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fairrytype · 10 months

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the plan; a pokeshipping fanfic~

the plan.

Being followed by her isn’t how he plans his journey to start. None of it is technically part of the plan. The fact that his first Pokemon is not one of the three he’s dreamed of and battled with in his imagination, the fact it is a Pikachu who refuses to look at him let alone listen instead- also not a part of it. The way Pikachu is then injured and he spends his first day of his journey running for his life wasn’t anywhere in the outline. But Ash can forgive that because at 10 years old, this is a fragment of his adventure which is, in theory, part of the plan. Even the pain and the way he nearly drowns and the look on Pikachu’s face can be excused somewhere in it because Pikachu is fine now. Pikachu is his best friend now.

But being fished out of drowning and rescued, being slapped and scolded and then accidentally frying a bike that is apparently the prized possession of a girl with a short temper who then follows him for the last six weeks; he’s not so sure about that being anywhere near the plan.

She’s weird. She goes from one extreme to the other since the moment she properly got to introduce herself. Screaming in his face and smacking his hand away when he tries to help her up because despite everything going on he does feel crappy about the situation, then dropping the act all together and putting her hands up in a worried plea, asking if his Pokemon is okay the moment he says something. He supposes they at least have that in common. She seems to have a genuine love for Pokemon. Even if he does find her fear of bug Pokemon irritating, she's not going out of her way to harm them. It’s more like she comes to his harm getting away from them.

Ash doesn’t pay too much attention to her presence anymore. Misty is just kind of there now, and they have fallen into this back and forth they have only managed to drop three or four times so far. Brock told him a few days earlier that one of them always ruins it, and Brock has only been with them for two weeks but he thinks it’s probably true. Maybe. He doesn’t really know.

Because Misty is weird, and thinking about her in general is annoying. Because he doesn’t think about it too much, he also doesn’t think about what things would be like if they had met under different circumstances. So really, he doesn’t know why he’s staring at her as she hugs her knees on the opposite side of the campfire. Or why it should even concern him that she looks kind of upset or why Pikachu is sitting at her feet tonight and not his. He’s out here on a journey to be a Pokemon Master, not worrying about why the girl who follows him doesn’t even seem to like him let alone why he wants her to. He’ll get her dumb bike back soon enough and she’ll be gone; he has no idea how but so far things have been working out pretty well if he just tries enough. He has a Gym badge and two Pokemon now which has definitely been part of his plan. A bike is no big deal.

Brock nudges him in the side then, and he’s thankful it rips his attention away because he wants to look some stuff up in his dex anyway about Zubat. It has just joined Brock’s crew of Pokemon and is currently flapping near the pot he’s been cooking at. Ash gives Brock a glance to see if he'll mind but his new friend is simply tilting his head towards the space across from them quietly with concern on his brows.

“What?” He asks, dusting his hands together where they’d started to get clammy for some reason.

Brock tilts his head again. Ash frowns at him, following where he’s looking. It’s just Misty on the other side of camp, and he thinks maybe he’s asking him to pick their tin’s from dinner up so he grabs his and starts to stand when Brock sighs loudly. He pinches the bridge of his nose for a moment and shakes his head the same way he’s seen grown-ups do when they’re getting kind of annoyed or something. Ash narrows his eyes in question.

Brock sighs again.

“Misty.” Brock says after a moment, not looking at Ash and he finds himself frowning deeper as he turns his gaze back to her. Her head is down and buried in her arms over her knees, but she shifts in acknowledgement. “Are you Okay?”

It clicks for Ash and he makes a little noise, almost saying ‘oh’. So he wasn’t imagining something was off with her after all. Though he doesn’t really get the big deal or why it needs addressing or for them to talk in whispers or weird looks because she’s right there and asking her is what has ended up happening anyway, he slouches forward with an arm on his own knee and his chin in his hand to watch if Misty is actually Okay. Though she is quieter this way it does just feel kind of weird that she hasn’t made some quip about him all night.

“ ‘m fine.” She mumbles a response.

She sounds Okay. Fine is better than not fine, so Ash nods to Brock. Brock shakes his head silently at him and his mouth pulls to the side in a tight lipped smile. He crosses the space between them, putting a hand on Misty’s shoulder that makes her jump a little. Ash wonders briefly why it’s so easy for Brock who has only known her two weeks to touch her so casually and not get smacked away when she stays still, sways a little from left to right.

“Pikachupi.” Pikachu rubs its face against her ankle. Ash’s eyes fall to his Pokemon as he tries to understand and he feels himself slump further forward.

“You can tell us.” Brock speaks like he is speaking for both of them and Ash has to resist pulling a face because honestly he doesn’t want to hear about girl problems even if he wants to know what’s going on.

“Leave me alone guys, please.” Her voice is strained. He doesn’t think he’s ever heard Misty say please- not to them at least. Maybe to Brock when she wants more food. Or to someone that isn’t him that they’ve met who she’s all sweet and kind to in a voice she definitely doesn’t use with him. He catches Brock's eyes back on him when she simply scoops Pikachu up with her head still down and walks to a tree bordering the clearing they have found. She hugs the Pokemon to her chest, her back not far from them.

Ash shrugs at him, part of him feeling betrayed by Pikachu for not putting up a fight to stay by his side but part of him thinking it’s probably better she hugs whatever is going out on his Pokemon than shout it out at him.

“I guess we should give her some space.” Brock mutters, shaking his head. He gathers their dishes to wash out and mumbles something to himself. It leaves Ash at the fire alone with the presence of Misty known, not far from him and soon his knee bounces in an anxious jig.

He shouldn’t even care. Misty doesn’t care when he’s down- she comes and taunts him and pulls a tongue and eggs him on. He guesses maybe she does help him in some ways but they’re not out of her being nice. She kind of points things out that could say she cared. Like with Brock’s badge and her insistence he takes her advice. Even that feels like a stretch, but Ash peers over his shoulder slowly because he doesn’t want her to see him looking and thinks he cares because he doesn’t- the same way she wouldn’t- but Misty has her back to him still and he can see Pikachu’s ears over her arms.

His gut bubbles and he tells himself that if this is something that’s going to slow down their next stop he supposes it does matter. When he stands up he is oblivious to the way Brock stares at him crossing the clearing, closing the gap between himself and Misty. He is aware he is feeling very shy all of a sudden though and is almost grateful that she must feel his presence because she sighs and speaks without looking back.

“I told you to go away.”

Not for the first time, Ash immediately feels very stupid for trying and is reminded why he doesn’t. He shoves his hands in his jacket pockets, scowling at the back of her hair he has just noticed is down. “Actually you told us to leave you alone.”

“Then listen to either of them.” Misty huffs, but it lacks her usual kick and it makes the response he hasn’t really thought out die in his throat.

He shuffles a shoe in the gravel instead. “Whatever then.”

“Good.” She sniffs.

“Just don’t keep Pikachu too late.” Ash grumbles. He hopes she doesn’t think she’s won something because he’s backing down. “We have a Gym battle tomorrow, remember?”

Misty’s shoulders tense. She turns to him so quickly he almost falls back when she hands Pikachu off to him like a bag.

"I won't be there so knock yourself out." She exhales through her nose that is now in the air. If it weren’t for the way her shoulder smacks into his as she walks past he’d swear she’d disappeared at how soon she’s gone from his sight. He is left with Pikachu, who seems to be scowling at him and Ash just frowns back a question and rubs the top of his arm, choosing to tend to it over the sting of her words.

He doesn’t get it, and when he gets back to the fire Brock is starting to tidy up. Misty had laid her sleeping bag as far as possible from them earlier and Brock offers him a gaze that is somewhat uncomfortable when she storms in that direction. Why is everyone looking at him like he’s done something wrong when she’s the one in a bad mood? He rolls his eyes out and gets his Pokedex out before Zubat is called back in, and his evening improves for it. Brock talks with him in quiet voices for a while about the new Gym they’re visiting tomorrow and they put the fire out together, apparently his older friend is still appalled at the way they’d been doing it before he joined and now insists he makes sure it's done right every night. Brock seems good at stuff like that so he gladly takes the help and when Ash pulls his sleeping bag out he has almost forgotten about Misty’s thing.

Almost. Kind of.

Pikachu joins him when he plops down and he lets himself glance over for the first time since she’s barged away because he is pretty sure she’s asleep by now. Either that or she’s snuck off to really be alone, to really find a way to not be there tomorrow and left them for good because there hasn’t been a noise from her side of the clearing all night. She is curled tight in a position he doesn’t think can be comfortable and an unfamiliar warmth fills his chest. Misty is still there, even if she isn’t supposed to be; even if she isn’t part of the plan.

Ash finds he is smiling and he scowls, and then he falls asleep focusing so hard on how he wants to dream about their next stop; Cerulean Gym.

fairy here: hey!! i wanted to write some stuff from ash's pov for a while. this may be a little series of him growing up and how he see's misty so if it feels a little bitter and not a lot sweet, it's just the beginning.

misty is knowing they're heading towards cerulean but finding out for sure its there the next day~

#pokeshipping #pokemon #my writing #fanfics #misty #ash #pokeship

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bhawk-goose · 10 months

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I've just started watching the Pokemon anime from the beginning for some reason and I already have some thoughts. I'm just using this post as a journal.

Firstly, Professor Oak is a cruel man, he knew all the pokemon other than Pikachu were taken and still made Ash go through the process of picking up each.

Also, this show is like 30 years old so you'd think comedy would be different, but for some reason Pikachu playing baseball with is pokeball is the funniest shit ever to me.

Pikachu has already shown it is far too powerful. I get that pokemon are generally more powerful than humans, there's a reason trainers have their pokemon beat the shit out of wild pokemon on their behalf instead of just doing it themselves, but god. Pikachu knocked out twelve people, most of which were probably adults. AND Ash is also godlike, he was the closest to Pikachu. He was the one that the electric current went through to knock out the twelve people in the crowd, but he was fucking FINE. Just some scorch marks, that's it. This is a ten year old child, with that level of current he should be dead. He should be just a charred skeleton.

Has Ash done no research or is only being able to say their name specific to Pikachu? It's an animal, what the fuck did he expect? Does he also expect a response when he asks a dog who the goodest boy is?

Next, Pikachu hates being confined, so removing the waist-leash made sense, but why the gloves? They weren't even touching Pikachu, they were on his hands.

why is there boss music playing when Pidgey appears and Ash thinks he's gonna fight it? He's specifically fighting it because it's easy. Also I'm putting it on the same line cuz it's the same scene basically, what kind of yawn was that? Pikachu's "cha" was clearly supposed to be a yawn, but that did not sound tired at all. That is what yawns would sound like if we did them when we had too much energy.

remember when I said trainers have their pokemon beat the shit out of wild ones on their behalf? Apparently not Ash. I'm convinced that Ash is from our world, but doesn't know much about Pokemon, so he's just heard of it in passing and knows nothing. And when he was in our world he never encountered any non-human life.

"enjoy your last moments of freedom"? Ash isn't even trying to be a caring pokemon master, he is just straight up has no sympathy for them. I'm glad this kid never met an animal in the real world, at least pokemon can fight back a lot better.

What was that laugh at Ash's failure? That was far too human. I hate that. Pikachu is a straight up demon. New theory, ontop of Ash being from our world, there are demons(or some kind of demon equivalent) in the pokemon world. Pikachu is one of them, and pokeballs are like holy water to them. That's why Pikachu doesn't want to be in the pokeball.

I know this is pokemon, and there are tank turtles with no clear sign(to my knowledge) of how they get the water they shoot, and rats with unlimited supplies of electricity, and sentient magnets, but Pidgey is none of those. Pidgey is a normal fucking bird, nothing special about it. Where the fuck did it get that sand from??

the pokedex is fucking amazing. Earlier I thought it was just coincidental that it was a bit late, but no. That thing is alive, and it fucking HATES Ash.

why the hell do wild pokemon get jealous of trained pokemon? Just get in the ball and you'll be a trained pokemon. And trainers openly do not care about the pokemon they catch, Ash already showed that.

the way it cut straight from Ash and Pikachu passing a Magikarp in the river to a gyarados makes it look like that thing just evolved on the spot.

Misty not caring about Ash at all is completely fair. I don't care if she doesn't have any context to know what happenned, there is a hurt animal.

"Pikachu, this can't... happen" he's not wrong, it can't, it's only the first episode of the show and Pikachu's a main character.

"the town of pallet" sounds completely different from "pallet town", and why does Ash think he's a noble defender, he's ten, and he's defending a rat that kocked out twelve people.

Pikachu just created a giant sky beam. That was not a lightning strike, it was like a mile thick. Pikachu is not a demon, it's far too powerful, it is satan himself.

anyway, those were my thoughts on the first episode of the pokemon anime. It was like 11 minutes long, but I took like 30 to write about it. If I get any likes on this I'll keep posting my thoughts as I watch it.

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1358456 · 8 months

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Pokemon Yellow "Free to Play" Run Part 1

Here we go. Rules are pretty straight forward. Only use gift Pokemon, no beneficial glitches allowed.

Here we go again.

Now. Where did I leave off the last time I played this thing? According to my last save state...

Oh, that's right. This was a Pikachu and a Mew merged together. So this was a Pikachu shaped Mew so it has Surf and Fly to test the Pikachu sprites. And apparently, since it's a Pikachu shaped Mew, it couldn't refuse a Thunderstone. ... So it's not a Pikachu anymore, huh? That means...

Get the f*ck out of here. Finally, I got rid of that thing once and for all.

Now I can start a brand new run with no regrets.

Unfortunately, I don't have enough space nor do I have access to numbers, so I can't name myself as "F2P" or "Free2Play" or anything like that. So FTP, or Free To Play.

So then my asshead rival has to be...

Pay To Win. Or at least, he's going to pay to try to win. What a shmuck.

If I recall, the first fight against this guy and the second optional fight determines what his Eevee becomes. Lose both to get Vaporeon, the easiest of the three. Win one for Flareon, and win both for him to get Jolteon, the hardest of the three.

Hmm... So I guess I should throw this fight?

... Nah. What's the worst that could happen?

Since I'm not allowed to catch anything, I only have Pikachu for a while. So how do I beat Brock? ... It's cheese time. Spam Double Team, Tail Whip, and then smack around his stones... er... Rock types.

... I somehow forgot that these guys existed. I still only have Pikachu here. Spam Double Team!

Who needs Thunderbolt? Even Misty's Starmie is no match for this finely aged filthy cheddar.

... The perp is literally one square away from this screen. He's right there. You guys aren't trying too hard are you? Of course the police force has "trouble". As in, they only bother with the low ranking grunts, as arresting the higher ups create a power imbalance, which may instead result in a massive gang war.

... Ever wonder WHY this international police agent is on this cruise ship, on the trail of Team Rocket? ... Does Team Rocket own or run the harbor? ... Maybe this is why Lt. Surge is a Team Rocket admin in Pokemon Special.

This old captain, who must've spent decades traveling by ship, got seasick on a cruise ship that hadn't even left the harbor yet. ... Are you like... just pretending to be a ship captain? Are you actually a Team Rocket executive? You are the Cut Master. ... An odd thing for a ship captain, but not so odd for a dagger wielding yakuza...

Is it really a gift if I just barge in here and take this Eevee without getting permission from this beefed up "teacher" who has no students? ... There is a single table for one. So this is like a private tutor for a student whose Eevee I'm just taking.

Well, it's mine now. Time to get a Thunderstone and...

... Is it now? Do I have to merge this with a Magikarp or something to get it to obey?

Jolteon has 1 lower level, has no stat experience, and yet has higher stats across the board. Pikachu also only has Thunderbolt and Quick Attack as offense. Jolteon gets Thunderbolt (TM 24), Pin Missile, Double Kick, AND Quick Attack! ... Which means...

Get the f*ck out of here. ... Also, Jolteon's Pokedex number is 135, so obviously I'm going to use that instead.

So far, I'm only really using Charizard and Jolteon. I need access to Cinnabar Island to get two more team additions.

So this is a blatantly public Rocket Clan subsidiary that's in charge of the gambling hall. This old patriarch here doesn't bother to hide what he's doing either. And there are Rocket grunts just walking around in public! What's Erika doing about this? ... Oh that's right. She's basically high off of the "fumes" of Grass types. I'm surprised that Erika wasn't a Rocket admin in Pokemon Special too, in charge of dru- I mean, aromatherapy.

Sheesh. Rocket thugs are everywhere in Celadon City. You'd think this is where the Clan HQ is. Maybe Erika should've been another Rocket admin.

Which would make over half of the Kanto Gym Leaders a part of Rocket. They truly are the yakuza of the Pokemon world.

... Ever wonder why this guy locked the access gates to Saffron City? You don't just lock down a city for no reason. It's not like there's a massive construction or anything. The only thing happening in Saffron City is a Rocket invasion of Silph Co, which isn't a reason to lock the city. Curious. Even more curious that this guy will let you go through when you bribe him with water. It implies that he hasn't been told to lock the city by "proper" authority...

Bump and scam? "Ow, I think you broke my shoulder! I'm going to need 100 000 P for hospital fees!" Also, why are Rocket grunts blocking access to Sabrina's Gym? ... That's probably the reason why she's a Rocket admin in Pokemon Special.

Hey, punk. ... Hey, didn't you have a Spearow and a Raticate?

