Now, when it comes to franchises about a range of odd little pocket monsters (some of which are thirty-foot sea monsters that could wipe out an entire village with just their pinky toe, but ‘pocket monsters’ is the term regardless) fighting each other, most would tell you that Pokémon is the biggest deal around.

This is freaking Pokémon we’re talking about, after all. The Pokémania of the mid-to-late 90s is still one of the g꧒reatest media phenomena the world has ever seen.

Satoshi Taijiri created the franchise back in 1995, and… well, we all know the impact this series had when it first arrived in our schools, lives and general brain-spaces. Don’t go getting too uppity, though, Pokémon. You aren’t the only big monster-catch💫ing name around.

Digimon first arrived on the scene in 1997, right when Pokémon was still establishing itself worldwide (Pokémon Red and Blue weren’t released globally until the following year). Of course, as people hav𓄧e repeatedly noted over the years, it’s a very similar concept, but with an emphasis on the digital world. A parallel digital world, where the ‘Digidestined’ fight alongside Digimon to defeat the evil ‘mon and humans who threaten this high-tech realm.

While Digimon never quite reached the dizzying heights of success that Pokémon has (about as darn high as the Chrysler Building, give or take a couple of feet), it’s still a big darn deal in its own right. Fans won’t want to miss our rundown of the most hilarious Digimon memes ever.

25 When You Know How To Treat Your Pocket Monsters Right

In the Pokémon series, fans will know, nobody ever stops prattling on and on about the importance of the Pokémon themselves. Just about every NPC🔯 you encounter will tell you something about the invaluable partnership between people and Pokémon. They’re allies, friends, trusted partne🌠rs, work buddies, all of these sorts of things. It’s so cutesy it makes my crusty heart ache a little.

The whole concept of Pokémon battling negates this idea a little. Just ask the vast majority of Pokémon players, who will me👍rcilessly toss a ‘mon aside because it doesn’t have absolutely perfect stats. It’s a ruthless world, all told.

What if they were perfectly happ⛄y there in the wild, and didn’t fancy being captured? Nobody thinks of that around here. At least the Digidestined are nice.

24 When Eevee's Got Nothing On All Of YOUR Forms

So, onto another issue we’ve already touched on: the controversial subject of creature designs. There are those who feel that Game Freak have long since lost their touch, that only the f☂irst generation of Pokémon designs were worth anything and nothing but trash has come afterwards. Literal trash, in Trubbish and Garbodor’s case.

Whether all of this Poké-bashing is warranted or not is up to your personal opinion. One thing nobody can deny is that Digimon took a totally different approach to its designs. Generally, Digimon more closely resemble the Elemental Heroes of Yu-Gi-Oh!, as opposed to the kinda sorta realistic animals that are the Pokémon way.

When you shoot for cool factor, you’ll sometimes try a little too hard, and it’ll show. If you try enough times, t🐷hough, you’re sure to get it bang on at least some of the time. There are some fantas𝓀tic-looking Digimon, don’t deny it.

23 When Maybe She's Born With It... Maybe It's Digivolving

Since the early days of Pokémon Red and Blue, two decades ago, this universal concept has been drummed into our consciousness: don’t sleep on something because it looks teeny and pathetic. Of course, this whole thing stretches all the way back to that most ancient of life lessons, don’t judge a book by its cover.

Why did you bother catching and raising that worthless Magikarp? Because it evolves into the formidable, crush your teeny human form into spam Gyarados, that’s why. The more irritating a Pokémon is to raise (ie Dratini to Dragonite)🧸, the more powerful they’ll be.

And so it is with Digimon. So it d🌜idn’t look like much at first? You just wait until it ꧟Digivolves, my friend. It’ll be a whole different kettle of fish then.

22 When You Go A Little Overboard With The Digimon Designs

As is the case in any underdog situation, it’s always self-esteem boost﷽ing to point out the things you do have over your much more successful and handsome rival.

Say what you will about Digimon, then, but there’s one thing you can’t deny: these creatures have style. They may have tried a little too hard to pander to the cheesy notions of coolness and attitude that were everywhere in the 90s, but I think that all worked out in Digimon’s favor. These guys have weaponry mounted on their weapon-mounted weaponry. It’♏s dangerous and m𝐆ore than a little edgy, which is exactly what the 90s were all about.

🌺Meanwhile, genwunners are complaining that Game Freak are losing their touch, designing things like the trash bag Pokémon (Trubbish) and the ice-cream-cone-w🔥ith-a-face Pokémon (Vanilluxe).

