#anyway ash finally became Pokemon champion what in the fuck

[math-is-math]

I am immensely proud of this 10 year old and his electric mouse

I unironically got so emotional over this LMAOOO anyway I don’t think I’ve ever made Pokémon fanart so

[arcanelucario]

So I’ve just caught up on the Sun & Moon anime, and now I’ve seen Ash win the league. His first ever league. And it was beautiful. I feel like I just have to say this, so even though my opinion doesn’t mean much (because haha why should it?) I’m gonna say some stuff here.

My initial reaction to hearing that Ash had won was, as you may know, not a super positive one. To be fair, I hadn’t actually experienced him winning then, but it just seemed weird to me. I haven’t been the biggest fan of the Sun & Moon anime from the start. The art style was a big change from previous seasons, and so it was weird to get used to, the animation was unusual but soon enough I saw the advantages, and the cast...well, I to this day have problems with the main cast.

Ash obviously I always liked, he’s the main character, how can I not? And Lillie was really the only other main character I always liked. She was a lot like herself in the game, and was actually bearable. Mallow, Lana and Sophocles were really annoying in my opinion. I just couldn’t stand them 9 times out of 10. Kiawe I liked for the most part, though he too could be a bit too much at times. However, I still grew to love them all too. The whole cast grew on me and became memorable, just like any of Ash’s traveling companions.

Anyway, onto the league itself. Coming off of the XY league, and the XY series itself it was a drastic difference. In XY we saw Ash with the strongest team he’s ever had. All fully evolved (aside from Pikachu), a psuedo legendary, and a Greninja with a unique form. It seemed like he would be unbeatable with that team, and then he lost. Looking back, that loss makes a lot of sense, and his win in this league makes a lot of sense too.

First of all, Ash winning a league after coming 2nd in the previous one makes a ton of sense on its own, and him coming any lower would be a massive kick in the balls. But that’s not the main reason why it makes sense. Watching the Alola league, and especially the final battle between Ash and Gladion reminded me why I love Pokemon, and it showed me why Ash deserved to win.

Pokemon, and specifically Ash’s journey, was never about having the strongest team with the best stats and best moves or whatever makes you think they’re the best. That was stuff we’d see in trainers like Paul and Trip, and it’s something we’d learn was wrong. For Ash, Pokemon aren’t tools, they’re his friends. On these journeys he makes these lifelong friends, both human and Pokemon and forms unique bonds with all of them. His friends are beings he can fight with and at the same time have fun with. So what if they are weak looking, small or not fully evolved? It’s their friendship and bond that makes them strong.

In the initial battle royal, Ash and his friends looked out for each other, and all made it through to the top 16. Then we saw Ash fight Faba, putting his Meltan’s unique ability to use and winning the fight. While Meltan is a small Pokemon, it’s because of how Ash uses it that it is strong.

Then we saw Ash fight Hau, a new friend of his who he got along with easily and well. In this fight not only did Ash fight a friend, so did his Rowlet, facing off against Hau’s Decidueye. And Ash won this fight too. He worked hard with his Rowlet whose strange but fun personality helped it win, and it’s determination (along with a new move) proved to be part of it’s strength.

Then he fought Guzma, an important bad guy who had a rivalry with Kukui. This battle proved that winning isn’t always what’s important, and because of Ash winning Guzma got to learn something. So far, this league had been something amazing to see.

And finally, the final battle came to. Ash vs Gladion. Another new friend and rival he had fought with a few times over the series. Watching these two fight, the way they fought, the way they had fun. It was beautiful. I actually teared up at one point. Two trainers, two friends fighting with everything they had. Even if Ash didn’t have fully evolved Pokemon in his fights, he knows that’s not all it takes to win.

Melmetal, Pikachu and Lycanroc against Silvally, Zoroark Lycanroc. 6 strong Pokemon, each with their own strength, weaknesses and friendship with their trainer. Watching them in the two episodes fight for the title of champion with their trainer, it was what the whole series is about.

And then...before Ash and Gladion had sent out their Lycanroc’s, they laughed. Right in the middle of their battle, they just started laughing. Because they’re friends and because they’re having fun. Which is what Pokemon is all about. Making friends and having fun. And then we saw them in an intense battle. Lycanroc vs Lycanroc, rivals themselves, fighting for the win. While the battle itself based on looks alone seemed to be on a smaller scale than fights in previous series, that didn’t matter. This fight was just another one of the many types you come across in the world of Pokemon.

Eventually, Ash won. He finally did it. He won a league, and we were there to watch him. His friends were there to watch him. Even his mother and hometown professor. The perfect place to win, and he reacts with confusion, because just like us, it was weird, unusual. We didn’t know if and when it would happen, and Ash didn’t know when he’d finally win either. But he won in this regions first ever league which was kinda cool to see because he’s the only trainer with experience in that sort of thing, and now it’s something that’s a part of history.

Pokemon has always been a big part of my life, and now I, along with everyone else who watched, witnessed history in the making. A truly beautiful thing to see, because Ash deserved it. After all these years, he won a league, and now we get to see what happens after such a thing. Ash has always deserved to win, he just always also had something new to learn, and that’s what we’ve been watching him do. Part of his journey is complete, he’s won a league, not something everyone can say they have done. But there’s still more for him to do, for him to learn on his quest to become a Pokemon master, whatever that may mean to him.

You fucking go, Ash.