Letting Yourself Get Attached

[MrMeowPuss]

Clemont, Bonnie and Serena (ESPECIALLY Serena) are probably my favorite companions since the original trio but there's a slight problem. I find myself reluctant to really get into XY and its characters purely because I know there are going to be replaced at the start of the next gen (I know it's not 100% certain but I would be very surprised, and happy, if they didn't). They all have a lot of potential as characters but it's likely they won't reach that since they aren't given the time needed.

Does anyone else find themselves reluctant to get attached to Ash's companions due to this same reason? And do you all want a more deeper story that can focus on three main characters, three equally important goals and three journeys that are experienced side by side?

 

[DVDs]

I wouldn't call it reluctance so much as an awareness that yeah, these new travel buddies will be gone by the end of the region saga but let's enjoy them anyway!

 

[Toa of Gallifrey]

Even though the it's inevitable, what I do is get attached to them and enjoy the time we have with them. I'll be sad when they leave, sure, but I'll have enjoyed the time they were here all the more.

 

[Lugia trainer]

Honestly they need to start having some of Ash's traveling companions carry over to the next generation, so to speak, again.

 

[jackatlasred]

Maybe we get a johto kind of scenario with only serena and we get brock back, tho that seems kind of impossible. and yeah i havent really gotten too much into the characters for that reason.

 

[Sakuraa]

I personally prefer to enjoy them while they last (if possible). Sure, if I like them I'll miss them when they leave, but I don't see I problem having a bit of an attachment to them. They'll be around for like 3 years or so anyway, so I don't think it's that big of a deal.

 

[ii kanji]

I agree with the OP. Ever since I found out my beloved Misty had been replaced with some cheap brunette -p) I have struggled to ever feel close to any of the companions. Don't get me wrong, I have really enjoyed them, for example particularly with Citron and Eureka this series. But I don't have unrealistically hopeful dreams for them (which silly as they are, make being a fan the uplifting and escapist thing that it can be!) the same way I did for Kasumi and the way I still do for Satoshi/Pikachu and the Rocket trio.

 

[~ Blazing White Yang]

I kinda feel the same way. I actually do like Clemont & Bonnie as a unit, and Serena has grown on me, but I'm not really invested enough since they'll be scrapped.

I will say however, that I didn't feel this way with Dawn in particular...She stands out to me because the writers basically treated her as a 2nd protagonist, equal to Ash. We haven't had a character get that type of treatment since, so that contributes to my lack of investment.

 

[EvilChameleon]

Brock is still the saddest departure from the show.

"You can do it, Pokemon doctor Brock."
"Pokemon master Ash, you can too."

 

[JacobYBM]

It is because we know they are going to leave that we can become attached. With characters that will never leave we eventually begin to feel nothing. Right, Satoshi?

 

[MrMeowPuss]

I agree with the OP. Ever since I found out my beloved Misty had been replaced with some cheap brunette -p) I have struggled to ever feel close to any of the companions. Don't get me wrong, I have really enjoyed them, for example particularly with Citron and Eureka this series. But I don't have unrealistically hopeful dreams for them (which silly as they are, make being a fan the uplifting and escapist thing that it can be!) the same way I did for Kasumi and the way I still do for Satoshi/Pikachu and the Rocket trio.

I actually had May, Max, Damn and Brock all grow on me so you can imagine how disappointed I was when they all left. I hate it when characters leave a show and you are just left wondering what they've become and where they are now.

I kinda feel the same way. I actually do like Clemont & Bonnie as a unit, and Serena has grown on me, but I'm not really invested enough since they'll be scrapped.

I will say however, that I didn't feel this way with Dawn in particular...She stands out to me because the writers basically treated her as a 2nd protagonist, equal to Ash. We haven't had a character get that type of treatment since, so that contributes to my lack of investment.

In a way I feel like the anime is growing (ever so slightly though). There has been recent events with an evolution (don't want to spoil it for those who aren't up to date) which they had never done before. They are really upfront with Serena's attraction to Ash which is a positive step forward for me. When a Pokemon that Ash knows is shown, Serena looks it up in her Pokedex instead of Ash acting like he's never seen it before.

