History Characters / PokemonProtagonistsAndRivalsKanto

Based on a female trainer seen in early artwork for ''Red'' and ''Blue'', who was left unimplemented because of memory limitations.

When ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' was remade for the GBA, the games went through some drastic changes. One important change that the GBA games brought about was the ability to choose between a male or female protagonist, however unlikely all other gender choices from Gen III onward, the player not chosen didn't appear as an NPC, nor did she appear with Red and Blue on Alola in Gen VII.

The Kanto trio would finally appear all together, when ''Let's Go'' reintroduced her alongside Red and Blue as BonusBoss master trainers, using a design similar to her originally planned appearance, and under the name Green to match her counterparts during an era similar to Gen I, ''Pokemon Yellow Version specifically.'' However other appearances such as ''Masters'' have used the name Leaf based on when she was first made playable. Outside of the name change there are no strong differences between these two 'incarnations' of the character, and no WordOfGod on whether they are separate characters or not.

[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/green_lets_go.png]]

* AmbiguousSituation: Are Green and Leaf AlternateUniverse versions of the same person? There's been no official statement either way; the usual presumption is to count them separately due to their different {{Canon Name}}s, but the fact that they share both a design motifs in their costumes, the same hair style, the same battle poses, and are both based on the same piece of artwork, makes it clear that they may not be completely separate individuals. Unlike Kris and Lyra, they've never been confirmed by WordOfGod to be separate, and have never appeared in the same continuity as seperate individuals at the same time (Kris appeared as Marina, separate from Lyra in the anime even before ''Masters'')

[[folder:Leaf]]
!!Leaf (リーフ ''riifu''

When ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' was remade for the GBA, the games went through some drastic changes. One important change that the GBA games brought about was the ability to choose between a male or female protagonist. For some time, the closest thing she had to a CanonName was "Leaf". [[note]]Taken from datafiles, and canonized by a promotional statuette in Japanese and an appearance in ''Masters.''[[/note]] As the female option for the PlayerCharacter, her backstory is roughly the same as Red's: a child from Pallet Town who was given the task to catch them all for the Pokédex and ToBeAMaster. She would also appear in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' (in her ''[=FireRed/LeafGreen=]'' design) as a female option for the Pokémon Trainer character opposite of Red.

* AdultFear: In ''Masters'', she's been shown to be afraid of losing her Eevee to Pokémon thieves or talent scouts.
* AlmightyJanitor: Leaf appears for the first time in ''Master'''s as part of a Pokémon Masters League tournament with an unevolved Pokémon next to Gym Leaders, Elite Four members and the like.

* CanonName: Leaf was the closest thing she had to a canon name for a good long while, owing to its status as her default name in internal data, plus the promotional name used for the female character in ''VideoGame/PokemonFireRedAndLeafGreen.'' In fact, not long after an official statuette available in Japan cemented her name as "Leaf" and ''Masters'' confirmed it further.

* SignatureMon:

[[folder:Green ''[-(Blue)-]'']]
!!Green / Blue (ブルー ''buruu'')
[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/green_lets_go.png]]

The ''second'' character based off of the unused female protagonist from ''Red'' and ''Green''.

