What do you feel when you see the old Ash now?

[Almonds]

For simplicity's sake, I just brought this pic from bulbapedia - it's hard to find two pics where we can compare the old Ash and new Ash.



Anyways, since I'm one of the older fans who grew up with Ash, I feel nostalgic when I see the old Ash, and it brings back memories of when I was a little kid and how I would yell along 'Pikachu use Thunderbolt!'.

But I'm curious to know how other people would feel when they see the old Ash, who made his first appearance on TV 15 years ago. Especially those who have never seen the old Ash (probably those who are 15 and under)

 

[Titanium]

He's been tanning.
That's what I see.

 

[Hurricane Kishore]

Pathetic !
Writer could bring some aspect his old personality like his slight sarcastic side but Writer ignore that part of he's personality!
Like how Ash always tease Misty and play prank on he's friend on his own !
Now , He just wait for other to tease him and rather them tease them back , he just get angry & confused!
Truth is , writer didn't bring any good part Ash's old personality , Writer just bring back that Pathetic side of Ash personality which was disappear in previous other series ! The pathetic Side I was happy about being gone!

 

[djulienr]

Im 15 and I've seen every episode. Grew up during Johto and watched Pokemon since I was like 2/3. Anyway I love Old Ash but honestly DP Ash is my favorite.

 

[Jukain]

As much as I bash the original Kanto, I will say that Ash was at the appropriate place for that time. Ash as he is right now is a severe continuity break, and it shouldn't fit at all. I know that Kanto can be handwaved as a comedy, and it isn't supposed to be taken seriously, and I suppose the same could be said of Unova, but I'm honestly too old to find it funny anymore.

 

[Cybersai]

I see BW Ash as an almost parody of the Kanto Ash. Sadly I liked the AG-DP Ash the best, it was about the only two sagas where Ash could be considered, "cool."

Kanto Ash was funny though, he made a fool out of himself in every episode but it was hilarious.

 

[Karamazov]

Looking back at old!Ash, I realized how annoying he was. :/ I hate those generic shounen idiot heroes.I'm really glad he matured over time.

 

[Bouffalant Herdier]

At the time, I loved the Kanto Ash. I loved how utterly stupid he was and how he would constantly put in his foot in it, but after seeing his later and more mature incarnations, (Even BW Ash) if I rewatched the Kanto series, I reckon I would give myself a headache from facepalming so much. He basically made the show a cringe comedy.

 

[Chiplet]

The old OS Ash might just have been my favorite one, and that's simply because of him actually being funny in the OS series.

Sure, Ash has proven to have his moments in both BW and AG, but in DP that humor was non-existent, which kinda had me dislike the DP Ash quite a lot. Fortunately though, his huge growth and development (not to mention great rivals) compensated for that lack of humor, kinda.

Ash did get rather stagnant later in Johto though, his humor was definitely at its best during the Kanto Region. All those arguments he had with Misty... Those were just... gold. <3

 

[Cybersai]

Johto Ash was kinda a weird mix of all the other Ash's. Wasn't as funny in Johto and Misty barely argued with him anymore so there was no dynamic.

 

[Chiplet]

Johto Ash was kinda a weird mix of all the other Ash's. Wasn't as funny in Johto and Misty barely argued with him anymore so there was no dynamic.

Yeah, I really didn't feel much between those two in Johto, that was very unfortunate. :/

Sure, Misty might've ''matured''. but that wasn't necessarily a good thing since she wasn't as funny as she was back in Kanto.

 

[Chronos]

I still think old Ash is funny, but DP Ash trumps all others. He turned into a badass, knowledgeable trainer. It was nice to see him become a formidable battler and have actual strategies. The only thing I really disliked about the old Ash is how he got some of the badges handed to him instead of actually battling to get it. I still enjoyed the series, and if I watched it again now, I would probably still like it. I doubt I'll rewatch it anytime soon, though, since that would take too much time.

 

[MizuTaipu]

He's still the same old Satoshi to me.

 

[C-3]

Ash in Sinnoh and Hoenn was awesome, in Johto and Unova was OK (I guess) and in Kanto (except Battle Frontier) sucked.

 

[Titanium]

I think it is pretty awesome how much he has matured since his Kanto days. Watching him run all derpy while heavily breathing from danger and getting himself into the stupidest traps and issues was always fun to watch during the beginning.

