YMMV / The Problem with Paras

• Alternative Character Interpretation: There's a theory out there that this episode highlights the cause of starting Charmeleon/Charizard's disobedience towards Ash. Charmeleon clearly didn't appreciate being called out to purposefully lose to a weak Paras, especially if it's to be assumed that Charmeleon was probably hyped up to show off its new strength having just evolved in the previous episode. Thus, the result was Charmeleon losing all respect that it had in Ash as a Pokémon trainer.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • The central conflict of this episode is that Paras is shy and reluctant to fight, at least until it receives a confidence boost. Contrast with Pokémon Legends: Arceus, released decades later, in which Paras has a reputation as one of the most aggressive wild species that will simply not leave humans alone without a fight.
  • Two generations later, A Shroomish Skirmish would also have Hoenn's Fire starter face off against Hoenn's mushroom Pokémon with evolution as the outcome, except with the power dynamic reversed. Instead of Charmeleon bullying the weak Paras with the latter evolving after accidentally beating the former, it's Breloom that dominates over the weak Torchic until the latter evolves to stand up for its friends and they eventually settle the conflict in mutual respect.
• Ugly Cute: Paras may be an ugly bug with a fungal infection, but its shy nature and expressive eyes make this one particularly adorable in a weird way.