#it would make sense for goh and chloe to take up the narrative once ash has reached his goal

[mattzerella-sticks]

Just a thought I had after seeing  the announcement of the Big 8 Conference of Pokemon trainers for the final arc of the Royal Championship Tournament with Ash, but with this new region and game coming out I don’t see a future for the Pokemon anime with Ash as the protagonist anymore after this series.

Like, whether he wins or loses against Leon I think Ash will be stepping down from being the protagonist of the series. If he wins, there’s nowhere else for him to go forward so it does beg the question ‘why’ of him starting over again in a new region. It’ll make no sense for them to nerf Pikachu for this new region. If he loses, I don’t see why that would be motivation for him to go to a new region and engage in the same type of stuff he’s already done before despite not doing so with this latest incarnation (the Galar region).

Which brings me to this point - I think, if Ash steps down, either Chloe, Goh, or both, are his replacements.

I think that’s why we’ve gotten this kind of story in Pokemon Journeys because the writing is on the wall for Ash and he’s going to pass the baton on to a newer generation.

Does this make sense? Well, thinking about it I believe both Goh and Chloe were based on the sprites from Pokemon’s I Choose You Pikachu/Eevee, which was a reboot of the Pokemon Red series which started it all (with the protagonist, Red, who Ash is based off of). I think the final arc of Pokemon Journeys won’t have anything to do with Ash but instead be about Goh finally capturing Mew - or realizing he doesn’t have to capture Mew, but after completing that goal means Goh will need something else to chase after. You also have Chloe, whose character arc this series has been about figuring out what she wants to pursue and whether or not she and Eevee can bond. Plus, recent years have done a LOT to push Eevee to the forefront of the series along with Pikachu, so if they do decide to switch Pikachu for Eevee I wouldn’t be surprised. I could see both of them going off to the new region to explore while Ash either goes off to train for the next World Championships or fulfills his responsibilities as the strongest trainer in the world. Goh goes to compete in his own type of training so he can face off against Ash (because as we know Ash’s love language is battling, and I mean that in like the purest ways Ash communicates best when he’s in the midst of battle and it’s helped connect him to so many people afterwards). I also see Chloe maybe going with him in with her Eevee as she pursues contests (because I think they’re bringing that back again what with the emphasis on both Dawn and Serena coming back and pitching Chloe with it). Maybe the third in their posse is someone from the region specifically or that white-haired kid with the Bayleaf (or maybe he stays on with Project Mew if Goh decides he no longer wants to capture Mew, who knows).

I’ll end this by saying it’s children’s animation and it doesn’t have to be that deep, but the fact that this season broke the formula they’ve been working with for so many years shows that they are open and willing to change how they operate and tell the story. They tested the waters with Alola and then completely threw the script away for Journeys. Could they continue on like Journeys, just without the Championship arc and keep it grounded in Goh and Ash travelling around and learning about Pokemon, helping where they can? Maybe. But I see this getting staler faster than the original storyline.

Journeys is special, and I don’t think we’ll get a season like this for a long while. I would not be surprised if this is Ash’s last season, and they retire his character to let Goh and Chloe pick up the narrative.

[punz4lyfe]

Wasted Plotential: Pokemon Journeys Beginning

While Pokemon Journeys has certainly proved to be quite unique when compared to other series in the Pokemon Anime, one thing that has particularly bugged me for a quite a while was the beginning. Now don’t get me wrong, the beginning isn’t “bad” in any way, it’s just that when looking at it, I just feel there could’ve been a bit more done to it. So for this post, I’ll be going over the first two episodes of Pokemon Journeys and what I would do to change them to make them stand out more. I would do a little more than that, but considering more important events happen in those episodes (such as the introduction of Galar and Goh’s capturing of Scorbunny), I think I’ll just leave it at the first two to keep things a little more simple. So without further ado, here we go.

Episode #1: Enter Pikachu!

There’s not really much to change in the first episode. Pikachu’s backstory is fine as it is, as well as Goh and Chloe’s side of the plot as it properly introduces their characters and distinct personalities. Ash, however, is on another story.

I don’t know if it’s just me, but Ash is really treated like a joke throughout the first episode. Sure, this is way before the canon plot of the series even begun where he has shown to be much more capable and competent once he gets older, but seriously, first episode and you’re gonna write him off as a joke even when he just won his first regional league in the present? C’mon.

