>>23398999I feel like a lot of people, both here in /vp/ and outside, forget that Charizard was never pushed or got special treatment from Game Freak until gen 6. It's on the cover of Red, but all three fully evolved Kanto starters were version mascots.
Sure there's the anime and other promotional stuff like toys and plushies, but those aren't controlled by Game Freak. There was literally nothing in the games that put Charizard aside from Blastoise and Venusaur until it received dual mega evolutions. Charizard is and has been loved by the fanbase since day 1, and stuff like dual mega evolutions, Origins and the Mega Evolution special is just a response to how popular Charizard is.
It's the inverse of Lucario, who has been pushed and promoted since its inception even though nobody asked for it, and even before D/P launched in games like PMD Rescue Team.
