RK9
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I'm back with more.
Kanto: From Kanto no one really comes to mind. Erika and Sabrina are quite popular (The former in Japan amazingly so, even), so my Kanto reps don't come from mainline games.
It's actually Candela, Spark and Blanche, the Team Leaders from Pokémon GO. Their designs are cool and beyond the petty wars of teams that the fans themselves made, they are surprisingly full of quirks and personality traits to bring them to life. On top of that, I like that there exists another equivalent of 'the chosen three' (2 protags + rival group, so to speak) that isn't the MC but still plays a big part and are full of skill, while also having a certain moral/value they represent, while also not being just a team leader that gives orders from behind a desk, but actually does a lot of physical work themselves while representing those values. I feel they get overlooked a lot purely because they are from Pokémon GO and Spark, for example, gets reduced to just surficial meme level where he gets portrayed as an overly sensitive child, but I would definitely not mind to see them back in mainline games or maybe even being just referenced.
Johto: I already mentioned Jasmine before, and adding to that, I think it's quite cool how she takes it upon herself to take care of a Pokémon important to the village and not being afraid to prioritize it over a Gym Battle. She's also not rude about it at all and is definitely a breath of fresh air compared to a more entitled and bratty Claire who sends you on a goose chase elsewhere over her own pride. On top of that, while she stutters, it's just part of her character opposed ot being played up as her primary character trait (Like how Leon has just 'getting lost' being beaten to death for no reason other than to try and be funny). She's just a girl who's a bit shy and happens to stutter because of it. On top of that she specializes in a kick-ass type (I'm a sucker for girls running seemingly non-girly stuff and rocking it like a Steelix for ace). And then there's also the bit where she appears in sinnoh and refuses to go home until she mastered Contests to show another side of her personality and I just think it's neat. Jasmine definitely deserves to get talked about more.
Other than that, I also quite like Karen. She may not be that overrated cause everyone and their mother overquotes her quote to hell and back, but I actually like Karen for the implications that can possibly come with it on a deeper level. She's the first Dark-type specialist, a type that is called 'evil' in Japan. Now, imagine this girl who has an affinity for night-based Pokémon (Since a lot, if not all, of her Pokémon either appear majorily during nighttime, or evolve through night-time phenomenon), and discovers a type called evil (Again in Japan). All the prejudice against the species and constantly being told it'd likely be better to walk away from it as result. But this girl has taken a liking to the typing and is determined to show the world different. So instead of doing what would be easy (Walking away and using a different type), she does what she wants and runs with teh Dark-types (Truly skillfull trainers win with their favourites, after all). Naturally there's a lot of sentimental headcanon mumbo-jumbo here, but Karen is a character I would not mind a deeper backstory on to explain her quote beyond just a surface-level cool quote. Considering her views on Pokémon and using a type called 'evil-type' in Japan certainly gives me a vibe that there's more to the quote than meets the eye.
Hoenn: I find Hoenn a bit hard cause I feel most characters get talked about quite a lot, but I do find myself liking ORAS Courtney. I think they gave her a good personality overhaul where her 'obsession' with Maxie fits well with her machine-like way of talking and behaving. On top of that she also was a scientist (If I remember correctly) which showcases she is likely smart enough to work on her own but still willingly choses to follow Maxie. I think with her behaviour and way of talking she sets herself apart and carves a memorable niche as she's the only one to do so. I also quite like Shelley but more so the original design. The pink hair color is really nice and I'm personally not a fan of the ORAS design. Unfortunately RSE doesn't have much there character-wise, so that's just it on that front.
Sinnoh: Marley. I find it a crime no one talks more about Marley. Especially cause Marley combines two primary traits of highly popular characters into one. Like Lillie, she doesn't like to see Pokémon hurt and like Marnie, she has the goth lolita aesthetic. On top of that, she doesn't talk much just because she doesn't want to, but she shows she doesn't because she doesn't want to hurt people with her words. On top of that, she takes an interest in Shaymin and even visits its slab in hope of meeting it one day. And she even outright says she likes battling (with) you despite not liking to see Pokémon hurt. For a character that's able to be missed due the way they need to be found, I find her full of personality and they did a great job with her.
Other than that, I also want to name Aaron. Everyone loves Guzma. Whenever Guzma gets named, people always say how cool they find it he uses Bugs, likely because of his own childhood. But Aaron was the first one to take the seemingly weak Bug-types so far that they managed to become an Elite Four member. When you fight him first he has a Dustox and Beautifly, which people wouldn't attribute as a 'strong' Pokémon (Or at least not E4 worthy), and yet here is Aaron. Rocking it like no one's business. I also like the gimmick of 'my ace is a bug but not a Bug-type' so the taem doesn't roll over and die over a Fire attack (Though some medium does attribute Vespiquen as his ace). He's just really neat.