Anyways, just like in the episode proper, Ash wakes up too late to properly Professor Oak’s Summer Camp. He tries to leave the house in his pajamas, but this time, he is stopped by Delia, not wanting her son to humiliate himself in public. While he argues a bit at first, he soon relents and sulks back up to his room. To pass time, Ash sadly scrolls through a small booklet filled with pictures of Pokemon. Delia notices her son’s miserable state, so she walks back down to the first floor and the scene ends with her picking up a phone, dialing in Professor Oak’s number.

When the episode focuses back on Ash, he is still upset in his room for having to miss Oak’s Summer Camp. That is, until his mother comes back from downstairs to tell him some good news: Professor Oak will be having another Summer Camp session within the next few weeks and she had already signed her son up for it via a message she left on Oak’s phone from her previous phone call. The news excites Ash and Delia quickly reminds him to wake up early next time and never try to walk through Pallet Town in his pajamas. Ash eagerly ensures her that he would never be caught running around in his pajamas in public (which we, as the audience, knows that’s a blatant lie) and he grabs a random bandana from his drawers and proclaims it as a good luck charm to help him make it to the next session on-time, with the bandana being the same one he will give to Serena. With his vigor restored, Ash’s backstory part of this episode ends with him looking through the Pokemon booklet again, wondering to himself the many Pokemon he could come across at camp, such as Poliwag or Rapidash, a reference to the times he saw those Pokemon in flashbacks from the Diamond & Pearl and XYZ series.

With these minor changes, the episode’s narrative is hardly changed, Ash is treated with a bit more respect, and the some continuity of other flashback shown in previous series is established.

Episode #2: Legend? Go! Friends? Go!

Here’s when the changes really pick up.

At the beginning of the episode when it shows Ash’s many accomplishments from his past adventures, alongside that shot, we also get a little flashback montage of some of Ash’s most proudest battles, with those battles being against the likes of Lt. Surge, Drake, Gary, Noland, Spenser, Brandon, Paul, Trip, Sawyer, Alain, Gladion, and Kukui, usually showcasing his more iconic mons, such as Pikachu, Charizard, Sceptile, Infernape, Oshawott, Greninja, Hawlucha, Rowlet, Lycanroc, and Torracat. I mean, if the manga wasn’t afraid to showcase Ash’s old mons, I don’t see why the anime itself would be.

When Ash makes it to Oak’s Lab, instead of with only having Pikachu in his party, Ash goes to the ranch to withdraw 5 Pokemon. It honestly doesn’t make sense for Ash to only have Pikachu alone in his party when he’s not going on any big and particular adventure at the moment. Since he’s most likely been at Kanto for a hot minute and since we all know that Ash treasures all of his Pokemon, it would honestly make a lot of sense for Ash to rotate 5 random Pokemon every day from Oak’s ranch when he’s not traveling in order to keep every his mons in tip-top shape and show that he still loves being by their side. Otherwise, it kinda just makes Pikachu’s little tantrum later down Journeys look even more OOC and inconsiderate as it already is. Anyways, since he will attending a Kanto-related celebration, the 5 mons Ash brings with him are Bulbasaur, Charizard, Kingler, Muk, and Tauros, promising Bulbasaur he will return him to Oak’s Lab as soon as he can in order to ensure Bulbasaur’s peacekeeping duties. He also has Bulbasaur out of his Pokeball for the time being, giving Ash’s iconic and first-ever grass-type some more screen time.

Ash, Delia, Mimey, and Oak make it to the lab and that’s when Ash comes across Cerise’s Yamper. Instead of pulling an incredibly OOC moment by invading a clearly defensive Pokemon’s space, Ash simply just keeps his distance while gently beckoning the unfamiliar mon to come to him for a pet. Yamper is, of course, distrustful, but after some reassurance from Pikachu and Bulbasaur, Yamper soon approaches Ash and happily allows the trainer to pet him while making friends with his two outside mons as well. Yamper soon suddenly jumps back up to its feet to run past Ash and return to Chloe’s side, setting up for an awkward introduction instead of Chloe being an inconsiderate jerk by leaving a person her Pokemon clearly has attacked left stranded alone without even calling for help or checking on him. Ash asks her if Yamper’s her Pokemon and she just says “no”. Ash then tries to introduce himself, Pikachu, and Bulbasaur, but Chloe, not wanting much to do with the sudden stranger, simply walks right past them to return home, with the only thing she says being a subtle, but polite “excuse me”.

