While probably the least cool of the three, compared to other grass types Bulbasaur is great. There are other great fire and water Pokemon out there, other than the ones you can start off with.
Also, in the initial game Bulbasaur, Sparrow, and Geodude could easily be caught early on to form a strong team well balance against any types you would see earlier on, and still useful up until the end of the game. Kabutops/Omastar you get later in game are perfect against Ice, which is really this 3-man's team only collective weakness. You can beat the game very quickly just leveling up these four Pokemon.