#Anti-Atsuhiro Tomioka

[themattress]

Observation: SuMo Doomed Team Rocket

A follow-up to this post.

OK, “doomed” is hyperbole and just a way to grab your attention. By and large, what I said in the previous post still holds true. Team Rocket is still in much better shape now than in the AG/DP days where their presence in every single episode wore out the characters’ welcome. However, something needs to be said about Team Rocket in the Sun & Moon anime series when compared to the following series that is known as Pokemon Journeys internationally.

In SuMo, as I have said before, Team Rocket miraculously returned to the highest quality of characterization possible for them; the same quality they had in the Original Series when their creator Takeshi Shudo was around. They were kept in a great status quo where they lived in a secret base in Alola, constructed above Bewear’s den. They were competent villains who always got rescued by Bewear upon failing rather than getting “blasted off”, while being successful legitimate business operators to fund their operations on the side. They had routine contact with Giovanni and a budding rivalry with his secretary Matori and her own special militarized Team Rocket sub-group. They got involved with interesting storylines such as conflicts with Team Skull, infiltrating the Aether Foundation, learning to master a Z Crystal, and doing their part to assist during the crisis with Necrozma. They had wonderful, fully fleshed out Pokemon companions whom they formed a tight familial bond with: Mimikyu, Mareanie, Bewear and Stufful. In general, Alola just seemed to bring out the best in them.

Unfortunately, this ended up posing a problem when taking them into Journeys. How were the writers going to be able to top all that material in SuMo? The answer ended up being...they couldn’t. Despite some unique points like their personal criminal lair and the gaccha machine that allowed them to use any number of random Pokemon, and some recurring plot threads early on like their attempt to harness the power of Dynamax and them being stalked by a Morpeko that eventually is caught by James, the more the series went on the less Team Rocket ended up appearing, and whenever they did appear their material was dictated by what was already done in the past rather than anything new. Don’t believe me? Just look:

It just ended up feeling like after over two decades, the well of inspiration had run dry for Team Rocket. In hindsight, this was evident as soon as the gaccha machine was introduced. SuMo had set such a high bar with the bond Team Rocket developed with their Pokemon that the writers found it too daunting to try reaching or surpassing it, leading to a device that allowed Team Rocket to use different Pokemon each episode and thus not develop bonds with any of them. Morpeko was the sole exception, and sure enough it ended up feeling pretty “meh” compared to the Alola Pokemon. At the end of Journeys, which was Team Rocket’s send-off as major characters alongside Ash and Pikachu, their final battle was a blend of their Nimbasa City Subway mission and Operation Tempest, both from Best Wishes, and their final plotline was an incredibly rushed and routine “the TRio splits up but gets back together” story; so routine in fact that Journeys already pulled one earlier! Atsuhiro Tomioka had no better ideas for how to bid farewell to Team Rocket beyond these reheated leftovers.

Their final appearance certainly wasn’t horrible or anything, but it was quite disappointing, especially in how marred it was by the last-minute Team Rocket break-up plot that could have been removed entirely and nothing would feel like it was missing. Team Rocket in the anime peaked as villains in Best Wishes, then as characters in Sun & Moon. There was honestly nowhere to go but down after that, and I guess we should feel grateful they were sent off before that downward spiral could progress to the point it became offensive to their legacy. Concluding their run at the end of Journeys, which used them sparingly, was the right call.

[themattress]

Atsuhiro Tomioka’s 30 Greatest Achievements (and his 30 Biggest Blunders) in the Pokeani

Atsuhiro Tomioka, perhaps the most prolific writer in the history of the Pokemon anime....and perhaps the most Hit and Miss one, as well. See, when Tomioka makes a hit, it’s a freaking Home Run. But when he misses, it’s a disaster of epic proportions. Now that the era of Ash Ketchum is over (God, that still sounds surreal), in the spirit of fairness and even-handedness I would like to recount his best successes and his worst failures over the course of 25 years.