Ash soon regroups with Oak and the rest of the episode plays on the same way up until the encounter with Lugia. When Ash tries to make his way to the Legendaries location, he has Charizard fly him to its location. The rough winds occurring as a byproduct of Lugia’s presence kinda messes up Charizard’s flight path, justifying Ash’s late arrival compared to other trainers. Upon arriving to Lugia’s location, Ash decides to watch from the side, marveled at both the Johto Legendary and the many powerful Pokemon used by the other trainers. When Lugia begins to take off, Ash gets back on Charizard to follow it, which Lugia, being a friendly mon, sees that Ash and his Pokemon mean no harm and happily flies alongside them. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is when Ash meets Goh.

Ash finds him holding onto Lugia’s tail for dear life, so he helps him onto Charizard’s back. Goh, seeing Ash, becomes a bit stargazed upon seeing a trainer about his age with such a powerful Pokemon as Charizard. Before any former introductions can be, Ash suddenly hears Charizard roar for him and he turns around to see Lugia looking right at him and Goh before slightly turning its backside towards them. While Goh is confused, Ash quickly gets the message that it wants to take them for a ride, so he takes Goh’s hand and leaps onto Lugia’s back with Pikachu while Bulbasaur stays behind on Charizard in order to keep an eye out for their trainer in case something goes wrong. At first, Goh is scared out of his mind until Ash ensures him that Lugia means no harm. The montage of Lugia soaring around with Ash and Goh plays the same for the most part, with a little comedic moment added in when Lugia takes its passengers underwater, causing Bulbasaur to panic before Charizard calms him down, knowing that Lugia is just having fun. Ash and Goh then introduce themselves to each other and once they are left at the flower field, Goh panics due to having no idea how to get home until Ash calmly ensures him that they could just ride Charizard.

The two return to the lab and as soon Charizard touches the ground, Goh collapses out of exhaustion and relief, given the fact that he’s never flown on a Lugia or Charizard before. Yamper greets both Ash and Pikachu in a friendly manner and then we go into Cerise recruiting Ash and Goh. He’s impressed at Goh’s footage and states to himself that he is indeed of some enthusiastic research assistants, which is when Oak steps to inform Cerise that Ash himself has already traveled through Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, Kalos, and Alola (which surprises both Goh and Chloe), so he could definitely be of some good use thanks to his previous adventures in those regions. Not only that, Delia also steps in to state how much of a strong trainer Ash is before whispering to Cerise’s ear that he’s Alola’s Champion. I would make a version where she says it out load for Goh and Chloe to hear, but for now, I think I’ll just leave it as a surprise in case the canon anime does that as well. With more than enough reason, Cerise recruits Ash and then, to Goh’s shock, does the same for him, noting that being an assistant could be beneficial to the beginning of his trainer career. The two boys are then introduced to their dorm room (with Ash humbly allowing Goh the top bunk instead of fighting over it like a 6-year old), Delia leaves Mimey with Ash to help take care of him, Ash gives his other 5 mons’ Pokeballs to Oak to return to the ranch since he now has a new adventure (and thus an actual reason to start from scratch with Pikachu again), and Delia and Oak then make their exit. While Delia still reminds Ash to eat healthy and brush his teeth (because that’s what moms do), she doesn’t ask Goh to watch over her son in my version, considering it would be stupid to say that since Ash is leagues above Goh and that’s why she left Mimey at the lab in the first place. Instead, it’s the other way around, with Oak asking Ash to watch over Goh, pointing out that he’s new which Ash promises, much to Goh’s embarrassment. And then the rest of the episode plays out the same way as it did originally. (seriously, what was this episode’s love for embarrassing Ash 24-7 like he’s Dan freaking Hibiki?)

Closing

It honestly really bugs me on how much Ash, the main character of the anime series, is treated like an utter joke throughout the first two episodes of Journeys. If it wasn’t for his past achievements being shown at the beginning of the second episode, one unfamiliar with his character could easily mistake him as just as much as a beginning as Goh and Chloe due to his constant immature behavior that leads him making mistakes that he should be more than smart to not do (invading Yamper’s space, arguing over a simple bunk, etc.), and sadly, this is kinda an overall issue for Journeys as a whole, but that’s another story. Ash just conquered the Alola League, he should be portrayed as a mature, yet fun-loving mentor, not someone who could easily pose as Goh’s younger brother behavior-wise or a kid Chloe has to babysit.