PearlShipping

Revision as of 03:15, 18 September 2009 by Pkmn veteran (talk | contribs)
370Luvdisc.png This article is about shipping.
As hints and evidence for ships are mostly speculation, this page may contain personal points of view.

PearlShipping (Japanese: サトヒカ SatoHika) is the name of the pairing between Ash Ketchum and his newest traveling companion, Dawn, from the Pokémon anime. This Ship is among the more popular anime-based Shippings, along with Template:S, Template:S, and Template:S. The name itself was coined from the belief Dawn's game persona would be linked to the Pearl name upon Diamond and Pearl's release, as was the case for Ruby and Sapphire, before much was known of either the anime saga or Dawn's character.

File:Dawncheer.jpg
Dawn in the cheerleading outfit she wore to cheer for Ash

Anime evidence

Dawn's hints

Dawn felt that Ash didn't respect or acknowledge her and both argued with each other through out most of the episode, so she challenged Nando to a battle hoping to make Ash realize how good she was as a Trainer, and in the end after Nando managed to explain to them that there was no reason to argue both apologized to one another and exchanged a few very sentimental words thus strengthening their new friendship.
Dawn was having a bad hair day and had her Piplup fix her hair. Before fixing her hair, she refused to let Ash see her for fear of having him judge her, or that she was simply being self-conscious. She also asked Ash afterward if he would like his done too.
Dawn commented on how awesome Ash looked when making his appeal in the Jubilife Contest.
Dawn donned a cheerleading outfit and she and her Pokémon began cheering and dancing for Ash to win and thus giving him the confidence to earn his first gym badge in Sinnoh. This is a first since neither Misty nor May ever went to such lengths in any of Ash's battles; they usually sat at the side lines discussing if he would win, though they would usually throw him a few cheers.
When Ash showed Dawn Misty's special lure, Dawn said, "I've never seen a lure like that," and Ash's reply was "This? Cool huh? I got it from Misty a long time ago." With this said Dawn seemed a little shocked that she had never heard of Misty and was found to be a little jealous of her. When Brock noticed this he tells her that Misty was an old friend of theirs that they used to travel with and Dawn seemed to calm down a little, as Brock just said "friend".
When Gardenia suggested to do a tag battle, Dawn quickly said she wanted to be Ash's partner.
Dawn was crying about her recent Contest failure. When Ash approached her, she didn't want him to worry about it and played along with his assumption that she had dirt in her eyes. Then Ash says he is hungry and Dawn suggests that they get ice cream so that Ash wouldn't have to worry about her.
Dawn admitted she wonders if her Contests are holding Ash back, showing that she cares about his dreams almost more than her own.
Dawn exclaimed, "Wow, Ash is really something!"
Dawn cheered Ash again with more dancing for his Gym battle against Maylene.
Ash claimed the reason he won his new badge from Maylene was because of all the training Dawn did with Buizel when it was still hers. This causes Dawn to blush and she says "Thanks, but it was all worth it to see an amazing battle between you and Maylene, Ash."
At the start of the episode, Dawn commented on how Ash does very good in training his Pokémon and even saying: "Ash is incredible!"
When Ash ran into Crasher Wake and fell to the ground, Dawn was concerned over Ash's well-being. In another scene, Dawn was so frightened by the appearance of the Croagunk, she held onto Ash and hid behind him.
Dawn became worried that Ash's plan to get past the Psyduck would fail and that Ash would end up hurt.
When Brock finishes packing, and tells Dawn that they're ready to go, she immediately volunteers to go and get Ash. Also, after that, Brock is seen with Happiny, saying that they'd be better off waiting around in the Pokémon Center until Ash and Dawn are done training.
When the Gym referee says that Byron has the upper hand during Ash's gym battle, Dawn gets really mad and says "I am telling you you're wrong! Ash is going to win it for sure!", showing the confidence she has that he will win.
When Ash asked Dawn what Pokémon she would be using in the upcoming Pokémon Contest, Dawn winks at him and says, "Well who do you think I would use?"
When Dawn is reunited with Ash and Brock after being lost for a day in the forest, Dawn yells "Ash... and Brock!" meaning she may care more about Ash than Brock.
Dawn stated that she wanted to enter Ambipom in the Sandalstraw Contest so it could win it for both her and Ash.
When Ash felt cold, Dawn gave Ash his jacket.
When Paul walks away after winning his 6th battle with Ash, Dawn looks sad and says, "Ash..."
When Ash is feeling upset when all his Pokémon are badly injured he runs off and Dawn tries to follow him, but is stopped by Brock.
In order to cheer up Ash after his confidence goes down, Dawn puts on a show for him.
Ash didn't know why Dawn was doing the show at first, but Nurse Joy whispered to him that she was doing it to make him and his Pokémon feel better.
When Ash, Dawn, Brock, Kazunari, and Kotone are trapped in a room at the Valley Windworks, Kotone asks Dawn if there is anything going on between her and Ash. Dawn's eyes widen and she says, "No" as if she was trying to hide something.