Leaf's origins are a bit older than the remakes suggest. She's based on a female trainer seen in early artwork for ''Red'' and ''Blue'', who was left unimplemented because of memory limitations. The Kanto trio would finally be fully rounded out when ''Let's Go'' introduced Green alongside Red and Blue, using a design similar to her originally planned appearance, and under the name Green to match her counterparts and the ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'' incarnation of the aforementioned Trainer (who was later established as Leaf's counterpart). Despite being similar looking to Leaf and fulfilling the same role, they have different {{Canon Name}}s and it has not been confirmed whether or not they are AlternateUniverse incarnations of the same character, although they share a manga counterpart.
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* AdaptationNameChange: If you ascribe to her being an incarnation of Leaf. Interestingly, Green in ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'' started out as an adaptation of the same unused female Trainer but became a counterpart to Leaf later on, so the possibility of Leaf and Green being versions of the same character isn't counted out.
* AlmightyJanitor: Green appears without explanation in ''Let's Go'' as one of the toughest Pokémon Trainers around, which makes sense if one considers the implication that she's a trainer cut from the same cloth as Red and Blue and a possible counterpart to Leaf.
* AmbiguousSituation: Are Green and Leaf AlternateUniverse versions of the same person? There's been no official statement either way; the usual presumption is to count them separately due to their different {{Canon Name}}s, but the fact that they share both a design basis and a manga counterpart makes it clear that they may not be completely separate individuals. That being said, however, Kris and Lyra also share a manga counterpart in ''Adventures,''[[note]]Crystal is based on Kris but gets an outfit based on Lyra during the ''HGSS'' arc,[[/note]] and Lyra was even thought to have replaced Kris until ''VideoGame/PokemonMasters'' reintroduced them as separate character.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonLetsGoPikachuAndLetsGoEevee'' raises an interesting question on the matter: As an AlternateContinuity of the original Kanto games, naturally all major characters from said games make an appearance (along with two new player characters and their rival). You would think the female character being named Green would settle that, but the character is consistently referred to as "Leaf" in all other media (from figures to spinoffs, and all other Generation I character retain their usual names, which begs the question: why would one character warrant two names across two incarnations when this isn't the case for any other character in the game?
* BonusBoss: She challenges the player [[spoiler:after they capture Mewtwo, irritated that they caught it first. After being defeated, she reluctantly hands over the Mewtwonite X and Y stones before teasing the player by attempting to capture them by throwing Poké Balls at them.]] After this she can be rematched once a day in Cerulean City [[spoiler:though she'll still throw Poké Balls at the player to "capture" them.]]
* CanonName: The first official use of the name "Leaf" was a Kotobukiya figure pairing her with Squirtle. Despite this, ''Let's Go'' would temporarily overrule it by introducing a similar character by the name "Green," only for "Leaf" to return in ''Pokemon Masters,'' leading to the possibility that Leaf and Green are entirely separate characters -- aside from the fact that they are the same character in ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''.
* CastingAShadow: It's worth noting that four Pokémon on her team in ''Let's Go!'' came equipped with Dark-type moves. [[spoiler:She apparently knew what she was getting into, going spelunking for ''Mewtwo'']].
* ContinuityNod:
** Green herself. She and Leaf both stem from a promotional character made purely to round out the trio, featured only in early official artwork and ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''.
** Green takes some elements from Leaf, incorporating a blue collar and an identical satchel, while also incorporating the LittleBlackDress of her promotional design.
** Though not explicitly called attention to with ''Let's Go'' not giving trainers unique Key Stone accessories, her white bracelets mimic the design of the Mega Bangle in ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' while also being a reference to the WhiteGloves of her promotional design.
** Green's team includes a Clefable. Clefairy was planned as the mascot of the series just like Green was originally planned to be a player character.
* DecompositeCharacter: ''Let's Go'' introduced Green. She's based on the same concept art as Leaf but has a different CanonName. It's generally agreed that Leaf is the player character's name, but otherwise it's Green.
* LittleBlackDress: She wears a black dress like the Gen I concept art that inspired her, with the addition of a blue collar along with a slit in the side and being even shorter make it resemble an oversized shirt more than a dress.
* ModestyShorts: She wears blue shorts underneath her black dress.
* {{Troll}}: Teases the player by throwing Poké Balls at them as if they're a Pokémon [[spoiler:after they've beaten her, asking if they (and the Mewtwo the player's just caught) will join her Pokémon team, before smiling and running off.]]
* {{Yandere}}: A very lighthearted version in ''Let's Go''. After beating her, her [[spoiler:tossing Poké Balls at the player in order to get ''them'' and their Mewtwo to join her team has a strange interpretation of the trope.]]
[[/folder]]

* AmbiguousSituation: Are Green and Leaf AlternateUniverse versions of the same person? There's been no official statement either way; the usual presumption is to count them separately due to their different {{Canon Name}}s, but the fact that they share both a design basis and a manga counterpart makes it clear that they may not be completely separate individuals. That being said, however, Kris and Lyra are counted as the same character in ''Adventures,'' and Lyra was even thought to have replaced Kris until ''VideoGame/PokemonMasters'' reintroduced them as separate character.

* AmbiguousSituation: Are Green and Leaf AlternateUniverse versions of the same person? There's been no official statement either way; the usual presumption is to count them separately due to their different {{Canon Name}}s, but the fact that they share both a design basis and a manga counterpart makes it clear that they may not be completely separate individuals.

* SomeoneElsesProblem: Is clearly only deep within Silph Co just to challenge you when he's one warp pad away from actually trying to beat Giovanni and solve the situation himself. He doesn't even seem to care that the entire city had been taken hostage, only that [[ChronicHeroSyndrome you were likely going to be there]] and he'd take that opportunity to get in your way and show off.
* SoreLoser: Even after he loses, he talks as if it's the player who needs to get stronger, not him (he finally begrudgingly accepts his loss after the final battle). [[CharacterDevelopment Not]] so much [[TookALevelInKindness later in the timeline, though.]]