... Did you know that you could access the PC in the president's room of Silph Co? Because I didn't until now. How many years have I...

... Why aren't you looking at me when talking to me? ... Why does no one look at me when talking to me in this generation?

Also, ever wonder WHY and HOW the chairman of the Rocket Clan is a Gym Leader, an official title? To the point where the Victory Road guards won't let you pass until you got this guy's acknowledgement? So the Pokemon League is deliberately not bothering with Team Rocket activities. The entire Pokemon League structure involves the head of Team Rocket. No wonder the Elite Four were bad guys in Pokemon Special.

So here's my team so far. I'm right before Victory Road, and... Why is my team either critically weak to Jolteon, or is Jolteon? Lapras, Charizard, Aerodactyl, and Omastar are weak to Electric. Hitmonlee has base 35 Special, and Jolteon has base 110 Special, so Hitmonlee will get blasted into shreds by a single Sp. Atk. Hmm... I don't have other options though. ... Why, oh why, did I not throw two fights against the street punk rival at the start? Why do I keep doing this to myself? Why is it that in all my Yellow version runs that do not involve Mew, my team is critically weak to Jolteon? My last glitch-free run utilized Starmie and Charizard and I got blasted by the level 65 Jolteon at the end.

Now, you could say "why not use Venusaur since it resists Thunder", but... did you know? Venusaur is 4x weak to Bug in Generation I (Grass is weak to Bug, and Poison is weak to Bug in Generation I). And the strongest and only real Bug type move that exists in Generation I is Pin Missile, which Jolteon gets. The other two being Twinneedle (Beedril exclusive) and Leech Life which does about 4 damage until SM. So Venusaur would get shredded by Pin Missile. Which means, all three Kanto starters are critically weak to Jolteon.

I could try leveling Aerodactyl since it's the one thing that has a hope to outrun Jolteon. But... did you know? In Generation I, Aerodactyl can't learn Rock Slide or Earthquake. ... I guess I'll give it Hyper Beam and just try to blast Jolteon before it inevitably dies in a single hit. And then I'll just have to out-Jolteon the Jolteon with Jolteon.

Welp. That's a future me problem. ... Future me as in like... 2 days.

#pokemon yellow

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crystalelemental · 2 years

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So, with Unova Act 2 a definite occurrence, we all know Rosa’s getting Meloetta, right?

Like okay, there are plenty of questions, but at that point it’ll be long enough that Rosa getting her fifth alt is reasonable, and it 100% is going to be Meloetta. Because there’s effectively no one else at that point. And they love going for the regional legendary Pokemon, particularly the mythical options, and Meloetta is the only one left. Swords of Justice and Genies are possible, but they’re also bad. There aren’t enough options for either. Rosa’s guaranteed, and so is Nate, but the remainder? Ghetsis is likely, given antagonists almost always get something, be it new alt or Master Fair rerun. Iris and Alder are possible as champions. They could even just go Sygna Suit gym leaders like they did with Erika and Misty. But Rosa and Nate are guaranteed, and they don’t have enough other options for a Swords of Justice/Genies appeal.

Which means Nate is like 80% certain getting Kyurem-White. That’s the other big missing piece. And we now know there are two Kyurem. Ghetsis could get it instead. This isn’t impossible. But it wouldn’t be expected. Zinniquaza did get both grid expansion and mega evolution though, so there’s precedent. I just feel like, given SS N, the other Kyurem form feels likely with one of our protagonists.

Or with Iris. If they go Champion-focused, I could easily see Iris getting the focus instead, as the dragon master. This is doubly likely if the general pool addition is Drayden, who also feels incredibly likely as a notably missing gym leader. I cannot imaging a situation where we don’t get Drayden. Iris, however, is up in the air. The only thing that makes me think it’s possible is Lodge. Iris being added to lodge and getting this as an alt would put her at 5. Which is what happened to several others. So I put this at likely.

Alder, however, is unlikely. They just don’t seem to love the guy. Which is upsetting. I like Alder, I’d like him to get an alt. But also, his team is accounted for with pretty much everyone. The only thing not accounted for is Druddigon. Which I feel is more likely to go to either Drayden, or a Clair alt given she apparently gets a shiny one in the anime, and the game does like referencing the anime. I dunno.�� Alder’s situation makes me a bit sad.

Ghetsis, again, feels very likely for an alt. Hydreigon feels most likely, given what he’s known for. But while I’d love for this to be Shauntal’s thing...Cofagrigus is also a consistent part of his team, and is something unaccounted for. I wouldn’t strictly mind this.

I guess we’ll see. But honestly...I’m gonna grumble regardless. I’ll love getting Meloetta, but I’m getting real impatient about Kalos and Alola villain arcs. These two were my most anticipated regions when they started this, and it’s been well over a year and they’re getting delayed by Double Unova. So I’m still a bit sad about that. It could be really good though. Again, Meloetta, and the Paulo interlude is starting off really strong. But still.

#pokemon masters

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otnesse · 2 years

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Well, I just read up on Bulbapedia the major events of the episode. Until an actual sub for the episode gets published later today (and even there, I won't be able to watch it until at the very least after I get off work tonight as I have a very late shift, and more likely than not do so tomorrow morning), that's all I can get for now. And I can verify that Misty, Ash, and Brock indeed went their separate ways. It says Misty returned to Cerulean City. Though it does NOT specify whether or not Misty's resuming Gym Leader duties, so that does give me some degree of hope for the time being that she's still going to pursue her Water Pokemon Master goal, at least until either a sub is published, or a full synopsis. Won't find out firmly one way or another until either tonight or tomorrow morning (I'm going to be working a late shift tonight). Until I learned exactly what happened in GCYL, I thought Misty left to do her own journey, so I'm really hoping that it's just a layover sort of like what Ash did with Pallet Town, and not an indication that she's resuming gym duties (Brock's explicitly not a gym leader anymore, so it's pretty clear his heading to Pewter City was for layover purposes. Misty's the only one with that ambiguity right now.).

As far as Ash, it doesn't seem to elaborate much on what a Pokemon Master actually entails, which seems to be a mark against it. Though it DOES at least have Ash actually reuniting with his Pidgeot, apparently even reacquiring it from what I gather in both Bulbapedia and Serebii.net. Took way too long if you ask me, as they really should have had them reunite back during the Battle Frontier. I could forgive him not reuniting during the layover period between Orange Islands and Johto since they really didn't have enough time due to Ash needing to head to Professor Kurst in Johto to analyze the GS Ball (a plot point that ended up dropped thanks to 4Ever. Really poor choice, especially when they could have done something similar to the first movie and have the GS Ball addressed, then have some bits leading into the movie, then reissue the scenes in the movie. But nevertheless...). But Battle Frontier, like all things Kanto related, was a really huge missed opportunity for Ash to reunite with Pidgeot.

After that... not sure what will happen regarding Pokemon other than most likely not needing to pray to God to bring Misty back before going to bed. I guess I'll try to get Pokemon Home sometime in the next few weeks to make up for lost time. Probably also see if I can binge-watch all Pokemon episodes in the near future if needs be (though with my work schedule that will probably be pushed into the future). May also try to play and complete all Pokemon games when the time comes, including the ones I missed such as Platinum, Gen V, Gen VI, a full attempt at Gen VII, and Gen VIII (not sure about Gen IX, though, since that was around the time TCPi was starting to get woke).

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jadeazora · 3 years

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Message from the Masters Team is now out!

Sync pair level cap will be raised to Lv140 on Aug28! Of note, the free Legendary Pairs got boosted caps too. No more having to wait for event reruns!

The Evolution items and Grid Orb areas don't need stamina anymore.

Log-in bonuses will be changed Sept2. They don't say what they'll be tho. (Edit: I stg I can't type...)

3000 gem present on Aug28, as well as a login bonus, also totaling 3000 gems.

A new Daily Battle event will be added, which gets you 5⭐ Scout tickets, battle points, and other rewards. It can be challenged once per day.

Starting Aug28 and being gradually added for a few days after (this post has the dates), Lillie, N, and Steven will be available as Master Pair scouts. They will feature in the Hearts United event.

Lillie and Lunala can use Shining Moonlight to boost their SpAtk and crit to max, they have Potions, and their passives can reduce damage under certain conditions.

N is a Tech Master Pair, our very first one, and their passive Extend Range can be used so their Blue Flare and Noble Roar affects all opponents. Another Passive will drop a Mon's SpDef when an attack is used against them successfully.

Steven basically has Contrary, with moves that should weaken stats boosting them instead. They also get stronger the more their stats are raised!

They're going to be featured in an Extreme Battle event starting Sept1. (Oh joy. That's back.)

Misty and Psyduck will also get an event starting the 28th, and by completing the event, you can boost Misty's potential and move level. She comes with Potions and Full Heals.

Also on Aug28, there will be a Pokefair Select Scout. You can pick a Pokefair Sync Pair for 3000 gems. (The only one I'm missing is Marnie, but that's just bait for the Master Banners.)

Sept3 and Sept10, they're doing Super Spotlight Seasonal Banners. I want Palentine's Serena, but I can wait until next year when she rerun. It's inevitable.

Starting Sept3, various events will start being rerun. You can do these without stamina apparently. (THANK YOU.)

The new main story is called Villain Arc, and focuses on the various villains of the franchise causing trouble on Pasio.

It takes place after the PML, but you can start with it before finishing the first story.

Paulo confirmation/hinting. I KNEW IT. RIVAL TURNED EVIL ARC LET'S GO! (I've been wanting Pokemon to do this forever. I fucking LOVE Masters!)

The prelude starts in mid-Sept, with another update scheduled for later next month. The next update will also give more details on the villain arc!

#pokemon masters #pokemas #pokemon lillie #n harmonia #trainer n #champion steven #steven stone #boss giovanni #team rainbow rocket #rainbow rocket #pokemon villains #pokemon paulo #rival paulo

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gaycey-sketchit · 2 years

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(Gary anon) Not gonna lie, but Journeys reminded me why I watch anipoke; or rather keep an eye from a distance, on its events and how you need keep your expectations reasonable, when it has pulled stuff like Thunder Armor and Tobias. (In TRio's case, the seriousness gets dropped after the halfway point, I think I even remembered that being "announced" in a trailer. Dawn's BW return was apparently mixed too, but most of the blame was put on Iris.

(Part 2) As if Dawn has never been snarky before. Really says something when some; just like with Misty during SM, think Iris' development was "improved" when she came back in JN. Gives away much of BW you watched) That, and all the continuity probably took a hit on things too. Just for the circumstances to get it to work alone. (When you're a byproduct of the series and its writing, the fandom is going bare the weight of the reception on you)

(Part 3) I don't think I've seen so much flak against the staff since XY, but that was mainly for one thing. Everything in JN has got attacked in every angle. (Even if there was a new Eeveelution, it's really hard for Chloe to fully come back from this, unless her [and Goh] continue into the next series and are given something a bit more consistent) Doesn't help that Yamper looked like it going to join her. (Apparently Tobias' VA caught it too. Wish them all well)

(Part 4) Well, we got a Goh poster coming up this month that looked similar to the Chloe one last month. Project Mew after the semifinals is looking more likely. (Also seem to have gotten the first sign of S/V anipoke merch, so we're probably get news on what's up soon and Ash's fate. If he does continue, I wonder if it'll be a new character that introduces Paldea to him or Gary works his magic again a third time)

(Part 5) The ultimate spectacle in the making of Ash meeting Red is upon us in Pokemon Masters. And more S/V news! Seems like they're trying to keep things more under wraps this time, but at least we got the new gimmick and more on the open world. I see most took to the new Wooper that dropped, and Fidough. And the new characters. xD

Fair.

Oh, I vaguely remember hearing about that.

Man, people look for any excuse to hate on Iris, huh. I wonder why. (I do not wonder, I think we both Know.)

Yeah, Journeys was ambitious, and there have been some... issues because of that.

I guess so, but man. The fact that some people direct more intense hatred toward Goh than I do toward characters that remind me of my actual literal abusers... I think maybe this fandom needs to chill a little sometimes. Acting like that about a fictional ten year old is weird.

Yeah, Journeys really has been picked apart for literally everything.

Alas. I mean, maybe they stand a chance at that, but I doubt that’d be received well either.

D: Covid’s been hitting so many people. Hopefully they can all recover!

Oh, makes sense. Honestly really excited to see how the Project Mew stuff plays out, I feel like I’m one of the like five people who’s actually enjoying that plotline.

Oh? I have to say I’m really hoping Ash will continue into Paldea because I would miss him too much if he didn’t. Would love to see Gary do his thing a third time.

That’s going to be fun! Excited for Ash to maybe be a playable sync pair? Ash Ketchum telling me good morning would be the ultimate joy.

I opted not to watch the SV stuff because I like to go into new Pokemon games with as little prior knowledge as possible (and proceeded to go on Twitter and mute as many relevant words/phrases I could think of for the same reason) but! Glad people have responded well for the most part! Hopefully these games will be received more positively than SwSh were, I do not want to go through that ordeal again. Just about three more months until release, that’s exciting!

#thanks for the patience with me taking forever to answer this! Finally getting a day off and my social energy's been returning #Andrew answers #Gary anon

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smallersocksx · 3 years

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Pokemon Character Analysis V2: Iris

I wrote an analysis of Iris’ character a while ago. However, a user challenged me to go more in-depth with my analysis and I did have more points to write about Iris as well. I was able to watch episode 65 as well so I’ll be combining my opinions on the episode with this analysis.

As with all my reviews/analyses, I’ll keep them under the cut. So, if you want to keep reading, that’s great!

Introduction:

As many people that have read my previous reviews and know me, may know I am a huge fan of the Diamond and Pearl games and anime series. I will be the first to say, I know Diamond and Pearl wasn’t a perfect series, honestly, there is no such thing as a perfect series. But as a follow-up to DP, Black and White was definitely a let-down for a lot of fans, either because of completely resetting Ash’s knowledge which was honestly an insult to his DP incarnation, his travelling companions or the fact that he lost to Cameron of all people in the Vertress Conference. BW in some aspects left a lot to be desired.

Nevertheless, this post is focusing on Iris, a companion similar to Goh, a lot of fans love to hate particularly because of her infamous catchphrase “You’re such a kid.” Looking back, this was one of the things that did make me drop the series, keep in mind I was 11 when BW started airing. So, hearing a character that is meant to be the same age or younger than you say "You’re such a kid!” Over and over again, got annoying quite quickly.

However, looking back the usage of that infamous catchphrase was probably exaggerated. Whilst, working past that I still didn’t come to love Iris. Considering, Iris is meant to be one of the main characters and similar to Goh, they are meant to be written in a way that makes us want to see them grow, cheer them on and be happy when they succeed. Nonetheless, when you look at the way they are written and their development it just makes it abundantly clear that Iris and Goh are the victims of poor writing.

Iris’ Initial Characterisation:

The aspect that made me drop the series was Iris’ initial characterisation particularly the infamous phrase “You’re such a kid” which as I mentioned in the introduction, with the benefit of hindsight I can see the usage of it has been exaggerated. Nevertheless, it doesn’t change the fact that it was annoying. Especially, given when Ash meets Iris, he had defeated legendries by this point, acquired 36 badges (that’s including the Orange Archipelago badges) and defeated the Battle Frontier. Whereas Iris may have had good battling prowess and at one point had a 99-battle winning streak, but, her Axew was a newborn with hardly any battling experience and her Excadrill was refusing to listen to her.

Many people use the defence that Misty called Ash a kid yet she doesn’t nearly receive as much hate. To be fair, when Misty met Ash, he was a rookie trainer and Misty was a gym leader, so Misty at least had the position and knowledge to back her up. However, this was only an issue at the beginning of the series and the insults tend to die down, but, that initial characterisation is what stopped me from watching the series since my 11-year-old self did not have the patience for that.

Iris’ Character:

Just like every person has their flaws, every fictional character has them as well – it's what makes us human. Every single one of our favourite characters has their share of flaws that they acknowledge and eventually overcome for Dawn it was overconfidence, for May her naiveté, Serena her lack of direction, Clemont his lack of self-confidence. The list could honestly go on and on.

For Iris, it was her immaturity. One could look at the fact, her calling Ash out on his own immaturity, her being hypocritical. However, Iris could have easily been using this as a coping/defence mechanism for dealing with that aspect of her personality. During her time at Opelucid Academy when she was younger, Iris’ immaturity caused her to struggle with forming relationships with the other students and feel isolated.

However, just like Dawn and to some extent Goh, Iris struggled with overconfidence in the past as well. After Iris caught Excadrill as a Drilbur, the two battled other trainers and Pokémon frequently culminating in a 99-battle winning streak that triggered Drilbur’s evolution. Iris then battled Drayden without considering the possibility that she was outmatched against Drayden and his Haxorus. Iris and Excadrill subsequently lost the battle and Excadrill closed himself off from his trainer.

In this scenario, it was a combination of Iris’ immaturity and overconfidence that resulted in Excadrill’s loss of faith in her as a trainer. As she never considered, his feelings throughout the battle. Nevertheless, overconfidence, when we meet her in the present wasn’t necessarily an issue as the battle, she had with Drayden was probably a humbling experience similar to Dawn’s losses in the Performance stages of Contests.

