How can you improve Ash/Satoshi?

[Dragon]

So if you're watching the anime, you'll definitely know all about Ash Ketchum by now. He's a simple lad, his dream is to be the greatest pokemon master ever with his partner Pikachu.

But after season after season with Ash as the main character, do you think he had more room for improvement that he hasn't gotten before? If you had the power to improve on Ash's character, what would you do? What do you think Ash needs in the anime?

 

[CodeHelmet]

So if you're watching the anime, you'll definitely know all about Ash Ketchum by now. He's a simple lad, his dream is to be the greatest pokemon master ever with his partner Pikachu.

But after season after season with Ash as the main character, do you think he had more room for improvement that he hasn't gotten before? If you had the power to improve on Ash's character, what would you do? What do you think Ash needs in the anime?

One word: AGE Anyone else sick and tired of seeing him as a 10 year old? I mean there are several "What is Ash's Age?" videos and one has him pegged around 17 or 18 while others much more than that. Had he been allowed to age, the Romance backstory with Serena would have been far more appropriate no?

 

[Dragon]

One word: AGE Anyone else sick and tired of seeing him as a 10 year old? I mean there are several "What is Ash's Age?" videos and one has him pegged around 17 or 18 while others much more than that. Had he been allowed to age, the Romance backstory with Serena would have been far more appropriate no?

Ah, yeah, I was kinda disappointed how he never seems to age and mature? Well I think he's shown to be at least 13, but, yeah. xD

I honestly want him to grow like how we grew up watching him in the anime. Not just in age either: like, his battle styles never really been refined or upgraded; like the battle techniques he learns from specific seasons are never shown again. :c

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

Let's see, I can name a few things that definitely would be an improvement for Ash:

1. He actually should RETAIN what he learned from past seasons, especially when the entire POINT behind his journey is to become a Pok?mon Master. No more losing to people he should be perfectly capable of beating such as rookies of any type.

2. He should also age, obviously (it's a Rocky Balboa-type competition, that would naturally require aging. For goodness sakes, even the Dead or Alive characters have aged at this point.). This isn't the Simpsons, which has negative continuity and a largely plotless story. Besides, thanks to the stupidity of keeping him 10 since AG (yes, even before BW delivered that bombshell, it was made clear in AG eyecatchers that Ash was still 10), now Ash can't even HOPE to keep his promise to Max to battle him as a trainer (heck, Max can't even HOPE to become a trainer either, because if Ash can't age, the others can't either).

3. Probably most important, he should actually be ALLOWED to participate in, not to mention actually WIN a league (seriously, Sun and Moon has surpassed even AG and Best Wishes as the worst series of Pok?mon to ever exist. At least those two actually ALLOWED Ash to pursue his goal by having him compete in a league. We don't even get much on his Pok?mon Master goal, and if it weren't for Kikuki making clear he intends to create an Alolan league after seeing Ash and Misty battle, we would even go so far as to assume he dropped the goal in favor of graduating like CoroCoro's initial coverage for the series seemed to imply). It doesn't even have to be the end of the series if he wins, either, since he still needs to actually fight the Elite 4 and Champion even if he does technically win the league, as DP pointed out.

I won't bother mentioning capturing Legendaries/Mythical Pok?mon, or evolving Pok?mon, or even releasing them, since that's its own contention, but the above three are certainly what should be done to improve Ash, especially after how screwed over the writers made him regarding his goal (imagine what they did to Misty in GCYL as well as hints strewn about in AG about the Hoenn Gym Leader's "talents" or lack thereof, and apply it to literally every second of every episode of Pok?mon Sun and Moon barring MAYBE the Kanto Reunion arc, and you'll see EXACTLY what I mean).

 

[LadyJirachu]

He could actually win a league for once. That would be nice.

 

[Enpatsu Shakugan]

A total recasted lead.

There is no saving this "character".

 

[Sloxy]

Let's be optimistic guys, Ash has aged 1 year in 20 years our time. Since in Sun and Moon to be attending the Island Trials you have to be 11 (Stated in the game), so I'm just assuming Ash has aged to 11 years old. Nice guys lets see, for us to get the show we want all we have to do is wait...

