Blastoise Is Finally Winning A Popularity Contest Over Charizard, And It Rules

Being a Pokémon fan can sometimes feel like watching a neverending popularity contest. Pikachu is the mascot, so he gets all the attention and merch, but it’s Charizard—the original Fire-type starter from Pokémon Red and Blue on the Game Boy—who always seems to drive the most feverish fandom. And this means poor Blastoise and Venusaur are too often left in its shadow. But not today!

The not-dragon Charizard has been featured heavily throughout the franchise’s lifetime, getting new forms, a starring role in the anime, and his card is still one of the most sought-after in all the Trading Card Game. And while the water and grass starters Blastoise and Venusaur have gotten a fair amount of love, it’s nothing that matches Charizard. Well, after years of playing second fiddle to Charizard, Blastoise is coming out on top in one way: a rap song about him is going viral.

Genwunner, a rapper who makes songs about different Pokémon, has a song called “Blastoise!” The song, released back in May of 2024, has a sick beat, is catchy as fuck, and is mostly using the cannon-sporting turtle’s built-in weaponry as a euphemism for what you’re probably thinking. Here’s an animated music video featuring the track on Genwunner’s YouTube page:

Why is it popping off all of a sudden? Because TikTok has just found the song and started using it to pay tribute to the big blue guy in videos like Pokken Tournament edits, or original animations of him in all his “Big Man” glory. Some of the most popular videos using the song have amassed millions of views and likes. Many fans are using it as a trend to recreate his Rain Dance animation from Pokken, which is a bit of a meme in its own right, and fits surprisingly well with the song. Blastoise has swagger and we don’t talk about it enough.

Genwunner has a similar song about Charizard and Venusaur, yet the turtle’s new anthem is running circles around the other two. Right now, “Blastoise!” has over a million streams on Spotify alone, while the other two have only a fraction of that number. The Charizard and Venusaur squads need to mobilize and rep their boys, but in the meantime, Genwunner seems to be enjoying Blastoise’s success.

It’s February, so that means we’re just a few short weeks away from Pokémon Day on the 27th, commemorating the release date of the original Pokémon Red and Green in 1996. The Pokémon Company hasn’t made an official announcement yet, but the day is usually accompanied by a Pokémon Direct stream showcasing upcoming projects: hopefully this year we’ll get a proper look at the upcoming Pokémon Legends: Z-A.