Unova: Bet you thought I'd only end up saying female character, huh? This choice may be more popular than I think, but I'd actually say Alder. Whenever I see people talk about Champions I find people kind of... skipping over Alder? They name Iris, or sometimes even N, but Alder kind of gets skimmed over. His first entrance kicked ass, he's a wise man who makes Cheren think about what it means to be powerful and what you do next when you have it, purely because he lived the same way Cheren did and it resulted in the death of his partner Pokémon. On top of that, in BW2 we see him teaching young kids from the town, as well as his teams containing Pokémon his former E4 also used, showcasing he may appreciate them on a personal level (Which we know from Marshal, since Marshal was mentored by him too), and therefore has the same species as them as a tribute. Everything about Alder just clicks for me. He's not some weak old man who's wise and neither is he a strong old man that's stupid. He combines it all in one package to make for an interesting Champion that functions as a mentor that people can look up to (And on top of that, in BW2, he also runs a team that's half bug, so you could theoritically, attribute Alder as someone with an affinity for Bug Pokémon, the 'weakest' type).
Kalos: This is probably a bit of a weird one, but I'd actually say Lysandre here. I think Lysandre has a lot of interesting traits to him that could make him a really compelling guy. He's the descendant of the ancient King, he's rich and tech-savvy, he owns a café, but he's also a man who desires for the world's beauty to be cherished and remain as it is. He goes about it the complete wrong way, but if you throw all that together, Lysandre could have made for an interesting entrepeneur who in his giving back to the community learned this was not the way, and defaulted to more extreme manners to get there, despite knowing it's wrong. I think the beauty 'decaying' just to grow again could have also been a valuable lesson about how everything in life goes throuhg a rough patch or dies out, but that it will always get better or make way for something else to grow. Such is the circle of life and the balance of death and life. But instead he just gets hastily thrown under rubble and that's the end of that, and I really dislike that part, but it is what it is.
I can also vouch for Trevor as mentioned earlier, but also Shauna and Tierno. Yeah, they're maybe not the most exciting type of characters, but I found a friend group that travelled together, but all travelled for different motivations and who saw worth in totally different things was a cute take on things. One that also made a lot of sense considering the Pokémon world.
Also the aforementioned Valerie. She's a fashion designer, is from Johto (I believe?) and has an Eeveelution so she could have easily been a former Kimono Girl. On top of that she also used to be a model (Like Elesa and Nessa are nowadays) which is a part I also find a lot of people skimming over. I think those makings would have been interested to elaborate on and explore why she came to Kalos. In that aspect, she's definitely the Kalos Gym Leader who has the most to them, but it stays with 'tell don't show', unfortunately.
Alola: Kahili. As mentioned, she was the first Trial Champion but apparently went abroad. On top of that she's also a pro golfer and the daughter of a resort owner. Instead of just taking random Flying-types, her team is also nicely constructed with a sub-theme on the golf terms to give it a lot of personality. I personally would have liked it if she came back a bit earlier, and popped up here and there as some 'mentor' as you did the trial (Since she also was once a trial goer), and then reveal herself as the first Champion, but what can you do? I guess that abandoned trial site could have helped a bit, but no point in crying over lost milk. Not to mention Toucannon is a funny ace for her. Just imagine it launching a golf ball at high-speed just for her to yeet it away with her club. That's the good stuff.
Galar: I don't think I got anyone here. Leon is quite disliked in the West but he's the second most popular character in Japan. Nessa is also a top 15 popularity character in Japan, and we all know how she took the west by storm. I guess I would say Klara. We all know how she started out, up to the point she even cheated during your fight, but then actually betters herself and vows to train hard and work hard, despite first putting up a deceiving facade (Even photoshopped her league card). It shows a nice change from someone who expected things to just come to her natural (or by deception) to someone who realizes it takes hard work after (seemingly) seeing you put in the work too and getting rewarded for it.
I guess Sonia is quite popular too, but I have to mention her too. I think it was a really cool idea to have a character that's kind of stuck in life and has not the faintest idea what to do with it. While her childhood friend is the literal Champion adored by many. And her other friend is a popular model and Gym Leader. And her grandmother is a renowned professor. Sonia's story of trying to figure out what she wants and likes, and getting into her groove as the story goes on, was really cool and I feel it's not talked about enough. (Still wondering how she managed to do the Gym CHallenge and get to at least Opal without evolving Yamper though.)
If you made it so far, I'm so sorry for you. But thanks for reading. I guess?
