View source for May (anime)

{{CharInfobox|
color={{ruby color}} |
corecolor={{ruby color light}} |
bordercolor={{ruby color dark}} |
name=May |
jname=ハルカ |
tmname=Haruka |
slogan=no |
image=MayDiamondPearl.png |
size=250px |
caption=May in the {{series|Diamond & Pearl}} |
age=yes |
years=10 (as of [[AG001|debut]]) |
colors=yes |
eyes=Blue |
hair=Brown |
gender=Female |
hometown=[[Petalburg City]] |
region=[[Hoenn]] |
relatives=[[Max]] (brother), [[Norman]] (father), [[Caroline]] (mother) |
trainer=yes |
trainerclass={{pkmn|Coordinator}} |
game=counterpart|
counterpart={{ga|May}}|
leader=no |
team=no |
anime=yes |
epnum=AG001 |
epname=Get the Show on the Road |
enva=[[Veronica Taylor]] ([[4Kids Entertainment|4Kids]])<br>[[Michele Knotz]] ([[TPCi]])|
java=[[KAORI]] |
}}

'''May''' (Japanese: '''ハルカ''' ''Haruka'') is a ten-year-old [[Pokémon Coordinator]] from the {{pkmn|anime}} and a {{ashfr|traveling companion}} of {{Ash}}. Her goal is to compete in [[Pokémon Contest]]s and win [[ribbon]]s, win the [[Grand Festival]]s of the different regions, and become a top {{pkmn|Coordinator}}. She traveled through [[Hoenn]] and [[Kanto]] with Ash, [[Brock]], and her little brother [[Max]]. She is the daughter of [[Norman]] and [[Caroline]], and her [[starter Pokémon]] was a {{p|Torchic}} given to her by [[Professor Birch]].

==Character==
[[Image:May Anime Artwork.png|thumb|left|150px|May in the {{series|Advanced Generation}}]]
May is a young {{pkmn|Coordinator}} who loves shopping and eating treats. She has a particular fondness for food, especially noodles; when someone steals her food, she gets angered from head to toe. May is generally very sweet and optimistic, though she shows a tougher side sometimes, such as when she argues with her little brother, [[Max]]. Even though they argue often, she has shown that she deeply cares for her brother. 

She loves [[Cute Contest|cute]] [[Pokémon]], flashy techniques, and has a tendency to rely on luck, often using her {{TP|May|Skitty}}'s {{m|Assist}} or her {{TP|May|Munchlax}}'s {{m|Metronome}}. She sometimes takes an interest in helping other people with romantic problems. She loves making her own [[Pokéblock]]s with recipes that she thinks up, including ones called "May's Purple Surprise" and "May's Pink Surprise" (Japanese: ''Haruka's Delicious'' and ''Haruka's Delicious 2''). The only ones who liked her Purple Surprise were [[May's Munchlax|her Munchlax]] and [[Jessie]].
[[Image:MayContest.PNG|thumb|right|230px|May at the [[Wallace Cup]]]]
It was revealed by [[Max]] in ''[[AG103|A Cacturne for the Worse]]'' that as a small child, May was afraid of Pokémon. There was one instance in particular that truly embarrassed May. One day she was swimming in the ocean and was suddenly surrounded by a flock of {{p|Tentacool}}. May got scared and called to her parents. She was wearing a blue swimsuit and a matching blue swimmer's cap, leading her mother to believe she was actually a Tentacool. Her mother tried to catch her with one of her [[Poké Ball]]s. [[Harley|One of May's opponents in a contest]] recorded Max telling him this to embarrass May into losing.

When May debuted in the anime, she did not like Pokémon at all and was only interested in becoming a [[Pokémon Trainer]] so she could travel. Everyone expected her to become a Trainer, to follow in her [[Gym Leader]] [[Norman|father's]] footsteps. However, after seeing a Contest in ''[[AG013|All Things Bright and Beautifly!]]'', she decided to become a Pokémon Coordinator. Though she was initially shown to not know much about Pokémon or [[move|attack]]s, she gradually gained experience through her journey and soon became a talented coordinator, with her skill being displayed in her [[Grand Festival]] rankings in the [[Hoenn]] and [[Kanto]] regions. {{an|Dawn}} once referred to her as the "Princess of Hoenn" when they met.
[[Image:Younger May.png|thumb|left|Younger May, in a flashback]]
As a Coordinator, May was able to learn more about Pokémon. For her Contests, she was able to come up with different combinations of attacks. She was able to use these combinations in battle. An example of this would be using her Combusken's {{m|Fire Spin}} and her Squirtle's {{m|Bubble}} to create a combination of fire and water, dubbed ''Fire and Water Whirlwind'' by [[Lilian Meridian|Lilian]]. This even got a [[Harley|rival]] of hers mad, thinking she thought he was not worthy of the move so May did not use it.