THE HITS:

Ash’s First Capture: Tomioka’s first episode ever was the third one, making him the first writer after the late Takeshi Shudo to write for the anime. And the episode in question, OS003, is a damn good one: Ash captures Caterpie and Pidgeotto, has a proper battle with Team Rocket, fleshes out his and Misty’s argumentative dynamic, and gives Caterpie a whole character arc that progresses through the episode. That scene where Caterpie and Pikachu are talking and there’s no coherent dialogue spoken yet you still get it...it’s a fantastic scene!

Pikachu vs. Raichu: Everyone who’s watched the anime from the start remembers the battle and rematch at Vermillion Gym in OS014, and the conflict in between as to whether Ash should evolve Pikachu with a Thunderstone in order to win. It’s a classic, well-written episode.

The Copycat Girl: In OS037, Tomioka takes a noteworthy NPC and fleshes her out into a passionate showgirl and delightful little troll who trains - what else? - a Ditto. Gotta love her!

“A Jigglypuff Seen From Above!”: OS056 is another famous episode, and probably one of the funniest that Tomioka has ever penned. From start to finish it’s so absurd it’s hilarious.

Defining the Rivalry: Before OS067, Gary was primarily Ash’s douchey rival. This episode, however, actually develops him and his rivalry with Ash, shifting him toward being a more mature, respectable trainer, open to learning just as much from Ash as Ash learns from him.

The REAL Giant Pokemon: The giant Pokemon in Takeshi Shudo’s classic OS017 were just animatronics, but the ones that show up in OS074 are real, ancient Eldritch Abominations! This is a genuinely dark and tense episode, but it also has one of the most hysterical pay-offs of all time with “Bigglypuff”, the joke that all of Jiggylpuff’s prior showings were leading up to.

Pikachu Goes to the Dark Side: OS088 is an episode beloved by many for the return of Butch and Cassidy, Pikachu turning evil due to mind control, a fantastic team-up between the heroes and Team Rocket to save their Pokemon, a very touching reunion between Ash and the freed Pikachu, and the final battle where Togepi shockingly learns Metronome and is unexpectedly powerful with it. It’s absolutely one of the Orange Island saga’s best stories.

Charizard’s Redemption: OS107 is where, after 64 episodes, Charizard finally gets over himself and remembers that for all his flaws as a trainer, Ash cares about him deeply and helped save his life when he was just a Charmander. It’s a very effective, touching episode.

The Orange Island Championship: It may not count for much, but OS113 and OS114 have Ash win his first major competitive victory by defeating Drake of the Orange League and becoming the Orange League Champion. The climactic match of Pikachu vs. Dragonite is especially great, and in retrospect foreshadows the battle against Leon many years later.

The Legend of Thunder: While it’s not perfect, this OVA gives us a fascinating “What If?” scenario by focusing on a different main character and his two friends as they have their own adventures in Johto and face a more sinister duo from Team Rocket. It makes you wish they were the focus instead of Ash, or at the very least focus could be split between the two.

Ash vs. Gary at the Johto League: Ash and Gary’s long rivalry has built up to this battle in OS272 and OS273, and it’s excellent. Charizard vs. Blastoise, man; who could ever forget it?

Harley Wins: Harley has been a humorous and semi-villainous rival for May, but he’s lost every time they fought and there was little reason to believe that would change. Shockingly, AG160 gives him the victory, as for once he doesn’t stoop to cheating and is able to reap the good karma this choice brings him. It goes a long way in making him more respectable.

May’s Coda: After losing her second Grand Festival, May is in something of a slump at the start of AG187. But then Drew, the rival she defeated in said Grand Festival, challenges her to a battle and is able to defeat her. This is a visual demonstration to May that anyone can bounce back from defeat and that her competitive path in Pokemon Contests never truly ends, reinvigorating her spirit. Not only is this a great resolution for May, but also for Drew and his somewhat romantic bond with May. (Oh, and Harley’s here too, great as always).

The Dream Team: BW006 is the episode where Ash, Iris and Cilan officially become a team that will travel across Unova and beyond together. Sandwiched between two traveling teams that by and large are big Get-Along Gangs, this trio is refreshing in how different each character truly is from one another and how they clash in addition to supporting each other.

