In the Pokemon video games, Legen𒅌daries are almost always one-of-a-kind. The anime adaptation takes a few liberties with that formula, but the ones that aren't completely unique in the world remain incredibly rare.

With over 1,200 episodes and counting — to say nothing of the 23 feature films — the anime's writers have done a noble job maintaining that sense of rarity. While most Legendaries have appeared at one time or another, precious few have actually been caught. Let's mull over this highly exclusive list ♛of exceptions, shall we?

Updated on March 10, 2025 by Alexander J Pinera: Legendary Pokemon are often some of the most difficult creatures to capture in the world of Pokemon. Usually, this is because there is only one, and they hold a power vital towards keeping the universe in balance. With Pokemon Horizons, even more trainers who possess legendary Pokemon have been introduced. However, this capture is usually not quite what it seems, as the anime presents multiple ways for a trainer to end up with a legendary on their team. In some cases, that legendary can even be passed down through the ages for another trainer to take their shot at it. Meanwhile, there are other trainers of note who are not to be forgotten.

13 ꦐ Liko’s Terapagos

A Protagonist With A Legendary

Liko is the protagonist of Pokemon Horizons, who replaces Ash after his exit in Pokemon Journeys. With a Sprigatito by her side, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:she travels the Pokemon world and discovers secrets about herself and th🐭🔜e special pendant around her neck.

Liko is unique since she actually gets hold of a special Pokemon very early into the series in the form of Terapagos. This Terapagos has a long history as it was originally captured by Liko’s grandmother before being handed dow🗹n to her through the pendant.

12 Roy’s Runaway Shiﷺny Rayquaza

A Captured Legendary With A Long Past

When Roy finds a mysterious Poke Ball washed up on the shores of his home, little does he expect it to contain 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the elusive, shiny Rayquaza. This lege𝓡ndary Pokemon was captured by an ancient adventurer within a special Poke Ball, which remains in Roy’s possession for multiple episodes.

Of course, once Black Rayquaza is released, it escapes into the wild, prompting Roy to go on an adventure to recapture it. This means Roy m꧅ust train and become stronger if he wants to stand a chance against this legendary Pokemo🔯n.

11 ꦦLawrence Snags All Three Legendary Birds

Capturing In An Unconventional Way

Capturing legendaries with binding rings isn’t the most traditional way of catching Pokemon, but it checks out. Lawrence III is the villain of the Pokemon 2000 movie, and his🤪 goal is to capture the legendary💫 birds and bait out Lugia.

Of course, he doesn’t do it with Poke Balls. Instead, he flies around in a giant palace as he binds each of the birds using 🍌electric rings. The birds don’t stay in his possession for long once he is defeated, but for 🗹a time, he did manage to catch each one, despite failing to catch Lugia.

10 Mohn Adds Nihilego To The Family🦋

When The Ultra Beast Captures A Human

The search for 🍨Lillie's missing father comes to a strange end in 💫the Pokemon Journey’s anime. It turns out that Mohn has been living in a secluded cabin under the impression that a Nihilego is his daughter. This is because Nihilego has been using psychic powers to keep Mohn at the cabin.

Once Lillie, Lusamine, and Gladion arrive at the scene, the illusion falls apart, revealing Nihilego for what it really is. However, Mohn forgives the Ultra Beast for keeping him away from his family, as it becomes an honorary member 🗹of it. So, who really captured who in this scenario?

9 Ash's Melmetal

An Odd Addition To Ash's Alolan Team

In th😼e anime, Melmetal and its earlier evolution Meltan aren't seen as legendaries but instead simply as rare Pokemon that don't appear all too often. In the games, though, this Pokemon has historically remained banned from online play due to its elusiveness and power, making Ash essentially an owner of a semi-unintentional Legendary.

This is easily proved in battle, as Melmetal is a dominant Steel-type force against Ash's opponents in the Alola Championship. Ash usually befriends rather than outright catching legen🎶daries, making Melmetal one of two big deviations from the rule.

8 𝔍 Giovanni Trains Mewtwo

Giovanni's Ambition Fails Him

Some people might disagree with the defℱinition of Giovanni having "caught" Mewtwo, but it's arguable that Giovanni has even more ownership over Mewtwo as a breeder than a trainer. Mewtwo is madꦗe through experiments by Giovanni's scientists, making him artificially created in a functionally similar way as hatching an egg.

Even so, Giovanni is only able to use Mewtwo to do his bidding very briefly before the powerful cre💫ation e🍎scapes, taking its revenge upon those who wronged it... and plenty who didn't, too.

7 🧜 One R𒊎andom Sinnoh Trainer Shows Up With Heatran

Who Brought The Heatran To The Party?

Quite possibly 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the strangest legendary included in a trainer's arsenal is this unnamed trainer waiting in line to sign up for Sinnoh's Lily of the Valley Conf🦩erence. Heatran is mostly considered a rare Pokemon rat꧂her than a one-of-a-kind Legendary, but it still can't breed and only comes in a single encounter in most games, making its random ownership especially bizarre.

This is one of the strongest Pokemon a background character has owned, and the fact that they don't appear ever again makes one wonder if Heatran wasn't originally meant to be a Legendary in the Sinnoh games. Th🔜e fact that the anonymous catcher is eliminated at some point in the tournament w🍎ithout the show's viewers getting to see it happen is a bleak mark on a fairly excellent conclusion to Ash's journey through Sinnoh.

6 Gladion's Companion Silvally

A Stolen Pokemon

It's quite rare for trainers to catch legendaries in the wild, but not every legendary that's "be𒅌friended" by a human is necessarily a partner in the same way. This is why Gladion is especially worth noting, as he didn't exactly catch Silvally as much as he stole it to keep it safe.

That said, these two are clearly partners on a higher level than any other befriended Pokemon, making it valid to 💝say that Gladion has caught Silvally like any random Pokemon. This trainer is impossible to im🔯agine without it, and its unique nature means it'll likely never have a trainer use Silvally as well as Gladion absolutely can.

5 🍒 🔜 Tobias Demolishes Ash With Darkrai And Latios

An Unfair Advantage

Tobias is frankly infamous in the world of the Pokemon anime, having caught not one but two legendaries without any information as to how. Alongside a Darkrai that he wipes the Lily of the Valley Conference in Sinnoh with, he also has a Latios ready as a ✨back-up Legendary to quickly take down foes in a truly competitive style.

Tobias ends up beating Ash with these two Pokemon, and it's one of the few times that a trainer owning a legendaꦇry felt like an unfair advantage. The fact that Tobias leads Darkrai into a blisteringly rough loss for Ash, who had climbed the ranks of a tourn🎐ament higher than any prior region in Sinnoh's climax feels less like an earned win and almost akin to a sick prank by the writers.

4 Brandon൲ Wields Regirock, Regice, And Reꦬgisteel

Master Of The Regis

Brandon 's fascination wiꦍth history and archeology adds a fun layer to his persona in the Pokemon anime, and his position as a Frontier Brain primes him as a solid rival to Ash to face. It's only fitting that this combination comes with a full trio of Regis, ancient beings made of raw elements that give Ash a major run for his money in his Battle Frontier quest.

The one Regi he wasn't able to capture was Reg💧igigas, who he simply befriended while exploring the Sinnoh region beyond his first appearances in the Hoenn era.