From what I've seen so far character development for XY had gone pretty slow and that just gives me this hope that these companions will be sticking around for good. It seems stupid to have them achieve stuff so slowly if they'll be leaving after this gen, but if they stick around that slow growth because reasonable pacing for a much longer deeper story. I wish every companion could be treated like Dawn (except for the part were she gets replaced) and have their own story arc alongside Ash.

It is because we know they are going to leave that we can become attached. With characters that will never leave we eventually begin to feel nothing. Right, Satoshi?

I think this may be true in a sense, but only because Ash/Satoshi never grows. Battle Frontier and DP seen Ash at his very best, using strategies to battle his opponents and actually showing growth on his journey. I think that's the Ash people could easily get attached to, not the one that is reset every new region.

 

[froakiefroak]

I honestly have never grown attached to anime characters before, so I really don't know what to think about this. I mean.. I do 'like' some of the main cast, at least older members like May, Misty and Dawn anyway. But when they left I wasn't distraught or upset? I did think the final episode with Brock and Misty together was sad, yeah, but it didn't emotionally effect me in the end.

 

[Muur]

You should get attached to them whilst they're here, you'll enjoy it more and probably regret it if not. I really liked Dawn but I guess they can't stay around forever, unless you're Ash and Team Rocket.

 

[Hidden Mew]

I can understand people having issues with getting attached to characters knowing that they'd only be around for three or four years at most, but I still think it's ultimately a good thing that the characters are replaced every series. Being around for a one series gives them plenty of time to potentially get development and make some progress with their goal. They may not be around forever like with Ash, Pikachu and Team Rocket, but they don't ware out their welcome or risk becoming too stale by being around for only a few years. I've still grown attached to some of the characters, such as May, Dawn, Brock, Cilan, Clemont and maybe Serena now that she's getting more good focused episodes, and knowing that they are only going to be around for one series doesn't bother me that much. One series tends to last for at least three years, which is a pretty long time and a lot can be done with them during that time. Granted, I don't think that every character has been handled well enough during their respective series, but being around for a limited time gives them more potential for growth at least.

 

[HumanDawn]

I never really understood why people would pick to not get attached to characters because they'll be replaced in 3/4 years. With that line of thought, you may as well not get attached to anything in any show because it will end at some point anyway. I'd always try to appreciate these characters more instead of just not trying.

 

[JacobYBM]

We become attached to characters in one cour shows that eventually end. Why is three or four years suddenly impossible?

 

[Ampharos King]

This discussion about "getting attached" to Ash's companions can also extend to their Pokémon, and even most of Ash's Pokémon as well.

For the most part, Ash's companions use their given Pokémon in a story arc. Their Pokémon can have unique personality quirks, moves, or even apparel (like Dawn's Buneary and Serena's Pancham), and yet they will be replaced by other Pokemon. For instance, Dawn's Piplup in DP was replaced by Ash's Oshawott in BW, who in turn was replaced by Clemont's Chespin in XY. There is no doubt in my mind that Chespin will be replaced by a different Pokémon (most likely another starter) when the Gen VII anime is released. What's the point of being attached to Chespin, knowing that it will not be on the main cast by the end of 2017?

TRio's Pokémon are even more likely to suffer this fate, as Pumpkaboo and Inkay are more or less filling the same shoes that Woobat and Yamask once did in BW. Even more infamously, Arbok and Victreebel (not counting Weezing since it was hardly used by the time the Orange Islands were over) were replaced by Seviper and Cacnea in AG. Cacnea, in turn, was replaced by Carnivine in DP, who in turn was succeeded by Amoonguss in BW. Meanwhile, Jessie's Dustox was replaced by Yanmega, and James' Chimecho was replaced by Mime Jr. It makes little sense to invest one's time and energy to invest in characters that could disappear in the blink of an eye.

As for Ash's Pokémon, well, it is a given that the ones currently on his team will participate in a few gym battles, and then battle in one or two league matches before ultimately being Oaked. The last time Ash used a previous region Pokémon in a competition (san Pikachu) was during the Sinnoh League. And even then only a few of Ash's Pokémon - seven out of (what was then) 16 Oaked mons - were fortunate enough to get that treatment. Out of those seven, only four - Heracross, Noctowl, Quilava, and Sceptile - actually got exposition and character development in that competition. And the Sinnoh League happened in 2010, just under 5 years ago. In retrospect, the Sinnoh mons haven't been used or seen on screen since late 2010. If they won't be used in the Kalos League, the Unova mons will reach the 2 year mark in September.