The Meteonite Incident: Although the full work remains lost, the story of BW023 and BW024 is a good one, with Giovanni finally getting out of his chair and attending to matters himself, setting in motion an escalating chain of events that end up threatening an entire city’s safety.

Battle For The Underground: While Shoji Yonemura wrote the first part of this story in BW049, Tomioka writes the exciting conclusion where Team Rocket pulls out all the stops to ensure their massive heist succeeds, with the heroes’ victory being fought hard for and only claimed due to the surprise of Pikachu becoming something of a Pokemon trainer himself!

Aim To Be a Dragon Master: If there was still any doubt as to what exactly being a Dragon Master entails, BW058 puts them to rest in a quiet, moving story of Iris helping a lonely Deino come out of its shell and trust others, and ultimately sacrificing her personal wants for its needs by giving it back to its rightful trainer. It’s not about the power; it’s about the empathy. 

Operation Tempest: BW098 and BW099 are two of the best Pokeani episodes ever, serving as the epic conclusion to the Meloetta story arc, the overarching Team Rocket in Unova arc, and the ever-looming prospect of Ash someday facing Giovanni himself. Add to this Cynthia being awesome, Iris finally connecting with her Dragonite, one of the Team Rocket trio’s finest moments, and an emotional farewell with Meloetta, and you have yourself a true masterwork.

Ash vs. Clemont at Lumiose Gym: Good build-ups and pay-offs were hard to come by in the first two years of XY, but XY067 was an exception, as it pays off not just Clemont’s leave of absence for several episodes beforehand but also Clemont’s personal character arc ever since the series started, and he rises to the occasion with a wonderfully tense electric battle.

The Strongest Mega Evolution: Like “The Legend of Thunder”, except across four specials rather than just one, we have a story about characters other than Ash and his friends which is a lot more interesting. Alain is way more than just the edgy cool guy he first appears to be, his relationship with Mairin is precious, Steven Stone gets to redeem himself for his showing in the AG series, and Lysandre is a wonderfully charismatic and manipulative villain. Combined with some superb animation and even a true Groudon vs. Kyogre battle, it’s...well, strong!

Enter Squishy: With XY094, Kalos is able to one-up Johto by actually making its side story featuring different characters connect with the main story! Getting to see the Zygarde Core (named “Squishy” by Bonnie), Lysandre and freaking Alain in the same episode as Ash and his friends gives you such an exhilarating feeling. Finally, things are starting to come together.

Armageddon in Kalos: The climax of the XY series, XY132 - XY136, is where Tomioka is able to do what he was sadly prevented from doing in the BW series: conclude the series Myth Arc in an epic, high-stakes event that threatens the whole region and relies on just about every significant good guy coming together to fight against. Lysandre cements himself as one of the anime’s greatest villains, causing unprecedented damage across Lumiose City as he seeks to achieve his insane, genocidal aims. There are some flaws (mainly the fact that alleged heroines Serena and Mairin get jack-shit to actually do), but on the whole this is a fantastic pay-off, retroactively making the entire series worth it just for these episodes alone.

The Story of Ash’s Litten: Litten’s story is an emotional gut-punch, particularly in SM021 where Ash catches it. Even now, it’s hard to think of that Stoutland without tearing up...

Team Rocket vs. Team Skull: In SM025, it finally happens. Jessie, James and Meowth finally meets a villainous trio that’s even more stupid and bumbling than they’ve ever been.

Misty and Brock, Back and Better Than Ever: Following Shoji Younemura in a two-parter again, Tomioka’s SM043 is the conclusion of the perfect re-introduction to Misty and Brock, both of whom get to be badass here. Misty and her teasing of Ash is especially on point.

