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Gary all the way. If he had more screen time, I bet he would've been extremely popular.
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Overall, who was the most interesting rival?
- Thread starter Cilan
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The Puppetmaster
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A reminder to give a reason for your vote in the poll. Thanks.
I'd have to say Paul. Honestly, he MADE the DP series. Without him DP would have been an alright saga, but the whole Ash/Paul rivalry was the main thing DP was about.
Paul pushed Ash to the edges of his limits as a trainer, and his battle skills and usage of pokemon was impressive. It was also surprising that in a show with almost all nice characters in it, that the writers would give us a character, who while not really a villain, was probably the coldest main trainer we've had in the series. No care for pokemon, abuse, etc. His battle with Ash was the best of the series.
In all honesty I think the DP series would have been forgettable if not for Paul, (and a few other things like Galactic/J, parts of Dawn's arc, etc).
Gary played a part in the original series, but Paul WAS the DP saga.
Paul pushed Ash to the edges of his limits as a trainer, and his battle skills and usage of pokemon was impressive. It was also surprising that in a show with almost all nice characters in it, that the writers would give us a character, who while not really a villain, was probably the coldest main trainer we've had in the series. No care for pokemon, abuse, etc. His battle with Ash was the best of the series.
In all honesty I think the DP series would have been forgettable if not for Paul, (and a few other things like Galactic/J, parts of Dawn's arc, etc).
Gary played a part in the original series, but Paul WAS the DP saga.
D
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In terms of interesting, I often wondered what Trip's role would turn out to be other than being a rival...
I must say; I never quite got how Paul could be quite soo cold to his pokemon too much either though..:-/
I might vote for Trip. He's up to something...he's up to something (maybe not but it feels that way!).
I must say; I never quite got how Paul could be quite soo cold to his pokemon too much either though..:-/
I might vote for Trip. He's up to something...he's up to something (maybe not but it feels that way!).
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I'm always going to vote for Gary unless someone better appears. Of course, Paul is a close second.
Trip is the most perfect rival of all universe. Trip is intelligent, handsome, rich, nice, kind-hearted, calm, and innocent rival ever! I can't stand with cute , innocent, and good-looking face :banana: His pokemon are classy, especially Serperior, the elegant and strong Pokemon. He should be called 'Ouji-sama' in anime version. He could possibly be Platinum Berlitz's anime version.
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weeaboo_girl84
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Yep.
Paul.
Because his hair is purple.
lol@ Kenny and his 0 votes.
Paul.
Because his hair is purple.
lol@ Kenny and his 0 votes.
Master Cyrus
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GAry- for being the original and being strong but too much of a jerk.
Jaden Yuki
Get your game on!
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paul beating GARY!!! how....
Pokémon Master Ash
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Gotta say...Paul. As much as I don't like DP, he was one of the few things that kept me along for the ride. He has a cool rivalry, and it's VERY well done to show the sharp contrast between Ash and himself. I enjoyed the Ash v. Paul parts the most out of anything in DP. 
megaevolvedmushroom
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Gary all the way!
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I was split between my faves, Georgia/Burgundy (sig implies it), yet I could not choose, so I chose Harley for his jokes.
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I choose Paul or Barry because Barry was the 1st funny rival and Paul brought the best battles.
death trapper
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Paul(the jerkass) and harley(the tricky, evil who basically hold grudge against someone even for the smallest thing).
Misty Calls Masquerain
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#1: Gary was a jerk that was actually funny, and being Ash's childhood friend, he knew how to push his buttons!
#2: Harley is... Harley. What else needed to be said?
#3: Barry (later DP) was actually entertaining, even though his "I'M GONNA FINE YOU!" gag wore thin after a while.
#4: Langley had good interactions with Iris.
#5: Trip had the potential to be a great rival, but the writers just screwed him over.
#6: Drew is okay, but he's overrated to me.
#7: Burgundy wasn't much of a threat, she was just there so Cilan could be better than her.
#8: Nando was a guy who did both contests and gyms. He could have been good had they used him more, but they didn't.
