History Awesome / PokemonTheSeries

* Anytime a Champion or an Elite Four member is in a Pokemon Battle on-screen against anyone who isn't a fellow Champion or Elite Four member. Expect the person they are battling to be most likely creamed by their skillful and powerful Pokemon with their opponent to be even lucky to knock out one of their pokemon with any of their pokemon they have let alone landing a scratch. Alain is the only non-Elite Four and non-Champion on-screen to defeat an Elite Four member and that wasn't easy.

* In "Charmander, The Stray Pokemon", the trio displays a surprisingly good plan based around rubber and the fact it can't be electrocuted and manage to capture Pikachu, leaving the three heroes in a pit. This is only awesome, of course, if you overlook the fact that they got burned by Charmander moments later.

* Their first battle with Ash and co. in "Do I Hear A Ralts." Sure the episode is them at their most vile (trying to steal an extremely sick Ralts from Max), but this is one of the few times they hold their own in a battle, simply because they use their Pokemon to their full potential. Jessie even uses Wobuffett to deflect an ice attack.

* In "The Thief That Keeps On Thieving" they finally beat the twerps to a Pokemon capture, and rather handily escape with the Yanma they had just battled. Giovanni wasn't impressed with it, but it stands as proof the trio can steal Pokemon. And after it is returned to them, it promptly beats down Ash's Chimchar and evolves into a Yanmega, even giving the twerps a mini "blasting off" of their own with Sonic Boom. The dumbfounded reaction from Dawn sells it:

* In Team Plasma's debut episode (BW112), Team Rocket hacks their computers and steals their data on mind-controlling Pokemon. The best part about this is that they actually ''planned this out'', and waited until Team Plasma was distracted with Ash and company. Then, they recite their motto, and don't wait around to get blasted off. Team Plasma still manages to blast them off after chasing them down in a jet, but it still really shows that Team Rocket hasn't lost everything with going back to their old selves.

* In "A Frenzied Factory Fiasco" they make complete chumps of the twerps; using tour guide aliases to dupe them into ''willingly handing over every last one of their Pokemon'' (even getting Ash to obliviously place Pikachu into one of their electric proof cases for an extra insult) before getting them obliviously locked in a storage closet. Only Pikachu manages to escape and stop them, though even against him, Meowth and the team's other Pokemon act as {{Super Persistent Predator}}s the whole episode rather than the usual one minute CurbstompBattle.

** They fight two of Flare's Executives, and ''win''[[note]]Keeping in mind Serena, who regularly curb stomps them, failed to make three regular Flare mooks' Pokemon even flinch[[/note]], after which they catch up with the others and help Ash take out the Megalith. For extra points they get the whole thing recorded on tape, and manipulate the footage later on to convince Giovanni they put Team Flare out of action single-handedly for their report on their Kalos mission.
* They get one in ''Pokemon Puzzle League'''s Spa Service mode, where they successfully steal every Trainer's Pokemon. They also get one during the final stage, where they make a BadassBoast.

* In Sun and Moon, a Mareanie winds up on James' team and, alongside Jessie's recently caught Mimikyu, ''ends up beating Ash's current team in a straight-up Pokemon battle.'' [[NearVillainVictory The only reason Ash didn't have his Pokemon taken from him]] was [[DiabolusExMachina because Bewear stepped in to retrieve Team Rocket at the last second]], but the fact still stands: for the first time in the anime's long run, [[PunctuatedForEmphasis Team Rocket. Defeated. ASH.]] As a bonus, Ash had only recently defeated Kahuna Hala a couple episodes prior, ''without'' any Pokémon fainting, ''on the first try''. So one of the biggest [=CMoAs=] from Ash thus far is then topped off by a victory from Team Rocket. This is also fitting: both parties were around since the show's beginning, so it's nice to finally see Team Rocket on equal footing with Ash for once, let alone actually beating him.
* [=SM049=] gives the trio a very good case to know EvenEvilHasStandards when Faba enlists them in his plan to erase Lillie's memories. They proceed to chew him out on how wrong it is, pointing out the memories and experiences between trainers and Pokemon is vital to who they are, and then quit the Aether Foundation on the spot.

* In ''Sun and Moon'' they, at last, avert VillainForgotToLevelGrind by actually obtaining the series power-up mechanic. They get hold of a Z-Power Ring, two Z Crystals, and their Pokemon learn the attacks to correspond to it. Their first attempt at a Z-Move is even performed flawlessly, knocking out a rampaging Gengar. They even mimic Ash's victory pose after collecting their new spoils.

* Her first showcase win in the Kalos showcases in "A Dancing Debut". While Serena's Eevee slipping mid-performance may have helped, Jessie's Pokemon and Meowth really pulled out all the shots. A rare victory against one of the twerps.

* Wobbuffet's first battle after (accidentally) getting traded to Team Rocket in "Tricks Of The Trade", delivering a CurbstompBattle to Ash's Chikorita with just two Counters. The TerribleTrio are also CrazyPrepared for most of their scheme beforehand. When angry customers realize they've traded their Pokemon for empty Pokeballs, they handily net them all and try to escape, and, knowing Ash will likely break free prematurely, dangle a net of fake Pokeballs under their balloon in anticipation of him attacking it, leading them to blast off with the real ones.

* In [=SM091=], Mimikyu goes berserk from overseeing Alola's Pikachu Valley. Jessie makes use of the situation by having it perform "Let's Snuggle Forever!" on the ''entire herd'' of Pikachu. Taking it even further, she ''keeps the Z-Move going by holding the pose'', basically turning Mimikyu into a formidable net that Team Rocket try to lug away. No other trainer and Pokemon have been shown performing this feat with a Z-Move thus far.

* In BW, the fact that he was able to trick the gang that he had been fired from TR in order to begin executing the Pokémon-stealing plan at Nimbasa four episodes later, mainly by [[ManipulativeBastard sweet talking and flattering them]], and showing off his skills as a Pokemon negotiator. The plan was so swiftly handled and a hair away from succeeding that it not only left Pikachu ''enraged'' how easily he got played, but actually left Ash and the other twerps, usually dismissive or complacent towards the trio's antics, openly admitting they had become their {{Worthy Opponent}} for a change.
* Meowth in general: he is a very common, normal type Pokemon that, through ThePowerOfLove, ''taught himself how to talk and walk on his hindlegs'' like a human. The only other two Pokemon in the series that can truly talk is Slowking from the second movie and Gastly from the Maiden's Peak episode, with the Legendary Pokemon only being able to talk through psychic powers and puppets. As he even explains to Iris, who is genuinely freaked out that a Meowth can do all that:

** In "Pokemon Food Fight" Meowth battles Pikachu in his mini mech, the Mecha-Meowthinator, keeping the upper hand until a hungry Snorlax interrupts.

** In "Calling From Beyond The Aura" he and Wobuffet don "Mecha Evolution" power armour to enhance their battle power and curb stomp the heroes' Pokemon. It takes Korrina's Lucario again in its Mega Evolution to defeat them.
* Meowth utilised a Tickle attack on a Rhydon, ''before it was even an official move'' in "Bound for Trouble" in an EnemyMine with Pikachu, giving the latter an opening to Thundershock the electric resistant Pokemon.

* Despite his poor track record in Pokemon battles, Meowth sometimes proves talented in Pokemon performance contests. He creates an intricate heart display from just berries using Fury Swipes in the Dendemille Town Showcase ("Performing With A Fiery Charm"), makes an ice sculpture of Giovanni and Persian, and outdoes a Sneasel in a rock climbing contest in the Anistar City Showcase ("A Performance Pop Quiz"). Both cases help Jessie get into the finals. His recurring talents as chef also help Jessie win her first Kalos contest. As a bonus, he does most of these without a disguise, and still goes around unnoticed by the heroes (they even obliviously compliment him).

* Ash, Misty and Brock jumping over a freaking drawbridge on their bikes (bouncing their bikes off of Team Rocket's heads to get them enough momentum to clear the gap) ''during a raging storm'' to deliver medicine to a sick Pokemon, it's no wonder the Bridge-Bike Gang adopts them as their new heroes over Team Rocket.

** As a Caterpie it's the only Pokemon Ash has left in his first battle with Team Rocket. Still wounded from his earlier fight with Pidgeotto and Team Rocket mocking it and siccing Ekans and Koffing on him it unleashes String Shot and immobilizes both of them and then Caterpie which is among the smallest Pokemon listed rushes forward with a Tackle that sends both of them flying! And then when Meowth steps up to fight, Caterpie mummifies him as well.

** Pidgeotto evolving into Pidgeot and confronting the Spearow from the first episode (now a Fearow), with Ash and Pikachu riding along for the fight. Beforehand Pidgeotto had been beaten down badly by Fearow. Ash, horrified, insists getting out another Pokemon so Pidgeotto can call it quits. Pidgeotto however, [[{{Determinator}} staggers back up]] and cries out fiercely in defiance of its injuries, sparking its evolution. It helps the episode had previously established that [[UndyingLoyalty Pidgeotto would take any punishment for Ash.]] Even better, when it uses its newly-empowered Wing Attack - the move more resembles ''Air Slash'' than anything else, sending blades of wind through the sky to strike at Fearow. Then, Ash caps off the fight with a ''super-speed'' Quick Attack, sending Fearow [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere packing in abject terror]]. It was so awesome they ''showed these clips in flashback form'' at one point (specifically, in the episode with Falkner, when Ash is reminiscing about his old friend).

** Turning the tables against Giovanni's gym Pokemon (on loan to Jessie) in Ash's Viridian Gym battle. Incidentally, Giovanni's Pokemon was a Rhydon, who has a [[ElementalRockPaperScissors type advantage]].

** Pidgeot gets one last one in the final episode of Ash's tenure as the main character, ''[=JN147=]'', where it performs a BigDamnHeroes to rescue Pikachu from Team Rocket after Ash forgets that he left his other Pokemon at Professor Oak's lab. Talk about a triumphant return!

** Bulbasaur's battle in the Kanto League against Jeanette. Truly one of Bulbasaur's finest hours as it took down not one but TWO strong bug Pokemon in a row despite the type disadvantage.

** In "The Bridge Bike Gang" he made relatively quick work of a Golem that already effortlessly beat Bulbasaur. Keep in mind that Golem is a fully evolved Pokemon that has a type advantage against Charmander.

** Even though Drake's powerful Dragonite beat it in the end, Charizard arguably did more damage to it than any of Ash's other Pokemon. Charizard's prior victory over Electabuzz also deserves a mention.

* Primeape may have only been around for like four episodes, but definitely cemented his badass status upon winning the Fighting Pokemon Championship.

** She single-handedly overpowered all of Chuck's Pokemon. She out-fought a Machoke in physical combat!

* She holds Team Rocket off from Ash and Pikachu in "Pokemon Emergency!" despite having Pokemon that can't fight them. The sheer confidence in her attitude really sells it.

** Her tug-o'-war against Team Rocket, with a net full of Pokémon at stake. Team Rocket could sic Pokemon on her a any time, but she won't let them steal her sister's Goldeens.

