Yeah, you wouldn't be as cute but think of all the incredible abilities you could have unlocked (Hyper Beam, man!).
On the other hand, Pikachu is kind of like that sibling who gets special treatment.Another thing, Pikachu, why didn't you just evolve into Raichu? But since everyone is used to it, everyone just lets it slide. These were (kind of) the first Pokémon that we as the masses were introduced to (okay, technically Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle were the first Pokémon we were introduced to, but you get what we mean).