...140 years, Well I hope my great-grandkids will enjoy the show at least!

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

Let's be optimistic guys, Ash has aged 1 year in 20 years our time. Since in Sun and Moon to be attending the Island Trials you have to be 11 (Stated in the game), so I'm just assuming Ash has aged to 11 years old. Nice guys lets see, for us to get the show we want all we have to do is wait...

...140 years, Well I hope my great-grandkids will enjoy the show at least!

Well, technically, Ash would have been 11 in Pikachu and Pichu Bros. from the third movie. Unfortunately, the eyecatchers in AG (not to mention BW's infamous revelation that he's still 10, and that was DESPITE the penultimate episode actually implying time had passed due to Iris and Cilan entering the Bullet Train, when last we heard of it, it was due the "following Wednesday of next year.") practically nixed that theory. And besides, the anime generally doesn't follow the games, certainly not to THAT level of detail (weren't the player characters in the games supposed to be 14 or something?). Heck, technically, being in a school environment was NEVER the point of the actual game.

 

[strangerhypno]

You can only expect so much from a walking marketing tool.

 

[Palamon]

Aging him up to at least 13 or 15. That's really it. Nothing else can really improve him.

 

[CodeHelmet]

Well, technically, Ash would have been 11 in Pikachu and Pichu Bros. from the third movie. Unfortunately, the eyecatchers in AG (not to mention BW's infamous revelation that he's still 10, and that was DESPITE the penultimate episode actually implying time had passed due to Iris and Cilan entering the Bullet Train, when last we heard of it, it was due the "following Wednesday of next year.") practically nixed that theory. And besides, the anime generally doesn't follow the games, certainly not to THAT level of detail (weren't the player characters in the games supposed to be 14 or something?). Heck, technically, being in a school environment was NEVER the point of the actual game.

Ash was 11 when he returned to Viridian City for his Eighth Kanto badge. In Movie#3, he'd been 12 at that point. Fact is they don't even age the guy despite numerous hints and statements to the contrary. That's why I bolded my lone and only statement: For him to AGE! You age Ash, then that gives a more reliable sense of continuity and allows for certain events such as Max and Bonnie eventually becoming Pokémon trainers(not to mention Brock, Misty, May, Dawn, Iris, Serena and every other character Ash has met growing older, wiser and stronger as well). The more I look at Brock and Misty's return to the Anime, the more I don't like it because while they returned for the 20th Anniversary, they're returning again as marketing tools for the LGPE games(along with the Trainer in SM91 with the odd looking Pikachu and that's putting it tactfully).

 

[Sloxy]

Oh yeah, i've finally opened up to watching the sun and moon anime. From what i've seen so far, I can handle the art change, and I guess the constant goofiness of Ash. I must admit though the animations in battle's are amazing. Although I don't know if i'll be asked to watch all episodes (Mainly because of the fillers), Is there like a list of episodes that relate to the main plot, or an arc of something/someone?

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

Ash was 11 when he returned to Viridian City for his Eighth Kanto badge. In Movie#3, he'd been 12 at that point. Fact is they don't even age the guy despite numerous hints and statements to the contrary. That's why I bolded my lone and only statement: For him to AGE! You age Ash, then that gives a more reliable sense of continuity and allows for certain events such as Max and Bonnie eventually becoming Pokémon trainers(not to mention Brock, Misty, May, Dawn, Iris, Serena and every other character Ash has met growing older, wiser and stronger as well). The more I look at Brock and Misty's return to the Anime, the more I don't like it because while they returned for the 20th Anniversary, they're returning again as marketing tools for the LGPE games(along with the Trainer in SM91 with the odd looking Pikachu and that's putting it tactfully).

I didn't really count the Battle of the Badge because that was exclusive to the English dub (originally, Ash never even specified how long it's been since the events of Episode 2. Something similar happened with Giovanni's reference to Team Rocket having six months since their last attempt at delivering a Pokémon prior to Togepi in the same episode, which is presumably a reference to the events of the St. Anne Arc. Don't believe me? Visit Dogasu's page.), so really, going strictly by the Japanese version, the only time Ash explicitly aged was in the Pikachu and Pichu short.