Knowing that most of the characters - human and Pokémon - in this anime live transient existences, destined to be replaced by something else in the near future, we should live in the moment and be thankful for any exposition, no matter how small, they may get. Those characters will be written off at some point. I wouldn't recommend attaching yourself to those characters, but I also wouldn't advise to completely ignore them either. Trying to find the balance between adoration and indifference is difficult, trust me, but if you are able to reach it then at least you wouldn't have to deal with as much pain when the characters do leave.

 

[pokemon fan 132]

This is exactly reason why i stopped investing emotionally in main characters in pokemon ever since Hoenn era ended.
With DP confirming how whenever new generation starts Ash travel companions will be kickd out of anime and basically disappear forever.

For example i like Clemont best from current Kalos cast(not counting Ash, but his stay is secured so its not like he can run out of time). He is one of more unique characters we had in pokemon for long time imo anyway.

Liking how writers took different approach with him in representing people who are more indoor type of person. People who arent athletes, good at sport and physical activities but compensate for this with their intellect, determination and capacity to resolve logic issues studying or wanting to create something which could improve life and mankind. His phobia of camera or having lack of confidence and faith in himself adds more to his substance.

Not to mention he has impressive arsenal of pokemon like Magnemite, Heliolisk, Luxray etc. Which are all tough, well versed battlers and his passion for invention and science brings nice comedy valuie to journey itself. Making me interested to find more about his past, family which is full of mysteries and undefined things(such as father playing double identity) or his gadgets and inteligence being exploited to more substantual level having potential to not just remain part of humor.

But i never really grew attached all that much to his character or care in same vein like i used to for Original trio for example. For simple fact of knowing how there is 99,9% of chance how by time XY ends and 7th gen starts he will most likely leave.

Get maybe one follow up side special or cameo in new generation afterwards being erased from face of existence like he never mattered/existed, had his own unfinished plots waranting to be focused about etc(like we can see to be case with Misty, May, Max etc).

This is my backstory about being attached regarding pokemon:

Back in day when Misty was still main character, it was originally planned to have permanent stable main cast, strong continuity and cogent story which builds on itself along with permanent protagonists according to head writer at that time Takeshi Shudo blogs until they rather opted to trade quality iof story to marketing itself.

And i got emotionally invested in character just as much as i did in Ash just to end up disapponted and perplexed at that time(im sure most did when Misty was replaced).

I grew attached to character liking how she added lot of emotion, humor and identity to main cast,acted like heroine with her sharp mind, incentive in resolving problems or showing wide number of interests she had. Wanted to see more of that massive untapped potential and unfinished story regarding her relationship with Ash and others, unexplored past about her fears, parents, conflicts, pokemon themselves like Psyduck learning how to overcome his limitations explored.

Or water master dreams which involvced meeting legendary pokemon understanding their nature, entering strong tournaments like Whirl Cup, desire to live up to E4 Lorelei giving array of ways to explore character so much more. Especially with water rich regions like Hoenn was.

But she ended replaced slowly being pushed away until she was completely irrelevant and forgotten like nothing mattered.

I thought how it was one time thing like with Tracey for Orange Islands with perhaps May having chance to stay deciding to give her chance growing to care almost as much about her, way she grew in confident , collected character finding what she wants to do in life. Hilarious interactions with her rivals or failures and wins at contests being enjoyable side quest where pokemon coukld be used in alternate ways.,

But she got removed permanently as well making me frustrated. Starting to question whats the point of me to even grow attached to any main character but Ash and TR?

When its known from very start how their faith is engraved in stone never getting chance to stay long enough to be used to full potential , explore their stories to deeper, more complex degree and maintain on formed friendship and close bonds developed with Ash and others. Feeling like theyre part of anime story, universe and how they wont be canned out like yesterday trash becoming completely nonexistant.

Never being important again.

By that point from DP and onwards i stopped investing emotionally in characters and while i liked Dawn, Cilan, Serena, Bonnie, Clemont etc.