The stepping stones towards Iris maturing begin in Iris and Excadrill Against the Dragon Buster! Which was honestly one of my favourite episodes of BW. Not only as Iris, opened up to Ash and Cilan, but forced her to confront her own issues with communicating and forming relationships with others. Which was honestly a refreshing twist on the rebellious Pokémon story.

This is what makes Dragonite’s arc and disobedience all the more frustrating as I feel as though, it diminishes Excadrill’s arc and Iris’ development. As Iris, initially, didn’t understand Dragonite’s disobedient behaviour, which, to be fair, I don’t blame her as Dragonite willingly joined her party only to turn around, completely ignore her commands in battle and not even fully acknowledge her as his trainer.

As I mentioned in the previous section, as the series went on, the insults on Ash’s maturity did die down. This could have been for several reasons, Ash and Iris understandably grew closer as they travelled, Iris began to feel more comfortable with herself and her flaws particularly after her battle with Drayden. I speculate because BW doesn’t really flesh out the characters as much as other series have in the past.

Although, one final aspect, I find rather strange about her character is her Cryophobia (fear of the cold/ice). Iris’ logic for this fear being that Dragon-types are weak to Ice-types however as Trip pointed out Dragon-types are also weak to other Dragon-types. Yet Iris just shrugs this comment off, and, later we see her battling against other Ice-types and apparently got over this phobia in Crisis at Ferroseed Research! When she was trapped in a room with her rival’s Vanilluxe and commanded it to help them and others escape. I’m aware phobias are meant to be irrational but I have to agree with Trip that even Iris’ logic towards her phobia was a tad irrational. There is a difference between disliking something and being scared of it, as Iris, at one point had stated she disliked the cold. I understand this was probably played out for comedic aspects but it was just strange and stupid. Especially, given the fact in the games and manga adaptation, she owns a Lapras.

Moving on, to the more positive aspects of Iris’ personality. Whilst, Iris may have suffered socially with human characters, she is shown to have found it easier to form connections with Pokémon in general, not just Dragon-types. Iris’ ability to befriend Pokémon, could easily stem from the fact she grew up in a rural area of a, particularly urban region. This aspect of Iris’ character has aided her on several occasions such as Baffling the Bouffalant! Whilst lost in Bouffalant territory, Iris performed first aid on an injured Bouffalant, Iris’ kindness was later rewarded when the Bouffalant helped guide the group outside of its territory.

Another example of Iris’ ability to empathize with Pokémon, is shown in A Village Homecoming! In which, Iris was able to calm a distressed Hydreigon with the help of her Pokémon. This was honestly, one of Iris’ best moments in the series as it reflected Iris’ growth from her ability to understand a Pokémon’s emotions to her abilities as a Dragon Master.

In addition to her ability to befriend Pokémon with ease, Iris is shown to be free-spirited (which is probably a result of the environment she was raised in), confident in her abilities and able to speak her mind. Whilst apprehensive of Ash at the beginning, she is shown to care for him as the series continues, this can be reflected in Ash’s battle with Roxie, where Iris opted to act as a cheering squad for Ash similar to what Dawn did for him.

Iris is shown to be an adept battler, this can be reflected in the fact she once had a 99-battle winning streak and won the Club Battle.

Iris’ Goal:

Iris’ goal is to become a Dragon Master, however, by the end of Black and White, Iris opts to travel to Johto to battle Clair and following the conclusion of that battle she opts to follow the direction she saw Rayquaza flying. When I look at this conclusion, I’m honestly confused, I have no sense of whether or not Iris is any closer to achieving her goal. Or even throughout the series, we get no sense of how anyone who wants to master any Pokémon typing reaches their goal, a majority of type specialists typically end up in the position of Gym Leader or Elite Four. But Iris never once expressed a desire to be a Gym Leader or any higher-ranking position. Which, makes Drayden decision to choose Iris as his successor, all the more unusual to me. I suppose in one way it gives Iris a position/goal to work towards but given Iris’ free-spirited personality, having someone choose her path rather than choosing it herself feels unnatural.

Additionally, an obvious method to becoming a type specialist is catching Pokémon of the same type you want to specialize in and little more than half of Iris’ team actually consist of Dragon-types. I understand Gym Leaders having at least one alternative type to give their team diversity and cover their weaknesses. As shown by Candice owning a Medicham and Piers having a Toxtricity in his party later in the SW/SH games. But, Excadrill fits the bill more than Emolga as Excadrill is part of Steel-type which covers Iris’ team’s weaknesses to Ice and the newly introduced Fairy-types. That is not to say that I dislike Emolga or anything but it felt like she was an unusual catch.

I think if the writers did a better job as well at establishing Iris’ goals – we understand she wants to be a Dragon Master, but does she want to become a gym leader? A caretaker of Dragon-types (similar to Liza of Charicific Valley)? If they had established this from the beginning, we would have had a better understanding of the direction they wanted to take with Iris’ development.

Iris and her Pokemon:

Now, this is one aspect of Iris’ story that I felt could have definitely been written better, as I mentioned, Iris wants to be a Dragon Master, however, only 3/5 of her team are actually Dragon-types. In addition to this, throughout the series, Iris has attempted to catch Pokémon outside of her type specialities such as Ash’s Oshawott, Tepig and even Team Rocket’s Meowth. Moreover, Iris is meant to be a highly skilled trainer, yet she’s had more disobedient Pokémon than any other main character aside from Axew and Gible the rest of Iris’ Pokémon have been disobedient at some point. Which, kind of reflects poorly on her skills and character.

Axew:

I like to think of the characters’ first Pokémon or their partner Pokémon as a mirror reflecting their growth. Take May and Blaziken, they mirror one another’s development perfectly as when Blaziken was a Torchic much like May, he was inexperienced and unsure of himself. When Torchic evolved to Combusken, at this point May had won two Contest Ribbons and began to feel confident in her Coordinating skills. Once, Torchic evolved into Combusken he developed that same level of confidence, he didn’t feel the need to compete for May’s attention and wasn’t bullied or intimidated by other Pokémon like Ash’s Corphish. Then Combusken evolves to Blaziken in the penultimate episode, once May had decided to leave the group, travel through Johto on her own and find her own battling style. At this point, May has chosen to become independent and this reflects in Combusken, her first Pokémon evolving into his final stage. My point being I like to think every travelling companions’ ace reflects their character growth and I don’t get that same feeling with Iris and Axew.

The whole point of Iris’ journey was to raise Axew into a Haxorus. For a majority of the series, Axew was Iris’ only Dragon-type and in the sixth episode, he has a dream of evolving into his final stage. After that, the idea of Axew evolving is hardly addressed. As I’ve mentioned, evolving or choosing not to evolve are one method of allowing Pokémon to develop, considering, Axew has expressed a desire to evolve, I think he should have at least evolved into Fraxure before the BW series concluded. As aside from him learning Dragon-type moves and developing as a battler, once, Dragonite’s introduced he’s kind of pushed to the sidelines and doesn’t develop any further.

Even in Iris’ battle against Clair she opts to use Dragonite instead and develops a telepathic connection with him? (I honestly don’t know). Surely, if Iris is going to develop a telepathic bond with any of her Pokémon it should be Axew, her starter. They could have utilised the battle with Clair as a way for Axew to evolve, they could have still lost but Iris and Axew (or Fraxure) would have developed and deepened their bond.

In Episode 65 of Journeys, just as many fans predicted Axew had evolved all the way to his final evolution, Haxorus. My only issue with this is why couldn’t he have at least evolved once during his time in BW. I think many fans would have loved to have seen the moment Axew had evolved into Fraxure and later Haxorus.

Excadrill:

Out of all of Iris’ Pokémon, Excadrill is probably my favourite despite the fact he’s not even a Dragon-type. What I love about Excadrill, is the twist in the rebellious Pokémon story, don’t get me wrong I loved the arcs with Ash’s Charizard and Dawn’s Mamoswine but I love it when they spice up or change the formula. In this scenario, it was Iris’ immaturity and inability to understand her Pokémon’s feelings that caused Excadrill to close himself off. Excadrill’s arc was honestly one of my favourite arcs of BW, as Excadrill acted as the trigger to Iris’ character development.

Not to mention for a while, Excadrill was Iris’ ace, understandably as in the beginning, Axew was still developing as a battler and Emolga had her little Volt Switch tactic. There’s also the fact, Excadrill helps cover Iris’ team weaknesses to Ice and later the newly introduced Fairy type also being part Steel-type, Excadrill resists Dragon-type moves. Not to mention, Excadrill helped Iris win the Club Battle, battled against Tornadus and Thundrus and drew against Drayden’s Haxorus after losing to the Axe Jaw Pokémon many years ago. Is just a testament, to Excadrill’s strength.

However, I use the phrase “for a while”, since like the rest of the Iris’ Pokémon, once, Dragonite’s introduced they are kind of pushed to the side and don’t develop any further. However, despite the lack of character development following his arc, I still love Excadrill and his story.

Emolga:

Now, Emolga is a Pokémon, I’m not sure how I feel about it. I loved her personality, but my issue is why did Iris need to catch Emolga? Emolga is an Electric/Flying-type, so she doesn’t really aid in Iris reaching her goal nor does her typing contribute strategically to Iris’ team as she doesn’t help cover any weaknesses. Also, aside from her initial disobedience when she’s first caught, Emolga doesn’t really experience any character development, she doesn’t have a character arc like Excadrill or has a rival (aside from Snivy) that she has to overcome.

I honestly don’t have much to say about Emolga, as they never really gave her story, she just felt like an unusual catch.

Dragonite:

I will be honest; I am not a huge fan of Iris’ Dragonite. Firstly, it felt as though, the writers forgot to give her an additional Dragon-type and just rewarded her with this random Dragonite. Secondly, there is the fact, that Dragonite was disobedient towards Iris despite the fact he joined her team willingly. Thirdly, he single handedly ruins all of the character development Iris had built up to that point. During the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup, Iris has tantrums during her battles when Dragonite doesn’t listen to her. His continuous victories, caused Iris to be overconfident, kept using him despite the risks and was surprised when she lost. After the match, Cynthia explains Dragonite doesn’t have complete confidence in Iris as a trainer. My question ends up being, why join someone you don’t have complete and utter confidence in? Did Dragonite see some sort of potential in Iris? I honestly don’t know. I just found Dragonite’s whole arc frustrating as he completely diminished Iris’ development up to that point and undermines Excadrill’s arc.

Iris has had some of her best moments throughout the series with the other Unovan Dragon-types such as Druddigon and Deino both of which would have been great captures for her particularly Deino as she has a Hydreigon in the games.

Also, HE. SHOULD. HAVE. LOST. TO. DAWN’S. MAMOSWINE!!!! (and I’m not just saying that because I love Dawn and her Mamoswine)

Additionally, for every trainer we’ve had so far, their ace tends to be their starter. However, with Iris at one stage it was Excadrill and later it became Dragonite. During, Iris’ battle with Clair, she develops a telepathic connection with him (I honestly didn’t understand), we’ve seen trainers communicate with their Pokémon, non-verbally but they’ve all tended to be Psychic-types, which is what makes this scenario stranger. Dragonite ends up overshadowing the rest of Iris’ Pokémon and they don’t develop any further after he joins the party.

If the writers absolutely felt that they had to give Iris a Dragonite, they could have at least done it whilst she was in Johto since Dragonite’s pre-evolutions can be found in Dragon’s Den and Route 45. It honestly would have made more sense than giving her a Gible which isn’t even native to Johto and we haven’t even been given a hint on whether or not Gible is appearing in the next episode.

Pokémon Conclusion:

I know Iris caught a Gible and Episode 65 mentioned she caught a Goodra (which I honestly don’t why they keep giving her the same Pokémon as Ash) but I don’t know enough about either of them to write anything analytically. Generally, I tend to love certain Pokémon because of the way they are portrayed in the anime or whether they belonged to a certain character I liked. Nevertheless, a character’s Pokémon team is meant to help contribute towards their development. However, with Iris’ team it is difficult to say, Excadrill for a short period definitely contributed towards Iris’ growth, but I felt that was ruined by Dragonite’s appearance. It doesn’t help that Haxorus evolved off-screen so we don’t even get to see the build-up towards his evolution. That’s why I feel like Iris’ Pokémon could have been one aspect of her character that could have been written better.

Iris’ Rivals:

We’ve had some amazing rivals throughout the series, some of my favourite rivals include Drew, Paul, Ursula, the list could go on and on. For me a good rival is someone I’m cheering on the main character to beat, I feel disappointed when they don’t and ecstatic and proud when they do. The BW series introduced a plethora of rivals not only for Ash, even Iris and Cilan had their own rivals.

For Iris, it was a girl called Georgia, who aims to defeat every Dragon-type trainer after suffering a defeat from a trainer at the Village of Dragons. When Georgia, is first introduced alongside Excadrill, I felt as though she was a trigger for Iris’ character development as she unintendedly triggered the events that allowed Iris to repair her relationship with Excadrill. However, it goes downhill, a rival is meant to encourage the main characters to better themselves and work hard to eventually defeat them. Yet, I feel like Iris does this more for Georgia rather than the other way around. Georgia actually captures Pokémon that have an advantage over or resist Dragon-types, rightly complains about Iris’ lack of Dragon-types despite aiming to be a Dragon Master and Georgia actually lives up to her goal by defeating several Dragon-types during tournaments.

If Georgia appeared more frequently and actually battled Iris (because in 2 out of the 3 tournament arcs, she’s knocked before even gets to battle Iris) we would engage with her more as a rival especially if she was someone difficult to defeat. I liked the fact that each of the main characters receiving a rival, however, in story-telling wise they fall flat as after her introductory episode Georgia doesn’t help progress Iris’ character development. Moreover, the characters’ main rivals tend to gain the most development, yet, Georgia hardly develops, she doesn’t accept her losses unless it is a Dragon-type or she blames her losses on circumstances such as the battlefield. Georgia’s pettiness and immaturity, honestly, reminds me of Harley and Ursula.

However, aside from Georgia, characters such as Drayden, Cynthia or Clair I don’t really see as rivals. Firstly, I don’t see Drayden as a rival, I’m not even sure what he’s meant to be, as Iris appears intimidated by him following their battle at the Village of Dragons and her experience at Opelucid Academy. He was the one that recommended Iris go on a journey rather than attend school. Considering, Iris is a child, being treated like this she would get the impression that Drayden doesn’t like her, which, is no wonder she is shocked when he announces his decision to choose her as his successor. In the games, they are shown to be close, as Iris affectionately refers to Drayden as “Grandpa”, I think if they transferred that relationship into the anime, it would have made Drayden’s choice of selecting Iris as his successor feel a lot more natural.

Cynthia is definitely someone I didn’t see as a rival for Iris, however, given that Iris is a champion now that might change. However, I’ll write with the material I have, it was clear Iris looked up to Cynthia due to her ace being part Dragon-type (which may be why the writers felt the need to give her a Gible). Aside, from their battle and giving Iris advice on her relationship with Dragonite. The two hardly interact, to me Cynthia was more of an inspiration or role model for Iris to look up to.

Finally, we have Clair, who I feel is more of a mentor and role model for Iris rather than a rival. I understand the two had a battle in the BW special, however, that battle felt more like a learning experience for Iris and deepened her bond with Dragonite. To be fair, Clair is an ideal role model for Iris in comparison to Cynthia (despite being a champion) Clair actually specialises in Dragon-types and she is respected amongst other Dragon-users. Although Clair isn’t a rival (at least not in my eyes) as a mentor she helped Iris grow during their brief encounters, the fact that Clair had a cameo in Journeys, shows her contribution towards Iris’ development.

Despite, the fact, BW definitely had a plethora of rivals for the main characters a majority of them fell short, they were either annoying, hardly contributed towards the story or any development or just appeared once. It was refreshing to see, rivals introduced for goals such as a Dragon Master and a Pokémon Connoisseur, as I wasn’t sure how rivals could be implemented for such goals aside from aiming for the same goal as previous rivals. Nevertheless, Georgia was meant to be Iris’ primary rival and aside from her first appearance, she hardly contributed to Iris’ overall development. They hardly battled, Georgia hardly appeared and Georgia didn’t develop much either. All in all, the writers fell short writing a good rival for Iris.

Journeys:

I understand I’m a bit late since Episode 65 aired a few weeks ago. Like many fans, I was impressed by Iris’ growth during her absence, culminating in her becoming the Unova Champion. Although this leaves me a bit confused as to when Iris left the series, she was set to be Drayden’s successor as the Opelucid Gym Leader, now that she’s a Champion does this mean Drayden has to find an alternative successor? It kind of renders the whole homecoming arc in BW, kind of pointless.

Drayden explains how Iris during her absence from the series continued to meet and battle with other Dragon-type trainers and alludes to the fact she’s caught a Gible (which we knew) and a Goodra, I don’t understand why they keep giving Iris these random Dragon-types that Ash has also caught. Did Iris catch Goodra in Kalos? Did she meet Drasna of the Kalos Elite Four? Anyway, what I like about this whole scene, is despite being Champion, Iris still doesn’t feel as though she has accomplished her goal of becoming a Dragon Master. Whilst, I respect the fact Iris still wants to grow as a trainer, it raises the question of what does it take to become a Dragon Master? Does it differ from person to person?

