Legendary Pokémon

Legendary Pokémon are, as the name suggest, Pokémon of legends. They can also be Pokémon illusions. They are very rare and powerful Pokémon, most being unique to only one region. Some are so rarely seen, like Jirachi or Mew, that people are unsure if they really exist, thus thrusting scientists to do research. Legendary Pokémon can also be seen as mythological, such as Arceus. The Pokémon of myths are the Sinnoh Pokémon, which were thought to have created the universe.

First Generation
There are five original Legendary Pokémon out of the first 151.

The Legendary Birds


The Legendary Birds consist of Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. All three reside in Shamouti Island in the anime, whereas they can be found in the Seafoam Islands, the Power Plant, and Victory Road/Mt. Ember/Mt. Silver, respectively. In Pokémon Platinum, all three birds can be found roaming Sinnoh.

In the anime, if the three birds are disturbed and quarrel with each other, only Lugia is able to stop them.

Anime Appearances
Besides the movies, the three birds have also appeared in the anime. Their respective episodes are as follows: Articuno appears in Freeze Frame, Numero Uno Articuno, and The Symbol of Life. Zapdos appears in As Clear As Crystal and Doc Brock!. Finally, Moltres appears in All Fired-Up and The Search for the Legend.

Mew and Mewtwo
Mew is considered the rarest of all Pokémon, whereas Mewtwo is a clone of Mew.

In the games, Mew is only ever mentioned in journals on Cinnabar Island, where it was stated that Mew had given birth to Mewtwo. Mew can only be caught in the games with a cheat, the use of a cheating/hacking device, or by a special event.

Mewtwo, as said earlier, was given birth to by Mew. However, Mewtwo was an angry Pokémon and it destroyed the Pokémon Mansion in which it resided. It then traveled to Cerulean Cave.

Anime Appearances
Mew and Mewtwo have both made appearances in the anime, although Mew's appearance was made in the form of a Boss fantasy dreamed about by Meowth in A Lean Mean Team Rocket Machine!.

Mewtwo made brief appearances in The Battle of the Badge, Showdown at the Poké-Corral and It's Mr. Mime Time.

Second Generation
In generation II, 6 new Legendary Pokémon appeared.

The Legendary Beasts


The Legendary Beasts consist of Raikou, Entei and Suicune. The trio originally died because lightning struck the Brass Tower they were stranded in and burned to the ground. However, all three were revived by Ho-Oh and now roam Johto.

In the games, the trio roam Johto after being discovered in the Brass Tower. In Pokémon Colosseum, they were captured by Cipher and turned into Shadow Pokémon. Finally, in FireRed and LeafGreen, one of the trio would roam Kanto depending on the starter chosen by the player.

Anime Appearances
The three Legendary Beasts have never appeared together and instead appeared individually by movies and specials. However, each beast did, in fact, make at least one appearance in the anime. Entei appeared in Entei at Your Own Risk. Raikou briefly appeared in Houndoom's Special Delivery. Suicune appeared the most out of all the beasts, being in three episodes: Don't Touch That 'Dile, For Ho-Oh the Bells Toll, and Drifloon on the Wind!.

Ho-Oh and Lugia
Ho-Oh and Lugia are two legendary bird-like Pokémon that were introduced in Johto.ho-oh is a fire type pokemon witch can inflict survier burns.

In the games, Lugia can be found after obtaining the Silver Wing roaming the Whirl Islands. It made an appearance on Navel Rock in Generation III games as an event Pokémon and also appeared in Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness as Shadow Lugia. This Lugia could be purified, contrary to what many people thought at first.

Ho-Oh plays a bigger role in the Generation II games and is referred to as the savior of the legendary beasts. After the player finds the Rainbow Wing, Ho-Oh can be obtained atop the Bell Tower. It, too, appeared on Navel Rock as an event Pokémon and as a reward for purifying all Shadow Pokémon in Pokémon Colosseum.

Anime Appearances
Lugia played a very important role in The Power of One, but also played a part in some anime episodes, such as The Mystery is History, A Parent Trapped and A Promise is a Promise, under the name of Silver as the baby of a parent Lugia. Ho-Oh was featured much less prominently, only briefly appearing when Ash starts one of his travels.

Celebi
Celebi was the final Legendary Pokémon of Generation II. It is known as the Guardian of the Forest and can time travel. In the games, Celebi is only obtainable by event involving the GS Ball for Pokémon Crystal. However, in Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, it appears but is completely unobtainable.

