|
|
Character Statistics
ENGLISH NAME : Ash(ton) Ketchum
JAPANESE NAME : Satoshi
FRENCH NAME : Sacha
AGE AT BEGINNING : 10
HAIR COLOUR : Black
EYE COLOUR : Brown
HOME TOWN/CITY : Pallet (Masara) Town
PROFESSION : Pokémon trainer. Earned
all eight badges needed to compete in the Indigo Pokémon
League where he won four battles and was placed in the Top-16 there,
a great accomplishment for one as young as he. Winner the
Orange Pokémon League ('Enter the Dragonite').
Placed in the Top-8 in the Johto League. Currently taking part in
the Hoenn League.
CHIEF RIVAL : Gary Oak
LIKES : Pokémon, food, Misty?
DISLIKES : Team Rocket, Gary
FAMILY STATUS : Only child. Mother - Delia,
still lives in Pallet Town (Ash was born when mother was only about
eighteen). Father - Unknown. Was, and may still be,
a Pokémon trainer.
PRIMARY GOAL : To become the greatest Pokémon
master in history
ENGLISH VOICE ACTOR : Veronica Taylor
JAPANESE VOICE ACTOR : Rika Matsumoto
GERMAN VOICE ACTOR : Caroline Combrick, and then
Veronika Neugebauer
FIRST SEEN IN : 'Pokémon, I Choose You'
Character Profile
Ash is the main character in 'Pokémon'. He
is very brash and impulsive, not always thinking about what he is
about to do thoroughly. Also, he is generally very sure about
what he is doing, and has a lot of confidence in himself (maybe
sometimes he's a little over egotistical, and this has lead
him to failure before), but it does seem that he can lose this confidence
quickly, especially where Gary is concerned (during the Indigo League
he continually told Ash he was behind the other three trainers that
left Pallet Town that year, even though Ash did better in the Indigo
League than him).
 He can also be very stubborn, a trait his Pokémon
have seemed to pick up, never wanting to give in to anyone even
if it is for the best. Ash is quite mature for his age in
ways, sometimes acting like someone a few years his senior.
He can make important decisions without panicking, and is incredibly
brave and deep. At other times, though, he shows that he is
still pretty young, as he often irritates his older friends with
his immature traits and is naive about certain subjects, such as
love. Early on, Ash shows this naivety by believing that if you
try hard enough everything will work out, and by following the rules
when he necessarily shouldn't.
Even though he generally tries to act macho, he has shown that
he is very sensitive, emotional and has a great deal of empathy
for his Pokémon as well as for other people. He's always
willing to help someone in need, probably as he has a history of
being bullied by Gary, his one time best friend.
Ash's main dream is to one day become a Pokémon Master.
Many times Ash has proven that he is capable of achieving this dream,
in battles with gym leaders and in the Pokémon League Competition,
where he won four matches and was ranked in the top sixteen out
of over two hundred competitors. He also has earned a place
in the Orange League's 'Hall of Fame' for his victory over
the previous League champion, Drake, and made it into the Top-8
in the Johto League.
At the beginning of the 'Pokémon' TV show, Ash, then
ten years old, starts off from his home town of Pallet on his Pokémon
journey. However, not everything ran particularly smoothly.
First of all, he slept in late, and by the time he reached Professor
Oak's home, all of the other three trainers had received their Pokémon.
He also had a run-in with Gary, his main opponent. When he
went into the Professor's lab, there was only one Pokémon
remaining, a troublesome Pikachu who initially did not get along
with his trainer. Then Ash attracted the unwanted attention
of a flock of Sperows who attacked the duo. It wasn't until
Ash risked his life to ensure Pikachu's safety that he proved himself
to his new Pokémon, and the two became close friends. On
that first day, Ash saw a Ho-oh. A person who sees this Pokémon
is said to be destined for greatness.
 Over the years Ash has
travelled with four people, Misty, Brock, Tracey and May. Brock
and Ash have a typical
male relationship. They rarely fight, have a great deal
in common and a strong respect for one another. In Brock's
first episode, 'Showdown at Pewter City', Ash had to battle
him for the Boulder Badge. He lost his first battle, and when
they battled for a second time, the gym's water sprinklers went
off, weakening Brock's rock Pokémon, giving Ash an advantage.
But Ash refused to continue, believing that the situation was unfair.
Brock, impressed by Ash's decision, gave him the badge anyway as
he felt Ash beat him with his compassion. When he decided
to come along with Ash, Ash said that he was happy he finally had
someone to talk to.
But their relationship does go deeper. Brock is like a big
brother, or even father figure, to Ash, always teaching him morality,
Pokémon techniques and educating him in the ways of life.
But then this is expected as Brock is about five years older than
Ash. Ash never shared such a strong relationship with Tracey.
There's was much more of an equal friendship. Misty's and Ash's
relationship is somewhat different. Go to the Pokeshipping page. With
May, Ash has altered his role from student to teacher. He guides
the younger May through her early days of training Pokémon.