Additionally, they’ve explained the ability Iris developed in the BW special, as an ability to read a Dragon Pokémon’s emotions. Which to be honest, I still find it a bit baffling, it's understandable for Psychic-type specialists and to some extent, Ghost-type specialists as Phoebe of the Hoenn Elite Four can apparently communicate with ghosts, but, for the sake of the story, I’ll accept it.

I was impressed with the battle and comedy aspects of this episode with my favourite moments being the looks Emolga and Pikachu gave their trainers when they were bickering and when Iris and Ash quite literally blew the roof of the gym. I mean to be fair; it should be a requirement at this point that Gyms need an open roof in the Pokémon world just to avoid this kind of incident.

The battle I was impressed with, subverted some of my expectations and worries, as I thought it would follow the pattern of Ash’s battle with Korrina where Gengar was swiftly defeated and Dragonite took down both of Korrina’s Pokémon. I felt bad for poor Dragonite being intimidated by Iris’ Dragonite (his glare reminds me of Harley’s Wigglytuff) and Ash being the good trainer that he is recalls Dragonite. This bit, I loved as it shows Ash’s compassion as a trainer. We had the bit we were waiting for! Ash actually using Dracovish, I feel as though Dracovish is definitely one of the weaker aspects of Ash’s character in this series as in Episode 63, aside from Water Gun, he didn’t know Dracovish’s moves or the fact he runs faster underwater (although to be fair Dracovish is a new species of Pokémon that people hardly know anything about so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt). I feel if we’d seen Ash training with Dracovish, the build-up to this battle would have been so much better and we could have seen a stronger bond between Ash and Dracovish form.

Part of me is relieved was that Dracovish didn’t go on to defeat Dragonite and Haxorus as the lack of screen-time with Dracovish could not justify that outcome. However, I’m still not satisfied with the outcome of this battle. In my previous analysis, I mentioned that I didn’t want them to pull the same stunt they did with Korrina, and what did they go and do? I understand Ash is also a Champion, however, they built up the fact Dragonite fully accepts Iris as his trainer, her Axew is now fully evolved and is her ace (as he should have been from the start!) and then they go and make her lose!

Like Korrina, this completely undermines all of Iris’ efforts in her absence and continues my biggest gripe with Journeys being pacing. Don’t get me wrong, I love Ash and I love seeing him succeed but when they build up a character returning like this people were kind of hoping Iris would win or draw with Ash (which would at least minimize the pacing issue slightly). In my opinion, a draw would have been a more satisfying conclusion, as it would reflect on both Iris and Ash’s growth during their time apart in a more positive light.

Conclusion:

This extended analysis has been long overdue and I think it has allowed me to elevate my opinion of Iris but due to some weird writing choices. I don’t feel that same level of attachment that I��ve felt towards other travelling companions. But writing this analysis helped me see that a lot of the hate towards her is exaggerated. As she has had some great moments and development throughout BW. One of my favourite arcs in BW, was Iris restoring her relationship with Excadrill which was one of the most poignant moments of the series.

Overall, this analysis has not only helped improve my opinion on Iris but when a character we’re meant to like is written poorly, we’re less likely to like them or engage with them as well as you would with another character. This is why I’m having such an issue with Journeys at the moment and why I needed to take a little break from it. Although, I may watch the Gary episode, just to see Infernape in action again! Along with the rest of Ash’s Pokémon!

#pokemon #pokeani #iris (pokemon)#analysis

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shisabun · 5 years

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Promare: A Spoiler Infested Breakdown

This is a breakdown and thus has spoilers. You have been informed. Long ago in the somewhat, but not too distant, future there was a Himbo named Galo. He wanted to be the best firefighter that ever was to honor the man that saved him. Governor Not-Cray Cray. This is a convenient goal to have in a society where people sometimes burst into flames. But this is ok, because only the everything around these people get hurt. Despite this being a thing for over 30 years, no one in the world thought to build their everything out of fire retardant materials. But this is also ok, because firefighters are still a thing and are still good at their jobs. Enter Himbo, master of sticks and the literal best thing in this movie. All he wants is to keep people from burning. Even the people who cause the burning, though others think this is impossible. He is joined in his quest by Fire Chief Mustache, The Bookworm, Barret from Final Fantasy, and two token females who wear horribly inappropriate clothing for firefighting. But this is ok because they both have support roles. One flies a rescue plane that has no seat belts and the other is science. You know this thanks to her lab coat. They’re joined by their trusty fire house rat because in the somewhat future dogs don’t exist. You know that he too is a fireman due to his epic hat. Himbo and The Squad are called out to put out a building that’s on fire. They’re doing a great job at their job until Off Brand Kiss shows up in all their flaming glory. Himbo decides this is a great time to show the world his love for all things history and wipes the floor with two of them, despite highly trained professionals not being able to do this in 30 years. But the lead singer of this glamour goth band is too firey for our hero until he’s revealed to be a twink in disguise. Leo the Twink is taken to fire people prison with is two fabulous goons only to break out three seconds later because this was obviously part of the plan that no one saw coming. Until they did.

Meanwhile Himbo and The Squad are enjoying pizza like all American’s from Japan do when pizza man is arrested for being a fire person. This upsets Himbo cuz pizza man made the best pizzas in all the land. He rides off to sulk at the Frozen Lake of Future Importance, which no one knows about and wont be important later at all maybe. Token chick #1, AKA Misty from Pokemon, tries to bond with Himbo, but his flaming twink senses start to tingle and he rides off to seek said Twink out. He’s captured by the fire people and Himbo and Twink bond over orphans and the ashy remains of a dead girl. Before peacing out Twink informs Himbo that Governor Not-Cray Cray is in fact Cray. This upsets Himbo and he decides to confront Cray Cray alone without telling anyone what he’s heard. This of course ends exactly how you’d think. With the death of pizza man. Himbo is locked in prison and cries. In this moment we all knew that Governor Cray would have to die. As this is going on, Governor Crazy has his lacky Sharkweek break into Twink’s crib and jack all his homies. Turns out fire people make excellent batteries and Gov. Cray wants to use them to fly away to another planet to save the human race because Earth is about to turn into a giant pyroball. This leads to Twink literally blowing his top and going all Dragon Heart on the situation, in the only way the lead singer of Off Brand Kiss can. An epic music video. His rampage frees Himbo who decides they should all hug it out. They land on the Frozen Lake of Current Importance and melt it. Turns out Captain Exposition lived in the bottom of that lake and he tells Twink, Himbo, and Misty who is there for some reason, that the techno-colored 80’s fire is in fact aliens from a parallel dimension because why not. He then tells them to shut up and get in the Deux Ex Machina Bot to fight Cray Cray. They go all Outlaw Star on them but aren’t doing so well because Himbo is sad that Deux Ex Machina isn’t asthetic. Luckily Twink is moved by this and decides to give them a fabulous flaming makeover that leads to Himbo naming their new mega bot after them. Twink begrudgingly accepts the fact that they are now dating. They fight Gov. Cray Cray’s giant robot and find out that he was a fire person all along which everyone guessed half way through the movie, but who cares! Himbo tries to save his captured Twink and is almost killed by Crayola. But he is saved by the literal flaming power of love. The Squad show up because they exist and help Himbo rescue Twink from the evil clutches of Crayola. But Twink is hurt and dying only to be saved by the literal flaming power of love. Himbo demands that Twink take responsibility for this, and Twink decides to do just that because he’s a good egg. He convinces Himbo that they can save the world by joining together. They perform a gay gem fusion with the help from intergalactic parallel dimension alien fire balls because sure. Their love burns so brightly that they literally burn the entire Earth and every other planet in the solar system. This apparently fixes everything and all the fire balls go back to their own house because we’re sick of them burning everything dang it. Twink and Himbo decide that they’re now married and seal the deal with the manliest of bro-fists, before Himbo asks that all the former fire people help them clean up the mess. In conclusion: Promare is an amazing visual masterpiece with excellent story telling and kick ass music and literally everyone should see it.

#promare #promare a spoiler infested breakdown #breakdown #lio de galon #galo thymos #lio fotia #leo fotia #kray foresight #governor kray #galolio #galoleo #trigger

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pokeshippingflashfic · 5 years

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Askfic off the top of my head. Someone calls Misty a harpy after she scolds them for mistreating... ?

“Jeezus, you’re a real class act, huh?”

“Excuse me?” the redhead shrieked in a somewhat breathless tone, arms somewhere between crossing defensively over her chest and posturing before her, fists instantaneously ready to physically defend herself.

“Yikes, I wish I’d known before I left town that I was gonna need earplugs today. What a drag…” the opposing young girl shrugged with a hint of a snide smirk.

“Look, just ‘cause you wanna turn around and insult me for calling you out doesn’t mean I’m gonna walk away and pretend I didn’t see what I saw!”

“And if you’d look, you’d realize that what you saw is none of your business anyway, okay? So why don’t you just turn your scrawny self around and get outta here! These are my Pokemon and I can train them how I want!”

Misty scowled, fingers itching to grab the girl by her neck and wring it until she was more disposed to listening to a more knowledgeable person’s advice.

“I’m telling you as someone who’s seen it before, treating Magikarp like this is dangerous.”

“I have no reason to trust you just because you say you know better! I caught these Pokemon myself for the sole purpose of evolving them! A full team of super strong Gyarados on my side? Hardly anyone will stand a chance!” the young female trainer guffawed.

An overall distant memory of being stranded at sea with some of her worst enemies and, at the time, more acquaintances than friends fluttered to the top of Misty’s mind. Their raft capsized and she was overcome with cold, dark, and loneliness.

This was followed by a somewhat more recent recollection of her first day as the covering Cerulean Gym lead trainer, trying her best to tame the territorial and abandoned Gyarados her sisters had left behind when they went on their voyage.

Now, months later, she was finally able to spend a few days with her friends again, had escaped Team Rocket’s latest mon-napping attempt or few and found an opportunity to relax, only to stumble on a stranger using pseudo-abusive training to force their Pokemon to evolve as fast as possible. She was only supposed to be refilling the group’s canteens again for the rest of the night!

Her wary gaze dropped sympathetically to the rather pathetic looking three water-types flailing uselessly in the stream before her, a somewhat aggressive electric-type Misty loosely recognized from the Hoenn region named Electrike posturing on their haunches between them with electricity crackling around its head.

By the time she’d shaken herself from her reverie and returned to the present, the younger lass had turned haughtily on her heel and appeared to be preparing her electric-type to attack her other Pokemon again.

“Wait!” the redhead cried desperately, one step taken instinctively forward even with her arms full of canteens dangling from their straps. But what else was there to say? Other than looking temporarily the worse for wear, the three Magikarp didn’t seem to be malnourished, ill, or afraid. And though the voice in the back of her head was still demanding her warning be validated, another part of her wondered if the girl was right. What business was this of hers?

“Misty? I thought that was you!” a familiar voice called out from somewhere behind her.

“Oh, Ash–”

“–Ugh, now your dumb friends are butting in?!”

“Mwah?!” Ash replied, dismayed at the slight to his ego immediately after his arrival, clutching the firewood he’d offered to gather more tightly in his arms.

“Look, I’ll tell you what I already told her! I can train my Pokemon how I want! This was my plan from the start, to toughen them up and push them to evolve! I’m not doing anything wrong! And you!” she rounded on Misty once more, Ash forgotten in the background though he still appeared to be trying to piece one and one together, frantically glancing between the two girls. “Why are you still even here, you harpy?! Screeching and wailing for me to do what you say?! I don’t owe you such courtesy! I don’t even know you so I have no reason to listen to you!”

“Wha - hey, wait a sec!” the younger male trainer shouted obstinately now before Misty’s fiery spirit could kick in. And to her (rather pleasant, if she were being honest) surprise, Ash leaped in front of her as if to protect her from anymore emotional damage. “I don’t know what’s goin’ on but Misty was probably just trying to help! … Uh, right?” he finished awkwardly, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.

The redhead found herself nodding mutely, still shocked at his apparent chivalry. Glancing past him, she saw the female trainer gritting her teeth, brow furrowed, mortified at what probably felt akin to two strangers ganging up on her. And it hit her instantaneously that she’d found the source of the opposing girl’s bitterness.

Maybe if I try a softer approach?

“Look, I know it might not mean anything…” she began calmly and swiftly, unceremoniously dropping her armful of canteens to the ground and taking a cautious step forward, “but I’m actually a gym leader from this region.”

“Pssht, yeah right!” the lass responded stubbornly, arms crossed defensively over her chest. A few seconds passed before she glanced suspiciously at her would-be attacker, “… Which gym?”

“Uh, in Cerulean. The gym belongs to my family. My name is Misty.”

Perhaps it was the city name or the sound of the redhead’s identity sounding semi-familiar but the girl responded with sudden embarrassed comprehension, though she quickly stifled it so nobody would notice.

“W - well, even if that’s true…” she stuttered instead, gaze alternating between aversion and boldness before she trailed off.

It took every ounce of Misty’s willpower not to roll her eyes. She was finally making progress though so she couldn’t forfeit now.

“I li - love Pokemon but… water-types are my favorite. I’ve always liked them most of all and my dream is to eventually be the best water-type master trainer in the world,” the redhead continued, taking another discreet step forward and offering a halfhearted glance in the direction of the group of Pokemon in the background.

“I know how important it is to be the strongest. The best. I mean, even at home, I wasn’t allowed to help with the gym until pretty recently. And if I really plan to be a master, I know… that there’s a lot I still have to learn and do to prove myself to everyone. But…”

“Ngh…!” The girl was very clearly going through an internal struggle.

Finally facing her supposed adversary, Misty took a firm hold of the other girl’s hands and tugged softly, enough so they were inclined to look each other in the eye.

“… But finding shortcuts like these, though tempting, never ends well. I’ve seen newly evolved Gyarados create storms and wreak havoc intense enough to almost kill people. I mean, I have a Gyarados now myself!” And, before the girl could interrupt, Misty went on, “But the first time we met, he tried t - to drown me.”

She was faintly aware of Ash, still relatively close in case things escalated again, straightening his back, breath caught in his throat at this news. Her story also appeared to have quite the effect on her intended audience, as the young lass before her stared wide-eyed and mouth slightly agape.

“Gyarados are violent and impulsive, instinctive and distrusting. If you really want a whole squad of them to help you prove yourself in this world… then you need to put in the work too. It’s the only way you’re going to earn their loyalty and respect.”

Things were awkwardly silent for the following minute or so. Making one last effort to break the tension, the redhead pulled her hands away long enough to rummage in her bag, removing a small spray bottle and holding it out.

“Here’s a super potion. It may not be enough to get your Magikarp all back to perfect health but it should help for now if they share it. And, for the record, you were right. None of this here is really any of my business but… I guess I just hope you’ll make the right choice in the end.”

The trip back to their group’s campsite roughly ten minutes later was steeped in pregnant and tense quiet murky enough to almost bowl her over. Misty had walked a few minutes away after their conversation to finally complete her task of filling canteens and hadn’t had the nerve to check back in with the girl before returning to their friends.

She could only wonder if she’d really gotten through…

Ash’s pace slowed, he fell a little further in step behind her, but intended to follow through with his inquiry anyway.

“So… that story about Gyarados nearly drowning you? Is that… I guess that’s true, huh?”

Her step faltered too, mind racing as she contemplated her response. Part of her had expected he wouldn’t ask, another part had expected he might even if it would be hard to talk about.

“Uh… yeah.”

“Oh. I guess… when we met him in Hoenn, I didn’t… get that impression. He seemed so…”

“… Loyal and respectful?” she volunteered with a knowing half-smile. “Well, how else would I have known what to say before? Trust begets trust and love begets love. It’s a good lesson to learn, Mr. Pokemon Master.”

“Does stuff like… like that happen often since returning to Cerulean?” he went on, and Misty blinked, impressed by his curiosity.

She was very briefly overwhelmed with memories of her other adventures; PIA Agent Joy secretly inspecting her gym, those awful brothers from Viridian stalking her and seeking vengeance, being attacked by Pokemon and Team Rocket on several occasions…

“Well,” she offered with the faintest giggle, and Ash was grateful for the cover of darkness hiding his flushed cheeks, “no more often than when we traveled together for sure.”

“But that was different!” His response was automatic, almost oversensitive. She hadn’t expected them to talk in such detail about this situation. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought she’d get a rise out of Ash like this. She was torn between taking offense or having her uncertainty put to rest.

“Oh yeah? How’s that?”

She wondered, albeit briefly, if he was about to blame himself somehow. Alas…

“Because! We had each other then, didn’t we? But now that you’re home…” he trailed off, looked at the ground before kicking a pebble in frustration. Where were the words he needed? And the courage to say them to her for that matter! “Now… we don’t… you don’t have me, ‘yknow, there.”

He was suddenly feeling quite overheated, cheeks and neck and ears uncomfortably toasty after his confession.

“… Oh.”

Well, that was unexpected.

“Y - yeah, so you need to take better care of yourself from now on!” he practically yelped in complaint before stomping forward and passing her by, still refusing to look her in the eye in case she noticed his predicament.

... Hypocrite! she replied internally, surprised that it was accompanied by a suppressed bark of laughter as she picked up the pace to rejoin him.

A good thing too because apparently their conversation wasn’t over.