Ash's hints

Dawn was dressed in a cheerleading outfit to cheer Ash on. When she started cheering with her Pokémon Ash noticed this and said, "Geez, thanks Dawn." As he said this, he had a big grin on his face.
Ash calmed her nerves down after she had made what she thought was a bad appeal, and even used her frequent catchphrase, "No need to worry!" (Japanese: "Daijōbu!") to console her and gave her a caring and loving look.
Ash's concern was continually focused on Dawn while he is split up from her and Brock, worrying the most about her being bound by an Onix.
Ash signed up Dawn in the Hearthome Tag Battle Tournament to cheer her up after her recent Contest loss. When he told her, she was against it because she is thinks she wouldn't do well, but Ash claimed he thought she would do great. He also told her to try her best. When she agrees, he raises his hand with a big grin on his face to give her a high five.
Ash was deeply saddened when Dawn lost in the appeal round for the second time. After the loss, "Jessalina" walks up to her and tells her to leave. Dawn tells "Jessalina" she wants to stay. The camera then turns to her slightly shaking fist. The camera then shoots over to Ash's face. The brown in his eyes can be seen, and this usually only happens when Ash is very upset. He then lowers his head, and hides his eyes behind his hat.
Ash was worried for Dawn when she was crying and assumed that she had dirt in her eyes, though she was really upset about her recent Contest loss.
When Hippowdon went down in the sand with Pachirisu the first time, Brock and Ash went digging with their bare hands looking for it. That can show that Ash cared deeply for Dawn's Pokémon.
Ash said the reason he won his new badge from Maylene was because of all the training Dawn did with Buizel when it was still hers. This caused Dawn to blush and she said, "Thanks, but it was all worth it to see an amazing battle between you and Maylene, Ash." This made Ash smile widely at her.
While Dawn was talking about how Zoey told her to show off her Pokémon, not their moves, Ash tells her to train harder and sets his hand on her shoulder.
During the Croagunk Festival, Ash asked Dawn to dance.
When Ash and Dawn climbed onto Team Rocket's robot, he fell off and screamed her name twice, once while he fell and again when he lost sight of her.
Dawn made a comment about how Ash should treat his Pokémon like Gary does and Ash became furious. Some PearlShippers consider that to be jealousy of Dawn's supposed feelings for Gary.
When Dawn became frustrated with designing her outfits for the collection, Ash commented on how all her designs were amazing and she should do her best.
Dawn becomes concerned Ash's plan to get past the Psyduck will fail and he will get hurt. When Ash noticed, he told her, "No need to worry!" with a huge grin on his face.
When Brock commented on how great Conway was with his Venonat, Ash began to get worried and yelled, "'Kay Dawn, hang in there!" Later, Ash was extremely happy that Dawn won the prize for being closest to her Pokémon.
When Dawn comes onto the stage for the appeals round, Ash yells, "Lookin' great Dawn!" before she can even bring out her Pokémon.
When Ash sees Dawn running away from Rotom, he becomes worried about her and helps her get away from Rotom.
Ash saved Dawn by putting his arm around her waist and pushing her to safely protecting her from her Piloswine after it went charging at her for more Poffins.
When Dawn starts to cry because her Piloswine wouldn't listen to her, Ash becomes worried about her and tells her, "No need to worry."
When Ursula insults Dawn, Dawn becomes mad but as soon as she is about to say something to Ursala as she leaves, Ash yells at her telling her that Dawn is a much better Coordinator and Trainer then she is.
As soon as Ash found out that Dawn fell in the river, he became extremely worried about her and continued to be concerned about her until he found Dawn again. Meanwhile, Brock didn't show nearly as much concern as Ash did.
When Ash, got defeated, he said, "Man, Dawn keeps getting better and better with every match!"
When Dawn puts on a show for Ash and his Pokémon, Ash does not know why, so Nurse Joy tells him that it is to cheer up him and all his Pokémon. When she tells him this, he gives Dawn a weird look as if to say, "Is this true?" Dawn gives him a smile and a wink, saying yes and starts the show. As the show progresses, Ash and his Pokémon are enjoying themselves very much.

