This will have more speculation than the Misty thread, so bear with me...
We know about as much about Brock's family history as we do Misty's, yet there seems to be so much more that we don't see. I am going to attempt to delve into what we know to try to discover Brock's family history, and how the characters got to where they are today.
The Pewter Gym is renound for its rock-hardness, gloried for "seasoning only the toughest trainers, as rough and cold as the stones themselves. This is an attitude that Brock successfully carried on while he ran the Gym. Yet the same can't be said for Flint. It would make sense, then, that he had inherited it from someone else. But who? The most obvious solution can be found a few miles to the left: Bruno! The theory has been there since the days of Red and Blue, but it definately seems to make sense. Bruno would probably be related to Flint in some way, especially since this Gym seems to be a family business, and I see him as Flint's older brother.
So in Pewter City many years ago, there was a strong Gym Leader living there with his two sons: Bruno and Flint. He set both his sons off with a rock Pokémon, and they went out to be successful. Flint could never be as successful as Bruno, but he still did well. Then one day, he met Lola. It was love at first sight, despite her being so unrock-like. Eventually, Bruno took the Gym, while Flint and Lola got married. Flint always respected his brother, which inspired him to name his first son in reflection of the glory of the Gym: Brock.
Lola, with her bubbly personality, let that one past, and only had minimal imput on the next one: Forrest. Not as rock-like, but still with a link to nature, and she was very interested in the Viridian Forest at that time. Yet, by the end, she seems to be more of the namer: Suzy, Tommy, Cindy and Timmy being among the youngest. (Not THE youngest, since we don't know what she called the twins.) What happened? Before Forrest was born, Bruno went to the Indigo Plateau. Without him around, Lola started to have more of an influence on Flint. Flint had his own problems trying to keep the Gym as it was when Bruno was there. For many years, he kept at it, but it eventually all became too much. His wife was pursuing so many different interests, (presumably running up a huge credit card bill in the process,) and he was alone in a place that he suddenly realised he didn't want to be in. He could never be the trainer that Bruno was, and that is perhaps the thing that made him run away the most.
Brock was old enough to go on a journey by this time, but he had never gone further than Mt. Moon, (where he got Geodude,) as he was needed to keep an eye on his siblings. This hadn't been too bad until Flint left. Now, Lola was feeling the strain. She made her first attempt to transfer the Gym, but Brock stopped her. He took over the Gym, and began to restore its former glory. Flint had been too ashamed to tell Brock about Bruno, but Brock had still heard great things, and did have a respect for the Elite Four member. Lola, meanwhile, quickly suffered from the strain of taking care of ten children. (Brock made the least contribution at this point as he was concentrating on the Gym and assumed that his mother could make things better. But she couldn't stand the strain, and missed her previous lifestyle. Lola probably later regretted the selfishness of her next move, but she still ran away and would not return for along time. Hearing about the coordinator Juan and his water Pokémon, she spent the next several years in Sootopolis City.
Brock was now left to take care of a Gym and nine siblings, including the wins who were only a few months old. But he pushed his own life aside where his mother did not, and must really be admired for what he went on to do. He even suppressed the distaraction of his hormones. It didn't matter how nice Officer Jenny or Nurse Joy looked. He had a duty, and he devoted himself to it. When Flint returned soon after, Brock should have been rewarded and given a chance to live his own life. But when Flint saw it, he felt too ashamed to watch Brock. But he watched over them from afar, possibly helping in minor ways without their knowledge. And then one day, a boy and a girl appeared at Flint's rock shop...
When he saw Ash's determination, he had an idea. If Brock could be beaten in battle, then maybe Flint could take over the Gym again. It didn't work that way, of course. But Flint still did what he shouldhave done before and relieved Brock of his duties. Perhaps it was hearing that Brock didn't want to be in that position either, but he knew he had to do what was best for his son. I doubt he was better than Brock, but he knew he needed to do this, if only to free his own guilt. You see, everyone thought that Lola had died rather than just running away. Had Brock realised that, he would have told Flint, but he was probably one of the few people who held that knowledge.
