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Review JN132: The Finals IV: "Partner"

Well... that's it.. I don't really know If I should congratulate Ash.

If you're allowed to use three gimmicks while all the other Champions have to play by the official rules fair and square (regardless of the fact the Leon offered it, you see, Ash could have just declined that offer), this victory just doesn't feel well-deserved but like something that needed to happen at all costs. (And I'm not even talking about the Cynthia battle here...)

Honestly, I was much more emotional when Ash becoame Champion of Alola! Given everything that has happened in the Masters Eight Tournament (including the tricks and the "special" rules) I can' help but think this victory leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Well, "congrats", Ash ... somehow, I guess
 
Fairy Type Arceus said:
True, but I think we can say this is the closest we'll ever get to the feeling of a series finale for pokemon. Nothing they ever do can come close to this again.
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Well, short of pulling an even greater stunt like having Ash and Pikachu sacrifice their lives to save the Earth or something when the anime finally truly ends I suppose. :unsure:
 
Queen Cynthia said:
Well... that's it.. I don't really know If I should congratulate Ash.

If you're allowed to use three gimmicks while all the other Champions have to play by the official rules fair and square (regardless of the fact the Leon offered it, you see, Ash could have just declined that offer), this victory just doesn't feel well-deserved but like something that needed to happen at all costs. (And I'm not even talking about the Cynthia battle here...)

Honestly, I was much more emotional when Ash becoame Champion of Alola! Given everything that has happened in the Masters Eight Tournament (including the tricks and the "special" rules) I can' help but think this victory leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Well, "congrats", Ash ... somehow, I guess
Click to expand...
Ash didn’t refute his victory earlier on against Volkner, despite using a gimmick, whilst Volkner didn’t have one to use. The people in the anime see it that if you can be stronger, then you should - nothing should hold you back. We know that without limits, Ash is stronger overall.

I can see why you think the Alola victory was more emotional, but I don’t think it’s fair to dismiss this battle because Ash used more gimmicks than Leon.
 
I have not been able to get any sleep since this episode aired yesterday. This all feels like a dream, like fanfiction, and I’ll wake up and this will all be fake. But nope, it actually happened!! We really got an episode of Pokémon that wrapped up Ash’s entire story, in a way we’ve never had before. After having an entire day to process this episode more, which I still haven’t got over by the way, I think I realize why. This episode retroactively enhances the entire Pokémon anime. The best way of looking at this is by looking at Ash’s friends, his rivals, and Team Rocket throughout the show’s history.

• Gary bullied Ash throughout the entire Kanto adventure, never showing any respect for him until Johto. We can now see that Gary highly values Ash, as shown in the DP and JN series.

• When Misty first met Ash, the first thing she said was “nah, it’s just a kid”. She also got livid that Ash took her bike and accidentally burnt it to a crisp. By the time Misty had to go, she got her bike back, but she ended up caring about Ash way more than her bike at that point. Misty also told Ash to keep on doing his best, without her being there. This hits extremely hard considering everything that Ash did without her after the original series, plus the fact that Ash did his best and beat Leon without Misty physically being there.

• When Team Rocket debuted in episode 2, they said that Pikachu is the strongest Pokémon they had ever seen, and they vowed to follow it to the ends of the earth. They were also the only people besides Hop that watched all of Ash’s Masters Eight matches in person, not to mention that they also watched all of the other leagues in person except for the Unova one.

• Brock didn’t think much of Ash at first, as he was simply another challenger of his gym at the time. However, after his dad gave Pikachu a power boost, Brock was incredibly impressed with both Ash and Pikachu. He had faith that Ash could become a great trainer someday, and always respected his progress, to the point that he was proud when Ash made the top 4 at the Sinnoh League.

• Ritchie respected Ash right away. However, it was clear that Ash was still a rookie during his battle with Ritchie. Back then, a Pikachu won by default because a Charizard was too lazy. Now, a Pikachu won because it gave everything it had against a Charizard who was anything but lazy. Comparing Ash vs. Ritchie to Ash vs. Leon is poetic in a lot of ways, and it’s made even better by the fact that Ritchie was actually seen watching at least Diantha vs. Lance. This heavily implies that Ritchie watched Ash vs. Leon, and he would be incredibly proud to see how far Ash has come. Also fun fact; Sparky’s Japanese name is Leon!