Other hints

File:HighfiveDP.JPG
Ash and Dawn high-fiving
  • Ash and Dawn are often seen exchanging high fives whenever one of them accomplishes something, which might possibly portray a deep friendship, as Ash has rarely ever given a high five to anyone else on the show.
  • As Dawn's Buneary seems to have Template:S on Ash's Pikachu, this could be a sign that Dawn may have a crush on Ash since Professor Oak and Brock have said in the past that Pokémon represent the feelings of their masters, and when two Pokémon fall in love, there is a good chance the Trainers will too. However, some can point out that Buneary developed this crush before Dawn caught it. The claim has also been refuted at various points during the series, so the feelings of the Pokémon are not always definitive to the feelings of the Trainers.
  • Like Misty and May, Ash's Pikachu also destroys Dawn's bike. However, unlike the first two girls, she never once pesters him about it, not even mentioning it until Cycling Road many episodes later.
  • Ash and Dawn are the only main characters to trade Pokémon with each other: Ash's Aipom for Dawn's Buizel.
  • So far, Ash has watched all of Dawn's Contests. He did not do this with May because he would sometimes be training his Pokémon instead of watching her.
File:Promo PokemonMovie11.JPG
Pikachu the Movie poster
  • One of the movie posters for Giratina and the Sky Warrior depicts Pikachu and Piplup sitting on Ash's and Dawn's heads, respectively. Some fans have pointed out that the distance portrayed between Dawn and Ash is very small. However, other fans point out how Ash's hair, which can usually be seen from the sides of his hat, is not present. This may mean the Trainers are not really wearing their hats.
  • A Domino's Pizza Kids 2008 Commercial in Japan features Ash and Dawn, as well as some Pokémon.
  • High Touch!
The opening is sung by Ash and Dawn. The lyrics show how close their friendship is to each other and their Pokémon. But, mainly to each other.
While Dawn battled a revived Aerodactyl, Ash is fascinated with Piplup and Buneary's new dodging tactic that he asks Dawn to help him practice for his rematch. He then has Pikachu, Aipom, and Turtwig use them in O'er the Rampardos We Watched in his rematch with Roark, again in Getting the Pre-Contest Titters in his match against Kenny, and a few other times since, the tactic becoming a regular (if not frequent) feature in Ash's strategy.
When Contest Master Wallace mentioned the importance of the love between the Trainers and their Pokémon, Dawn agreed and looked at Ash, as if she just realized something that involved Ash. Ash then looks back at Dawn and stares at her in confusion.
Dawn was proud of Ash because he and Buizel were able to pull off the Aqua Jet-Ice Beam combo that Dawn attempted to perform with Buizel in A Stand-Up Sit-Down!, turning the opponent's Ice Beam against it.
Brock leaves both Ash and Dawn to take care of the Pokémon. Both of them say they would stay with each other taking care of the Pokémon, showing that they don't feel uncomfortable being alone without Brock. Both working together and trying their best to help Pachirisu is a sign that their friendship is getting stronger.
When Ash and Dawn were in the submarine, they saw a school of Luvdisc. Some PearlShippers consider this a hint because Luvdisc's Pokédex entry says if two people see a school of Luvdisc, they will be blessed with eternal love (however, there's been long-debated discrepancies about how much the anime and the game are relatable, and should not be taken at face value. Also, Template:S have a similar hint from the ninth movie).

