Favourite Rival of Ash

What is your favourite rival of Ash in the Anime. Mine was Paul of the Sinnoh region I loved how the differences between them throughout the season changed and so did Paul especially after the Pokemon League in Sinnoh, I also think Paul was the toughest rival for Ash, what does everyone else think?

Meh, I am indifferent to Paul. I love his team to death and have actually tried replicating it, but hes just so damn unlikeable and one note. Hes basically a Silver rehash minus everything that made silver cool. Hes just emo and Idk why they even used him. Barry is annoying, but he has likeability somewhat and hes not a moper. I guess the best rival Ash ever had was Gary, just in terms of how they started out. They were cut from the same cloth, with Gary beating ash at everything. When their journeys came along, ash was always trailing behind gary while gary was winning 10 badges. Ash only won 8. Ash slowly but surely caught up to Gary, and when Gary lost in the Indigo League, it cooled down his ego and arrogance, and soon he started respecting ash. At the end of Orange Islands, they had a one-on-one battle and Ash lost because his Pikachu was strong enough against Garys Eevee. When they meet again in the Silver Conference, while Gary still has a bit of a snark attitude, he isn't thinking he's hot stuff. Their battle is one of the series best, even if the end turns into Charizard fanservice. He took defeat like a man and later became friends with Ash later in Sinnoh when he was studying to become a researcher. Thats called character growth, something missing since 2002. Gary is the best rival Ash ever had and thats that. Also, ash has aged twice in the series, once in Indigo and once in a Pikachu Short(Maybe not Canon, but whatever), and yet hes still 10. Let this be a discussion on another topic. If anyone chooses to disagree, I hope you dont troll or burn me for this.

I would say Paul was my favorite. He reminded me so much of Silver and he actually was a challenge for Ash to beat. I liked his attitude mostly.

gary was the best, ash had trouble beating him and he was better at everything

I'd say Gary. He's cool and he's a little young professor. I'd guess he would have his grandpa's job when he gets a doctorate. But I am a good candidate because my battle with Ash was pretty epic.

The only rivals I'm really familiar with (in terms of exposure and interaction with Ash) are Gary and Paul (and Trip to some extent). Paul seemed to push the boundaries of what a rival does (like releasing Pokemon, dismissing "unfit" Pokemon, reluctance to team up with Ash during a battle IIRC, etc.), but Gary is classic. Ash and Gary hailed from the same starting point of Pallet Town, and flourished in each of their paths of being a Pokemon Trainer. Their climactic Silver Conference encounter and battle were outstanding (memorable for me, even), and both of them have matured in their own ways, taking cues from each other, at times.

Plus, Gary did seem to drive Ash to do better frequently, even if he seemed like a jerk while doing it. "Gary was here! Ash is a loser!" comes to mind. While Ash usually just got riled up earlier in the series, it seems that, later on, he uses Gary's taunts as fuel to the fire of Pokemon Trainer excellence. Finally, Ash and Gary seem to acknowledge each other skill, yet they still wish to surpass each other (mostly Ash nowadays, since Gary doesn't journey as much as he used to in terms of Training).

I haven't seem much of Trip, but despite his off-putting personality, he has potential, seeing as he wiped the floor with Ash (a "veteran" of at least Frontier Brain caliber, so to speak) as a rookie Pokemon Trainer.

Gary. He was the one I remember the best. I think he defined rival. He outclassed ash many times, he was overconfident, arrogant but also a good trainer. He gave Ash a fair challenge. I dont recal much about Paul... He was the one with dar purple hair right? What I remember is that he was a bit of ajerk. But as a rival that is kinda okay thing. Still for me it is Gary Oak and no one else. (Nostalgia is strong with me)

Gary. Classic Rivalry defined in their relationship. The apex of the rivalry was in the johto league when Ash beat him. Sad that he left to be a professor. Guess it runs in the family.

Paul, he's the most epic of them all. That League battle still lives on in my memory.

I also loved his voice, and personality. Especially him dumping a Pokemon if it doesn't meet his "standards", a notable example catching 3 Starlys and ditching two of them cos they had terrible moves.

Paul. Gary was a great first rival, but he certainly wasn't the best. I think it would have played out a lot better should the writers have really pushed the rivalry between Ash and Gary to its fullest potential. While the two shared some great moments together as friends and rivals, I would hardly call it the best. Then all hope was lost once Gary decided to pursue a different path.

With Paul, the writers really played up the rivalry he and Ash shared throughout the entire Sinnoh Saga. It was actually the first time, I think, the writers really used Ash's rival as a continuous and strong plotline in the show. While a larger side of Paul's character was really straightforward, I wouldn't say he was entirely one note. However, this is Pokémon and one really shouldn't look for a character with an overly complex personality. The different between Paul vs. Ash and Ash vs. Gary, however, was that you could really feel the tension between Ash and Paul. Due to how polar opposite they were, it just made watching them butt heads all the more entertaining.

The added storyline with Chimchar, although a bit forced at times, also gave their rivalry something extra and it had a pretty decent build up leading to their final match at the Sinnoh League. Which, in my opinion, is one of Ash's best battles against a rival.

zdude18 said:

Gary. Classic Rivalry defined in their relationship. The apex of the rivalry was in the johto league when Ash beat him. Sad that he left to be a professor. Guess it runs in the family.

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Definitely, Gary is a classic rival from what I have heard.

Ahem... ;)
I think we all know who we are talking about here...

Gary Oak - original and the best. He had 10 gym badges in Kanto; (somehow) he had the portal companion cube badge (no sh*t, look it up.) AND he had cheerleaders and a car. :/ And assuming they were the same age, kid had all this at age 10. If I were a 10 year old, I'd be feeling pretty lame right now. Way to go Gary Oak. Waaaay toooo goooooo.

I'll go with Gary Oak......

Gary was here. Paul is a loser.

:)

Tutorial said:

Gary was here. Paul is a loser.

:)

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Actually Gary wasn't there he is here. And yeah, Paul and Ash are losers.

Gary was always fantastic and I think will always be the best 'proper' rival for Ash. But in terms of a friendly rivalry... Stephan. I really love him. ♥ I like how he and Ash are great competitive friends and have fun together but take each other absolutely seriously in battle. :3