“That all being said… I think ya handled that really well back there. These kinds of situations can be tricky…” To conceal his lack of breath at such flattering commentary, he continued rambling, “Uh, what’s it called? Like a gray area? It reminds me of when we met AJ right after we first started traveling together.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess it’s sort of the same, huh…?” she replied softly, almost wistfully. “Still no way to know if I made the right call… But I think I did what was best for her and her Pokemon so that’s… really all that I can expect of myself.”

They were one wall of foliage away from their friends now. Ash had resorted to awkwardly clearing his throat, refusing to look her in the eye. Misty, unsure if it was the frustrating prospect of being cornered by a curious May, Max, and Brock later over such odd behavior, or else an impish streak hoping test Ash’s patience one last time tonight, or even the genuine friend in her hoping to give a little something back after all the emotional intimacy he’d bared for her this evening, decided to go for it.

“Y’know Ash, I think you handled yourself well tonight too.”

He stared blankly back at her, one brow just beginning to furrow as he begged the question, “Uh… I did? How?”

She felt an instant warmth spread from her chest to her limbs, heartbeat so violently loud she could feel it pulsing in her fingertips as they unconsciously twirled around a particular canteen strap from anxiety. Still, the memory of Ash stepping to her defense and placing himself between her and any perceived threat had been quite the romantic experience. Not to mention the other precious pieces of himself he’d proffered over the past hour or so…

“Oh, I mean, it’s nothing much. I just wanted you to know that I’m grateful you showed up tonight, I guess. Now let’s get back. I’m surprised they didn’t start looking for us after all this time!” And they crashed unanimously through the underbrush, stumbling back to their destination for the night, one final thought crossing Misty’s mind.

With Ash’s heart sewn so loosely on his sleeve, it was quite easy to tell even after all this time… exactly how he felt about her.

[Btw, my intention was that this fic took place during the short time Ash and Misty travel together again with May, Max, and Brock after Ash’s return from Hoenn.

Btw x2, if you’re so obliged, please reblog this fic and spread news of this blog. I know posts are slower now, work is hectic and I don’t have as much time to write, but I would like to get some more fic requests. Every time I ask lately I’ve only gotten 0-1 at a time.]

#pokeshipping #flash fic #fanfiction #aaml #ash x misty #requests #word count: 1748 #faolenwolf

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zdbztumble · 5 years

Text

“Jewel of the Seven Pokemon!” Chapter I

I’ve had the basic idea for this fic for over a year. It’s one part Fright Night (1985), one part Bram Stoker book, and one part standard BW episode! (And a little bit of Pokeshipping thrown in, because it’s me.)

With any luck, I’ll get this finished within the month of October, with the finale published on Halloween. That may prove unrealistic, but in any event, do enjoy the first entry in my first chaptered Pokefic!

(Also available on FF.Net and AO3)

---

“Joy!” Cilan cried. “Exquisite! Rapture!”

“Does he have to celebrate out loud?” Iris asked dryly. Ash had the feeling she was talking to herself, so he didn’t bother to answer. He was pretty excited himself – the detour back to Virbank City wasn’t something he’d been crazy about at first, but when Cilan told them that they could get into one of the real, working film studios, Ash was all for it. The studio was even one Ash had heard about growing up in Kanto – Worldwide Pictures, one of the biggest movie companies in the world, with a backlot tour that showed off all sorts of famous sets and live shows! Ash could still remember the big, glossy magazine his mom had shown him, loaded with photos of the tour. The linked-up tram cars, the Little Kalos set, the robot Sharpedo; it had all been there.

It wasn’t here now. As soon as they’d arrived, a nervous-looking kid in glasses was out by the gate, explaining to a disappointed crowd that the trams were down for repairs, and that the usual tour wouldn’t be possible.

“B-b-but don’t worry!” she stammered. “T-to make up f-f-for it, w-we’re offering w-walking tours! As long as you follow the y-yellow lines on the ground…”

“WALKING TOURS!?” Cilan threw himself at the attendant. “Do you mean to tell me that we can freely roam one of the most storied film studios in history!?”

“Y-yes – well, you can’t go just anywhere, but –”

But that was all Cilan had needed. He whisked Ash and Iris along into line, nearly tore the pack off Ash’s back looking for the money for tickets, and now led their way through the backlot of Worldwide Pictures on an absolutely beautiful day. It was cool but not cold, the sun was bright, the studio lot was full of excited fans following the yellow lines in small groups, and every now and again, they caught a glimpse of a costumed actor or camera crane being rushed inside one of the huge stages. Cilan kept up a running commentary on everything they passed. Ash understood about half of it.

“Do you see it, Ash?” said Cilan, throwing an arm around Ash as he pointed to a long tan building with a curved blue roof and open doors. “That is Stage 28. It was the first soundstage built in this region, nearly a hundred years ago!”

“Wow…it’s that old?” asked Ash. Movies weren’t something he usually thought about as having been around for that long. I don’t think I’ve even seen any movies older than my mom…

“Ash, Worldwide Pictures is the oldest of the major film companies in Unova!” said Cilan. “It was an innovator of the early days of cinema, the first to relocate to Virbank City from the east, and during the Golden Age of Virbank, it was the studio for mystery, thriller, and horror pictures.”

“Really? Awesome!” It had been forever since Ash had seen a horror movie. The last one was back in Sinnoh, the really weird Alto Marian one with all the bright colors that Dawn thought was so scary that –

A loud scream came from inside Stage 28, sending shivers down Ash’s spine and a frizz through Pikachu’s tail. “Ah,” said Cilan. “It seems such a film is under production as we speak!”

“You think?” asked Ash. Even with the doors open, it was hard to see anything inside the stage, and other than the scream, Ash couldn’t hear anything but a general busy murmur. And when the scream came again, it didn’t sound like something from a horror movie. It sounded excited.

At a third scream, Pikachu perked up. His left ear twitched, and he started to sniff the air. “Hmmm? What’s up, Pikachu?” Ash asked. Pikachu hopped off his shoulder and scampered inside Stage 28. The yellow lines on the ground marked the stage as OK to enter, so Ash didn’t think twice about following.

When his eyes adjusted from the bright sun outside, he saw a massive set, an old-fashioned opera house with balconies, painted backdrops, gold decoration on red walls, and a huge brass chandelier. There was a film crew up on the opera stage, huddled around the camera as they quietly reviewed a script. The bigger crowd was in the seats, as a well-dressed man talked about the set – how it was almost as old as the soundstage itself, that it was originally made for some old movie based on an even older Kalosene book (Le fantôme de la tour Lumiose, or something like that – Ash couldn’t really understand it) and all the films it had been used in.

Pikachu sat on the armrest of one of the chairs in the row nearest to the stage doors, still sniffing. Ash wanted to help him find whatever it was he was looking for, but Ash couldn’t smell anything strange. He couldn’t really see anybody that well either; except for the guide, everyone had their backs to the door.

“…And three years later,” the guide was saying, “this set was used for the theatre scene in Blasko – The Un-dead.”

A member of the crowd jumped up. “OOH! That one’s my favorite!”

It was the same voice that had screamed earlier. Ash was right – it was excited. And it was familiar. With a happy cry of “Pikachupi!” Pikachu leapt from chair to chair until he reached the figure – a tall, scrawny girl in a sleeveless yellow hoodie, short shorts, and ginger hair pulled into a side ponytail.

“Pikachu!” she cried out as the Pokémon hopped into her arms and nestled into her neck. “Wha – where did you come from? Does this mean – oh, hi Ash!”

Ash gave a weak wave in reply. His head felt so dizzy that he couldn’t think of what else to do. Who would think he’d run into somebody from home in a giant movie studio in Unova – much less Misty?

POKEMON: BEST WISHES! “JEWEL OF THE SEVEN POKEMON!”

It really is a small world, thought Iris. They’d run into friends and rivals from Unova all through their journey; now, apparently, they were running into Ash’s friends from his home in Kanto. His best friend, even.

Iris wasn’t sure what to make of her yet. Pikachu obviously loved this girl; he hadn’t left her arms since she and Ash had come out of that old stage. Ash was lit up like the city lights too. He and his friend were chattering back and forth so much, Iris and Cilan still hadn’t had a chance to even give their names. They were somehow on the subject of how creaky the floorboards were in Ash’s room back home, when his mother would fix them, and how Misty was over there so much more often than Ash these days that maybe it should be considered her room (“Is not!” Ash insisted. “Is too!” Misty claimed.)

“So – you’re Misty, huh?” said Iris once they finally took a breath. “We’ve heard a lot about you.” You and five other people, she thought, but Misty’s name was the one that came up the most whenever Ash talked about his other traveling pals, her and some guy named Brock.

“That’s me!” Misty winked and struck a pose. “The world’s greatest beauty, and Water-type leader of the Cerulean City Gym!” Pikachu gave a happy cry of approval, one Iris couldn’t find it in her to match.

“‘World’s greatest beauty,’ huh?” she muttered. There’s a lot you could say about a claim like that… Axew’s snort told Iris that he agreed with her.

“And I know you two,” said Misty, with another wink. “You’re Iris, obviously – the future Dragon Master.”

“Oh – Ash said that?” Iris looked over at her friend, who shot her a cheeky grin. Iris covered her surprise with a pose of her own. “Well, at least he’s telling his friends back home the truth.”

Misty chuckled and turned to Cilan. “And that must make you –”

“Cilan, at your service!” he spun around and bowed. “Fellow Gym Leader, Pokémon Connoisseur, Film Connoisseur –”

“Annoying Connoisseur,” Iris cut in, and took some pleasure in watching Cilan deflate. Ash and Misty chuckled, then turned back to each other. “It’s great to see you again, Misty,” said Ash, for the third time since he’d brought her out. “But how’d you end up in Unova anyway?”

“There was a raffle in Cerulean City for a free trip to Worldwide Studios,” said Misty. “I wouldn’t have entered normally, but they made all my favorite monster movies. Blasko – the Undead, Creature from Heart Lake, Bride of the Sableye –”

Iris slapped a hand to her forehead. Great – another Film Connoisseur… “So you won?” she said, hoping to make a long story short.

A frown flickered across Misty’s face for the first time, but she nodded. “My sisters complained, of course, but I’m overdue for a vacation, and they agreed – eventually – to do their fair share and watch the Gym for a few days.”

“Sisters?” Iris asked.

“Misty’s three older sisters,” Ash explained. “They’re the –”

“They’re the internationally renowned water ballet act known as the Water Flowers of Cerulean City,” said Cilan, instantly recovered. “A popular attraction, though I’m afraid my brothers and I considered them a somewhat shallow taste when they last toured through Unova.”

“Shallow, huh?” Misty raised an eyebrow. “Well, those are my sisters you’re talking about…and they’re so shallow, they couldn’t make a puddle.” She laughed, and so did everyone else. “But forget about them – we’re here, at Worldwide Studios, and there’s so much to see before the autograph signing!”

“Autograph signing?” Iris, Ash, and Cilan all asked together, Pikachu and Axew chirping along.

“You didn’t know?” Misty seemed blown away by the thought. “Later this afternoon, on the set of his new movie, Bela Christopher is signing photos!”

“BELA CHRISTOPHER IS HERE!?” Even by Cilan’s standards, it was a ridiculous scream. He looked ready to faint, and Misty looked ready to jump the soundstage behind her.

“Who’s Bela Christopher?” asked Ash, and Iris was with him. She loved her some movies – even if she wasn’t a Connoisseur of them – and she’d never heard the name in her life.

“WHO’S BELA CHRISTOPHER!?” Misty and Cilan cried together. They looked to each other, as if they couldn’t believe the question, then rounded on Ash so quickly he took a step back. “Ash,” Misty sighed, “he’s only the greatest living star of horror and fantasy films around!”

“He’s a renowned Galarian actor and war veteran going into his fifth decade as a performer!” said Cilan.

“When Chisel Studios in Galar started remaking all the great monster movies, Bela Christopher played all of them,” said Misty. “He’s played Blasko the Vampire more times than anyone!”

“He also gave a fine turn as the great Galarian detective, Mycroft Abode!” said Cilan.

“He has a Bisharp that he uses in all his movies – it was great as the witch’s familiar in Pokémon Horror Center –”

“He’s an operatically trained singer whose albums cover everything from the great Alto Marian operas to heavy metal –”

“He just came back to horror films after a ten-year break with Reversal Mountain –”

“And he’s set to portray the evil wizard Saul of the Rainbow in the long-awaited adaptation of –”

“OK, OK, we get it!” Ash cried. He looked as exhausted as Iris felt. Was “he’s famous” not enough of an answer for these people?

“But that’s still hours away,” said Misty, instantly back into giddy mode. “And I haven’t even made it to the Little Kalos village yet. C’mon, Ash –” she set Pikachu up on her shoulder and linked arms with Ash – “I’ve still got so much to tell you! And you still haven’t told me what happened to that Victini you ran in to…” She led Ash down the studio road, heedless of his sputtering.

“Looks like we’ve picked up another kid,” Iris sighed, shaking her head. “Right?” She looked to Cilan; he still seemed worked into a frenzy. “Er – Cilan?”

“…How could I not have known Bela Christopher would be here signing autographs!?” He threw his hands to the sky and dropped to his knees. “The finest of all the Mycroft Abodes in cinema, and the only man to have played Mycroft’s brother too! There’s no time to lose – we must find out where that set is!” He sprang back up and took Iris by the hand.

“Shouldn’t we just follow Ash and MistyyyyIIIIEEE!” Iris screamed, led against all instinct down the studio street – in the opposite direction from their friends.

***

“Oof! How are you gonna get all this home to Cerulean City anyway?” Ash huffed.

“Don’t be silly, Ash.” Misty gave a dismissive wave of her hand before tossing another box onto the stack. “It’s only a few souvenirs.” That said souvenirs were piled tall enough that Misty couldn’t see Ash’s face anymore didn’t mean anything – that was all packaging. She’d make it fit her luggage when the time came.

“Now let’s see,” she said, taking a lick of her ice cream cone before offering Pikachu one in turn. “We’ve seen the Little Kalos village – I can’t believe how detailed that church façade was, it’s so convincing! – the live werecanroc make-up demonstration, the clock tower set, the Lure Hotel –”

“And we’ve been in every shop along the way,” Ash grunted. “C’mon, Misty – give me a break!”

“Relax, Ash,” Misty giggled. “We’re in the line for the autographs.” She was a little disappointed in how short the line was – they weren’t exactly first at the door, but she and Ash were pretty close for showing up just a few minutes before the set opened. The last classic horror convention Misty had attended in Kanto had a similarly slight turnout. It’s the same everywhere, thought Misty sadly. People just don’t appreciate the beauty in these things. It was Tentacool and Tentacruel all over again.

As soon as he heard they were in line, Ash dumped all the boxes off to the side, and made a big show of stretching and lurching over, as if in pain. Misty rolled her eyes. What a baby – they couldn’t have been that heavy. While he was bent forward, she gave him a thump to the back of the head. He whipped up and glared at her. She glared back. And, in a few seconds, they both broke down laughing.

“It’s great having you here, Misty,” said Ash, still chuckling. “It’s just like being back home.”

“Not exactly the same – Brock isn’t here.” The last word Misty had from Brock, he was settling in nicely at his school and looking into apprenticeships in Johto. “To tell you the truth, Ash, I was a little worried about you when I heard Brock wasn’t with you anymore.”

“Ah, c’mon.” Ash brushed his thumb across the bottom of his nose. “I can take care of myself. And besides, Iris and Cilan are with me here, and they’re great. Just wait ‘til you have some of Cilan’s cooking! Brock’s is still great, but –”

“I don’t know if I’ll have the time, Ash,” said Misty. “My trip’s only for the weekend, and just to see the studio. I have to go home tomorrow night.”

“Oh.” It was amazing how much of an open book Ash Ketchum could be. He almost literally deflated before Misty’s eyes. “That’s too bad…I miss hanging out with ya, Misty.”

Misty had long ago gotten over her doubts about Ash’s friendship. The chance of anything more set aside, she felt secure, knowing he was her best friend and she was his, and they could stay that way without a lot of words about it. That didn’t mean it wasn’t still nice to hear them now and again. “I miss you too, Ash,” she said. “I miss traveling. It’s great, being a Gym Leader – but I’d like to get back on the road sometimes.” Back home, the Cerulean Gym was in the middle of a top-to-bottom renovation, all on Misty’s initiative and design. It was tough work, consuming work – rewarding work. But not enough to stop Misty from taking Azurill up to the roof some nights to gaze out onto the bay, and the silvery horizon line in the moonlight.

And if traveling with Ash specifically had another appeal that she still hadn’t mentioned – well, what he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. Or us.

“Well…at least we’ve got the weekend,” said Ash, perking back up. “And we’ve gotta have a Pokémon battle, at least!”

“You’ve got it!” Misty flashed him a grin and pumped a fist. “Just you wait, Ash Ketchum – you’re gonna get blown away!”

“Oh yeah?” Ash titled the brim of his hat back. “You haven’t seen my –”

“Ash! Misty!” Ash’s friend Cilan was running towards them in a manic rush, with a flustered Iris and her Axew in tow behind. He barely skidded to a halt in time to avoid crashing into them (but couldn’t stop Iris from falling face-first onto the street.) “Have we missed it?”