10,000,000 Volts: SM053 and SM054 both showcase the battle in Ultra Space between Ash and his friends (the would-be-Ultra Guardians) and Lusamine, who has been forcibly merged with Nihilego and reduced to a psychotic, childish mentality. It ends with two stellar moment: a speech from Lillie to her mother that I honestly like better than the games’ version, and the separation of Lusamine from Nihelgo by Pikachu’s incredible 10,000,000 Volts Z-Move.

Lana Hooks Kyogre: Do I need to say more? Lana hooks a freaking Kyogre!

Defeat Incineroar, Become Incineroar: The battle between Ash and his father-figure Professor Kukui runs for SM141 - SM144, the first three of which are written by Tomioka. While that’s one episode longer than I’d have liked, it’s ultimately worth it for SM143 (the penultimate episode before Aya Matsui’s epic finale with Tapu Koko), where Ash’s Torracat finally manages to defeat Kukui’s Incineroar, evolving into an Incineroar itself afterward.

Battle of the Newbie Champions: JN065 gives us Ash, new young Champion of the Alola region, vs. Iris, new young Champion of the Unova region. It’s the perfect re-introduction to Iris as well as an incredibly close battle that you could easily see either trainer winning.

The Masters Eight Tournament: JN115 - JN118, JN122 - JN125 and JN129 - JN132 are all written by Tomioka and feature every battle in the Masters Eight tournament that concludes the long-running World Coronation Series: Leon vs. Alain, Lance vs. Diantha, Iris vs. Cynthia, Ash vs. Steven, Leon vs. Diantha, Ash vs. Cynthia, and finally Ash vs. Leon. All of these battles are great, especially both Cynthia battles and the decisive final battle which serves as the culmination of Ash’s 25-year journey...the moment he and Pikachu achieve their dream.

THE MISSES:

For Want of a Jelly Donut: OS025 is a really bad episode. There’s little plot to speak of beyond dealing with a rampaging Primeape, which Ash catches only to discard a mere 4 episodes later making it feel utterly pointless. It also hasn’t aged well given that so much importance is placed on Ash’s hat...which ended up being just the first of many hats he wears, so I guess it wasn’t so special after all! The only good part about this episode is the English dub version with its notorious “rice ball = jelly donut” translation. Otherwise, it blows. 

The Sleepiest Episode Ever: In OS060, Ash and his friends come upon an island where a Blastoise is asleep and they need to wake it up. So, it’s just a variation on OS041, except with all of the riotous humor sucked out and replaced with dullness. Seriously, it’s so boring.

Who Gets To Keep Totodile?: Misty screwed Ash out of Togepi in OS050, so now in OS153 Ash screws Misty out of Totodile! Huh. Did Tomioka never hear the one about two wrongs?

Excruciating Ecruteak: In the games, Ecruteak City is a fascinating place and Morty is an intriguing Gym Leader. In the anime as showcased in OS183 and OS184, both of them are dreadfully boring and unmemorable. Also, this is where Ho-oh finally gets name-dropped as the Pokemon that Ash saw in the first episode, and it flies by like it’s nothing! What the Hell!?

The Whirl Cup: In OS217 - OS219, Tomioka tries to finally give Misty something major to do. Unfortunately, it ends up sucking! Beyond the predictable formula of Misty losing to someone who goes on to lose to someone else in the next round, the preceding battle between her and Ash is awful. People claim Ash “regressed in intelligence” in BW, but seldom seem to bring up the time he lost because he somehow forgot that giving Psyduck a headache was a bad idea!

Deadbeat Parents are Hilarious!: The first side special episode that aired over the course of the AG series has Brock return to Pewter City Gym and reunite with both of his deadbeat parents. Hey, remember when that situation was treated seriously back in OS005? Tomioka sure doesn’t, since Brock’s parents and his anger toward them for abandoning him and his siblings are treated as zany and wacky here, diminishing what should be a serious issue.

