Preview XY138: The Last Battle with Satoshi! Serena's Choice!!

[KatsumiChris1991]

You can still be "girly" and be able to have Pokemon battles

 

[Arceus the Dragon]

Serena has more experience in showcases than battles though. Ash shouldn't have any problems with this battle but something tells me that the writers are gonna make it so that she suddenly has battle experience when the battle starts.

 

[GurahkWeavile]

Serena has more experience in showcases than battles though. Ash shouldn't have any problems with this battle but something tells me that the writers are gonna make it so that she suddenly has battle experience when the battle starts.

Or Ash goes easy on her because of that inexperience.

 

[KatsumiChris1991]

Serena has more experience in showcases than battles though. Ash shouldn't have any problems with this battle but something tells me that the writers are gonna make it so that she suddenly has battle experience when the battle starts.

That would really irritate me and prove my point how bias and poorly written the XY series was

 

[Pokefan19]

I hate that excuse of Serena being "too girly" to battle. It ruined her development

There is no canon reason for her insistence of letting Ash and Clemont do all the battling, but that's pretty much all we've got

 

[Keshav]

Ash should have used greninja instead, I wanted to see that form do a last battle :/

 

[kantoskies]

I really feel like Serena's problems like having practically no battles under her belt come from how weirdly gendered XY as a whole was. Have a career/goal based entirely around looking nice and having nothing to do with battling (ie the main "tough" part of the franchise)? Only let girls do it. Have the big climax of the last big arc involve battling a giant, world-threatening mecha? Leave the two main girls out of it and have them stand back and watch helplessly. Biggest gathering of the top trainers around the Kalos region to battle one another in a sports-like bracket? Only have one girl in it (and be a throwaway character at that). Honestly with how gendered everything was this series they missed out on the biggest opportunity to drive home the point that "femininity =/= weak".

The point I'm trying to make is that had Serena been in any other series, she probably would have seen more battles (and Performances would probably have them too). Why they decide to have what looks to be her sendoff episode center around a battle when most of the rest of her story had nothing to do with them is beyond me. Why not have it be about Ryhorn racing? At the very least I hope she decides to go challenge the 8 Kalos gyms, or really any region's gyms while still doing Performances on the side.

 

[KatsumiChris1991]

I really feel like Serena's problems like having practically no battles under her belt come from how weirdly gendered XY as a whole was. Have a career/goal based entirely around looking nice and having nothing to do with battling (ie the main "tough" part of the franchise)? Only let girls do it. Have the big climax of the last big arc involve battling a giant, world-threatening mecha? Leave the two main girls out of it and have them stand back and watch helplessly. Biggest gathering of the top trainers around the Kalos region to battle one another in a sports-like bracket? Only have one girl in it (and be a throwaway character at that). Honestly with how gendered everything was this series they missed out on the biggest opportunity to drive home the point that "femininity =/= weak".

The point I'm trying to make is that had Serena been in any other series, she probably would have seen more battles (and Performances would probably have them too). Why they decide to have what looks to be her sendoff episode center around a battle when most of the rest of her story had nothing to do with them is beyond me. Why not have it be about Ryhorn racing? At the very least I hope she decides to go challenge the 8 Kalos gyms, or really any region's gyms while still doing Performances on the side.

I wanted her to have a Rhyhorn so badly, and raising it till it's a Rhyperior

 

[Playerking]

I really feel like Serena's problems like having practically no battles under her belt come from how weirdly gendered XY as a whole was. Have a career/goal based entirely around looking nice and having nothing to do with battling (ie the main "tough" part of the franchise)? Only let girls do it. Have the big climax of the last big arc involve battling a giant, world-threatening mecha? Leave the two main girls out of it and have them stand back and watch helplessly. Biggest gathering of the top trainers around the Kalos region to battle one another in a sports-like bracket? Only have one girl in it (and be a throwaway character at that). Honestly with how gendered everything was this series they missed out on the biggest opportunity to drive home the point that "femininity =/= weak".

The point I'm trying to make is that had Serena been in any other series, she probably would have seen more battles (and Performances would probably have them too). Why they decide to have what looks to be her sendoff episode center around a battle when most of the rest of her story had nothing to do with them is beyond me. Why not have it be about Ryhorn racing? At the very least I hope she decides to go challenge the 8 Kalos gyms, or really any region's gyms while still doing Performances on the side.

