Pokemon's Black Tail Pikachu Mandela Effect Explained (2024)

Pokemon games have been around for 27 years now, with the first set of titles releasing as Pokemon Red and Green in 1996 in Japan, only to later launch worldwide in 1998 with Gen 1 games - Pokemon Red and Blue. Gen 1 had a whopping total of 151 critters in it, but Pikachu being the mascot of Pokemon was not immediate, and something both Pokemon Yellow and the Pokemon anime contributed to, with the cute critter eventually taking a lead role. Pikachu is one of the most renowned icons from any media across the world, with both original and knock-off merchandise of all kinds sporting its face or entire body - and yet, there is a "Mandela effect" where some fans remember it differently than it is today.

The Mandela effect phenomenon is a strange one, with it originating when multiple people had memories of Nelson Mandela dying in prison in the 1980s despite the fact that he lived long enough to serve 27 years in jail and then become president of South Africa in 1994, only to die much later, in 2013. The Mandela effect commonly refers to a group of people misremembering historical events and other types of information, possibly believing their recollection is accurate or that this phenomenon occurs because of parallel realities and universes. While it may seem strange, this can affect Pokemon as a series too.

Pokemon: Does Pikachu Have a Black Tip on The Tail?

Pokemon's Mandela Effects With Pikachu and Onix Explained

Mandela effects are known to occur in gaming too, among other media and fields, and the internet likely ended up playing a major role in these phenomena spreading easily and consistently. Still, there is another Mandela effect for Pokemon games, and it has to do with the critter Onix, which is wrongly believed by some to have been called Onyx only to see its name changed later on.

Similarly, the Pikachu Mandela effect has some fans remembering the famous mouse-like Pokemon has a black-tipped tail, when in reality it's yellow. There are various explanations as to why this could be the case, including the fact that the black tip might come from certain poses of Pikachu in the anime or on trading cards where its tail is closer to its black-tipped ears. This confusion might also come from the fact that Pikachu's ears have a black tip, leading fans to form false memories of the tail having that same black tip, which is not present in official items and games.

There is also a chance that the Mandela effect is generated by Pichu from Gen 2 games, as the critter has a black tail and black all around the ears, unlike Pikachu, but it still is part of its evolutionary line and shares many physical traits with it. Yet, early designs of Pikachu in Gen 1 games did have black on the bottom end of the tail, likely to create a shading effect - though this was not present in colored images of the Pokemon.

Another possible explanation is that Pikachu's design has changed quite a lot over the years, to the point that the original "chonky Pikachu" design was made slimmer for the anime, as it was easier to animate it with its current design. However, there is something worth noting from the games themselves, specifically Gen 6 remakes of Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Pokemon Scarlet & Pokemon Violet are the main entries in the series for Generation IX. They introduced over 100 new Pokemon and brought players to the Paldea region.

Franchise

Pokemon

Platform(s)

Switch

Released

November 18, 2022

Developer(s)

Game Freak

Publisher(s)

Nintendo , The Pokemon Company

Genre(s)

RPG

ESRB

E For Everyone Due To Mild Fantasy Violence

How Long To Beat

31½ Hours

Metascore

72

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