As far as Misty and Brock returning, to be fair, at least now we've got an actual chance at Misty actually resuming her goal (let's not forget, she was given a really raw deal out of ALL the non-Ash cast save for maybe Max due to her literally being forced out of her goal by outside forces, while the others either continued to pursue their stated goals, or, in the case of Brock and Serena, at the very least made sure to change their goals of their own volition), so that's one good thing about her return (even if it IS just to advertise the LGPE games, and I'm not even sure if that was truly the case since they're wearing their original uniforms. I'm pretty sure if their appearance was to promote that game, they'd make sure their standard outfits are in fact the ones from those games, sort of like how May used her Emerald outfit for her appearance in Sinnoh.).

 

[CodeHelmet]

I didn't really count the Battle of the Badge because that was exclusive to the English dub (originally, Ash never even specified how long it's been since the events of Episode 2. Something similar happened with Giovanni's reference to Team Rocket having six months since their last attempt at delivering a Pokémon prior to Togepi in the same episode, which is presumably a reference to the events of the St. Anne Arc. Don't believe me? Visit Dogasu's page.), so really, going strictly by the Japanese version, the only time Ash explicitly aged was in the Pikachu and Pichu short.

As far as Misty and Brock returning, to be fair, at least now we've got an actual chance at Misty actually resuming her goal (let's not forget, she was given a really raw deal out of ALL the non-Ash cast save for maybe Max due to her literally being forced out of her goal by outside forces, while the others either continued to pursue their stated goals, or, in the case of Brock and Serena, at the very least made sure to change their goals of their own volition), so that's one good thing about her return (even if it IS just to advertise the LGPE games, and I'm not even sure if that was truly the case since they're wearing their original uniforms. I'm pretty sure if their appearance was to promote that game, they'd make sure their standard outfits are in fact the ones from those games, sort of like how May used her Emerald outfit for her appearance in Sinnoh.).

Hate to break it to you but she's not resuming her goal. She, along with Brock, are only back for LGPE promotion. Like with the two episode Kanto arc, they'll have little to do with the story or with the other characters. Just there for nostalgia and promotional fan service. I know I'm coming across as a real pessimist but the two episodes they were in were complete fan service with absolutely no explanation as to how they got their Mega Stones. It's as bad writing as Pikachu learning Electroweb(which it had no business learning in the first place) without any prior training by Ash(unlike Iron Tail). The Anime exists to promote the games and since Brock and Misty are the first two Gym Leaders, they're there for that purpose and maybe, although it's a huge stretch, advising Kakui on how to set up Gyms in the Alola region(wherein they adopt the Trial system).

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

Hate to break it to you but she's not resuming her goal. She, along with Brock, are only back for LGPE promotion. Like with the two episode Kanto arc, they'll have little to do with the story or with the other characters. Just there for nostalgia and promotional fan service. I know I'm coming across as a real pessimist but the two episodes they were in were complete fan service with absolutely no explanation as to how they got their Mega Stones. It's as bad writing as Pikachu learning Electroweb(which it had no business learning in the first place) without any prior training by Ash(unlike Iron Tail). The Anime exists to promote the games and since Brock and Misty are the first two Gym Leaders, they're there for that purpose and maybe, although it's a huge stretch, advising Kakui on how to set up Gyms in the Alola region(wherein they adopt the Trial system).

Yeah, considering that they not only had Brock doing a LOT better than her due to effortlessly beating his opponents (and Misty was no slouch either since it was made very clear that Ash was the first character to EVER manage to bypass her Mega Gyarados strategy), but they ended up repeatedly stressing through that entire episode that he was a former gym leader (ie, no longer in the profession), I have my doubts that they AREN'T trying to hint at Misty potentially resuming her original goal. There wouldn't have been a point to repeatedly stating Brock was a former Gym Leader at all unless it was to imply that you can't advance far while you're still a Gym Leader. And besides, let's not forget that they had already managed to outright hint in that same episode that Misty and Brock WOULD appear in Alola, not to mention that there WOULD be an Alola league (heck, they if anything inspired Kikui to form it), and LGPE hadn't even been officially announced yet.