Kanto: From Kanto no one really comes to mind. Erika and Sabrina are quite popular (The former in Japan amazingly so, even), so my Kanto reps don't come from mainline games.
It's actually Candela, Spark and Blanche, the Team Leaders from Pokémon GO. Their designs are cool and beyond the petty wars of teams that the fans themselves made, they are surprisingly full of quirks and personality traits to bring them to life. On top of that, I like that there exists another equivalent of 'the chosen three' (2 protags + rival group, so to speak) that isn't the MC but still plays a big part and are full of skill, while also having a certain moral/value they represent, while also not being just a team leader that gives orders from behind a desk, but actually does a lot of physical work themselves while representing those values. I feel they get overlooked a lot purely because they are from Pokémon GO and Spark, for example, gets reduced to just surficial meme level where he gets portrayed as an overly sensitive child, but I would definitely not mind to see them back in mainline games or maybe even being just referenced.
Johto: I already mentioned Jasmine before, and adding to that, I think it's quite cool how she takes it upon herself to take care of a Pokémon important to the village and not being afraid to prioritize it over a Gym Battle. She's also not rude about it at all and is definitely a breath of fresh air compared to a more entitled and bratty Claire who sends you on a goose chase elsewhere over her own pride. On top of that, while she stutters, it's just part of her character opposed ot being played up as her primary character trait (Like how Leon has just 'getting lost' being beaten to death for no reason other than to try and be funny). She's just a girl who's a bit shy and happens to stutter because of it. On top of that she specializes in a kick-ass type (I'm a sucker for girls running seemingly non-girly stuff and rocking it like a Steelix for ace). And then there's also the bit where she appears in sinnoh and refuses to go home until she mastered Contests to show another side of her personality and I just think it's neat. Jasmine definitely deserves to get talked about more.
Other than that, I also quite like Karen. She may not be that overrated cause everyone and their mother overquotes her quote to hell and back, but I actually like Karen for the implications that can possibly come with it on a deeper level. She's the first Dark-type specialist, a type that is called 'evil' in Japan. Now, imagine this girl who has an affinity for night-based Pokémon (Since a lot, if not all, of her Pokémon either appear majorily during nighttime, or evolve through night-time phenomenon), and discovers a type called evil (Again in Japan). All the prejudice against the species and constantly being told it'd likely be better to walk away from it as result. But this girl has taken a liking to the typing and is determined to show the world different. So instead of doing what would be easy (Walking away and using a different type), she does what she wants and runs with teh Dark-types (Truly skillfull trainers win with their favourites, after all). Naturally there's a lot of sentimental headcanon mumbo-jumbo here, but Karen is a character I would not mind a deeper backstory on to explain her quote beyond just a surface-level cool quote. Considering her views on Pokémon and using a type called 'evil-type' in Japan certainly gives me a vibe that there's more to the quote than meets the eye.
Hoenn: I find Hoenn a bit hard cause I feel most characters get talked about quite a lot, but I do find myself liking ORAS Courtney. I think they gave her a good personality overhaul where her 'obsession' with Maxie fits well with her machine-like way of talking and behaving. On top of that she also was a scientist (If I remember correctly) which showcases she is likely smart enough to work on her own but still willingly choses to follow Maxie. I think with her behaviour and way of talking she sets herself apart and carves a memorable niche as she's the only one to do so. I also quite like Shelley but more so the original design. The pink hair color is really nice and I'm personally not a fan of the ORAS design. Unfortunately RSE doesn't have much there character-wise, so that's just it on that front.
Sinnoh: Marley. I find it a crime no one talks more about Marley. Especially cause Marley combines two primary traits of highly popular characters into one. Like Lillie, she doesn't like to see Pokémon hurt and like Marnie, she has the goth lolita aesthetic. On top of that, she doesn't talk much just because she doesn't want to, but she shows she doesn't because she doesn't want to hurt people with her words. On top of that, she takes an interest in Shaymin and even visits its slab in hope of meeting it one day. And she even outright says she likes battling (with) you despite not liking to see Pokémon hurt. For a character that's able to be missed due the way they need to be found, I find her full of personality and they did a great job with her.
Other than that, I also want to name Aaron. Everyone loves Guzma. Whenever Guzma gets named, people always say how cool they find it he uses Bugs, likely because of his own childhood. But Aaron was the first one to take the seemingly weak Bug-types so far that they managed to become an Elite Four member. When you fight him first he has a Dustox and Beautifly, which people wouldn't attribute as a 'strong' Pokémon (Or at least not E4 worthy), and yet here is Aaron. Rocking it like no one's business. I also like the gimmick of 'my ace is a bug but not a Bug-type' so the taem doesn't roll over and die over a Fire attack (Though some medium does attribute Vespiquen as his ace). He's just really neat.
