Characters and their Pokémon that debuted during Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon.

Beware of some unmarked spoilers.

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Main Cast

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The Pokémon School

Professor Kukui (Doctor Kukui)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonprofessorkuki.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Keiichi Nakagawa (adult), Chika Fujimura (child)

Voiced in English by: Abe Goldfarb (adult), Rachel Slotky (child)

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Daniel Lacy

The resident expert of Pokémon in the Alola Region, he specializes in the study of Z-Moves. Main teacher of Ash (who's staying at his house for the duration of this series, for now) and the Alola crew.

Adaptation Expansion: In the games, Kukui is already married to Burnet. In the anime, they begin as acquaintances, and we get to watch their relationship evolve until they ultimately get married in SM055. In the final episode, he even has a baby on the way.
- His past with Guzma is also elaborated on in SM128.
Adaptation Personality Change: He seems to be less over-the-top and more laid back than his game counterpart. When he becomes the Masked Royal however...
Adapted Out: His lead Pokémon in the games is a Midday-Lycanroc, presumably evolved from the Rockruff he uses earlier in the game, but in the anime, the Rockruff staying with him ends up having been a wild Pokémon, and was captured by Ash. Presumably, his Alolan-Ninetales from the games is also adapted out, given it hasn't appeared despite Lillie's own Alolan-Vulpix, Snowy, being a major recurring character.
Affectionate Gesture to the Head: Frequently gives these to Ash as a way of saying he's So Proud of You. The episode preview of JN037 has him give one to Ash when he and Goh travel to Alola
Almighty Janitor: With his full team of six Pokémon, it wouldn't be a stretch to call him the most powerful trainer in Alola. Pointedly this is something Tapu Koko recognizes, as not only does it let Kukui command it in his battle with Ash, it even gives him the Tapunium-Z.
Anger Born of Worry: Gets angry at Ash in SM037 when he returns after going missing in the middle of the night. However, he backs off after Ash apologizes and tells everyone that he was trying to find Rockruff.
Badass Teacher: He doesn't battle much, but he and his Braviary are pretty tough when they have to be. And then there's his persona as the Masked Royal.
Beyond the Impossible: Despite being constantly monitored 24/7 by his students, Ash and Burnet at home, and his Masked Royal persona at the dome ever only showing him with his Incineroar, Kukui has implausibly raised a full team of Pokémon ready for serious battles. "Implausible" due to the fact this is a series with a lot of characters always having all their Pokémon out and about. Not even after he actually was found out to have these Pokémon is enough to convince him to let them out...not even his ace.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Kukui peppers his dialogue with Pokémon attack metaphors. He is still a good teacher and an experienced Pokémon Professor. Later episodes reveal he is an even better battler too.
The Bus Came Back: He returns in JN037 where he greets Ash and Goh upon their arrival and helps Goh with settling into Alola.
Clark Kenting: Only Ash's Torracat, his own Pokémon, Faba, and Molayne know that he's the Masked Royal.
Cool Teacher: He lets his students arrange a surprise party for Ash and is generally pretty laid back. His classes are also fun and interesting and more practical than theoretical.
Didn't See That Coming: All throughout his battle with Ash such as Melmetal being too heavy to be affected by Empoleon's Whirlpool or Naganadel pointing its side stingers at Lucario and hitting the Aura Pokémon with a point blank Dragon Pulse after Lucario blocked Naganadel's X-Scissor.
Dramatic Unmask: His disguise as the Masked Royal gets blown away when he and Ash perform double Gigavolt Havocs to send the last Guzzlord back to Ultra Space in SM140.
Eccentric Mentor: Some of his lesson plans are rather unique, such as switching around the class' Pokémon for one day. He also uses his Masked Royal persona to help Ash train Litten into a Torracat.
Final Boss: Just like in the original Sun & Moon games, Kukui challenges Ash after he is crowned Alola League Champion.
Friendly Rival: Poses as one for Ash incognito as the Masked Royal. Later he even inducts him and Torracat as his tag team partners.
Forgotten First Meeting: As a child, he and his then-Litten first met Ash and Torracat when the latter were accidentally transported into the past by Celebi. It's from them that Kukui first got the idea of a Pokémon League.
The Gloves Come Off: After being exposed at the end of the Alola League; he decides to face Ash as himself, with a full team of 6 Pokémon and holding nothing back.
Happily Married: He eventually marries Burnet.
He Cleans Up Nicely: Even though there was very little preparation for him due to the wedding being a surprise, he still looks pretty sharp in his tuxedo.
Holding Back the Phlebotinum: With the reveal that he is an exceptionally skilled trainer included with a Z-Ring ends up being this in retrospect given he prefers to let Ash and Kiawe handle Team Skull's frequent trespassing and harassment of students instead of doing it himself. This trope notably vanishes after it's time for his post-Alola League battle with Ash; since his secret identity as the Masked Royal was blown, Kukui shows he's not going to be holding back in the slightest by sending out Incineroar first.
Limited Wardrobe: Played for Laughs when Ash washes a hamper full of identical lab coats.
Masked Luchador: As the Masked Royal.
My Greatest Failure: He is extremely upset with himself seeing Guzma in the present day, as both of them were apprenticed under Hala and he failed to stop Guzma from running off.
Mythology Gag: He was the final opponent in the Sun and Moon games, so after he's exposed as the Royal Mask he faces Ash without his disguise.
Opposing Combat Philosophies: Contrasing Ash's focus on speedy Pokémon, his team, excluding Lucario favor strength and endurance.
Out-Gambitted: He has his Lucario block Naganadel's X-Scissor with its paw, but Naganadel points its side stingers at Lucario and blows away Lucario with a point blank Dragon Pulse.
Parental Substitute: Since Ash is living with him, he ends up playing this role to him. Notably later on the series they're called "Alolan Father and Son" and he wound up becoming enough of an important figure in Ash's life that Ash leaves his Alolan team with him both to let them stay close to their families and to leave a reminder of himself back with his Alolan family.
Paper-Thin Disguise: As the Masked Royal. It works though, since only Ash's Torracat recognizes him, and even then, only after sniffing him.
Pungeon Master: Not to the extent of Samson Oak, but he peppers his speech with Pokémon moves.
Riddle for the Ages: The identity of his sixth Pokémon is unknown since Tapu Koko slapped its Poké Ball away and took its place before Kukui could send it out.
Third Time's The Charm: Ash battled Kukui three times. He defeated him in their third match only after becoming the regional Champion.
Two-Teacher School: Kukui is the only teacher we see. Obviously, Samson also pulls double-duty as headmaster and teacher, but two teachers still aren't enough to cover the Pokémon School, which does have a sizable student body apart from the six main characters.
The Unmasking: Ash and the Masked Royal's final attack on the Shiny Guzzlord ends up blowing his mask off, on live television no less. As a consequence, Kukui ends up battling Ash in the exhibition match as himself, completely forgoing the Masked Royal persona.
The Unreveal: We don't get to see what Kukui's 6th and final Pokémon is due to Tapu Koko's sudden arrival at the Exhibition Match, inserting itself as Kukui's 6th.
Walking Shirtless Scene: He wears an unbuttoned lab coat, but no shirt. He does wear a shirt to sleep in though.
We Used to Be Friends: With Guzma.
What Happened to the Mouse?: After being outed as the Masked Royal and despite the fact he has a full team of Pokémon, the final two episodes don't even bother to show him with any of them, especially his Incineroar (or whoever his sixth Pokémon was).

Professor Kukui's Pokémon

Braviary (Warrgle)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kukui_braviary.png

Voiced in English by: Ryan Nicolls

Braviary is Professor Kukui's first known Pokémon. He was used to save Professor Burnet from a group of Jangmo-o and Hakamo-o.

Bare-Fisted Monk: Can use the Superpower attack.
Deus ex Machina: The fact that Professor Kukui had any Pokémon on hand was never brought up at all until Braviary made his debut. However, Braviary is part of his battle party in the games.
Dishing Out Dirt: He's revealed to know Rock Slide in SM089.
Flight: Naturally, as a Flying type.
Noble Bird of Prey: Is based on a bald eagle, and is Professor Kukui's most trusted partner, being used to protect Professor Burnet and serving as his best 'mon at their wedding.
No Kill like Overkill: During its battle with Ash's Lycanroc, it uses Sky Drop and drags Lycanroc over a kilometre into the air before diving and slamming it into the ground. Kukui is utterly shocked when Lycanroc is able to get back up, but ultimately the damage from this move allowed Braviary to defeat Lycanroc shortly afterwards.
The Worf Effect: Gets quickly taken out by Gozu's Mega Aggron to establish it as a threat. During the battle with Ash it delivers this to Lycanroc.

Incineroar (Gaogaen)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kukui_incineroar.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Toru Sakurai

Voiced in English by: H.D. Quinn

Incineroar is Professor Kukui's second known Pokémon and his main battler as the Masked Royal.

The Ace: It's Kukui's strongest Pokémon, (perhaps barring Tapu Koko during the brief period it teams up with Kukui) and is widely known by most of the public as perhaps the strongest trainer-owned Pokémon in Alola under the Masked Royal. This reputation has been backed up by virtually all of its appearances throughout the series.
- Its debut has it simultaneously KO a Decidueye, Primarina and Machamp with a single Z-Move, and when Ash, Kiawe and Sophocles battle the Masked Royal, Incineroar takes or knocks back all of their attacks at the same time with no damage whatsoever.
- When facing a Mega Aggron (which has a damage-reducing ability and has similar bulk to Mega Steelix - Brock's being able to shake off Turtonator's Z-Move despite the type weakness), Incineroar immediately KO'd Aggron with a single Z-Move despite Incineroar being unable to Mega Evolve.
- During Kukui's exhibition match against Ash, it shakes off all of Torracat's initial attacks and Torracat is forced to absorb Blast Burn to avoid being KO'd by the attack (despite being resistant to Fire-type moves). Even after absorbing the attack, the flames are so intense they begin burning Torracat and it has to be switched out to stabilize - and when it does, the power boost from just Incineroar's one attack is so great that Torracat immediately KO's Kukui's Venusaur.
- Even after Lycanroc (who won the Alola League finals for Ash) grabs its own Stone Edge in its mouth and breaks it off on Incineroar, it only somewhat hurts Incineroar even though its weak against Rock-type moves.
- Against Ash's Melmetal, a mythical Pokémon with absurd physical strength, endurance, height, and weight, Incineroar actually caught and held off Melmetal's Double Iron Bash and KO'd it with a Blast Burn. This same Melmetal was totally unaffected by Empoleon's attacks and KO'd dealt with the finishing blow with Double Iron Bash despite the attack being blocked.
- Even after Torracat maximized its speed through consecutive uses of Flame Charge, Incineroar was still able catch up to and attack Torracat, as well as respond to its attacks. Kukui explains that Incineroar has absolutely no blind spots due to all of its battles usually ending up being 3-on-1 anyway.
- Despite the damage it accumulated in its previous battles and Torracat having powered up by absorbing Blast Burn, Incineroar still managed to effectively fight Torracat to a draw, and even then only stayed unconscious very briefly, whereas Torracat was so exhausted that even after evolving it fainted standing up and had to be recalled while still unconscious.
- In JN112 Incineroar is easily capable of keeping up with Ash's Pikachu, who is shown and stated to be far stronger than before, even stronger than he already was in the Alola League and is mostly evenly matched with Ash's top ace, by the end the end result of their battle is left ambiguous after both their full-power Z-Moves clash and cancel each other out but either way it's clear that Kukui's Incineroar didn't go down without a ferocious lengthy fight if he did lose.
Bare-Fisted Monk: It knows two Fighting-type moves, Bulk Up and Cross Chop, despite not being a Fighting-type itself.
Brawler Lock: Performs this against Ash's Melmetal after blocking and catching its Double Iron Bash. Melmetal rapidly contracts its arms to slingshot itself into close-range with Incineroar, who endures the impact while forcing Meltmetal into a stalemate, with both Pokémon having their arms locked in place and pushing. Kukui has Incineroar take advantage of the fact that Incineroar is holding Melmetal in place (and vice-versa) to launch Blast Burn at point-blank range from Incineroar's belt, which knocks Melmetal out.
Combat Pragmatist: Is part Dark type and knows Throat Chop and Darkest Lariat. When fighting Ash's Melmetal, Incineroar uses all its strength to hold it in place after stopping its Double Iron Bash so that it can launch a point-blank Blast Burn to maximize its power - resulting in Incineroar's victory. When Ash's Torracat maxed out its speed with Flame Charge and tried to outpace Incineroar, it just grabbed Torracat by the head and held it in mid-air so it couldn't make use of the speed advantage, and then held it in place to land a Throat Chop.
Cover-Blowing Superpower: Faba quickly figures out Kukui's identity as the Royal Mask after performing Malicious Moonsault.
Curbstomp Battle: Effortlessly takes down a Decidueye, Primarina, and Machamp in a Battle Royal. Ash, Kiawe, and Sophocles even get to fight him and end up getting beaten without much effort. Then later on, it's shown that it can take on a Mega Aggron with minimal effort. It also has similar success against Ash's Melmetal, stopping Double Iron Bash and plowing through Flash Cannon with Darkest Lariat before K Oing Melmetal with a point-blank Blast Burn.
Face: Despite being based on a Heel, it and its trainer refuse to use dirty tactics like their opponents, the Revengers, who are actual heels.
Friend to All Children: It's a real hit with kids, though it doesn't quite extend to babies.
Friendly Rival: Gains one against Ash's Litten. It and Masked Royal even reappear to offer them a rematch, helping Litten master Flame Charge and even evolve into Torracat. Torracat even later becomes Incineroar's tag team partner to even the odds against the dirty playing Revengers.
Godzilla Threshold: If Kukui has to summon Incineroar outside of his Masked Royal persona, that means it's an absolute emergency. Notably subverted when the Guzzlord's attack Manalo Stadium, as Kukui instead sends out his Lucario to help with the crisis. While Lucario is strong, it is still weaker than Incineroar. Also applies to Kukui's battle with Ash even after having his double identity revealed. Incineroar had already forced out Torracat by overloading it with the flames of Blast Burn, and had himself switched out after taking damage from Lycanroc but Kukui decides to send it out again against Ash's Melmetal. Melmetal had proven impervious to all of Empoleon's attacks and knocked it out with Double Iron Bash even when Empoleon blocked the attack, so it is likely Kukui determined Incineroar was the only member of his team strong enough to overpower it.
Growing Muscles Sequence: It knows Bulk Up, which visibly shows his (upper) body bulking up. When it uses this, it's always when it'll get serious in the battle.
The Juggernaut: There is a reason why it managed to go on an undefeated win streak for so long. In the exhibition match against Ash, Incineroar manages to overload Torracat's strategy to absorb its Blast Burn, tank several hits from Lycanroc (including a super-effective strike from Stone Edge at close-range), and go toe to toe against Melmetal in a power contest, tanking through Flash Cannon with Darkest Lariat, stopping its powerful Double Iron Bash in its tracks and then swiftly defeating it with Blast Burn. It took the combined damage from 3 of Ash Pokémon before it finally went down after an intense battle against Ash's Torracat where Incineroar jumped into the explosion caused by two Z-Moves going off and took a super-effective Revenge while inside it. Even then Incineroar managed to tire out Torracat so much that it fainted standing up right after evolving into Incineroar, despite having also absorbed Blast Burn previously as a power source. Meanwhile, Kukui's Incineroar was only unconscious for a brief moment.
Limit Break: Can use its signature move, Malicious Moonsault. It uses it to KO a Decidueye, Primarina, and Machamp simultaneously in its debut episode. Its use of Blast Burn also counts. In the games, Blast Burn is the strongest Fire-type attack outside of V-Create (which is locked to Victini)and is exclusively learned by the final stages of Fire-type starter Pokémon. In the anime, it has only been used by one other Pokémon - Alain's Mega Charizard X (which surpasses the Pokémon of Elite Four members), and is so intense that Torracat - a Fire-type Pokémon - would have been KO'd had it not absorbed the attack, and is still forced out due to being overloaded with flames as a result. Incineroar is also forced to resort to this attack to KO Melmetal due to its massive endurance, but manages to do so in a single strike.
Mean Character, Nice Actor: Acts like The Brute in the ring, but is just as friendly as its trainer outside of it.
Mythology Gag: Kukui uses an Incineroar in the games if Rowlet is the chosen starter, and although he captured a wild Rowlet instead of receiving one from Kukui, Rowlet was Ash's first Alolan Pokémon.
No Range Like Point-Blank Range: In order to defeat Ash's Melmetal, Incineroar first catches and stops Double Iron Bash, which forces Melmetal into a close-quarters arm lock, and then unleashes Blast Burn at point-blank range to get past Melmetal's tremendous endurance.
Playing with Fire: Downplayed in its initial appearance where despite Fire being its primary type, it hasn't been shown using any Fire-type moves. However, back in the past when it was still a Litten, it knew Ember. Played straight in the Alola League, where it's revealed to know one of the strongest Fire-type moves, Blast Burn.
Power-Strain Blackout: Zigzagged. While Blast Burn does not KO the user, it releases so much firepower that it renders them immobile for a while. In Incineroar's case, it gets burned out and smoke starts emitting from its belt while it remains stationary. Kukui recalls it after defeating Melmetal with Blast Burn to avoid this vulnerability.
Signature Mon: Incineroar is the Royal Mask's ace Pokémon, and it often poses with its trainer during photo publicity. This makes sense as the Royal Mask operates in a wrestling tournament called the Battle Royal.
Spin Attack: How Darkest Lariat is portrayed.
Super-Strength: It defeated a Mega Aggron (which has an ability reducing Super-Effective damage AND has tremendous bulk) with a single Z-Move. Incineroar also manages to catch and push back the Double Iron Bash launched by Ash's Melmetal. This is significant because Melmetal is even larger and heavier than Incineroar, and just swinging its arms creates powerful air currents. The attack was also so strong that it KO'd Kukui's Empoleon instantly despite it blocking the attack and resisting its type. The announcer in particular emphasizes what a big deal it is that Incineroar was able to take the attack without being pushed back.
Super-Senses: Incineroar is still able to keep track of Ash's Torracat and attack it even after Torracat maxed out its speed with Flame Charge. Kukui explains that since the vast majority of Incineroar's battles end up being 3-on-1's, it has absolutely no blind spots to compensate for always being outnumbered.
Talking Animal: Downplayed, as Incineroar is still subject to Pokémon Speak, but is able to somewhat mimic the Masked Royal's "Enjoy!"
What Happened to the Mouse?: Despite being found out to be Kukui's ace, he disappears completely and isn't mentioned from the series in the last two episodes. He does make a return in JN112, however.
Wrestler in All of Us: It's based on a Heel, knows the move Darkest Lariat, and can use the Z-Move Malicious Moonsault. It's also as much of a boisterous performer as its trainer.