• Tracey always wanted to meet Professor Oak, and through Ash, he finally got to become his co-worker. To this day, we can see that Tracey loyaly helps out at Oak’s lab, all because he met Ash way back at the Orange Islands.

• May didn’t really want to be a Pokémon Trainer, but she was inspired by seeing how much Ash cared for his sick Pikachu. Thanks to Ash now having some experience from his prior adventures before Hoenn, May looked up to Ash and took his advice seriously. It lead to Ash and May having a climatic contest battle with Sceptile and Blaziken, and it’s because of Ash that May made it so far as a Pokémon Coordinator.

• Max left a very bad first impression to Ash. He mocked “Alph” for losing in the second round of the Johto League. However, we can see that he gained a lot of respect for Ash throughout his time in Hoenn and Kanto. By the time they had to leave, Max was depressed, and Ash took the opportunity to cheer him up, offering to battle Max when he gets older. This inspired Max that there was a lot to look forward to, as he highly respected Ash’s skills as a trainer at this point.

• Dawn quickly became great friends with Ash throughout the DP series. Like Ash, she already knew what she wanted to do before she picked her first Pokémon, and Piplup also decided not to evolve, just like Pikachu. One of my favorite Dawn moments is, right after Ash lost to Paul in the Lake Acuity 6v6, Dawn put on a play to cheer Ash up. Ash would also notice when Dawn was frustrated with her contest losing streak. They looked out for each other, and Dawn’s “no need to worry” rubbed off on Ash by the time they had to split up. Their “high touch” also goes to show how close they are. Dawn also cared enough to attend the Leon match in person, which speaks volumes on how much Ash has impacted Dawn.

• Paul thought Ash was pathetic for almost all of DP. When Paul released Chimchar, Ash wasn’t having it and took it in. Paul could care less at that point, but that Chimchar would lead to some of the best character development Ash ever had. By evolving it all the way to Infernape, mastering its Blaze, and finally defeating Paul at the Sinnoh League, it showed that Ash can really bring out the best in a Pokémon, in a way Paul never anticipated before. Paul earned his respect after that, to the point where he even helped out Ash for the Masters Eight bracket, by deliberately picking out aces that other Masters Eight trainers were using for practice. If that’s not a sign of respect, I don’t know what is.

• Iris kept calling Ash a kid throughout BW. She had little faith in his abilities as a trainer at first, but eventually, she came around to him. She was notabily impressed when Ash called upon his Charizard, learning about his history in the process, and realizing there’s more to him than she thought. By the time Iris returns in Journeys, we can see that she highly respects Ash’s skills as a trainer, and doesn’t really make fun of him anymore.

• Cilan had an immediate interest in Ash, and he noticed his strong bond with his Pikachu right away. Unlike Iris, he didn’t make fun of Ash much at all, and he would back up Ash when no one else would. For example, when Skyla’s father expained that Skyla did “air battles”, Clian agreed with Ash and stuck up for what a gym leader should be. Ash had Cilan’s support througout BW, and he inspired Cilan to continue traveling the world, which would lead him to eventually meeting Brock and Clemont.

• Trip saw Ash as a “kid from the boonies”, and had no respect for him. However, he did care enough to point out things, like Ash’s Oshawott having its eyes closed during Aqua Jet. Trip would give advice here and there, but overall, he saw Ssh as an annoyance. When Ash finally beat him in the Unova League, Trip made peace with Ash and moved on.

• Serena always saw Ash as an inspiration to move forward. At a time when no one else was looking out for her at Professor Oak’s summer camp, Ash helps her out and says “Never give up until the very end”. These words stuck with Serena forever, and she uses them as a motivator for her self improvement. When she travels with Ash in Kalos years later, she learns through him to be more confident, motivated, passionate, and strongwilled. After she leaves for Hoenn, we can see that she became a much more mature and collected person, while also not losing sight of her dreams and still keeping in mind how much Ash inspired her. Ash had a massive impact on Serena.

• Clemont was too nervous to fix the problem with the Lumiose Gym. However, after seeing how confident Ash was, he was inspired to push himself and try to gain more confidence as a person. Once Ash suggested to take back the gym, Clemont agreed and managed to remember the password to get Clembot under control. After that, Clemont vowed to give Ash the gym battle he always wanted. Clemont took the battle very seriously and gave it his all, to the point where he left to train for it.