* UsedToBeASweetKid: [[AllThereInTheManual The guidebook]] for ''Red and Blue'' explains that he was Red's best friend until shortly before the start of the game, when he become a bully. Despite this, there's still [[VitriolicBestBuds times where he talks to you like an old friend]].

* FriendlyRivalry: With Blue by ''Let's Go'' and ''Sun and Moon''. They're more best friends than rivals in adulthood, and Blue backhandedly compliments Red's strength at several points in both games.

* TheQuietOne: From his enduring scowl, to his VisibleSilence gag as a {{Previous Player Character|Cameo}} HeroicMime, but later made clear to be a character trait. Described as such in his ''Masters'' bio, but previously lampsahded by Blue, sarcastically calling him a "chatty gossip" in Gen III, and more seriously "silent as ever" in Gen VI. Even as far back as the original games, a sailor on the SS Anne described him as "the strong silent type."

* FriendlyRivalry: Has this with Red by ''Let's Go'' and ''Sun and Moon''. All of the animosity that existed between them in the first game is gone, and it's clear that they're more best friends than rivals nowadays.

* TheSmartGuy: He's as much a Pokémon researcher as a Gym Leader in later games. It's mentioned several times that Blue travels all over the world finding and studying new Pokémon for his grandfather, and he tends to go off on tangents about Pokémon evolution and technical skills when you speak with him. In game, his Kanto team is even built around top base stats available in Gen I, barring legendaries. Exeggutor, Arcanine, and Gyrados are three replacement starters for type-coverage that are all the highest base stat total of their type. Rhydon has the highest base Attack, and Alakazam has the highest base Special. Pidgeot falls outside of this but is implied to be a sentimental pick as the first Pokémon he caught.

* FriendlyRivalry: Has this with Red by ''Let's Go'' and ''Sun and Moon''. All of the animosity that existed between them in the first game is gone, and it's clear that they're more best friends than rivals most of the time.

** In ''VideoGame/PokemonLetsGoPikachuAndLetsGoEevee'', Red will only appear at the Indigo Plateau if the player has a full team, and has previously defeated at least 6 Master Trainers. This suggests that each Pokémon on Red's team is trained as well as those belonging to a Master Trainer - but while those trainers specialize in only that species, Red is such a capable trainer that he can match a specialist's level of training with multiple species at a time. His edge over even Master Trainers is indicated when, upon his defeat, the player is awarded the "Battle Master" title. Furthermore, while Blue easily deals with whatever challenge he faces during the story, and is famous region-wide as an incredibly strong trainer, Red's team is of a much higher level. In other words, Red is in most appearances either tied or, or far and away the strongest trainer, even when compared to other [[TheAce trainers that would usually be considered the ace.]]

* BeyondTheImpossible: Throughout the series, the highest rank a trainer can have is "Champion", which both Red and his rival Blue have held at one time or another. As an adult, Red has a new title - Battle Legend - which he shares with Blue as the co-bosses of the Battle Tree, a facility staffed by Champions, Elite Four members, and Frontier Brains. In other words, it is implied that Red is actually such a powerful trainer that he outranks regional Champions.

* SuddenlyVoiced: Red in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Brawl'' and ''Anime/PokemonTheOrigin'', as well as the occasional odd internal comment and conversation with Copycat. Played straighter with his appearance in Pokemon Masters, which is actually his main series version. While he does grunt for his voiced lines, the real shock comes during his trainer story where he actually speaks in response to a question from Flint, who asks how he commands Pokemon if he never talks. Red tips his hat to command Charizard, then a text box follows with his usual elipses - except this time, they lead to the statement "Words are unnecessary!" Even Flint is visibly shocked, and urges the player to remember the experience since it's so rare.

** In ''Let's Go'' it's integrated into the story; as Professor Oak's grandson and a former Champion, he serves as a mentor to the protagonist and Trace in their journey, much like other Champions such as Lance, Cynthia, and Alder.

* BeyondTheImpossible: Throughout the series, the highest rank a trainer can have is "Champion", which both Blue and his rival Red have held at one time or another. As an adult, Blue has a new title - Battle Legend - which he shares with Red as the co-bosses of the Battle Tree, a facility staffed by Champions, Elite Four members, and Frontier Brains. In other words, it is implied that Blue is actually such a powerful trainer that he outranks regional Champions.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Thankfully matures into this by ''Gold and Silver''.

