I do not hate Pikachu. There might be a chance I even love him, although he's not my favourite Pokemon. I prefer Manectric as the Electric Pokemon on my team. =)
But when there's no Manectric/Electrike near (as not in the game), I catch a Pikachu as soon as I see it and train it all the way up to the level where it will learn Thunder. It is hard yes, and it takes long, but isn't that the "joy" of the pokemon games? Training?
Pikachu helped me defeat Lorelei in the league. ^_^
For the Anime-Pikachu: It's impossible for me to imagine the show without that Pikachu. The episodes where Pikachu is the main star (Pikachu's Goodbye, the one where Pikachu suffers from amnesia, and others) were very nice to watch, and I want to see them again.
I like Pikachu. Not love him, nor hate him. Like him.