely standing, but Incineroar collapses first. Torracat lets out a roar, and then begins to glow and evolve, turning into an Incineroar of its own. However, as it stands there, it becomes apparent that the evolution used up the last of its energy, and Incineroar faints.

Evolving in the aftermath of two clashing Z-moves is certainly a flashy and exciting way to do it, and the fact that this came on the heels of Ash’s first tournament victory really made it the cherry on top. Its late evolution is a bit unfortunate, in that fans never really got much chance to see what Incineroar could do, but the circumstances made it epic all on its own.

3

Noivern Proved Its Power to Zapdos

Episode: Pokémon XY, “An Electrifying Rage!”

Ash’s Noibat hatched from an egg, and was incredibly loyal to him. In the episode, Ash and friends are exploring a cave when Team Rocket accidentally trigger a cave-in, with Hawlucha barely saving Noibat from being crushed by falling rocks. Ash used Noibat’s Supersonic to find a way out of the caves, and encountered a terrified Team Rocket, who were hiding from a Zapdos they tried to catch. Ash stepped outside, hoping to calm Zapdos down, but wound up having to battle it. Talonflame performed admirably, but was eventually knocked out. Hawlucha then steps up, and lands a good hit, but is struck by Zapdos and begins falling.

That’s when Noibat leaps into action, dramatically evolving into Noivern in order to more easily catch and save Hawlucha. Noivern then takes on Zapdos directly, using its Supersonic to navigate through difficult terrain which Zapdos can’t manage easily. Team Rocket then try again to catch Zapdos, but Noivern frees it from their mecha. Zapdos, grateful for the assist, ceases its attack, and Ash celebrates his newly evolved Pokémon.

2

Greninja Evolved to Save Pikachu

Episode: Pokémon XY, “A Festival of Decisions!”

In the second half of a two-part story, the Ninja Village which Ash has been visiting comes under attack, kidnapping the village Chief. Ash found himself battling a top member of the enemy ninjas, but Pikachu wasn’t faring well, as it and Frogadier (as well as Ash’s friend Sanpei’s Greninja) were all pushed back by a Snarl attack from Bisharp. Bisharp moved in for the finishing blow against Pikachu, but Frogadier leapt in the way, blocking the hit and forcing Bisharp back. At that moment, Frogadier evolved into Greninja, ready to use its newfound power to defend Ash and Pikachu.

The moment didn’t stop there, however. Ash ordered Greninja to use its new move, Water Shuriken, which prompted its transformation into the powerful Ash-Greninja mode for the first time. While Ash was stunned, Greninja finished off the enemy and reverted to its former appearance. This left a big mystery for the series, and was insanely exciting to fans upon its premiere.

1

Charizard Faced Down A Prehistoric Rival

Episode: Pokémon The Original Series, “Attack of the Prehistoric Pokémon”

Ash’s Charizard is one of his most iconic Pokémon, and it evolved under appropriately epic circumstances. When Ash and Team Rocket became stranded in an underground cave full of prehistoric Pokémon, he calls on Charmeleon to help defend them, but it’s taken out quickly by Aerodactyl. Aerodactyl then grabs Ash and flies away, with Pikachu and Charmeleon grabbing onto its tail as it escaped. Charmeleon fell off, but dared Aerodactyl to fight it, which it responded with an insult. This enraged Charmeleon so much that it evolved into Charizard, gaining the ability to fly and taking the fight to the sky.

Ash was initially overjoyed to see Charizard, but soon realized it still wasn’t obeying any better than Charmeleon. Still, Charizard had a midair battle with Aerodactyl, and when Jigglypuff began to sing, Charizard resisted the song’s effects enough to catch Ash and help him to land safely. It was a big hint that Charizard still cared for its trainer, setting up Charizard to one day begin listening to Ash again. When this evolution occurred, it was one of the most exciting moments in the series to date, and even as brief as it is, Charizard and Aerodactyl’s battle went down in Pokémon history as one of the coolest evolutions of all time.