Ash has also made a number of other friends on his travels, including
Todd (aka Snap) and Richie.
 Richie and Ash instantly hit
it off, despite a few initial hiccups. They are both the same
age, and have a lot in common, including some of the same Pokémon,
and were both competing in the Indigo League competition at the
same time. When their Pokémon were kidnapped by Team
Rocket, the two set off to recover them. When they succeed
and head back to Indigo Plateau, they discover that in their next
match they must face each other ('A Friend In Deed')!
Although at first they do not want to battle each other, they each
vow to make the match their best ever. Despite Ash almost
missing the match (thanks to Team Rocket), he makes a late, but
unforgettable, entry in the Meowth head balloon.
The two young trainers seem to be equally matched until Ash chooses
his often disobedient Charizard as his last Pokémon.
Charizard easily defeats Richie's Charmander, but when Richie uses
his Pikachu, Sparky, Charizard feels that this Pokémon is
not worthy of his attentions. He falls asleep, meaning that
Ash has no choice but forfeit. Ash loses that match, ending
his time in the Indigo League, but is strong enough to congratulate
his friend ('Friend or Foe Alike'). After, it is a different
matter. He ends up sulking in his room, and when Misty attempts
to cheer him up, the two get into a heated argument. Ash,
however, does show up to watch Richie lose his next match.
After another battle with Team Rocket, the two friends go their
different ways ('Friends to the End').
Several years later the two meet up again in Johto, and help rescue
a Lugia and it's child from Butch, Cassidy and the rest of Team
Rocket ('The Mystery Is History', 'A Parent Trapped!' and
'A Promise is a Promise').
Ash loves his Pokémon so much that he is willing to let them
leave him when they wish to achieve their own dreams. Several of
his Pokémon have wanted to start a family, like Butterfree
('Bye Bye, Butterfree'), or to better themselves, like
Charizard ('Charizard's Burning Ambitions'). Ash
once was willing to let Pikachu stay with a group of his own kind,
despite the fact that it would hurt him so much ('Pikachu's
Goodbye'). He also let Bulbasaur stay at Oak's Ranch ('Bulbasaur...The
Ambassador'). He believes his Pokémon's happiness is
more importance than his own.
 When Professor Oak asks
Ash and his friends to head out to the Orange Islands and pick up
a mysterious pokéball, called the G/S ball, from Professor
Ivy, Ash decides to compete in the Orange League. The four
members of the Orange Crew, who Ash must beat to gain the four badges
needed to battle the Orange League champion, run their gyms a little
differently to those in Indigo; the challenger must not only beat
them in battle, but in tasks using their Pokémon. Ash
earns the four badges and battles Drake, the leader of the Orange
Crew. After several grueling matches, Ash is able to beat
Drake down to his last Pokémon - Dragonite, one of the most
powerful Pokémon in existence. It brings Ash down to
his final Pokémon as well, but with Pikachu by his side,
Ash is able to defeat the dragon-type, and claim his place in the
Orange League Hall of Fame ('Hello Pummelo', 'Enter the Dragonite').
Ash again heads home to Pallet Town to discover that his old friend
Brock, who had left the group for a number of months to stay with
Professor Ivy, has been staying with his mother for the past week.
When Ash, Misty, Tracey and Brock travel up to Oak's lab, Team Rocket
again attempt to steal their Pokémon. Unable to do
anything, the group can only watch as the 'villains' take all of
Oak's Pokémon, including the G/S ball. However, all
is not lost.
 Gary
saves his grandfather's lab, and he and Ash agree to battle for
the first time together ('A Tent Situation'). They
decide upon a one-on-one, instance knockout battle; Ash's Pikachu
against Gary's Eevee. Despite Ash's best tactics, he loses,
proving that he is not the greatest trainer yet, and still needs
to train to achieve his dream (in Anime, the hero almost always
loses to his greatest rival the first time they fight). When
Ash learns that Gary is heading out to Johto, to the west of Pallet,
he decides to follow. Oak, who has had no success discovering
the contents of the G/S ball, asks Ash and friends to bring the
ball to Kurt in Azalea, a pokéball expert. Ash, Misty
and Brock head out again, and Ash begins to collect the eight badges
he needs ('Rivalry Revival!').
Ash's relationship with his old friend Gary has had it's ups and
downs. When the two began training, they could not stand one another.
However, after Ash returned from the Orange Island League, the two
begun to salvage their friendship, and current hold a great deal
of respect for one another.
Ash is currently competing in the Hoenn League. He set out to this
region after leaving his two closest human friends, Brock and Misty,
and his Pokémon, apart from Pikachu, behind. He changes into
a new set of clothes and begins yet another adventure.
Ash's father has only been mentioned once during the Anime.
His identity is still unknown, but it maybe revealed in the fifth season
of the show. In 'Pokemon Zensho' (a manga release in only
in Japan), we did however get a little insight into his parent's
relationship. Ash's mother was infatuated with his father,
a Pokémon trainer and a bit of a lone wolf, as a teenager
and when she was only eighteen, Ash was born. However, before
or slightly after she gave birth, his father left, possibly cheating
on Delia Ketchum with another woman. This may explain why
Ash and his mother are so close, and why his mother is so young
and overprotective of her son. This story, however, may not
be the same in the Anime.