• Bonnie and Ash honestly didn’t interact a ton, but through Ash, Bonnie learned what it takes to be a really great trainer. We can see her passion for becoming a trainer someday through Dedenne and Squishy, and how she takes great care of them. When Bonnie wonders where Squishy went after it left, Ash reassures her that it’s watching over her. By the time Bonnie has to leave, Bonnie vows to defeat Ash and Pikachu someday.

• Sawyer went from being a complete newbie, to a highly compotent trainer, all in such a short time span. This is thanks to how much Ash had an impact on him in such an incredibly short amount of time. By the time they faced off in the Kalos League, Sawyer gave it everything he had, but ultimately came up short. However, it’s because he met Ash that he improved so quickly as a trainer.

• Alain took an immediate interest in Ash, thanks to Ash-Greninja. As he was highly interested in Mega Evolution, he really wanted to know how Greninja could transform without a Mega Stone and Key Ring. Eventually, Alain would come to understand that Ash has a lot of faith in his Pokémon, and that is how the Ash-Greninja form is achieved. Later on, when Alain realized that he’s being used by Lysandre, Ash snaps Alain out of it by showing he has complete faith in Alain as a person. Alain owes Ash his thanks for showing there’s more to Pokémon than just having a lust for power; you also need to have faith and trust, both for yourself and your Pokémon.

• The Alola cast heavily appreciated Ash throughout Sun & Moon. More specifically,
Lillie overcame her fear of Pokémon thanks to Pikachu, and Ash also helped her and Gladion with a lot of their family problems. Other characters like Kiawe and Guzma also earned respect for Ash. Professor Kukui always looked out for Ash’s best interests, even offering him housing and multiple opportunities to fight the “Masked Royal”. When Ash revisits Alola in Journeys, we can see that he is highly valued there, to the point where it feels like his second home.

• Goh had a lot of anxiety, self-doubt, and skepticism at first, but Ash helped him break out of that. When Ash was feeling down, Goh motivated him to keep going, just like Ash helped out Goh after he lost his first battle really badly. We also see that Goh helps out Pokémon in a very similar way to what Ash did in previous series, like when Goh helps out Suicune and takes care of it. Ash aiming for such highs inspired Goh to also dream big.

• Chloe didn’t take Ash seriously at all at first, being freaked out by him getting shocked by the family’s Yamper. However, over time, she started to grow on him. By the time she met his friends, like Dawn, Serena, and Lana, she seemed to respect Ash way more, to the point where she finally became interested in his PWC run and upcoming battle with Raihan. Chloe was never really close with Ash, as they rarely interacted outside of things like the Aerodactyl episode, but we can definitely see a difference in her opinion of Ash over time, for the better.

Overall, it’s insane how much of an influence Ash had on all of these people. They all watched the Masters Eight as it happened. These characters not only saw Ash grow as a person, but they were also heavily impacted by him as well. Keeping in mind things like Misty’s “keep doing your best without me there”, Dawn’s “no need to worry”, Serena’s “never give up until the very end”, and many more, it’s easy to see why so many people get emotional over this show. These characters make this world feel alive, and inspire us in the real world that anything is possible. I am so grateful to have watched Pokémon since the beginning. This episode feels like a love letter to not just everyone who grew up watching this show, but also to the characters themselves. Not only are real people inspired by Ash, but so are the characters in the show. And that’s what makes Pokémon feel so real and alive to me. I’m ecstatic that this episode exists, and that it will always have a place in the history of the Pokémon franchise.
 
Looking at this shot, it is a nice touch to see May putting a comforting hand on Max whilst watching the battle

May_Max_JN.png
 
Reborn Talonflame said:
Ash didn’t refute his victory earlier on against Volkner, despite using a gimmick, whilst Volkner didn’t have one to use. The people in the anime see it that if you can be stronger, then you should - nothing should hold you back. We know that without limits, Ash is stronger overall.