Lucario

Voiced in English by: Bill Rogers

Lucario is Professor Kukui's third known Pokémon. It was first brought to deal with a Shiny Guzzlord on the loose.

Bare-Fisted Monk: Part Fighting-type.
Canon Foreigner: In the games, Kukui doesn't have a Lucario, but it's Gladion who does. In the anime, since Gladion has too much focus with all three of his Pokémon and was never in a position to show a full team of six and Kukui ended up having his entire team from the games Adapted Out due to other important characters owning them, he ended up adopting Gladion's Lucario to fill in the blanks.
Kame Hame Hadoken: Uses Dragon Pulse this way.
No Range Like Point-Blank Range: Gets taken down by a point blank Dragon Pulse from Naganadel after blocking its X-Scissor with its paw.
Oh, Crap!: When Naganadel points its side stingers at Lucario after it blocks the Ultra Beast's X-Scissor.
Remember the New Guy?: Kukui has somehow kept a Lucario in secret from everyone.
Super-Speed: It has access to Extreme Speed, which allows it to outpace Naganadel, who itself is extremely fast.
The Worf Effect: Is quickly taken out by a Guzzlord, forcing Kukui to recall it. It also doesn't get to defeat any of Ash's Pokémon, instead being taken down by Ash's Naganadel (though it at least puts up an even fight before going down).

Venusaur (Fushigibana)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_kukui_venusaur1.png

Venusaur is Professor Kukui's fourth known Pokémon. He was first used in Kukui's exhibition match against Ash.

Gender Reveal: It doesn't have a seed in the middle of its flower like a female Venusaur would have, therefore revealing him to be male.
Green Thumb: Part Grass-type.
Man-Eating Plant: Engulfs Rowlet in his flower during their battle.
No Range Like Point-Blank Range: Attempts to KO Rowlet by trapping it in his flower and launching Solar Beam while Rowlet is still inside.
Poisonous Person: Part Poison-type and knows Sludge Bomb.
Remember the New Guy?: Kukui has had Venusaur for an undisclosed amount of time.
Vine Tentacles: He knows Vine Whip, which is represented by a pair of whiplike tendrils sprouting from the base of his body to lash his targets before retreating back out of sight.

Empoleon (Emperte)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_kukui_empoleon1.png

Voiced in English by: Bill Rogers

Empoleon is Professor Kukui's fifth known Pokémon.

Beak Attack: It knows Drill Peck.
Curb-Stomp Battle: Ends up on the receiving end from Melmetal; Empoleon is unable to damage Melmetal before being knocked out by Double Iron Bash, even while blocking.
Extra-ore-dinary: Part Steel-type and knows Metal Claw.
Making a Splash: Part Water-type and knows Whirlpool and Hydro Pump.
Mundane Utility: Kukui uses it to do underwater research.
Remember the New Guy?: Strangely enough, unlike Venasaur or Lucario, Kukui points out he has been using Empoleon as a research partner researching sea currents (though as to why he researches sea currents is up to interpretation). Up until the battle, Empoleon has never appeared once.
You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: After putting up an even fight against Pikachu in spite of a type disadvantage, Empoleon can only watch in disbelief as Melmetal takes no damage from its attacks whatsoever.

Samson Oak (Nariya Okido)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonsamsonoak.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Unshō Ishizuka (SM001-SM092), Kenyū Horiuchi (SM093-Present)

Voiced in English by: Marc Thompson

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Daniel Abundis

A cousin of Professor Oak, Samson is the Principal of the Pokémon School. He specializes in researching the local variations of Kanto Pokémon that have developed in Alola.

Ascended Extra: He's a very minor character in the games, but as the principal of the school, he appears much more prominently here.
Beware the Silly Ones: Despite his kooky pun-riddled behavior, he's a force to be reckoned with in battle with his Komala and even made it to the top 16 of the Alola League.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He has a habit of imitating Pokémon, much to the exasperation of those around him.
Dark Horse Victory: Despite the intense competition between Pikachu and Alolan Raichu during the Pancake Race, both are distracted by the arrival of Bewear and it is Samson and his Komala who take the win.
Ditzy Genius: He's almost always bizarre and pun-happy in nature, though Samson Oak occasionally reveals an intelligent approach to Pokémon akin to his cousin. He raised and trained his Komala into a powerhouse, and even comes up with an eccentric way to soothe Jigglypuff's vendetta with it.
Egg Sitting: He takes care of the Kanto Vulpix egg delivered by Ash while giving an Alolan Vulpix egg to the class.
Horrible Judge of Character: He catches Team Rocket sneaking around in the bushes by the school, actually calls them suspicious, then cheerfully invites them to visit any time when they make up a lame excuse.
Lame Pun Reaction: His Pokémon puns almost inevitably produce this reaction. The only characters who don't cringe at his puns are Oluolu (who is a graduate of the school and makes the same puns), and Olivia (who finds them funny).
Lost in Translation: Due to Pokémon having different names in Japanese and English, not all of his puns translate well (or at all) in the dub. However, this doesn't make everyone's reaction to his puns any less appropriate.
MacGuffin Escort Mission: When Samuel Oak learns the Ketchums won a vacation to Alola, he tasked Ash with delivering a Pokémon egg to Samson. Ash got "distracted" by a Grubbin, but at least Delia was there to see to it that the delivery was made.
Mundane Utility: His Komala rings the school bell with its log pillow.
Narrative Shapeshifting: Whenever he makes a pun, his face and body contort to resemble that Pokémon.
Pungeon Master: Even more so than his cousin in that he'll include Pokémon puns in a portion of his dialogue!
Uncanny Family Resemblance: He's a tanned, slightly older version of his cousin with longer hair. Ash actually mistakes Samson for his cousin in their first meeting, and RotomDex lampshades it when they meet.

Samson's Pokémon

Komala (Nekkoara)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/komala.png

Voiced in English by: Michael Liscio Jr.

Komala is a Pokémon that hangs out in the trees around the school. It's responsible for ringing the school bell.

Beware the Silly Ones: Despite always being asleep, it proves to be an effective battler, dodging every attack thrown at it and easily knocking down both Ash's Litten and Kiawe's Turtonator.
Darkhorse Victory: It managed to win Melemele Island's Pancake race despite doing so in its sleep and balancing a stack of pancakes while rolling.
Disability Immunity: Because it's always asleep, it's technically immune to Jigglypuff's song. The pink puff is extremely frustrated when it sleep-dodges its marker.
Early-Bird Cameo: Komala appeared in the Japanese opening and ending and made several cameos ringing the school bell before being officially introduced in SM013.
Head Pet: When Samson initially found it without its log pillow in the wild, it opted to cling on to him until it found a log it liked.
Heavy Sleeper: Its species' main trait is that it's always asleep. How it manages to have perfect timing when ringing the school bell is merely handwaved when its origin story comes up, saying that eventually, it learned to do so after latching on the small log that Samson was using to ring the bell.
No-Sell: Its ability: Comatose renders it immune to all status effects due to constantly being asleep. This also renders it immune to Jigglypuff's singing.
Pintsized Powerhouse: Handily gets the better of Litten and Turtonator during sparring matches in its focus episode.
Shown Their Work: The leaves Kukui feeds it when it falls out of the bell tower look identical to eucalyptus leaves (which real koalas are known to eat). Kukui even points out that they're normally inedible to people and Pokémon.
Worthy Opponent: After it learns Sing to neutralize Jigglypuff and even uses its own marker against it when it falls asleep. Jigglypuff is left amused by this, finding a fellow singer at last, and departs happily.

Vulpix (Rokon)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vulpixsamson.jpg

Voiced in English by: Suzy Myers

A Kanto Vulpix that hatched from an egg received by Samson from his cousin, Professor Oak.

Annoying Younger Sibling: It hatches shortly after Snowy, and tries to get it to come down and meet the other Pokémon, much to Snowy's displeasure.
Cheerful Child: Within minutes of hatching, it's excited to meet and play with the other Pokémon.
Out of Focus: It hasn't really been seen much since it hatched.
Playing with Fire: This little one is a Fire-type. Kiawe notes that red Vulpix are rare in Alola.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: With Snowy; it has a cheerful and energetic personality while Snowy is aloof and reserved.
Ridiculously Cute Critter: It's adorable.

Family Members

Mimo (Hoshi)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hoshi1.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Ayano Shibuya

Voiced in English by: Rebecca Becker

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Noriko

Kiawe's younger sister.

Big Brother Worship: No matter how annoying he can be, she still loves Kiawe and willingly went to the Alola League to cheer him on in his semifinals match. She bonds with Lillie after learning she has a similar relationship with Gladion (who helped her when she got lost).
Meaningful Name:
- In addition to the Theme Naming mentioned below, 星 hoshi also means "star", and her bangs have a star-shaped pattern.
- Mimo comes from Mimosoideae, a subfamily of trees that includes the kiawe tree.
Precocious Crush: After Gladion helped her out of a pinch at Manalo Stadium, she develops a crush on him.
Puppy-Dog Eyes: She uses these on Kiawe to get him to wear an Alolan Dugtrio-style wig like with everyone else during the party in SM023.
Recurring Character: First appears in SM011 and makes periodic appearances when the setting is at Akala Island.
Theme Naming: Like the rest of her family, she's named after a type of persimmon.
Unwanted Assistance: She's annoyed by Kiawe trying to help her even when she clearly doesn't need it.

Harper and Sarah (Hou and Sui)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/harperandsarah.png

Harper is on the right and Sarah is on the left.

Voiced in English by: Eileen Stevens (SM005-SM059), Haven Paschall (SM082-present) (Harper), Kate Bristol (SM005-SM059), Emily Cramer (SM082-present) (Sarah)

Lana's younger twin sisters.

Always Identical Twins: They look exactly alike aside from the Pokémon on their shirts.
And Call Him "George": They immediately take a liking to Pikachu and start playing with him very roughly, which he doesn't appreciate. They (and Lana, and Ash, and Popplio, and Rowlet, and RotomDex) get shocked for their trouble.
Ash: I thought that would happen...
Blush Sticker: Each of them sport a pair.
Cheerful Child: Both of them are often very happy and easily excitable, as seen by their reaction to Pikachu. Even an explosion from Turtonator doesn't hamper their mood.
Curtains Match the Window: Blue eyes and blue hair, just like their big sister, Lana.
Genki Girl: Both of them act like typical young kids in that they're almost always full of energy.
Identical Twin ID Tag: Harper's shirt is yellow and has a Shellder on it, while Sarah's is pink and has a Slowpoke.
Meaningful Name: Hou and Sui come from 放水 hōsui, water spray. "Harper" might come from the harp seal.
Recurring Character: They first appear in SM005, and make further appearances throughout the series.
Shipper on Deck: When they meet Ash, they immediately ask if he is Lana's boyfriend. When she vehemently denies it, they grin mischievously and ask in unison, "Really? Really? Really?" (Japanese) or "Are you sure he's not your boyfriend?" (English).

Hobbes (James)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_hobbs1.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Shinya Fukumatsu

Voiced in English by: Ben Phillips

'Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: David Allende

Lillie's butler.

Ace Pilot: Utilises a high-speed jet plane in SM51 to help the kids reach Aether Paradise and save Nebby.
Battle Butler: In addition to being Lillie's butler, he's also a good battler, being able to beat Ash's Rowlet. Also serves as a training opponent for Lillie.
Cool Old Guy: Verges as a Parental Substitute for Lillie, and has the battle prowess to defeat Ash one-on-one.
Dance Battler: He and his dancing Pom-Pom Oricorio are as synchronized a trainer and Pokémon can get in battle choreography without the use of power-ups.
Dub Name Change: His Japanese name, James, being the English name of one of Team Rocket's members, was unsurprisingly changed to Hobbes in the English dub.
Large Ham: His battle style is very flamboyant, to say the least.
Papa Wolf: Cares passionately about Lillie, which he expresses quite emotionally. He later demonstrates this when he teams up with Ash to protect Lillie from a Salandit.
Parental Substitute: Due to Lillie's mother residing elsewhere due to her work, he is Lillie's primary guardian and caretaker, even attending the open school in SM024 alongside other students' parents.
Recurring Character: He first appears in SM008 and becomes a semi-regular afterward.
Shipper on Deck: Downplayed example; he's taken a liking to Ash and expresses gratitude to him for looking after and being kind to Lillie.

Gladion (Glazio)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gladion.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Nobuhiko Okamoto

Voiced in English by: Eddy Lee

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Brandon Montor

Lillie's brother, who left home to train, but reunites with her and Ash six months later.