During her journey, she finds a rival in [[Drew]], a skilled and sometimes arrogant Coordinator who was one of her main inspirations to try harder to further her skills. Another rival of hers, [[Harley]], is a flamboyant man who goes to extremes to beat May. At the Kanto Grand Festival, May competed against [[Solidad]], an experienced Coordinator to whom she lost to in the semi-finals. At the end of the {{series|Advanced Generation}}, she left to compete with Drew, Harley and Solidad in the [[Johto]] region, aiming to find her own style. May has [[Contest Pass]]es to compete in [[Hoenn]], [[Kanto]] and [[Johto]].

May reappeared from ''[[DP075|Our Cup Runneth Over!]]'' to ''[[DP079|Strategy With a Smile!]]'' to participate in the [[Wallace Cup]] alongside {{Ash}}, {{an|Dawn}} and [[Zoey]]. During this period, she wore the {{v|Emerald}} of her outfit. May made it all the way to the finals of the Wallace Cup, but narrowly lost to Dawn in the end. 

May has a personal [[List of Japanese ending themes|ending theme song]], ''[[I Won't Lose! ~Haruka's Theme~]]'', performed by [[KAORI]]. It was first used as background music in the episode ''[[AG166|Curbing the Crimson Tide]]'' and again in next episode, ''[[AG167|What I Did for Love]]''. The theme was also used in the Appeals Round at the Wallace Cup for May's performance.

She has larger breasts that Misty or Dawn.

==Pokémon==
===On Hand===
{| align="center" width="100%"
|-
| {{ActivePoké|May|Blaziken|May Blaziken.png|fire|fighting|fir=Torchic|mid=Combusken}}
| {{ActivePoké|May|Beautifly|Mays Beautifly.png|bug|flying|fir=Wurmple|mid=Silcoon}}
| {{ActivePoké|May|Venusaur|May Venusaur.jpg|grass|poison|fir=Bulbasaur|mid=Ivysaur}} ♀
|-
| {{ActivePoké|May|Wartortle|May's Wartortle.png|water|fir=Squirtle}}
| {{ActivePoké|May|Munchlax|Munchlax of May.png|normal}}
| {{ActivePoké|May|Glaceon|May's Glaceon.png|ice|fir=Egg|mid=Eevee}}
|}

===Status unknown===
{| align="center" width="100%"
|-
| {{InactivePoké|May|Skitty|MaySkitty.png|normal}}
|
|
|
|}

===Borrowed===
[[File:May Kanto party.png|thumb|260px|May and her Pokémon prior to ''[[AG191|Once More With Reeling!]]'']]
{|border="1" style="border: 1px solid #000; border-collapse: collapse;" width=100px cellspacing="0"
| align=center | [[Image:107.png]]<br>{{p|Hitmonchan}}
|}

* '''Hitmonchan''': Borrowed from [[Kyle Hamm]] in ''[[AG145|Pasta La Vista]]''.

==Ribbons==
[[File:May Kanto Ribbons 5.png|thumb|220px|May's [[Kanto]] Ribbons]]
[[Image:Mayjohtoribbons.png|thumb|right|220px|May's [[Johto]] Ribbons]]
===Hoenn===
* [[Fallarbor Town]] [[Ribbon]] (''[[AG051|Come What May!]]'')
* [[Verdanturf Town]] Ribbon (''[[AG062|Disguise Da Limit]]'')
* [[Lilycove City]] Ribbon (''[[AG091|Lessons in Lilycove!]]'')
* [[Izabe Island]] Ribbon (''[[AG103|A Cacturne for the Worse]]'')
* [[Pacifidlog Town]] Ribbon (''[[AG116|Pacifidlog Jam]]'')

===Kanto===
* [[Saffron City]] Ribbon (''[[AG144|A Hurdle for Squirtle]]'')
* {{Ka|Silver Town}} Ribbon (''[[AG151|Weekend Warrior]]'')
* [[Chrysanthemum Island]] Ribbon (''[[AG162|Spontaneous Combusken!]]'')
* [[Gardenia Town]] Ribbon (''[[AG167|What I Did for Love!]]'')
* [[Mulberry City]] Ribbon (''[[AG175|Going for Choke!]]'')