* In "The Totodile Duel", she has a Pokemon battle to determine who gets the Totodile. Ash sends Pikachu, which could easily wipe the floor with her water Pokemon, so she sends ''Togepi'' to use Charm. Knowing Pikachu would forfeit a match instead of hurting what he considers to be a younger sibling takes some serious planning. [[CombatPragmatist Sneaky tactic?]] Yes. Brilliant regardless? Definitely.
* Her Poliwag was one of the first Pokemon besides Pikachu to overpower Jessie's Wobbuffet when used in battle, managing to knock him down despite using Counter. To punctuate within the same battle Wobbuffet had very easily countered Chikorita.

* In ''Charmander the Stray Pokemon'', Brock has a few moments of these:

** As a Steelix, Brock's first Pokemon not only Mega Evolves, but it goes beyond. It becomes the second Pokemon in the anime to NoSell a Z-Move. Not dodge, not have the Z-Move fail, just No Sell. The only other Pokemon to have done so is Tapu Koko, who had the benefit of being an Electric type being hit with an Electric Z-Move. Mega Steelix took an ''Inferno Overdrive'' to the face, which should do double damage, and still hit quite hard since even Mega Steelix's special defence isn't the greatest, but didn't even act winded.

* One-shot character Giselle earned herself a status as EnsembleDarkHorse for the following reasons: [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold all of her advice, in spite of the harsh and back-handed way she gives it, is spot-on and useful]]; her Graveler ''[[CurbStompBattle annihilated]]'' Misty's Starmie with one hit [[ScissorsCutsRock in spite of the type disadvatage]], and that was after pointing out said Pokemon was stronger than average; and she's the ''only'' female character about whom Ash ever showed attraction (Although this may be an example of EarlyInstallmentWeirdness on Ash's part as his ObliviousToLove character trait hadn't caught on at that point). There's also one for her back-handed advice: ''it netted Ash a badge''. You see, in Giselle's episode Pikachu didn't have non-electric attacks yet, something Giselle both criticized immediately before taking shamelessly advantage of, but five episodes later Pikachu would use Quick Attack against Surge's Raichu to win.

* One that always stood out among the Indigo League was Ash vs. Blaine. Pikachu has just defeated Rhydon with the [[MemeticMutation "Aim for the Horn"]] nonsense, and Ash is confident Pikachu can beat whatever Blaine sends out. Cue Magmar rising out a pool of lava beneath the gym with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMPvoVAX2XU some of the most epicmusic in the entire series playing]]. Then cue CurbStompBattle that nearly ends with Pikachu falling into the same lava pit.

** When Dr. Proctor chooses to help Team Rocket's Pokemon, Ash attempts to call him on it. Proctor's response?

* The Ash vs. Drake battle is a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome for Dragonite. It had ''ten'' attacks just to make it seem unstoppable, and defeated three of Ash's Pokemon (including ''Charizard'') before going down.

** Defeating Tyson's Donphan (stopping its Rollout completely, then tossing it through the air). Swellow in the Hoenn League was basically Ash's best Pokemon bar possibly Glalie, taking multiple victories against both Katie and Tyson and tieing one of Morrison's best Pokemon.

** Being the one responsible for the likely first defeat of Tobias's Darkrai. In an incredibly awesome moment, Ash has lost two mons to Darkrai. It's clear he is going to lose; Darkrai is too powerful and just wallops [[CurbStompBattle Heracross, Torkoal, and Gible]] with ease. Even after trying to outmatch Tobias by having Heracross use (the admittedly clever) tactic of turning sleep against Darkrai, he just can't get ahead. Then Sceptile comes in. The fight is much the same, with Darkrai walloping Sceptile before putting it to sleep. At this point, everyone's basically decided Ash was going to lose...then Sceptile hears Ash's voice, ''wakes up almost immediately, and in a desperate bid to beat down Darkrai and give Ash an edge, beats the heck out of Darkrai with Leaf Blade.'' This is badass for two reasons: first, Sceptile has just been given the honor of being the third Pokemon Ash has used to beat a Legendary/Mythical (The first being Charizard, who defeated Noland's Articuno, and the second being Pikachu, who defeated Brandon's Regice) cementing Sceptile as one of his best mons. Second...this is the first time Tobias has had a loss on his side. All through Sinnoh, up to and after his battle with Ash, Darkrai has destroyed the competition. [[DefeatingTheUndefeatable Sceptile just beat IT]]. Not only is it amazing, Darkrai was using nothing more than Dark Void and Dream Eater, the latter of which restores Darkrai's HP, so any progress Ash made beforehand was undone. Sceptile basically took down Darkrai in his prime, showing just how strong Sceptile really is.

** Battling Katie's Ace Pokemon Walrein in the Hoenn Top 32: defeating it despite Ice Beam and its own speed being taken via Mimic, on top of a bulk and power from Walrein capable of no selling Swellow and Corphish back to back.

* In the episode where Professor Oak is visiting along with a set of Kanto starters and the Pokemon get stolen by Team Rocket, along with some Hoenn starters, Max demonstrates that he ''has the move sets of all 6 Pokemon memorized''. Let me repeat that; not only does he have the move sets for the starters of his home region memorized when he isn't old enough to be a Trainer but he also has the move sets for the starters of a ''completely different region'' memorized.

* Steven's portion of the counterattack on Team Flare in ''X&Y''. He rides in on Mega Metagross, saving Serena, Marin, and Team Rocket from Team Flare's attempt to shoot them down. He effortlessly defeats every single Flare agent trying to oppose him, researchers and grunts alike. He casually forces the grunts fighting Serena to recall their team by having Metagross pull them into the air. Steven is NOT happy about Team Flare conning him, and he's showing them just what a Champion's Mega Evolved Pokemon can do.

* Brandon's battle with Paul in "A Pyramiding Rage" is very cathartic for those of us who got really tired of the purple-haired jerk. Said jerk challenges Brandon (without defeating the rest of the Frontier Brains like Ash did). Brandons accepts a six-on-six full battle and proceeds to decimate Paul's team with just his Regis, not losing a single one (even with repeated type disadvantages) and one-shotting several of them. All three of the Regis get their own moments to stand out. Registeel tanks/[[NoSell no-sells]] several supereffective attacks. Regice defeats Lairon before it can even attack, and doesn't take a single attack during the battle. And Regirock alone takes out ''four of Paul's Pokemon''. And he spends the entire time mocking Paul and his "might equals right" philosophy. And this also spells out how awesome Ash is since he beat Brandon.

* By the time of ''Pokemon Journeys'', Iris has uprooted Alder as Unova's Champion. Remember that this is the anime, where Iris was never a Gym Leader, meaning she had to: 1. Beat at least 8 Gym Leaders, including her mentor Drayden. 2. Win the Vertress Conference, something Ash couldn't do. 3. Battle and beat the Elite Four, and finally 4. Beat Alder, the former strongest trainer in the region. Clair must have ''really'' left an impression on her.
* Iris first round opponent in the Masters Eight tournament is none other than Cynthia, but she is able to turn what fans expected to be a [[CurbStompBattle curb stomp battle]] in Cynthia's favour into one of the best battle the franchise has to offer in its two decade run, even forcing Cynthia to use Mega Evolution, and even then, Iris can match her evenly even without the use of any special mechanic, except her phenomenal bond with her Pokemon.

** Iris's Axew vs. Cynthia's Garchomp. Axew manages to use Giga Impact to knock Garchomp off her feet. Granted, Garchomp immediately gets right back up and doesn't seem fazed at all, but it's not bad considering Axew's pratically a newborn. In fact, Axew's fight with Garchomp is actually far more impressive than one might think. The only Pokemon ever shown to deal actual damage to Garchomp belonged to Tower Tycoon Palmer, Elite Four Members and The Forces of Nature. Paul, one of Ash's most powerful rivals, only managed to hit Garchomp once thanks to it having to recharge from Giga Impact. Aside from that, 4 of his Pokemon were knocked out in a single hit. Iris's Axew survived two super effective hits from two of the strongest dragon type moves (Dragon Rush and Draco Meteor). That's right, Iris did better than ''Paul''.

* [=XY063=] has both the heroes and Team Rocket getting together to defeat the Pokemon hunter. After the hunter's Rhyperior is stunned by Wobbuffet's Counter, Jessie's Pumpkaboo, James' Inkay, Ash's Pikachu, and Serena's Fennekin, all combine for a ''quadruple combo attack'' that faints the Rhyperior ''and'' the hunter.
* In Pokemon XY and Z episodes 42 - 43 "The Megalith Advances! Kalos' Defense Line!!" and "Zygarde Fights Back! The Final Battle for Kalos!!" which concludes the Team Flare arc and premieres in Japan as a 1-hour special, we are treated to multiple awesome things happening at once:

** Defeating Sawyer's Treecko, slicing with Cut and 'sheathing' it moments before Treecko fell. Clearly the most badass use of Cut in Pokemon history. Repeated with the rematch against Treecko, who evolved into Grovyle. Cut vs Leaf Blade blade duel to the knock out!
** Evolving into Greninja, the first time a main character has a fully evolved water starter Pokemon.

** The rematch with Wulfric is a clear case of Ash learning from his errors the first time, against the physical walls Bergmite and Avalugg he uses Pikachu (special attacks and Super Effective Iron Tail) and Talonflame (Super Effective fire moves) and defeats them, albeit struggling to adapt to the effects of Wulfric's ice attacks. Then comes Abomasnow, who soundly defeats Talonflame, despite the immense type disadvantage. Enter Greninja, who is able to take Abomasnow's attacks like a boss, deal heavy damage with Aerial Ace (Super Effective against Abomasnow's Grass typing) and set things up for the win before it encases him in ice. Cue Ash-Greninja emerging out of the ice. Even with Wulfric resorting to his own Mega Evolution, it isn't enough to stop Ash-Greninja, who pummels Mega Abomasnow with a combination of Cut (and ice skates), Double Team, Aerial Ace (which now may as well be Close Combat) and a GIANT Water Shuriken. And this time, Ash and Greninja don't collapse, they don't suffer PowerStrainBlackout, they don't even seem winded by the battle. This is why Ash-Greninja is now Ash's strongest Pokemon EVER.
** Ash's first Kalos League battle in Episode 32 sees Greninja up against an Altaria. After expertly dodging through an entire Draco Meteor, they fully activate Ash-Greninja form and defeat the Altaria with a [[OneHitKill SINGLE WATER SHURIKEN]]! And it is implied he took out the other 2 pokémon in one hit.
** The fight between Ash/Greninja and Mega Sceptile might go down as one of the best designed fights in the history of the pokemon anime. Ash-Greninja manages probably the most insane combo to win by using Double Team to make a bunch of clones and then immediately having all the clones Water Shurikens combine with the original's to make just one massive shuriken. Mega Sceptile attempts to counter with Leaf Storm but this backfires as the shuriken not only stops the move and keeps going but [[HoistByHisOwnPetard it also sends the Leaf Storm right back to Mega Sceptile, KOing him.]]

** Hawlucha vs. Mienfoo is pretty impressive, especially since we finally get to see Flying Press take down a Pokemon (before it's either failed or been countered by another Pokemon).