Unova: Bet you thought I'd only end up saying female character, huh? This choice may be more popular than I think, but I'd actually say Alder. Whenever I see people talk about Champions I find people kind of... skipping over Alder? They name Iris, or sometimes even N, but Alder kind of gets skimmed over. His first entrance kicked ass, he's a wise man who makes Cheren think about what it means to be powerful and what you do next when you have it, purely because he lived the same way Cheren did and it resulted in the death of his partner Pokémon. On top of that, in BW2 we see him teaching young kids from the town, as well as his teams containing Pokémon his former E4 also used, showcasing he may appreciate them on a personal level (Which we know from Marshal, since Marshal was mentored by him too), and therefore has the same species as them as a tribute. Everything about Alder just clicks for me. He's not some weak old man who's wise and neither is he a strong old man that's stupid. He combines it all in one package to make for an interesting Champion that functions as a mentor that people can look up to (And on top of that, in BW2, he also runs a team that's half bug, so you could theoritically, attribute Alder as someone with an affinity for Bug Pokémon, the 'weakest' type).
Kalos: This is probably a bit of a weird one, but I'd actually say Lysandre here. I think Lysandre has a lot of interesting traits to him that could make him a really compelling guy. He's the descendant of the ancient King, he's rich and tech-savvy, he owns a café, but he's also a man who desires for the world's beauty to be cherished and remain as it is. He goes about it the complete wrong way, but if you throw all that together, Lysandre could have made for an interesting entrepeneur who in his giving back to the community learned this was not the way, and defaulted to more extreme manners to get there, despite knowing it's wrong. I think the beauty 'decaying' just to grow again could have also been a valuable lesson about how everything in life goes throuhg a rough patch or dies out, but that it will always get better or make way for something else to grow. Such is the circle of life and the balance of death and life. But instead he just gets hastily thrown under rubble and that's the end of that, and I really dislike that part, but it is what it is.
I can also vouch for Trevor as mentioned earlier, but also Shauna and Tierno. Yeah, they're maybe not the most exciting type of characters, but I found a friend group that travelled together, but all travelled for different motivations and who saw worth in totally different things was a cute take on things. One that also made a lot of sense considering the Pokémon world.
Also the aforementioned Valerie. She's a fashion designer, is from Johto (I believe?) and has an Eeveelution so she could have easily been a former Kimono Girl. On top of that she also used to be a model (Like Elesa and Nessa are nowadays) which is a part I also find a lot of people skimming over. I think those makings would have been interested to elaborate on and explore why she came to Kalos. In that aspect, she's definitely the Kalos Gym Leader who has the most to them, but it stays with 'tell don't show', unfortunately.
Alola: Kahili. As mentioned, she was the first Trial Champion but apparently went abroad. On top of that she's also a pro golfer and the daughter of a resort owner. Instead of just taking random Flying-types, her team is also nicely constructed with a sub-theme on the golf terms to give it a lot of personality. I personally would have liked it if she came back a bit earlier, and popped up here and there as some 'mentor' as you did the trial (Since she also was once a trial goer), and then reveal herself as the first Champion, but what can you do? I guess that abandoned trial site could have helped a bit, but no point in crying over lost milk. Not to mention Toucannon is a funny ace for her. Just imagine it launching a golf ball at high-speed just for her to yeet it away with her club. That's the good stuff.
Galar: I don't think I got anyone here. Leon is quite disliked in the West but he's the second most popular character in Japan. Nessa is also a top 15 popularity character in Japan, and we all know how she took the west by storm. I guess I would say Klara. We all know how she started out, up to the point she even cheated during your fight, but then actually betters herself and vows to train hard and work hard, despite first putting up a deceiving facade (Even photoshopped her league card). It shows a nice change from someone who expected things to just come to her natural (or by deception) to someone who realizes it takes hard work after (seemingly) seeing you put in the work too and getting rewarded for it.
I guess Sonia is quite popular too, but I have to mention her too. I think it was a really cool idea to have a character that's kind of stuck in life and has not the faintest idea what to do with it. While her childhood friend is the literal Champion adored by many. And her other friend is a popular model and Gym Leader. And her grandmother is a renowned professor. Sonia's story of trying to figure out what she wants and likes, and getting into her groove as the story goes on, was really cool and I feel it's not talked about enough. (Still wondering how she managed to do the Gym CHallenge and get to at least Opal without evolving Yamper though.)
If you made it so far, I'm so sorry for you. But thanks for reading. I guess?
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