What each series does/did well: the thread

[KrspaceT]

I was thinking it might be a good experiment to write up what each series of Pokemon (OG, AD, DP, BW, XY, and SM) do particularly well compared to the others. Might be a good way to look at the series.

Hmm, as a start for a few, even if I don't cover them all in the first go

• I've found myself liking how the early 'catch a Pokemon' episode in SM was handled. Ash didn't do that stereotypical 'throw ball without thinking' thing that people tend to mock him about in the other series, and Mimikyu and the Grubbin did a pretty good job at showing why Ash didn't end of nabbin' them.
• DP handled the rivalry the best. While there are ways Paul was handled I dislike, I will not deny that his conflict with Ash was a lot more developed and managed from start to end better than any other rival.
• Upon reflection I feel like AD's league is how I'd prefer them being handled. The league had the least skipped battles and a nice variety of them (One on one, doubles, and full) other leagues don't have. I despise skipped rounds and feel like the leagues could be a lot longer than they are without much problem. Plus having more battles would do wonders for a lot of Leagues, including giving more Unovan mons time to show themselves off and especially in Kalos that would have alleviated issues people had with Goodra and especially Noivern. While the ADV league didn't do it perfectly the battles presented gave all of the mons a pretty good showing, even if Torkoal could have used more for himself.

 

[EscLucy]

Kanto: (Cannot really judge - beta test). Misty's attitude.
Hoenn: League felt rushed. Max.
Battle Frontier: Nothing bad. The fillers.
Sinnoh: Nothing bad. Dawn and contests. The rivalry between Ash and Paul.
Unova: Iris and the number of rivals. Gym aesthetics.
Kalos: Showcases. Handling of Amourshipping.
Alola: The positioning of the filler episodes at the start and the padding. Bewear.
These are my opinions and I've added in the ones I can think of (one for each because those are the ones which stand out), I might remember more and add as I go along.

 

[Nicolas721]

OS: Character-focused humour, realistic characters, handling of Team Rocket.
AG: Handling of contest and secondary goals overall, Ash's team focus, post-league goals.
DP: Intense character relationships, strategic battles, moves and strategies' training.
BW: Casual character relationships, TR-less fillers.
XY: Dynamic battles, villain plot.
SM: Interesting fillers that use a different formula than the one we're used to.

 

[Almonds]

OS: There's not really an overall story arc (like villain plots) so you can pick anywhere and watch an episode and not miss much. Easy to access and get familiar with.
DP: A complete story arc with intense rivalry.
BW: Episode N. It actually helps focusing on the villain plot when it takes up a full 12 to 13 episodes, and not spread over 200+ episodes.
XY: Battles with brilliant animation and impact. Professor Sycamore.

 

[SammyW27]

Kanto: Had an energy, edginess, emotion and insanity we haven't seen since; Unique, interesting concepts and ideas. Best version of Ash-tachii and the TRio.

Orange Islands: Tried to do things differently. Development for Ash and Charizard's relationship; Ash vs. Drake; the times Misty got the spotlight; the TV Show at its all time most boobalicious

Johto: Had a good start; The 3rd year (and a half?) was filled with great moments; Again, best take on Ash-tahii and TRio.

Hoenn: May's storyline, Ash's growth

Battle Frontier: Ash calling in old Pokemon to help; some cool battles

DP: Paul; Pokemon with a lot of depth and personality; a large cast of recurring & game characters with nary a COTD in sight; the Villians; More plot/story than usual; best used Gym Leaders and Elite 4; cool battles; Ash at 2nd his best; Dawn's contest arc; Lots of dramatic moments

BW: The first 20 or so episodes; many episodes between Nimbasa and the Homika battle; Operation Tempest; much of Episode N; Iris was good character; fun & lively rivals, Cilan was one of the better male companions; Ash-tachii getting several honorary members

XY: Gorgeous animation; Ash at his best; Awesome battles; Team Flare; The TRio the 2nd best they'd been since the OS; Lots of dramatic moments; Well used Gym Leaders; Bonnie before the title change

 

[kantoskies]