** While mostly offscreen, Hawlucha became Ash's second Pokemon (without a super mode) to defeat a Mega-Pokemon in Astrid's Mega Absol, a Pokemon Hawlucha had lost previously to.
** His revenge for Noivern's defeat in the league by Alain's Weavile is a sight to behold: defeating Weaile while glowing red. Some fans dubbed it Hawlucha's BURNING JUSTICE!

** One legendary feat that managed to surpass even Talonflame's performance against Moltres, is that after evolving to help Hawlucha, through his increased speed, power and Ash's admittedly clever tactic of using the many plateaus to confuse it, he managed to gain the upper hand against a wild Zapdos, a legendary electric-type Bird Pokemon.

!!Clemont and his Pokemon
* Clemont shows why he's the Lumiose gym leader by defeating the gym's ace Pokemon Heliolisk with a Bunnelby he just caught a few episodes prior.
* An overlooked battle from the original XY season had Chespin running away after gaining overweight, leading to a battle between Clemont and Wyile's Delphox. Once Clemont and Chespin makeup, Clemont uses Chespin's rolling ability to escape all of Delphox's attacks to reduce weight and regain speed. When Chespin gets hit with a super effective Flamethrower, not only does it get back up, Chespin activates Overgrow and severely damages Delphox. The battle ends in a tie due to Wiley's old age, but nonetheless Chespin came close to defeating a Pokemon two evolutionary levels higher than his own.

!!Serena and her Pokemon

* In [=XY88=], Serena and her Pokemon pulling a GoThroughMe against Jessie's Gourgeist to protect a wild Eevee. They willingly await the full force of a Seed Bomb, only for Eevee to use a powerful Protect and Swift, displaying its future loyalty to Serena.

* The antepenultimate episode of XY has Serena finally battle Ash for the first time. While Pikachu obviously has battle prowess over Braixen, [[CaneFu she uses her branch]] to resist a great deal of offence from him, with Serena using a developed strategy and battle style to end the battle with the upper hand (as opposed to her previous tactic of spamming her Pokemon's signature attack and "Dodge!" to varying effect).

* In "Facing The Grand Design" we come across a group of benevolent Malamar watching over a forest just next to the recurring evil Malamars' current scheme. When the latter discover them interacting with the heroes, they decide it would be a fun idea to [[KickTheDog blast the forest and all the innocent Pokemon]] they watch over. [[PapaWolf This wasn't their wisest strategy....]]

* Episodes 21 and 108 have received praise for their excellent handling of the subjects of death and mourning in a kids' show, all without ever explicitly stating Stoutland died. In the latter, the combined gratitude from Mallow and her late mother's reconciliation is great enough and makes so many Gracidea flowers bloom it attracts the Gratitude Pokemon itself, Shaymin.

* While most of it was an OffscreenMomentOfAwesome, the [=RotomDex=] managing to collect data on almost every single Pokemon in the Kanto [=PokéDex=] in the just mere ''hours,'' the only one missing being Mew. And with him outright saying that he's only missing a single Pokémon, that means he was able to get data on even ''Mewtwo'', who can be almost as elusive as his progenitor.

** Defeating Hau's Decidueye in the quarter finals for the Alola League. Combined with his earlier defeat of it when it was a Datrix, Rowlet remains the only of Ash's unevolved Pokemon to defeat ''two'' of its evolved counterparts.

** Lycanroc single-handedly defeated all of Nanu's Pokemon. In a row. With only a single Sitrus Berry in between matches. For the record the only Pokemon Ash had who had ever defeated the entirety of a (Gym Leader or the like) opponents team outside of one for one matches before this, are Pikachu and Bayleef, and in both cases they were just picking up the slack in a two-on-two match when the other Pokemon was defeated yet scored some hits. Lycanroc had to fight three Pokemon, none of whom had damage from a previous fight on their persons.
** Ash's Pokemon all have had their awesome moments over the course of the anime, but Lycanroc will likely go down as one of his most famous; as the Pokemon that ''finally'' won him a(n official-game-related) Pokemon League! How Lycanroc does it is pretty awesome, too. He's up against Gladion's Midnight Form Lycanroc and, after a heated battle, Gladion's manages to land a Counter. [[HereWeGoAgain It appears that Ash is about to lose yet again...]] then Ash declares "It's not over yet!" and has his Lycanroc Counter in turn. Cue Ash's Lycanroc taking out Gladion's with its head spike and putting an end to Ash's 22-year-long league losing streak.

** Torracat's debut evolution battle was managing to outspeed Masked Royal's Incineroar and actually damaging it, a feat no other Pokemon managed in the episode. Torracat still lost though.

** Absorbing an entire ''Blast Burn'' into its bell in the opening matchup of Ash's exhibition battle versus Kukui, completely wasting Incineroar's attack. Had it been able to take the strain of that much power, there would have likely been a superpowered Fire Blast headed right for the recharging Incineroar. The next episode, it manages to control the absorbed power and give that huge unblockable Fire Blast to Kukui's Venusaur, knocking it out. Finally, it defeats Kukui's Incineroar in the middle of a double Inferno Overdrive with the XYZ instrumental playing (you know ''Ash-Greninja's'' theme), and then evolving into the Pokemon it defeated itself.

* After putting on a battle to attract Tapu Fini into facing Ash, Tapu Fini [[TheUnChosenOne instead takes interest]] in ''Kiawe'', pretending to capture Ash and his team in a force field and putting Kiawe in a RaceAgainstTheClock to gain healing scales from its AxCrazy brethren Tapu Lele all the way in Akala. Kiawe not only puts up enough of a fight with Charizard to [[WorthyOpponent impress Tapu Lele into willingly handing some over]], but returns to Poni Island's ruins JustInTime. The reward for this feat is Flyium Z for which Charizard can learn Supersonic Skystrike, officially un-retiring Kiawe's Ride Pokemon. While the series marked Ash's first true rivalry against a legendary through Tapu Koko, it also marks the first with a companion against ''two'' of them.

* In [=SM080=], as Lillie and Snowy are trapped behind ice, Mallow, Sophocles, and their Pokémon try to break through the ice to get to Lillie. Mallow is not the one to sit on the sidelines and ''kicks'' the ice with a move she dubbed "Mallow Kick", no less, alongside her partner Pokemon, with over the top animation to boot!

* Though sadly an OffscreenMomentOfAwesome, Mallow passing the the first round of the league with Shaymin, at one point teaming up with Lana's Sandy to defeat three Pokemon at once. Impressive given Shaymin is not only a Mythical and still technically wild, but previously established to be a LovableCoward in battle.
* The implication as a whole that Mallow more or less instantly tamed a wild Shaymin to act like her own loyal Pokemon just by being her usual TeamMom self to it.

** When Lana nearly drowns trying to calm down a Kyogre in [=SM120=], Brionne evolves into Primarina to save her. The two then work together to do what Lana's normally known for lying about -- ''reel in the Legendary Sea Basin Pokemon.''

* Within the process of ten episodes, Sophocles is succinctly revealed to have tutored his Pokemon ''four different attacks'' in preparation for the league (three for Vikavolt, one for Togedemaru). Compared to a lot of previous protagonists who mostly relied on sporadic PlotArmor to gain move buffs, Sophocles is implied to just train his team in rapid pace the moment he is motivated to battle competitively.

** ''[=JN021=]'': In its first episode, Riolu proves to be a very powerful Pokemon, that is less than a day old mind you. With Ash's help and aura, it manages to put the hurt on an Onix so much that it ran off scared. Now that's an introduction.

** Just the fact that Ash's first fossil Pokemon is the MemeticBadass of Generation 8.
** In [=JN065=], it finishes off Iris's Dragonite (which Ash's own Dragonite had trouble fighting) with one Ice Fang. With this, Dracovish has the distinct honor of being Ash's first Pokemon to defeat a Regional Champion's Pokemon.

* ''[=JN033=]'': He commands Kricketina's Heracross to fight off Team Rocket like a natural. It's no wonder why the two trade Pokemon at the end of the episode.

* In ''[=JN053=]'', Goh catches a Suicune, and when given the chance to be released back into the wild, it chose to stay as his Pokemon (though allowed to be free until its trainer needs it).

* The first episode proves that even when it's playful, Mew is still not a Mythical Pokemon to underestimate.

** Just the mere fact that Ash now has a Lucario is the moment fans have been waiting for since Generation 4.

* Leon and his Pokémon

* The battle between Leon and Ash really shows the [[CurbStompBattle strength of the undefeatable Champion]]. [[TheAce Ash's Pikachu]] only manages to land ''two'' attacks on Charizard and one of those was with the use of a surprise Gigantamax while the latter was still at normal size. The two later trade signature moves but by the end of the battle, Pikachu is knocked out while Charizard has nary a scratch on him.
* During the his finals match against Ash, Leon has revealed to have learned Ash's Counter Shield strategy and uses it against him with Inteleon.
* Leon’s Charizard in its base form defeated Alain’s Mega Charizard. Theoretically Alain’s Charizard should have the advantage but Leon’s is just that powerful and skilled even without Gigantimaxing.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fhruwpwvqaaeawv.jpeg]]

