>>53185105Because Marill is more of a Pika-homage than a Pikaclone. Gen II was made at a time when the line between generations was nebulous. The Gen 2 dex was effectively just "all Pokemon that existed" so making a Pikachu replaement wouldn't really make sense. This means that despite all the guff that Gen II gets for "not having an identity" and "leaning on Kanto" Gen II's "Pikaclone" ended up as the least derivative. In another twist of Irony, Despite Gen II Pokemon being looked down on as "Shitmons" due to unfortunatelybearing the brunt of powercreep, since Johto get net to no shilling from Game FReak or TPC, the Marill line is only gotten better over time and even in the most powercrept generation ever its still a solid pokemon.
