Well since I bought both Black and White at the same time, so technically I got two starters. Let's start with White. I chose Snivy because it looks awesome and in the anime when Ash was trying to catch one the pokedex said that it's so smart the they desert their trainers. When Ash was trying trying to catch it Snivy actually was being cheap using attract and Leaf Storm. That just added to it's epicness. Once I got it I nicknamed it "Tsutarju" to honor it's even better Japanese name.
In Black I chose Oshawott. At first, I was debating whether I should pick Tepig or Oshawott. They were both equal because Tepig was just a red pig. Boring. Oshawott looked like a penguin, an otter, and a beaver combined all into one. Ewww. Then I watched the Japanese anime. Tepig was a Pokemon deserted by it's trainer and couldn't eat, making him starve. Like we haven't heard that story before. Then the was Oshawott, potentially Ash's greatest stalker. Hiding behind trees, lurking in the shadows, only appearing when the time was right. On top of that, he was gutsy enough to push Pikachu off of Ash's shoulder. Instant appreciation. Again, I named him "Mijumaru," but this time it was because Mijumaru sounds much cuter than Oshawott.