[[folder:Ash and Pikachu]]
!!Ash
Admit it; at his best, [[FriendToAllLivingThings Ash]] can be pretty awesome.
* What better way to start Ash's moments of awesome than with his first moment of awesome? Episode 1 has him protecting Pikachu, who at the time didn't like him very much, from a flock of angry Spearow, standing them down and awaiting a Peck-filled death. Not only was this probably one of the most iconic scenes from the anime, but it also went on to cement Ash's BrassBalls. It also led to Pikachu's first moment of awesome. And of course, the speech Ash gives before the above moment:
--> '''Ash:''' "Spearows! Do you know who I am!? [[MyNameIsInigoMontoya I am Ash, from the town of Pallet!]] I'm destined to become the world's number one Pokémon master! I can't be defeated by the likes of you. I'm going to capture and defeat you all! You hear me!? Pikachu, go inside the Poké Ball, it's the only way!"\\
''([[DramaticThunder Lightning strikes]], the Spearows all charge at Ash)''\\
'''Ash:''' '''"Come and get me!"'''
* One of Ash's more interesting and subtle moments of awesome is a dialogue in "Showdown at the Po-ke Corral", which is late in the Indigo arc after Ash has earned his eighth badge. In the series' beginning, it was a repeated plot point that Ash got off to a bad start on his journey and for the longest time was behind his Pallet Town peers (of which there were at least three, including Gary). In this episode we find out that Ash and Gary are the only Pallet Town trainers still continuing their journey, as all the other trainers got off to good starts but couldn't keep up. Despite Ash's bad start and rather small Pokemon pool, it speaks volumes that he got this far with sheer determination that the other Pallet Town trainers didn't have.
* The climax of "Pokemon Emergency!" where Ash and Pikachu blast Team Rocket off for the first time. Especially his line in the original Japanese version:
--> '''Ash:''' Don't look down on Pikachu for being a mouse. I'll show you me and Pikachu's true power!
* Ash beats Drake and becomes Orange League Champion by playing the long game. He doesn't even expect Charizard to beat Dragonite; he expects him to wear it out, which he does. Good thing, too, as Pikachu has to do a lot more work in order to topple the creature.
* His battle in the Johto League Conference, where he finally defeated his long time rival, Gary Oak. After the battle, the two actually rekindled their old friendship as well!
* He was at his ballsiest when Primeape caught up with him. After being beat up several times by it when it was a Mankey, and running for his life after it thrashed Team Rocket and smashed through everything in its path, he ends up making eye contact by accident (the very thing that had sent it into a berserker rage before.) He finally decides to stop running and face it head-on, as a true trainer would, and with the help of Charmander, manages to catch it.
* Ash defeating Professor Namba in "A Promise is a Promise".
* Ash beating [[ThatOneBoss Whitney's Miltank]] on just the second try.
* Ash's IKnowYouAreInThereSomewhereFight to Larvitar in late Johto? That's the best way to make things better after the revelation of Larvitar's [[TearJerker heart-wrenching past]].
* Selflessly performing a CooldownHug when Chimchar goes out of control with Blaze. He also does this with Monferno, this time while [[ManOnFire engulfed in flames.]]
* The moment that Ash strives to prepare to rematch Sabrina after his defeat by her on his first journey. He tries to get the psychic who saved him to tell him how to beat her, but the guy insists that he doesn't have a chance against psychic powers no matter what. To make his point, he keeps telekinetically sending Ash flying back off his feet and crashing into the ground. Each time, the kid gets right back up and keeps marching forward, keeps getting knocked down, ''and keeps getting back up and trying again'', ignoring Brock desperately telling him to give up. Ash shocks the man when he eventually ''does'' resist his efforts to psychically push him back and is able to keep going forward. It may not be a battle, but it's such a perfect demonstration of how strong this kid's will and resolve really is, to say it's Awesome is an understatement.
* Ash taking up the role of a mentor toward his new travelling companion, May, in the ''Advanced'' series. Him taking such a position proves that he is not a rookie anymore.
* In "A Scare to Remember" when Pikachu has lost its memory and joined Team Rocket, Ash does a running jump onto Team Rocket's balloon as it's taking off, then climbs all the way up into the basket to get Pikachu back. Despite Pikachu being on their side, this causes a major OhCrap reaction from Team Rocket, just from the ticked-off look on his face. He then manages to catch Pikachu in mid-air after its attack destroys the balloon. Even better, it's implied this show of determination (and his subsequent words to Pikachu) are what revives its memory.
--> '''Ash:''' Nobody's going to take... ''my best buddy!''
* In "Less Is Morrison", Team Rocket trap Ash and Morrison and make off with their Pokemon. The two resort to stopping Team Rocket ''with their own brute strength'', improvising a "Take Down" to escape their cage and even battling Seviper and Cacnea by themselves.
* One of the Battle Frontier episodes has Ash coming to battle Tucker. This is actually the first episode where we see that the world does recognize Ash as a great trainer. As he approaches it, he's spoken to by the press, and all of his accomplishments are announced when he finally makes it in.
* On his return to Petalburg in "A Double Dilemma", Ash gets mobbed by Norman's slavering fans. He wallops ''the whole town'', and nearly curb-stomps May as well (the fans are quick to call it her win when Torchic misses and KO's Ash himself, despite Taillow having barely been touched). And while the episode ends with Ash failing to win over the townspeople, Ash's response, "At least they like one of us" (the crowd was impressed by Pikachu's defeat of Team Rocket) was remarkably mature.
* Ash's battle with Tucker in ''Tactics Theatrics''. After spending most of it being [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomped]] by Tucker's superior strategy, Ash manages to put a move together where Corphish rides on Swellow's back, then jumps off when they get close. Swellow hits Tucker's Swampert with Aerial Ace while Corphish slams Arcanine right in the face with a Crabhammer, knocking them both out at once.
* A minor one during Ash's four-on-four match against Brandon. Ash's Squirtle is blinded by Ninjask's Sand-Attack. His solution? Have Squirtle fire a Hydro Pump wildly into the air, allowing the water to crash back down on it and clean the sand out of its eyes. Very clever and resourceful. Nurse Joy even wrote it down, apparently seeing some kind of medical benefit to it.
* Ash becoming an expert in creating new spectacular battling techniques and strategies, as well as furthering his knack of using the battlefield in his favor in the ''Diamond and Pearl'' saga. All of the instances he showcases these are not just mere display of him being an awesome Trainer, but also a milestone of just how far he has come in his journey and all of the experiences he had garnered up until that point. Case in point: ''Counter Shield.''
* The final battle between Ash and Paul in the Sinnoh League. All three parts of it. Arguably overthrowing Ash vs Gary as the greatest league match ever.
* Ash during the battle with [[DiabolusExMachina Tobias]]:
** ''Turning his hat backwards'' for the first time since THE INDIGO LEAGUE.
** Complain about Tobias being overpowered if you want, just consider this. Not only was Ash was the only one in the tournament who managed to KO Darkrai, he then followed it up with a KO against a ''second'' legendary Pokémon. Tobias needed Legendaries to beat Ash's team; Ash didn't need Legendaries to beat Tobias' team. In fact, it's stated outright that Tobias solo-ed ALL EIGHT GYMS with just Darkrai. On top of that, he solo-ed the finals with Darkrai, meaning Ash was the ONLY trainer to beat the legendary Pokemon.
** It's what happens immediately after Ash turns his hat around that makes it his greatest moment: Ash has only one Pokémon left. Tobias has five, one of which is a [[OlympusMons Latios]]. Despite all this, Ash [[{{Determinator}} loudly declares that he still intends to win the battle]]. Despite his CharacterDevelopment throughout Sinnoh making him a bit more level-headed, he's still got balls of steel.
* If there was ever any doubt Ash was a better trainer than Paul, it right proper ''evaporated'' when he won the infamous match in the Tag Tournament. He had a scorched Turtwig under his command. Paul (who [[RageQuit abdicated his role in the match]]) had his brutally wounded Chimchar. The opposition had a Metagross and a Zangoose (the latter of which [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Chimchar was rightly scared of]]). Ash turned the entire match around and ''won'' despite this handicap.
* Ash's second battle with Lenora in Black and White. Anyone who battled Lenora in the games can testify to how difficult she can be. Ash's training combined with the way his strategies played off of hers showed character development. Over the course of 2 episodes he became a hard worker and showed his trademark spirit.
* Ash's third battle with Trip, after losing to him twice, Ash shows Trip what he's really made of, after a rough start where Snivy is defeated by Servine, Ash's Oshawott battles against Trip's Timburr and after taking some hits cleverly uses Timburr's own strength against it sending it into its own timber via Water Gun. Then Ash's Tepig and Trip's Vanillite battle it out and it's pretty amazing, with Pokemon hitting each with attack after attack and being evenly matched, culminating in Tepig using Flame Charge to interrupt Vanillite's Icicle Spear and then Vanillite using Blizzard and both Pokemon collide and end up fainting, resulting in the match ending in a draw and Ash finally getting some respect from Trip.
* Not even a day upon entering Kalos and he still manages to show how much balls he has. In the span of a day, he works with new companions Clemont and Bonnie along with Froakie to access the Prism Tower to help quell a rampaging Garchomp. Even when he is left with Pikachu and Froakie, he still makes use of resources and manages to get a hold of the dragon to destroy the device causing it pain ''while on top of the tower''. Then, when his Pikachu falls off, he doesn't think twice and leaps off to get him without hesitation. In short order, he was willing to climb to the top of Prism Tower, calm down and help a pseudo-legendary dragon that was in agony, and was more than willing to possibly die to save his best friend, ''all while being filmed for all of Kalos to witness''. Badass ''and'' heartwarming. This is also an awesome moment for the writers! As the episode shows, the above events happened ''without'' any development reset on Ash and Pikachu's part, unlike all other new seasons! At last, it looks like the writers nicely managed to keep Ash consistently badass!
* Serena's RescueRomance backstory establishes Ash's heroism from nearly half his current age, helping a lost young Serena out of the forest after she injured her leg.
* In "Day Three Blockbusters" after Serena nearly falls off a cliff, Ash quickly grabs her hand. Though he fails to hold them both up, he manages to keep grip and skid all the way down the crevice to slow their fall. He injures his foot in the process, but Serena comes out unharmed.
* Cooperating with Pikachu in perfect sync when the latter is blinded by Inkay's ink, even taking advantage of Wobbuffet's Mirror Coat to hit Inkay with a high-powered Thunderbolt.
* Ash's fight with Hawlucha to catch it was pretty good. Ash didn't catch Hawlucha when it's fainted, but rather waited for it to be conscious. He then offers Hawlucha to join him, to which it agreed. The awesome part? Ash didn't throw a ball to it or anything. Nope - instead they did a fistbump with Ash holding a Pokéball. That's how Hawlucha accepted Ash as a trainer.
* Ash's efforts to improve Froakie and Hawlucha's teamwork in the Trevenant episode. He saw that two of his Pokémon were not getting along, so his solution is to construct a training regimen to fix that, not to mention he takes none of their nonsense whenever they seem like they are about to start fighting again. His efforts come to fruition during the battle against Team Rocket when Froakie and Hawlucha finally perfect Super Flying Cut. There's also a minor moment right before that where Ash has Hawlucha use Flying Press against Jessie's Pumpkaboo. Naturally, [[NoSell it fails]], but Ash reveals that he did this purpose to get Jessie and Pumpkaboo to let their guard down and immediately has Froakie launch a surprise attack.
* During Ash's Coumarine Gym battle with Ramos, Frogadier is having trouble against Gogoat. Ash is starting to get frustrated, but then he remembers what Ramos told him about how not rushing his task will help him see things more clearly when he had to help Ramos with his gardening. Ash realizes how useful this gardening advice is for his current situation and he calms down, which allows him to start turning the tables in his battle.