** In contrast to how meta the rest of his team is, Pidgeot is in his team almost every time, having the highest representation of any team member by only being absent in ''Let's Go''. It's also his ace in both ''HGSS'' and ''Masters''. It may be an indication of his HiddenDepths - he can't leave behind the first Pokémon he caught.

* CanonName: The first official use of the name "Leaf" was a Kotobukiya figure pairing her with Squirtle. Despite this, ''Let's Go'' would temporarily overrule it by introducing a similar character by the name "Green," only for "Leaf" to return in ''Pokemon Masters,'' leading to the possibility that Leaf and Green are entirely separate characters - aside from the fact that they are the same character in ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''.

Leaf's origins are a bit older than the remakes suggest. She's based on a female trainer seen in early artwork for ''Red'' and ''Blue'', who was left unimplemented because of memory limitations. The Kanto trio would finally be fully rounded out when ''Let's Go'' introduced Green alongside Red and Blue, using a design similar to her originally planned appearance, and under the name Green to match her counterparts. Despite being similar looking to Leaf and fulfilling the same role, they have different {{Canon Name}}s and it has not been confirmed whether or not they are AlternateUniverse incarnations of the same character.

* AlmightyJanitor: Green appears without explanation in ''Let's Go'' as one of the toughest Pokémon Trainers around.

* CanonName: The first official use of the name "Leaf" was a Kotobukiya figure pairing her with Squirtle. Despite this, ''Let's Go'' would temporarily overrule it by introducing a similar character by the name "Green," only for "Leaf" to return in ''Pokemon Masters,'' leading to the idea that Leaf and Green are entirely separate characters.

* TheArtifact: His name is Blue (as a reference to the Gen I games, ''Red and Blue'') but in the Japanese version it is Green (in reference to the original ''Red and Green,'' which was never released internationally). There may have been an opportunity to fix this and have him be Green worldwide when the Gen I remakes came around, (''[=LeafGreen=]'' was released in all territories, instead of say a ''[=WaterBlue=]'', and his default name was changed to Green), but his name is still Blue in all later appearances. Despite this in more recent appearances the designers have gone out of their way to give him green clothes and [[ColorCodedCharacters overall motif]] while still not changing his name back to Green. This artifact even led to necessary change in the dub of ''Origins''[[note]]In the original, Red claims he chooses Charmander because of the name his father gave him, and when Professor Oak asks Green if he is going to choose Bulbasaur for the same reason, he claims that he isn't going to base his choice on such a sentimental matter and picks Squirtle. In the dub, Oak asks Blue if he is going to pick Squirtle for the same reason, and Blue once again claims he isn't going to base his choice on something sentimental, before specifying he picks Squirtle explicitly because of it's type advantage over Red's Charmander.[[/note]] and a DubInducedPlotHole in''Pokémon Adventures''. In promotional materials most ([[FailedASpotCheck but strangely not all]]) English versions of his green auras and promo backgrounds have to be changed into blue ones.

* CharacterDevelopment: The first hint at this is him giving you the Fame Checker after you defeat him before Nugget Bridge because he felt guilty always being ahead of you. In the credits, he seems to be thinking about himself and his Pokémon after being told off by his grandfather and being beaten by you. In ''Gold and Silver'', he is fairly less of a {{Jerkass}}. He is also much more mature and seems to have learned how to take care of his Pokémon. This is evident when his Pidgeot uses Return, a Normal attack that becomes stronger the more the Pokémon likes its user.

** For an example that doesn't inconvenience the player, in ''Fire Red'' and ''Leaf Green'', his Pidgeotto is first seen at level 17, one lower level than Pidgey is supposed to evolve at. It's possible he caught simply caught a different Pidgeotto in the wild, but is heavily implied otherwise.

* CuttingOffTheBranches: Averted, unlike with Red. He has none of the Kanto starters in any of his teams when fought as a Gym Leader or Pokémon World Tournament participant.

--> '''Blue:''' "While working on my Pokédex, I looked all over for Pokémon. Not only that, I assembled teams that would beat any Pokémon type. And now… I am the Pokémon League Champion! Red! Do you know what that means? I'll tell you. [[NotHyperbole I am the most powerful Trainer in the world!]]"