Goodbye, Arbok and Weezing: AG006 gets rid of Jessie and James’ original Pokemon, Arbok and Weezing, in an unpleasant and kind of mean-spirited way, made worse by the fact that they are never reunited ever again. As a TR fan, it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Boring and Boring-er: AG027 is when Team Magma and Team Aqua, the mysterious evil teams from earlier, finally meet up with one another. Aaaand...they still act mysteriously, even when there’s no reason to since they don’t know anyone else is watching and they have the exact same evil plan just with different Legendary Pokemon at the end of it! Tomioka seems to think that this will make them intriguing to viewers. Instead, it just makes them boring. 

The Togepi Kingdom: Tomioka brings Misty and Togepi back in AG044 and AG045 and sends off the latter, evolving it into Togetic in the process. Not only is this way too little too late, but the story here is ridiculous, involving a fairy tale style kingdom with a princess and an evil mustache-twirling villain out to conquer it, with the whole reason behind Misty leaving Togetic being connected to it. Really? This is the pay-off Togepi gets after all these years!?

May’s Acquired Situational Narcissism: In an example of a trope I tend to hate, May in AG078 suddenly starts acting like a swell-headed jerk, even though there wasn’t any sign of that in just the previous episode this one is directly following! It’s all to humble her and teach her a lesson through having her lose, of course, and it’s so boring and predictable and lame.

The Ultimate Anti-Climax: AG097 and AG098 are what the whole Team Magma and Team Aqua plotline were building up to, and what do we get? A bunch of still frames and awkward animation as Groudon and Kyogre have themselves what is sold as an epic battle but what actually looks like a schoolyard scuffle. Also, no Steven, no Wallace, but Lance? WTF!? These two episodes are regarded as some of the worst in Pokeani history, and justifiably so.

Jigglypuff, Except Not: AG138 isn’t a bad episode, but it’s marred by a single poor decision - the Jigglypuff it focuses on is not the Jigglypuff. See, even though Jigglypuff got its big pay-off in OS074, when the Pokeani was renewed due to the franchise’s unexpected popularity it still stuck around as a running joke that got ran into the ground before just vanishing without a trace following AG039. This episode provided the perfect opportunity to finally give it a definitive send-off, and Tomioka totally wasted it! That’s never gonna not hurt to think about.

The Bait-and-Switch Premiere: DP001 is a great episode for most of its run, introducing us to Dawn, a lovable new heroine that combines the position of Ash and the goal of May, which promises a unique new adventure to come.....and then we see Ash, Pikachu and Team Rocket at the end. That’s when it becomes clear that Dawn isn’t going to be the lead after all, she’s just May’s replacement and we’re just doing the same old tired-out shit all over again. If the DP series was your first and you like it, cool. But for me, it was a soul-crushing let-down.

Dirt Poor Pacing: Ash getting his first badge in Sinnoh takes forever because DP015 wastes time having Paul fight Roark for his badge, then having Ash fight Roark and lose in DP016, then having a random incident in the city transpire in DP017 before finally having Ash fight Roark and win in DP018. 4 episodes just to win the region’s first badge is simply too much.

Copy/Paste Writing: Dawn enters a Contest. She doesn’t get past the Appeals round. Jessie obnoxiously rubs it in her face. Dawn feels depressed because she’s failing to live up to her mother’s reputation as a Coordinator. Zoey comforts her about it. Which episode am I talking about: DP049 or DP061? Trick question, it’s both because they share the exact same plot.

The Wallace Cup: Besides using May’s obligatory return to bring Wallace in one generation late and barely do anything substantial with him, DP075 - DP079 suffer from questionable decisions like abruptly having Zoey be fine with people doing both Gyms and Contests, having Ash compete in the Wallace Cup in an Indiana Jones cosplay outfit for no good reason, and having Dawn and Piplup defeat May and Glaceon in a highly unconvincing manner just to resolve Dawn’s self-confidence arc that wasn’t very well-written to start with.

Ash and Paul’s Full Battle: If the characters and narrative had treated Paul honestly and if Paul lost this battle, then we could have had something good. But no, Ash loses, all while moral relativism and abuse apologism runs rampant. What DP131 and DP132′s story appears to be saying is that Paul’s issue was never his cruelty toward people and Pokemon he deemed weak, but that he was too emotional. Yeah, because when I think of emotional characters, I think of Paul. But now he’s cool-headed and thus the stronger trainer between him and Ash and so he deserves to win! Ugh, the creator favoritism reached its peak here.

