Though the Pokemon franchise mainly markets the unique monsters that make up the universe, the anime series is most definitely driven by the human characters.
The anime’s plot is as much about the people as it is about the Pokemon they make friends with, and their lives are put on full display for fans to learn from. Ash and his companions have become iconic, not just because they’re funny or relatable, but because of the journeys they went through, the obstacles they faced, and the battles they fought. This list will be a celebration of character development, looking at the main characters’ flaws and how they overcame them.
10 Goh: Overconfidence
Goh’s arc is ongoing, but with what Pokemon Journeys has shown so far, he’s kind of a lone wolf. Why that is is still to be seen, but that attitude has led him to be overconfident one way or another, to the point where he started his journey with the improbable goal of catching Mew as his first Pokemon.
Granted, that goal doesn’t seem so improbable now. He seems to catch all types of Pokemon with ease, including an actual Suicune. Catching Legendary Pokemon won’t be as easy as that all the time, so he’ll always be disappointed unless he lowers his expectations a bit.
9 Iris: Immaturity
Iris’s skill as a Trainer, especially with strong Dragon-types, was apparent even before her time as a companion, but her trouble with forming relationships was a big problem during her formative years. Her immaturity with things like that created rifts between her Excadrill and Dragonite that needed healing.
Fortunately, the little bit of development she got during her character arc blossomed off-screen, as seen with her return in Pokemon Journeys. Not only has she honed her ability to understand Dragon-type Pokemon, but she’s become a truly nurturing person, which is a stark contrast from her past, easily-irritable self.
8 Clemont: Low Self-Esteem
Clemont’s passion for science and technology is obvious. Unfortunately, he doesn’t always have confidence in himself even when it came to his specialty. He puts blame on himself a lot of the time, and while it’s warranted when his inventions explode, most of the time they’re just situations that were not in his control. While that should give him a level head, he becomes overly pessimistic at times.
Thankfully, he had an excellent support group, with Bonnie, Ash, and Serena all being there for him when he was down. He looked up to all of them one way or another, but mainly for the confidence he lacked. It’s only a matter of time before that rubs off of him.
7 Misty: Low Self-Esteem
It wasn’t brought up often, but Misty felt a lot of pressure from her sisters, both directly and indirectly. The mere fact that she was the youngest of three established Gym Leader siblings was heavy enough on her, and the fact that she was, at first, only assigned a post at the gym when her sisters were unavailable didn’t help.
It was only after overcoming her fear of Gyarados that she truly transformed into a confident Gym Leader, showing that in spite of her lack of self-esteem, she was an excellent Water-type Trainer because she cared for all Pokemon, even those that struck fear in her. These days, she’s a more confident Trainer than ever, fully taking responsibility for the Cerulean City Gym, and rightfully so.
6 May: Inexperience
May had the most drastic glow-up out of all of Ash’s traveling companions, now being one of the Pokemon world’s best Contest Coordinators. That mostly has to do with how she started as an absolute beginner who was hesitant to even touch Pokemon.
A stark contrast from her Gym Leader father and know-it-all younger brother, May had very little knowledge on how to properly train Pokemon, constantly committing rookie mistakes at the start of her journey, and even overworking her companion Pokemon in times of frustration. Slowly but surely, she managed to learn from others, especially Ash and Brock, and learned to understand how to treat Pokemon with love and consideration while also pushing them to be their best.
5 Dawn: Overconfidence
If family success weighed heavily on Misty, the polar opposite can be said for Dawn. Dawn’s path was set from the get go. She was going to be a top coordinator, just like her mother. That path proved to be more difficult than she realized, as her optimistic spirit was tested after depressing slumps plagued her journey across Sinnoh.
Fortunately, she managed to stray away from her mother’s shadow and strike a balance between humility and self-confidence. She matured in times of failure, working harder and smarter when the going got rough. Her development culminated in successes such as defeating May at the Wallace Cup, and finishing second place in the Sinnoh Grand Festival.
4 Ash: Recklessness
From the very beginning, Ash Ketchum has had a tendency to dive headfirst into everything.
There have been times when that “act first, think later” attitude helped him. Other times, he bit off more than he can chew, especially in his earlier days. This was most apparent in battles, as he had a tendency to go for broke without thinking about strategy or type matchups. He’s matured a lot from his days as an overly headstrong novice, but his bad habits will still come out sometimes. Even in the most recent seasons of the anime when he’s truly become one of the Pokemon world’s best Trainers, there are times when he will look to attack as quickly as possible regardless of what his opponent will do.
3 Brock: Unrelenting Pursuit For Romance
Being the voice of reason on most of Ash’s travels, it’s hard to see any glaring flaw with Brock. That is, unless he’s around women. Even if it isn’t a Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny, Brock will literally profess his love for a woman crossing the street. While this can be problematic in more ways than one, the biggest potential victim of that tendency is himself. He’s already (supposedly) had his heart broken by Professor Ivy, shuddering and getting into a depressive episode at the mere mention of her name.
Fortunately, that’s been offset by a few successes, most notably Lucy and Olivia. Still, this unrelenting pursuit of love could come back to bite him more than it already has.
2 Serena: Lack Of Direction
Having spent most of her life Rhyhorn racing while having no interest in it, fan favorite Serena didn’t even start her adventure with a clear goal in mind. All she wanted was to meet Ash in person, and she would spend the first few chapters of her journey spontaneously following her childhood crush.
It took her a while before she discovered Pokemon Performing and adopted it as her passion. Although her career began with a spectacular failure, she was in too deep and had to finish what she started. With the help of her friends and Pokemon (and a symbolic haircut), Serena eventually became successful in a craft she loved, and managed to forge her own path in life, setting her up for more success in the future.
1 Lillie: Fear
Lillie’s past is well documented, and to call it traumatic would be an understatement. Getting attacked by the Ultra Beast Nihilego as a child gave her a legitimate fear of touching Pokemon, as well as strained her relationship with her mother after she got obsessed over them and neglected her.
While it did come with a gigantic relapse midway through, Lillie managed to overcome her fear with the help of her friends, her companion Pokemon Snowy, and her brother Gladion’s Silvally. Her journey of defeating her demons did not necessarily lead to drastic success in any social fields, but it made leaps and bounds for her personal growth and allowed her to live life without fear from her past.
NEXT: 5 Of The Best Battles Of The Pokemon Anime (& 5 Of The Worst)
