Pokémon anime

SM Ash is also practically Hau.

No he's not. Hau goes through a completely different character arc while Ash is more or less the same as he's always been, just goofier than normal to fit the series` Denser and Wackier atmosphere.

Hau could also show up later on like Barry did, especially if there's a league arc.

There is a mild link in their character arc, Ash becomes way more proactive about helping Lillie after he lets her down and gets chewed out by Gladion at one point for example, similar to Hau's insecurities when he fails to protect her.

It's not a tremendous similarity, they could probably get away with having the two of them together, though the same could be said for the game and anime incarnations of one same character sometimes. Ash definitely resembles Hau's Fun Personified characterisation more than he did in previous series though.

edited 22nd Dec '17 3:00:33 PM by Psi001

The main thing about Hau's character is that he's a Stepford Smiler, something Gladion calls him out on in their first battle. Hau puts on a front of being a good sport about battles, but he's actually pretty frustrated with himself because he feels like he can never live up to Hala even when he's serious.

At the end of the game, he starts taking battling more seriously while still having fun and resolves to surpass you and his grandfather.

That's pretty distinct from Ash's personality if you ask me.

I suppose it was down to perspective, I haven't relooked Sun and Moon's story much, but I thought it was just a Sad Clown moment instead of him being a full on Stepford Smiler from the start.

It helps that I'm playing Ultra Sun at the moment, so I get to revisit a lot of the plot points from the original games.

I was going to make a 'at least Hau was Champion briefly' joke until I remembered he fights you for inception of the title.

Apparently Delia used Ash's Orange League trophy for her workout routine.

edited 23rd Dec '17 5:49:59 AM by lalalei2001

Hau could be easily excluded from the anime for the same reason Wally was back in Hoenn. They're not really that essential characters. Even the DP saga didn't *need* to introduce Barry, originally they probably had no intention of using him because he doesn't even appear until 100 eps into the saga, but the writers then probably felt they needed a comedy rival to balance out Paul.

XY didn't even need to use the rival trio either, they probably only wanted to use Shauna for her connection to Serena, but Tierno and especially Trevor could have been axed from the XY anime and it'd make little difference.

Come to think of it the vast majority of game rivals are almost always irrelevant to the anime, at least after Gary. They either ignore them or barely use them.

This is why I say that Ash should have been retired after season one and made him win the championship by beating Gary, because the series becomes more and more shoddier at adapting elements from the game. He's a relic from the past that needed to be gone a long time ago. As said before, they should have done the Digimon route where each season introduced a new character based on the players of the games. Characters like Hau, Wally, and Guzma get jibbed hard, when they were some of the best things about the game.

edited 23rd Dec '17 11:10:16 AM by firewriter

Plus with four seasons with no region change and a lot of filler episodes, DP had plenty of time to spare compared to the other series.

In fairness though, Ash leaving wouldn't really change that. They'd just make an Expy have them perform practically the same role and their writing quality for everything else would remain the same. I really don't think what game characters and plot points get adapted and don't is down to Ash, the writers have a comfort zone. Lusamine being a well meaning character that got brainwashed was likely more down to the writers preference of Black-and-White Morality over Ash's development for example (especially since he was a Supporting Protagonist for most of the arc).

edited 23rd Dec '17 11:13:44 AM by Psi001

We got some new clips today for next year's episodes. They showed us the gang's new Ultra Guardian uniforms.

Ash's is blue, Lillie's is pink, Sophocles's is orange, Mallow's is green, and Lana's is a different shade of blue.

Is it like Power Rangers?

Yes, they have a secret base hidden behind a waterfall and everything.

Ash rides a Garchomp, Lillie rides an Altaria, Sophocles rides a Metang, Mallow rides a Flygon, and Lana rides a Dragonair.

edited 27th Dec '17 10:58:58 PM by Zoroark69

oh my god the who's that pokemon IT'S A JIGGLYPUFF, SEEN FROM ABOVE. THEY MEME'D, THOSE ABSOLUTE MADMEN

Speaking of Jigglypuff, here's the Poke Problem:

Apparently, a recording of Jigglypuff's singing retains the sleep inducing properties, and we get a Sleep Cute moment with Ash and Lillie (and to a lesser extent Lana and Kiawe), similar how how Ash and Misty would often be leaning on each other after Jigglypuff put them to sleep.

edited 28th Dec '17 10:41:48 AM by Zoroark69

It was actually Jigglypuff seen from below. Funny reversal of an already clever Call-Back.

Heh. Jigglypuff finally gets a taste of it's own medicine. It only took twenty years too.

Jigglypuff was happy about being doodled on though, and the character's dialogue implies that we'll be seeing it again.

Since it's now made friends with Ash and co., and there's supposed to be new Jigglypuff merchandise coming out next year, it makes me wonder if Jigglypuff really wo;; be caught by one of them (most likely Lillie given that the rest are type specialists, Lillie is a Fairy specialist in the games, and she's the Pink Ultra Guardian).

edited 29th Dec '17 1:25:22 PM by Zoroark69

Wait, if the crew are Ultra Guardians, does that make Gladion the Sixth Ranger? what would his color be?

Black.

Black, of course.

• Ash: The Leader (Blue)
• Lillie: Number Two (Pink)
• Kiawe: The Big Guy (Red)
• Sophocles: The Smart Guy (Orange)
• Mallow and Lana: The Chicks (Green and Turquoise)
• Gladion: The Sixth Ranger (Black)

edited 29th Dec '17 3:14:58 PM by Zoroark69

If they do the Rainbow Rocket arc I think it'd be cool to see anime-exclusive villains there too, like Domino, the Iron Mask Marauder, or Hunter J. Seeing Cassidy and Butch would be cool too.

edited 29th Dec '17 4:23:11 PM by lalalei2001

https://best100.animefestival.jp/finish.html

XYZ is #32, and SM is #45 (though SM is still ongoing). Still, both series made it into the top 50.

Of course everyone's first choice would be black lol