It’s SPEAR Pillar, Not SPHERE Pillar!: The climax of the Team Galactic storyline from DP150 - DP152 was better than the Aqua/Magma climax, but not by nearly enough, with it leading to a brief skirmish in a nonsensically located “Spear Pillar” where Cyrus completes his descent into OOC Complete Monster-dom by revealing he wants to wipe everything out so that he alone can exist in a new world. He then commits existential suicide when his new world begins to fade away without having ever battled anyone, which is followed by Dialga and Palkia threatening to destroy Sinnoh until Ash, Dawn and Brock pray to the Lake Trio who just...make Dialga and Palkia stop. Oh yeah, and they were chosen by the Lake Trio only because they “love Pokemon so much”, as Cynthia pretentiously says. Ugh! Gag me!

Diamond Dandruff: DP161 and DP162 finally reveal why Dawn’s childhood friends teasingly call her “Dee Dee”. It stands for...”Diamond Dandruff”, due to Plusle and Minun making her hair sparkle once when she was young.  And the humiliation was apparently so great that it gave her a full-blown phobia of Plusle and Minun, which she now must struggle to overcome. Really? Dawn having hair problems is a running gag in the series, and a hair problem is now not only being used to explained away a plot point that’s been kept secret for years but is being treated in a way where we’re meant to take it seriously? By Arceus, is that stupid...

A Scientific Breakthroooops, Never Mind: We spend all of BW039 dealing with Professor Juniper and Fennel’s resurrection of a fossilized Archen which evolves into Archeops and then at the end we discover that Archeops are not, in fact, extinct, as a whole flock of them show up to take the newly revived one under their wings. That’s.....incredibly lazy writing.

My Way Or The Highway, Bitch!: The Black and White games’ message is about how it’s important to have open dialogue between people who hold different viewpoints and ideas, and how the world shouldn’t change by one ideal being forced upon everyone else? Fuck that shit, BW069 says that Skyla’s new way of running her Gym is bullshit and Cilan has to force his view on how she should be running it onto her until she complies! If the message ended up being that negotiation and diplomacy are what can resolve the problem, it’d be fine. But no, Skyla’s just wrong and is depicted as a callous bitch, Cilan’s just right and is depicted as an avenging hero, and in the following episode Skyla just has to go back to regular battling without addressing the reasons she stopped doing them to start with. Fuck off, Tomioka.

You Can’t Handle the Truth!: The climax for Team Plasma’s story arc in BW122 - BW124 is a step above Team Galactic’s, which was a step above Team Aqua/Magma’s. Unfortunately, Tomioka gets to write the last of the three episodes, and as a result the action that was building up so well in the previous two is met with an anticlimactic conclusion. Oh, you think there’s going to be a big fight against Reshiram? Maybe with Ghetsis commanding it against Ash’s Charizard, as hinted at in the current OP? Nope! You can just sense Tomioka’s lack of passion for this finale, since he never got over not being able to make the Black and White inspired one he’d hoped to at the start of the BW series. As a result, the Team Plasma arc doesn’t end on a whimper or a bang, but on a shrug, as if to say “Idk, whatever, we’re done”.

Professor Oak’s Pointless Vacation: BW130 has Professor Oak visit the Decolore Islands and catch a Rotom, which he proceeds to do nothing of value with. Meanwhile, Team Rocket fully regresses into unfunny gag characters ala the DP series, and Ash passes up a perfectly good opportunity to return to Kanto just...because. Tomioka isn’t even trying at this point.

Ash Comes To Kalos: At first glance, XY001 and XY002 make for a perfectly solid premiere. But look closer and you see an immediate problem, and that’s Ash Ketchum. His design, his attitude, him doing stuff like bravely jumping off a skyscraper...it’s all reflective of the anime producers’ reactionary pandering to the vocal online fandom who complained about Ash in the BW series, and thus he’s now the badass “Chad” type they’ve always wanted him to be so that they can enjoy projecting themselves onto him. I cannot sanction such cowardice.