===Johto===
* Three unknown Ribbons (prior to ''[[DP076|A Full Course Tag Battle!]]'')

==Grand Festival ranking==
May placed in the following [[Grand Festival]] competitions:
* [[Hoenn]] Grand Festival (Top 8)
* [[Kanto]] Grand Festival (Top 4)

==Other achievements==
* [[Pokémon Orienteering]] - Runner-up
* Unofficial {{to|Terracotta}} Contest - Winner (tied with {{Ash}})
* [[Wallace Cup]] - Runner-up

==Voice actors==
{{vatable|color={{ruby color}}|bordercolor={{ruby color light}}
|ja=[[KAORI]] (currently credited as 鈴木カオリ ''Kaori Suzuki'')
|en=[[Veronica Taylor]] ([[4Kids Entertainment|4Kids]] dub)<br>[[Michele Knotz]] ({{PUSA}} dub)
|cs=Klára Šumanová
|nl=Nicoline van Doorn 
|fr_eu=Maia Baran
|de=Nicola Grupe<br>Stephanie Kellner (movies [[M06|6]] and [[M07|7]])
|he=דון לני-גבאי Dawn Lanny-Gabay
|it=Serena Clerici
|pl=[[Julita Kożuszek-Borsuk]] (Julita Kożuszek)
|pt_br=Tatiane Keplmair
|pt_eu=Isabel Ribas ([[AG146]]-[[AG192]])
|es_eu=Cristina Yuste
|es_la=Ana Lobo ([[AG001]]-[[AG044]])<br>Liliana Barba ([[AG033]]-[[AG034]])<br>Mariana Ortiz ([[AG045]]-Present)
|fil=Charmaine Cordoviz}}

==In the TCG==
This listing is of cards mentioning or featuring May or her Pokémon in the [[Pokémon Trading Card Game]].

{| border="1" style="border: 1px solid #999; border-collapse: collapse; background: white;" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="2"
|- style="background: #{{tcg Fire color}};" 
!Name
!Type
!Level
!Rarity
!Set
!Set no.
|-
| {{TCG ID|8th Movie Half Deck|May's Munchlax|8}} || {{e|Colorless}} || - || - || {{TCG|8th Movie Half Deck}} (no English release) || 008/020
|-
| {{TCG ID|9th Movie Half Deck|May's Combusken|2}} || {{e|Fire}} || - || - || {{TCG|9th Movie Half Deck}} (no English release) || 002/019
|-
| {{TCG ID|ADV-P Promo|May's Torchic|37}} || {{e|Fire}} || - || - || {{TCG|ADV-P Promotional cards}} (no English release) || 037/ADV-P
|}