I'm fairy sure that someone had to protect Bonnie, and no offense to Mairin, but when it comes to who I would rather want to protect Bonnie, between the trainer who only has a Flabebe and probably hasn't been training it lately since she's been worried about her only other Pokemon being in a comatose state and a trainer who has three Pokemon, two of which have evolved at least once, then I will always choose Serena. It's not like the Megalith Zygarde is Squishy and wouldn't fail to kill Bonnie if it wanted. Plus, Serena did eventually join in the battle, so to say she didn't is not true at all. So the way I see it, Serena was protecting Bonnie AND Mairin.

And why she's battling here makes complete sense to me, because this battle will help her decide where she wants to take her goal of becoming the Kalos Queen, because the battle will probably help her see how much she wants that goal and might give her new ideas for what she could do in her next showcase. Also, it might even give her some inspiration to want to battle and catch and more Pokemon.

I'm sorry, but as Eye Gel said, she hasn't had any battles because she isn't a battler. When you become a Pokemon Trainer, there is no rule that you have to battle. We've seen heaps of anime characters that have Pokemon with them that don't battle and they just have them because they are friends or whatever, but we don't see anyone jumping down their throat for not battling, so why is Serena any different? May and Dawn weren't battlers either, heck there were even an episode title that made note of the fact that Dawn was participating in her first Gym Battle, even though Dawn was a Coordinator.

Plus, even if Serena hasn't had any official battles, she has battled before, plenty of times. She has battle Team Rocket, Team Flare, that Ninja Army, against Pancham when she wanted to catch it, even though Ash never battled Goomy or Noibat when he first caught them, the once antangonistic army of Bug and Poison types that the Florges in the Wetlands controlled, that Pokemon hunter in Xy063, the Megalith Zygarde and fending off the roots that Z2 and the Megalith Zygarde caused, that's not forgetting the official ones, like against the Kanto starter trio, Woodward, Aria, Jimmy, Miette and James. So yeah, she doesn't need to battle because that's not what she's meant to be doing, but she's had her fair share of them anyway. Plus it's not like Clemont's had that many battles since he's left his role as Gym Leader, but then again, no one complains about how little battles that he had as much as they complain about Serena.

And on the subject of Serena being too "girly", then that is not the official reason that she hasn't had a lot of "official" battles, but instead what the fans want to be the reason, even though the writers probably don't let her have too many of those, is because she isn't focusing on battling.

 

[Almonds]

You can still be "girly" and be able to have Pokemon battles

The "girly" part is NOT the reason for her having less battles. Her goal was simply meant to be not battle-oriented. People seriously need to stop stigmatizing "not battling" as a sin when it's coupled with being "girly". If we put Serena in real life, she's just someone who doesn't do sports/martial arts and wants to be a pastry chef/fashion designer/model in the future. There's nothing wrong with that.

 

[Pokemon Cannon]

I would find it SO funny if Pikachu beat the living hell out of Braxien. Then Serena's crush on Ash would just collapse because he beat up Braxien and wouldn't stop. Basically, destroy the any living remains of the shipping...although I am an Amourshipper.

 

[papabiceps]

I would find it SO funny if Pikachu beat the living hell out of Braxien. Then Serena's crush on Ash would just collapse because he beat up Braxien and wouldn't stop. Basically, destroy the any living remains of the shipping...although I am an Amourshipper.

I also am a fan of the ship but that'd be fucking hilarious

 

[Srebak]

If it was not yet confirmed that this was Serena's final episode, then why is everyone here acting like it was a fact clarified in the summary?

 

[SonansuMan]

If it was not yet confirmed that this was Serena's final episode, then why is everyone here acting like it was a fact clarified in the summary?

It wouldn't make much sense to have her last battle the DAY before she leaves.

 

[Mikuri]

It's really sad to see that people still hate Serena for not being a battler - I've said this a million times, but the pokemon world has a ton a jobs that don't involve battling and being a performer is just one of them. Being "girly" doesn't have anything to do with not being a good battler. Her goal was simply not related to battles.

You are mixing things up. Yes, Trainers can choose to dedicate themselves to "jobs" that do not involve Pokémon battles. We have seen that way back in the original series with Tracey, a Pokémon Watcher, whose goal was to observe wild Pokémon, sketch them, and learn more about their behaviors in the process.

After the original series, we got Stylists, who design clothes for Pokémon and enter fashion shows with them, and Connoisseurs, who evaluate the bond between Trainers and Pokémon and give advice on how to further develop that bond. A Performer is really just another Trainer that decided to focus on different aspects of Pokémon instead of battling.