Besides, if they were solely there for the LGPE promotion, don't you think they would have, you know, done an outfit change that resembled their outfits from LGPE instead of using their original series outfits again? And I'm pretty sure that them actually appearing on the poster indicates that, at the very least, they're going to play a bigger role in this upcoming arc compared to their last appearance (let's not forget, the initial poster didn't even show them on there at all, and that was DESPITE the fact that they were effectively responsible for there being an Alola league in the works).

And to be fair, "Aim for the Horn" didn't exactly utilize training, nor did the whole "Thunder Shield" from AG. In fact, Ash was infamous for coming up with strategies on the fly in ALL his appearances.

Either way, Ash still has to win a league before he can truly be considered better done (especially an actual in-game league).

 

[Twilight-kun]

When the series director comes out and says that Ash is and always will be ten, you may as well stop griping about it

Forget his age and let him accomplish something and then have that carry over into following series

Give us a Champion League arc where Ash can fight against various E4 members and lose in full battles against the likes of Lance, Cynthia, Wallace, Steven, Alder, and Diantha

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

When the series director comes out and says that Ash is and always will be ten, you may as well stop griping about it

Forget his age and let him accomplish something and then have that carry over into following series

Give us a Champion League arc where Ash can fight against various E4 members and lose in full battles against the likes of Lance, Cynthia, Wallace, Steven, Alder, and Diantha

If you're referring to Masamitsu Hidaka, I might as well remind you that he wasn't even AWARE of Shaymin or even Arceus's existence, and that was DESPITE them already being publicized in CoroCoro, and besides which, their game data already being leaked via dataminers on Serebii.net, so I'm not entirely sure he's the best person to describe (not to mention he seemed to conveniently forget that Ash technically already WON a league in the Orange Islands, yet that never stopped him from actually continuing his journey. Heck, him winning the Battle Frontier arguably was even BETTER than winning a league due to the Brains being about as strong as an Elite Four member at the very least, if not even STRONGER based on what Agatha and Scott said). Besides, like I said earlier, this is NOT the Simpsons, which actually COULD afford to forego continuity, while Pokémon really can't do that due to the nature of its plot.

And that champion league arc is not a bad idea, especially when it would expand on something alluded to in DP regarding Ash having to face off against the Regional Elite 4 and Champion if he wins said regional league.

 

[Sloxy]

And that champion league arc is not a bad idea, especially when it would expand on something alluded to in DP regarding Ash having to face off against the Regional Elite 4 and Champion if he wins said regional league.

If Ash actually managed to challenge one of the champions, I would pay money to see him vs cynthia in a full 6v6 battle, just my opinion. I hope he doesn't win the sun and moon league, I know it sounds wierd since everyone wants him to win, but him winning that league over any other just isn't right in my eyes.

 

[weedle_mchairybug]

If Ash actually managed to challenge one of the champions, I would pay money to see him vs cynthia in a full 6v6 battle, just my opinion. I hope he doesn't win the sun and moon league, I know it sounds wierd since everyone wants him to win, but him winning that league over any other just isn't right in my eyes.

Eh, I personally can't say I'd find Alola the most appropriate to have him win a league, but at this point, I'd take ANY victory even if it's a poor one due to just how many times Ash was never allowed to win after the Orange League (heck, even there, they ended up cheapening that victory, not to mention the Battle Frontier win which was even WORSE thanks to Gary beating Ash and Pikachu despite having absolutely NO reason to do so, having been out of training for quite a while, while by contrast Pikachu just single-handedly took out a Regice with minimal effort).

 

[Darkpoké0011]

This might be just me but watching over old episodes and stuff, I kinda miss savage Ash. In the first couple of series he came across as more headstrong and immature but he sure did make you laugh, and the things he came out with you'd never see in recent series of the anime