I can see why you think the Alola victory was more emotional, but I don’t think it’s fair to dismiss this battle because Ash used more gimmicks than Leon.
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Agreed. Hell, this is exactly what Leon wanted and it goes along with his catchphrase of having a champion of a time. He’s just like Ash in that he wants an exciting battle and having been watching Ash in the PWC, he knew that the most exiting battle would be one where they could go all out and give their all, nothing held back. And, calling back to the episode he hung out with Ash, I think he appreciated both such a battle and loss as he can now truly see that he hasn’t actually hit that proverbial ceiling after all and he can still become stronger. Essentially, Ash basically gave the lesson that the leagues from Kanto through Kalos taught him that there’s always someone stronger and thus something more to strive for.
 
Lightning Flame Blast said:
It’s implied that Eternatus juiced them up just enough to not wreck the stadium a second time.
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Thought this was a solid enough explanation, but according to the English Sub, this apparently wasn’t the case. Leon doesn’t remark anything about having enough for one last attack (implying that they had enough to go the full duration), whilst the commentator just passes it off as the collision cancelling the transformations. How convenient.

So, the writers really wrote themselves into a corner (it would have been hard to take out Cinderace as quickly as that without Gigantamax), having to resolve it in a way that came from minimal explanation, whilst having Pikachu be reverted to normal for the finale. But, luckily for the writers, I liked that Charizard v Pikachu was just a “normal” encounter without any extra distractions. So, I’ll give this a pass.
 
Reborn Talonflame said:
Ash didn’t refute his victory earlier on against Volkner, despite using a gimmick, whilst Volkner didn’t have one to use. The people in the anime see it that if you can be stronger, then you should - nothing should hold you back. We know that without limits, Ash is stronger overall.

I can see why you think the Alola victory was more emotional, but I don’t think it’s fair to dismiss this battle because Ash used more gimmicks than Leon.
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I think that comparion is not quite fitting.
In my eyes it does make a difference if according to the official rules you are allowed to use one gimmick but don't do it simply because you don't have one (which in Volkner's case was his "fault") or if the rules clearly state that you mustn't use more than one gimmick and Leon just screws the rules (probably that show-off think he's entitled to to so because he is "special"). Again, in the first case, everything was according to the rules while the second case was clearly against the rules. and felt like the easy way out.

Let's face it: If Ash hadn't have three gimmicks and two rounds of Giggantamax he would most likely have lost. You don't need to agree with me but if I want to call myself World Champion, I want to earn that title fair and square, just the same way as all the other champions would have to do and no easy way out. What's it worth if I got that title just due to "priviledges"?
 
Queen Cynthia said:
Let's face it: If Ash hadn't have three gimmicks and two rounds of Giggantamax he would most likely have lost. You don't need to agree with me but if I want to call myself World Champion, I want to earn that title fair and square, just the same way as all the other champions would have to do. What's it worth if I got that title just due to "priviledges"?
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He technically did it by the rules, since this exception was made official. It wasn't against the rules, the rules were just a bit different this time around.
 
Queen Cynthia said:
I think that comparion is not quite fitting.
In my eyes it does make a difference if according to the official rules you are allowed to use one gimmick but don't do it simply because you don't have one (which in Volkner's case was his "fault") or if the rules clearly state that you mustn't use more than one gimmick and Leon just screws the rules (probably that show-off think he's entitled to to so because he is "special"). Again, in the first case, everything was according to the rules while the second case was clearly against the rules. and felt like the easy way out.

Let's face it: If Ash hadn't have three gimmicks and two rounds of Giggantamax he would most likely have lost. You don't need to agree with me but if I want to call myself World Champion, I want to earn that title fair and square, just the same way as all the other champions would have to do and no easy way out. What's it worth if I got that title just due to "priviledges"?
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Yes, Ash wouldn’t have won without all three gimmicks - one of my previous points alludes that without Gigantamax, Pikachu would have suffered greater damage against Cinderace, and possibly have lost as a result. But, what I was referring to was you suggesting that despite Leon offering the change, Ash could have “just declined that offer”. With the Volkner case, there’s the basis that Ash doesn’t care if he utilises more gimmicks than another trainer, just if he thinks it makes the fight better, and in this instance, he clearly thought it would. In his eyes, he won it fair and square.

In relation to having to earn the Championship like the other Champions and Ash having a privilege, doesn’t that mean that in the other direction the other Champions had the privilege of the one-gimmick handicap preventing Ash from being stronger? What constitutes that? Who’s to say this is right and fair? How is it fair to suggest that Cynthia and Ash should face this, where their travels and dedication to their journeys isn’t reflected in battle?
 
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