Fans have speculated on many possibilities for Ash's father.
The two most popular choices are Professor Oak, because of his close
friendship with Ash's mother, and Giovanni, the Team Rocket boss
(very 'Star Wars'). Many people even hold the suspicion that
Ash and Jessie are half-siblings, as Giovanni is the most popular
choice for both of their absent fathers.
Sometimes Ash makes foolish mistakes, for instance calling on Charizard
to fight some of his most important battles, but with the advice
of more experienced trainers like Misty and Brock he is improving
his techniques. Eventually he will attain his goal, but not before
he does a lot of soul-searching and learns more about life (in other
words not until he grows up a little).
Character Info
In the Japanese version of the show, this character was named after
Satoshi Tajiri, the creator of the Pokemon games and the anime.
Pokémon
- Pikachu ['Pokémon, I Choose You'].
- Squirtle (caught in 'Here Comes the Squirtle Squad'.
Left to join his old fire-fighting Squirtle friends ['The
Firing Squad']).
- Bulbasaur (caught in 'Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village'.
Now lives at the Oak Ranch in Pallet, where he keeps the peace
between three groups of Pokémon ['Bulbasaur- The Ambassador']).
- Charizard (evolved in 'Attack of the Prehistoric Pokémon'
and left in 'Charizard's Burning Ambition'. Caught at
Charmander stage in 'Charmander, the Stray Pokémon'
and evolved into a Charmeleon in 'The March of the Exeggutor
Squad').
- Pidegot (evolved in 'Pallet Party Panic'. Caught at
Pidgeotto stage ['Ash Catches a Pokémon'] and
evolved. Now has left Ash to lead a group of Pidgey and Pidgeotto
who have been threatened by a group of Spearow and a Fearow [Pallet
Party Panic']).
- Butterfree (evolved in 'Challenge of the Samurai'.
Caught at Caterpie stage and evolved into Metapod [both in 'Ash
Catches a Pokémon'], now has left Ash to breed ['ByeBye
Butterfree'].
- Muk ['Sparks Fly for Magnemite'].
- Several Tauros caught at the Safari Park ['Legend of the
Dratini'].
- Kingler (evolved in 'Round One - Begin'. Caught at
Krabby stage ['Mystery at the Lighthouse']).
- Lapras (caught in 'The Lost Lapras', left to return
to it's family in 'Viva Las Lapras').
- Snorlax ['Snack Attack'].
- Bayleef (evolved in 'Current Events', from a Chikorita
captured in 'Chikorita Rescue').
- Noctowl (caught in 'Fowl Play', this Pokémon
has unusual colouring).
- Cyndaqull (caught in 'Good Quil' Hunting').
- Totodile (caught in 'The Totodile Duel').
- Phanpy (hatched from an egg he was given by the couple who
run a breeding center in Johto).
- Larvitar (joined Ash in 'Hatch Me if You Can'. Left Ash after
they found its mother ['Mother of All Battles!']).
- Taillow (caught in 'You Never Can Tallow').
- Treecko (caught in 'Tree's a Crowd').
- Corphish (caught in 'Gone Corphishin'').
- Torkoal.
Character's Best
'Pokémon, I Choose You' - Ash, now ten,
begins his Pokémon journey, but things don't exactly go as
planned when a flock of Spearow attack him and his first Pokémon,
Pikachu.
'Ash Catches a Pokémon' - Ash catches his first
two Pokémon, a Caterpie and a Pigeotto
'Pikachu's Good-Bye' - When Pikachu meets a group of it's
own kind, does it mean the end of his and Ash's friendship.
'Showdown at the Poké-Corral' - Ash and Gary discover
they may have some things to learn from each other.
'Round One - Begin!' - Ash fights in his first league battle.
'Fire and Ice' - After a hard day battling, Ash spends
the night out in the town.
'Fourth Round Rumble' - Ash must defeat an unstoppable
Bellsprout.
'A Friend In Deed' - Ash meets Richie, a boy who shares
his dreams, and when Team Rocket steal the competitors Pokémon,
they must team up to save them.
'Friend or Foe Alike' - Ash and his new-found friend, Richie,
must face each other in the fifth round of the Indigo League Competition.
'Friends to the End' - When Richie's defeat only makes
him strive harder, Ash realizes what a bad loser he has been.
'Charizard Chills' - Ash finally earns Charizard's respect
through his devotion to the Pokémon.
'Hello Pummelo' - Ash challenges the current Orange League
Leader, hoping to be entered into the Hall of Fame.
'Enter the Dragonite' - Can Ash defeat Dragonite, one of
the most powerful Pokémon ever?
'Rivalry Revival!' - When Ash returns to Pallet after his
league win in the Orange Islands, he battles his rival, Gary, for
the first time.
Character Pictures
|