#9: Paul was a strong trainer, but a stiff character.
#10: Barry (early DP) did nothing but kiss Paul's ass and annoy everybody.
#11: Bianca would have been way higher if she was like her game counterpart, but her anime self is just all of her worst traits exaggerated. Oh, and her pushing Ash into a fountain all the time was NOT funny.
#12: Zoey was bland and boring. She had interesting traits, but they were never fleshed out.
#13: Kenny was Dawn's childhood friend, and…that's pretty much it.
#2: Harley is... Harley. What else needed to be said?
#3: Barry (later DP) was actually entertaining, even though his "I'M GONNA FINE YOU!" gag wore thin after a while.
#4: Langley had good interactions with Iris.
#5: Trip had the potential to be a great rival, but the writers just screwed him over.
#6: Drew is okay, but he's overrated to me.
#7: Burgundy wasn't much of a threat, she was just there so Cilan could be better than her.
#8: Nando was a guy who did both contests and gyms. He could have been good had they used him more, but they didn't.
#9: Paul was a strong trainer, but a stiff character.
#10: Barry (early DP) did nothing but kiss Paul's ass and annoy everybody.
#11: Bianca would have been way higher if she was like her game counterpart, but her anime self is just all of her worst traits exaggerated. Oh, and her pushing Ash into a fountain all the time was NOT funny.
#12: Zoey was bland and boring. She had interesting traits, but they were never fleshed out.
#13: Kenny was Dawn's childhood friend, and…that's pretty much it.
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I found Stephan to be the most interesting rival. His personality that he displayed with Sawk every time they were together was fun to watch. They are so close to each other, that it really stood out. His dramatics about his name were interesting at times. I also liked how he had my two favorite Pokemon in Generation V, which helped to peak my interest in him as a character. He also had the best League battle against Ash, and it was great to see his move strategizing skills.
He helped Ash in a couple of episodes, and really was the nice and tough rival at the same time. Something I admire in rivals in general.
He helped Ash in a couple of episodes, and really was the nice and tough rival at the same time. Something I admire in rivals in general.
Most “interesting” rival, huh? In the risk of repeating what everyone else has likely said already, I’ll say Paul.
While Gary, Drew, Harley, Barry, Bianca, Burgundy, and Georgia are all entertaining characters in their own right, Paul challenged Ash on a level I’ve never seen any other character do before. Paul was kind of like the “Bizzaro” to Ash’s “Superman”, the two of them different right to the point where Paul actively called into question some of the fundamental things Ash had believed about Pokemon training since the beginning of the show. This element to Paul made him more than just the jerk who showed up every now and then to belittle and one-up the protagonist while gradually gaining some respect for them as the series goes on - and, entertaining as they could be, Gary and Drew were really nothing more than this.
And the show doesn’t take the easy way out with the character, either. It’s not as simple as “Ash in the right, Paul in the wrong” despite having seemingly set up everything to be that way in the beginning. While some of the rougher things about Paul do change over the course of the show (i.e. his releasing of Pokemon deemed “weak”, his disrespect of Ash), just as he learns to respect Ash and his training methods, Ash learns to respect and even acknowledge that Paul has qualities that he himself lacks (that line in the subtitled version of DP163 really stood out to me, but I don’t remember how the English dub played it). And I don’t think I even need to get into Chimchar, whose arc starting in DP150-DP152 really takes both Paul’s character and the Diamond & Pearl anime to the next level.
There were actual stakes when it came to this rivalry, a sense that this guy really got to Ash, and that Ash really got to Paul. It’s not as simple as the two of them needing to beat each other because one of them’s a jerk and that they naturally stand in each other’s way of winning the Sinnoh League. There was a lot of pride invested in that rivalry, which accounts for so much of the antagonism between the two and I really get the sense that the writers knew they struck gold with the character, his rivalry with Ash, and how Chimchar fit in. After all, there has to be a reason Gary got the standard two-episode conclusion to his rivalry with Ash, Trip got roughly an episode and a half, and Paul and Ash got three full episodes to resolve everything between them in (IMHO) the greatest Pokemon battle this show has ever seen, or likely will see again.
