Now I’m sure most of us prefer the cute cats and dogs, but why not show some love for snake Pokémon? These are the creatures that manage to borrow the creepy-crawly elements of real-life snakes while being awesome enough to actually want in our house. Whether it’s their long bodies, scales, fangs, or just their slithery ways of attacking in battle, snake Pokémon are just plain awesome. The following are my top picks for snake Pokémon that have no hands or feet, but definitely deserve two thumbs up.
15. Ekans
Ekans is the original snake Pokémon and I certainly hope everyone can recognize this guy at first glance. Introduced right from the start in gen I games, Ekans is designed to represent a snake with its design elements. From the way it slithers through the grass to how it preys on Pidgey eggs, there is no denying that this is the Pokémon universe’s equivalent to a common snake in the grass. The name Ekans is even the word “snake” spelled backwards! Over 20 years since the original games came out and I just learned that fact last year. I can’t be the only one who never noticed!
14. Arbok
Ekans evolves into Arbok at level 22 and goes from a cute(kinda) tiny snake to the much more frightening and venomous cobra creature you see here. Much like how many real-life snakes have unique patterns on their scales, the pattern on Arbok’s hood has over 20 possible designs, all of which make them even more intimidating. Mimicking real snakes, Arbok uses its body to coil around opponents and squeeze them in order to immobilize them. And just like with the etymology of the name “Ekans”, you can see that Arbok’s name backwards gives you “Kobra”. Satoshi Tajiri had some crazy ideas for those older games… but then again it was the 90s.
13. Seviper
Like with Ekans and Arbok, there is no denying this Pokémon was designed to appear ferocious and terrifying to anyone with ophiophobia. Though Seviper are usually shown with their bodies scrunched up, I can just imagine their long slithering body sneaking around at full length. This snake Pokémon is also poisonous, like many real-life snakes, known for their signature move, Poison Tail. Also interesting is that Seviper came out in the same gen opposite another Pokémon Zangoose which is designed as a mongoose. Snakes love to eat mongooses(mongeese?) so it’s natural that these two have developed one heck of a rivalry.
12. Rayquaza
Rayquaza may be known as a dragon-type, but there’s no denying that this resembles that of a snake. Like a crazy ancient Mayan folklore snake. What ever happened to 2012 by the way? Anywho, long and curled, Rayquaza is serpent-like in its movements and is easily one of the most powerful of the snake-like Pokémon. I guess you could call this guy a dragon-snake if you want. Plus it’s green so it all checks out.
11. Onix
Another unique take on the typical snake design, Onix has a body made of rocks to make up that snake-like slithering appearance. I will say that if I was cleaning out weeds in my garden I’d much rather see a garter snake over a giant rock snake any day of the week. While Onix may not be able to quietly sneak through grass like most snakes, this massive creature can actually tunnel underground to move between locations. And it moves at speeds up to 50 miles per hour so this guy can come flying out of the ground at any minute. I think I’m gonna avoid dark cave for a while…
10. Steelix
Onix may be known as the rock-snake, but when evolved into Steelix this creature becomes a seemingly indestructible iron snake. It retains the long and snake-like body but develops spikes that come out from rock-like sections along its steely skin(or whatever it has). Like Onix, Steelix is often found underground in mountains or in caves. Though their teeth are less fang-like than most, they are still able to chew through almost anything including boulders. I can only picture Jasmine and her Steelix traveling around the Poké countryside, smashing through hiking trails and terrifying little children at ever corner.
9. Dratini
Snakes might be scary and most Pokémon in this list are quite horrifying. Yet Dratini is anything but. These are easily the cutest of the snake-like Pokémon and it’s hard to imagine being threatened by something with such big adorable eyes. Dratini are technically dragons and they have nothing close to reptiles in nature. But they do have scaly skin with a reptile appearance so I think they deserve to be listed here as honorary snake-like monsters. Dratini can often be found living underwater and they actually love to swim rather than slither.
8. Dragonair
Dragonair evolves from Dratini and retains its snake-like appearance. However they are ultimately a Dragon Pokémon and when this lengthy beanpole of a monster evolves into Dragonite, all snake-like features are replaced by the true size & scale of a massive dragon. Still, I have to love the Dragonair aesthetic. It’s just as cute as Dratini but all grown up.
7. Servine
What Servine has that most snake-like Pokémon lack is feet. Though some may think that feet are a deal-breaker on a list of snake monsters, these guys are still considered as grass snakes in the Pokémon world. Like the snakes we all know about, Servine stay in tall grass to hide from their prey until they choose to attack. They evolve from Snivy(grass starter for gen 5) who could also be considered almost snake-like. But Servine’s long body is what makes them a distinctive choice that gets them a spot on this list.
6. Serperior
Once Servine evolves into Serperior and loses those bipedal feet, well it adopts much more of a snake like appearance since it loses the ability to walk and is forced to slither around. I don’t know about you but when I see something slithering I’m pretty much calling it a snake and getting the heck outta dodge. When Serperior opens its mouth two large fangs rear themselves. These are used to help consume food and to fend off attackers in battle.
5. Milotic
If you take one gander at a Feebas you would never expect it to evolve into anything as beautiful as Milotic. Though much more tender and kinder than most of the slithering members of this list, Milotic’s long and scale-filled bodies are still reminiscent of a water snake. These are actually classified as a water-type Pokémon so you might call them great snakes of the sea. Although to be honest this is a pretty hard Pokémon to acquire so maybe keep reading and see if any of the other snake/water combos grab your attention.
4. Huntail
Huntail resides in the deepest parts of the ocean, slithering around the very bottom of the sea amongst the sand and clams. Which does make sense because Huntail evolves from Clamperl. I think if you’re going after this for your time you should definitely plan ahead. Figure out your best Clamperl and acquire a Deep Sea Tooth for this complex evolution process. To be fair though, getting a Huntail is not much tougher then getting a Steelix into your party. Just have to find a friend who’s willing to do tradsies back and forth.
3. Eeletrik
Though more eel-like than snake-like, Eeletrik’s body still reminds me of a slithering swimming snake that would make a welcoming addition to your party as a tough water & surf HM monster. This little dude first showed up in gen 5 and it’s one of the more powerful monsters in that generation of games. This is partially because it is an electric Pokémon so even though it looks like it’d belong in the water, this thing is actually more powerful against all water types. And just like Arbok the cobra Pokémon, Eeletrik coils around the body of its prey before feeding on it. A truly ruthless creature to face.
2. Dunsparce
Dunsparce may lack the long body of most of the others on this list, but their ability to move around on their bellies has given them the title of the “land snake Pokémon”. And while it almost feels like the Magikarp of dark caverns, I have to say Dunsparce are pretty cute. In the same way that dopey old Slowpoke is cute. Dunsparce are less powerful than most creatures on this list and they prefer to hide or run away from foes instead of attacking. But these guys are also incredibly rare to find so if you’re trying to complete your Pokédex then snatching up a Dunsparce may be one of the more challenging spots to fill.
1. Gyarados
Like Milotic, Gyarados evolves from a fish Pokémon to become more serpentine in shape. Covered in strong dragon scales, this Pokémon belongs in the water and it’s probably the strongest water type snake Pokémon. Gyarados fangs are the strongest features they have since their bite is ferocious. They’re able to crush almost anything while in the ocean. Though many snake Pokémon prefer to use their stealth to hide and surprise their prey, Gyarados is not a fan of a coy attacks. It also has a temperament so vicious that it can destroy entire towns without much thought. Also worth noting that Gyarados is the easiest shiny version of a snake Pokémon to catch. Not to mention a fully red Gyarados would look so boss taking on the E4.
