After Pokémon’s most iconic trainer, Ash, has spent 25 years to finally become the very best (like no one ever was), it seems only natural that the next step to his growth is for him to literally grow up.
The running joke in the Pokémon fandom is how Ash is perpetually a 10-year-old boy, but one fan artist on Twitter has given Ash a glow/grow-up. Liam (@Lhzur) illustrated an older Ash Ketchum battling an unseen opponent with Lokix at his side, pleading OLM, Inc., the animation studio in charge of producing the Pokémon franchise, to “make this combo real.” Lokix first appeared in Generation IX in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet. The fan art looked so authentic that excited fans believed it was a screenshot from the anime, only to quickly be disappointed to find out it wasn’t real.
Grown-up Ash Had Fans Fooled
Numerous Pokémon fans complimented the fan artist for how legitimate the illustration looked. They commented how they would love to see the series integrate a time skip where Ash would grow up in canon. Others pointed out the inaccuracy of Lokix’s design, where the Bug/Dark Pokémon appears to have its leg on its arm, which the fan artist acknowledged. There were so many Pokémon fans who full-heartedly believed it was real that Liam had to Tweet, “will definitely put the words ‘fan art’ [in] big writing next time i post one of those. theres like nothing else i can say but sorry to those who thought it was real.” The fan art has amassed over 11,000 likes.
Recently, fans all over the world celebrated Ash’s victory over Leon at the Masters Eight Tournament, where he became the World Champion. For many fans who have grown up with Ash, witnessing the Pokémon trainer finally accomplish his goal was a momentous occasion. In Japan, a special screening of Ash’s winning ceremony showed at Shibuya, much to Sarah Natochenny’s, the English dub voice actor for Ash, delight. She tweeted, “The first glimpse of Ash winning that I’ve seen. I wish I could bend space and time to have been in Tokyo for this. HE DID IT!!!!”
Pokémon first premiered in April 1997 and consisted of seven sequential series. The current season, called Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series, is the third and final season of Pokémon Journeys: The Series, produced by the Team Kato division of OLM, Inc. The series follows 10-year-old Ash Ketchum, hailing from Pallet town, who dreams of becoming a Pokémon Master. Ash has lost more competitions than he has won, but has only gotten stronger because of that. With the leak of Ultimate Journeys’ Episode 135 being “Pokémon! I’m Glad I Chose You!” echoing the first episode of the original anime “Pokémon – I Choose You!”, some believe that Ash’s journey may be coming to an end.
Fans can catch the first 12 episodes of Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series on Netflix in the U.S.
Source: Twitter
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