Abled in the Adaptation: In the games, the trainer could only equip/change Silvally's memory discs to change its type before a battle. Here? Gladion is allowed to do that at any time he wants. He can even change discs before an attack connects.
Adaptational Badass: In the games, his team was fairly weak, and he didn't have a Z-Ring until the last battle (in the main story). Here, he already has a Z-Ring and a Rockium Z, and he's able to take down three Team Skull grunts, a trainer's Blastoise, and Team Rocket with his Lycanroc.
Adaptational Nice Guy: He's noticeably nicer here, particularly in his interactions with Ash. He's also not affiliated with Team Skull.
Adapted Out: Played with. In the games, his signature Pokémon is Type: Null, while here he leads with Umbreon and Midnight Lycanroc. He is shown with Type: Null in his second appearance but only releases it in a secluded area. Likely, he's had it since before his first appearance but is hiding its existence, given its rather shady origins.
Aloof Ally: He was one of Ash's friends as well as his rival.
Aloof Big Brother: As the two haven't seen each other in a long time, he acts like this to Lillie. The first thing he does upon meeting Lillie again is to comment on how she can touch Pokémon now and remind her to take good care of Snowy before abruptly leaving. It's later revealed that the reason he avoids Lillie is because he didn't want her to see Silvally at the time, knowing that doing so would trigger her repressed memories of her childhood trauma.
Always Someone Better: Played with. Prior to the Alola League Ash never managed to defeat Gladion (albeit all three of their matches were 1-on-1, with Ash using his Rockruff/Lycanroc all three times. But despite this, Gladion still respects Ash and views him as his equal. Finally averted in the Alola League finals, where Ash finally does defeat Gladion in battle.
The Artifact: This version of Gladion doesn't work for Team Skull like in the games, though he still wears the team's signature red, white and black color scheme.
Badass in a Nice Suit: Wears a white shirt, a red bow tie, a red and gray waistcoat and black pants on his family journey to find Mohn. After arriving in the Crown Tundra, he replaces the shirt with a red one, and ditches the waistcoat and tie for a gray ripped sweater.
Big Brother Instinct: He's very protective of Lillie and is determined to make sure she never has another traumatic experience again. He lets Ash have it for letting Nebby out of his sight when it becomes unwittingly responsible for Lillie's traumatic relapse, and later Lusamine for not even treating Lillie right.
- Shows up again during the Alola League when he helps Mimo find Kiawe and briefly has a vision of a young Lillie in her place.
The Bus Came Back: Is set to make his return in Journeys during JN111.
Call-Back: Gladion isn't Ash's first rival with an Umbreon that often is outside of its Pokéball; Gary had one as well.
Calling the Old Woman Out: He gives Lusamine a good tongue-lashing in SM049 for letting herself get so out of touch with her family and what Faba's been doing at the Foundation that she never even noticed what her own daughter went through as a child.
Character Tics: Covering part of his face with either his right or left hand.
Cheerful Child: He was much more playful and energetic in his youth.
Chuunibyou: Like his game counterpart, Gladion has traits of this. He wasn't like this when he was a little child, but after leaving home, he has developed some quirks. In battle, he often does poses that are characteristically known for chuunibyou and he tends to pump up his cooler actions with over-the-top dramatic lines. He also likes to describe his Pokémon in such a manner to make them sound more threatening.
Cool Big Bro: He's the kind of brother who's willing to protect his little sister from harm at all costs. He even willingly lets himself nearly get abducted by Nihilego in SM050 order to protect both Lillie and Lusamine.
Combat Pragmatist: When Team Rocket kidnaps his Midnight Lycanroc, he has Umbreon fire Dark Pulse at the tires of their getaway vehicle.
Dark Is Not Evil: Owns two dark-looking Pokémon and wears black clothes, but doesn't seem to be particularly evil and is more quiet and aloof than anything. His caring side is shown in a flashback when he took in an injured Eevee (now his Umbreon, which requires friendship to evolve) as a small child, and he respects Ash for giving him a good battle.
Early-Bird Cameo: His younger self briefly appears in a family portrait in Lillie's mansion, 19 episodes prior to his debut.
Face of a Thug: While he's certainly nicer here, the anime also has a habit of giving him rather wicked facial expressions.
Fantastic Racism: As a result of the incident with Nihilego that traumatized Lilie, Gladion openly hates the Ultra Beasts and became a Pokémon trainer just so he could take them down. Although he has only been cautious around Nebby so far, he flat-out tells Ash that he will take Nebby down if it gets out of hand.
Friendly Rivalry: Despite his cold outward appearance, he proves to be one of Ash's more respectful rivals from the outset. In SM055, he leaves on a journey to get stronger, his reason for doing so having changed from protecting Lillie to wanting to keep up with Ash after seeing him and Pikachu use 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt to save his own mother.
Heroes Love Dogs: Along with Type: Null (which itself resembles a dog), he has three dog-like Pokémon, Umbreon, Midnight Lycanroc, and Zoroark.
Horrible Judge of Character: In spite of not being particularly trusting of Faba, he seems genuinely dumbfounded when Lusamine details his very different story of what happened with Type: Null and Lillie, supposedly convinced all these years he would own up. May have been justified, as he could have also been convinced they were working together.
It Runs in the Family: While they channel it differently, the melodramatic traits Gladion developed is likely something he inherited from his eccentric mother.
Late-Arrival Spoiler: The anime doesn't hide that he's Lillie's brother and Lusamine's son, which were massive spoilers in the original game.
My Greatest Failure: In SM047, he reveals that he witnessed the incident that caused Lillie's fear of Pokémon, but was too afraid to help her. Since then, he vowed that he would never let his sister experience such horror ever again and became a Pokémon trainer so that he could protect her in the future.
Not So Above It All: During the Alola League finals, he lets out a good chuckle along with Ash, since he admits to be enjoying their battle greatly. This obviously doesn't go unnoticed by anyone.
"Not So Different" Remark: As pointed by Lillie and Nanu in different moments, Gladion and Ash can have similar approaches about battles. Gladion and his Pokémon also recurrently demonstrate as much of a True Companions bond despite their more aloof demeanor compared to Ash's team.
Poor Communication Kills: He knew what happened to Lillie all those years ago and never told anyone, instead blaming his mother for being so wrapped up in her work to notice.
Promotion to Opening Titles: In the Japanese version, he is added to the opening in the second version of "Alola!!"
Sixth Ranger: Joins the Ultra Guardians in SM087 to help with the Necrozma mission. True to the Sentai nature of the Guardians, his uniform is different in style compared to the team, as is the case for most Sixth Rangers to distinguish them from the core team
Worthy Opponent: Views Ash as one. When they come face-to-face in the Alola League's preliminary Battle Royal, Gladion says "not yet", and they each KO the Pokémon coming up behind each other.
- And after Ash finally defeats him in the Leagues final, Gladion smiles with satisfaction and shake hands with Ash, even calling him Champion!
- This later carries over to Kiawe after they battle in the semi-finals, they also work to protect each other during the Guzzlord invasion.

Gladion's Pokémon

Umbreon (Blacky)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_gladion_umbreon1.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Rikako Aikawa

Voiced in English by: Suzy Myers (Eevee), Lori Phillips (Umbreon)

Gladion found a sick Eevee when he was younger, which Hobbes nursed back to health. It eventually evolved into an Umbreon.

Big Fancy House: It is kept in a Heal Ball, which is fitting considering how Gladion met it.
Canine Companion: Umbreon is always seen out of a Poké Ball and walking with Gladion, much like Pikachu with Ash.
Casting a Shadow: It's a Dark-type and knows the Dark-Type move, Dark Pulse.
Noodle Incident: A flashback in SM028 shows Gladion holding a fainted Eevee. There's no reason not to believe this is what eventually evolved into Umbreon, but we don't know for sure, or what happened.
Out of Focus: Despite it being Gladion's starter and basically his equivalent to Ash's Pikachu, he seldom uses it in battle. He only uses it once in the Alola League against Lillie, instead using his father's Zoroark in the finals against Ash.
Soul Power: It knows Shadow Ball, a Ghost-Type move.

Midnight Lycanroc (Midnight Lugarugan)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_gladion_lycanroc1.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Shin-ichiro Miki

Voiced in English by: Michael Liscio Jr.

Gladion's main battling Pokémon, as he has the Rockium Z.

Affectionate Gesture to the Head: It gives respectful one to Ash's Rockruff at the end of SM027.
Attack Reflector: Subverted. It knows Counter, but rather than reflecting physical attacks with it, Lycanroc dodges it and then delivers a counterattack at the same moment.
Big Brother Instinct: Almost literally in SM037, with Midnight Lycanroc briefly breaking off from its trainer to find Ash's Rockruff when it sensed the younger Pokémon might be in peril. When Midnight Lycanroc finally found its quarry, it almost butted heads with Olivia's Midday Lycanroc (who also had been looking for Rockruff), with them both assuming the other had ill intentions. They both wind up protecting Rockruff when Tapu Lele attacks.
Big Brother Worship: Ash's Rockruff takes a liking to Midnight Lycanroc rather quickly.
Big Fancy House: Midnight Lycanroc is kept in an Ultra Ball.
Dishing Out Dirt: It is a Rock-type Pokémon, it knows the Rock-type move Stone Edge
Limit Break: It can use the Rock-type Z-Move, Continental Crush and later the Dragon Z-Move Devastating Drake.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: As expected of its Midnight Form and said by Gladion when he sends it out.
Gladion: "Lycanroc, show your crimson glare! Let's go!"
Signature Mon: Due to Gladion's reluctance to use Silvally, Gladion uses Midnight Lycanroc as his main battler. Fittingly, despite Silvally participating in the Alola League finals, Midnight Lycanroc is Gladion's last Pokémon standing, facing off Ash's Dusk Lycanroc.

Silvally (Silvady) -> Type: Null/"Silvally" ("Silvady") -> Silvally (Silvady)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/320px_gladion_type_null1.png

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonsilvally.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Toru Sakurai

Voiced in English by: Abe Goldfarb

Gladion's third Pokémon, kept in a Premier Ball and not used for battling in the open.

Adaptational Badass: The big reason why fighting Silvally is hard is because Gladion is allowed to change memory discs to change its typing at any time he wants, whereas in the games one could only change discs before a battle. He can even change discs before an attack connects.
Blow You Away: It knows the Flying-type move Air Slash, which it uses to save Ash and his Pokémon from a group of a Pinsir.
Big Fancy House: It is kept in a Premier Ball instead of a regular Poké Ball.
Big Damn Heroes: It saves Lillie twice—first from Nihilego as a little girl, and again from Faba and his Pokémon.
Canis Major: Though it's a chimera, it primarily resembles a canine and it's large enough for both Lillie and Gladion to ride on its back.
Confusion Fu: It has the RKS System once it breaks its helmet, allowing it to use Memory Discs which can change its own type and that of Multi-Attack. In SM049, Gladion uses the Dark Memory to defeat Faba's Alakazam and Hypno, and two episodes later the Fairy Memory to defeat Totem Kommo-o.
Cool Helmet: Subverted. The helmet it is wearing is actually painful and makes it feel very uncomfortable, with Gladion attempting several times to remove it. It's meant to restrict its power, and as the game's Dex indicates, it's very heavy. Silvally was created first and then it got the helmet put onto its head, which made it Type: Null.
Face of a Thug: Its intimidating appearance traumatized Lillie when it lunged towards her as a child, only finding out much later on that Silvally was merely saving her from Nihilego. It would do the same in the future, even accepting a loving embrace from Lillie now she knew the truth.
Gentle Giant: It's big enough for both Lillie and Gladion to ride on its back, and it accepts a hug from Lillie after she learns that it had saved her twice.
Lightning Bruiser: It has powerful attacks, tanks several hits from Ash's Melmetal, and is quick enough to keep up with Ash's Pikachu even when the latter uses Quick Attack.
Limit Break: In SM089, Gladion is revealed to have obtained a Normalium Z, enabling Silvally to use Breakneck Blitz.
Mix-and-Match Critters: It's a chimerical Pokémon with avian talons, mammalian hind legs, and an aquatic tail. After breaking its helmet in SM049, it reveals more avian characteristics, such as an eagle's head, giving it the appearance of a gryphon.
Named by the Adaptation: Zig-zagged. In the games, Silvally is Type: Null's evolved form as named by Gladion. In the anime, Gladion calls it Silvally while it's still technically a Type: Null. However, the anime makes it even more clear that Type: Null is just Silvally wearing a power-restricting helmet, making it not a proper de-evolution.
New Powers as the Plot Demands: With the RKS System, Gladion can give Silvally the various Memory discs so its Multi-Attack becomes the type of the Memory given to it. It used Dark Memory against Faba's Alakazam and Hypno, and Fairy Memory against the Dragon Trial site's Jangmo-o and Hakamo-o.
Non-Elemental: It is a Normal-type Pokémon, and it knows the Normal-type moves, Crush Claw, Double Hit and Swords Dance.
Nice Guy: If its willingness to rescue Lillie is any indication. It also forgives her for wrongfully assuming it was trying to attack her the first time.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: It accidentally terrified Lillie when she saw it lunging to save her from Nihilego, causing her Trauma-Induced Amnesia and leaving her with a phobia of Pokémon.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Although it was responsible for rescuing Lillie from a Nihilego when she was a little girl, it inadvertently terrified Lillie when it lunged towards her, so much so that she repressed her memory and developed a fear of Pokémon that would persist for years. Faba used Silvally as a scapegoat to cover up his involvement and kept it detained for years.
Not So Stoic: Has a completely shocked reaction to seeing Zoroark transform into it in SM127. Also makes a happy expression with Lillie after they defeat Totem Kommo-O's pack.
One of the Kids: It is sometimes shown hanging around with Gladion's other Pokémon, such as celebrating with them after Lycanroc wins its match against Ash's on Poni Island.
Pokémon Speak: A very interesting example here. It first appears to simply make animal cries, but it actually says syllables from the name "Silvady" ("Shirubadi") even as Type: Null. Which makes sense, since Type: Null is not really a true evolution stage, but just a Silvally with a restraining helmet.
Promotion to Opening Titles: In the Japanese version, it is added to the opening in the second version of "Alola!!"
Razor Wind: As mentioned above, it knows Air Slash, which allows it throw razor wind at the opponent.
The Scapegoat: After Silvally saved Lillie from Nihilego and left her traumatized, Faba convinced Lusamine that it had become unruly to cover up his botched experiment with Ultra Space communication.
Status Buff: It knows Swords Dance, which increases its physical attack power.
Strong as They Need to Be: It stopped Nihilego from kidnapping Lillie rather easily in their first confrontation. When it returns, Nihilego returns the favor and knocks it down with one hit. Its primary strength and reliance on its Memory Drives also vary from battle to battle.
Tortured Monster: When Gladion releases it from its Premier Ball, it stomps on the ground and swings its head around in a vain attempt to remove its helmet. It's not said explicitly, but its body language indicates it's in pain. It manages to break the helmet and "evolve" in SM049.
Uncatty Resemblance: The feathers on its neck resemble Gladion's hairstyle.
The Worf Effect: While it does manage to defeat Ash's newly evolved Melmetal, it only does so after Gladion gives it a Fighting Memory and takes enough damage for Pikachu to be able to one-shot it without taking any damage itself.

Zoroark

Voiced by: Ryota Iwasaki

A Pokémon that once belonged to Gladion and Lillie's father Mohn. After being found, it joins Gladion in his quest to find its old trainer.

Age Lift: In Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, while it's not known how long Gladion has his Zoroark, he has it since it was a Zorua. Here, it's depicted as originally being one of Mohn's Pokémon and already being evolved before changing ownership.
Animorphism: Its Ability of Illusion allows it to disguise itself as other Pokémon until it is hit. It transforms into Lycanroc during Gladion's battle against Ash in the Alola League, before the illusion is dispelled when Pikachu lands a Thunderbolt.
Big Fancy House: Gladion keeps it in a Dusk Ball.
Chekhov's Gunman: It turned out to be the key to help awaken Magearna.
Casting a Shadow: A Dark type.
Double Knockout: Its battle with Pikachu ends when Pikachu lands a Breakneck Blitz just as Never-Ending Nightmare hits it.
Soul Power: Knows Shadow Claw and can use the Ghost type Z-Move, Never-Ending Nightmare.

Gladion's "Special" Pokémon (UNMARKED Journeys SPOILERS)

Nihilego/"Lillie" (Uturoid/"Lilie")

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lillie_the_nihilego.png

A shiny Ultra Beast who cared for Mohn when he fell through the Ultra Wormhole. After Mohn recovered his memory, the family allowed it to stay with them.

Clingy Jealous Girl: Justified. It went out of its way to prevent Mohn from seeing his reflection and regaining his memories because then he would leave it after their time spent together. Lillie and her family Take a Third Option, inviting it to join them as thanks for keeping him safe all these years.
I Choose to Stay: It willingly chose to stay with Mohn after bringing him back to his world for years, to the point of preventing Mohn from seeing his reflection in fear he would leave once his memories returned. Ultimately, the family decides to let it stay with them.
Irony: The Pokémon species that changed the family's life forever ends up being owned by the person who most resented it.
Lotus-Eater Machine: When Mohn was hit with amnesia, the Nihilego created an illusion for him to see it as his daughter Lillie.
Meaningful Rename: Due to the circumstances that Mohn found it (namely, mistaking it for his daughter and it willingly acting the role), it goes by the nickname of "Lillie".
My Species Doth Protest Too Much: Unlike the Nihilego that traumatized Lillie and Gladion, it certainly didn't mean to be malicious by keeping Mohn around, in fact saving him from being trapped in Ultra Space indefinitely. It only became hostile when it became aware that it could be separated from him.

Molayne (Mullein)

Voiced in Japanese by: Kosuke Kuwano

Voiced in English by: Barrett Leddy

Sophocles's cousin and the head of the Hokulani Observatory.

Affectionate Nickname: Sophocles calls him "Big Mo".
Distressed Dude: For a short time in SM092.
Secret-Keeper: One of the few who knows about Kukui's double life as the Masked Royal, and would have taken his place at a meet and greet had Faba and James not tied him up backstage.

Kahunas

Hala

Voiced in Japanese by: Nobuyuki Hiyama

Voiced in English by: Ryan Andes

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: José María Negri

The Kahuna of Melemele Island. Ash and Lillie's Z-Rings were made by him, though not directly obtained from him; Tapu Koko stole it from Hala and gave it to Ash, and Lillie found her father's old Z-Ring which he did obtain from Hala.

Bait-and-Switch: Played literally; just as Hala was about to award Ash the Fightinium Z, Tapu Koko drops in and replaces the Z-Crystal with an Electrium Z instead. Hala just laughs off the Tapu's latest antics and presents the Z-Crystal to Ash anyway.
Big Fun: Joins in on Ash's celebration party after the latter wins the Grand Trial against him. Being Melemele's Kahuna, he also sometimes joins in on the class' trips and celebrations.
Cool Old Guy: He has a grandson and has been Melemele Island's Kahuna as far back as Kukui's childhood.
Eyes Always Shut: Downplayed. While Hala has his eyes shut most of the time, he is seen opening them on occasion.
Fat and Proud: As someone who practices Sumo Wrestling, it's a given. He's shown to like the Pokemon move, Belly Drum, and often hits his own stomach to imitate it.
Foreshadowing: When Tapu Koko snuck into Hala's house to steal the Z-Ring that it would give to Ash, another Z-Ring is shown with a Fightinium Z, the main prize for defeating Hala in his Grand Trial.
Genius Bruiser: Strongest trainer of Melemele Island, and it's explicitly stated that he's the one who crafts Z-Rings to give to potential trainers, including the Z-Ring Tapu Koko gave Ash.
Gentle Giant: Hala's Hariyama, much like most other Pokémon giants we know, is pretty laid-back, and even allows Pikachu to play around its arms and belly. But as a kahuna's Pokémon, this one's power should not be underestimated.
Mighty Glacier: Hariyama is slow but very tough, and hits hard if it can get close enough.
My Greatest Failure: Holds himself responsible for not teaching Guzma better when he was apprenticed under him.
Religious Bruiser: In addition to being physically strong and a skilled battler, he's also a devout believer in Tapu Koko.
Recurring Character: Challenged Ash in the Melemele Grand Trial in Season One, and interacts with the students in several episodes of Season Two.
Rocket Punch: Just like the game, Hala's All-Out Pummeling Z-Move is depicted as a rapid barrage of punches fired from a distance.
Stout Strength: Can effortlessly lift and carry several logs when Ash and Pikachu can't even lift one.
Took a Level in Badass: Much like in the games, Crabrawler evolves into Crabominable when the group visits Mt. Lanakila in SM060.

