009 - Mega Blastoise

Thick thighs save lives and also let you carry a Howitzer on your back.

009 - Blastoise

Look at that smug look on his face. He knows you're not getting through that shell. I kind of want to wipe it off with a blast of water from one of his cannons, honestly. He's still a prime starter choice for late game though thanks to Swim.

008 - Wartortle

Your guess is as good as mine as to what's going on with this evolution design. I already used up my puberty material with Charmeleon.

007 - Squirtle

I'll be the first to admit - I love this little guy. But it's a little bit hard to take him seriously as a threat (and not just because of his name). Thankfully, there's evolution to help him out.

006 - Mega Charizard-Y

And then there's this magnificent specimen. The head crest is supposed to be crown, because this mega-evolution makes this evolutionary line king of the Generation 1 starters.

006 Mega Charizard-X

Now we're talking even louder! Charizard finally gets his due with a dragon typing (in the video games, not in the D&D stats - that would just be silly). 

006 - Charizard

Now that's what I'm talking about! It's a pity Charizard never got the dragon-type recognition he deserved outside of a mega-evolution (but more on that tomorrow).