Is Piplup's mascot status going to prevent it from evolving?

[Cybersai]

As we've seen in D/P, Dawn's Piplup is more than just her starter Pokemon, it seems to be the secondary Pokemon star of D/P right after Pikachu. It appears in almost every episode where Dawn battles and is used a hell of a lot more than the rest of her team, and Piplup gets MUCH more screentime than the other two starters.

Do you think the writers may keep Dawn and Piplup as a team as they are throughout all of D/P rather than going the cliche route and evolving it? I'd usually be for Dawn getting a fully evolved starter, but Piplup is too cute and full of personality that I can see why the writers may choose not to evolve it, possibly a reason why Corphish never evolved either in AG.

What do you think the odds of Piplup staying the way it is as Dawn's version of Pikachu moreso than her getting a Prinplup or Empolean later on during D/P?

 

[Argy]

It would be weirder to NOT see it evolve, given how much experience it is getting. Unless, of course, it becomes apparent that it doesn't want to evolve, ala Bulbasaur.

I do think it will evolve, though.

 

[bell02+]

We'll see I guess, I don't think it'll evolve because of the mascot status. Buizel may evolve though. I also don't think buneary will evolve either.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Torchic was a mascot too, and it evolved.

 

[FullMasta]

Piplup's going to evolve someday. No question about that.

 

[Rocketshipper]

I certainly hope not. After the big improvement in AG of splitting the starters up and having them all evolve, it would suck to go back to the old style. I hope both Piplup and Turtwig evolve all the way.

 

[Chatsy]

It'd probably evolve either way, though I think it's first by far into the future.

It'd be most in-character for it to evolve too - or that's my impression of it. It's so arrogant that it's likely it'll be provoked to evolve one daydue to a hard battle because dammit, out bitch ain't goin' down like that!

 

[Satoshi Ketchum]

It doesn't need to evolve, we've seen it many times in the anime, first forms becoming as powerful as evolved form, there can be episodes focused on a pokemon without it evolving.
It may evolve in a future series, but i doubt it will evolve beyond Prinplup.

 

[Jukain]

I'm going to look at this from the context of how May's pokes were handled. Not many of them evoed. Her starter did evo. All the way, I might add. People didn't think she'd get Blaziken, but she did. The only other one of her pokes that we saw evo was Wurmple to Beautifly. That's two out of seven pokes she's owned. Dawn has been shown to be more battle oriented than May was, so it may be possible to see her pokemon progress more than May's did. If anyone does evo, watch out for Buizel. If anyone evos before him, I'm sure there will be trouble. And if he evos first, then there will be Char-esque things going on.

 

[Geodude]

I think it'll evolve. I can picture an eventual conversation between Dawn and Kengo, about to battle in a Contest, going something like this:

Kengo: "You got lucky before, don't assume you can do it again!"
Dawn: "Oh yeah? Well I've got news for you buddy! Prinplup, let's show 'em!" *calls it out*
Kengo: "Well, this IS a surprise. But I've got one for you too! Empoleon, let's go!"
Dawn: "Hey, no fair!"

 

[Habunake]

Didn't Dawn mention in the first Kengo episode she didn't want to evolve it? I swear someone mentioned that.

 

[XD375]

I thought the writers wanted her to have cute Pokémon. That's why they gave her Pachirisu even though it is of the Electric elemental type, something they normally wouldn't have done, but there was a lack of cute Pokémon.

Well, possibly not, but still...her team consists of "cute" Pokémon at the moment, so I doubt that'll change.

 

[Habunake]

No matter what anyone says, Buizel is a cute Pokemon...just with a badass nature, but the species seems like the cute type.

 

[Jukain]

You do realize this is what people said about May, and what happens? Boom, Combusken. Regardless, I don't know if Dawn has said anything. I wouldn't mind if she did, though. I guess we got used to pokemon evolving on the show. Can we really say what the writers are planning? History has shown we can't.

 

[anonymous920314]

I don't really see a way they can avoid it. I mean, yeah sure, they can pull a Fushigidane and have it not want to evolve . . but that excuse has already been used. I can't really think of any other ways for it to not evolve . . how do you think they'd avoid it?

EDIT:

No matter what anyone says, Buizel is a cute Pokemon...just with a badass nature, but the species seems like the cute type.

QFT.

 

[Habunake]

It could just *not* evolve like Cyndaquil and Totodile.

They easily could have evolved, but didn't...and I don't think they ever displayed any negativity towards evolving...

*coughGSremaketheywillevolvecough*

 

[Cybersai]

It seems to me that Buizel lusts for power a LOT more than Piplup does. Piplup is just proud and arrogant, yet Buizel seems to be the D/P version of Grovyle.

I really do think Buizel will be Dawn's first evolution at some point, and although a Floatzel may make it way stronger than Piplup, wouldn't a Prinplup and Floatzel pretty much make Buneary and Pachirisu look out of place?

IMO:

Piplup = Bulbasaur (Both arrogant, proud, and stubborn)

Buizel = Treecko/Grovyle (both strong Pokemon, lust for power, want to prove their strength)


Anyone else see them that way?

 

[FabuVinny]

I don't really see Buizel evolving if it stays with Dawn.

Piplup is harder to call. I don't know her exact lines in Kengo's episodes but Piplup definately gave Bulbasaur vibes in them. Kengo can showcase the other members of the line if Piplup doesn't evolve, since his signature Pokémon is Prinplup (while Paul's signature Pokémon is definately Chimchar and not Torterra.) But there is no guarantee either way...

 

[Geoffrey]

Personally, I don't think using May's Blaziken is proof that Dawn's Piplup wil evolve. I think the writers were planning for Ash and May to have a showdown at the end of AG, and she couldn't very well battle him with a Torchic, so they made it evolve. I really don't see Ash and Dawn having a showdown too though. It would seem really cliche if they did. I also don't think Dawn's other Pokemon should evolve either. I really don't see Dawn using a Lopunny or Floatzel. Ugh.

 

[UmbreonXD]

Agreed. Floatzel and Lopunny are for sure out of place in Dawn's team. I don't see her with them in my head, that's all I'm going to say. Piplup evolving is out of the question. It may, it may not. Plus, Pachirisu doesn't evolve, so it keeps it's "cute" state. So, perhaps none of Dawn's Pokemon could evolve, there is always a possibility, but if you ask me, I'm really not sure if any of her Pokemon will evolve.