“Nope!” Misty said brightly. “Three minutes to go!”

“I told you we should’ve just followed them,” Iris grumbled as she picked herself up. Axew shot Cilan a dirty look before disappearing into his Trainer’s hair.

“So what’s this movie they’re making here?” Ash asked. He was on his toes, craning for a look at the still-closed stage doors.

“Jewel of the Seven Pokémon,” said Misty. “From the author of Blasko – The Un-dead. It’s the first time it’s ever been made into a movie!” Positive that Ash – and probably Iris – had no idea what the book was about, Misty started to explain. “It’s based on old legends about Yamask and Cofagrigus – that they were originally from a long-lost region far to the south. The hero is engaged, see, and his fiancée’s father is a famous professor who goes to that lost region and brings back seven Cofagrigus. They all keep together, circling around this giant ruby – ” Misty started to circle Ash, her hands held out and her fingers wiggling – “and the professor and his daughter figure out that the ruby belonged to an ancient princess that the Cofagrigus used to serve.

“They think the soul of the princess is trapped inside the jewel, see –” she placed her hands over Ash’s heart – “and even though the hero warns them it’s a bad idea, they set up this special ceremony under the right star on the right night of the year to enhance the power of the Cofagrigus and free the princess! And it works, but the princess possesses the fiancée, and she and the Cofagrigus start to tear the mansion apart! The hero and his Absol have to do – well, they don’t have a choice – but in the final scene, all the Cofagrigus are gone, the ruby and the professor vanish, and the hero’s left holding his fiancée’s body in his arms. It’s – ah!” Misty clasped a hand to her cheek. “It’s so romantic.”

“Romantic?” Ash frowned. “It sounds like everyone dies.”

“That’s a typical ending for the Gothic Romance genre, Ash,” said Cilan. Misty felt she didn’t need to taste his cooking to approve of Cilan as a good influence.

Not that Ash seemed to get it. “It still doesn’t sound romantic to me,” he said, crossing his arms. “Do they get together as ghosts?”

“No…”

“Then how’s the love stuff supposed to work?”

“You just don’t have the maturity and sophistication to understand, Ash,” Misty said, her nose turned up. “All the best love stories end in tragedy.” Well, all the best ones in fiction, anyway. Real life’s a different story…

“What, so if you got a boyfriend, you’d want him to die?” said Ash. His eyebrow was up, and there was a taunt in his voice.

“Oh, don’t spoil it!” Misty snapped. “I love that book, and it’ll be a great movie!”

“Sure, sure. Just don’t expect me to go with you.”

“Fine then – I’ll just take Pikachu!” Misty gave Ash’s starter a poke to the tummy, and he cooed happily.

“She couldn’t take either of them,” Misty heard Iris mutter to Cilan; she ignored her.

“And after we see the movie,” she told Ash, “I’ll use Pikachu against you in our Pokémon battle!” Just to play along, Pikachu nuzzled her face with his whole body, and wrapped his tail behind her head. Ash might’ve gotten whiny over that in the old days, but he just grinned, turned his cap back, and drew out a Poké Ball.

“Oh yeah?” he said, his voice suddenly much huskier than Misty remembered. “Well, let’s see you two traitors beat – THIS!”

The ball flew out, a bright light flashed, and there before Misty was a small Pokémon, barely taller than Pikachu, with a white face, an aqua body, a seashell perfectly positioned on its chest…

“…It’s so CUTE!” Misty swooped down to gather the Water-type in her arms. “Ash, how could you not tell me you had an Oshawott! Oh, it’s just the sweetest, most adorable little thing ever!” One look told Misty the love was mutual; Ash’s Oshawott had hearts in its eyes, and he threw his little paws around Misty’s neck.

“Well, Ash,” Misty giggled. “I guess that’s two of your Pokémon that like me best.”

“Aww…Oshawott!” Ash whined. Misty, both Ash’s Pokémon, Cilan, and Iris all laughed.

“Ah!” Cilan pointed toward the stage. “The doors open!” The large red doors slid to either side, still revealing nothing as the stage remained in shadow. A young man, dressed just like the guide from Stage 28, stepped out of the dark. His glasses were thick, his expression forlorn.

“Attention – attention, everyone!” he called to the slim crowd. “The production of Jewel of the Seven Pokémon has been indefinitely suspended, and the scheduled autograph signing is canceled.”

#z's fics #pokeshipping #cilan #iris #pokemon: black and white #ash ketchum #misty waterflower #halloween #fan fiction

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smilingperformer · 5 years

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I swear Pokemon Masters hates my guts or something.

I got a duplicate of Phoebe.

I mean I guess she’s good, considered OP apparently but... I got excited at the flashy animation. Then it’s just a duplicate. God damn it lol.

Also just as suspected, even the events aren’t a reliable way to farm gems. Such a shame. And the story event is so easy, just.... use Blue’s Air Cutter couple times boosted with X Attack and Smell ya later and you’re done. It’s so easy. X’D And already got half of event achievements, rest is just farming co-op battles. I kinda hoped for more but oh well. I’ll try leveling up Corni, Hau and Misty instead for Team Unova rematch, god they’re hard as hell.

#aleira plays masters #no other tags for now

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warlordess · 6 years

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An Alternate Journey (Pokeshipping; part three)

Authors - @warlordess and @miyatoriaka

Notes – Here be chapter two/part three of my joint project with Miya. I decided to post this one a bit early due to Valentine’s Day. It’s also Leaf’s introduction, which was a little harder for me to write because I don’t know much of anything about Leaf as a character. I mean, in the games, she’s the avatar of the player’s whim (should they choose a female character) and I’ve barely read the Adventures manga, nor have I seen Origins (and I have no clue if she’s even in it). So I threw a bit of info together from the game and gave her a bit of Gary’s mean streak from early canon… but also tried to write her as a bit more complicated than your average rival/bully, which eventually shows through between this chapter and the next.

Anyway, read on and please review/comment/reblog! Unless you’re one of those derpy anonymous trolls. If you’re one of those then you can go choke.

You can find the prologue here.

You can find chapter one here.

OoO

Title - “An Alternate Journey”

Summary - Eleven year old novice trainer Misty starts her Pokemon adventure, best friends Gary and Ash by her side. But will she withstand every test her travels throw at her and become the greatest master trainer of all time? Fic co-crafted with famous fan-artist, Miyatoriaka!

Ages - Misty and Leaf are eleven years old, Ash and Gary are thirteen, and the adults are adult-aged so who cares about ‘em? Lol.

Chapter Two - Rival

OoOoO

The cotton candy sunrise came and went while the three trainers snoozed, making up for their disrupted sleep from the night before. The sun had fully risen by the time they did wake, all of them eating a light breakfast of bread, jam, and fresh fruit before Misty released Gastly so he could direct them towards their next destination: Pewter City.

“Wow, we got here much quicker than I thought we would considering how many days we were stuck in Viridian Forest,” Gary noted, his hand saluted against his brow as he took in the sights. He hadn’t visited this staple city recently since his gym and familial locations were settled in the more southern areas of Kanto.

“It’s all thanks to Gastly!” Misty responded proudly, “Because of him, Eevee and I will face off against the gym leader here right after a quick trip to the PokeCenter!”

“Ah, well, maybe you should pace yourself,” Ash warned her cryptically.

“Wha’d’ya mean?”

“It’s just… You’ve been a trainer for all of - what? - two weeks, almost half the time of which was spent stuck in one place, and now you wanna march straight up to the nearest gym to demand a battle? Much better prepared trainers than you have set themselves up for major loss because of that kinda recklessness.”

“Okaaay… so do you two know anything about the gym? You both are part of the league yourselves, right? There must be something you can tell me.”

“Hm, well, like much of the architecture here alludes, the gym utilizes rock-type Pokemon. Unfortunately, there was an upset a few years ago so the trainer in charge has alternated a couple times. Even the representative at league events has varied. Because of that, I dunno what their skill level is or what specific Pokemon they’re likely to use. I can say,” Gary paused to release a huff as the group of three humans and one ground-traversing Pokemon carefully ambled over some particularly uneven terrain leading from the plateau that divided Viridian Forest and Pewter City, “that, due to this gym being the first stop for most new trainers, the league challenge presented is kept at a moderate level.”

[read more]

“Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t expect a good fight though,” Ash began next, almost losing his footing and having to take a moment to regain his step. “The challenge level might be maintained for new trainers but there’s basically no Pokemon you can catch around here that has an advantage against rock-types. You either have to force the advantage yourself by picking a starter that can measure up or you have to get really lucky.”

“Well, let’s just get to the PokeCenter first,” Misty mumbled, her formerly impressive ego vastly reduced by the information that had been offered.

“Yeah, and maybe we’ll walk around town while you come up with a strategy. We’ll still need to stock up on potions and food and stuff. There might be some interesting sights to see too.”

The group finally made it into town, catching sight of the PokeCenter’s great red roof even from their distance and making a Beedrill line for it. Misty withdrew Gastly back to his Pokeball with a word of gratitude, picked Eevee up into her arms, and approached the front desk where a young woman with a pink uniform and even brighter pink hair was waiting with a cheery grin to greet them.

“Welcome to our PokeCenter, here to heal your Pokemon’s every woe! I’m Nurse Joy and I’ll be registering your Pokemon in our database so they can be admitted for healing or check-ups.”

“Hey, wait, didn’t we meet her in…?”

“Oh, yeah, you don’t know, Misty, but every Center is run by a relative of the samy family. The same holds true for the police force,” Ash informed her.

“Relatives…?” the redhead replied with a brow quirked in suspicion. “You sure they aren’t clones?”

She had said such a thing offhandedly, meaning it as a joke, but when she next returned her gaze to the aforementioned woman, that originally sweet smile was suddenly looking a little strained.

“My aunts, nieces, sisters, and cousins are all just as human as I am, just as we all share the same passion for caring about Pokemon.”

Next moment, any residual malice had vanished - though Misty retained her apologetic expression for a few seconds longer - and Nurse Joy held out a tray with six empty Pokeball slots on it.

“Please deposit your Pokemon for me here and my assistant Chansey will escort them to their room after admission. Will your friends be leaving theirs as well?”

“Yeah, might as well,” Gary relented, and he and Ash both began to remove the round miniature devices from their belts while Joy placed two more trays on the counter and scanned Misty’s with an electronic reader, then typed a few things into her computer.

Before she could follow suit with Ash and Gary’s Pokemon, Misty took the opportunity to place Eevee on the counter as well.

“Um, she’s one of mine too. Do I…? I’m hoping I won’t have to force her into her Pokeball. I didn’t before.”

“Oh, my, a trainer who travels with their Pokemon outside of a Pokeball? And this Eevee doesn’t seem to be an infant either. But it’s absolutely no problem! We have plenty of patients who are more like companions and visit just like this.”

Nurse Joy accepted the fox-like Pokemon into her arms, giving her a comforting pat along her back, then turned and placed her on a timely delivered stretcher that Chansey had rolled up. She finished scanning and entering Ash and Gary’s Pokemon IDs into the computer, added their trays to the stretcher as well, and Chansey rolled everyone to the back area of the Center.

Afterwards, the three trainers reserved a room and left to take in the sights around town, including the PokeMart and a couple of specialty stores. When they’d finished with lunch, they headed back to the PokeCenter to retrieve their Pokemon, Gary taking the opportunity to check their funds and make a budget for their supply costs.

“So TMs are…?” Misty was asking him in the meantime as the whole lot of them waited for Chansey to grab their Pokeballs.

“Well, they’re short for ‘technical machine’ but, as for what they do, they’re used to teach Pokemon moves they wouldn’t ordinarily learn through training and natural growth. There are some real powerful ones available.”

“Thanks,” Ash said in reference to the nearly always smiling Nurse Joy handing over their Pokemon. “Are we heading back out?” he asked this time to his friends.

“Ah, about that… I was wondering if it’s possible to go visit Pewter Gym?” Misty began, picking Eevee up into her arms with a kiss to her forehead before allowing the Pokemon to climb over her shoulder. “You know, like I used to do back in Cerulean City with you, Ash. I figure this is the only way I can prepare myself more for my own gym battle. Unless you wanna let me battle you. You never replied to me when I asked yesterday.”

“Well, it’s true that most gyms have open hours for spectators to come watch but we’ll have to go check and see what hours those are…” Gary replied to her, nudging Ash into prolonged silence before he could come up with a retort.

In fact, the raven-haired trainer was going to respond anyway to Misty’s commentary about him supposedly never answering to her challenge the night before but he was interrupted by yet another person as soon as they’d made it out the sliding double doors of the PokeCenter.

“Oho! My goodness, if it isn’t the late bloomer of Cerulean City!”

Misty’s expression immediately darkened as she stopped in her tracks, already apparently knowing who the voice belonged to without turning to see for herself.

“Oh, no.”

“I’m sorry, what was that?” asked the girl with long brown hair, a black high collar sleeveless dress, and white trainer gloves, leaning in close and smirking, prodding Misty in the cheek.

Ash had to blink in wonder, curious as to how she’d moved in so quickly (and who she was for that matter).

“I said, hi, Leaf, how’ve you been since you left Pallet Town?” the redhead rephrased, stiff plastic smile on her face as she made a half-hearted attempt to swat the other girl’s hand away.

“Oh, well, thanks so much for asking! Everything’s been going so perfectly! I’ve gotten six badges, I’ve made so much money and fame that it’s almost unnecessary for me to even compete in the league and become the Pokemon Master! But of course I still will,” the snarky preteen added in afterthought, “And lastly, of course, is that I’ve caught the perfect little team of Pokemon! They’re all so cute!

“But silly me! You shouldn’t let me talk about myself all day! So what about you, Misty dear? Still a late bloomer as always, I see! It looks like you’ve barely started out! So… when did you finally leave home, hmm? And when were you planning on introducing me to your handsome companions?”

It had felt like every sharp word spilled from this girl’s lips in a single cunning breath. Her passive-aggressive jabs and flaunting self-promotion were enough to make Misty’s blood boil. But then again, Leaf had always had a way of crawling under her skin, ever since they were youngsters in school together.

“Uh, anyway, Ash and Gary, this is Leaf. She’s my…” What? The only term Misty could think of to describe her was ‘bane of my existence’ but the redhead couldn’t help thinking she needed to say something more subtle. “... I’ve known her most of my life. Leaf, this is Ash,” she paused to point him out, “and this is Gary. They’re traveling with me.”

“Oh, that’s so sweet! You have yourself a couple of babysit - I mean, training coaches!” The slip-up did not go unnoticed. “You’re just so lucky! Most of us have to accept the burden of traveling independently, taking full responsibility for our own goals and struggles, but having others take up your slack sometimes works too, I suppose. In fact, it even suits someone like you!

“Anyway, boys, the pleasure is all yours, I’m sure. I hope you both are taking good care of Cerulean City’s late bloomer.”

Misty couldn’t help the slight twitch of her tightly hunched shoulders every time she was called that. And her subdued fury only doubled when she saw Ash mouth the words over to himself as he and Leaf shook hands, clearly confused but knowing better than to ask at the moment.

Leaf shook hands with an oddly tongue-tied Gary too and then swung back towards her old friend with a sly grin, taking in the sight of Eevee for the first time and bending down to greet her.

“Why, hello there, cutie! I didn’t notice you before! I apologize for that! How could I miss such a sweet baby?” the brunette cooed genuinely with sparkling eyes, reaching out to stroke Eevee’s fluffy mane and seeming the slightest bit perturbed when the Pokemon didn’t respond to her earnest enthusiasm in kind. Rather, the normal-type Pokemon curled herself around her trainer’s ankles as if trying to disappear from view.

“So where did you catch her? Eevee are really rare in the wild, you know. You usually have to breed one. I should know; I’ve been looking for one for myself for months now.”

“Actually Eevee and I are partners because of Gary. He’s Professor Oak’s grandson. He was able to talk the professor into letting me breed an Eevee from an egg two of theirs managed to make. See, Eevee wasn’t caught. She’s my first Pokemon. That’s why I had to wait so much longer than everyone else to start my journey.”

Because she and I were especially meant to be together! So there! she couldn’t help but add internally at the ever-so-slightly faltering smile on the other girl’s face. It sure felt good to come out on top!

Indeed, her rival seemed quite put out by the reveal of such details but shook off her envy within seconds and reached her full height once more.

“Well, Misty dear, that just gave me a marvelous idea! Why don’t we have a battle now that you’re finally a Pokemon trainer too? Just a little one-on-one practice. I know how hard it can be for you when you’re just starting out! You could probably use the experience and money. How about we battle starter against starter? Since I’m sure you don’t have much of a team yet. And it seems like fate had us meet each other here today.”

“Actually, Misty has caught herself six Pokemon already!” Ash blurted out from the background, retreating and regrouping when his redheaded friend glared at him. “Though Eevee is definitely your strongest option at this point,” he clarified finally.

“You know what, Leaf?! You’re on! Let’s do this, right now!”

“Well, that’s great then, isn’t it? We even have an audience for our first ever official battle! Now, c’mon, there’s a practice field over there we can use…” And then, at the sight of Misty looking quite suddenly embarrassed, “... Or did you forget we’re standing right in front of the PokeCenter in the middle of a busy street?”

