About

Mega Charizard Z is a hypothetical evolution of the Pokémon Charizard that fans speculated would be introduced in the upcoming 2025 video game Pokémon Legends: Z-A. The tenor of speculation about the evolution was mixed, as some felt Charizard is overrepresented in the Pokémon series, while others were excited to imagine the design of the new Pokémon, leading to fan art and memes spreading online following the announcement in early 2024.

Origin

On February 27th, 2024, The Pokémon Company announced Pokémon Legends: Z-A, a sequel in its Pokémon Legends series. The trailer indicated that the game would take place in the Kalos region and would reintroduce the Mega Evolution mechanic that first appeared in Pokémon X&Y, which took place in Kalos.

In Pokémon X&Y, Charizard received two Mega Evolutions, named Mega Charizard X and Mega Charizard Y.^[1] Shortly after the announcement of Pokémon Legends Z-A, fans quickly began speculating that Charizard would receive a third Mega Evolution. For example, hours after the trailer was released, Twitter user @BahamutGreen^[2] posted art of a hypothetical Mega Charizard Z design, gaining 15 retweets and 70 likes in one day (shown below).

Spread

Speculation about Mega Charizard Z featured a mix of excitement and dread. In the Pokémon series, Charizard has received various forms and made appearances in multiple games ahead of other Pokémon starters, which has frustrated some fans who feel Charizard received preferential treatment from developers Game Freak. Several social media users made memes about Charizard getting another alternate form.

For example, on February 27th, 2024, Twitter user @BaqZack20^[3] posted a joke about Charizard getting another form over other starters, gaining over 2,000 retweets and 20,000 likes in one day (shown below, left). The same day, user @bingaroonie0611^[4] posted a Jason Momoa Sneaking Up On Henry Cavill meme about Mega Charizard Z, gaining over 1,800 retweets and 16,000 likes in the same timeframe (shown below, right).

Others were more excited about the possibility of Mega Charizard Z and posted fan art of the hypothetical Pokémon. For example, on February 28th, user @amalryart^[5] posted art that gained over 530 retweets and 3,600 likes in 12 hours (shown below, left). The same day, user @AnisDrawn^[6] posted art that gained over 20 retweets and 100 likes in four hours (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

Unavailable.

External References