Gary wishes he could have done half that, and Trip? Please...
All that said, however, I think a special mention should go to Harley. Not only is the character awesome, but he deserves props for being a rival that’s out and out villainous. He cheats, and not only does he cheat, but he teams up with Team Rocket and endangers May’s friends. He’s hilariously petty, mean-spirited, and generally very animated.
I also thought it was pretty cool to have a recurring rival who wasn’t superior to the protagonist. Of all the times Harley and May battled, Harley has been seen winning a grand total of once. After all, Drew already filled the niche of being May’s biggest obstacle. Why did Harley have to do the same? I like Barry, Ursula, and Bianca for the same reason. I’ve seen complaints about the treatment of these characters, but when Ash already had Paul in DP and Trip in BW, and Dawn already had Zoey, as their benchmarks, why do those rivals need to do the exact same thing? Instead they have a role opposite to the likes of Drew or Paul, Trip, or Zoey... and that’s to make May, Ash, or Dawn actually look good.
While Gary, Drew, Harley, Barry, Bianca, Burgundy, and Georgia are all entertaining characters in their own right, Paul challenged Ash on a level I’ve never seen any other character do before. Paul was kind of like the “Bizzaro” to Ash’s “Superman”, the two of them different right to the point where Paul actively called into question some of the fundamental things Ash had believed about Pokemon training since the beginning of the show. This element to Paul made him more than just the jerk who showed up every now and then to belittle and one-up the protagonist while gradually gaining some respect for them as the series goes on - and, entertaining as they could be, Gary and Drew were really nothing more than this.
And the show doesn’t take the easy way out with the character, either. It’s not as simple as “Ash in the right, Paul in the wrong” despite having seemingly set up everything to be that way in the beginning. While some of the rougher things about Paul do change over the course of the show (i.e. his releasing of Pokemon deemed “weak”, his disrespect of Ash), just as he learns to respect Ash and his training methods, Ash learns to respect and even acknowledge that Paul has qualities that he himself lacks (that line in the subtitled version of DP163 really stood out to me, but I don’t remember how the English dub played it). And I don’t think I even need to get into Chimchar, whose arc starting in DP150-DP152 really takes both Paul’s character and the Diamond & Pearl anime to the next level.
There were actual stakes when it came to this rivalry, a sense that this guy really got to Ash, and that Ash really got to Paul. It’s not as simple as the two of them needing to beat each other because one of them’s a jerk and that they naturally stand in each other’s way of winning the Sinnoh League. There was a lot of pride invested in that rivalry, which accounts for so much of the antagonism between the two and I really get the sense that the writers knew they struck gold with the character, his rivalry with Ash, and how Chimchar fit in. After all, there has to be a reason Gary got the standard two-episode conclusion to his rivalry with Ash, Trip got roughly an episode and a half, and Paul and Ash got three full episodes to resolve everything between them in (IMHO) the greatest Pokemon battle this show has ever seen, or likely will see again.
Gary wishes he could have done half that, and Trip? Please...
All that said, however, I think a special mention should go to Harley. Not only is the character awesome, but he deserves props for being a rival that’s out and out villainous. He cheats, and not only does he cheat, but he teams up with Team Rocket and endangers May’s friends. He’s hilariously petty, mean-spirited, and generally very animated.
I also thought it was pretty cool to have a recurring rival who wasn’t superior to the protagonist. Of all the times Harley and May battled, Harley has been seen winning a grand total of once. After all, Drew already filled the niche of being May’s biggest obstacle. Why did Harley have to do the same? I like Barry, Ursula, and Bianca for the same reason. I’ve seen complaints about the treatment of these characters, but when Ash already had Paul in DP and Trip in BW, and Dawn already had Zoey, as their benchmarks, why do those rivals need to do the exact same thing? Instead they have a role opposite to the likes of Drew or Paul, Trip, or Zoey... and that’s to make May, Ash, or Dawn actually look good.
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