For all intents and purposes, Pikachu should be kind of petrifyingly weird. It’s an Electric Rodent, after all. But he’s always so damn cute, even so in this collection of ‘realistic’ Pokémon drawings by Juan Hugo Martinez – his fellow Pokémon don’t get off so easily however.
It’s not the first time an artist has done the ‘real Pokémon’ thing, but Martinez’s designs for Pikachu, Venasaur, Charizard and Blastoise actually sort of find a balance between hyperrealism and the more cartoonish aesthetic from the video games – it’s neither too far in one direction or the other, and creates a pretty interesting look:
Three honestly kind of petrifying redesigns, and then that adorable little bundle of fluff up top. How, Pikachu? How do you always get to look so cute, regardless of the artstyle?
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