Does that mean Performers have to be so inexperienced when it comes to Pokémon battles? The answer is no. As much as I hate Pokémon Showcases, I don't really have a problem with the lack of battles, but I do have a problem with Serena not being a battler. Every Trainer, regardless of their occupation, has to battle. That's how they add new Pokémon to their teams, after all.

Although being a Connoisseur has little to do with battles, Cilan entered as many battle tournaments as he possibly could. Paris, the famous Pokémon Stylist who served as one of the judges of the Hearthome Collection, was shown to be able to fend for herself, protecting her mentor Hermione and commanding Lopunny to wreck Team Rocket's machine. These are Trainers who do not have battles as part of their goal, but they are capable battlers.

"But they could have done all of her stories and still make her a good battler -" and then hear people complain she's too perfect and good at everything and practically a Mary Sue? Geez

Serena is already considered a Mary Sue so I don't really see the issue. And honestly, if her whole journey had played out differently, she could excel in battles without entering Mary Sue territory. We may have different concepts of what a Mary Sue is so I want to clarify. For me, a Mary Sue/Gary Stu is a character that embodies perfection. They rarely do anything wrong and when they do is not their fault (see Alain for reference, who was working for the bad guys unknowingly). They are super talented because they were born with an extraordinary set of skills. It's not about being good at several activities through hard work, is about being too good with little to no effort through magic dust.

You are saying that Serena is good at too many activities already and adding battles would put her in a pedestal as the perfect girl. However, I believe Serena could be a decent battler in addition to being a good Performer without people calling her a Mary Sue if she had faced real troubles during her journey. You see Dawn is good at:

1. making Poffins;
2. coming up with combinations;
3. training her Pokémon;
4. showing off her Pokémon;
5. designing clothes;
6. getting along with another Trainer in Tag Battles.

And the list goes on and on. However, Dawn struggled/failed in every activity I mentioned here.

1. her Pokémon initially hated her Poffins (which weren't bad per se, but she had to find the perfect recipe);
2. she had trouble to master several combinations (Thomas humiliated her for it in Teaching the Student Teacher!);
3. her Pokémon wouldn't listen to her commands (Buizel and Mamoswine) or she had to adapt to their style (Togekiss);
4. she failed to advance to the Contest Battles twice in a row;
5. she was troubled with what she should do for the Hearthome Collection while Ash was all done;
6. she got into a fight with Ash after they lost to twin brothers but they worked it out and went for revenge.

Be it things that lasted for one episode, like the Poffin and the Tag Battle stuff, or things that were spread out in multiple episodes, such as Mamoswine not listening to her and her losses at the Performance Stage, Dawn struggled. She is pretty good at a lot of things, but we know how she got there. Can we say the same about Serena? The girl who learned about Showcases one day and surpassed her rival Shauna on the other. The short answer: NO.

The long answer: Serena never had any real trouble. She caught two Pokémon who were already really good dancers. Her Poké Puffs were always liked by everyone. The theme in which she failed (Pokémon Styling) never appeared again (because having two barely different Poké Puff themes and a Rhyhorn theme was more important). No Pokémon disobeyed her. No Pokémon had trouble to perfect a move. No rival was a challenge to her. Everything was too easy for Serena. She was good at performing since she learned about it. IIRC Shauna once said she was doing a research on how to appeal to viewers, look cute or something while Serena got the attention of former Kalos Queen Palermo by simply cutting her hair.

What were the challenges faced by Serena? Fennekin stumbling and falling because the ribbon was too long, Jessie bumping into her in the hallway and ripping her dress, and Eevee getting lost at a Showcase theater. That's why she is considered a Mary Sue. Had Serena actually struggled to achieve a good reputation as a Performer, to raise a team of good dancers, to deal with the many rivals she encountered along the way, things would be completely different and battles could be added to her list of skills and no one would think she is a Mary Sue.

 

[Fig]

Yeah, because god forbid people have natural talents. No, it's UNREALISTIC if you're good at a thing without first being bad at it and then working to not be bad anymore.

Eye. Effing. Roll.

Natural talent exist ; some people start good at something without ever really practicing it, and only get better from there. Expecting EVERY character to be represented as a talentless dweeb just so you can checkmark the box that says "showed them getting good" is terrible writing, and a terrible expectation to place on writers.