* His Lumiose Gym Battle against Clemont was basically one big SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome. Aside from the fact that this was one of if not the most hyped gym battles of the series, Ash was pretty much in control for most of the battle. First, he had Pikachu defeat Bunnelby, effectively finishing what they started in XY001, despite being caught off-guard by its newly-learned Wild Charge. Of course, that was just the tip of the iceberg. Clemont then sent out Heliolisk, which threw everyone off with its incredible speed. Goodra had trouble keeping up, so Ash substituted with Hawlucha to better match Heliolisk's speed. The awesome moment of this round came when Ash realized that despite its blinding speed, Heliolisk had to stop for a split second to use certain attacks. Ash was then able to get the jump on Heliolisk by having Hawlucha quickly use Hi Jump Kick at the exact moment Heliolisk stopped, no easy feat! And the final SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome was the final round, Goodra vs. Luxray. Goodra is Ash's last Pokémon, and not only is it still paralyzed from Heliolisk's Thunder Wave, but Electric Terrain is still giving Luxray a big advantage. Ash quickly remembers Goodra's basic physiology and that its ability is Hydration, so he quickly resolves both obstacles by having Goodra use Rain Dance. The epic rest of the battle that ensues only adds to the awesomeness!
* His [[CurbstompBattle 3-0 victory]] over Sawyer the episode after his victory at the Laverre Gym. In fact, not only did Ash wipe the floor with him, he gave him good advice while doing it!
* Ash really shows how he can think on the fly in his gym battle against Olympia, changing his strategy multiple times on the spot. Talonflame and Frogadier go from not being able to land a single hit on the Meowstic to turning their own attacks against them.
* During the group's encounter with Team Flare in Terminus Cave, at one point Bonnie is about to be hit by Drapion's Pin Missile, but Ash swoops in, grabs her, and runs to safety. He looks like a soldier rescuing a civilian.
* [[PowerStrainBlackout Even if he and Greninja passed out at the end of it]], Ash's battle against Diantha is perhaps his crowning achievement as a trainer, and one of the few times the writers actually allow him to show how skilled he ''should'' be by this point.
* Just whenever Ash mimics his Greninja's movements when it's in its Ash-Greninja forme. It's among the rarest times where him being a badass is displayed even for a 10-year old kid.
* Ash's entrance in the Kalos League is nothing short of awe-inspiring. He gets stopped in the hallway on the way to his first match by a trainer who was unable to gather eight badges and who wants to prove badges mean nothing and he's just as capable as league participants. Ash accepts his challenge and swiftly defeats his Furfrou with Pikachu while telling him that badges do have meaning and are proof of his growth as a trainer and as a person. As he resumes going towards the stadium, the other trainer tells him in tears that there are many like him who couldn't make it this far and asks Ash to win for all of them, which Ash promises. As he narrowly makes it to the battlefield right before being disqualified for forfeiting, Ash makes a big claim in front of the whole league about how he's going to win it all, making the crowd go wild. Then as the first match begins, Ash and Greninja go through their transformation, Ash Greninja dodges the opponent's Altaria's Draco Meteor and one-shots it with a single Water Shuriken, leaving the crowd and the announcer in disbelief. It is implied Ash Greninja swept the remaining two Pokémon with one attack each as the scene cuts to the scoreboard at the end of the day with the Furfrou trainer looking satisfied at Ash's victory. For reference, in the Sinnoh League, Tobias' Darkrai dodged Ash's Gible's Draco Meteor and proceeded to one-shot it. Ash is essentially becoming the Tobias of the Kalos League.
* He pulls off a brilliant tactic in battle between his Pikachu and Sawyer's Aegislash in Kalos League semifinals. Noticing that Aegislash needs to return to its sheath to use King's Shield, he orders Pikachu to slam the ground with Iron Tail, sending all pieces of wood that were earlier cut by Aegislash flying. Then, Pikachu starts jumping on them at insanely high speed, dodging all attacks and moving into position to launch his own. Sawyer calls for King's Shield, but Pikachu reacts faster and ''knocks one of wood pieces into Aegislash's sheath,'' making it unable to return to Shield Forme and leaving it wide open for round-ending Thunderbolt.
* Ash in the Kalos League final:
** The mere fact that he managed to finally make it to the league final is nothing short of awesome. It shows that all of his experience and strategies have finally paid off.
** By the time the first of the two parter final ends, Ash is ''winning'' the battle, having a worn down, yet battle hardened Pikachu as well as a fresh Goodra and Greninja to face Alain's Bisharp and Charizard.
** Unfortunately, Pikachu is defeated rather quickly by Charizard, before he recalls it for Bisharp to face Goodra. Goodra puts up a good fight and Bisharp suffers major damage, but defeats Goodra with another Guillotine. Finally, Greninja comes and wipes the floor with Bisharp, leaving him to face Charizard. Greninja seems to have Charizard on the back foot, the pair powering up for the final battle, yet despite the type advantage, [[NegatedMomentOfAwesome Greninja is defeated by Charizard's Blast Burn, while Water Shuriken fails to KO Charizard.]]
** Say what you will about the controversy about the conclusion of the Kalos League, but Ash was still the runner up (furthest he had ever gotten in a league before) and he gave Alain a run for his money from start to finish. Alain's Charizard was said to be the Pokemon that swept through every Pokemon it fought against in all of the league's run. The fact that Pikachu and Ash-Greninja held their own and scored some good hits, and defeated all of Alain's other Pokemon on top of that, showed how close the fight was.
** Take a good look at Charizard before Greninja faints: it ''staggers'' for a bit, meaning it had to steel itself to keep from fainting on the spot. That giant Water Shuriken clearly hurt more than it initially seemed.
* Ash using the Bond Phenomenon to break free from Team Flare's shackles and facing down Lysandre. To elaborate, Ash and Greninja are restrained by their shackles ''and'' being tortured by Lysandre's drone-like devices, but Ash, despite the excruciating pain, gives a moving speech that snaps Alain out of his HeroicBSOD, ''then'' activates the transformation. This particular transformation generates a water column that envelops ''the entire Lumiose Tower'', after which Ash and Greninja shatter their bonds and knock away the torture devices with the column of water. Alain is outright shocked, and Lysandre is visibly impressed. [[ShutUpHannibal And he's basically telling Lysandre to shove it all the way]].
--> '''Lysandre:''' Ash. I'm going to use your Bond Phenomenon for the sake of my world. I'll obtain the ability to become so strong even without a stone... I was so happy when I first saw it! It made me realize that Pokémon indeed have infinitely more potential. I desire that power too. This light is energy that is strong enough to control even [[OlympusMons Zygarde]]! Ash, and Greninja! Your power shall be under my control. Once this is over, you shall be mine!\\
'''Ash:''' [[{{Determinator}} We'll never do as you say!]]\\
'''Lysandre:''' You still fail to understand? Once this world is destroyed... You shall be the guide of the chosen people!\\
'''Ash:''' We're never gonna become any of that! We're not ever going to change! Alain! I don't know what happened to you, but you go to stop all of this now! I don't care about you have done. I believe in the Alain that I know! I really care about this world! I care about the people and Pokémon who call this world home! And you won't destroy it, no way! (activates the transformation) Battle me, Lysandre!
* Ash and Alain battle against Lysandre's Mega Gyarados, and while they have seven Pokemon in total, Gyarados doesn't even flinch, taking out over half in one or two hits. Only Ash-Greninja, Charizard X and Pikachu are left standing, but that doesn't stop Ash from pointing out how nobody will stop fighting; not one of them will give in to what Team Flare wants.
--> '''Ash:''' Lysandre, I don't care about how you hate this world! It belongs to everyone, people and Pokémon. Don't you talk about destroying it, changing it, saying tomorrow won't come! Tomorrow someone will meet someone important to them. Tomorrow someone will realize their dreams! Tomorrow someone will start their journey as a trainer. Tomorrow someone will heal their wounds. Everyone has their own tomorrow! What is the reason you get to take it from them? For all those people and Pokémon...I will fight at my absolute best!
* ''Sun and Moon'' Ash actually learns how to use Z-Moves. Unlike in ''XY'', he won't be without the new mechanic.
** Just the fact that Ash was chosen by Tapu Koko himself. A very high praise in Alolan culture.
** It takes only two episodes for Ash and Pikachu learn how to do Gigavolt Havoc from Tapu Koko. Their first use of the move leaves a sizable ''crater'', and proves to be too much for the Z-Crystal to handle, as it shatters after only one use. That just inspires Ash to do the island challenge properly and get a crystal that won't break.
* Ash's reasons for even attending the Pokémon School: he isn't going back to basics, rather he's learning ''new'' things that he wants to understand further to become a Pokémon Master. And as for any signs of BadassDecay? Well go on and ask all of Team Skull's Salandit, and [[OlympusMons Tapu Koko]], and ''then'' try and say he's gotten weaker.
* In [=SM005=], Team Rocket are drifting well out of reach in the air and Pikachu cannot use his electric attacks on them or else he will risk also shocking the Water-type Pokémon that have been kidnapped. So what does Ash do? He has Pikachu use the hovering [=RotomDex=] as a stepping stone and cut the net open with Iron Tail!
* [=SM007=] has Ash taking a lot of scratches from Litten while getting it to the Pokémon Center, but that pales in comparison to ''taking Persian's attack to protect Stoutland''. If that doesn't cement Ash's balls of steel, then [[GroinAttack the previous episode already did]].
* [=SM009=]: Ash participates in his first trial and has Pikachu and Rowlet outright mop the floor with the preceding Yungoos and Gumshoos. Then the Totem Gumshoos shows up and gives a bit of a bigger challenge, raising its stats so hardly anything can affect it, using Sand Attack to avoid their strikes, and eventually leaving Ash with just Pikachu standing. So what does Ash do in this situation? In [[GeniusDitz typical Ash fashion]], he does something that no one in the games would even think of doing and uses Gumshoos' Sand Attack against him by having Pikachu use the sand to hide its own figure and give Gumshoos a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown with Quick Attack, before finishing it off with a Thunderbolt! And after that whole ordeal, Gumshoos itself gives Ash the well-earned Normalium Z!
* In [=SM010=], Ash goes through his first Grand Trial with Hala and, even though it's implied that the Kahunas are on a whole other level from Gym Leaders, manages to win without a single Pokémon fainting! And no, Rowlet falling asleep after its match doesn't count.
** To start, Ash sends his Rowlet against Hala's Crabrawler, normally his strongest Pokémon in the games. Crabrawler constantly tosses it around with Power-Up Punch and Brutal Swing, and even [[ScissorsCutsRock blocks Leafage with its own Bubble Beam despite not even being a water type]]. However, Rowlet still has its ability that allows it to sneak around about the Leafage and surprise people. When Ash remembers this, Rowlet quickly picks up the slack and lays an epic beatdown on Crabrawler, managing the win.
** Square up next is Pikachu vs. [[MightyGlacier Hariyama]]. The Arm Thrust Pokémon manages to be more than a match for Pikachu, blocking its fast movements with its own powerful Fake Out, Knock Off, and Arm Thrust. Despite this, Pikachu's nimble movements allow it to keep in the fight and outmaneuver Hariyama at several key points. Pikachu even manages to survive a hit from Hariyama's Belly Drum boosted [[LimitBreak All-Out Pummeling]] and is still as spry as ever! Pikachu finishes the fight by running circles around Hariyama with Quick Attack before knocking it down with Iron Tail, then they finish the job by performing the [[LimitBreak Breakneck Blitz]], knocking Hariyama ''clear out of the ring''! Tapu Koko is so impressed that, when Hala is about to give Ash the normal Fightinium Z, he swoops in and replaces it with an Electrium Z, thus Ash has fully earned his Z-Crystal from the first episode of the season.
* We see the results of Ash obtaining Electrium Z with Ash's second use of Gigavolt Havoc in [=SM011=]. Poor, poor Team Skull.