==Trivia==
[[Image:May's wishmaker.png|250px|thumb|right|May's wishmaker]]
* Until {{an|Dawn}} received a {{TP|Dawn|Cyndaquil}}, May was the only main character who has had one of the same Pokémon as Ash, which are {{p|Squirtle}} and {{p|Bulbasaur}}.
** She was also the only one of Ash's friends to catch more than one [[starter Pokémon]] up until the arrival of Dawn's Cyndaquil. However, she is still the only other main character to own multiple starter Pokémon from the same generation.
* She is the only one of Ash's friends who started off not liking Pokémon.
* She is the only beginner Trainer that was not given an introduction by the [[narrator]] in their first episode. Instead, she gave her own {{wp|Grammatical person|first person}} introduction.
* May was the second of [[Ash's friends]] to have a lead role in a Pokémon movie, the first being her brother [[Max]].
* May and Max are the only friends of Ash not to meet Ash's rival, [[Gary Oak]], at one time or another. Ironically, May took one of Professor Oak's {{TP|May|Squirtle}}, just as Gary had done when he started out. Also they both ended up getting an {{p|Eevee}} along their journeys and evolving it into an [[Eeveelution]] introduced in the generation after the character was introduced.
* May and Max are two of three of Ash's friends who has had their father make an appearance in the anime. The other is Brock.
* May owns the second most Pokémon that have evolved twice since they were obtained, with three, less than only Ash, who has had five. Both Trainers, own the final form {{type2|Fire}} starter from [[Hoenn|their own region]] ({{TP|May|Blaziken}}), the final form {{type2|Grass}} starter from the [[Kanto|other region]] that appeared in [[Generation III]]'s handheld games ({{TP|May|Venusaur}}), and the first Pokémon that they caught from the wild, their region's native butterfly ({{TP|May|Beautifly}}). These correspond to Ash's {{AP|Charizard}}, {{AP|Sceptile}}, and {{AP|Butterfree}}.
* The only Pokémon she has that remained unevolved are Munchlax and Skitty. Coincidentally, both are {{type2|Normal}}, and each would only need to evolve once to reach their final stage.
* May is the only one of Ash's friends that has never owned a {{cat|Generation II Pokémon}} (excluding [[Max]], who does not yet have a Pokémon of his own).
* May is the only one of Ash's female friends to have never fought a Gym Leader of any sort. She did, however, initially intend to go on her own badge quest before deciding to be a {{pkmn|Coordinator}}, and did in fact battle ''in'' a Gym, but with a [[Watt|Gym assistant]].
* May's contest cry is "Take the stage!" (US) and "Stage on!" (Japan).
* All of May's major rivals have {{type2|Bug}} Pokémon. [[Drew]] has {{p|Masquerain}} and {{p|Butterfree}}, [[Harley]] has {{p|Ariados}}, and [[Solidad]] has {{p|Butterfree}}.
* May is the only female character {{Ash}} {{ashfr|has traveled with}} who has met both of the other girls that Ash has traveled with, in ''[[AG044|The Princess and the Togepi]]'' and ''[[DP076|A Full Course Tag Battle!]]'', respectively.
* Five out of seven of May's Pokémon have an 87.5% chance of being male in the games, namely {{TP|May|Munchlax}}, {{TP|May|Blaziken}}, {{TP|May|Glaceon}}, {{TP|May|Venusaur}}, and {{TP|May|Wartortle}} (however out of these, May's Venusaur has been confirmed to be female).
* When May was younger, she gained a fear of {{p|Tentacool}}. During the same occasion, [[Caroline|her mom]] tried to catch her since she thought she was a Tentacool.
* May is the only main character other than Ash to have identified Ho-Oh (and in fact identified it before he did in ''[[AG178|Battling the Enemy Within!]]''), though the others saw it as well.
* In Hoenn, May carried a large, gray ribbon case. In Kanto and Johto, however, May sports an orange one that slides open.

===Names===
{| border="1" style="border: 1px solid #88a; border-collapse: collapse;" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="2"
|- style="background: #ccf;"
! Language
! Name
! Origin
|- 
|Japanese
| ハルカ ''Haruka''
| From 春花 ''haruka'', spring flower. May also be taken as 遼 ''haruka'', far away, in relation to her father, [[Norman|Senri]] (千里), 1000 {{wp|li (length)|li}}.
|-
|English
| May
| Could be a reference to her Japanese name, as May is a month in spring.
|-
|French
| Flora
| Similar to ''Fleur'', which means "flower".
|-
|German
| Maike
| From ''Mai'', which means "May".
|-
|Italian
| Vera
| From ''primavera'', which means "spring".
|-
|Spanish
| Aura
|Means "dawn". Coincidentally, and perhaps intentionally, Dawn's Spanish name, Maya, sounds similar to "May".
|-
|Korean
| 봄이 ''Bom'i''
| 봄 means "spring"
|-
|Chinese (all versions)
| 小遥 ''Xiǎo Yáo''
| From 遥 ''haruka'', far away.
|-
|}

==Related articles==
* {{Cat|Episodes focusing on May}}

==External links==
* [http://cherry.pacificdusk.org/index.php Cherry Girl], the fanlisting for May
* [http://pokeani.com/chara/r-haruka.html Haruka's Profile] on [[Pokeani]] (Japanese)
* [http://pokeani.com/poke/r_poke-haruka.html Haruka's Pokémon] on [[Pokeani]] (Japanese)
* [http://bmgf.bulbagarden.net/showthread.php?t=9031 May Club] on the Bulbagarden forums

{{May's Pokémon}}
{{Coordinators}}<br>
{{Animecharacters}}<br>
{{Project Anime notice|no}}

[[Category:Anime characters]]
[[Category:Ash's friends]]
[[Category:Female characters]]
[[Category:Ash and Pikachu characters]]

[[de:Maike]]
[[fr:Flora (dessin animé)]]
[[ja:ハルカ]]
[[pl:May]]
[[pt:May]]