It’s strange that Misty ever caught Psyduck, let alone made it her signature Pokémon. The anime had this happen by accident, but that doesn’t explain why it occurred in the first place. Misty’s primary Pokémon in the games has always been Starmie. She never had a Psyduck until after she caught one in the anime, which was likely meant as an homage. If the anime wanted to remain accurate to the games, The Tomboyish Mermaid would have kept Starmie as her main Pokémon and had her use it more often. She could have still caught Psyduck, but it could have just been one of many anime-exclusive Pokémon for her.
With all that said, there is one out-of-story reason for Misty to use Psyduck over Starmie– marketability. Pokémon, unlike most anime, isn’t about telling a faithful story as much as it’s about selling the merchandise that goes with it. In this sense, the Duck Pokémon had much greater potential to sell toys and other merchandise than the Mysterious Pokémon ever did. It was smaller, cuter, and more expressive than Starmie could ever be. It accomplished the same thing as Ash’s Pikachu and gave its Trainer’s team a recognizable face. Starmie may have been more useful in battles, but only Psyduck could have its loveable face plastered all over coffee mugs, T-shirts, lunchboxes, pencil cases, and the occasional beach towel.
What Makes Psyduck So Iconic?
In fairness, not many Water Pokémon from generation I would have worked as marketable faces for Misty’s team. Most of them had one reason or another to be excluded; fish Pokémon that couldn’t move on land, Pokémon with missing facial features that limited their expressivity (like, say, Starmie), Fossil Pokémon that should be extinct and/or hard to find, and evolved forms that wouldn’t make cute or life-size plushies. Limits like those narrowed the pool of available Pokémon down to Slowpoke, Seel, Psyduck, Poliwag, and maybe Vaporeon.
A similar phenomenon can be observed through Brock’s Vulpix. His Onix is kind of an awkward Pokémon to make into merchandise. On top of that, Generation I Rock Pokémon, in general, are difficult to categorize as “cute” per se. Vulpix, like Pikachu and Psyduck, works well as a pint-sized mascot, even if it’s technically off-brand for Brock.
Psyduck also provided the best possible comedic relief. As the Pokémon anime progressed, Misty used Misty increasingly more, but not on purpose. Usually, she would try to send out Starmie in battle, only for the Duck Pokémon to let itself out of its Pokéball first. From there, it would either be useless or use Psychic attacks to become the strongest Pokémon on the field. Either outcome would be pretty funny.
Sure enough, Psyduck became one of the Pokémon franchise’s most iconic. It’s a playable character in Mystery Dungeon (as is Vulpix), blocks the way to Celestic Town, and has special appearances in Detective Pikachu and the upcoming Pokémon Concierge. If it weren’t for Eevee, it was even going to become a starter in Pokémon: Let’s Go. And, of course, it’s one of the best Pokémon Misty ever caught.
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