“I, uh, I - of course not! Let’s go, Eevee!” the redhead huffed aloud, turning up her nose and stomping in the direction of their aforementioned battleground, the rest of their group following after them.

“This is a one-on-one battle between Misty and Leaf, starter Pokemon only, no items allowed during the match. If these terms are agreeable to both trainers,” Gary paused here during his impromptu referee speech so that any complaints could be voiced if they existed before continuing, “then you may call out your Pokemon and begin!”

“I call Eevee!”

“Woo! Go, Misty!” Ash shouted from his place on the sidelines, pumping a fist into the air.

The redhead offered him a grateful smile for his camaraderie before turning a determined and scrutinizing gaze on her opponent, waiting to see what challenge she and Eevee would have to face.

Leaf had almost an entire year up on her experience-wise, and it wasn’t until this moment that the novice Pokemon trainer realized how remiss it was of her to not have paid attention to what Pokemon the other girl had chosen for the start of her own journey that fateful day all that time ago. And no matter which starter she’d picked, it had probably evolved by now, perhaps even more than once.

“Come on out, Squirtle!” the female trainer shouted, elegantly tossing a Pokeball forward, where it snapped open and unveiled an all-too-familiar beam of scarlet light which morphed into the outline of a small turtle-like Pokemon Misty had learned much about back when she wasn’t sure which Pokemon she should choose as her first.

Still, back to the present, she wasn’t quite sure if she was more relieved or disappointed by the sight of this particular opponent.

“I hope you don’t mind us making the first move while you’re busy thinking? Squirtle, tackle!”

The water-type Pokemon gave a firm nod before running bipedal in Eevee’s direction.

“Ah!” Misty gasped, collecting herself and responding by instinct, “Eevee, dodge it and use your sand attack!”

The fox-like Pokemon leapt out of the way and then u-turned as Squirtle careened past, digging his stubby feet into the ground to try and keep himself from going too far beyond his original goal. Unfortunately he wasn’t quick enough to avoid his adversary’s follow-up attack and was punished by an onslaught of dirt in his eyes, momentarily blinding him.

“Use your water gun to wash your eyes out!” Leaf commanded.

“I hope you don’t mind us continuing to battle while Squirtle is busy with that,” Misty commented smartly, barely able to conceal her condescending and prideful tone as she mimicked her rival’s statement from barely more than a minute ago.

Leaf’s facial features tightened into a restrained grimace, clearly catching on but choosing to refrain from commentary and instead redoubling her efforts in the rest of their battle.

“Eevee, tackle!”

“Counter with withdraw!”

Squirtle paused in the middle of washing out his eyes, curling all appendages within his shell just in time for Eevee to smash into him. The normal-type squealed in pain and recoiled but shook it off rather quickly otherwise.

“Try your tail whip and then use quick attack, Eevee!”

“Use rapid spin!”

The fox Pokemon wagged her tail in Squirtle’s direction just as he’d unfurled from his withdrawal but, while quick attack was an accelerated move, rapid spin was much faster. By the time Eevee had jumped from all fours to launch her weight at him, Squirtle was already curled up and swerving out of the way. But the relentless speed didn’t stop there as the water-type glided circles around his opponent before lunging at her, smacking her to the ground and flying a solid ten or so feet away before popping out of his shell again and landing gracefully on his hind legs.

“Ah! Eevee, you can get up, right? We can still…” No sooner had Misty spoken these words than her Pokemon stumbled to her paws, looking the worse for wear in every regard but not wanting to let her trainer down. “Yeah, we can still do this! We can still win if we just keep attacking! Use your bite!”

“Iron defense!”

Squirtle withdrew into his shell once more, with the added effect of it shimmering a glossy white, just in time for Eevee to clamp down with her fangs, which proved to be quite the mistake. She whimpered as she pulled back, mouth clearly sore after such a folly.

“Water pulse!”

“Dodge--”

But there was no time. A jet stream of high-powered water shot towards Eevee, making contact less than three seconds after the order was given. The already wounded Pokemon was thrust that much further towards the side of the field, hitting the ground hard and rolling limply a few times before coming to a stop, struggling to get back up even after such a beating.

But Leaf wasn’t finished quite yet, and she no longer seemed interested in playing her games either.

“Now finish it with your skull bash!”

“Wait, what?”

Misty’s head drew a blank at the confident utterance that was Leaf’s command. Skull bash was Squirtle’s signature move, one of the most powerful techniques he could learn. Compared to that, there was nothing in hers and Eevee’s arsenal that could compare. If this next attack made contact…

“Eevee, lower Squirtle’s strength with your growl! Or at least get out of there if you can!”

It was no use, everything was over so very soon. Squirtle had started dashing at her precious Pokemon but that trot had turned into a mad sprint, during which the water-type was moving so quickly that his feet, then his stubbly legs, and then his body as a whole were powerful white blurs of agility and power.

Eevee successfully growled but it seemed to have no effect on the incoming threat so she attempted to follow through with Misty’s secondary command... However there wasn’t enough time.

Squirtle’s hardened skull smashed into Eevee and sent the normal-type flying through the air before she hit the ground and wrenched round a few times in the dirt, coming to a stop in the left-hand corner of the field on her trainer’s side.

Speechless and distraught, the redhead couldn’t wait for Gary’s official call to the end of the battle and began cautiously stumbling towards her unconscious Pokemon, but her half-hearted gait gained traction with every step until she was full-on running, her breath stolen from her throat, eyes both somehow watering and burning dry at the same time, her skin cold and heart hammering with fear.

Pokemon fainted and lost battles every single day, she knew that, but… not her Pokemon. Not her Eevee. Never before this moment.

“Misty--,” Ash began, on his feet in an instant and ready to support her in her time of need but he was interrupted by the somewhat restrained sound of Gary’s voice.

“Eevee is unable to battle, which makes the winners of the match Squirtle and Leaf!”

“Great job, Squirtle, come here!” Leaf called out, her Pokemon responding obediently with enthusiasm and waddling towards her. She fondly patted him on the head, kneeling down and granting him a soft kiss on the cheek before calling him back to his Pokeball and regaining her full height once more.

“Do you see now, Misty dear? Pokemon come in all sizes, types, and strengths. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter that your Eevee was bred especially for you or that your friends gave up their time to help you on your journey. What matters to you most - or what should matter - is the bond you share with your Pokemon and the time you’ve put in together.

“Squirtle and I have been together for almost a full year. We’ve won six badges together, earned a living and survived and thrived together. We’ve built a team together too.

“Nothing can replace or replicate the bond I have with my Pokemon or the time we’ve spent working towards our goals. Even a novice like you who just started out will have to work at it if your dream is to truly become the greatest Pokemon Master ever.”

“Hey, Misty, you okay…?” Ash asked, kneeling down beside her as she sat in the grass, cradling her unconscious Pokemon in her arms. “You know, once we get Eevee back to the PokeCenter for awhile, she’ll be good as new in no time!”

Gary walked up to them both as Misty, still dispirited, managed a nod.

“But, then again, I’ll have already finished collecting badges and challenging the league long before you, which means that I’ll naturally become a Master class trainer first. And it seems pretty clear to me from the battle we just had that you’ll never be a match against me anyway, will you, Misty dear?” Leaf goaded more shallowly now, drawing a hand through her long brown hair and hmphing with a mild smirk adorning her face. “After all, once a late bloomer, always a late bloomer, am I ri--”

“--Hey!” Ash shouted, on his feet in an instant and staring her down from a considerable distance, quite fed up with her condescending attitude. “What makes you think you can talk to my friend like this?! Just ‘cause you’re a stronger trainer and just ‘cause--”

Gary laid a hand on his shoulder, averting his gaze slightly under Ash’s increased ire, though the raven-haired trainer was also effectively silenced by his friend’s maneuver.

“I don’t think that’s it.”

“Wha’d’ya mean?”

“I think… I’m just saying…” And Gary dropped his tone to such a lower murmur that Ash had to strain to hear what he was saying, meaning Misty probably couldn’t hear it at all (which was probably the point), “... that she needs to learn this lesson too.”

“Yeah, well, that doesn’t mean that she,” Ash paused long enough to jack his thumb in Leaf’s direction, “should be the one to teach it! But it’s fine! If she wants to talk about bonds made and time spent with Pokemon then I’ll gladly match her! After all, Bulbasaur and I have been together for years! And Weepinbell too! And--”

“--No, Ash!” a strained voice rang out from the ground, and the two young men faltered amid their discussion as Misty vigilantly rose to her feet, still holding Eevee just as closely and tenderly as ever. “I don’t need you to fight my battles for me. I don’t… I don’t really get what you guys were saying but I just wanna say one thing! Eevee and I are a great team! Whatever we may be missing now we’re gonna find and master! Do you hear me, Leaf? The next time you and I battle, we’re gonna be the ones who best you!”

Leaf threw her hands up in a casual shrug, her lips curling upward so faintly that none of the others could even see it.

“Whatever you say… little miss late bloomer,” she replied aloofly, turning on her heel and marching proudly away. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a date with an ancient Pokemon exhibit.”

“What was her problem?” Ash begged aloud as soon as she was gone. “Misty, are you okay? You shouldn’t listen to Leaf just ‘cause she beat you in a battle, okay? You and Eevee are plenty close and plenty strong, right, Gary?”

There was an edgy pressure to his tone that not so subtly demanded Gary had better agree but the Viridian gym trainer was still staring after Leaf with awkwardly flushed cheeks and sharp eyes.

“Yeah… Ash is right, I guess…”

“You guess?!” the raven-haired trainer yelped, though his expression darkened as he looked his old friend over with pursed lips and furrowed brows, apparently catching on to something he’d missed earlier on. “Are you just saying that ‘cause you’re--”

“--I’m just saying that because, even though Leaf came on strong,” the burgundy-haired trainer countered, pointedly interrupting what he had a feeling was going to be a very embarrassing and very accurate accusation, “she made a good point… and a strong impression,” he added.

“C’mon, Ash, like I said before, Misty was going to have to face this moment sooner or later. You gotta remember that we’re here to help her when it’s needed and give her advice here and there but… there are just some things it can’t be our responsibility to teach her.

“I mean, isn’t that why you blew off her requests for a Pokemon battle? Because you were worried you’d accidentally end up playing the role Leaf did?”

“... You’re too smart for your own good, ya know that?” Ash begrudgingly admitted, blushing.

“Guys…” Misty’s voice rang out from behind them, and both boys jumped nearly a foot in the air, having basically forgotten during their heated discussion that she was present to hear their every word. “Guys, it’s okay. And thank you. I… don’t really know what happened or like how it happened but I’ll get stronger from this and we’ll win the next battle against Leaf, just like I told her.”

Perhaps Ash was imagining it but he couldn’t help thinking that the expression on the redhead’s face was more affectionate than it should have been as she stared wistfully in the direction Leaf had vanished in, considering what had transpired between them during their match. Huh. Maybe there was more to the girls’ relationship than he could comprehend at present.

“Anyway, can we get Eevee back to the PokeCenter now?”

“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Gary responded with a rare warm grin, perhaps feeling that one of his sarcastic or blunt quips would be better saved for another time.

A couple of hours later, after Eevee had received both a good nap and some decent first aid from the talented and dedicated Nurse Joy and her assistant Chansey, the group of three trainers left to pay a visit to the Pewter City Gym and see about its open hours, which they’d unfortunately missed for the day, so they went out to grab dinner instead.

Misty, who’d been sitting on the question since that afternoon, finally got around to asking Ash and Gary about the odd event that Leaf had mentioned in passing earlier.

“Ancient Pokemon exhibit, hmm…?” Ash replied first, staring into the distance as if deep in thought for a few seconds before deadpanning, “I’ve got no clue. Oh well!”

“I think she was talking about Pewter’s Museum of Science and Natural History. They have a department dedicated to the excavation and research of ancient Pokemon species. Rumor is they’ve even been involved in potential resurrection or cloning with the use of DNA,” Gary rattled off informatively.

“Wow… I don’t really understand it but that sounds pretty amazing! Can we go check it out?”

Misty smiled down at her perfectly healed Eevee, suppressing the guilt that bubbled up in the back of her mind at the sight of the Pokemon. It still stung some to think back to their battle earlier with Leaf, still bothered the redhead some to remember the harsh lesson she’d learned. The first thing she’d done for her Pokemon after Eevee had woken up was apologize profusely for letting her down, but of course Eevee had just licked her hand and nudged affectionately against her fact, not quite understanding but wanting to make her trainer feel better.

Misty and friends made their way up the few blocks to one of the bus stops on Main Street, which would take them the rest of the way northeast where the museum was apparently located.

After the ten minute commute, their group found themselves standing in front of a massive four story complex, facing a magnificent courtyard and stately architecture built out of the same slate gray stone that seemed to be the main source material used in most of Pewter City’s historical builds.

“C’mon guys!” Misty called out, perfectly carefree if the way she was skipping excitedly towards the main entrance was any indication.

Just as she’d opened one of the double doors, she and the others heard a distraught and irate shout from inside the building.

“Wait! Thief! Stop them please!”

A tall figure in black sprinted through the door Misty was holding, so strong and reckless that they inadvertently collided into her and caused her to tumble to the ground.

“Hey, what’s the…” she began angrily in response to this transgression but faltered at the sinister expression and demeanor of the man before her as he glared icily before remembering he needed to be on his way.

As soon as he was gone, many things happened in succession. Ash was checking to make sure she was okay while Gary was staring suspiciously after the man in black, followed immediately by the front door bursting open again and a whole slew of people appearing all at once, including a few in blue security uniforms, a fair number of curious bystanders, and two people sporting white lab coats.

“Oh - oh no, are you alright, honey?” the first one, female with a rather meek and neurotic personality, simpered, giving Misty a once over, bouncing on the balls of her feet and pacing to and fro in clear distress. “Oh no, oh my, but there’s no time, we have to hurry! Oh, I can’t believe this happened! How could it - how will we ever find--”

“--Penelope, calm down please,” her coworker attempted to cajole her authoritatively, having just apparently finished a phone call because he was placing his cell in his pocket. “I just contacted the police and Sergeant Jenny will be here soon. There’s nothing else we can do for now without potentially risking our safety. You three,” he motioned towards the group of trainers, “I’m sorry to approach you like this but we’re in the middle of an emergency situation. We’ve just had a very valuable fossil stolen from one of our exhibits by someone wearing a black jumpsuit. Did you happen to notice anything we might be able to report to the police when they arrive?”

“No, how could we when--?”

But Ash was cut off before he could say anymore.

“The guy looked middle-aged, had black hair but there were gray streaks on the sides, gray eyes. He looked at least six feet tall. He exited through the gate and took a left. It seemed like he was trying to u-turn around the museum campus and escape into the northern woods,” Gary recited and, after catching sight of Misty and Ash’s bemused expressions, he added, “I was watching him go just in case it might help.”

“Thanks, son, that was very smart of you. You three!” And the male scientist turned to face the security officers. “Go around back, fan out with your Pokemon and chase the thief down. Don’t do anything to risk damage to that fossil. If you can safely stall until Sergeant Jenny and her officers show up then do so, otherwise send someone back here so they can lead the police in the right direction when they arrive.”

The trio of security personnel nodded in affirmation of this instruction and ran off instantly afterwards. Misty finally got back to her feet and watched them go, feeling mysteriously equal parts excited and frustrated over how she’d let the criminal get away. Still, to think someone had been able to steal an artifact from a well-guarded museum in (mostly) broad daylight…

The thought had barely even crossed her mind when a more familiar figure, smaller in stature with long brown hair and wearing a black turtle-collared skater dress, dashed by them all in a blur of tricolor, out the gate and circling the campus in an instant, following the security guards.

“Wait, was that…?” Ash started tapering off towards the end of his perturbed comment.

“I think… it was…” Gary replied, his tone somewhat more admirable. “Wait, Misty!”

For the redheaded novice trainer had already taken off as fast as her legs would allow, Eevee ever loyal at her side. The two boys had no choice but to pursue their reckless friend, ignoring the shouts from the administrative scientist and his more panicked assistant.

“Grr… those kids better not cause any damage to this operation!”

“I just pray everyone will be alright. With Team Rocket behind this, we can’t… always be sure, can we…?” Penelope responded cryptically in a somber tone, immediately sobering her superior up, his expression softening into shame and concern.

“Yes, you’re quite right.”

OoOoO

Notes - And thus ends this chapter with a somewhat unintended cliffhanger. Miya wasn’t able to guess what went down in the next chapter so I wonder if anyone else will be able to? Lol. It’s not that special to be honest. Also coming in the next chapter is Misty’s first gym battle! And, oh… is Ash jealous…?

Next chapter will be posted around the end of March.

Likes, comments, reviews, whatever is available from the reader’s end is really invaluable to a writer’s interest in continuation!

#pokeshipping #fan fiction #an alternate journey #chapter two #role reversal au #miyatoriaka #fanfic #multichaptered #happy valentine's day!

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themattress · 7 years

Text

Pokeani: The Evolution of the Heroine

In the beginning, we had Misty. In the original Kanto Saga, she was co-Gym Leader of Ceruelan Gym alongside her three older sisters, but left home to become a better Pokemon trainer. She had a very spunky, fiery, bold and irrepressible personality, feeling both over-the-top and cartoony to fit the tone of the show yet also very human. She was a three-dimensional character who viewers came to know and love, and to this day, many miss her.