Anime Appearances
Celebi was featured in Celebi: Voice of the Forest as the main Pokémon and has made very few appearances in the anime, most prominently in the special series, namely Celebi and Joy. It appeared in Meowth's Boss fantasies in A Lean Mean Team Rocket Machine and An Egg Scramble!. It also appeared in The Green Guardian.

Third Generation


The third generation of Pokémon introduces 10 new Legendaries into the equation.

The Weather Trio
The Weather Trio, also called the Elemental Trio, consists of Kyogre, Groudon, and Rayquaza. Kyogre is said to have the power to bring forth the rain and therefore expand the sea, whereas Groudon is said to ward off rain and expand the land by evaporating the water with light and heat. Finally, Rayquaza is said to be the protector of the skies and is seen living in the atmosphere.

Rayquaza is obtainable at the Sky Pillar in the third generation games. Depending on which game was purchased, either Groudon or Kyogre can be caught. However, in Pokémon Emerald, Kyogre can be captured at the Marine Cave and Groudon at the Terra Cave.

Anime Appearances
Both Kyogre and Groudon appeared in Gaining Groudon and The Scuffle of Legends. Groudon also appeared in Malice in Wonderland! as an illusion brought upon by Mismagius. A fake groudon also made an apperance in Jirachi Wish Maker.

Rayquaza appeared in Malice in Wonderland as an illusion, but the real deal made an appearance in ''Where No Togepi Has Gone Before! ''.

The Three Golems
The Three Golems are Regirock, Regice, and Registeel. They were said to have been shaped by Regigigas and were made out of rocks, ice, and steel, respectively.

Regirock is located in the Desert Ruins in generation III, where as Regice and Registeel are located in the Island Cave and Ancient Tomb, respectively.

In Pokémon Platinum, though, this changed. Regirock was then located at the Rock Peak Ruins, which Regice at the Iceberg Ruins and Registeel at the Iron Ruins.

Anime Appearances
All three of the golems appear under the care of Pyramid King Brandon. These Regis appeared in the episodes A Pyramiding Rage!, Pace - The Final Frontier! and Pillars of Friendship together.

Regirock appeared by itself in Battling the Enemy Within!.

Eon Duo
The Eon Duo consist of the twins, Latios and Latias, one being male and the other being female, respectively. They guard the city of Alto Mare and have a strong connection to the Soul Dew. Both can be obtained in their respective games by using the Eon Ticket given out by Nintendo Power. In Emerald, one can be obtained after beating the Elite Four. Whichever one it is, he or she will be roaming Hoenn.

Anime Appearances
Both have always been seen together in the anime. They appeared only in Pokémon Heroes and Pikachu's Ocean Adventure.

Jirachi and Deoxys


Jirachi and Deoxys are the final Legendaries introduced in Generation III. Jirachi was obtainable in Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon Channel, and through a Nintendo event for Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum. Jirachi is said to be able to grant any wish. However, it only appears for a week every thousand years.

Deoxys was an exclusive event to Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Fire Red and Leaf Green. This pokemon has four seperate forms: Normal forme (middle left), Attack forme (far left), Defense forme (middle right), and Speed forme (far right). Attack forme, obviously, has the highest attack and special attack stats out of all pokemon (504 each with 31 IVS + the right nature and being EV trained). Speed forme also has the highest base speed, reaching a whopping 504 without the use of any items, abilities, or stat boosts (again, 31 IVS in Speed and being EV trained will reach this).

Anime Appearances
Jirachi's only real appearance was in Jirachi: Wish Maker, but it had a very brief cameo in The Rise of Darkrai. Deoxys was the star of Destiny Deoxys and also made an appearance in Pokémon Ranger - Deoxys Crisis!.

Fourth Generation



 * Uxie (Lake Trio)
 * Mesprit (Lake Trio)
 * Azelf (Lake Trio)
 * Dialga (Dragon Trio)
 * Palkia (Dragon Trio)
 * Heatran
 * Regigigas
 * Giratina (Dragon Trio)
 * Cresselia
 * Darkrai
 * Shaymin (Note: Shaymin is a breed, not a lone Pokemon)
 * Arceus (Alpha Pokemon)
 * Phione(hatched from Manaphy)
 * Manaphy



Fifth Generation

 * Zekrom
 * Reshiram