So now Brock got to be himself. He enjoyed his travels with Ash, but there was still the other matter. The hormones didn't burst out immediately. But seeing Officer Jenny when they arrived in Cerulean City...well, he had to try it out. But it was all those swimsuits that really did it for him! So he soon became the Brock we know and love, and yet even in this time of light his ear payed the price for his happiness! The Puller-of-Ears eventually left, of course, but after a while it was his arm that suffered instead.
But I'm getting ahead of myself... In Sootopolis City, Lola was having the time of her life. She still had the nibble of guilt about Brock, but continued on regardless. However, one day she happened to notice someone very familiar on tv. She hadn't been in contact with Brock, yet now she saw him with some girl and boy with no siblings in sight. For a moment, she was probably angry. Then she knew that it was her fault he had been in that position anyway. After a call home to check on things, she rushed home to Flint.
It wasn't happily ever after, though. The romance had gone, and they only kept to their job out of guilt of what they had put Brock through. A big disagreement was the Gym. The kids had learnt that it was better to cook for themselves and that many hands make light work, so the main work would be on the Gym. Flint had decided to not even try keeping the image this time round, so it was easy for Lola to turn it into a Water Gym, inspired by the one at Sootopolis City. Sure, there was another one just on the other side of Mt. Moon, but that was just a swimming pool, and was bound to be closed down if the suspected PIA crackdown would happen - All the more reason to get this Gym running again. But then came Brock's return home, and the Gym was kept as a Rock Gym. The two also rekindled their love during this time.
By far the biggest question is what the situation is now. Since the beginning of AG, all we know is that Brock had one return home where Lola was still there, but Flint is unaccounted for. The Gym situation does seem most confusing. Will Forrest take over? He is probably the best option at the moment. Let's just hope Lola doesn't have any more babies!
We know about as much about Brock's family history as we do Misty's, yet there seems to be so much more that we don't see. I am going to attempt to delve into what we know to try to discover Brock's family history, and how the characters got to where they are today.
The Pewter Gym is renound for its rock-hardness, gloried for "seasoning only the toughest trainers, as rough and cold as the stones themselves. This is an attitude that Brock successfully carried on while he ran the Gym. Yet the same can't be said for Flint. It would make sense, then, that he had inherited it from someone else. But who? The most obvious solution can be found a few miles to the left: Bruno! The theory has been there since the days of Red and Blue, but it definately seems to make sense. Bruno would probably be related to Flint in some way, especially since this Gym seems to be a family business, and I see him as Flint's older brother.
So in Pewter City many years ago, there was a strong Gym Leader living there with his two sons: Bruno and Flint. He set both his sons off with a rock Pokémon, and they went out to be successful. Flint could never be as successful as Bruno, but he still did well. Then one day, he met Lola. It was love at first sight, despite her being so unrock-like. Eventually, Bruno took the Gym, while Flint and Lola got married. Flint always respected his brother, which inspired him to name his first son in reflection of the glory of the Gym: Brock.
Lola, with her bubbly personality, let that one past, and only had minimal imput on the next one: Forrest. Not as rock-like, but still with a link to nature, and she was very interested in the Viridian Forest at that time. Yet, by the end, she seems to be more of the namer: Suzy, Tommy, Cindy and Timmy being among the youngest. (Not THE youngest, since we don't know what she called the twins.) What happened? Before Forrest was born, Bruno went to the Indigo Plateau. Without him around, Lola started to have more of an influence on Flint. Flint had his own problems trying to keep the Gym as it was when Bruno was there. For many years, he kept at it, but it eventually all became too much. His wife was pursuing so many different interests, (presumably running up a huge credit card bill in the process,) and he was alone in a place that he suddenly realised he didn't want to be in. He could never be the trainer that Bruno was, and that is perhaps the thing that made him run away the most.
