Sometimes I find myself wondering why grass-type Pokemon get such a bad rap. Then I immediately remember that Parasect and Chesnaught actually exist.

But one Pokemon that I seem to take seriously (to everyone else’s dismay, apparently) is Bulbasaur. It always seemed like a solid starter in my eyes, especially with its decent Special Attack and Defense stats, combined with its immunity to Poison and no 4x weakness to any type whatsoever. It is by no means my favorite starter, but that does not mean my liking it should be a crime. So I took it upon myself to take a rough analysis (and by that I mean an aggressive read on Bulbapedia) and see just how viable this hybrid Pokemon can be.

Keep in mind that my experience in later Pokemon games plays a larger part in this assertion than most hardcore fans would like. Regardless, this will include Bulbasaur’s viability as a “starter” in Gen I (Red, Blue and Green), Gen III (FireRed and LeafGreen) and Gen VI (X and Y).

Unfortunately, many of the stereotypes around Bulbasaur are more believable when you take a look at Gen I. Despite the fact that it uniquely started off with a second type of Poison, it proved somewhat less useful than anticipated. Bulbasaur only had the two moves, Poison Powder and Toxic, to work with, and Poison types could actually be poisoned in Gen I, believe it or not. Good luck trying to fight Koga with that Gen I Venusaur.

Gen III is where things get a little more interesting. I find Bulbasaur to be much more useful in this generation of Pokemon games. The Pokemon and its evolutionary line maintain their possession of the previous two poison moves, but they also gain Sludge Bomb, a very effective move that compliments Venusaur’s Special Attack very nicely. Not only can Venusaur fight poison with poison this time around, but it can also learn Earthquake, putting other poisonous Pokemon in their place. A nice added bonus to this generation is that Venusaur is completely immune from being poisoned.

Let us also consider the longevity that Bulbasaur potentially has as a starter for games like Red, Blue and their remakes. Being a grass type, Bulbasaur has an inherent advantage over the first two gyms in Kanto in addition to a resistance to the type used by the third. Celadon Gym is a minor inconvenience at best, considering Erika also uses grass types, although her Pokemon also tend to have poison as a second type, making her more complicated in practice. By the time you’re strong enough to challenge Koga, your Venusaur will be immune to his signature move, Toxic, and odds are you’ll have a healthy roster of diverse and powerful Pokemon to back your starter up.

In Gen VI, Bulbasaur is not technically your starter. But it's much more versatile, especially when taking a look at its move pool. Once fully evolved, it can learn Venoshock, a ranged attack that doubles in power if the target is poisoned. And with the introduction of fairy types, that Poison power just found itself a new advantage. In my Y version, I personally chose Bulbasaur specifically for its new-found advantage, and my hard work paid off when my trusty Mega Venusaur completely swept the Laverre City Fairy Gym.

To sum up, Bulbasaur is not a universally terrible choice, and it has a number of advantages as well as a few tricks up its sleeve. But like with all Pokemon, it comes down to how well you raise it and how much time and effort you are willing to contribute in order to bring out its potential. And a beneficial nature wouldn’t hurt either.