 

[Hidden Mew]

Just to be clear, saying that a character is too girly to be a decent battler is kind of insulting. The way people often use the term girly is already pretty problematic as it is, mainly in that it's used in place of bad or weak, but claiming that a character is too girly to be a battler adds more layers to that issue. Being "girly" does not mean that a character cannot be a good battler. The two aren't even connected and it does come off as offensive to claim otherwise. I just don't want that part of the discussion to get out of hand because of how easily it could offend people.

Besides that, I don't think that it's a bad thing that Serena didn't really battle much during the course of the series. Her goal didn't involve battling and she was never really into it all that much to begin with, so I don't think it's a problem that she hasn't battled frequently. It is strange when you consider that battling is a core aspect of the series and franchise in general, but at the same time, it's kind of refreshing in a way. Not everyone in the Pokemon world would be interested in battling and we have seen other goals that don't revolve around battling as well. It would have been nice to see Serena battle a bit more since she wasn't too bad when she did have traditional battles, but I don't think it's a major deal breaker for me. I think it also helps that the show never went out of its way to claim that Serena was still a really good/strong trainer in spite of battling so infrequently. If they had gone in that direction, it would have bothered me more, but as it is, it's not a huge issue for me. Compared to all of the other problems I have with Serena and her arc, not battling too often is really low on that list.

 

[KatsumiChris1991]

You are mixing things up. Yes, Trainers can choose to dedicate themselves to "jobs" that do not involve Pokémon battles. We have seen that way back in the original series with Tracey, a Pokémon Watcher, whose goal was to observe wild Pokémon, sketch them, and learn more about their behaviors in the process.

After the original series, we got Stylists, who design clothes for Pokémon and enter fashion shows with them, and Connoisseurs, who evaluate the bond between Trainers and Pokémon and give advice on how to further develop that bond. A Performer is really just another Trainer that decided to focus on different aspects of Pokémon instead of battling.

Does that mean Performers have to be so inexperienced when it comes to Pokémon battles? The answer is no. As much as I hate Pokémon Showcases, I don't really have a problem with the lack of battles, but I do have a problem with Serena not being a battler. Every Trainer, regardless of their occupation, has to battle. That's how they add new Pokémon to their teams, after all.

Although being a Connoisseur has little to do with battles, Cilan entered as many battle tournaments as he possibly could. Paris, the famous Pokémon Stylist who served as one of the judges of the Hearthome Collection, was shown to be able to fend for herself, protecting her mentor Hermione and commanding Lopunny to wreck Team Rocket's machine. These are Trainers who do not have battles as part of their goal, but they are capable battlers.



Serena is already considered a Mary Sue so I don't really see the issue. And honestly, if her whole journey had played out differently, she could excel in battles without entering Mary Sue territory. We may have different concepts of what a Mary Sue is so I want to clarify. For me, a Mary Sue/Gary Stu is a character that embodies perfection. They rarely do anything wrong and when they do is not their fault (see Alain for reference, who was working for the bad guys unknowingly). They are super talented because they were born with an extraordinary set of skills. It's not about being good at several activities through hard work, is about being too good with little to no effort through magic dust.

You are saying that Serena is good at too many activities already and adding battles would put her in a pedestal as the perfect girl. However, I believe Serena could be a decent battler in addition to being a good Performer without people calling her a Mary Sue if she had faced real troubles during her journey. You see Dawn is good at:

1. making Poffins;
2. coming up with combinations;
3. training her Pokémon;
4. showing off her Pokémon;
5. designing clothes;
6. getting along with another Trainer in Tag Battles.

And the list goes on and on. However, Dawn struggled/failed in every activity I mentioned here.

1. her Pokémon initially hated her Poffins (which weren't bad per se, but she had to find the perfect recipe);
2. she had trouble to master several combinations (Thomas humiliated her for it in Teaching the Student Teacher!);
3. her Pokémon wouldn't listen to her commands (Buizel and Mamoswine) or she had to adapt to their style (Togekiss);
4. she failed to advance to the Contest Battles twice in a row;
5. she was troubled with what she should do for the Hearthome Collection while Ash was all done;
6. she got into a fight with Ash after they lost to twin brothers but they worked it out and went for revenge.

Be it things that lasted for one episode, like the Poffin and the Tag Battle stuff, or things that were spread out in multiple episodes, such as Mamoswine not listening to her and her losses at the Performance Stage, Dawn struggled. She is pretty good at a lot of things, but we know how she got there. Can we say the same about Serena? The girl who learned about Showcases one day and surpassed her rival Shauna on the other. The short answer: NO.