OS as a whole: The cel-animated art is some of my favorite, and while the series had quite a few bad ADs the warmer, washed-out colors of this era made even Takeda's work tolerable. The dub also was in its peak here, the end of Kanto-the end of season 3 was my favorite dub era.
Kanto: This saga had a unique feel to it, even the more "serious" (for lack of a better term) episodes stand out from anything a modern episode would do. No doubt a lot of this is due to Shudo's influence but I think part of it is also just a result of the production staff figuring things out as they go. While this definitely was a negative when it came to like overarching plots, I feel like it helped avoid the "by the books" feel that pretty much every other series has had. I also think the Rocket trio was at their peak here, or at least had a unique charm that hasn't carried on.
Orange Islands: Was kind of like a "grown up Kanto" in that it still had the fresh vibe Kanto had but was a bit tighter.
Johto: Really was not as bad as most people say it was, and I think if it were maybe half the length it would have been a great saga.
AG: I really liked Haruka and her storyline, and her rivals were a lot of fun. I also really liked Satoshi this series, he wasn't a rookie any more but wasn't boring either. This series also had my favorite Takeshi outfit. Four out of five of the openings were amazing (my all-time favorite opening, Battle Frontier, came from this series), with the fifth being decent.
DP: Had the strongest overall storyline, with Hikari's quest, the Galactic, and Hunter J storylines being very well-done. I also really like the idea of the female traveling companion being a costar and I'm disappointed the anime has never attempted this again. I also like how this felt like a natural progression of the previous two series, with plenty of throwbacks to the past that usually didn't feel too forced. Plus, once the show made the switch to HD it actually looked pretty good.
BW: I appreciated the attempt to shake things up here. I do enjoy the meteorite plot for the Rocket trio, though that's just about the only thing I can praise about their handling this series. The choice to not have any pre-Isshu Pokemon for the first 80 or so episodes was also a really interesting one, even if it was just mimicking the games.This is also the last series where I think the main group dynamic was fun, and I actually liked Iris as a character.
XY: Most consistent art style, and other than a handful of bad ADs the series had some gorgeous art--I also really like the removal of the dynamic-action BGs (moreso now that they've apparently made a return). There was some really good background music this series too. Each of Satoshi's companions were really fun even if they were kind of boring together. This series also had my favorite Satoshi outfit and collectively second-best openings (after AG). The Flare arc, especially the finale, was also a high point for me.
SM: I think it's trying really hard to shake up the formula and I think it does work sometimes. I really like Satoshi this series and I like all of the little callbacks to the past. I've also said this about a hundred times but this is the best the Rocket trio has been since Kanto.

 

[Matleo]

Kanto:
we got development of pokemon,
5 out of 8 gyms were goood battles,
2 out of 5 league battles were long and realy good
- good use of moves(7,5/10 points)

Orange Islands: - we got a double battle;
- 3 out of 5 quests were good battles
- we got a final 6vs6 that was missed in Kanto
- we got Ditto, Gengar , Electabuzz, Onix, Venusaur and Dragonite in a 6vs6 match a dream come true after Kanto. (battle could be longer but it was early generation then we have now)
- good use of moves(8,0/10 points)

Johto: - many development ; - real Gary rivalry and many good battles ; - 6 out of 8 battles were reallly good , some could be better
-good amount of humor
- good use of abilities and moves(8,5/10 points)

Hoenn:
- good amount of battles , gyms(first rock gym could be better done and higher amount of pokemon then 2)
and league
- contests battles were great
- good amount of humor
- good use of abilities and moves(8/10 points)
- less amount of pikachu battles is more development forof Ash other pokemon

Battle Frontier:

- nice way to develop and show old pokemon and trainer
- battle piramid was great but where was Sceptiles redemption back then?
- good use of abilities and moves(8/10 points)

Sinnoh: - the best gyms and league ever made; really appeling; could be longer with more oponents
final against Darkrai a little lame but interesting done; nice touch to make Donphan, Sceptile and Noctowl shine again.
- good use of abilities and moves(8,5/10 points)
- less amount of pikachu battles is more development for of Ash other pokemon

Unova:
- good refresh start;
- nice amount of battles
- nice showing of all pokemon
- gym leaders could have been made better with better pokemon, especially the first, and the bug gym and they ditched the beloved dragon gym...
- could made Ash battle 3vs3 aganst those extra 3 gym leaders that appearead after 8 gym
- could have made better rival battles in the league itself
- good use of abilities and moves(7/10 points)