Brock was old enough to go on a journey by this time, but he had never gone further than Mt. Moon, (where he got Geodude,) as he was needed to keep an eye on his siblings. This hadn't been too bad until Flint left. Now, Lola was feeling the strain. She made her first attempt to transfer the Gym, but Brock stopped her. He took over the Gym, and began to restore its former glory. Flint had been too ashamed to tell Brock about Bruno, but Brock had still heard great things, and did have a respect for the Elite Four member. Lola, meanwhile, quickly suffered from the strain of taking care of ten children. (Brock made the least contribution at this point as he was concentrating on the Gym and assumed that his mother could make things better. But she couldn't stand the strain, and missed her previous lifestyle. Lola probably later regretted the selfishness of her next move, but she still ran away and would not return for along time. Hearing about the coordinator Juan and his water Pokémon, she spent the next several years in Sootopolis City.
Brock was now left to take care of a Gym and nine siblings, including the wins who were only a few months old. But he pushed his own life aside where his mother did not, and must really be admired for what he went on to do. He even suppressed the distaraction of his hormones. It didn't matter how nice Officer Jenny or Nurse Joy looked. He had a duty, and he devoted himself to it. When Flint returned soon after, Brock should have been rewarded and given a chance to live his own life. But when Flint saw it, he felt too ashamed to watch Brock. But he watched over them from afar, possibly helping in minor ways without their knowledge. And then one day, a boy and a girl appeared at Flint's rock shop...
When he saw Ash's determination, he had an idea. If Brock could be beaten in battle, then maybe Flint could take over the Gym again. It didn't work that way, of course. But Flint still did what he shouldhave done before and relieved Brock of his duties. Perhaps it was hearing that Brock didn't want to be in that position either, but he knew he had to do what was best for his son. I doubt he was better than Brock, but he knew he needed to do this, if only to free his own guilt. You see, everyone thought that Lola had died rather than just running away. Had Brock realised that, he would have told Flint, but he was probably one of the few people who held that knowledge.
So now Brock got to be himself. He enjoyed his travels with Ash, but there was still the other matter. The hormones didn't burst out immediately. But seeing Officer Jenny when they arrived in Cerulean City...well, he had to try it out. But it was all those swimsuits that really did it for him! So he soon became the Brock we know and love, and yet even in this time of light his ear payed the price for his happiness! The Puller-of-Ears eventually left, of course, but after a while it was his arm that suffered instead.
But I'm getting ahead of myself... In Sootopolis City, Lola was having the time of her life. She still had the nibble of guilt about Brock, but continued on regardless. However, one day she happened to notice someone very familiar on tv. She hadn't been in contact with Brock, yet now she saw him with some girl and boy with no siblings in sight. For a moment, she was probably angry. Then she knew that it was her fault he had been in that position anyway. After a call home to check on things, she rushed home to Flint.
It wasn't happily ever after, though. The romance had gone, and they only kept to their job out of guilt of what they had put Brock through. A big disagreement was the Gym. The kids had learnt that it was better to cook for themselves and that many hands make light work, so the main work would be on the Gym. Flint had decided to not even try keeping the image this time round, so it was easy for Lola to turn it into a Water Gym, inspired by the one at Sootopolis City. Sure, there was another one just on the other side of Mt. Moon, but that was just a swimming pool, and was bound to be closed down if the suspected PIA crackdown would happen - All the more reason to get this Gym running again. But then came Brock's return home, and the Gym was kept as a Rock Gym. The two also rekindled their love during this time.
By far the biggest question is what the situation is now. Since the beginning of AG, all we know is that Brock had one return home where Lola was still there, but Flint is unaccounted for. The Gym situation does seem most confusing. Will Forrest take over? He is probably the best option at the moment. Let's just hope Lola doesn't have any more babies!