Olivia (Lychee)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonolivia.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Miyuki Sawashiro

Voiced in English by: Marisa Kennedy

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Alicia Barragán

The Kahuna of Akala Island. Kiawe obtained his Z-Ring from her prior to the beginning of the series, and she also made one for Lana using the Sparkling Stone she found.

Adaptational Modesty: In addition to her usual revealing outfit, she's also wearing a white short-sleeved jacket. She doesn't seem to take it off even while underwater, and that includes her heels!
Adaptation Personality Change: Unlike the games, where she was compassionate if a somewhat flat character, here, she's portrayed as clumsy woman who likes Pokémon so much that she kisses them.
Adapted Out: Unlike the games, her ace in the anime becomes Midday Lycanroc instead of Midnight Lycanroc, most likely to avoid overshadowing Gladion's Midnight Lycanroc. Also, she lacks her Boldore, though she makes up for it by preferring Double Battles and has a Probopass to support her Midday Lycanroc.
Attack Drone: Her Probopass can deploy its mini-noses to surround the enemy, and use them as Action Bomb for Magnet Bomb. And also as Temporary Platform to invoke Stepping Stones in the Sky for its Lycanroc teammate.
Bouquet Toss: She catches the bouquet at Kukui and Burnet's wedding.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Despite all her quirks, there is a very good reason why Olivia is the Kahuna of Akala Island.
Colony Drop: Her Z-Move Continental Crush, as used by Midday Lycanroc, where a giant piece of rock is lifted off the ground at a high elevation before dropping it onto its opponent(s).
Cooldown Hug: She kisses a Tauros to calm it down.
Dishing Out Dirt: Trains Rock types. Her Pokémon of choice is Midday Lycanroc, with Probopass playing a support role in Double Battles.
Early-Bird Cameo: Not mentioned by name (and only her foot is shown in a flashback), but Kiawe got his Firium Z from defeating her in battle.
Friend to All Living Things: She gets a bit enthusiastic about it, but it's clear that Pokémon take to her very quickly. Even Ash's Litten, who doesn't like strangers very much, quickly becomes fond of her.
The Glomp: She gave a friendly one to Kiawe. This possibly indicates she is very affectionate with those who have defeated her in battle.
The Klutz: She is not careful, that much can be said. Even though the anime isn't shy about inflicting slapstick on several of the female characters, Olivia can't seem to go through a single scene without comically injuring herself.
Ship Tease: One of a handful of women who have responded positively to Brock's romantic overtures.
Shipper on Deck:
- Just like Harper and Sarah, Olivia seems to like the idea of Ash getting together with Lana.
- She also supports Kukui and Burnet getting married.
Squee: Her verbatim reaction to Kukui and Burnet getting married.

Nanu (Kuchinashi)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonnanu.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Masaki Aizawa

Voiced in English by: Michael McMillan

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Jesús Cortez

The Kahuna of Ula'Ula Island. He gave a Z-Ring to Team Rocket for helping Acerola, and Gladion also presumably got his from Nanu as it's an Ula'ula style one.

Actually, I Am Him: Tends to not inform people requesting to meet the Kahuna that he is the one they're looking for by lying and creating stories to get out of his duties. Acerola has made efforts to blow his cover to ensure he gets back on track.
Adaptation Personality Change: Unlike his stoic and aloof game counterpart, this version of him is slightly more prone to smirking and displaying a playful side, if still not particularly invested in being a Kahuna.
Bait-and-Switch: Presents Ash with a Darkinium Z after he passes his Grand Trial...only to put it away and give him the Lycanium Z instead.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Much like his games counterpart, he is rather apathetic to his role as Kahuna to the point of keeping his status as one secret unless an emergency calls for it.
Cats Are Mean: Played with. His Alolan Meowth are all fussy roughhouses, but more capable of friendly behavior than the one that duped Team Rocket.
Combat Pragmatist: Befitting his role as a Dark-type specialist. He even lampshades it during his Grand Trial.
"Do you really think a Dark type Pokémon user cares about being 'fair'?"
Dark Is Not Evil: Trains Dark types.
Hidden Heart of Gold: During the Grand Trial, he suddenly goes from being tired and laid-back to smug and rude. Throughout the fight, he throws every insult at Ash to the point of verbal abuse in the hopes he would overcome it and win. After losing, he ceases the insults.
Jerkass Has a Point: He was completely right when he told Ash Lycanroc seemed to be in complete control when its eyes were red, but Ash was too afraid of it losing control.
Kindhearted Cat Lover: Just like his game counterpart, the place he lives at is full of Alolan Meowth. And his ace is still an Alolan Persian.
Lazy Bum: Again, like in the games, he is not a particularly diligent Kahuna. He keeps his role a secret unless it is called for so as not to deal with annoying services, and seemed rather nonchalant towards giving Team Rocket a Z-Ring when they found out his identity. He even went as far to trick Ash into taking care of his Meowth in the promise of meeting the kahuna.
Mysterious Past: He met Giovanni sometime in the past and knows of his criminal enterprise. He's willing to give a Z-Ring to Team Rocket despite knowing who they are because they helped rescue Acerola from a wild Gengar.
Never Smile at a Crocodile: Has a Krookodile with the ability Intimidate.
Noodle Incident: As a police officer it would make sense for him to be acquainted with Giovanni. But so far that is all the audience knows of their connection. Even then, the two seem to be on mostly good terms.
Sink or Swim Mentor: In addition to trickery, Nanu is also different from Hala and Olivia in his mercilessness by rigging the Grand Trial in his favor and subjecting challengers through the wringer throughout the entire ordeal.
Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: Befitting of his mentoring style, he sets up the Grand Trial for Ash to fight a gauntlet of three of his own Pokemon with just one.
Trickster Mentor: Deliberately takes advantage of a Trainer or Pokemon's Berserk Button during battles, like getting Lycanroc dirty and claiming Ash isn't a good enough trainer and belittling his friendship philosophy. In addition, he deliberately makes the Grand Trial fight lopsided by making him only use one Pokemon against a gauntlet of three.

Hapu (Hapu'u)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonhapu.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Junko Takeuchi

Voiced in English by: Brittney Lee Hamilton

The granddaughter of the previous Island Kahuna of Poni Island, she would prove herself worthy to Tapu Lele to ascend to the title of Island Kahuna herself. She laters gives Sophocles a Z-Ring.

Adaptational Jerkass: Partly due to not being Wise Beyond Their Years like her game counterpart. While Hapu in the anime is generally formal and courteous, it doesn't take much to invoke her ire and she has physically taken it out on Ash over him accidentally pressing her buttons.
Awesome Moment of Crowning: The second half of SM108 features her formal coronation as Poni Island's next Kahuna.
Berserk Button: More than willing to sic her Pokemon on daikon thieves. She gets even more furious when she finds out the culprits were also Pokemon thieves. She also gets aggressive with Ash after he casually mentions planning to battle Tapu Fini for a Grand Trial.
Boss-Arena Idiocy: She's a Ground-type specialist. Her battlefield is surrounded by the ocean. This allows Ash to neutralize Mudsdale's immunity to Electric attacks by getting it wet.
Bratty Half-Pint: Accused Ash of stealing from her daikon field without giving him or anyone else a chance to explain. She later apologizes upon finding out Team Skull were the culprits, but still argues with Ash in the next episode and tries to run him over with her Mudsdale.
Dishing Out Dirt: Her speciality is Ground types.
Free-Range Children: Averted. Unlike her game counterpart, she doesn't do any sort of traveling and is stuck in her own home island, which may be the reason why she doesn't behave Wise Beyond Their Years for not having enough outside contact with others.
Jerkass Has a Point: While she gets a bit too mad that Ash doesn't understand the point of Grand Trials, it's hard not to agree when Ash deliberately goes to the Ruins of Hope and gets imprisoned by the spirit of Hapu's grandfather for battling Kiawe in order to bring out Tapu Fini.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: For all her attitude towards Ash, she loves Pokemon and offers to fix Gladion's tattered outfit.
Minor Living Alone: It's mentioned in her debut episode that she lives alone in a farmhouse separately from her parents.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: She's half as tall as Ash, made more striking with the towering Golurk and Mudsdale as her partners.
Tsundere: Starts to become one of these as she gets used to being around Ash and his friends.
The Unchosen One: Her late grandfather was the last Kahuna of Poni Island, but Tapu Fini has not accepted her as his replacement yet. That is, until SM108 finally has the Tapu decide she is worthy.
Wise Beyond Their Years: Deconstructed — she acts far older than she is, but due to growing up on an island full of adults she didn't have any experience interacting with kids her own age until she met Ash's class.

Aether Foundation

Lusamine

Voiced in Japanese by: Sayaka Kinoshita

Voiced in English by: Bobbi Hartley

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Marisol Romero

Adaptational Heroism: While certainly a flawed person with her workaholic nature, she is also a good person who deeply loves her children, and she has a genuine desire to help preserve the world's Pokémon, a far cry from the cold and disturbed woman she was in the games (More so in SM than USUM).
Adaptation Personality Change: Lusamine is quite the opposite of the cold, controlling mother she was to Lillie in the games, instead being an overly-affectionate womanchild, with Lillie being unafraid to visually and vocally show her exasperation toward her. As for her obsession with Ultra Beasts, while still a source of tension between her and her kids, it's not nearly as sinister and is presented as more of a distraction from her family. However, when one does show up, she can't help flash a blank smile amidst a problematic situation.
Adaptational Wimp: A trade of the above is that, compared to her game counterpart, she's decidedly less aware of the things going on in her own facility with Faba and unable to hold her own in a battle, at least against Ultra Beasts like Nihilego. On the other hand, fusing with Nihilego not only gives her Pokémon a big power boost, but she also personally attacks Ash and his friends rather than simply let her Pokémon do all the fighting in the game.
Adapted Out: Due to there already being a recurring Bewear, she instead has an Absol and a Salazzle, two Pokemon that she didn't have in the games. Since Bewear was her ace Pokémon, the role shifted instead to her Clefable.
Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Not above giving her own daughter a noogie. In fact, her affection crosses the line to Lillie, much to her dismay.
Be Careful What You Wish For: In SM050, she finally gets her wish of meeting an Ultra Beast for herself...by being kidnapped by Nihilego and later fusing with it.
Believing Their Own Lies: At least when it comes to her daughter, Lusamine tends to get a few details wrong about their relationship. For instance, she credits herself for enrolling Lillie into Pokémon School, even though this was entirely Lillie's decision.
Big Good: As the boss of the Ultra Guardians.
Brainwashed and Crazy: In this continuity, she's a (mostly) unwilling victim of Nihilego's mind control.
The Bus Came Back: She makes her return in Journeys with Lillie and Gladio in JN111 where their quest to find Mohn receives closure.
Crazy Sane: Many a fan has noted that, compared to her game counterpart who fell into dangerous obsessions and abusive behavior after she lost her husband, this Lusamine instead self-medicated by becoming a goofy womanchild. While far from a perfect solution, it ultimately led to a Lusamine who never froze anything or intentionally mistreated anything, remaining a loving mother.
Dark Is Not Evil: She owns a Poison-type Salazzle, a Ghost-type Mismagius, and a Dark-type Absol, yet she is a downright nice person. Played with when she fuses with Nihilego, turning her blonde hair dark indigo and brainwashing those very Pokémon, all of whom aren't afraid to hurt Ash and her children when they get in her way.
Dishing Out Dirt: After fusing with Nihilego, who is a Rock-type, she gains the ability to manipulate the rocks and land itself in the Ultra Deep Sea.
Dub Name Change: The English dub pronounces her name as "Loo-suh-meen" instead of the Japanese "Loo-suh-mee-nay".
Early-Bird Cameo: Like Gladion, she appears in the family portrait in Lillie's house long before her debut.
Eye Color Change: When Nihilego possesses/fuses with her, her eyes go from their light green color to a dull, yellow-gold color. Most obviously seen when she manages to fight off Nihilego's influence during Lillie's attempt to free her.
Fiction 500: She basically turns the Pokémon School building into an Elaborate Underground Base with overly-fancy entrance and exit on an idle whim.
Genius Ditz: She's a highly intelligent scientist and businesswoman despite acting like a flaky Woman Child half the time.
Glamorous Single Mother: Subverted; although she provides her children with a wealthy lifestyle, her job gets in the way of her being a proper mother.
Goal in Life: Lusamine's dream is to one day encounter an Ultra Beast for herself. However, she eventually realizes that this obsession is getting in the way of her family life, and is completely turned on its head when it makes her easily fall under Nihilego's control.
Innocently Insensitive: She clearly has no malicious intent with teasing Lillie, but she fails to realize how demeaning this is to her.
Jerkass Realization: She realizes how far she has put her work over her children when Gladion calls her out on it and reveals the truth about what happened to Lillie that made her unable to touch Pokémon, something she was always too busy to notice or even question for years.
Late-Arrival Spoiler: She's Lillie and Gladion's mom, which was a massive spoiler in the original game.
Locked Out of the Loop: She had no clue that Faba had summoned an Ultra Beast and caused Lillie's trauma until Gladion told her the truth.
Mama Bear: Once she learns the truth about what Faba's been up to and realizes that her carelessness led to Lillie becoming afraid of Pokémon, she becomes this towards her children.
More than Mind Control: While Nihilego controls her to some extent, it also takes advantage of her innermost feelings, namely her lifelong desire to finally meet an Ultra Beast, which it exploits so that Lusamine refuses to leave with her children.
Ms. Fanservice: A few flashback scenes of her in a bikini show off her legs.
My God, What Have I Done?: This is how she reacts when Gladion calls her out for failing to notice the reason Lillie couldn't touch Pokémon was because she was left traumatized by an Ultra Beast that Faba summoned, one of the very creatures Lusamine sacrificed much of her family life to study. While it's suggested that Faba told her a cover story, the fact she bought into it without question only makes her feel worse.
Not His Sled: Unlike the games, turns out she had nothing to do with Lillie's trauma here.
Older Than They Look: She's a little over 40 based on info from the games, but looks (and acts) much younger.
Parental Neglect: Although she adores Lillie and used to spend a good deal of time with her children, her obsession with studying the Ultra Beasts and her tendency to take business calls over actually setting aside some quality time has since put a serious strain on her relationship with Lillie (not including her penchant for embarrassing her daughter in front of her friends). Sadly, Lusamine fails to realize just how serious of a problem this is until Gladion finally chews her out for it.
- On a lighter note, Lillie hates how her mom does things behind her back, like evolving her Clefairy while she was gone because of opinion of cuteness was different.
Poisonous Person: She turns into one while fused with Nihilego, who's part Poison-type, giving her the power to generate an entire lake of toxic liquid.
Psychopathic Womanchild: Fusing with Nihilego takes a heavy hit to her sanity, but Gladion explains that half of her rambling is obviously stemming from her childhood dream to meet Ultra Beasts, which explains her behaving like an oversized toddler who thinks that the kids are there to take away her "toys". It's even more pronounced in the Japanese dub, where she outright talks like a young girl when possessed. Thankfully snaps out of this once she's freed.
Reasonable Authority Figure: When she offers to take Nebby off Ash's hands, as the Aether Foundation would be better equipped to research and care for it, Ash refuses on the grounds that Solgaleo and Lunala made him promise to keep it safe. Rather than press the issue, she accepts his reasoning and only asks that he call if he needs anything.
Strong Family Resemblance: The resemblance to her children, particularly Lillie, is lampshaded by the RotomDex. She looked even more like Lillie in her younger years◊.
Taking the Bullet: When a Nihilego attempts to abduct Lillie, Lusamine throws herself between it and Lillie. When she realizes that it is about to abduct Gladion instead, she moves and shields him from Nihilego, letting herself be abducted instead.
The Powerof Love: Lusamine love for Lillie and Gladion helped her break free from the Ultra Beast's control.
Tears of Joy: When Lillie is able to touch Pokémon again, for the second time.
Took a Level in Badass: Her and her Pokémon when the former is fused with Nihilego, which in turn gives her Pokémon Beast Boosts.
Wacky Parent, Serious Child: Her dynamic with Lillie and Gladion has shades of this.
Womanchild: She's in her 40s, but acts more childish than her roughly 10-year-old daughter. This takes a dark turn when she fuses with Nihilego. Her reason for the overdone Sentai-esque stuff during the UB arc? She just thought it'd be "cool". Ash is the only one to not find the aesthetic choices embarrassing.
Workaholic: Part of the reason Lillie has a strained relationship with her is that her job makes her constantly busy.

