Pikachu ex – Genetic Apex
Date Reviewed: January 20, 2025
Ratings Summary:
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is horrible. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
Otaku
The second best Pokémon of Genetic Apex is Pikachu ex (Genetic Apex 096/226, 259/226, 281/226, 285/226)! It’s a Basic Pokémon ex with (L) Typing, 120 HP, (F) Weakness, (C) Retreat Cost, no Ability, and the attack “Circle Circuit”. This attack does damage based on the number of (L) Pokémon occupying your Bench; 30 per. Pikachu ex is available in the ♦♦♦♦, ★★, ★★★, and 🜲 rarities. Yes, the four highest rarities in the Pokémon TCG Pocket.
Pikachu ex is worth two points and can be OHKO’d by Tauros (Mythical Island 060/068) due to its anti-ex attack effect. Pikachu ex is not considered to be the same as card’s named “Pikachu”. You cannot evolve Pikachu ex into Raichu (Genetic Apex 095/226) or Raichu (Mythical Island 026/068). If we ever get a card named “Raichu ex”, it will be interesting to see whether it evolves from Pikachu, Pikachu ex, or both. Barring a mistake on my part, Pikachu ex is the only Pokémon ex (so far) based on an evolving Pokémon.
Pikachu ex is a (L) Type; no surprises there. There are no general (L) support cards in the game, unless we count Pikachu ex itself and one other Pokémon that does damage based on how many (L) Pokémon are on your Bench. There is a Supporter based on the Gen 1 Electric (Lightning) Type leader, Lt. Surge… but its Energy-moving effect is restricted to cards named “Electabuzz”, “Electrode”, and “Pikachu”. Again, as far as the TCG is concerned, “Pikachu ex” is completely different than “Pikachu”. You cannot use Lt. Surge to move Energy to your Active Pikachu ex.
This is not to say the (L) Type is lacking. They have sort-of support in the form of some great attackers, and yes, that includes Pikachu ex. Especially as it seems more difficult to run multi-Type decks with the Energy Zone mechanic (versus the full TCG). Then there’s exploiting Weakness. 96% of (W) Pokémon, 36.1% of (C) Pokémon, 0.32% of 25 (L) Pokémon, 0.07 (R) Pokémon, and 0.28% of (F) Pokémon are (L) Weak.
There’s only one or two metagame-relevant Pokémon getting OHKO’d due to Weakness is Greninja (Genetic Apex 089/226; Promo Series A 019/P-A), and that also requires a Giovanni… but Circle Circuits base damage varies, creating more instances of relevancy. Weakness also helps with some 2HKO or more complicated combos. Not, amazing, but it’s still good overall.
Pikachu ex’s own HP is 120, which is the smallest found on a Basic Pokémon. Still, it is enough that it takes something in the heavy range of attacks to OHKO Pikachu ex… but from the lower end of the range. Which many main attackers can hit, either naturally or with a Giovanni or similar combo. Don’t forget Weakness, either. (F) Weakness isn’t good, but not a lot of (F) Types swing for 90, 100, or 110 damage (90 also requiring a Giovanni).
Narrowing it down to what I’ve seen in at least a semi-competitive deck list, we’ve got:
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Marshadow (Mythical Island 047/068, 074/068)
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Primeape (Genetic Apex 142/226)
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Stonjourner (Mythical Island 048/068)
Marshadow and Primeape only hit 100 damage when their attack’s effect is triggered. Stonjourner needs a Giovanni. As for Pikachu ex’s Retreat Cost, (C) is good. Even one X Speed allows Pikachu to retreat for free, but if you do have to pay, a single Energy isn’t too bad.
Circle Circuit is a good attack… mostly. (L)(L) is affordable, and the effect of Circle Circuit needs your Bench to be full of (L) Pokémon, so you’re running mono-Lightning for Energy, anyway. With three (L) Pokémon on your Bench, you’re scoring 90 for two! No coin flips or Energy discarding required… but yeah, filling your Bench can sometimes be tricky. A lean build will struggle to reliably do it, but running extra Pokémon for a more reliable setup? Not only may you be forced to Bench something that isn’t the best for the current situation, but Pidgeot ex (059/068, 079/068) will hit harder because of it.
If you have no Bench, Circle Circuit does nothing. I mean, you can still use it, but you’ll do zero damage. A single Benched (L) means it does 30, two mean Circle Circuit does 60, and a Bench full of (L) Pokémon are required to do 90. It isn’t really worth it unless you’re doing the 60 or 90. Fortunately, a good deck is likely to hit 90, and that lets Pikachu ex 2HKO almost everything in the game. If this doesn’t sound like enough to make for a good deck, let’s start talking about the Pokémon typically used alongside Pikachu ex.
Pikachu (Mythical Island 025/068) is not a Pokémon ex, but it is still a (L) Type Basic Pokémon with (F) Weakness, and (C) Retreat Cost. Its HP is 60, and it’s attack is “Circle Circuit” for (L). This version of Circle Circuit does 10 damage for each of your Benched (L) Pokémon. The single point counterpart to today’s Pikachu ex. It lets us know becoming a Pokémon ex earned it +60 HP and an extra 20 damage per Benched (L) Pokémon. It’s also shows up in multiple Pikachu ex decks.
Pikachu ex is a high top tier, according to Pokémon Zone. Yeah, this changed while I was writing this article! They also list four variants. Some partner Pikachu ex with some (L) Pokémon that can hit the Bench. Zapdos ex (Genetic Apex 104/226, 260/226, 276/226) is slightly bigger than Pikachu ex, provides an attacker that is not (F) Weak for your deck, can attack for one Energy, and potentially hit hard for there (coin flip based attack). Raichu (Genetic Apex 095/226) provides a heavy hitter that does not use coin flips.
Rating: 4.25/5
Pikachu ex is a great card, providing letting you score a quick 90 damage in (L) decks that include it. It either needs to focus on the speed, or include some backup that can hit a little harder, a little more strategically, or both. Its main drawback is the HP, but it only slowed Pikachu ex’s ascent.
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