* In [=SM029=] The group has a Morulull problem. His solution: stick the energy sucker on his head while eating to give it so much energy it won't go after them anymore. It works. Or to put it another way, Ash met a parasitic fungus and let it feed on him ''so they could be friends''.
* Ash vs. Misty in [=SM043=]:
** While Pikachu is trapped within Mega Gyarados' combination of Hurricane and Rain Dance which has nullified Pikachu's Electric-type attacks, even rendering Thunderbolt moot from piercing through the column of water surrounding Pikachu. What does Ash do? He commands Pikachu to use Quick Attack to... ''climb through the hurricane by using the electricity as footing''. This leaves Misty and the Alola cast shocked and Ash follows it by ending the match by having Pikachu use Gigavolt Havoc, defeating Misty's Mega Gyarados. The only one not surprised by it at all is Brock, who simply has an expression on his face that says "Yep, that's Ash for you all right."
** When the battle is about to begin, Sophocles looks at the battlefield with little land and questions how anyone could fight on it. Ash grins and declares he will, and Pikachu immediately gets into the thick of it with enthusiasm and not a hint of hesitation. For those who miss Gym Battles, it's a nice reminder of how many they'd fought, and in how many different fields.
** For extra points, Misty earlier mocked Ash over not defeating her and only getting his Cerulean Water Badge out of pity. It seemed to be TemptingFate as straight after Ash outdoes Misty fair and square. Misty finally gave him his rematch and not only was it much more difficult than before, but he won despite the massive power disadvantage between Mega Gyarados and Pikachu.
* During [=SM050=], Ash [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness foregoes]] Pokémon battling and just straight up body slams Faba himself to try and save Nebby from him. Considering how much of a jerk Faba is, [[TakeThatScrappy no one's complaining]]. Even better, think about how many bad guys Ash has faced. Giovanni, Cyrus, Ghetsis, Lysandre. He faced them all despite them either wanting to control all Pokemon, create a new world, rule the world, or destroy everything respectively. All were grade A nutcases. But Faba? He allowed Lillie to be attacked by Nihilego and then tries to (for lack of a better phrase) MindRape her into forgetting the entire ordeal using Hypno. In other words, try to doom the world, he will stop you. Try to hurt his friends, he will straight up KICK YOUR ASS!!
* In [=SM051=], after Gladion and Lillie run off to Poni Island to find the key to opening Ultra Space, Ash, despite their insistence he not get involved, [[HonorBeforeReason shortly makes a beeline to find them]], and advances through the same trials they did offscreen quick enough to pull a BigDamnHeroes Electric Ball with Pikachu when the Totem Kommo-o's lair almost falls onto them.
* In [=SM053=], he performs a DivingSave at Lillie to protect her from Mother Beast Lusamine's attack.
* As of [=SM067=], Ash is the first character to have caught an Ultra Beast. Not accompanying or taking care of one, ''officially caught one''.
* Ash making his first ''Mythical'' catch as of [=SM112=].
* Ash has another strong showing against an Island Kahuna when he battles Olivia. Despite an experience disadvantage, Rowlet & Rockruff are able to defeat her Probopass & Lycanroc. He might have gone 2-0 if Rockruff hadn't KOed its own partner Rowlet by mistake.
* While Ash fell short in his first battle with Nanu (thanks to his newly-evolved Lycanroc losing control vs. Krookodile), he more than made up for it in the rematch. Nanu made it a three-on-one gauntlet and Ash put his faith in Lycanroc. Ash learned from the previous battle and Lycanroc was able to defeat Krookodile this time around, then used its newly-learned Stone Edge to take out Sableye. Despite Nanu's inflammatory comments, Ash managed to compose himself...aided by another new move (Counter), Lycanroc went toe-to-toe with Alolan Persian. Z-Moves clashed and Lycanroc completed the sweep, earning Ash the Lycanium-Z.
* Although Ash loses his first battles against both Hapu and Nanu, neither of these cases were official Grand Trials: Nanu's was a test to see if Ash was ready (and for Nanu to try and get out of it), and Hapu wasn't a Kahuna at the time. In his actual Grand Trials, the only instance of any of Ash's Pokemon fainting is Rowlet... who was taken out its own teammate, Rockruff, rather than by either of Olivia's Pokémon. This means that ''none'' of the Kahunas were able to knock out a single Pokémon during their Grand Trial against Ash.
* In [=SM081=], when a professional match with the Masked Royal's Incineroar ends up rigged by Viren and his goons, the Revengers, Torracat steps into the ring to defend Incineroar. Masked Royal's replying strategy? Form a tag-team match with Ash and Torracat against the Revengers. Ash even wears his own luchador attire for an extra awesome touch.
* The Alola League. After more than twenty years and over a thousand episodes of the anime, ''[[ThrowTheDogABone Ash wins a league in one of the main regions]]'', becoming Alola's very first Champion in the process. He's come a long way since he started. Heck, Ash ''himself'' can't believe that he won at first!
** It was such a huge deal, even ''CNN'' [[https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/15/entertainment/ash-ketchum-pokemon-win-trnd/index.html picked up the story]].
** Crossing over with Heartwarming, after the episode aired, Creator/VeronicaTaylor (Ash's original English voice actress for the first eight seasons of the dub) made a short in-character video to commemorate the occasion.
** After becoming Champion, Ash does his exhibition match with Kukui and not only defeats ''him'', but Tapu Koko who had just joined in to finally give Pikachu the rematch of a lifetime. Ash didn't just win the league; '''he obliterated it!'''
* If [[https://imgur.com/gallery/2ev72sL this image]] is any indication, each of Ash's league losses has been referenced and turned around in a way in the Alola League.
** Ash lost the Kanto League partially because his Squirtle was ruled unable to battle due to being put asleep by Sleep Powder. In Alola, Rowlet was thought to be knocked out in the battle against Hau, but was judged to be still able to battle when it turns out Rowlet was just napping.
** Ash lost the Johto League with a Fire-type starter defeating his Fire-type starter, Harrison's Blaziken defeating Ash's Charizard. In Alola, Ash's Fire-type starter this time defeated another's Fire-type starter, Ash's Torracat defeating Kukui's Incineroar.
** Ash lost the Hoenn League to an unevolved Pokemon wearing clothes, Tyson's Meowth. In Alola, Rowlet, an unevolved Pokemon, is seen wearing a Decidueye costume during the league.
** Ash lost the Sinnoh League to Tobias, who used Darkrai (Mythical) and Latios (Legendary). In Alola, Ash had a Mythical Pokemon of his own (Melmetal) and a near-legendary Ultra Beast (Naganadel), and he defeated two legendaries (Silvally and Tapu Koko).
** Ash lost the Unova League to Cameron's Lucario. In Alola, he defeated Kukui's Lucario.
** Ash lost the Kalos League to his rival Alain in the finals, with Alain's Charizard winning the match with Blast Burn. In Alola, he defeated his rival Gladion in the finals, and his Torracat not only took Kukui's Incineroar's Blast Burn, but completely absorbed it.
** Torracat's victory has two more factors in relation to the above. First, it staggers a bit before standing its ground, while Incineroar is the one that falls. This mirrors Alain's Charizard, who did the same thing when Greninja fainted. Second, Torracat evolves ''after'' the battle as opposed to during. To put it into perspective, Cameron relied on his Riolu evolving into Lucario in order to win and ''still'' lost to Virgil right afterward; Ash didn't have to rely on a similar DeusExMachina during his fight.
* For fans worried that StatusQuoIsGod is gonna run its course on Ash, ''Journeys'' episode 7 has Ash win a tournament with just Pikachu and ''Mimey'' -- the latter seemingly done just to show Goh that any Pokemon can win a battle with a bit of effort and work to salvage Goh's battling spirit after a devastating loss to the same trainer. And given the reaction everyone, including the announcer, gives, it seems like Ash just used Pikachu through the entire tournament, leaving ''Mimey'' as a surprise in the end.
* Ash making his first catch in ''Journeys'': DRAGONITE!
* Ash managing to help Goh in [=SS015=] by coming up with a plan to lure out three Mankey shows the experience gap between the two as he gets results far quicker than Goh who was just aimlessly searching for them (albeit while using four fliers to cover a wide area).
* In ''[=SS017=]'', Ash captures the Gengar that was causing trouble six episodes earlier. And when Gengar is about to attack its former {{Jerkass}} trainer, Ash decides to take the high road and tell Gengar to stop attacking it (even if said trainer deserved being called out). It's also worth noting that Gengar has become Ash's first official Ghost-type Pokémon ever since he left Haunter with Sabrina and her family in the original series.
* In ''[=SS021=]'' after twelve years since its debut, Ash's aura powers become a plot point, leading him to an unhatched Riolu egg. In fact, his aura is so powerful that it helps Riolu (who was picking fights with anyone it saw) unleash a Vacuum Wave strong enough to topple an Onix.
* At the end of ''[=SS022=]'', when Goh says he's having Raboot PutOnABus without even saying goodbye, Ash ''does not buy this shit at all'' and coldly asks Goh if he asked if ''Raboot'' was fine with this decision. Ash may be Goh's friend, but even he could tell that Goh was not being open with his feelings toward his partner.
-->'''Ash:''' I won't stop you if you're serious. But...''[[ArmorPiercingQuestion did you tell Raboot?]]''
* In ''[=JN065=]'', Ash defeats Iris, the ''reigning Unova Champion'', only using Dragon types, which are supposed to be ''[[BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame her]]'' type specialty! Not only does this mark the first time that Ash defeated an in-game Champion, but it also was Dracovish's proper battling debut! It really vindicates Ash as a top-tier trainer, considering [[BrokenBase some]] felt the Alola league wasn't a "proper" way for Ash to become a Champion. Even Iris says that he's [[MeaningfulEcho not just a kid anymore.]]
* In ''[=JN086=]'', he uses ''Mega Evolution'' for the very first time, something that fans have been dying to see him use since Generation 6. And on his Lucario no less!
** The whole lead-up to this moment is nothing short of ''epic''. As Machamp and Lucario face off one last time with their teammates taken down, Ash wordlessly holds up his mega glove with a determined expression, with Lucario turn back and nodding with a smile. It's as if they are exchanging the words, "Now?" "'''''Now.'''''"
* Sure, it was offscreen and PlayedForLaughs, but in [[=JN105=]] he is able to beat former Hoenn Champion Wallace, gaining full respect from him.
* [=JN109=]: Ash beats Raihan and is in the Masters Eight, a group which includes 6 (that’s right SIX) regional champions and Alain, quite possibly the best non-Elite 4 trainer in the anime. Ash will be battling in a tournament with trainers who may as well be called Pokemon Masters, and given that among the ranks of these trainers are well-known powerful trainers such as Cynthia and Alain; it's clear his toughest battles are about to come with Ash having never been more ready for them.
* [=JN118=]: For anyone fearing that his victory in the Alola League and string of wins against everyone not named [[WorldsStrongestMan Leon]] were an overly-long fluke, which the anime has been known to do on multiple occasions, Ash assuages the concerns defeating Steven - ''ranked third at the time'' - in his first round of the Masters Tournament, proving once and for all that he belongs in the Masters Eight.
* [=JN125=]: Ash defeats Cynthia in her first onscreen outright loss and advances to face Leon in the Finals. 15 years ago in Diamond and Pearl, he made a promise that he would be the one to defeat Cynthia, and now he has kept his promise.
** For his defeats of two Champions in the Master Eight, the Team Rocket Trio dub Ash the ''Champion Killer''.
* Ash versus Leon. A four-part battle where Ash, per a Corocoro article about Leon's past battles, becomes the first trainer to ever defeat more than two of his Pokemon in a single battle. Regardless of the end result, Ash has become the person to most push Leon just by the end of the second part of the four-part battle.
** And then Ash ''wins''. That kid from Pallet Town we've been watching for so long? He's now officially '''''[[SeriesGoal the very best]], [[ExpositoryThemeTune like no one ever was]].'''''
--->'''Announcer:''' ''It's decided! We now have ourselves a new champion! From the Kanto region, born in Pallet Town, '''ASH KETCHUM!!'''''
*** Note, the battle between the two is so fierce it starts to ''distort space itself''.
*** The fact that in Japan they actually aired Ash winning on the big screens in one city.
*** After the episode aired in the real world, "HE DID [[ToBeAMaster IT]]" became one of the top trending on Twitter as everyone celebrated Ash's win.