Kalos:
- good amount of pokemon shown in battles
- gyms were good but could be better if with 3vs3 and if first and second gym leader would use signature move and have a fully evolved dragon/rock type
- good use of abilities and moves(8,5/10 points)
- less amount of pikachu battles is more development for other of Ash pokemon

Alola:

- nice for the really small and realy young children
- interesting way to show relations of pokemon and trainers but becomes a child-grandparent soap opera lately
- a little bit too much humor for me, but the humor itself isn't bad at all (Im not the fillers type of viewer)
- since we got 2 Kahuna battles the second one was better then first in my opinion, hope for rematch for both if a league is there some where. Liked that we got those pokemon for them but feel that they could get more and be better.
- the totems are fun to watch but gym leaders/trial captain battles are still missing
- no visible rivals , dont feel even Gladion thats a little frustraiting but maybe they will get it back on track later on
- interesting side quests with totemts and UB-es, would be even better with Contests, Tornnaments, Gyms and League from the past generations to happen at the same time
- good use of abilities and moves(7,5/10 points)

 

[Cookies and Creme]

Well:
Kanto: Can be really funny at points
Johto: Ash actually becoming a bit more competent
Hoenn: The introduction of Pokemon Contests and how they were handled/May's development
Sinnoh: Showing Ash's new battling prowess/Dawn's development
Unova: Absolutely Nothing
Kalos: The mature tone/Serena's development/Team Flare arc actually being worthwile
Alola: Occasional entertaining scenes/Lillie's development

Bad:
Kanto: Misty was annoying
Johto: Besides my previous point, just a rehash of Kanto
Hoenn: Stupid Ash/dumb battles
Sinnoh: Tobias
Unova: Everything, especially the league, Ash's incompetency, and Iris
Kalos: Kinda slow and monotonous start
Alola: Practically no development from anyone besides Ash, Lillie, and Lana kinda/Bewear gets annoying/a downgrade from the mature tone from Kalos

 

[KenzeyEevee]

Good:
Kanto: The music
Johto: Ash and Gary's rivaly.
Hoenn: Ash relationship with his pokémon.
Sinnoh: Pauls and Ashes diffrent view on Pokémon.
Unova: nothing
Kalos: Serena,music, the bond between Ash and the gang.
Alola: nothing.

Bad:
Kanto and Johto: Misty her attitude.
Hoenn: Brock gets annoying.
Sinnoh: Brock still is annoying, the time between the 7th and 8th badge.
Unova: Ash as an idiot, lack of dev. for Cilan and Iris.
Kalos: nothing.
Alola: the humor, artstyle, lack of battles, lack of dev., no really gang or family feeling (feels forced).

 

[marshiyanmisuta]

Kanto
Best:
Really cool designs and animation.
Nostalgia googles.
Being the original one.
Weird and unexpected plots.
Worst:
Stock animation.
Creepy and crappy jokes.
Weird characterization.
Tolerating abusive behavior.

Johto
Best:
Better writing.
Giving a goal to Kasumi.
No pity badges.
Worst:
Fillers.
Bland personalities.
Kasumi's goal kinda sucks.
GS Ball fiasco.
Johto starters.
That horrible CGI colourization at the last episodes.

Hoenn
Best:
Good humor.
Better characterization.
Satoshi as a senpai to Haruka.
Pokemon Contests.
Worst:
Not suspenseful enough.
Designs are kinda bland.

Sinnoh
Best:
Great storytelling.
Amazing plots.
Hikari as a co-star.
Satoshi-Shinji rivalry.
Worst:
Awful animation.

Unova
Best:
It's BW, anything can happen!
Clean animation.
Fun rivals and other characters.
Hikari's returning for a whole arc.
Worst:
Awful characterization.
Plots that makes no sense.
Dent and Iris.
Anything else.

Kalos
Best:
Great animation.
Great designs.
Worst:
Not enough characterization.
Not long enough.

 

[SammyW27]

Wait, we can talk about the downsides of each saga here too?

 

[EscLucy]

Wait, we can talk about the downsides of each saga here too?