Movie evidence

Ash's hints

Ash tries to save Dawn from falling out of the basket. Whether it is a reaction or not, Ash wants to save her. Then when Dawn lands on a nearby building, Ash is shown giving a sigh of relief that she is okay. In another scene, when both Ash and Dawn are falling off the tower together, Ash holds Dawn tight so that she doesn't leave him.
When Dawn was getting sucked into the Reverse World, Ash yelled, "No, Dawn!" and went in after her.

Dawn's hints

When Darkrai first appears in front of Ash and company, Dawn runs over to Ash's side. Several other scenes feature Dawn reacting to Ash's predicaments: when Ash is about to fall off the tower, Dawn rushes over to save him. When Ash saves her from falling of the platform, Dawn looks at him with a thankful expression on her face and is holding his hand. And when Ash begins to cry, believing he lost Darkrai, Dawn looks at him with a worried expression and begins to cry as well.
When Ash becomes sad that Shaymin left, Dawn says, "Oh, Ash" in a very caring tone.

Similarities

  • Neither the father of Ash nor the father of Dawn have ever been seen, as far as what has been introduced in the anime. They also are only children with no siblings.
  • They both have childhood rivals: Ash's is Gary Oak and Dawn's is Kenny.
  • He first participated in an official Contest at the same time as Dawn.
  • Both Ash and Dawn have owned Pokémon that refused to obey them at one point (Ash's Pikachu, Charizard, and Primeape, and Dawn's Buizel and Mamoswine).
  • Ash and Dawn often strongly cheer each other on in Contests/battles.
  • They are the only main characters who battle members of the Elite Four.
  • Both of their starters were able to defeat their evolved forms. Pikachu beat Lt. Surge's Raichu and Sho's Raichu, while Piplup beat Kenny's Prinplup.
  • They both released the second Pokémon they caught: Ash released Pidgeot and Dawn released Pachirisu. However, Dawn recaptured Pachirisu and Ash said he would come back for Pidgeot (though he has yet to do so).
File:Dominos Ad Nov08.jpg
Scene from a 2008 Domino's Pizza commercial
  • Pikachu saved Ash from Spearow in the beginning of his journey while Piplup saved Dawn from Ariados.
  • As of Journey To The Unown!, Dawn's Piplup seems to have become an "out of the ball" Pokémon, as it rarely stays inside its Poké Ball anymore, and is often seen being carried around by Dawn just as Ash carries around Pikachu on his shoulder.
  • In Camping It Up!, Dawn rented an affectionate Grimer whose behavior is similar to that of Ash's Muk.
  • In Doc Brock!, Pachirisu becomes ill from having too much electricity, which also happened to Ash's Pikachu between Hoenn Alone! and Get the Show on the Road!.
  • The rivals of their game counterparts (Gary and Barry) have appeared in the anime instead of making a cameo, as Silver and Brendan have.
  • Both of them have a Pokémon that they caught in its most unevolved form, which then began to disobey them after evolving once, and then evolved again rather quickly. Eventually, both Pokémon started obeying their Trainers (however, it took Ash's Charizard longer to obey than Dawn's Mamoswine).
  • Just like Ash's Bulbasaur, Dawn's Piplup stopped evolving in the middle of the evolution process.
  • Both Dawn and Ash's Starter Pokémon have refused to evolve.

Notable PearlShippers

Alternate names

  • AADL, occasionally used, standing for Ash And Dawn Love.
  • ShinouShipping; please note that this name conflicts with Template:S, the pairing of Lucas and Dawn in the games, also referred to as ShinouShipping.
  • Sakari, also occasionally seen, a name taken from Satoshi and Hikari.
  • SatoHika which is taken from Satoshi and Hikari.

On Bulbagarden forums

External links


  This article is part of Project Shipping, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each couple in Pokémon.