!!Pikachu
* How about the pilot episode? Pikachu crawls to its feet after being badly injured and rushes - illuminated only by periodic lightning flashes - to the defense of his ([[GoThroughMe suicidal]]) trainer. After which he ''[[CurbStompBattle annihilates an entire flock of Spearow.]]'' With one attack. And how he does is even awesome. Pikachu is too tired to move on his own, and doesn't have the energy to stop one, let alone the entire flock coming at him and Ash. So what does he do? '''Jump into the path of a lightning bolt and use that energy to annihilate the flock in one AOE attack.'''
* For those who are new or still wondering why Ash hasn't gotten a Thunderstone, the Vermillion Gym showdown should explain why (besides the fact that [[StatusQuoIsGod it's the most familiar critter...]]). What sealed it was Brock's suggestion that Pikachu learn the speed moves that Raichu missed out on. It was a way of saying "I don't have to be just like you to succeed." Without that experience, Pikachu would have stayed a one-trick Pokemon. Also counts for FridgeBrilliance: Raichu is undoubtedly stronger than Pikachu in terms of pure speed and strength, but Pikachu has more battle capabilities if kept in its earlier stage first, being able to learn more moves than Raichu and actually having more uses in battle come Gen 3 with the introduction of the Light Ball. This comes to a head in B/W where it learns Electro Ball, and then again in S/M where it learns '''Electroweb''', a move that Pikachu can normally only learn through tutoring, ''mid-battle''.
* The fight against Sho's Raichu mid-way through D/P: even though he lost to an even ''more'' brutal opponent than Lt. Surge’s Raichu, with better versions of his attacks and '''[[WaveMotionGun Hyper Beam]]''', Pikachu still manages to win in the rematch through superior mobility and reflexes to wear Raichu down. It all culminates in the finishing blow where Pikachu uses Raichu's Hyper Beam to jump into the air and '''''spin into him like he's Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog!''''' If Lt. Surge somehow didn't prove that Pikachu doesn't need to evolve, this fight sure did.
* When faced with Giselle's Cubone, [[NoSell that is immune to his electric attacks]] ([[CripplingOverspecialization at the time Pikachu didn't have non-electric attacks yet]]) and [[CombatPragmatist has no qualms Bone Clubbing him while distracted]], Pikachu ''overpowers him with his bare paws''. Even better: Cubone are known for their high defense stat, while Pikachu's attack stat is below average. Pikachu overpowered a Pokémon that would normally have the edge against it in all areas anyway!
* When the twerps found Team Rocket, seemingly drowned, after the St. Anne sank, they all seem genuinely sorry, and do their best to give the trio a proper burial at sea...until they scramble back on the raft, claiming they're not dead. Pikachu snaps its fingers and gives a very clear "Chu!" of disappointment.
* In the episode that first featured Delibird, Pikachu lucks out after getting blasted by Delibird’s "presents" so many times, when one of them ends up ''[[HealingShiv healing]]'' him instead. He turns to Team Rocket with [[http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh167/irothtin/vlcsnap-9229146.png a look on its face]] that says: "[[TranquilFury I'm gonna light you up like a Christmas tree.]]" [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown Then it proceeds to do just that.]]
-->'''Jessie''': You just don't know when to give up, do you?\\
'''James''': I wouldn't be so sure, Jess...\\
'''Pikachu''': [[UnstoppableRage Pika...]] *gives the look with sparks flowing from its cheeks*\\
'''Meowth''': [[OhCrap UH OH! I THINK HE'S MAD!!]]
* In Haunter Vs Kadabra, stepping up to the Plate to Battle Sabrina's Kadabra which last time badly beat him. When he sees Ash seemingly given up and terrified after Haunter has disappeared he stands in between Kadabra and him and manages to hurt the Psychic Pokemon with a Thunderbolt.
* In "Bye Bye Butterfree", Pikachu jumps onto the windshield of Team Rocket's helicopter that they were using in their plot to snag the Butterfree. Pikachu (complete with an adorable smile and "Ka!") begins to charge up his Thundershock. Cue Team Rocket shouting "IT'S GONNA SHOCK US!" in an high-pitched panicky tone of voice, which gradually gets faster before dissolving into hysterical screaming as Pikachu ''blows up the helicopter!''
* In "The Problem With Paras", after an uppity Charmeleon disobeys Ash's orders and starts attacking him, Pikachu gets ticked off and incapacitates it with one attack. Even after gaining an evolutionary level, Charmeleon's clearly no match for the little electric mouse's powers.
* The Orange League battle between Ash and Drake. Both are down to the last Pokémon, Drake with his colossal Dragonite, and Ash with Pikachu. Keep in mind that the Dragonite's already beaten Charizard, Squirtle, and Tauros before now. The dude who wrote the episode even gave Dragonite eight attacks (ten in the original Japanese) to make it seem unstoppable. After a fight, throughout which Dragonite is clearly dominant, Pikachu manages to dodge Dragonite's Hyper Beam, perch itself on the giant's head, and call down Thunder to take it down, winning Ash his first championship. The mouse who [=KOs=] the dragon.
* That time when Pikachu BLOWS UP A POKEMON CENTER. He might've been empowered by generated electricity (and it was Koffing releasing gas that caused the explosion itself) but it still counts.
* Pikachu defeating all of Wattson's Pokemon with just one blow.
* The Battle Frontier episode where Ash and friends visit an egg farm, specifically the scene where Pikachu learns Volt Tackle. Team Rocket has stolen a bunch of eggs in their giant egg-shaped mecha. Pikachu can't use Thunderbolt for fear of destroying the eggs, so Ash has Pikachu use Quick-Attack instead. That Quick-Attack unexpectedly morphs into Volt Tackle and Pikachu rips right through Team Rocket's mecha and wrecks them!
* In Ash's four-on-four battle against Brandon, Pikachu defeats Regice!
* In his rematch with Roark, Pikachu takes a nasty hit from an Onix and gets buried under a pile of rocks. The Onix proceeds to set up [[GameBreaker Stealth Rock]] while it has a second. Pikachu then proceeds to, over the course of about five seconds, blast the rocks off himself and destroy the Stealth Rock and then charge right through its counterattack to ''Iron Tail it in the throat'' and land on the other side while it topples behind him.
* Managing to tie with Tobias's Latios in the Sinnoh League. Latios is a legendary with a type advantage over Pikachu, who had just taken out Swellow and Sceptile without either getting a hit in. Even with a type disadvantage, Pikachu's tough enough to match legends.
* The Electabuzz line has served as TheRival for Pikachu throughout the series. He had not beaten any member of its line without teaming up on it. Against Volkner's Electivire, it wins, despite not being able to use any of its Electric moves (due to Motor Drive). It does so by beating Electivire down with [[ExtraOreDinary Iron Tail]].
* Pikachu in [=BW050=]. He's trapped, far from his Trainer, and Axew (who's essentially a kid) is panicking. Pikachu keeps his cool, starts letting out other Pokémon from Ash and his companions' teams, and rallies them like a general to escape. Little guy could probably make a decent trainer in his own right.
* For anyone who thought Pikachu had suffered BadassDecay in early ''Best Wishes'' (thanks to several unfortunate losses), you need only see the Gym Battles against Burgh, Elesa, Skyla, and Roxie (especially Elesa) to realise that this isn't the case. At ''all''.
* During the Operation Tempest arc:
** Breaking out of a cage (previously shown to withstand the attacks of even strong ''legendary Pokemon'') just by [[{{Determinator}} hitting it repeatedly]] with Iron Tail.
** Saving Dragonite from Therian Forme Thundurus.
** The ungodly ''huge'' Electro Ball he produces from absorbing Thundurus's electricity, which completely ''pulverizes'' the platform Meloetta is imprisoned on. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CBKTDUmjHk Here's the scene in its all glory.]]
* An underrated moment is Pikachu's fight with Cameron's freshly-evolved Lucario. Despite being at a clear disadvantage due to Lucario's steel typing and superior strength, Pikachu still gives Lucario a fight to remember. Even ''Quick Attack'' [[ScissorsCutsRock manages to do some damage]]! Granted, Pikachu still lost due to Lucario's overall greater battle prowess, but Cameron still had to give it his all to even claim a victory. And keep in mind, this is when Ash [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass was at his lowest point in the series, development-wise]].
* Resisting the effects Colress's machine in the climax of the Team Plasma arc, and shocking Rehsiram into doing the same, leading to the eventual destruction of the machine.
* Pikachu vs. Grant's Tyrunt. Tyrunt is much more powerful than Pikachu, but Pikachu managed to play TennisBoss with it, reflecting all of the Rock Tomb back at it and making it "bite" out of one of the rocks, trapping it for Pikachu's Iron Tail to hit.
* Pikachu Vs. Mega Lucario, which took up more than a third of the episode and definitely did not disappoint. Pikachu starts out the battle with a column of rage/determination fueled electricity, not even as an attack, but to show how Badass it was. Then it counters every hit of Lucario's with an equal one of its own, the highlight of which was Iron Tail Vs. Bone Rush where Pikachu (while in the air) pushes Lucario down with his Iron tail while Lucario blocks with his Bone Rush. And to cap it off we have Pikachu's final attack, which is basically [[Manga/PokemonAdventures Megavolt]]. Just look at Lucario's [[OhCrap face]] right before he gets hit. And this is a MEGA Lucario belonging to a GYM LEADER.
* Pikachu trying to rescue Ash and company's Pokemon in ''A Frenzied Factory Fiasco!'' is a moment at its best. The episode involves him:
** Freeing himself from the glass cage, finally getting round the electric resistant trick by just knocking the cage to the ground with his weight.
** Avoiding being returned to his Pokeball (and at one point tricking Team Rocket into thinking they caught him by hiding in an air duct).
** Kicking Meowth in the face.
** Using a Luxury Ball on Meowth to escape.
** Dodging Meowth's sneak attack with his Pokeball ''mid air'' and defeating him with Iron Tail to get back the briefcase of stolen Pokemon. This one gets special mention, since it resembles a SingleStrokeBattle.
** On a side note, Ash called ''zero'' attacks in any of these. Pikachu worked on his own initiative to evade and take down Team Rocket, especially since Wobuffet, Inkay and even Meowth were putting up a much better fight against him than usual.
* All but ''one'' attempt to force Pikachu into a Pokeball have failed (the one exception being [[KnightOfCerebus Mewtwo via his cloning device]]). Even Meowth, a ''wild'' Pokemon was successfully warped into a Pokeball more times than Pikachu.