Meeting (Low) Expectations: After over a year, XY060 finally has Serena take a crack at a professional goal: being a Performer in a Pokemon Showcase. And.....it’s just Pokemon Contests all over again, minus the battling factor and gender equality. But apparently that wasn’t underwhelming enough, so we also get to see her lose and cry about it! This is the nadir of the first half of the XY series’ major problem with returning to formulaic conventions. It’s everything that’s been done before done worse, but then Serena gets a haircut so we’re supposed to view it as dramatic and important instead of stale and derivative. Yeah, no. Pass.

Ash’s Frog Fiasco: The ill-advised “Ash-Greninja synchronization” plotline comes to a head in XY120 - XY122, all written by Tomioka. Ash loses due to overexerting his bond with Greninja for the upteenth time, which sends him into a crisis of confidence. This could allow him to be more interesting than he’s been in a long while, but instead Serena yells at him to suck it up and be “the real Ash” again, which he does since fallibility just ain’t allowed for him in the XY series! Tellingly, this specific story gets retconned in Pokemon Journeys, which instead says Ash and Greninja had an argument and brief falling out after Ash pushed it too hard in battle. That does sound like a better story...I sure wish it was the one we actually got.

Hau Do You Do?: In SM097, Tomioka abruptly introduces Hau into the series. I’m sorry, Hau is an important character in the games, but the show has progressed too far without even a hint to his existence, so he was better off left unadapted. But no, he’s here now simply to provide an extra opponent for Ash to beat in the Alola League. The poor guy deserved better.

Kukui’s Childhood: Celebi time travel plots had gotten old by this point, and SM125 might be the worst one of all because it involves Ash and Torracat traveling back to when Kukui was a child with a Litten, and they give him the dream to form the Alola League in the future....the League that Ash ends up winning. Viewed in that light, his victory kinda feels like cheating.

Paul’s Unwelcome Return: There is no valid reason for JN114 to exist other than for Tomioka’s darling Paul to grace the screen again and remind us all what a poorly written character he was due to this favoritism shown toward him. “He’s way too cool!” Goh says. Ugh! I prefer the English dub, where Goh instead derisively says he’s “acting far too cool”, which not only is more in-character but sums up Paul well. He’s not cool; he’s just a poser.

No More Team Rocket!: Finally, a perfectly good send-off for Ash and Pikachu spread across JN137 - JN147 is marred by what is done with Team Rocket in the last three of those episodes, all written by Tomioka. After a plan and battle reminiscent of better ones from the past fail, the Team Rocket trio, over the course of one minute, argue and then sever ties with one another! We then get another minute where they’re still mad at each other, and then the following minute with them in it they reconcile! That’s the best Tomioka could come up with for their final plotline? A break-up plot whose outcome was all too obvious given that it’s been done several times before...and a ridiculously rushed break-up plot at that? Disgraceful.

[themattress]

What are your thoughts on Ash Ketchum's final episodes being written with Tomioka as part of the staff? And your thoughts on the new protagonists too?

I don't really care in regards to the first. Tomioka's always cared more about Ash's career than his character and his career is what this miniseries is about, Daiki Tomiyasu is directing so it should still be good, and at the end of the day it's ultimately a filler just to give super-attached fans more closure before the Pokeani finally moves beyond Ash, Pikachu, Team Rocket and the like. As for the new characters, I like the looks of them, especially the girl.

[ultraericthered]

Ash Ketchum meme, in honor of his recent win.

Original Series!Ash Ketchum (Gens 1-2) is the best, most valid Ash, but I like Ash in half of Advanced Generation (during the “Ruby & Sapphire” Hoenn arc), “Rainbow Hero” reality!Ash (M20, M21, & M23), Sun & Moon!Ash, and Journeys!Ash as well. On the flipside, Ash in the other half of Advanced Generation (mainly in the Battle Frontier arc), Diamond & Pearl!Ash, Best Wishes!Ash, and XY/Z!Ash ...sort of sucked. Like, a lot. Fuck you very much, Atsuhiro Tomioka.

