The Eternally-Dueling Eeveelution Duo: Umbreon and Espeon!

Here's a pair of Pokémon that are well-known in the community, not only because of their species, but in how their species relate to each other: Espeon and Umbreon. Both evolve from an Eevee who has a high friendship level with his (again, I'm using "he" as male Eevee are statistically more common) Trainer; Espeon evolve when an Eevee is level up during the day, and Umbreon during the night. So, which of these two cat-like Eeveelutions should find a home on your team? Let's take a look.

Like all Eeveelutions, Umbreon and Espeon both have a stat total of 525, with their highest stat possessing 130 points. As such, when I mark one of their stats as "highest," it is the stat that possesses 130 points.

(Via funnyjunk.com)

Umbreon
Purely in terms of typing, Umbreon can super-effectively hit Espeon with any of its Dark-type moves; and, since it's a Dark-type, it has a decent advantage over Espeon in that regard! With the advent of Gen 6, however, Espeon gained a new weapon: Dazzling Gleam, which, being a Fairy-type move, super-effectively hits Umbreon. In terms of stats, Umbreon has a sad Special Attack stat with 60 points...though this is arguably balanced by his Special Defense, which is his highest stat. Unlike Espeon, Umbreon has no non-TM access to a healing move unless Pokémon eugenics comes into play (as all Eeveelutions can possess Wish if it is bred as a Egg move). Umbreon also has a Defense stat of 110, which arguably makes up for its 65-point Speed stat.

Espeon
Umbreon's antithesis is the purplish, almost-fluffy Espeon. While Umbreon appears to be superior to Espeon purely in terms of typing, Espeon has access to Dazzling Gleam, as I mentioned before. He also learns Morning Sun at Level 33! Espeon shines in terms of Special Attack, though Defense is his weakest stat. His speed is much better than Umbreon's, at 110; however, because of his Defense, it's probably a good idea to give him Morning Sun, or, at least, Protect.