* In the infamous [[Recap/PokemonS1E38ElectricSoldierPorygon Electric Soldier Porygon]] episode, Pikachu manages to save both Ash, Brock, Misty, and the entire Team Rocket trio by blowing up [[ItMakesSenseInContext vaccine missiles]] aimed directly at them. (And causing seizures in Japanese school children as a result.)
* [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking He caught a potato in midair.]]
* Defeating Sawyer's Clauncher was expected. Defeating his ''Aegislash'' on the other hand....and Pikachu did so brilliantly by blocking up the sheath so it couldn't defend.
* In the Kalos League finals, Pikachu pulled a great feat in defeating both Alain's Metagross and Tyranitar (both are fully evolved pseudo-legendaries by the way) BY ITSELF! Such is the power of Ash's first pokemon we've been doubting all these years. In fact, Pikachu completely curb-stomped Tyranitar, in the whole fight Pikachu dominated and Tyranitar didn't get one single good hit in. What makes it even better is that Alain's reaction to seeing Pikachu beat Metagross is to immediately send out his Charizard next instead of Bisharp, with the implications that he's trying to take down Pikachu as soon as possible before it does any more long-term damage to his team, [[WorthyOpponent while at the same time honoring his strength with the chance to face his ace]]. And despite the fight with Metagross clearly having taken its toll on Pikachu, he still has enough power to zap Charizard and bring it down to its knees.
* Sending Hala's Hariyama ''flying'' using Breakneck Blitz.
* In the rematch against Tapu Koko, he actually manages to land a hit on Tapu Koko with Iron Tail, and briefly send it flying with Gigavolt Havoc. Sure Tapu Koko still technically wins, but give the mouse a massive A for effort. Also note that it was Tapu Koko who called for the battle, having taken interest in Pikachu's power after he and Ash create an enormous Z-powered energy blast. It even dismisses Rowlet and Rockruff to select a one on one with Pikachu. ''A legendary'' considers Ash's Pikachu its WorthyOpponent.
* During Ash's foray into Ultra Space, his Electrium Z gets a power boost. To what level? Oh, nothing special, it just transforms into a ''Pikashunium Z''. And the resulting attack is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Zo9zvRPYRs a true thing of beauty]], with Pikachu letting out [[ScreamingWarrior a massive]] BattleCry and having thunderbolts in blue, green, purple and red.
-->'''Ash:''' Much bigger than a Thunderbolt, 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt! Yeah! This is much, much bigger! At Super-Full Power! '''''10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, now!'''''
* In [=SM067=], after suffering several beatdowns from [[NotSoHarmlessVillain Team Rocket's Mimikyu]] in the past, Pikachu in this instance very handily dodges all its offense and is only robbed a proper defeat by Bewear.
* Anytime Pikachu gets distracted or incensed enough to ''fry the entire vicinity around him''. Both the "Pikachu and the Music Squad" short and "Alola, Kanto!", while PlayedForLaughs, have him let out a fully charged Thunderbolt that [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength takes down pretty much every single Pokemon in the main cast]] (along with the trainers in the latter).
* In [=SM076=], Pikachu once again battles Mimikyu and while he's originally at a disadvantage. Pikachu manages to turn the tide by unintentionally using a newly-learned Electroweb to block a '''Z-Move''' and then using Electroweb again to trap Mimikyu as Ash's Electrium Z once again becomes a Pikashunium Z, allowing Pikachu to use 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt to beat Mimikyu.
* Pikachu is used in the Poni Grand Trial against Hapu and her Mudsdale, who not only is a Ground-type, but has Stamina as an Ability, which leaves him in a huge disadvantage both type-wise and power-wise, as Stamina increases Mudsdale's defense after taking damage. However, he manages to hold on despite a super-effective Tectonic Rage that flung him in the air, using Electroweb to soften his landing and land in the water, luring Mudsdale to attack a pillar with Bulldoze and causing it to get wet with the seawater, which creates the effect of the move Soak, making it a Water type and thus weak to an Electroweb. He then wins with Gigavolt Havoc.
* Being responsible for the first onscreen defeat of Guzma's Golisopod[[note]]other than a victory by Kukui's Braviary shown in a flashback[[/note]], especially when Pikachu gets his first solid hit in by knocking Golisopod's legs from under it and following up with a point-blank Thunderbolt. While it's revealed that Guzma's undefeated streak is due to Guzma only picking fights that he knows he can win, it's also made clear that Golisopod is extremely powerful and it manages to push Pikachu to his limit.
* Gladion's Silvally is fast enough to dodge and counter Pikachu even when the latter uses Quick Attack, so what does Ash have Pikachu do? Launch Electroweb and Quick Attack in rapid succession, [[BatmanGambit knowing that Silvally will dodge them]], then use Electroweb as a makeshift trampoline to land a high-powered Iron Tail! Combined with the damage already dealt by Melmetal earlier in the match, it's enough to take Silvally out. Even more awesome is that Silvally is a Legendary. Pikachu just took out his ''third'' Legendary Pokemon throughout his entire journey!
* During his battle against Gladion's Zoroark, Pikachu is seemingly cornered by Never-Ending Nightmare, but manages to invoke TakingYouWithMe with Breakneck Blitz, leaving the final batchup of Lycanroc vs Lycanroc.
* The final battle with Professor Kukui has him defeating Tapu Koko with a 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, making Tapu Koko the ''fourth'' legendary he has defeated. And he not only defeated Tapu Koko, he straight up overpowered the Island Guardian's own signature Z-move!
* Despite his ''huge'' victory at the end of ''Sun and Moon'', Pikachu once again subverts the usual next-series-nerf in ''Journeys''. In his first face off against Team Rocket, they show off their newly gained access to the organization's reserves. Despite them pulling out a Gyarados and Tyranitar, Pikachu, still manages to overpower a dual Hyper Beam from the both of them and blast them off.
* In Ash's first official World Championship battle in ''[=SS018=]'':
** Pikachu goes up against Visquez's Raichu. In a humongous CallBack to Pikachu's battle against Lt. Surge's Raichu, Pikachu tanks a Volt Tackle via planting his (Iron) Tail to the ground! And when sent flying into the air, Ash has Pikachu using Iron Tail again to spin round and round before rebounding from a wall.
** Against Visquez's Electrode, who uses its electricity to levitate chunks of rock and unleash a barrage of attacks like a giant pinball, Pikachu stops it in its tracks with Iron Tail before reversing its direction. And when Electrode decides to use [[TakingYouWithMe Aftermath]], Pikachu uses Electroweb to protect itself!
* In Ash's first round in the Master class tournament fight against Steven in ''[=SS118=]'':
** Pikachu made short work of Cradily, using Ash's ever ingenious battle methods with Electro Web to trap it's tentacles and leaving it open for an effective Iron Tail.
** Pikachu proves to be a Metagross killer indeed. Steven's Mega Metagross proved to be too fast for Pikachu to reliably hit and taking a massive beating to boot, Pikachu grits through the pain. Ash and Pikachu pull out their secret weapon, their z-ring and crystal. With the power that defeated Tapu Koko, Pikachu overpowered Mega Metagross' attack and hit it with a barrage of 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, leaving it wide open for a devastating Iron Tail to defeat him and ending the fight.
* In Ash's semifinals match against Cynthia, despite Goh saying he should swap out Pikachu because he wouldn't stand a chance against Cynthia's Gastrodon, he keeps using him instead and defeats it very quickly using Iron Tail to send its Stone Edge back at it then finishing it off with Quick Attack, giving Ash his first knockout against Cynthia after both Dragonite and Gengar had fallen. Pikachu would later follow up by defeating the Pokemon who Cynthia had used to beat Dragonite and Gengar, Spiritomb, albeit with Pikachu being caught by Destiny Bond in the process, beyond that Pikachu hadn't even taken any real serious hits against either Pokémon (part of what made the Destiny Bond twist so shocking) in every other Full battle while Pikachu often does defeat two Pokémon, it's never without serious effort and taking a lot of damage, here Pikachu gives what is possibly his best ever showing and could have easily gone another few rounds, which is beyond impressive considering who he was up against.
** Heck the simple fact that [[TheAce Cynthia's]] entire opening strategy was dedicated solely to taking down Pikachu, and ended up using '''four''' Pokémon to do so says a '''lot''' about what she thinks that little mouse could do to the rest of her team, or even her ace '''Garchomp'''.
* [=JN132=]: This is Pikachu's crowning moment episode, literally. Despite facing Leon's Cinderace and the undefeated Charizard alone, Pikachu manages to prevail and beat BOTH of them, giving Ash the victory and the title of Monarch. No amount of words can do justice to the sheer feats Pikachu pulled to make this happen. And the last attack Ash gives to Pikachu contains the ''original'', in both the Japanese and English versions, theme song for a grand ThemeSongPowerUp!
** The finale of the battle ''cannot'' be understated just for how amazing it is. After an incredibly fierce battle against Charizard, Pikachu ends up being nailed with a MASSIVE Fire Blast, and despite all his efforts to stay conscious to continue the fight, he collapses and blacks out, seemingly losing the battle... As he's suddenly met with visions of ''all'' of Ash's Pokémon over the years (Even including temporary and former friends) cheering him on to keep going along with Ash himself, as Pikachu manages ''[[HeroicSecondWind to get back up]]'' with an incredible display of lightning unlike any before seen in the series - a display which, thanks to the sheer volume of golden lightning forming a bona-fide BattleAura, makes it look like Pikachu has gone '' [[Anime/DragonballZ Super Saiyan]]''. It is just as awesome as it sounds.
** The final attack that decides it all? An improvised Thunderbolt (Which almost resembles a Volt Tackle in this case) and Fire Blast (which takes the form of an improvised Flare Blitz) in a head-to-head melee clash that Pikachu manages to overpower Charizard in, winning the battle and Ash the title of World Champion.
--->'''Ash:''' Pikachu! [''flips his hat''] We're gonna put everything we got into this attack! \\
[''Pikachu charges up his electric power''] \\
'''Leon:''' Charizard! [''tosses his hat in the air''] Let's have a champion time! \\
[''Charizard charges his fire power''] \\
'''Ash:''' ''Thunderbolt,'' '''''let's GOOO!!''''' \\
[''Pikachu unleashes a full powered Thunderbolt''] \\
'''Leon:''' ''Fire Blast,'' '''''NOW!!''''' \\
[''Charizard unleashes a full powered Fire Blast''] \\
'''Ash/Leon:''' '''''LET'S GO!!!''''' \\
[''Pikachu and Charizard charge at each other into a powerful head-to-head melee clash'']
[[/folder]]