Faba (Sauboh)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/faba_anime.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Mitsuaki Madono

Voiced in English by: Daniel J. Edwards (SM043 to SM132), Ryan Nicolls (SM137 to SM146), Kaiji Von Tang (Journeys)

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Rolando de Castro

Adaptational Badass: Played with. While his personality remains over the top and goofy as ever, his Pokemon team is very effective and he's a competent battler. Hypno and Alakazam make short work of both Gladion and Ash. He also makes it to the Top 16 of the Alola League.
Adaptational Heroism: While in Ultra Sun & Moon he sold Lusamine out to Team Rainbow Rocket, here he remains on the heroes' side, even teaming up with Kukui to battle Team Rocket. He is also loyal to Lusamine and her family on a much more personal level than in the games, particularly after they gave him a second chance after he'd caused them such harm.
Adaptational Villainy: He wasn't a good guy, to begin with, but he's much worse here, going so far as to try to abduct Lillie and erase her memories to save his reputation. That said, he also apologizes for his actions when the consequences of them go farther than he ever wanted.
Amusing Injuries: In SM046, Faba gets decked in the face by an escaping Ditto.
Arc Villain: He's the main villain of the Cosmog arc.
The Atoner: This version of Faba has sincere regret for his villainous actions and works to make up for them.
Big Bad Wannabe: He schemes behind Lusamine's back to gain access to the Ultra Beasts. When he finally brings forth Nilhilego from Ultra Space, however, it nonchalantly smacks him aside.
The Bus Came Back: He makes his return in Journeys in JN112 alongside Wicke where they participate in the Welcome Back Party then host the Alolan Battle Royale.
Cheaters Never Prosper: He practically gets his own ass handed to him for having Hypno use Psychic to send out Ash's Meltan specifically, not taking into consideration that the thing shown to be eating metal would go for Hypno's steel pendulum.
Child Hater: Faba doesn't like kids, and he doesn't like having to visit the Pokémon school for this reason, although it changes after his Heel–Face Turn when he appears to be enthusiastic about interacting with the kids in SM083.
Closet Geek: Revealed in SM090 to be a fan of the Masked Royal when he recognizes the Malicious Moonsault Kukui and Incineroar use in battle.
Composite Character: He takes on some of Lusamine's traits from the games, such as being the one to kidnap Nebby and use it to open an Ultra Wormhole.
Crippling Overspecialization: His only Pokémon are Alakazam and Hypno. If both are defeated, then he's out of options fairly quickly.
Easily Forgiven: He keeps his job (though demoted to work under Wicke, like in Ultra Sun and Moon), and attends Kukui and Burnet's wedding along with Lusamine and Wicke. He seems to be aware of this trope in action, as for the rest of the show he works sincerely hard at being worthy of that forgiveness.
Hate Sink: Faba is responsible for Lillie's fear of touching Pokemon, mind-wipes Lillie's memories, and attempting to use Cosmog to summon Nihilego, only for the Nihilego to knock him aside and attack, resulting in Lusamine sacrificing herself to save her kids. Faba exists largely to be an utter Jerkass of a villain, even compared to the more sympathetic villains Team Rocket and Team Skull, although he gets somewhat better after his demotion as seen below.
Heel–Face Turn: Seems to have an honest change of heart after being demoted for his actions, and attends his coworker's wedding.
Hoist by His Own Petard: In his Manalo Conference battle against Ash, he uses Hypno to force Ash into sending out Meltan, which he perceived as the "weak link" of Ash's team. Not only do Ash and Meltan easily defeat Hypno, but Faba doesn't even get to use an attack.
- More comedically, in SM114 he gets caught in his own sticky trap while demonstrating it to the Ultra Guardians.
Jerkass: He throws Ash's Rowlet when he accidentally grabbed it instead of Nebby (though Ash did manage to catch it before it hit the floor). This understandably angers both Ash and Lillie. He's also the instigator of the whole incident that made Lillie unable to touch Pokemon, later resorting to abducting Lillie and trying to erase her memories to cover his tracks.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Following Character Development. Most notable is his enthusiastic love for the Masked Royal and his increased loyalty to the Aether Foundation family, with him being brought to tears over the memory of Mohn, and the outcome of Lillie and Gladion's battle in the Alola League.
Knight of Cerebus: Downplayed. While Faba's personality is pretty clownish by default, unlike the ineffectual Team Skull and Team Rocket, he is far more dangerous and the consequences of his scheming are played to much more devastating effect.
The Knights Who Say "Squee!": After figuring that Kukui is the Masked Royal, he reveals that he's a huge fan and shows Kukui his Masked Royal T-shirt.
Laser-Guided Karma: Just like in the games, his actions result in him getting demoted to rank-and-file.
Mad Scientist: He created Type: Null/Silvally, a chimera. SM083 centers around another invention of his, a shrinking machine, malfunctioning.
Manipulative Bastard: Covered his tracks after his disastrous first communication with Ultra Space led to Lillie getting attacked and traumatized by an invading Nilhilego, blaming the incident on Type: Null. Lusamine and even Gladion seem genuinely surprised he lied his way out for so many years.
My God, What Have I Done?: He is horrified when Lusamine is abducted by Nihilego because of his actions. At first, he attempts to deflect blame, but upon being demoted finally concedes that it was all his fault and humbles himself by asking for forgiveness.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Ironically, his attempts to keep Lillie's mind wiped of the past result in her reuniting with Silvally and her phobia and Trauma-Induced Amnesia being cured.
Never My Fault: When called out by Burnet for opening an Ultra Wormhole, he says it's not his fault and attempts to shift the blame to Lusamine. Though he's not entirely wrong, as the whole reason he did it was to impress her.
Not-So-Harmless Villain: Faba for the large part acts like a temperamental Glory Hound and is almost as buffoonish as the Team Rocket trio. His Pokemon team, however, are incredibly powerful and dangerous, easily neutralizing Ash's Pikachu and Gladion's standard team, requiring Silvally to stop them from mind-wiping Lillie.
The One Guy: Among the group of Lusamine, Wicke, Professor Burnet, and himself, he is the only male.
Psychic Powers: He specializes in Psychic-type Pokémon, owning both a Hypno and an Alakazam.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: He expresses annoyance with practically everything, contrasting Wicke's boundless optimism about even the most nightmarish of things.
Reformed, but Not Tamed: Though he does try to atone in many situations for his past crimes, his ego and sneakiness remain. He also sometimes flubs at doing "good deeds", such as his well meaning but ill conceived team up with James to preserve the Masked Royal's identity from an "imposter".
Small Name, Big Ego: He's incredibly arrogant and prideful but his plans usually end up backfiring on him and his ego is forcibly put in check.
Token Evil Teammate: Borders on this after his Heel–Face Turn. He is now on the heroes' side for the most part, but it's made cler he's not *completely* reformed and is not above resorting to sneaky and underhanded tactics in order to get what he wants.
Underestimating Badassery: He uses Hypno to forcibly send out Meltan during his match with Ash in the Alola League, assuming Meltan to be the weakest of his team. He falls victim to a quick Curbstomp Battle after Meltan eats Hypno's pendulum.
Would Hurt a Child: Sics his Pokemon on Ash and has them try to wipe Lillie's memories when he realizes He Knows Too Much.

Wicke

Voiced by: Chika Fujimura

Voiced in English by: Riley Joseph

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Unknown voice actress (SM044-SM078), Erika Ugalde (SM084-present)

The Alleged Boss: To the point that Faba getting demoted under her doesn't seem to make much difference in his standing from previously. It is treated as O.O.C. Is Serious Business when the Ultra Wormhole's aura drainage causes Wicke to be moody towards Faba's usual shenanigans.
The Bus Came Back: She makes her return in Journeys in JN112 alongside Faba where they participate in the Welcome Back Party then host the Alolan Battle Royale.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: She had good intentions bringing an injured wild Stufful to Aether Paradise, but she also unintentionally separated it from the mother Bewear. The cast is lucky the Pokemon was just glad to have her cub back.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: She sees everything as "romantic", regardless of how terrifying they might be. This contrasts with Faba, who sees everything with clinical detachment or outright annoyance.

Professor Burnet (Doctor Burnet)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/professor_burnet_anime.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Sachi Kokuryu

Voiced in English by: Melissa Hope

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Maggie Vera

Professor Burnet is a Pokémon researcher that works closely with Lusamine and Aether Foundation. She eventually develops a relationship with, and ultimately marries, Professor Kukui.

Attention Whore: During the news segment discussing the 'Woman of the Year' award being given to her, she fights her Munchlax over some screentime.
Babies Ever After: The final seconds of the Sun and Moon finale imply she's carrying her and Kukui's first child. By JN037, she's already given birth to a boy named Lei.
The Bus Came Back: She returns in JN037 alongside Professor Kukui.
Damsel in Distress: Kukui has to rescue her and Munchlax from the Totem Kommo-o in SM052.
Loves My Alter Ego: Loves both Kukui and the Masked Royal, not realizing they are one and the same. When he's forced to admit the truth, she faints in a love-induced overload.
Parental Substitute: Since marrying Professor Kukui in SM055 and living with him after, she has become this to Ash as well.
Related in the Adaptation: Inverted. In the games, she was already Professor Kukui's wife. In the anime, they meet at the beginning of the second season, but their relationship develops quickly, and they marry in SM055.
She Cleans Up Nicely: Looks absolutely stunning in her wedding dress.
Team Mom: Displays traits of this during the sleepover. She supervises the food preparation, and later consoles Lillie about her fight with Lusamine, assuring her that even though she is busy she still thinks of her children when she has spare time.
V-Sign: Punctuates her "Alola~" with this when she does PokéProblem segments.

Ultra Guardians Ride Pokémon

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ultra_guardian_ride_pokemon.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Shin-ichiro Miki (Garchomp), Chika Fujimura (Altaria), Yūji Ueda (Flygon), Unshō Ishizuka (SM001-SM105), Toru Sakurai (SM106-present) (Charizard)

Voiced in English by: Jessica Paquet (Altaria), Marc Thompson (Noivern)

Ride Pokémon assigned to the Ultra Guardians for their missions, barring Kiawe's Charizard which is the same one he rides normally. With the exception of Kiawe, they don't technically own the Pokémon but can command them in battle. When Gladion later joins the team, he is revealed to have a Ride Noivern.

A Day in the Limelight: SM086 focuses on the original six enjoying a day at the spa and bonding with their riders.
Dishing Out Dirt: Ash's Garchomp and Mallow's Flygon are part Ground-types and the latter knows Rock Slide.
Extra-ore-dinary: Sophocles' Metang is part Steel-type and knows Flash Cannon.
Face of a Thug: Most of them are imposing fully evolved powerhouses, though are just as playful and affectionate as the students' standard Pokemon when given the chance.
Flight: All of them are capable of this, providing fast and convenient travel for their riders.
Flying Firepower: In addition to their aforementioned flight, all of them have some form of beam attack.
Friendly Rival: Ash's Garchomp and Mallow's Flygon are implied to be such, racing each other in SM086.
Honorary True Companion: With the exception of Charizard (which is Kiawe's to begin with), the Ride Pokemon are all treated by their riders as if they actually were part of the team.
An Ice Person: Lillie's Altaria and Lana's Dragonair know Ice Beam.
Keet: When the other students chide Ash for playing around at the spa in SM086, Garchomp, Flygon and Altaria all share the same enthusiasm and join him in a cannonball into the springs, much to the others' chagrin.
Playing with Fire: Ash's Garchomp, Mallow's Flygon, and Lillie's Altaria know Fire Blast, and Kiawe's Charizard is a Fire-type and knows Flamethrower and Fire Punch.
Secondary Sexual Characteristics: Ash's Garchomp has a notch on his dorsal fin like all males of his species, including Ash's own Gible.
Super-Scream: Gladion's Noivern knows Boomburst.

Other Recurring Characters

Ilima

Voiced in Japanese by: Yudai Chiba

Voiced in English by: Michael Liscio Jr.

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Elliot Leguizamo

A graduate of the Pokémon School. He specializes in Normal-type Pokémon.

The Ace: He is looked up by many students, has fangirls, is so good at so many other things besides battles, and makes Ash looks much dumber in comparison. He even participated in the Kalos League (not the same one Ash competed in, however). It's also revealed in SM129, that In-Universe, he's considered the favorite to win the Alola League. He suffers The Worf Effect against Guzma and is eliminated in the first round.
- He is also the first known character in the anime capable of performing both Mega Evolution and Z-Moves.
Adaptation Expansion:
- While he still has Smeargle, more attention is put on his Eevee, with his Eevium Z, which allows them to use Extreme Evoboost.
- Because Trial Captains don't exist in the anime canon, more attention is paid to his battle prowess and his popularity, both of which were mentioned but more peripheral in the games.
Adaptational Badass: Ilima is capable of using Mega Evolution in the anime, a skill he isn't shown using in the games.
Boring, but Practical: He admits that while a Normal-type like Eevee isn't exciting or flashy, just having that type means that it'll take standard damage from nearly every attack barring Fighting-type moves and immunity from Ghost-type moves.
Chick Magnet: So much so that it's the cause of Tupp (a Team Skull Grunt)'s grudge against him.
Expy: Invoked. His ace status, his legion of fangirls, and his Eevee indirectly make him a likable version of Gary.
Foil: Ilima has graduated from the Pokémon School and is currently training in Kalos, while Ash was the runner-up of the Kalos League and is currently studying at the Pokémon School.
Game-Breaking Injury: His Eevee twists its hind ankle during the Alola League preliminaries, enough for Ilima not to use it in the next round.
Gossip Evolution: Was subject to this after rumors spiralled up into near-superhuman feats on paper. One of which was that he apparently jumped from the top of the big tree next to the school. He admits that this is technically true, it's just that everyone seemed to have forgotten that he did this via a diving board on the tree above the river.
I Am Not Left-Handed: He has a Key Stone to Mega Evolve his Kangaskhan.
Master of All: The first character in the series to use both Mega Evolution and Z-Moves, the two special battle mechanics introduced at the time.
Mellow Fellow: Ilima is near unflappably polite and soft-spoken, something that only further infuriates Tupp during their face-off. He even apologizes if he inconvenienced Tupp, driving him further mad.
Mr. Fanservice: He's already a Bishōnen with tons of fangirls, but this version went the extra mile and gave him a Shirtless Scene while wearing a fairly tight swimsuit.
Mythology Gag: The Veteran trainer he receives the Eevium Z from is Kagetora, the trainer that gave it to the player in the games after a lengthy Eeveelution-centered side quest.
Nice Guy: So much that he actually apologized to Tupp while he in the middle of being harassed by him.
Non-Elemental: He specializes in Normal-types, owning an Eevee and a Smeargle. He discusses the reason for his preference is that he appreciates the type's simplicity and versatility.
Not Allowed to Grow Up: Like Ash's Pikachu, Ilima's Eevee has no interest in evolving, and Ilima is fine with using other methods to make it powerful.
Parrot Pet Position: Eevee frequently takes this on Ilima's shoulder.
Pintsized Powerhouse: Ilima has no plans to evolve Eevee, and its Lightning Bruiser status, plus access to the species' signature Z-Move, means it far from needs to. It shares Turtonator's record of demolishing nine Team Skull Pokémon at once.
Real Men Wear Pink: This is a character that, when the games were introduced, was assumed by many players to be a girl. But even though he has pink hair, there isn't an ounce of camp on him. And he even has fangirls following him around.
Shrouded in Myth: Due to his reputation, there are quite a few rumors about him spread throughout the school, some true, others not so much.
The Worf Effect: Despite his skills and having the ability to Mega Evolve his Kangaskhan, Ilima is defeated early into the Manalo Conference to establish Guzma as a threat.

Acerola

Voiced in Japanese by: Sumire Morohoshi

Voiced in English by: Lauren Kammerling

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Erika Langarika

A girl who lives on Ula'Ula. She has a Shiny Mimikyu named Mimikins who is an actual ghost of a deceased Mimikyu.

Adaptation Expansion: Her first known Pokémon is a shiny Mimikyu, which was the Totem Pokémon of her Trial, but never featured in her actual teams.
- The two toddlers she looked after at the Aether House both received unique designs and names (Pico and Nene), and her home was changed from the Aether House to a library, as a nod to her donation of books to the Malie City Library in the games.
Adorably Precocious Child: She comes as rather young, barely the same height as Lana, and often prone to playful behavior. She is capable of taking care of the library on her own, however, cooking and housing herself when not caring for other children.
Creepy Good: Par for the course with Ghost-type trainers, but played up even more with Mimikins. While she's an actual ghost and does freak people out sometimes, she's ultimately treated as just another Pokémon.
Damsel in Distress: Gets captured by a lonely Gengar in her debut episode. She gets rescued by Team Rocket of all people.
Death Glare: A more playful case than usual, but Acerola tends to creep out Nanu with a rather eerie glare when trying to get him to do something she wants. She even calls "Glare" attack as she does it.
Demonic Possession: Rapooh's Cursed Body ability works like this, causing Kiawe's Marowak to drop its bone and barely react to the Gengar toying with it.
Dub Name Change: Her Mimikyu. Mimi-tan in Japanese, Mimikins in English. Its name is effectively the same in either case.
Everything's Better with Sparkles: Her Mimikyu has the monochrome disguise of a shiny Mimikyu in the games, though it doesn't seem to stay in a ball, so the sparkles that would ordinarily appear for a shiny when it's sent into battle never appear.
Let's Get Dangerous!: Up until the league, Acerola was never seen battling, even being a Damsel in Distress in her first appearance. During the second round however, she proves surprisingly crafty and fluent commanding Rapooh, managing to keep the upper hand on Kiawe's Marowak for a fair while.
Nice Girl: She becomes fast friends with Ash, letting him stay in her house and cooking for him while he's on Ula'ula Island, and convincing Nanu to give him a chance.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
- Oblivious to their vendetta with Ash, she and Mimikins hand Team Rocket a Mimikium Z for saving them, making their Mimikyu even more of a threat to Pikachu.
- It becomes a two way near miss later on. After Team Rocket's rescue, Acerola befriended and caught the Gengar that captured her ("Rapooh"), who Kiawe just barely avoids being eliminated by in the Alola league.
Nonstandard Character Design: In addition to being shiny, Mimikins has a small patch on the lower edge of its cloth that has a normal Mimikyu coloring. It also wears a flower on its "ear".
Our Ghosts Are Different: Her Mimikyu, Mimikins, is unusual in that it's not only a Ghost-type, but also an actual ghost of a deceased Mimikyu, so it is capable of floating and can pass through solid objects. It's also shown to be incapable of harming other Ghost-types with Shadow Claw. Even by the standards of Pokemon, it's pretty weird.
Playful Cat Smile: As with her games design. The anime plays it up further for a few mischievous moments, however.
The Power of Friendship: Manages to befriend a mischievous Gengar who had kidnapped her. She later caught Greedy Rapooh offscreen and uses it in the Alola League against Kiawe.
Signature Mon: Her main Pokémon partner is Mimikins, a Shiny Mimikyu that is actually a ghost of a deceased Mimikyu. But because Mimikins is actually deceased, it's unable to participate in the Alola League and thus Acerola uses Shuppet and Greedy Rapooh, a Gengar, instead.
Soul Power: Her specialty.
Uncatty Resemblance: Mimikins has a bright-yellow patch on its cloth, much like how Acerola's dress also has a patchwork appearance. Mimikins also wears a four petal flower which matches Ula'ula islands official color and resembles Acerola's Trial Captain amulet.