Since then he has learned a lot and deals with things a lot more maturely and calm. He still says stupid crap, but in Kanto, everything he said was worth laughing. I do miss those moments, yet I'm happy we've seen this huge development in him. It really shows his character.

 

[pokemon fan 132]

This bring back so many memories. I remember when i just got into pokemon and i truly enjoyed Ash impulsive and naive side always making fool out of himself, all those arguing he had with Misty and hotheaded attitude rushing into battles without thinking etc.

However i also liked a lot way he matured in Hoenn and Sinnoh becoming more level headed and critic taking pokemon training much more seriously. Which can be noticed with various examples like Treecko, Corphish, Gliscord, Chimchar etc. He became less naive and more assertive using more of his head and strategy in battles. He became experienced enough to help others about battle and tactic like he did with May becoming some sort of her mentor, or to lesser extent Dawn helping her in training before contests providing ideas she could try to use there etc.

But when looking back at Ash in older seasons i get impression how he felt more realistic having more flaws to him. Nevertheless regardless of that i still prefer more mature Ash which advanced forward as trainer, creating close bond with his pokemon and having that collected and earnest attitude of his.

Johto Ash was kinda a weird mix of all the other Ash's. Wasn't as funny in Johto and Misty barely argued with him anymore so there was no dynamic.

They didn't argued as much like before but i say there was still dynamic between those two in Johto. She was still annoyed when acting stupid or getting lost in forest( when he tried to wash Brock Onix with water or didn't tried her soup in "Sick Daze" for example) . I remember they still had that rivalry between themselves and Misty still liked to tease him frequently making jokes. For example in Chinchau episode when group got separated she was making fun how he is perfect choice to get lost or eat all supplies, ,when she teased and tricked Ash in wearing costume of Octillery to help Marcellus etc. Their friendship was on more endearing note being imbued with lighthearted humor and moral support and while there wasn't as much fights between them compared to Kanto she often came up with snarky comments and jokes, being annoyed with Ash stupidity who always backhanded comments directed toward him.

So i wouldn't say dynamic was lost, it only contained less pepper in it.

 

[Bluelatios]

I really enjoyed Ash from OS up until the end of Hoenn much better than today. They gave him much better dialogue under 4kids and Veronica Taylor. Not sure what to say about the Japanese version since I'm not Japanese. I always felt that he started getting more experienced than was really necessary through BF and DP, and then lost nearly everything in BW. I liked the outfit and design of OS, but I suppose Hoenn is the best balance in personality.

 

[Blazing Charmander]

I always felt that he started getting more experienced than was really necessary through BF and DP, and then lost nearly everything in BW.

I agree with you that Ash was probably at his best in Hoenn on balance of both the enjoyability of his personality and his air of experience in that region, but I don't share your sentiments on his treatment during the Battle Frontier and DP. I think that it was only right that Ash would gain more experience with time, but instead of this getting in the way in the sagas that you mentioned, I believe that it was actually Ash's character that began to suffer in the Battle Frontier and DP sagas. Perhaps this was due in part to the writers' emphasis on progressing Ash's story over his entertainment value, but all of that looks to have been horribly wasted now that they have arguably taken a different (and in my mind a less than desirable) direction with Ash in BW.

To answer the topic question, I do feel a sense of melancholy when I look back at Ash prior to Best Wishes. I literally grew up with him from the start of his journey and it was plain to see by the time AG and DP came along that he was maturing and steadily becoming a better (but still far from world class) Pokemon trainer. This culminated in him unfairly being dumped out of the Sinnoh tournament by an almighty legendary trainer, but even still Ash managed to do something that no Sinnoh Gym Leader or League participant could do - take down Tobias' Darkrai. Not only that, but the epic finale involved Pikachu tying with a Latios, which in itself proved how far both Ash and Pikachu had come. Unfortunately the new direction taken with Ash's character in BW seems to have completely ruined any sense of continuity that would pertain to his previously growing maturity and reputation as a trainer.

 

[X-Strike]

Nostalgia, and a yearning of days gone by. However, I can see how he's matured of the years, and am content with who is is, today.

 

[Satoshi_Pikachu]

I was going to say nothing, but to be honest now I realize that when I see old Satoshi I feel glad Kanto is over. I don't mind the idiot hero type of character, but I do hate the way he accepted badges without real battles. D/P Satoshi wouldn't have allowed that. So seeing Kanto-Satoshi makes me think how awesome it is that he has actually developed as a character, even if it's not a huge change.