Pokémon Generation 9 Countdown: The Best of Generation 1

Every month leading up to the release of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet versions (which mark the start of Generation 9), I will take a look back at one of the previous generations of Pokémon. Naturally, we start at the beginning with Generation 1. Without a doubt the peak of the Pokémon franchise in terms of its mainstream popularity, but powerful enough that the series as a whole remains part of the public conversation to this day. This is largely due to many of the trends that began here.