2nd Gen Professor Oak

[Hiatus]

Professor Oak is a very popular character in Pokémon franchise as a whole; he's first made his appearance in generation one games, eventually stepping foot into two, three, and everything else.

We first see him in intro screen in both RBGY and GSC. In former, he stops us from getting to a route, as the wild might be a danger to us if we don't have any Pokémon with us. Due to this, he gives us a starter to kick off our journey with. In Gold, Silver, and Crystal, he gives us an egg, which later hatches into Togepi (as well as taking part in various other mini-events).

What are our thoughts of Professor Oak's role in RBGY, and which starter Pokémon did we wind up taking from him? Why did we choose it, and were we satisfied? What about GSC; did we enjoy his appearances there? What are some things we've disliked about this character, if there's any, and why don't we like them? What would we change to make these aspects better?

 

[DyingWillFlareon]

Well I hadn't ever had played a Johto game until last year(Silver or Gold on emu) and I thought it was a little funny that Oak was in the intro instead of Elm, but I pretty much quickly forgot about that. From what I remember, Anime Oak is pretty funny to watch, and in the Pokemon Adventures manga he has a good sense of humor along with maturity. I don't wanna spoil anything for anyone who hasn't read those manga, but lemme say I love his role in the Pokemon League in book 3 of RGB arc and at the beginning of the Yellow arc. Although it would have been nice still to have an intro with Elm, I suppose he must have been a much more respected character back then and the remakes deserved the same.

Now if only Green would learn some humor

 

[Imperator161]

For the most part, I've always liked Professor Oak. I agree with the previous poster that it seemed a little weird to have him in the GSC intro rather than Elm, but he was a familiar presence, and obviously the better-established and more confident professor of the Oak/Elm pair, and he plays enough of a role in GSC that his presence in the intro doesn't seem completely out of place. I wish they hadn't removed the battle with him in R/B (if I recall correctly, he has a team programmed for him that's stronger than the champion's, but sadly, he never uses it), as it would have fleshed out his character as an accomplished trainer a little bit more. Still, he has always been my favorite Pokemon professor, and I'm glad he's had as many appearances as he has.

The one thing about his behavior that bothered me is how he treated his grandson after his defeat at the Pokemon League at the player's hands. Yes, your rival was a bit of a jerk, and perhaps his attitude hurt his performance, but the fact that Oak is disappointed in his grandson so quickly seems a little unfair. Your rival never struck me as being terribly cruel to his Pokemon (just ambitious and mean to you), and I think Oak should give him a little more credit for his accomplishments. The ending gave me the impression that Oak was a little harsh with his grandson at times, and I've always wondered if that contributed to said grandson's attitude towards the player.

Oak in the anime seems like a very different character who is much more supportive of his grandson, and generally much more comedic. I like that Oak a lot, too.

As for my starter experiences, I took Squirtle from Oak's Lab (except in Yellow, obviously), and have been very satisfied ever since. Blastoise is my favorite Pokemon, and made an excellent companion through Kanto.