Magikarp

Magikarp is a fishlike Pokémon with large, heavy reddish-orange scales. It has large, vacant eyes and pink lips. Its pectoral and tail fins are white. On its back is a stiff, three-peaked yellow fin, resembling a crown; there is an identical fin on its underside. It also has long barbels. The barbels are white on a female and pale-yellow on a male. A long-lived Magikarp is able to utilize its immense splashing power to leap high enough to scale mountains. It also has a strong enough immune system to survive in the most polluted of waters. However, it is usually overlooked by Trainers because of its perceived weakness: even in the heat of battle, it will do nothing but flop around. It is believed that the ancestors of Magikarp were actually much stronger than modern Magikarp, and this led scientists to research this species.

Magikarp is found in many bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, and ponds. However, due to its weak swimming ability, it usually lives downstream of the water's flow. It is normally seen using its former signature move, Splash, to leap out of the water, which makes it an easy target for predators such as Pidgeotto and Pidgeot.

In Hoppy Town, there are at least 31 unique pattern varieties of Magikarp, with their scales coming in colors such as gray, black, white, purple, pink, violet, apricot, and brown. These patterns can be classified by groups, depending on how the Magikarp looks while it is still small; a specific pattern arises when it becomes bigger. Which patterns can be caught depend on the type of Old Rod; the better the rod, the more groups of patterns can be fished. The people in Hoppy Town train their Magikarp to jump the highest in order to compete in a series of Leagues to win prizes.

In The Joy of Pokémon, a Nurse Joy from the Orange Islands was revealed to have befriended a giant Magikarp after it saved her as a child. It evolved into an equally large Gyarados but remained friendly.

In The Wacky Watcher!, multiple Magikarp were being observed by Quincy T. Quackenpoker, who was interested in learning their migration patterns and evolution process. Ash and his friends helped him with one of these excursions.

In Mantine Overboard!, Luka used three Magikarp to aid her, Ash, and later Misty in their underwater exploration.

In Ya See We Want An Evolution!, Oralie claimed her Magikarp was the strongest. Indeed, it was able to battle surprisingly well, even giving Ash's Pikachu a hard time.

In Going for the Gold!, a Shiny Magikarp appeared among several others. Clemont tried to lure the Shiny one in with an invention but wound up attracting a horde of Sharpedo instead.

In This Magik Moment!, the efforts of a Magikarp actor nicknamed Karpy to suppress its evolution failed, and it evolved into a Gyarados.