Mina (Matsurika)

Voiced in Japanese by: Haruka Tomatsu

Voiced in English by: Samara Naeymi

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Diana Nolan

Eccentric Artist: She's a talented artist, but she seems to come off as a bit spacey. Nevertheless, she's the one who manages to figure out how the others can communicate with Ash's Poipole.
The Empath: From her own experience as an artist, she's able to tell what Poipole is feeling with its own paintings.
Fairy Companion: Her Ribombee.
Fragile Speedster: Ribombee easily flies circles around Sophocles's Vikavolt, but once Vikavolt manages to catch it in its pincers, a single attack is enough to knock it out.
Psychic Powers: Ribombee knows Psychic.

Hau

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonhau_6.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Jun Fukuyama

Voiced in English by: Neo Cihi

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Héctor Ireta De Alba

Bait-and-Switch: He's declared the winner in his quarterfinal match against Ash in the Alola League... only for his own grandfather and chief referee, Hala, to overturn the decision because Ash's Rowlet didn't faint, it just fell asleep. The match then resumes and Ash wins.
Break the Cutie: After losing to Ash in the League.
The Cameo: Makes a slight appearance in JN112 amongst the audience watching the Alolan Battle Royale.
Demoted to Extra: In the games, he was a very prominent character challenging the main character. Here? Hau doesn't appear until after around 100 episodes and only gets one focus episode. After that, he disappears from the story until right before the league starts.
Friendly Rival: To Ash. His Dartrix/Decidueye is also one to Rowlet.
Graceful Loser: He does feel some disappointment, but takes Dartrix's loss in its rematch with Rowlet well.
Green Thumb: Dartrix/Decidueye.
Heroic Lineage: His grandfather is Hala, Kahuna of Melemele Island.
Our Ghosts Are Different: His Decidueye, a part Ghost-type.
Parrot Pet Position: Despite being bigger, his Alolan Raichu can somewhat perch on Hau's shoulders like Ash's Pikachu just fine.
Psychic Powers: His Alolan Raichu is part Psychic-type.
Shock and Awe: His Alolan Raichu.
Signature Mon: His Dartrix/Decidueye is his main Pokémon battler and partner.
Unskilled, but Strong: Dartrix/Decidueye may have an advantage in raw power over Rowlet due to being at a higher evolutionary stage, but Rowlet is the more experienced battler. Hau and Decidueye are rookies who've only just begun their island challenge and have only managed to defeat Hala before entering the league, while Rowlet has either won or helped Ash win against two of the four Kahunas, two Totem Pokémon, and Ryuki.

Kahili

Voiced in Japanese by: Chisa Yuki

Voiced in English by: Christina Anderson

Adaptational Backstory Change: She isn't the strong trainer she is in the games, and because there isn't an Elite Four for the Alola League, she is just another quirky character. Ironically, she gets eliminated in the preliminary round of said league.
Adaptation Personality Change: Rather than the Sugar-and-Ice Personality of her game counterpart, Kahili is a Nice Girl, though she's still somewhat reserved because of her celebrity status.
Adaptational Wimp: She's an Elite Four member in the games. Here, she's eliminated in the preliminary round of the Alola League.
Berserk Button: Touckey does NOT like people bothering its trainer, though it calms down and has some fun itself after being around the other Pokémon.
BFG: Uses her own Toucannon as a bazooka when it uses Beak Blast.
Blow You Away: Her Toucannon partner, Touckey.
Celebrity Is Overrated: She gets chased by the media when rumors pop up about her retirement.
Dub Name Change: Her Toucannon's nickname is changed from Katsuo to Touckey.

Ryuki

Voiced in Japanese by: Kiyotaka Furushima

Voiced in English by: Adam Ezegelian

The Gym Leader of Malie City's Kantonian Gym. He specializes in Dragon-types.

Adaptation Expansion: He did appear at the Malie City Gym in Ultra Sun & Moon, but he wasn't the Gym Leader.
Casting a Shadow: His Zweilous is part Dark-type and knows Dark Pulse.
Graceful Loser: He takes his loss to Ash pretty well, complimenting his "hot, rocking soul", and telling him that he's free to brag about beating him.
Hot-Blooded: He's passionate about both battling and his music.
Large Ham: He screams a lot during battle.
Left the Background Music On: Justified not just by him being a rocker, but he needs the music to get Zweilous's two heads to focus on the battle instead of fighting each other.
My Favorite Shirt: When Meltan eats one of the spikes on his feet, he proclaims that this is his best outfit.
Man Bites Man: Zweilous also knows Bite.
Narcissist: His "Gym Badge"? A literal badge with his face on it.
No Indoor Voice: Not helped at all by the fact that he's screaming into a microphone.
Our Dragons Are Different: He specializes in Dragon-types.

Viren (Bourgain)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bourgain.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Kiyomitsu Mizuuchi

Voiced in English by: H.D. Quinn

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Ricardo Méndez

The president of Rainbow Happy Resorts.

Arch-Enemy: To Kiawe. Most episodes where Viren appears have him opposing Kiawe in some way.
Bare-Fisted Monk: SM081 reveals he has a Pangoro.
Bald of Evil: He has much hair as he has goodness in him.
Beard of Evil: Wouldn't be complete as a bad guy without a beard.
Butt-Monkey: Gets reduced to one from SM081 onwards. He, of course, deserves every ounce of torment and misfortune he goes through.
Cool Car: His personal transportation is a gold-painted car.
Corrupt Corporate Executive: He is the president of Rainbow Happy Resorts, and he will resort to forgery, blackmailing, harassment, hurting kids, destruction of property, and cheating to get what he wants.
Dub Name Change: From Bourgain to Viren. His company's name gets shortened to Rainbow Happy Resorts.
Expy: Of Guzma. Viren's eyes take a page out of Guzma, he is treated as a recurring villain, he will use dirty tactics to get what he wants, and of course, he is downright pathetic when brought down a notch. Additionally, he strongly resembles Belger in terms of appearance and occupation.
Fat Bastard: His unpleasantness is as great as his girth.
Fan Disservice: In an episode where he tries to give away pictures of himself, in one of them shows himself posing while in a bathing suit. It's not pretty...
Hypocrite: When Kiawe and Lana intervene in a match to free the Masked Royal's Incineroar from the Revengers' Pokémon, he gets mad at them for it, when he leads a group that's practically dedicated to using such methods to win.
Iconic Item: A folding paper fan that has the Z-Move symbol on it, he always has it in episodes that he appears in, and his gold statue even held one itself.
It's Personal: By SM085, he makes it clear that he hates Ash and his friends for interfering in his business, especially towards Ash. This is quite mutual on Kiawe's part, who will go into a blazing rage at the mere mention of Viren.
Jerkass: Don't let the name of his company fool you; he's far from a pleasant person.
Laughably Evil: He's more vicious and underhanded than Team Rocket or Team Skull, not to mention more powerful a figure, making him more of real threat. However his plans still often backfire in a buffoonish sort of way due to his bluster.
Karma Houdini: Averted in SM070, as he's arrested by Officer Jenny… only to return in SM081.
The Man Behind the Man: He reveals that he's the boss behind the Revengers.
Narcissist: The only thing this man loves more than making money is himself. Especially since he loves to build solid-gold statues of himself.
Recurring Character: First appears in SM070, trying to buy out Kiawe's family's farm, and again in SM081, trying to buy out the Battle Royal Dome, as well as SM085 where the construction of his new hotel is caught in the middle of Stakataka and the Ultra Guardians' tussle.
Shock and Awe: He has an Electivire.
Uncatty Resemblance: He bears a strong resemblance to Electivire, and is named after the Pokemon as well.
- Additionally, he has black rings around his eyes similar to a panda, and he also has a Pangoro.
The Unfettered: In his debut episode, he showed that he was willing to resort to forgery, harassment, tresspassing, blackmailing, and hurting little kids to get what he wants. Also, he and the Revengers are all too happy to fight dirty in order to win… sounds like the Invincible Pokémon Brothers would fit in with this group.
Would Hurt a Child: Ordered his Electivire to attack Mimo. Thankfully, Turtonator jumped in to protect her.

Pokémon

The Toucannon Flock

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/toucannonflock_6.jpg

Rowlet's foster family of Pikipek-line Pokémon. The flock appears as a Toucannon being the parent, a Trumbeak as the older sibling, and a group of Pikipek as the younger siblings. Even after being caught by Ash, Rowlet still visits his family from time to time.

Big Brother Instinct: The Trumbeak takes on the big-brother role of the flock. Occasionally, Trumbeak will be seen looking after Rowlet as an older sibling would.
Demon Head: In its debut episode, Trumbeak does this while yelling at Rowlet for falling asleep during a scolding (earlier that day, Rowlet had been sent out to find fruit and instead brought back a berry-shaped wind chime).
Happily Adopted: Regardless of how Rowlet's egg ended up in the Pikipek nest, his foster parents and siblings love him very much.
Interspecies Adoption: Toucannon took in Rowlet to be part of its Pikipek family.
Massive Numbered Siblings: Toucannon and Trumbeak appear to be the parents of dozens of Pikipek.
Mentor Archetype: During one of Rowlet's visits back to his family, Toucannon and Trumbeak teach it how to use Seed Bomb. After coming to Manalo Stadium upon Rowlet's request, they also teach it Feather Dance.
Papa Wolf: The Toucannon serves as the parental figure of its flock and Rowlet. One moment even shows the Toucannon taking care of a group of Pikipek eggs before they hatch.
Riddle for the Ages: How did Rowlet's egg end up in a nest of Pikipek?
Sibling Team: Rowlet is shown to get along with Trumbeak and the Pikipek siblings.

Pershie

Voiced in Japanese by: Risa Shimizu

Voiced in English by: Kate Bristol

An Alolan Persian owned by a Madame that bullied Ash's Litten.

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: It acts like a good pet around its owner.
Casting a Shadow: It's a Dark-type and knows the Dark-Type move, Night Slash.
Cats Are Mean: It bullied Ash's Torracat back when it was a Litten by stealing its food.
Dark Is Evil: It's a Dark-type Pokémon, and a bully, no less.
Humiliation Conga: In SM007, it is sent running away with its tail on fire, and in SM083, Tsareena shaves off the fur on its back.
Kick the Dog: It stole the sandwich Litten stole from Ash, and when Litten tries to attack it with its fire power the Persian threw the sandwich at it. It tries to zap at Ash and Pikachu when they try to stop it from harming Litten, and gets more aggressive on its attack when Ash has Pikachu fight it.
Recurring Character: First appears in SM007, bullying Ash's Litten, and again in SM083, chasing after the shrunken Ash, Lillie, and Sophocles. It shows up yet again in SM099 chasing down Lana's Popplio and Eevee.

Stoutland (Mooland)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemonoldstoutland.jpg

Voiced in English by: Marc Thompson

An old Pokémon prowling Hau'oli City who looked after the orphaned Litten that was eventually caught by Ash. Stoutland is a vagrant and outcast with no trainer or permanent home.

Ambiguous Situation: The circumstances behind this one raises a few questions: is it an abandoned Pokémon, a runaway, or did Stoutland outlive its owners?
Back from the Dead: It returns in SM108, albeit as a spirit, having a brief reunion with Torracat and teaching it Fire Blast.
Cool Old Guy: Wise, easy going mentor and Parental Substitute to Litten. Considering Kiawe's Ride Charizard, also an established Cool Old Guy, seems far healthier than Stoutland, you have to wonder just how old Stoutland was.
A Death in the Limelight: It reappears in SM021, trying to teach Litten Fire Fang. It's stricken with an Incurable Cough of Death throughout the episode and is constantly compared to a tree losing its leaves, and is taken to a Pokémon Center by Ash after Litten drags him toward their home after Stoutland collapses. Despite being discharged the next day, Stoutland fails to recover and leaves Litten to pass away on its own.
Face of a Thug: Ash's Rowlet and Lana's Popplio, at least, were intimidated by Stoutland's massive figure before Stoutland demonstrates itself to be a Big Friendly Dog.
Foreshadowing: Litten had a nightmare about Stoutland dying in SM007. Guess what happens in SM021?
Ghostly Animals: It shows up as a spirit in SM108.
Interspecies Adoption: Stoutland took Litten in and raised it as if the cat was its own child. Kukui even notes the oddity of one Pokémon raising another of a different type.
Killed Off for Real: It dies in SM021, after leaving Litten offscreen. This notably makes it the first Pokémon to die of old age in the anime (all previous Pokémon deaths were due to Heroic Sacrifice).
Mentor Occupational Hazard: Stoutland dies in SM021, having woken up and left Litten offscreen while it was sleeping to pass away on its own.
Morality Chain: The usually aloof Litten cares deeply about Stoutland, so if the latter wants it to do something kind, it will soon obey.
Never Found the Body: It wakes up while Litten is sleeping next to it and leaves for elsewhere to die without Litten's presence. SM108 confirms its death when it appears in front of Torracat as a spirit.
Nonstandard Character Design: It looks a lot more ragged and unkempt than previously seen Stoutland due to its age.
Old Master: Occasionally shown teaching Litten to master attacks.
Playing with Fire: It knows Fire Fang and has been shown teaching Litten how to pull it off. Unfortunately, it dies before Litten can master the move.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Seemed a lot more appreciative of Ash's charity than Litten, even scolding the latter for its hostility towards him. This approval likely played into Litten accepting Ash as its new master after Stoutland's death.
Retired Badass: What little we see of Stoutland in action suggests it was quite a tough nut in its earlier years. It helped tutor several of Litten's attacks.
Rule of Symbolism: It's never explicitly stated that Stoutland died (as Nurse Joy giving Ash the news is muted), but it's heavily implied through symbolism such as rain, leaves falling off of a nearby tree, its couch breaking, and Litten seeing Stoutland's face in the clouds. Though ultimately SM108 throws all ambiguity out of the window when he shows up as a spirit to Torracat.
Sky Face: Once the rain clouds disappear and Litten comes to term with Stoutland's death, clouds in the image of Stoutland appears alongside a rainbow.
Spirit Advisor: It returns as a ghost in SM108 to tutor Torracat one final move, Fire Blast.
Twinkle in the Eye: Whenever Stoutland meets someone, it introduces itself with this.
Walking Spoiler: It's near impossible not to mention that he dies.

Oranguru (Yareyuutan)

Voiced in Japanese by: Unshō Ishizuka (SM039 to SM087)

Voiced in English by: Scottie Ray

A lone Pokémon living in the forests of Melemele Island. Highly intelligent and acts as the owner of a juice bar in the wilds.

The Bartender: Finds or lets troubled people and Pokémon come to it and listens to their woes while serving them berry juice.
Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Partial subversion. While as a wild Pokémon we know his name is "Oranguru" as much as any other member of his species, customers to his bar tend to call him "Master" in the original Japanese.
Intellectual Animal: Oranguru are just as smart as humans, often even smarter. He's one of the only Pokémon we see not prone to acting in a childish/animalistic way.
Old Master: To Mallow's father Abe, of all people. Oranguru taught him how to make delicious berry juice for his cafe. In exchange, Abe helped him build a bar in the middle of the jungle.
Verbal Tic/Catchphrase: In Japanese. Like most Pokémon, he says parts of his name over and over. But unlike most Pokémon, his verbal tic actually means something; "yare yare" is a Japanese expression of exasperation (most famous as the catchphrase of Jotaro Kujo), and makes him come off as very tired/sympathetic as he deals with other peoples' problems.

Naganadel (Agoyon)

Voiced in Japanese by: Yoshino Ohtori

Voiced in English by: Lisa Ortiz

The leader of a hive of Poipole in Ultra Space. Ash's Poipole belonged to this hive before fleeing their home dimension.