I never cared in same way about them like i used to for characters for who i foolishly thought how they will remain relevant in some way or form in pokemon until very end of this show never stopping to really exist in anime.

I dont know, maybe its only me. But i would much rather like if with all patterns Kalos series dared to break whole cycle of constant cast changing dies as well not treating characters anymore as one trick pony. Expendable fanservice being there to just fill up tome before new gen starts.

Keeping Serena, Clemont and Bonnie or at least some of them in anime. And return older characters doing seque to their unfinished stories, updates, rekindling on friendship with Ash taking it to more substantial level etc.

Excuses over characters staying longer running into risk of "becoming stale" never bothered me in slightest.
Stale can become interesting again if such thing happens.

Other long running shows from past and present like Naruto, One Piece, Baccano, Fairy Tail, Sailor Moon etc.etc. keep main characters for hundreds of episodes and issue of long stay(if we can even call it like that) is removed by adding more depth to character personalities. Introducing new scopes, more innovative challenges through which character growth could be illustrated in various ways and make it seem like previous knowledge and effort is leading toward something bigger. Discovering with each new mission, adventure and development new sides of main heroes we follow forming emotional link between viewer and fictional character. Wanting to see him/her reach his destination, enjoy in charm and personality which made you become allured into it and appreciate more meat/depth added to its story.

Reason we never get that much to my disappointment is because main characters always leave not staying long enough to reach full potential(because stories, dreams and flaws they have are created in way that they intend to grow over long periods of time building on themselves).

At least i feel that way.

 

[ii kanji]

I honestly have never grown attached to anime characters before, so I really don't know what to think about this.

Please don't take this the wrong way (I promise I'm not asking to be passive aggressive, I'm genuinely curious!) but what makes you watch the show if you aren't attached to the characters? I understand with some media which perhaps has an extremely clever plot you keep following because you want to find out what happens next, even though you may despise every single character. For me the Pokemon anime has no appeal other than the charm of its characters. I'm interested to know what other redeeming features (which make it more worthy of viewership than any other TV show) fans see in it.

I also find this talk about "choosing" to be or not to be attached to characters really frustrating - you cannot choose this, it's a feeling which develops organically or not! After Kasumi left I didn't vow to never grow attached to a character again, in fact I've grown attached to a number of Pokemon since, but however much I may adore a human character I find myself inexplicably distant from them and I can only imagine that this is because I have been previously burnt.

 

[Shinneth]

Maybe it's because I delayed myself on watching Pokemon until I was 17 (opposed to 11/12, which is when we got animated Pokemon in English), but my "attachment" to the characters was tenuous at best. Like, I can't help but feel that Misty's departure from the show is the crux of this entire notion of "choosing" which characters to care about, since that's the one that even today I'll still see people who proudly proclaim that they stopped watching Pokemon entirely solely because Misty left, or alternatively, "the show sucked ever since she left". If I had watched Pokemon during my preteen years, I wonder if I would've gotten attached to Misty, because I feel it's entirely possible. Seeing her at 17, though, after seeing tons of characters from other shows or games that share a buttload of Misty's character tropes, honestly I never really took on well with Misty. The fact that the concept of Pokeshipping is brought up with her 9 times out of 10 also disinclined me to get invested in her character. We just didn't resonate. I can kinda see why many others did latch on to her, but oh man. Well before I even involved myself in Pokemon fandom, I remember the screeches and outcries all across the internet that Misty was getting "replaced". Since the internet was making such a big deal out of it, I had to see the "replacement" for myself but surprisingly I found myself very endeared to May, and the show overall just seemed fresh, new, and better after living through the meandering monotony known as the Johto arc. It was a quick and easy way for me to realize that hey, change can be good. There was so much toxic drama over Misty getting written out; I will agree her departure was not at all well-handled, but every time I recalled the many outcries of bringing Misty back, I just thought back to how... not-there she felt to me in Johto. Brock was no different. And it made me feel it was no coincidence that once the status quo was changed that suddenly the series became interesting and fun to watch again, rather than the seemingly endless trudge I felt when watching Johto.