* Canon Name: The first official use of the name "Leaf" was a Kotobukiya figure pairing her with Squirtle. Despite this, ''Let's Go'' would temporarily overrule it by introducing a similar character by the name "Green," only for "Leaf" to return in ''Pokemon Masters,'' leading to the idea that Leaf and Green are entirely separate characters.

* CastingAShadow: It's worth noting that four Pokémon on her team in ''Let's Go!'' came equipped with Dark-type moves. [[spoiler:She apparently knew what she was getting into, going spelunking for ''Mewtwo'']].

** Green herself. She was a promotional character made purely to round out the trio, that few remember since the only evidence of her is early official artwork and ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''.
** Her redesign in ''Let's Go'' takes some elements from her Generation III appearance, incorporating a blue collar and an identical satchel, while also incorporating the LittleBlackDress of her promotional design.
** Though not explicitly called attention to with ''Let's Go'' not giving trainers unique Key Stone accessories, her white bracelets mimic the design of the Mega Bangle in ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' while also being a reference to the WhiteGloves of her promotional design.
** Green's team includes a Clefable. Clefairy was planned as the mascot of the series just like Green was originally planned to be a player character.
** As Leaf she uses an Eevee as a nod to the female protagnist choice Elaine having one in most of the promo art for ''Let's Go.''
* ContinuityNod: She uses an Eevee as a nod to the female protagnist choice Elaine having one in most of the promo art for ''Let's Go.''

** Green herself. She was a promotional character made purely to round out the trio, that few remember since the only evidence of her is early official artwork and ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''.

Leaf's origins are a bit older than the remakes suggest. She's based on a female trainer seen in early artwork for ''Red'' and ''Blue'', who was left unimplemented because of memory limitations. The Kanto trio would finally be fully rounded out when ''Let's Go'' introduced Green alongside Red and Blue, using a design similar to her originally planned appearance, and under the name Green to match her counterparts. Despite being similar looking to Leaf and fulfilling the same role, they are not the same character and have different {{Canon Name}}s.

** Red takes it a step further by remaining silent even when he's a BonusBoss NPC rather than a player-controlled character, he displays VisibleSilence. Contrast this with the [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pokémon_Black_2_and_White_2_beta planned Hilda/Hilbert encounters from Black 2 and White 2 where they would've had dialogue in the World Tournament.]]

* HotBlooded: According to a Generation I comic drawn by Sugimori, and many early pieces of media, in a stark contrast to how he is usually perceived now.

** In many other adaptations such as ''Pokémon Origins'' and one short in ''Generations'', Charmander is Red's preferred starter instead. Which makes sense, since it fits his overall demeanor and name a lot better. Ash Ketchum, Red's official Anime counterpart, likewise had a Charizard as his powerhouse for the majority of the original series, being his only fully evolved Kanto starter making him both the "Charizard Trainer" when they faced Mewtwo, and setting up that his Gary would have a Blastoise when they finally fought. Red is also pictured with Mega Charizard X in the key art for ''Pokemon Masters.''

* CuttingOffTheBranches: In all his main series appearances aside from those where he is playable, Red has always had all three Kanto starters on his team, as well as a Pikachu and sometimes an Espeon (representing the Eevee received in-game), so that his canon starter Pokémon is never apparent. In ''VideoGame/PokemonLetsGoPikachuAndLetsGoEevee'', Red splits the trio of Kanto starters with his peers Blue and Green, opting for a Venusaur while Blue uses Charizard and Green uses Blastoise, referencing the pre-release artwork showcasing all of them prior to the debut of ''VideoGame/PokemonRedandBlue''. It's worth noting, however, that ''VideoGame/PokemonLetsGoPikachuAndLetsGoEevee'' is an AlternateUniverse retelling of ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue''. Incidentally, in international releases they all use a starter that would be weak to the type their name represents. Subverted in Japan, however, given that Green's name is switched with Blue, meaning her name matches the type of her Blastoise.

** Red receives a redesign in ''VideoGame/PokemonMasters'' that meshs his two designs: He keeps his general remake design, but he uses his classic hat and his new vest mixes traits of both his vest and jacket. His hair is also has a darker shade of brown that's a middle ground between his two hair colors.

** All the protagonists are silent when you play as them, however, his encounter with [=CopyCat=] strongly implies that he does indeed speak.

* SuddenlyVoiced: Red in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Brawl'' and ''Anime/PokemonTheOrigin'', as well as the occasional odd internal comment and conversation with Copycat.