Mr. Exposition: Delivers exposition about Necrozma (such as revealing its true name) to the Ultra Guardians.
Telepathy: It's able to communicate with humans in this fashion.
You Can Talk?: Ash and friends are surprised when it first speaks to them.

Necrozma

A mysterious Pokémon that was stealing Alola's Ultra Aura.

Adaptation Expansion: In the games, it was only described as being similar to an Ultra Beast. Here, it's actually believed to be an Ultra Beast and is even given the codename of "UB Black".
Adaptational Heroism: Here, it's a benevolent Pokémon stated to have "created" the Alola region by giving it light, and lost its "Ultra" form protecting a group of Poipole and Naganadel from a meteorite. It also wasn't antagonistic towards Alola in the past, spending most of its injured state hibernating and only becoming hostile when Nebby and Lunala unwittingly awakened it (and, as a result, it was remembered in Alola as the benevolent Blinding One instead of the demonic Pillager of Light like in the games).
Emotion Eater: Not directly, but draining Alola's Ultra Aura also caused all of the adults in Alola to lose their motivation and become tired. Children and Pokémon are unaffected. Once it possesses Solgaleo, it stops absorbing Ultra Aura, and the adults return to normal.
Fisher King: Its light seems to be directly tied to that of Poipole's world. When it lost its Ultra form protecting the planet from a meteorite, Poipole's world also fell into darkness, becoming cold and barren. When its light is restored, the world becomes bright and verdant once more.
Grand Theft Me: Possesses Lunala, but quickly gets defeated by Solgaleo (Nebby)...only for it to then possess Solgaleo and run off into an Ultra Wormhole.
Lighter and Softer: Changed from a Tragic Monster that makes a Heel–Face Turn with a Bittersweet Ending where it can only temporarily return to its true form and will always be in a great deal of pain in the games to a more straightforward and happier ending where Necrozma gets to permanently return to its Ultra Necrozma form.
No Name Given: The cast were unaware of its true name until Naganadel told them.
Third-Option Adaptation: Ignores both the Sun and Moon and Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon backstories for Necrozma in favor of a Lighter and Softer take on some of the same ideas.

The Meltan Horde

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/meltanhorde.jpg

A group of Meltan that made their way to the Alolan islands only to start wrecking havoc by eating any piece of metal they come across. One of these Meltan is eventually caught by Ash, and some become helpers to the Ultra Guardians after being tamed by Lusamine's Clefable.

Big Eater: They cause havoc anywhere they go by eating any metal in sight. Lusamine's Clefable is able to tame them by feeding them small pieces of metal as treats.
Energy Weapon: Their primary means of combat is to spam Flash Cannon at everything.
Foreshadowing: Every time they show up again, they've multiplied. Those that play Pokémon GO know that you need to catch a LOT of Meltan to evolve it.
Fusion Dance: The day before Ash's battle with Gladion, they arrive to merge with Ash's Meltan to evolve into Melmetal.
Horde of Alien Locusts: In a way, they act like a locust swarm that goes after and eats any metal they come across. They stop doing this after Clefable tames them.
Recurring Extra: They start off with brief appearances to show off their arrival to the Alolan islands before the main cast comes across them in episode 111 of Sun and Moon. After being tamed by Clefable, they become the Ultra Guardian's helpers until merging with Ash's Meltan to evolve.

Guardian Deities

Adaptational Heroism: They retain some of their Jerkass God tendencies, but are otherwise much more benevolent and helpful than their game counterparts.
Physical God: The four Guardian Deities are frequently shown to be among the strongest Pokémon in Alola, and each possess considerable paranormal abilities.

Tapu Koko (Kapu-Kokeko)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tapu_koko.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Rikako Aikawa

Voiced in English by: Erica Schroeder

Tapu Koko is the Guardian Deity Pokémon of Melemele Island. It gifted Ash with a Z-Ring and the Electrium Z-Crystal.

Alternate Self: The Guardian Deities of the Alola region are supposed to be Single Specimen Species, however, an alternate timeline/universe of Alola has its own version of Tapu Koko that is shiny. Whether they know of each other's existence is up for debate though.
Berserk Button: Jovial and benevolent as it is, Tapu Koko does not tolerate being bossed around. It once responded to Gladion's aggressive and pushy behavior with a Death Glare and calmly giving him a verbal cue that essentially meant "shut up".
Blood Knight: Is very eager to accept Ash's request for a battle anytime, even seeing Pikachu as an opponent worth its time.
The Bus Came Back: Unexpectedly made a return appearance in JN112 while Ash was in Alola to wish him good luck in the Master's Tournament.
The Chooser of the One: Gave Ash a Z-Ring and Electrium Z after sensing potential in him. Is also the one that leads him to Nebby, having seemingly sensed Nebby's arrival in the Pokémon world.
- Gives Mallow her Grassium-Z crystal after she makes it a satisfying meal.
- In the climax of Ash vs. Kukui, it gives Kukui the Tapunium-Z to allow him to use Guardian of Alola.
The Comically Serious: Despite its antics, Tapu Koko isn't the most expressive Pokémon. It's often seen messing with people while remaining completely stoic.
Defeating the Undefeatable: One of Ash's goals while in Alola is for him and Pikachu is to eventually defeat Tapu Koko in a battle. Two attempts have ended in failure, though Ash did better in the second attempt. Third time was the charm at the Alola League.
Extra-ore-dinary: Knows Steel Wing.
The Fair Folk: Is part Fairy-type and knows Dazzling Gleam and Nature's Madness. Its exact motives are unclear at times.
Final Boss: For Ash and Pikachu at the Alola League, as the last opponent in their exhibition match against Professor kukui.
The Gadfly: It wakes up a Bewear just to mess with Ash, and steals his hat to lure him into the forest.
The Leader: It's implied to be this among the other Island Guardians whenever they need to work together.
Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: Its mask allows it to weather Pikachu's Gigavolt Havoc Z-Move completely unscathed. Although the fact that it had to use the mask at all was presented as an achievement on Ash and Pikachu's part.
No-Sell: Played with; even when boosted by the effect of the Electric Terrain caused by Tapu Koko's Electric Surge, Pikachu's Thunderbolt couldn't scratch it. But when Pikachu used his Z-Move, Tapu Koko was forced to protect itself using its mask, otherwise, it likely would have taken damage from the sheer power of the attack. The second time around, Pikachu manages to knock it against a tree using Gigavolt Havoc, yet even this barely seems to faze it. Pikachu finally proves much more of a challenge in their third battle and ultimately manages to defeat Tapu Koko.
Oh, Crap!: Before Pikachu's Gigavolt Havoc hits, it briefly has this look. Seeing as it had to use its mask to keep from getting damaged by said attack, it was for good reason.
Olympus Mons: While it doesn't get caught by Kukui, it has no problems teaming with him as his Pokemon against Ash and Pikachu for one final battle.
The Rival: Acts as one to Pikachu. Tapu Koko's taken an interest in Ash and Pikachu, and has gone out of its way to battle them a few times.
Shock and Awe: Part Electric-type and knows Discharge.
Super-Speed: It moves incredibly fast, such that the students can't even follow its movements as it zips around the room.
A Taste of Power: It gives Ash a Z-Ring and teaches him how to use it, but since Ash hasn't passed the island challenge, the Z-Crystal breaks after the first use.
The Gods Must Be Lazy: Averted. Despite being capricious, Tapu Koko takes its role very seriously. It has been responsive to Ash's call for aid whenever it happens and has appeared in SM069 keeping watch on Celesteela with the implication of keeping tabs on all potential Ultra Beast activity in Melemele Island.
Trickster Mentor: It swipes Ash's hat so that he and Pikachu would chase it to a proper battlefield for a Z-Move tutorial. Additionally, the Z-Ring it gave Ash was stolen from Hala, who observes that its antics were probably for more than just random impulse.
Troll: It likes to mess with people sometimes.
The Worf Barrage: During the battle between Kukui and Ash, it shows off the Guardian dieties' exclusive Z-Move Guardian of Alola for the first time in the series, only to be overpowered by Pikachu's 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt.
Worthy Opponent: Inserts itself into the end of Ash vs. Kukui as Kukui's final Pokemon, knowing Ash is finally ready for a real battle with it.

Tapu Lele (Kapu-Tetefu)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemontapulele.jpg

Voiced in Japanese by: Risa Shimizu

Voiced in English by: Suzy Myers

The Guardian Deity of Akala Island.

Adaptation Personality Change: Its heavily implied sadist personality is changed to being playfully rough.
Comedic Sociopath: It loves to play rough, and sees no problem with taking things way too far.
The Fair Folk: While it scatters healing scales and is, for the most part, a friendly Pokémon, Its morality is a bit unclear, as it was a bit too rough with Rockruff and doesn't seems to have a concept of limit when it comes to her playfulness and how rough it can get.
Forceful Kiss: You know how Olivia likes kissing Pokémon? Tapu Lele does the same. Subverted in the case that it used Draining Kiss on the Lycanroc and Ash, but it does give the absorbed energy to heal Rockruff.
Friend to All Living Things: It's shown in SM037 kissing both Lycanroc owned by Olivia and Gladion on their cheeks. Perhaps that's where Olivia got it from? It actually used Draining Kiss on them and Ash for additional energy needed to heal Ash's Rockruff from previous wounds, still playing it straight as it willingly heals it and a Yungoos before it.
Healing Hands: Its scales have healing properties. It uses them to heal the wounds Ash sustained while rescuing a wild Wimpod.
Kick Them While They Are Down: According to Olivia, Tapu Lele is said to willing to hurt other Pokémon when they're unconscious and unable to battle as it likes to play roughly with Pokémon in battles. This appeared to be the case with Rockruff after roughing it up the previous night, but this is ultimately subverted when it saves Rockruff.
Troll: Much like Tapu Koko, it seems to act maliciously at times. It means no lasting harm though.

Tapu Bulu (Kapu-Bulul)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tapu_bulu_anime.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Unshō Ishizuka

Voiced in English by: Sam Black

The guardian deity of Ula'Ula Island.

The Gods Must Be Lazy: Tapu Bulu is prone to sleeping most of the time.
Kamehame Hadoken: How it uses Solar Beam.
Green Thumb: Its primary type, and it shows off its ability by plowing the land, planting seeds and growing a berry tree over the course of the episode. It later shares the fruits of its labor (Oran berries) with Ash and friends.
Lazy Bum: Just like Nanu, Tapu Bulu is prone to lazing about and doing nothing unless action is required.
Sink or Swim Mentor: Deliberately throws Lycanroc into the water to have it overcome its Berserk Button.
Telephone Polearm: Alluding to some of the dex entries from the games, Tapu Bulu has been shown doing this in the anime by ripping out a tree it planted and using it as a weapon against Lycanroc.

Tapu Fini (Kapu-Rehire)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemontapufini.jpg

Voiced in English by: Lisa Ortiz

The guardian deity of Poni Island.

Chekhov's Gun: Appears in the climax of the Nebby arc (after a brief cameo at the start of said arc) to evolve Cosmoem to Solgaleo and upgrade Ash's Z-Ring with the other Tapu. It would not appear again for more than 50 episodes (compared to Tapu Bulu's 23).
Psychopomp: Gladion mentions that it can let people see the ghosts of those they've lost. The spirits of Hapu's and Kiawe's grandfathers (who were good friends) seem to have hung around the Ruins of Hope since their passing.
What the Hell, Hero?: Understandably got angry when Ash thought battling Kiawe would be a good way to summon it for a Grand Trial, and gave Kiawe its own trial to get scales from Tapu Lele in order to save him and most of their Pokemon. Played with, since it is heavily implied this was just a Trickster Mentor moment enacted on the behalf of Kiawe's Grandfather's spirit with no real harm intended.

Team Skull

Team Skull In General

Adaptational Late Appearance: While Guzma and Plumeria first appear towards the middle portion of the games, their anime counterparts don't show up until over a hundred episodes in, well after rescuing Lusamine from the Nihilego and the Necrozma arc, which were the climaxes of Sun and Moon and Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon respectively.
Adaptational Wimp: Team Skull may have always been one of the less threatening groups in the Pokémon world. But with Guzma and Plumeria in charge, at least they could hold their own in a fight in the games. In the anime, by the time of the Ultra Beasts arc, Team Skull is quietly pushed aside in favor of Poké-kaiju attacks and the rare instance of Giovanni getting off his throne. That is until Guzma makes his first appearence.
The Cameo: They make a slight appearance in JN112 amongst the audience watching the Alolan Battle Royale alongside Guzma and Plumeria.
Cast of Snowflakes: Each individual Team Skull grunt has a unique character design.
Contrasting Sequel Antagonist:
- In comparison to previous villain Teams, their goals, or at least Guzma's, are very low key, with Guzma only wanting to be considered the undisputed strongest trainer in the Alola region. The grunts themselves are just all about causing mischief in the region.
- Additionally in terms of their role as rivals for Team Rocket, previous villain teams were next to always Eviler than Thou, being stronger and more serious than the Terrible Trio, who at best would score a few underdog victories. With the exception of Guzma, Team Skull are even more comical and pitiful than Team Rocket, making them Sitcom Arch-Nemesis whenever they butt heads, with Team Rocket usually winning.
Evil Brit: One of the female grunts in the English dub has a noticable British accent.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Unlike most if not all the other villainous teams in past seasons, Team Skull is still alive and well at the end of the season. Guzma has started his road of Character Development, which promises a brighter future for Team Skull, and their last appearance shows Guzma training alongside Team Skull.
Mythology Gag: One grunt at the mansion in Po Town fails to turn on a damaged TV via the power switch, which causes another grunt to just smack it, which actually works. In the games, Guzma claimed to do the same thing with malfunctioning technology, except he has a tendency to break it by doing so.

