~Antagonist~ Rival Fanclub

[Squirrel]

Which of Ash's main rivals were potentially the weakest?

By main rivals, I'm referring to Gary, Ritchie, Paul and Trip, though since Trip still hasn't gotten his end team yet, he can be replaced by Barry.

Out of the lot I think I'd have to say Paul actually. Despite having a really powerful team, he lacked confidence in his Pokémon, as opposed to the confidence he had in his own skill. Even though that was changed later on, he appeared to look down on pretty much everyone else, except for the more respectable trainers and his brother, which kind of opposed him of change, which was bad, considering the strategies he got from Ash did help him in a few battles.

I agree with what you said about Paul, he was my first thought too, but fact is he was getting MUCH stronger and much better at working with his Pokemon as the series progressed. And his Pokemon certainly didn't seem to dislike him in any way (bar Chimchar). I would very much like to see if he's still taking the attitude of replacing weaker Pokemon with stronger ones though, if so they I don't think he'll ever be as strong as he wants. I think the weakest rival either has to be Barry or Trip. Trip has a lot of potential, but he's the only rival to have done pretty badly against Ash's team (in their third battle) - it seems like he's getting stronger at a much slower rate than Ash etc. And Barry... Well, Barry was just never that strong to begin with haha. I think he chose an awkward team to work with and he doesn't really have what it takes to be a great Pokemon trainer.

 

[Olli]

I agree with what you said about Paul, he was my first thought too, but fact is he was getting MUCH stronger and much better at working with his Pokemon as the series progressed. And his Pokemon certainly didn't seem to dislike him in any way (bar Chimchar). I would very much like to see if he's still taking the attitude of replacing weaker Pokemon with stronger ones though, if so they I don't think he'll ever be as strong as he wants. I think the weakest rival either has to be Barry or Trip. Trip has a lot of potential, but he's the only rival to have done pretty badly against Ash's team (in their third battle) - it seems like he's getting stronger at a much slower rate than Ash etc. And Barry... Well, Barry was just never that strong to begin with haha. I think he chose an awkward team to work with and he doesn't really have what it takes to be a great Pokemon trainer.

Though I have only seen a small bit of the B/W anime, I concluded from the first few encounters with Trip that I didn't like him at all. I don't know much about his team or his methods of training, but I just think that his personality was a remake of Paul's, and to add to that they made him even more arrogant and unlikeable than Paul were at first, giving me a total of 0 respect for him. But I can only assume what you said about him was true.

I agree with you that Barry was just generally weak, and even though he trained regularly and got all the gym badges, he just wasn't really that strong. He didn't really seem like he planned that much ahead post-battle, and he wasn't really that quick on the battlefield either, giving him small chances in the league as we saw.

 

[miltankRancher]

And now I'm back from outer space.

Well, Trip, for me, is kind of progressing really slowly. He just adds a new Pokemon in his party every time he and Ash meets up. Also, he's a total Paul-esque trainer, with no personality whatsoever. He looks cooler than Paul, though, but he is really weak. His Conkeldurr, despite having gone through some major changes, is mediocre at the best.

 

[Squirrel]

And now I'm back from outer space.

Well, Trip, for me, is kind of progressing really slowly. He just adds a new Pokemon in his party every time he and Ash meets up. Also, he's a total Paul-esque trainer, with no personality whatsoever. He looks cooler than Paul, though, but he is really weak. His Conkeldurr, despite having gone through some major changes, is mediocre at the best.

Did you just walk in to find us here with that sad look upon our faces?

I agree with this, but I think he does have some personality :3 Although you're right he really is very weak compared to Ash's past rivals, plus his strategies normally tend to suck :( And his team barely seems to be advancing at all. The only Pokemon really showing any signs of growth is Servine, but even that is still pretty weak. I'd love to see some of his other Pokemon get a chance at fighting some more, like his Lampent or Vanillite, then maybe his team would be a bit more well-rounded :3 I can't wait to see what else he catches though; his team so far is very diverse that his next Pokemon could be anything :o

 

[Olli]

Since this club as well as the owner has been inactive for quite a while, this club is better off closed. Anyone are free to take over, but due to the low amount of replies, I suggest remaking it.

~Closed~​