Who do you blame for Ash losing to Ritchie in the Indigo League?

[Paulisthebest]

This has been a thorn in my side since I was a kid because that battle was such a rip-off!

The people that are up to blame to me are: Team Rocket, Ash, Charizard, the referee, both Ash’s and Ritchie’s Pokemon

Ash-well he has himself to blame because he fell for TR’s trap as usual (though I will give them props for the voice changer thing, but Ash should have sent them blasting off rather than leaving them crisp from an electric attack), and he neglected his training. He had a couple of months before the tournament to properly train his Pokémon but he just wasted time with his side adventures. It’s amazing that he made it as far as he did in the tournament with his obvious lack of training. He also could have used that time in Pallet to properly train his Charizard, and he had people like Professor Oak to help him out with that.

Charizard-all he needed to do was blow out one Flamethrower and the match would have been over. It flapped it wings and blew Sparky away, and then it took a nap! Another example of how the game is different from the series because 8 badges means no disobedient Pokémon!

The ref-declaring a sleeping Squirtle out come on! It was different because Sleep Powder made it sleep, rather than Charizard sleeping because it refused to battle. And unlike the games, a refusing Pokemon is only declared unable to fight when it is recalled or knocked out

Ash/Ritchie’s Pokemon-none of them listened to commands (Happy did once when Ritchie told it to use Sleep Powder) and that made the battle seemed rushed and not as epic as it should have been

Team Rocket-once again getting in the way after waiting for Ash to make it to the league all season they just have to screw it up for him in their own way. They made him late, most of his Pokemon tired, his chance to organize his team for the match and almost made him disqualified from the league. I give them props because the first couple of seasons are when TR actually seem more competent then they are now.

Who do you think was the most responsible?

 

[Dexter]

I really think that Charizard is the most to blame for the loss because like you pointed he could sent an attack or two and won the match for him. But no, i also think you should have included external factors like the writers.

 

[ARC-1300]

ash of course, its never the Pokemon fault. the trainer must take full responsibility of a Pokemon's attitude and actions. he should have known Charizard wouldn't do jack squat for him.

 

[Falconwing]

the plot. Ash had to lose to someone I guess. The writers decided it had to be Ritchie.

 

[Musashi]

I voted the Rockets, but the reason for his loss is because he wasn't given a chance to go to the Pokemon Center. Shouldn't being attacked by the Rocket-Dan count as extenuating circumstances where he deserves a break to get his Pokemon refreshed?

 

[Trainer Lisa]

I agree with Musashi.

It was mostly Team Rocket that caused Ash to lose the match. They made his Pokemon too weak to battle properly. But even though Ash's Pokemon were weak, they still did their very best, because they care about Ash and wanted him to have a chance at winning.

And by default, it was also Charizard's fault too. Like you said, it could have easily defeated Sparky, but instead, it chose not to listen to Ash.

It's kinda weird, because the writers never explained why Charizard didn't obey Ash.

 

[PlatinumDude]

I blame Charizard for the loss. It didn't want to battle Ritchie's Pikachu in the first place (because Charizard preferred to battle stronger opponents; it thought Ritchie's Zippo/Charmander was a worthy opponent).

 

[Kazamatsuri]

It may be some of all of the above (plus plot contrivance), but primary responsibility lies with the Pokemon trainer in question. It is his responsibility to lookout for his Pokemon, train and prepare them for the upcoming matches, attend the match(es) on time, know which Pokemon to use and which commands to give during the match(es), and learn from his mistakes. A piss-poor attitude following a loss only makes matters even worse. And this is true for all Pokemon trainers, not just Ash Ketchum.

 

[Dawn~]

Charizard.

 

[Legacy]

Blame falls on Ash for picking a pokemon he can't control and TR for tiring out Ash's other pokemon.

 

[Arvo92]

Ash, it is his responsibility to train his Pokemon beforehand. He knew Charizard was a risky Pokemon to use, so he only has himself to blame. (And a little bit to TR)

 

[watts63]

Ash for not training Charizard better & not getting rid of Team Rocket when they started stalking him.

 

[Matt3225]

I blame the ref for declaring Squirtle was unable to battle just because Happy put it to sleep

 

[Dawn~]

The Ref declaring Squirtle unable to battle because he was put to sleep was total BS. F**k the ref.

But still. Charizard is a loser. -.-

 

[Snake Bandage]

Where's the "all of the above" option? TR exhausted Ash's Pokemon, the referee was a dick, Charizard was also a dick, and Ash was an idiot for using a risky Pokemon like Charizard in the first place.

 

[Yoshi-san]

Where's the "all of the above" option? TR exhausted Ash's Pokemon, the referee was a dick, Charizard was also a dick, and Ash was an idiot for using a risky Pokemon like Charizard in the first place.

This really. Also with Ash's inexperience at the time and him always relied on luck to win.

 

[Shift]

Mostly TR's fault for getting in the way. If Ash had been able to use Pidgeotto against Happy, he might've stood more of a chance of beating it before it could use Sleep Powder. That would have left Squirtle for Zippo and any other Pokemon besides Charizard for Sparky. Maybe Muk would have been a better choice, but did he keep it on him after the match with Bellsprout? Anyway, with such a limited selection made because of TR, they're the most to blame.

Ash might not have used Charizard if given another choice, but one could argue that he probably should have worked more with it before the league to absolve the problem. Then again, it always bothered me how Charizard couldn't seem to remember how Ash saved his freakin' life, so there's fault on both sides. As for the ref, it's kinda understandable that he needed to get the match going after that huge delay, and I can't quite remember if a sleeping Pokemon was called out before this.

 

[Keegman]

Shouldn't Richie be an option? I'd say he was pretty instrumental in Ash's defeat.

 

[Cybersai]

Mostly Charizard, but I liked the way Ash lost his first league.

 

[Trainer Yusuf]

the plot. Ash had to lose to someone I guess. The writers decided it had to be Ritchie.

This. Really. Or to be more specific, Hideki Sonoda.