Ever since the release of Pokemon X and Y, the Poke-craze has hit us strong and hard. Most notably, this hit can be felt in our wallets. But still, it's nice to see a huge outpouring of love for those little pocket monsters. And in the Cosplay of the Week, we're featuring Raichu, one of the original 150 Pokemon!

Raichu is the evolved form of Pikachu, the beloved mascot of the franchise. Once you're sure you want your little electric rat to change its form, you can give it a Lightning Stone and watch it become an all-new creature. This little guy can glow in the dark and can even store 100,000 volts of electricity in its body. Yowza! In order to stabilize itself, it uses its tail to discharge the excess electricity into the ground.

Here is cosplayer Ryuu Lavitz, an old favorite here at Arcade Sushi, with her version of Raichu. The anthropomorphic depiction of a non-human character in cosplay form is typically called "gijinka," and here is a prime example of it. While she prefers to keep her crafting techniques and methods close to the vest, she was able to tell me that she made the entire outfit out of items one can find in any household. And this particular cosplay took her the least amount of time to make. With regard to why she chose to dress up as Raichu, she said, "I chose Raichu because it's the evolution of Pikachu (my first cosplay), and my best friend calls me Raichu. So it was kinda a 'had to do' project."

You can follow Ryuu's work on her Facebook and deviantART profiles. Marvel at her cosplaying prowess and definitely check out her Female Link and Inuyasha costumes. All photos were taken by Ryuu herself, so give her some props for her fine shots!

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Want your Cosplay to be seen? Send your info to john@arcadesushi.com and we may feature you in our Cosplay of the Week!

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