[themattress]

I GRADE: Cyrus - Final Fates

Diamond/Pearl: Cyrus fails to control either Dialga or Palkia to destroy and remake the universe in his own image thanks to the hero and the Lake Trio. After being defeated in battle by the hero, Cyrus swears to try this plan again someday, as he won’t stop until he becomes a god. He and his minions then go into hiding, with the rest of Team Galactic going legit.

Platinum: Cyrus successfully controls both Dialga and Palkia, but is prevented from creating his new universe by Giratina, who drags him into the Distortion World. Giratina’s rage disturbs the balance between worlds, and Cyrus plans on capitalizing on this to make his goal happen anyway. The hero defeats him and Giratina, which stabilizes the worlds’ connection. Cyrus has a momentary breakdown before electing to stay in the Distortion World in order to unlock its secrets, hoping that he can find a way to make his perfect new world without spirit yet.

Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon: A version of Cyrus from a reality where he was successful is encountered in Rainbow Rocket Castle. His first instinct is to seek to enact his plan to remove spirit from this world as well, but after being defeated by the hero, he decides against it and shows signs of reconsidering his view of spirit as a thing that makes living creatures weaker.

TCG: Per the rules of the game, Cyrus can either triumph or he can be defeated and end up with his deck in the Discard Pile, which is the equivalent of him being arrested.

Anime: Cyrus begins creating his new universe that will supplant the old one by controlling Dialga and Palkia, but Ash, Dawn and Brock break this control. As Cyrus’ new world begins to vanish from existence, a completely delusional Cyrus jumps into it while screaming about how it’s his and his alone. Cyrus and his universe are then wiped out by Dialga and Palkia. 

Generations: Cyrus successfully controls both Dialga and Palkia, but is prevented from creating his new universe by Giratina, who drags him into the Distortion World. Rather than raging, Giratina is tranquil, as it sees a kindred spirit in Cyrus. Cyrus feels the same way and even feels like the Distortion World would make a good home, thus he chooses to make it so.

Pokemon Adventures/DPA: In both of these mangas, Cyrus is defeated at the Spear Pillar during the D/P-based section of it and has an epiphany about how he was wrong all this time. In the Platinum-based section, after thinking this over more, he officially reforms and disbands Team Galactic, although Saturn, Mars and Jupiter remain by his side out of loyalty. 

And now, my personal ranking, countdown-style:

7. Anime - Cyrus doesn’t even get to fight in this version, ever, and he takes himself out like an idiot...and in a pretty disturbing way, all things considered, as if Atsuhiro Tomioka wanted to top Hunter J’s death from the previous episode, which just creates an anti-climax.

6. Diamond/Pearl - Cyrus fucks up his own plan and then just...leaves, having learned nothing and vowing to start the same failed plan all over again? What a freaking let-down!

5. TCG - A standard TCG fate, nothing much else to say about it. 

4. Generations - Well, he’s got a home and a friend. That’s nice, but it doesn’t account for how he’s going to pull in the rest of humanity, since Cyrus isn’t just some lonely guy, he’s got a Messianic complex that demands he take charge of humanity’s “evolution” into what he considers an idealized form. If he’s just totally content with this, it’s OOC behavior for him.

3. Platinum - A great open-ended fate, with Cyrus still having learned nothing just like in the D/P games, but now with his original plan to ascend to godhood utterly demolished beyond a re-do and now he’s going to have to endure his own self-imposed Hell in order to come up with a new one. Whether he’ll ever see the light or not can be left to the player’s imagination.

2. Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon - What’s this? A hint at redemption! Excellent!

1. Pokemon Adventure/DPA - I don’t know why redemption fits an omnicidal madman like Cyrus so well, but it does. Seeing him learn a better way and find a new lease on life is just as satisfying as seeing it with Archie and Maxie; maybe even moreso given his backstory.