The long answer: Serena never had any real trouble. She caught two Pokémon who were already really good dancers. Her Poké Puffs were always liked by everyone. The theme in which she failed (Pokémon Styling) never appeared again (because having two barely different Poké Puff themes and a Rhyhorn theme was more important). No Pokémon disobeyed her. No Pokémon had trouble to perfect a move. No rival was a challenge to her. Everything was too easy for Serena. She was good at performing since she learned about it. IIRC Shauna once said she was doing a research on how to appeal to viewers, look cute or something while Serena got the attention of former Kalos Queen Palermo by simply cutting her hair.

What were the challenges faced by Serena? Fennekin stumbling and falling because the ribbon was too long, Jessie bumping into her in the hallway and ripping her dress, and Eevee getting lost at a Showcase theater. That's why she is considered a Mary Sue. Had Serena actually struggled to achieve a good reputation as a Performer, to raise a team of good dancers, to deal with the many rivals she encountered along the way, things would be completely different and battles could be added to her list of skills and no one would think she is a Mary Sue.

Just to be clear, saying that a character is too girly to be a decent battler is kind of insulting. The way people often use the term girly is already pretty problematic as it is, mainly in that it's used in place of bad or weak, but claiming that a character is too girly to be a battler adds more layers to that issue. Being "girly" does not mean that a character cannot be a good battler. The two aren't even connected and it does come off as offensive to claim otherwise. I just don't want that part of the discussion to get out of hand because of how easily it could offend people.

Besides that, I don't think that it's a bad thing that Serena didn't really battle much during the course of the series. Her goal didn't involve battling and she was never really into it all that much to begin with, so I don't think it's a problem that she hasn't battled frequently. It is strange when you consider that battling is a core aspect of the series and franchise in general, but at the same time, it's kind of refreshing in a way. Not everyone in the Pokemon world would be interested in battling and we have seen other goals that don't revolve around battling as well. It would have been nice to see Serena battle a bit more since she wasn't too bad when she did have traditional battles, but I don't think it's a major deal breaker for me. I think it also helps that the show never went out of its way to claim that Serena was still a really good/strong trainer in spite of battling so infrequently. If they had gone in that direction, it would have bothered me more, but as it is, it's not a huge issue for me. Compared to all of the other problems I have with Serena and her arc, not battling too often is really low on that list.

This is why the Serena character completely disappointed me. I thought she was going to be better. I still find May and Dawn more interesting than her.

 

[Almonds]

Does that mean Performers have to be so inexperienced when it comes to Pokémon battles? The answer is no. As much as I hate Pokémon Showcases, I don't really have a problem with the lack of battles, but I do have a problem with Serena not being a battler.

Does that mean every single person -regardless or jobs- has to be a battler if they own pokemon by default? Because if I remember, there aren't any legal problems that have to do with not preferring battles, or not choosing to battle. Performers don't have to be bad and inexperienced in battles - it is the Performer's choice to be inexperienced or not. Saying that Performers shouldn't be inexperienced in battles is like accussing someone with a job unrelated to sports saying, "even if you have a job that doesn't require you to play any sports you must play sports". It's forcing something onto that they might not prefer.

Every Trainer, regardless of their occupation, has to battle.

It's not a necessity. Battles can be avoided if one doesn't want to do so. The games force us to battle, like it or not, but the anime world isn't the same. Alain brought up the line of "battling when two eyes meet" but that applies because he's made it his job to fight trainers, especially ones with Mega Evolving pokemon. He doesn't go picking fights with every single person just because he's a trainer. Battles aren't a necessity.

 

[Yuri3221]

You are mixing things up. Yes, Trainers can choose to dedicate themselves to "jobs" that do not involve Pokémon battles. We have seen that way back in the original series with Tracey, a Pokémon Watcher, whose goal was to observe wild Pokémon, sketch them, and learn more about their behaviors in the process.

After the original series, we got Stylists, who design clothes for Pokémon and enter fashion shows with them, and Connoisseurs, who evaluate the bond between Trainers and Pokémon and give advice on how to further develop that bond. A Performer is really just another Trainer that decided to focus on different aspects of Pokémon instead of battling.

Does that mean Performers have to be so inexperienced when it comes to Pokémon battles? The answer is no. As much as I hate Pokémon Showcases, I don't really have a problem with the lack of battles, but I do have a problem with Serena not being a battler. Every Trainer, regardless of their occupation, has to battle. That's how they add new Pokémon to their teams, after all.