Guzma

Voiced in Japanese by: Yasuyuki Kase

Voiced in English by: Evan Maltby

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Alfredo Leal

Achilles' Heel: Golisopod is able to block an Iron Tail, Thunderbolt, and Corkscrew Crash with its arms, due to its shell being as hard as diamond. However, a single Quick Attack to its soft underbelly is enough to trigger Emergency Exit. This is exploited in its Alola League semifinals match, with Ash's Torracat using Fire Fang and Revenge on its underside to get it on the ropes quicker.
Adaptational Angst Downgrade: The implication that Guzma grew up being abused by his father is absent in the anime.
Adaptation Expansion: His past with Professor Kukui is elaborated on in SM128.
Adaptational Heroism: While he's the Arc Villain of the Alola League arc, he's not technically a villain at all since he's a legal participant and is more of an Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy. Unlike in the games, we never see him involved in any criminal activity, nor is he partnered with Lusamine and the Aether Foundation for a wrongful goal, as Lusamine and the Aether Foundation have also undergone Adaptational Heroism.
Adaptational Jerkass: In addition to being a Dirty Coward here, Guzma in the anime is a Bad Boss who picks on trainers weaker than him and acts like a Jerkass to his Pokemon when they lose. In the games Guzma only ever chastises himself when he loses, and is shown to be Benevolent Boss with a major Inferiority Superiority Complex. By the end of his arc, though, he falls more in line with his game persona.
Adaptational Wimp: In the games, he attempted to be a Trial Captain, and simply failed to do so in time. Here, he outright ran away.
Always Second Best: Ultimately revealed to be the reason for his Start of Darkness. In the past, he was never able to defeat Kukui in a battle which frustrated him enough to abandon his former teacher and start his stint as Team Skull's leader.
Arc Villain: Guzma is the main antagonist of the Alola League arc, with his goal being to destroy Kukui's dream by becoming Champion and preventing any more leagues from being held.
Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: Guzma thinks of himself as Alola's strongest trainer, and claims that he has surpassed those who actually bothered doing the Island Challenge. That said, he is not a pushover as he defeated Ilima and his Mega Kangaskhan in the Alolan League, with Ilima originally being the one favored to win it all.
Bad Boss: Downplayed. He frequently chastises his Pokemon whenever they remotely dither or appear to lose the upper hand. When Golisopod's Emergency Exit gets Scizor knocked out against Ash in the league, he browbeats a cowed Golisopod for costing him and makes clear it better win the rest of the match to redeem itself. Ash and even Plumeria look a bit unnerved by this treatment.
Big Creepy-Crawlies: His specialty is Bug types. Big bug-types, such as Golispod.
Break the Haughty: A huge one during his battle with Ash once his own Pokemon screws up his strategy and causes the scales to tip in his opponent's favor.
The Cameo: Makes a slight appearance in JN112 amongst the audience watching the Alolan Battle Royale alongside Plumeria and members of Team Skull.
Catchphrase: In EP138, he finally says his in a quite epic way!
Guzma: [upon realizing how he's been running away from battles for no good reason at all] GUZMA, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!
Character Development: Late in his League battle with Ash, both he and Golisopod realize they have to stop running away and finish out their League run on a more fair note than what Guzma had intended when Ash started winning.
Combat Pragmatist: Guzma denounces the protagonists' use of Z-moves and prefers a much more methodical method of battling. His debut has him overwhelm Ash's Pikachu with his Golisopod's First Impression and steadily wearing him down with Poison Jab. In the Alola League, he takes advantage of Iima's position of his Mega Kangaskhan and has his Scizor attack the mother while her child is in front (therefore preventing her from retaliating without harming her child), and prevents Lana's Primarina from using its sound-based moves with a well-timed Throat Chop and continuously beating on it with Poison Jab (which being part Fairy, Primarina is weak to).
Cowardly Lion: Once his Golispod decides to grow a backbone and stand its ground against Pikachu out of its own volition, Guzma eventually follows suit with growing a spine of his own and goes all in to see the whole fight through, regardless of its outcome.
Curb-Stomp Battle: Utterly destroys the Team Rocket-Trio in the span of a second.
- His battle with Lana in the League is even worse. He ordered Golisopod to keep spamming Poison Jab on her Primarina, which is half Fairy-type and started the fight with Throat Chop to prevent its Sparkling Aria. When Primarina resorted to using its Z-Move, Golisopod uses Liquidation to slash the Z-Move in half. After that, Primarina was barely breathing.
Dirty Coward: He ran away from his Island Challenge in the past, which Kukui reminds him of when he decides to walk away from his battle with Ash.
- During his second battle with Ash, his Golisopod switches out on its own and has Scizor take a Fire Blast meant for it. Guzma was pissed.
- His undefeatable streak is stated to be this as Plumeria notes that Guzma usually picks fights against weaker trainers to make himself look stronger. If he's in a fight where it looks like he might lose, then he backs out of it under some false pretense.
Evil Counterpart: To Ash, in regards to their championship records. Ash always was a good sport, even when he would come up short in his league records and always strive to improve despite it all. Guzma however, hated that he could never win and began to target only weaker trainers to bolster his pride and then skimp out on anybody that actually could pose a challenge to him.
Evil Is Petty: His main reason for entering the Alola League is out of spite for Kukui; he wants to crush Kukui's dream.
Fatal Flaw: His pride. Guzma's insistence that he is the best Trainer in Alola causes him to brush off advice from Plumeria. Once his "undefeated" title is in danger of being broken, he loses it in front of an entire audience and some of the most important Trainers in the region.
- In addition his pride lets him unable to fight off against opponents who actually have a chance of beating him and his "undefeatable" streak is based off of fighting off weaker trainers.
Fun-Hating Villain: He hates the idea of an Alolan League Tournament deciding a champion. This leads him to enter so that when he wins, he'll have the clout to prevent future tournaments from taking place.
Graceful Loser: Surpisingly, he has a turnaround during his League battle with Ash and ends up taking his first witnessed defeat much better than he should have had otherwise. Aka, "leaving the field with his beaten Pokémon without causing the slightest fuss about it."
Heel Realization: Seeing Golispod wanting to continue his fight makes him flashback to how he had been such a dick before he unleashes his catchphrase and decides to go all out in his League battle against Ash.
I Meant to Do That: Once Golispod's Emergency Exit sets off, he tries handwaving it as Golispod lost interest in fighting a badly hurt and poisoned Pikachu.
Kick Them While They Are Down: When a heavily poisoned Primarina managed the feat of slipping out from his Golispod's grasp, he first berate his Pokemon for loosening the grip and then orders it to go straight after the struggling opponent to finish the job thoroughly without giving them a chance for the Heroic Second Wind to play in effect. Even his Golispod showed a little concern about his attitude before following through on the command anyway.
Laser-Guided Karma: He has his Scizor callously use the baby of Ilima's Kangaskhan as a meat shield to make her hesitant to attack it. During his second battle with Ash, Golisopod switches itself out and uses Scizor as a shield against Torracat's Fire Blast, instantly knocking it out and completely screwing over Guzma's strategy.
Metaphorically True: He's not wrong about his "undefeated" status because he only targets weaker trainers he knows he can beat, and always tries to find an excuse to avoid battling someone that could actually give him a fight.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Golispod's Emergency Exit forces Scizor to be switched out on the battlefield, right as the Fire Blast from Ash's Torracat is about to make contact. Scizor, having double weakness to fire, ends up being defeated instantly, giving Ash complete advantage over Guzma in their match. Even more poetic is that Golispod ends up defeating Torracat anyways, which means Guzma could have defeated Ash if Emergency Exit hadn't been activated.
Oh, Crap!: Has a major one during his battle with Ash at the Alola League; his Golisopod's Emergency Exit activates at the worst possible time, switching out with Scizor, who is wide open for a Fire Blast (which it has a double weakness to). Needless to say, it's a one-hit knockout.
Pet the Dog: After his loss to Ash at the Pokemon League, he helps his defeated Golisopod up before returning it to its Pokeball.
Poor, Predictable Rock: Defied. Lana goes into her battle with him expecting him to have Golisopod open with First Impression, as he did when he battled Ash at the school. After a few moments of silence, Lana instead makes the first move by commanding Primarina to use Sparkling Aria; which Guzma has Golisopod counter with a new move, Throat Chop.
Punch a Wall: In the aftermath of his intrusion and quick retreat from the Pokemon School, Kukui's words still infuriate him enough to punch the banner in his room, hard.
A Pupil of Mine Until He Turned to Evil: He and Kukui were both Hala's apprentices, but Guzma had a habit of defying Hala's teachings until he finally got fed up and ran away.
Rōnin: Guzma in a nutshell, with his Golispod depicting the Samurai part of the archetype with its exoskeleton, ninja and samurai themed-moveset and rarely displayed shreds of honor towards its opponents while on the battlefield.
Sadist: He has shades of this, particularly shown in his battles with Ilima and Lana.
Second Place Is for Losers: Plumeria finds a lot of second place trophies in the Team Skull hideout, hinting at why he's so insistent on being the best.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Golisopod pulls this when it's on the losing end of its semifinals League battle — when it sees the game-ending Fire Blast heading towards it, it activates Emergency Exit to switch to Guzma's other Pokemon...Scizor. Even Ash and Torracat are stunned.
Shrouded in Myth: SM135 hints that Guzma's "undefeated" status may not be what it seems, and a few episodes later we find out that the truth is he only defeats weak trainers and has backed out of any battle where he might lose. Being "undefeated" is more out of him being a coward than being a badass.
Signature Mon: Golisopod is his main Pokémon battler, whom he boasts to be unbeatable just like himself and only fights worthy trainers. And just like Guzma, it's just a bully who only fights weak Pokémon but would cowardly back out when faced with an actual possibility of losing. This proves to be Guzma's downfall in the Alola League as Golisopod's Emergency Exit ends up giving Ash's Torracat a free win by accident.
Slasher Smile: Dons a MURDEROUS-looking one complete with a very intimidating close up of his face towards the end of SM128.
Sore Loser: He has this reaction when Golisopod's Emergency Exit activates at the wrong time, leading to a knocked out Scizor, taking the time to yell at his own Pokemon about it.
Tactical Withdrawal: His battle with Ash ends when Golisopod's Emergency Exit activates. Plumeria hints that this is the reason why he is "undefeated" — he either beats his opponents legit because he know he can win, or Golisopod activates its Ability and he uses it as an excuse to call off the fight.
Villainous Breakdown: Starts to suffer one in his Alola League semifinal battle against Ash when Golisopod's Emergency Exit activates and inadvertently gets his Scizor knocked out by an incoming Fire Blast. Ash's persistent determination also begins to wear on his patience.
Villainy-Free Villain: While he's leader of the gangsters Team Skull, his role as Arc Villain in the league amounts to this, since while he is a Jerkass who plans to abolish the league tournament upon becoming champion, as Lana and Kiawe lampshade, none of his tactics are illegal and he is merely a ruthless and cunning strategist. This also makes him one of few arc villains Ash defeats in an official battle with no outside interruptions.

Plumeria (Plumeri)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/plumeria_anime.png

Voiced in Japanese by: Saki Endo

Voiced in English by: Jo Armeniox

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Karla Vega

Adaptational Wimp: In the original Sun and Moon games, she is the one to challenge the Champion of Alola, here she loses in the first round of the League.
The Cameo: Makes a slight appearance in JN112 amongst the audience watching the Alolan Battle Royale alongside Guzma and members of Team Skull.
Cool Big Sis: The Team Skull grunts look up to her.
Even Evil Has Standards: She's significantly unnerved by how Guzma harshly berates his Pokemon.
Only Sane Man: Among Team Skull. She tries to warn Guzma not to underestimate Ash, but both her underlings and her boss brush it off.
The Worf Effect: Is eliminated by Ilima in the preliminary round of the Alola League, along with the Grunts.

Tupp, Zipp, and Rapp

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/team_skull_grunts_anime.png

From left to right: Rapp, Tupp, and Zipp.

Voiced in Japanese by: Taakaki Uchino (Tupp, SM001-SM011), Toru Sakurai (Tupp, SM024-present), Soshiro Hori (Zipp), Madoka Asahina (Rapp)

Voiced in English by: Billy Bob Thompson (Tupp), Jake Paque (Zipp), Lori Phillips (Rapp)

Voiced in Latin American Spanish by: Osvaldo Trejo Rodríguez (Tupp), Geno Sánchez (Zipp), Noriko (Rapp)

Adaptational Jerkass: They're still harmless for the most part, but they're noticeably more nasty than they were in the games. A few examples include attacking Mimo and going as far as to trash Manolo Stadium before the League started to drive people away.
Bland-Name Product: Their Japanese names are Tupper, Zip, and Wrap. The inspirations, respectively, are Tupperware, Ziploc, and Saran Wrap. TPCi probably didn't want to run afoul of Tupperware or S.C. Johnson.
Book Dumb: Tupp literally has no idea that Kanto exists.
Tupp: What's a Kanto?
Borrowed Catchphrase: They get "blasted off" by Ilima's Eevee in SM065, almost identically to Team Rocket.
The Bully: Are described as constantly showing up to pick fights with people.
Bullying a Dragon: Despite having lost to Ash and Kiawe once already, the same three grunts force them to land and attack them again. This time, it's Ash who sends them flying. Then they do it a third time by attacking the school both attend.
Butt-Monkey: So far, everyone and their mother (literally even, in Ash's case) gets to kick their ass in a Pokémon Battle.
Captain Ersatz: According to his English voice actor, Billy Bob Thompson, Tupp's English voice is based on that of Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad.
Casanova Wannabe: Tupp was this as a kid; but the girls he was attracted to became more interested in Ilima, leading Tupp to develop a grudge against him.
Cheaters Never Prosper: When Team Skull and Team Rocket are trying to get the Darkinium-Z, Tupp, Jessie, and James have their teammates distract the Totem Raticate while they climb the rock pillar to get the crystal. Jessie and James abandon the effort when they see their Pokémon in trouble, while Tupp ignores the plight of his teammates. Team Rocket ends up defeating the Totem Raticate and earning the crystal, while Tupp's attempt to steal it is foiled by the Ally Rattata and Raticate.
Combat Pragmatist:
- They throw out nine Pokémon just to fight Kiawe and Turtonator, who is joined by Ash and Pikachu. It ends up being a case of Quantity vs. Quality, as their nine Pokémon are unevolved Com Mons (Yungoos, Zubat, Salandit) compared to Ash's experienced Pikachu and Kiawe's slower but tougher Turtonator. Pikachu fights all three Salandit, while the Yungoos and Zubat try to rush Turtonator and get a face full of exploding shell for the trouble. Turtonator's Z-Move knocks out all nine.
- In their rematch against Ash and Kiawe, they shoot down Ash's Ride Pelipper then attack both him and Kiawe without even giving them a chance to defend themselves.
- They really go for the overkill in SM065, where they bring as many fellow gang members as possible to attack Ilima's Eevee at once. They still get trounced.
Comically Missing the Point: In-story example. Tupp brags about his Salandit possibly being ready to evolve soon in SM065...but refers to it as a male. Only female Salandit are able to evolve into Salazzle.
Curbstomp Battle: Much like Team Rocket, most of their battles are thoroughly one-sided in the heroes' favor. Tupp is ecstatic from the mere fact he got in one single hit against Ilima's Eevee.
Cuteness Proximity: Rapp really loves cute Pokemon, and even draws her Zubat in a cute style.
Don't You Dare Pity Me!: When Ilima apologizes to Tupp for inconveniencing him, Tupp only gets annoyed even more.
Driven by Envy: In SM065, it's revealed that Tupp has a history with Ilima; even when they were younger, the local girls loved Ilima more than him.
Early-Installment Weirdness: In their first appearance they each had three of their signature Pokemon, while in later appearances they only use one. Zipp's signature was also Yungoos instead of Garbador, with none of the former having yet reappeared.
Evil Versus Evil: SM025 has them competing with Team Rocket over a Z-Crystal, the Darkinium Z. Team Rocket comes out on top, since they actually beat the guardian and earned the crystal.
Fangirls: Tupp had three as a kid; but then Ilima came along and they became his fangirls instead, leading Tupp to develop a grudge against him.
Forgotten First Meeting: When they encounter the Rocket trio again in SM115, 90 episodes after their last meeting, the two groups only vaguely recognize each other, having forgotten their encounter in SM025.
Goldfish Poop Gang: They show up every now and then just to cause trouble and get easily beaten. Even Team Rocket proves more competent than them.
Harmless Villain: It's very hard to take Team Skull seriously as a threat.
Jerkass:
- They pick a fight with Kiawe so they can win his Charizard, and immediately try to cheat by using all their Pokémon against one of his.
- Lana recounts how she found several grunts tormenting a Popplio for no apparent reason, which she saved and would eventually own.
- They crash the open day at the school and use the Tauros to trash the place for no reason.
The Leader: Tupp acts as their leader. At least for small factions as they still serve under Guzma.
Moral Myopia:
- They make a stink about Kiawe using a Z-Move while they vastly outnumbered him and Turtonator 9-1.
- They kick up a similar storm against Ilima when he uses Extreme Evoboost^note, complaining using the numbers game is their strategy.
Oh, Crap!: The same three grunts who got their Pokémon blasted by Kiawe's Z-Move have this reaction when they realize Ash is about do the same with his own Z-Move.
Pet the Dog: Similar to Team Rocket, they seem to genuinely care about their own Pokemon. When Zipp dithers over going to the Pokemon Center when his Garbodor becomes ill, Ash realizes his problem and pretty much forces his decision. After everyone manages to heal it, Zipp purchases the cleaning tool they were using so he can heal Garbodor himself.
Poisonous Person: Tupp uses Salandit, Rapp uses Zubat, and Zipp uses Garbodor, all of which are Poison-type Pokemon.
Recurring Character: A trio of Team Skull grunts, two of which use the designs from the games, and the third member being a fat brown-haired guy, appear as recurring antagonists for the kids.
Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: Become Team Rocket's rivals for the Z-Crystals in one episode. Unlike previous more menacing villain teams who blatantly outmatch Team Rocket, Team Skull as a whole are equally if not more buffoonish.
Sore Loser: After Kiawe beats them, they complain that Kiawe should have told them he could use a Z-Move.
Terrible Trio: These three are the main recurring Team Skull grunts.
Theme Naming: The trio are named Tupp, Rapp, and Zipp, after food storage items. ^noteTupper, Wrap, and Zip in Japanese.
Unknown Rival: Ilima didn't even remember Tupp, and even affably apologises if he upset him. Tupp can't stand it.
Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Tupp used a be a fairly normal kid, but then the girls he was attracted to fell for Ilima instead.
Villain Episode: They shared one with Team Rocket, in which they competed to get their hands on the Darkinium-Z which was being guarded by Totem Raticate.
Villainous Valor: When they are confronted at the school by Ash and Kiawe despite having lost to them twice and being outnumbered by the other students, they refuse to back down even after acknowledging the odds are against them.
Would Hurt a Child: In SM 135, they send out 3 of their Pokemon to attack Kiawe's sister Mimo, a defenseless little girl who couldn't have possibly done them any harm if she tried. Thankfully, Gladion and his Silvally bail her out of that predicament.

Characters / Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon
aka: Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Villains

Main Cast

The Pokémon School

Braviary (Warrgle)

Incineroar (Gaogaen)

Lucario

Venusaur (Fushigibana)

Empoleon (Emperte)

Komala (Nekkoara)

Vulpix (Rokon)

Family Members

Umbreon (Blacky)

Midnight Lycanroc (Midnight Lugarugan)

Silvally (Silvady) -> Type: Null/"Silvally" ("Silvady") -> Silvally (Silvady)

Zoroark

Nihilego/"Lillie" (Uturoid/"Lilie")

Kahunas

Aether Foundation

Other Recurring Characters

Pokémon

Guardian Deities

Team Skull

Alternative Title(s): Pokemon Sun And Moon Anime, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Cast, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Kahunas And Guardian Deities, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Aether Foundation, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Villains

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Characters / Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon aka: Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Villains

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Main Cast

The Pokémon School

Braviary (Warrgle)

Incineroar (Gaogaen)

Lucario

Venusaur (Fushigibana)

Empoleon (Emperte)

Komala (Nekkoara)

Vulpix (Rokon)

Family Members

Umbreon (Blacky)

Midnight Lycanroc (Midnight Lugarugan)

Silvally (Silvady) -> Type: Null/"Silvally" ("Silvady") -> Silvally (Silvady)

Zoroark

Nihilego/"Lillie" (Uturoid/"Lilie")

Kahunas

Aether Foundation

Other Recurring Characters

Pokémon

Guardian Deities

Team Skull

Alternative Title(s): Pokemon Sun And Moon Anime, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Cast, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Kahunas And Guardian Deities, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Aether Foundation, Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Villains

Previous

Index

Next

Characters / Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon
aka: Pokemon The Series Sun And Moon Villains