But with that said, Misty had three problems with her portrayal.

1. One of the most relatable things about Misty - her family issues with her sisters - was also one of the weakest since it was barely ever focused on beyond being the motivator to get Misty started on her journey. We don’t see much of her sisters beyond two episodes, we don’t hear much about them beyond Misty’s petty younger sibling jealousy toward them and their petty older sibling mistreatment of her, and the nature of how they came to be Gym Leaders and what happened to their parents, which should be a big part of this conflict, is never elaborated on. Misty was hardly alone on this - Takeshi Shudo said on his blog that he wasn’t allowed to go into depth with the three main characters’ backgrounds and how they affected them. It’s surprising that he was even able to get away with having it said in the show that Brock’s parents were deadbeats, although this also hurts Misty since it comes up right before the conflict with her sisters does, which now looks especially weak by comparison.

2. Misty could have a bad attitude and the show didn’t hold back in showing her character flaws. Again, this was a strength for the character, as it just made her that much more human and realistic. The problem came when the show didn’t always properly address these flaws in the way it should have. Nowhere is this more apparent than it is in her dynamic with Psyduck. She hurls both verbal and physical abuse at the poor dumb Pokemon constantly, and unlike Ash, Psyduck can’t actually respond in kind. The show ignoring that she could just store it at Professor Oak’s laboratory, or even just release it if she’s that aggravated by it, only serves to make her look much worse than I think they were intending to make her look. It’s very telling that her relationship with Psyduck is now shown as a loving one in her recent two-part return guest appearance - years later, the show’s writers finally realized that this was a problem.

3. This is the big one: after the Kanto saga, Misty’s development path just...stopped. She still had three and a half years left on the show as a main character, yet the writers had no solid direction left to take her in. Suede brilliantly sums it up in this video, although he’s a little off in saying that getting Togepi was the peak of her development - “The Misty Mermaid” was actually the peak, since it finally had her sisters giving her the acknowledgement she always wanted. After this, there was no reason for Misty to stay around for the Orange Islands and Johto, yet she did and became a boring shell of her former self, always just sitting around holding Togepi. I’m baffled as to why people were so upset when Misty finally left at the end of the Original Series - it was long overdue, and Brock should have stayed gone with her.

So yeah, at the start Misty may have had the most vibrant personality out of any of the Pokeani’s heroines, but by the end she had one of the weaker development courses.

Enter May in Advanced Generation (Pokemon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire). Her personality may have been a tad more trope-y than Misty’s (it’s basically a typical Shojo heroine personality to balance with Ash’s typical Shonen hero personality), but it was also engaging and interesting in a way Misty’s had not been in years - being both as spunky, bold and passionate as Misty was in her prime while also being very insecure and vulnerable.

More notably, May’s development path was excellent. She starts off not particularly liking Pokemon, making her feel like the black sheep of her Pokemon-oriented family, and only uses a Pokemon journey as an excuse to fulfill her true goal of seeing the world. But after getting into contests and becoming a Pokemon Coordinator, May develops a genuine passion for Pokemon. Her self-confidence and her self-doubt ebbs and flows at realistic moments, and through her career as a Coordinator she starts to tackle tougher personal issues such as the reason she came to dislike Pokemon in the first place, and even a budding romance with her main rival Drew. She began the series as a newbie whom Ash had to mentor, but in the series finale she goes toe-to-toe with Ash in battle (which ends in a draw), all while exuding a much more mature demeanor when compared to how she was like at the beginning. She still stands tall as one of the most dynamic characters in the whole Pokemon anime franchise.

Next came Dawn in Diamond/Pearl (Pokemon the Series: Diamond and Pearl), who can best be described as May-Lite, or Diet May. Like May, she also seeks a path as a Pokemon Coordinator, although in her case she wants it from the start since her mother was a famous Coordinator. She takes the typical Shojo heroine personality that May had up to eleven, being more cheerful and self-confident while insecure and self-doubting at the same time, more ditzy, more girly, more fashionable, and more prone to fanservice moments. But sadly, her development path was nowhere near as successful as May’s was, and for two big reasons.

The first is that her character arc peaks before her story arc does. Her story arc peaks at the Grand Festival in episode 177, and concludes along with the series in episode 191. But her character arc, centered around the self-doubt and depression she develops as a result of not being as skilled a Coordinator as she thought she’d be due to her lineage, wraps up in episode 79, with 112 episodes still left to go. That’s not as bad as Misty, but still pretty bad.

Second, and worse, is that Dawn is a static character. Her bout with self-doubt and depression comes and goes, as if it was only there to give her a character arc in a perfunctory way, and Dawn is left exactly the same as she started the series. In fact, we get flashbacks to Dawn’s early childhood, and she’s the same even then: just as nice and perky, with the same “No need to worry!” catchphrase. There is not the same sense of newfound maturity about her at the end of the show like there was with May and even Misty, she never changes her appearance in any way like Misty, May, Serena and Lillie do, and when she returns for a while in the next series, her Pokemon team has not changed in any way either, setting her apart from Misty, May and Iris in a negative way. Her post-series special episode doesn’t even do anything important or interesting with her, when even Brock’s did for him! Yeah, she grows into a stronger Coordinator. Doesn’t make her a stronger character.

In Best Wishes (Pokemon the Series: Black and White), the new heroine is Iris. Iris can be best described as like Misty with a less engaging personality but a much better development path. Like Misty, the anime version of Iris is in a place prior to her position in the games, and we get to see her grow into that position. Like Misty, she leaves home to become a better trainer, specifically of a certain Pokemon type (Dragon-types, in this case). Like Misty, she has many character flaws such as a hypocritical pseudo-maturity front, a quick temper, and being snide and argumentative toward Ash. Like Misty, her character arc peaks at a point before the League tournament. And like Misty, she even has a phobia of a certain Pokemon type (Ice-types, in this case). These are the similarities, now let’s look at the differences.

With Iris, we end up getting a very clear backstory that very clearly informs and explains her present-day motivations and character flaws. We get a defined term for what it means to be a “Dragon Master” - not someone with a lot of Dragon-types or even the strongest Dragon-types, but someone who has the best empathetic bonds with Dragon-types, whether it be their own, other trainers’, or wild ones, and this is something Iris makes visible progress in throughout the series. Her flaws are called attention to and she develops past them, losing her pseudo-maturity and gaining real maturity that includes accepting that she’s still a child who enjoys doing childish things, and her “What a kid!” verbal ribbing of Ash becomes more affectionate than mean and eventually all but disappears altogether, she still gets some interesting footnotes to her character arc after it peaks, and she even manages to overcome her irrational phobia of Ice-types. And she also has a rival who helps her develop, and she gets to participate in several tournaments (even winning one!), and the dysfunctional relationships she has with certain Pokemon of her’s (Excadrill and Dragonite) are ones that change for the better, with both her and them being able to come to an understanding.

Iris’ development path comes second only to May, which is because the change in her character isn’t quite as obvious and pronounced, and her character arc isn’t really sustained throughout the entirety of the series like May’s was. She’s still a top-tier heroine, and it’s a shame that so many misogynistic fans fail to appreciate this because they’re too busy crying about how she calls their beloved self-projection character Ash a kid and undermines all his “growth”. And this immature fan reaction is probably a big part of what led to XY’s Serena.

Let’s just get it out of the way - Serena’s the worst heroine the franchise has ever given us. Her character is Dawn taken up to eleven just as Dawn’s was May taken up to eleven, her story arc is lame since being a Pokemon Performer and participating in showcases is a blatantly watered-down version of what May and Dawn already did, and most importantly, her character arc is atrocious to the point of being offensive. She starts as a girl who is obsessively in love with Ash because of one random childhood incident that Ash doesn’t remember, joins his traveling group without a clearly defined goal and is clearly only in it to get into Ash’s pants, and when she finds her goal, it’s still largely motivated by the desire to appeal to Ash and get him to return her affections that he remains expectedly oblivious to.

You would expect her to eventually develop a true passion for showcases like May did for contests, and realize that Ash is a lost cause romantically and just stay his friend. But nope! In the end, she rejects the offer to be tutored by a professional Performer and outright quits showcases altogether, suddenly deciding that now she wants to be a Coordinator and do contests in Hoenn! And in case there was any doubt as to what motivated this turn, her last scene has her telling Ash that she will “become a more attractive girl” in doing this, and that “you are my goal”. It’s all for the sake of getting Ash’s attention, just as it always was.

Beyond the obviously sexist tone of this - Serena’s whole character arc revolving around getting a guy to fall in love with her - the worst part is that Serena doesn’t even love Ash. She loves an idea of Ash, a fantasy in her head, an idealized version of Ash she conjured up based on one random incident in her childhood that clearly meant nothing to Ash even if it somehow meant the world to her. In a telling moment, when Ash actually begins to express self-doubt and feel down, does Serena comfort him? Nope, she throws snowballs at him because he’s breaking her flawless mental image of him and she wants “the real Ash” back! This is never called out, and she’s framed as in the right, with Ash even thanking her for it!

The nail in the coffin would be her trainer record - she only gets three Pokemon, and gets the dubious honor of being the only heroine to never lose a battle solely because she barely ever battles, and the opponents she’s given are the absolute weakest possible, like her loser rivals or the inept Team Rocket. So yeah, the Pokeani fans can keep their waifu. She sucks, hard.

Now in Sun and Moon (Pokemon the Series: Sun and Moon), we have Lillie. Yes, Mallow and Lana are also regular female characters, but it’s very obvious that, like the source material games, Lillie is the lead heroine for this series. And like the games, she’s one of the best-developed characters in the franchise. Not only is her personality very fleshed out and lovable, and as relatably human as Misty in the Kanto saga, but her character arc, centered around a past trauma leaving her unable to touch Pokemon even though she loves them, has been done exceptionally well, just recently coming to its touching conclusion. And the best part is that this doesn’t mean Lillie is anywhere remotely close to finished, since she’s about to reinvent herself just like in the games, and be set for a new character arc focused on growing stronger as a person and a trainer. She’s up there with Iris, and is closing in on May! She may end up as the Pokeani’s greatest heroine, following up from the worst, which is helped by actually having a female head writer in charge for once. So here’s to you, Lillie!

#Pokemon #Analysis #Pokeani Evolution

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xsilversprings · 7 years

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Pokeshipping Week - Day Six.

Pikachu’s role in the relationship.

Pikachu liked to think that he was a patient pokemon.

He had all the time and love in the world for those he cared about. He wouldn't hesitate to jump in the line of fire if he needed to, or turn away anyone who required his help. But more often than not he's found himself in one situation or another involving two of the three people that meant the most to him.

"Ash, I'm going to kill you."

There was one now.

"C'mon, Misty, I'm sure it's around here somewhere."

And there was the other.

"You do this all the time, and of all the days to lose it on!"

He sighed. There was his master, leaning his back into the counter in the kitchen with a very scared and remorseful expression. His face reddened under nervous pressure while his eyes remained wide open and alert. Some of the objects and appliances that rested on the countertop had been shifted aside from their previous positions as well, scattered about and out of place.

And there was Misty, standing about two feet away from him with two clenched fists at her sides. Pikachu couldn't see her face, but he was careful to note that just by what he could see with her back turned that she was in no mood to be trifled with. Pikachu had been in the other room when he heard the shouting, and came scampering over to see what the commotion was about. He also noticed that pieces of her hair were sticking out and drooping out of her ponytail. The pokemon took this as another sign of stress from the problem at hand.

"I didn't mean to, okay?" Ash raised up his hands in surrender. "I swear. And I promise I'll find it."

Misty puffed out an irritated breath and stormed away. The redness seemed to be in her face as well once it came into view, and Pikachu didn't waste another second before jumping out of the way. The angry female could then be heard mumbling under breath about how "thickheaded" and "utterly scatterbrained" his master was. The tone of her voice wasn't one to be taken in alarm, however. Not to Pikachu. This was almost normal for what he was used to.

Then he heard Ash whistle softly for his attention. The pokemon bounded over to him, ears up and attention casted ahead of him. Ash smiled and stroked his fur. He seemed calmed if only for a moment, then glanced up ahead of him once before back to his friend.

"Do you have it?" he whispered. "I need it soon before she blows the roof off."

Instant relief washed over the Pikachu. He had a feeling this might happen. But he nodded, pointing toward the area that lead out of the kitchen. Ash seemed relieved by this as well and glanced back at the same entrance.

"Okay," he whispered again. "Go on and bring it over to me."

Misty could be heard muttering angrily from the other room again as he spoke, and Ash paled considerably. He swallowed.

"And hurry."

Pikachu didn't need a telling twice before he disappeared from sight. Meanwhile, Ash turned back around and began to open the cabinets and move some other things around. He tried to make it look as busy as he possibly could in the short amount of time he had. But they passed impossibly fast, and his nerves shortened by the second.

"Well?" Misty's voice suddenly came from behind him. She was back in the kitchen sooner than he expected, and he almost jumped out of his skin.

"Ah!" Ash exclaimed, nearly bumping into a stack of plates and knocking them over. Misty looked at him wide eyed and stared at him.

"What is wrong with you today?!"

"I-I'm sorry, you just startled me. I'll clean it up, okay? I'll clean up everything." he started frantically, then noticed Pikachu was hovering near the kitchen with both paws behind his back.

"I'll- whoa, what's that outside?!" Ash pointed a finger toward the sliding glass door that lead into the backyard.

Misty hadn't noticed this. But she almost looked frightened by his behavior and turned around on instinct at his words. She backed up and placed one hand on the handle of the door and peered out of the glass to find whatever it was that Ash apparently witnessed. Except for the fact that there was nothing she could find.

"What's what? I don't see anything." now Misty opened the door and went as far as to peek outside, putting up her hand to her eyes for better visage. This was when Pikachu silently edged his way into the kitchen and over to Ash, passing him the small item that he requested. He immediately accepted it with a wink, and the pokemon took a step back to give them some space.

"Okay, there's nothing out there." Misty was back inside and closed the door as she spoke. "Seriously, Ash, have you lost your-

"Hey." he interrupted. She turned around to find him suspiciously at ease now, and holding something up in his hand. Her eyes dropped to it and then back up to his face. She was more confused than ever, but accepted the object that he pressed into her hand with a questionable look on her face. Pikachu was watching with a growing smile on his own face and then chose that moment to exit the kitchen entirely.

"Ash... what are you-"

"Open it." he was smiling.

Misty eyed him. Her anger was ebbing away as she glanced down at what she was holding, then flipped open the lid and shrieked in happiness.

"Ash, you found it! You found my wedding ring! Where on earth was it? And why... why is it in a box?"

Ash barked a laugh while she held up the silver band in one hand and the box in the other. If he didn't know any better, he'd swear his obliviousness was rubbing off on her.

"It was never lost, Mist."

She glanced at him in more bewilderment. "What?"

"I had it engraved for our anniversary. If you look inside of it, it says both of our names and the year we got married."

"Wh-what?" this time she asked the question more to herself than to him as she hastily set the box aside and held it up in the light for a better view. And just as he said, their names were written side by side with the year they made it official underneath it. She let out a blissful sigh, placing it back on her ring finger as her eyes became bright.

"Oh Ash..."

He briefly raised his left hand. "I got mine done, too. I asked Pikachu to hold onto it for me until our anniversary. Which is technically tomorrow, but it’s okay. I just didn't think you'd go this nuts-"

His words were cut off by the rapid movement of Misty bursting forth with an appreciative and loving kiss. Ash stumbled backward slightly in surprise, but caught his footing and deeply chuckled against her lips as he returned the gesture.

Both of his hands were on her waist as they pulled back.

"You idiot, you stupid idiot. I was going crazy. I have half a mind to knock your block off, you know that?" Misty sniffled, smiling through her teary eyes. She had both arms around his neck and admired the ring from over his shoulder.

"I love you, too, Mist." he grinned back at her. He couldn't help but feel the craziness that lead up to this moment was worth it.

Misty then laughed quietly before removing herself from him. "I love you, Ash. You know I love you. And I love my ring, it's just beautiful. Thank you."

Ash watched her with all the fondness in the world as she raised a single finger to her eyes to remove the moisture forming there. But it was proving to be more than she could literally banish singlehandedly, glancing around for a tissue that wasn't nearby.

"Let me go take care of this. I'll be right back." she smiled in slight embarrassment and squeezed his hand, then departed after Ash gave a nod.

He whistled again after a moment of her absence. Pikachu came scurrying into the kitchen once again, happy that everything turned out okay.

Ash knelt down to his friend. "Thanks alot, pal. You really helped me out with this. I probably would've lost it for real if I was the one to hide it."

He reached out a hand and stroked his fur. Pikachu chattered in affection and purred. Of course, he was happy to do it. He'd help Ash with anything he needed. And Misty, too. Both of them meant the world to him. It always made him happy to see them happy. Anything but fighting, as normal as it was. But they always ended in the same way. And he would do anything he could to make sure that they did, no matter what that meant. He would always be there for them.

Ash smiled softly while these thoughts just happened to be going through his pokemon's mind.

"I can always count on you."

#pokeshipping week #pokeshipping week 2017 #Ash and Misty #day six #Pikachu's role in the relationship #pokeshipping #pokemon #AAML

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