The show was evolving and trying new things; many of which worked quite well and have stayed with us since. As I said, I really identified with May (didn't feel anything meaningful for Misty in the least), I loved her dynamics with Max and honestly, I loved the AG group. I was pretty convinced that groups in the show should be quartets from that point on, so it was disappointing to revert to trios in the following two series, because it definitely felt like something was missing in the trio formulas. May underwent a lot of character development and I remember dreading the possibility of her getting written out whenever the anime reached Gen IV. And yeah, I felt sad seeing May and Max leave the group at the end of AG. But y'know what? They at least put some solid effort in May's departure; they gave her a valid reason to go it alone, and her impending departure was foreshadowed well enough in Battle Frontier. I woud've loved for her to stay on the cast past AG, but I also understood why she needed to leave. Although I didn't like Dawn as much as May, I still liked her more than Misty, and Dawn too had a lot of development. I hate her Piplup with a burning passion, but really, I can't help but feel that you'd have to go out of your way to avoid endearment to May or Dawn - especially if the reason is related to Misty. Though I did come to appreciate even Misty once the BW trio formed up, and I guess you could say there was emotional attachment in how much I loathed that trio. I think the moment of the BW trio that got me in the feels was how abruptly the trio split up in the end.... mainly because I was hoping their departures would be rushed and terribly handled... which they were! My issues with Iris have nothing to do with Dawn or May; to be perfectly honest, I was desperately wanting one of the other BW girls take her place instead, because I had much more emotional investment in, say, Bianca, than nearly every other character in BW... including Ash.

And I'm quite comfortable loving and attaching myself to our current group. Really, I'm very happy we're back to a quartet. Yeah, odds are they're all gonna go their own ways after XY ends, and that'll make me sad, but I also look forward to what new dynamics might happen with his future traveling partners. If you think about it, this isn't too different from real life. You have friends in your childhood, but sometimes those friendships don't last or stay the same through the years - whether it's conflict or just drifting apart, many people move on to make new friends. Sometimes the process repeats itself, even!

Anyway, I'm with the previously mentioned notion that it's perfectly fine to get invested in a character even if you know they will inevitably depart from the show completely within a few years. Make the best of the situation and enjoy their presence while they're still here, rather than wallowing in indifference or misery or just being jaded. But now that we know how this series operates now, there should be no excuse for getting TOO attached to anyone. Too much attachment on its own is extremely unhealthy, anyway. Balance is what's important here: don't close yourself off and get even more jaded about everything, but don't get so attached that you'll be pleading to the whole world and making endless petitions to put a character back in the show. It's all about relevance: a LOT of people were screaming for Brock to get off the show throughout AG and DP, saying he's gotten stale. In some regard I can understand/agree with the sentiment, but Brock's extended presence never really bothered me. So who's to say that, hypothetically, if Misty had lasted entirely through AG and DP, that she would somehow NOT get the flak Brock got for being stale. Because even back in Johto she felt mostly stale to me. Her AG cameos weren't anything to write home about either. But in my opinion, the BEST of Misty is within her Chronicles episodes, where she's not in Ash's group and far far way from the main storyline. I really felt she shined the brightest in the episode were she caught Gyarados... which tells me, much like May's rationale for leaving the group, that Misty's drastically improving as a trainer, far more so than what she'd be at if she had never left Ash's group at all... uh, in my opinion.

If we wanna get super weird and morbid about it, make an analogy regarding real life: you get a cat or a dog for a pet. You know their lifespan is only ~15 years or so, but just because they'll likely die long before you do doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy the time you have with them. Spending their whole life span distancing yourself from said pet is... honestly way sadder than I can bear. It's just a totally bonkers analogy, but I could go the Gregory House route and just say Everybody Dies. One way or another, things will come and go in your life. Same can be said for the show, as Ash is always, always, always traveling. It makes sense, in that setting, that Ash will have a shifting cast along with him. They all have their own dreams, and many of them will show to be hard to attain so long as you're primarily following someone else for HIS goal.

Uhhh... I'd best stop myself before this post gets TOO weird.

tl;dr: Don't be afraid to get invested, even if you know the experience won't last. You're missing out in shutting yourself away from the experience entirely. Why do that do yourself? But don't go overboard, either; that just leads to being a person that can only be defined by several choice offensive slurs.