Yes

 

[SammyW27]

Yes

Ooh, okay. I figured what would be for another thread. Guess I can get that off my chest.
*ahem*

Kanto: No plot, Gary did nothing; Worst Badge Quest; 2nd Worst League.

Orange Islands: Was mostly just busy work; Tracey

Johto: The long string of dull fillers after the GS Herring messed things up; Johto Pokemon playing 2nd fiddle to Kanto Pokemon; Misty & Brock having little to do; lack rivals & recurring characters.

Hoenn: The Aqua-Magma arc; Max; Needed more rivals/recurring characters; No Wally

Battle Frontier: Does precious little with Kanto callbacks; May's Contest arc; Team Rocket; Max; Pikachu vs. Regice; Fillers between Nolan and Saffron City that tried and failed to recapture feel of the Kanto saga.

DP: Team Rocket; Brock; Ash-tachii at its dullest; often mediocre animation; Most of Dawn's rivals were chumps or stiffs; Dawn getting Togekiss

BW: Lots of crappy battles; the 2nd Worst Badge Quest; The Worst League; the World Tournament Junior Cup; Dawn's guest stint (sorry, honey); Iris' storyline (sorry honey again); Decalore/DA ; Trip; Virgil; Throwing out the baby with the bathwater when it went from being about Black/White versions to being about Black2/White2 versions; the "new and improved" Team Rocket; Ash too stupid; lots of annoying running gags shoved in our faces and down our throats.

XY(&Z): Serena barely doing anything for 40 episodes; Showcases; all the rivals were chumps; Ash-Greninja; the cast the smallest it had been since since the OS or early Hoenn; Ash was a little TOO good; XY&Z fillers; Some of those dramatic moments were them making mountains out of molehills; Alain being poorly & awkwardly used; Bonnie after the title change; League had a bad start; Clemont being useless between the Lumious Gym battle and the Team Flare attack; Ash getting TWO Dragon-types with rushed storylines and were underused or underwhelming.

 

[Gligarman]

Original
Kanto
Good: Had the best movies aside from I Choose You and the most memorable main character dynamic. Also this particular point in the show had more mature humor that was slowly phased out over time.
Bad: Ash losing the Pokemon League not because of poor battling skills, but because Team Rocket attacked him a billion times.

Orange Islands
Good: We learned to appreciate Brock more and Ash proved that he wasn't an incompetent trainer by winning his first tournament. Also, Charizard stopped acting up!
Bad: Tracy wasn't a bad character but he wasn't terribly interesting either.

Johto
Good: Noticable jump in animation quality.
Bad: Far too repeatative, Ash's team kinda sucked, and he gave away the most popular Pokemon in the series. Don't even get me started on the GS ball.

Hoenn
Good: Introducing the female playble character from the game gave the main cast an interesting dynamic. The Lucario movie remains one of my favorites! Also "Because the Sky is There" is my favorite theme song from the show so far.
Bad: Still a bit on the forumlaic side.


Diamond and Pearl
Good: Good balance between Dawn and Ash's journey and one of Ash's best Pokemon teams to date. It's all about Infernape and his character arc!
Bad: It's really, really long.

Black and White
Good: They experimented with giving the show a darker tone and at times it worked well.
Bad: Pretty much everything else.

XY
Good: Easily the strongest cast to date with some fantastic character development and a strong narrative to boot. It also boasts the most spectacular battles the franchise has ever seen and some of Shinji Miyazaki's best music to date. The final battle with Team Flare solidified this as my favorite Pokemon series.
Bad: It ended.

Sun and Moon (so far)
Good: Incredibly great sense of humor and the most diverse cast we've seen yet. The fluid animation makes the characters feel more alive than ever.
Bad: I know we have at least 70+ episodes to go but Ash has gone an alarming amount of time without doing an Island Challenge.

 

[Jaypom]

I guess Best Wishes was really good at sucking

 

[Fan of Jarrus]

XY
Good: Easily the strongest cast to date with some fantastic character development and a strong narrative to boot. It also boasts the most spectacular battles the franchise has ever seen and some of Shinji Miyazaki's best music to date. The final battle with Team Flare solidified this as my favorite Pokemon series.
Bad: It ended.

Agree with that.