21 When Farfetch'd Is Suddenly The Most Terrifying Pokémon Ever

Not convinced that Digimon brought us the cooler ൩creature designs of the two? Well,𒊎 why not feast your eyes on this little doozy here?

Behold: one of the most feeble, worthless Pokémon this side of Magikarp. Farfetch’d only exists to be a living joke (a reference to a popular duck and leek dish in Japan), and its stats live up to that reputation perfectly. In its original Pokémon form, this thing’s about as formidable as a one-legged arthritic kitten with a limp. After being given the Digimon treatment, though, just look at it.

When you can make even Farfetch’d look like Arnold Schwarzenegger wrapped up in Sylvester Stallone wrapped up in… everyone else in The Expendables movies, you kn𓂃ow you’ve made all the right life decisions.

20 When Digivolving Does Wonders For Your Looks

So, yes. As we’ve alreaﷺdy covered, it seems totally unfair to have to pick your companion Digimon or Pokémon so early on. This isn’t a decision to take lightly, after all. A lot of these things start out lookin cutesy and innocent enough, but eventually develop into real beasts. Others, meanwhile, Have questionable final forms that totally weren’t worth the effort.

How can you know what you’re going to end up with? You can’t, that’s how. If I knew that this was what awaited at the end of a long Digivolving process, I might’ve been on board, but that’s the power of hindsight. All we can really do is get lumbered with whatev🍸er we’re lumbered with, and hope that everything works out in the end. It worked for darn Froakie, after all.

19 When Your Confusion Is Understandable, But No Less RAGE-INDUCING For It

Let’s be real here for a moment. Much as the whole internet loves to spot the slightest mistake and land ꦗon it like a sumo wrestler, I’m going to be honest and say you can’t entirely blame this person.

Well, I suppose you could. I don’t know, I’m all conflicted. On the one hand, you’ve got a huge DIGIMON logo across the top there, in bold font and bright orange/yellow letters. So, yeah, there’s a case for a light dose of stupid here. On the other hand, though, Mimi does look very, very much like a Pokémon NPC. It’s sad that, for some unin🍨f🌃ormed onlookers, the two franchises are pretty well interchangeable.

Diehard fans, needless to say, will not stand for this. If you tried to pull this sort of thi💜ng, they’ll look at you like you personally roundhouse kicked their grandmas in the teeth.

18 When You Love Your Girl, But Digimon Is Life

Now, I’m no professional relationship guru. I’m not about to drop seven shades of pure Doctor Phil wisdom on you, but there are some things I do know. 🌱One of those things would be that shared interests are crucial in a relationship. You can’t share every interest, because that’s a one-way ticket to poopville as well, but some.

If you’re finding things difficult in this area, there comes a time when you’ve got to decide what’s true important to you. I🦋s it your partnership, the rare and special bond that you’ve forged together, or is it your collection of Digi-figurines?

Personally, I’d have 💫doubts about anybody who forces such ultimatums on you without valid reason. A𓆏nd besides, those figures are pretty sweet. Those big guys at the back? Nice.

17 When You Go Way Beyond 'Fearless' And Into 'Just Plain Stupid'

Now, I know what you’re thinking. I’m drawing parallels between Digimon and Pokémon all over the darn place here. I hear you. I totally get it. Here’s the thing about thജat, though: It’s totally warranted, and it’s unavoidable really.

When you cut all of the impossible, fantastical shenanigans and really get right down to it, the two series share one big, key, central ideal. The meat of the whole thing is the empowerment of the hip young 90s kids watching. It’s relatable.𝓰 You could be this young hero or heroine, we’re told. You’re freaking powerful.

How does Digimon present this concept to us? By showing th𓄧e absolute fearless resolve of the Digidestined (well, sometimes). We꧂’ve got no time for strategy or logic here, let’s just go barrelling towards that enormous beast.

16 When You Just Can’t Tell Pokémon From Digimon Any More

If you’re not super well versed in either or both franchises, tho♐ugh, it isn’t always that easy. There ar📖e certain Digimon and Pokémon that could totally be from either universe, and fit in quite happily.

What’s the difference between Agumon and Charmander, though? Really? Let’s be frank here, you could swap them at birth and even their mamas wouldn’t know, except that Charmander’s hindquarters wouldn’t be on fire anymore. So it’s not always tꦕhat simple.

But hey, let’s not get distracted by the joke within the joke here. This snarky meme is act🗹ually a little deeper than it might seem. Doraemon isn’t a Digimon or a Pokémon, but rather a robotic cat that features in the eponymous manga. A mainstay of Japanese culture, Doraemon and its series has existed in some form or another s🔥ince 1969.