>>35564749Of course it wasn't. Bulbasaur was the "easy mode" of gen I. Even Oak hints at it.
Bulbasaur: easy mode, because it is super effective against the first two gyms and resists the third one. It does OK in the other gyms and can always inflict status ailments.
Blastoise: normal mode. Super effective against the first gym, stalemates against the second, weak to the third, but super effective against the last ones.
Charmander: hard mode. Weak to the first two gyms and does regular in the other ones, except the grass one.