The ninth generation of Pokémon has started, and with it comes new beginnings the franchise has never seen before. The anime’s longtime protagonist, Ash Ketchum, is finally being retired. This leaves the new leads Liko and Roy ready to take his place exploring the Pokémon world.
The new protagonists Liko and Roy, along with their Sprigatito and Fuecoco, remain blank slates ready to lead the Pokémon franchise into the future. The possibilities are endless for the new characters and their stories, and the Pokémon series hasn’t had an opportunity like this since the start of the original anime over twenty years ago. As such, there are many hopes fans are anticipating for the new series to take advantage of.
Updated March 9th, 2022 by Declan Lowthian: As the debut of the newest Pokémon anime series draws closer, fans continue to speculate about what could be included in the series’ first truly new beginning.
10 Paradox Pokémon
Paradox Pokémon are one of the new gimmicks of Scarlet & Violet. These alternate forms of existing Pokémon hail from either the future or the past and take on robotic or primeval aspects. Like regional forms, Paradox Pokémon are a fun way to give older designs some new life. But the Pokédex entries for the Paradox Pokémon in Scarlet & Violet are quite sparse, and they carry a lot of implications for the Pokémon world that have yet to be explored.
The anime often gets into the Pokémon lore in greater depth than the games themselves. Paradox Pokémon would be one of the prime topics to add more layers to, and the new series’ focus on exploration and discovery seems like a perfect fit. Fans might even get a glimpse at the future and past worlds these Pokémon come from.
9 New Goals For The Characters
Ash was always laser-focused on becoming a Pokémon master, whether by winning the League of each respective region or by tirelessly training his Pokémon. However, battling isn’t all there is to Pokémon, and the anime has adapted many subplots that cover non-battling goals for Ash’s friends.
In the new series, Roy seems to be taking over Ash’s penchant for catching and battling Pokémon. In the early trailers, Roy is introduced as “The Boy with the Mysterious Pokéball” and the statement “I want to challenge the Pokémon from the legends!” Liko, on the other hand, is much more focused on exploration. She says in the trailer “I won’t find anything unless I look for it myself!” With Generation IX’s focus on an open world and on young trainers forging their own paths, there’s no doubt that the new season will feature a wide variety of character goals and motivations.
8 True Pokémon Rookies
Ash hasn’t been a beginner Trainer for a long, long time. The Pokémon anime struggled even in the early years to balance Ash’s veteran status with his need for new experiences. But a fresh overhaul and brand new lead characters offer a chance to really go back to basics.
Fans haven’t gotten to see a full cast of rookie Pokémon trainers since the start of the anime. The school setting of the Generation IX games is the perfect place for this new beginning, as all the characters will be learning the basics together.
7 A Spotlight On The Paldean Characters
One of the bigger disappointments of Ash’s final series, Pokémon Journeys, was the lack of focus on Galar. Because Journeys put its focus on characters from all across the franchise, most Galarian supporting characters were given the short end of the stick.
Hopefully, the new series won’t do the same to the characters of Paldea. Every Gym Leader from the region should get some spotlight, and the rivals, Pokémon League members, and other supporting characters will probably make appearances as well.
6 Creative Battles
One of the signature quirks of the Pokémon anime is seeing battles in a way that is impossible in the games. Ash was known for coming up with unorthodox battle strategies during his run as the protagonist, and that shouldn’t stop just because he’s gone.
It’s up to Liko and Roy to have great battles that do the previous series justice. With gimmicks like Terastallization to explore in addition to the usual rules of Pokémon battles, there’s no shortage of potential creativity for battles going forward.
5 Paldean Pokémon
As Ash never officially traveled through Galar, he caught very few Galarian Pokémon in Journeys. The anime is usually one of the Pokémon franchise’s main tools for showing off the new batch of Pokémon, so this was an unfortunate missed opportunity.
Liko and Roy should ideally stick to catching Pokémon from Scarlett & Violet whenever they can. It only makes sense that old fan favorites shouldn’t overshadow the new Pokémon this time, especially if the series is starting with a completely new cast of human characters as well.
4 A Clear, Focused Story
Any series benefits from a proper sense of direction, but the Pokémon anime hasn’t always had the best track record with this. Pokémon often suffers from juggling too many ideas at once, leaving many characters and stories without the focus they deserve.
Fans still don’t know much about the specifics of the new Pokémon series. But whatever the story holds, it needs to be clear and focused. The Generation IX games set up a rich open world for the new characters to explore, so there are plenty of possibilities in store.
3 Ash’s Legacy
Ash is leaving the Pokémon anime, but his impact on the series can’t be understated. The anime’s original protagonist has a longer legacy than just about any character in the Pokémon franchise, and it deserves to be recognized in some form.
While Ash should leave room for the new characters, it’d be a huge waste for the new World Champion not to affect the new series at all. A few Ash-related Easter eggs or a subtle influence on the new leads would be a great way to allow Ash to live on even off-screen.
2 Liko & Roy Leave At The End Of The Series
As much potential as Liko and Roy have, it’s important they don’t overstay their welcome. One of the most frustrating parts about following Ash and Pikachu as the years went by was the constant resets and overhauls to his skills and personality, forcing him to endlessly repeat the same cycles.
Given that Liko and Roy’s main partners will be the Paldea starters, it seems unlikely they’ll stay beyond the current generation. With any luck, they’ll experience a single, solid series of adventures before passing the torch again to the next generation of characters.
1 A Variety Of Stories
The Pokémon anime has always been about a group of youngsters on their very own journey, somewhat mirroring the stories told in the games. But Pokémon has also branched out to tell other stories in animated form. Limited series like Pokémon Generations and Pokémon Evolutions adapted scenes from the games and offered a unique look at other aspects of the Pokémon world.
The new anime series can and should embrace these alternative formats to keep things fresh. As fun as it can be to follow a single set of characters, short anthologies and spin-offs help keep things fresh and demonstrate just how diverse and engaging the Pokémon world is.