Although being a Connoisseur has little to do with battles, Cilan entered as many battle tournaments as he possibly could. Paris, the famous Pokémon Stylist who served as one of the judges of the Hearthome Collection, was shown to be able to fend for herself, protecting her mentor Hermione and commanding Lopunny to wreck Team Rocket's machine. These are Trainers who do not have battles as part of their goal, but they are capable battlers.



Serena is already considered a Mary Sue so I don't really see the issue. And honestly, if her whole journey had played out differently, she could excel in battles without entering Mary Sue territory. We may have different concepts of what a Mary Sue is so I want to clarify. For me, a Mary Sue/Gary Stu is a character that embodies perfection. They rarely do anything wrong and when they do is not their fault (see Alain for reference, who was working for the bad guys unknowingly). They are super talented because they were born with an extraordinary set of skills. It's not about being good at several activities through hard work, is about being too good with little to no effort through magic dust.

You are saying that Serena is good at too many activities already and adding battles would put her in a pedestal as the perfect girl. However, I believe Serena could be a decent battler in addition to being a good Performer without people calling her a Mary Sue if she had faced real troubles during her journey. You see Dawn is good at:

1. making Poffins;
2. coming up with combinations;
3. training her Pokémon;
4. showing off her Pokémon;
5. designing clothes;
6. getting along with another Trainer in Tag Battles.

And the list goes on and on. However, Dawn struggled/failed in every activity I mentioned here.

1. her Pokémon initially hated her Poffins (which weren't bad per se, but she had to find the perfect recipe);
2. she had trouble to master several combinations (Thomas humiliated her for it in Teaching the Student Teacher!);
3. her Pokémon wouldn't listen to her commands (Buizel and Mamoswine) or she had to adapt to their style (Togekiss);
4. she failed to advance to the Contest Battles twice in a row;
5. she was troubled with what she should do for the Hearthome Collection while Ash was all done;
6. she got into a fight with Ash after they lost to twin brothers but they worked it out and went for revenge.

Be it things that lasted for one episode, like the Poffin and the Tag Battle stuff, or things that were spread out in multiple episodes, such as Mamoswine not listening to her and her losses at the Performance Stage, Dawn struggled. She is pretty good at a lot of things, but we know how she got there. Can we say the same about Serena? The girl who learned about Showcases one day and surpassed her rival Shauna on the other. The short answer: NO.

The long answer: Serena never had any real trouble. She caught two Pokémon who were already really good dancers. Her Poké Puffs were always liked by everyone. The theme in which she failed (Pokémon Styling) never appeared again (because having two barely different Poké Puff themes and a Rhyhorn theme was more important). No Pokémon disobeyed her. No Pokémon had trouble to perfect a move. No rival was a challenge to her. Everything was too easy for Serena. She was good at performing since she learned about it. IIRC Shauna once said she was doing a research on how to appeal to viewers, look cute or something while Serena got the attention of former Kalos Queen Palermo by simply cutting her hair.

What were the challenges faced by Serena? Fennekin stumbling and falling because the ribbon was too long, Jessie bumping into her in the hallway and ripping her dress, and Eevee getting lost at a Showcase theater. That's why she is considered a Mary Sue. Had Serena actually struggled to achieve a good reputation as a Performer, to raise a team of good dancers, to deal with the many rivals she encountered along the way, things would be completely different and battles could be added to her list of skills and no one would think she is a Mary Sue.

She totally struggled. She had to win over Pancham's loyalty. She had to help Eevee overcome her shyness (which really was a struggle). Heck, it was just a struggle to figure out what she wanted to do.

And about battling. We have a cultural thing in our world where women have to have "a real career" outside the home, or they are frowned upon for not being "independent" or "their own woman" or whatever. Some women WANT to be stay at home moms. Some women want to be doctors. Some women want to do "girly" careers like beauty stylist or teaching or something. Some (myself included) want to go into a scientific field that is 70% male.

A bit of a rant there, but the point is, Serena has never shown any real interest in battling, or even really a desire to "catch em all." Which is FINE. That's who she is. It's her choice. And she could change her mind whenever she'd like. So what if you (this is a general point to audience, not meaning anyone in particular) would never want to be a performer. I wouldn't either. But Serena does. And performances don't require battling. Therefore, she has little interest in battling.

But she doesn't run from fights either. I thought she was awesome taking the initiative to get Harisan back and fighting from the helicopter during the Team Flare Arc. And also, she hangs back from the main battle to protect Manon and Bonnie. It makes sense as a strategy: she's the least experienced battler. No one was gonna say "actually we need you on the front line. Blaziken Mask, you stay here."