Ash's Gengar
Ash's Gengar (Japanese: サトシのゲンガー Satoshi's Gangar) was the second Pokémon caught by Ash in Pokémon Journeys: The Series, and his fifty-sixth overall.
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 Ash's Gengar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In animation
History
Pre-series
With another Trainer
Three years prior to the events of Pokémon Journeys: The Series, Gengar was caught by a Trainer living in Vermilion City. However, as he started losing battles and failing to catch other Pokémon, he attributed his growing misfortunes to a curse caused by Gengar and decided to get rid of it. Before leaving it behind, he instructed Gengar to wait for him at the building that would later become the Cerise Laboratory.
Not knowing its Trainer had no intention of returning for it, Gengar obediently waited for him at the building, even scaring away possible buyers as the place fell into a state of disrepair bit by bit. One day, however, Professor Cerise bought the building to turn it into his research center, despite Gengar attempting to scare him off with poltergeist activity, but as he actually found its actions amusing, it eventually gave up trying to frighten him.
Pokémon Journeys: The Series
As a wild Pokémon
Gengar debuted in Best Friend...Worst Nightmare!, where it resumed its poltergeist activity by scaring Ren, making its presence known to Ash and Goh in the process. The latter tried to catch it, but Gengar deflected all of the Poké Balls he threw in its direction. It was eventually thrown out of the building after Chloe commanded Yamper to use Spark on it, but was later seen perched atop the laboratory at the very end of the episode.
At the end of Raid Battle in The Ruins!, Gengar phased through the wall and watched Ash, Goh, and their Pokémon as they returned from the Unova region.
In A Chilling Curse!, Gengar began causing trouble at the laboratory once more and hid in Ash's shadow. When Ash coincidentally ran into Gengar's former Trainer, it overheard the latter bragging about how much he enjoyed being free from its curse and, angered by the revelation that its Trainer had abandoned it, started attacking him. Ash and Goh tried to de-escalate the situation, but the Trainer quickly fled in fear, and Gengar soon disappeared as well. Team Rocket, who had been quietly watching the situation unfold, found Gengar and asked it to join them, but when it refused, they tried to capture it instead. Ash showed up in time, managed to free Gengar, and convinced it to fight Team Rocket alongside him. After Gengar defeated Team Rocket's two Dusclops and sent them blasting off, Ash collapsed from a fever he had unknowingly caught earlier and was carried back to the Cerise Laboratory. When he woke up, Gengar appeared and dropped a Poké Ball for him, indicating it wanted to join his team, which Ash gladly obliged.
With Ash
In Destination: Coronation!, Gengar was the second Pokémon chosen by Ash for his first-ever World Coronation Series battle against Visquez. It substituted for Pikachu while going up against Visquez's Raichu, and its speed and intangibility allowed for it to negate its opponent's attacks before finishing it off with a Psychic. Gengar then went up against Visquez's second Pokémon, Electrode, but was quickly defeated due to its control over the battlefield, though not before dealing some damage on its opponent.
In A Festival Reunion!, Ash brought Gengar with him to Shalour City for a World Coronation Series Battle Festival Challenge. During Ash's match with Korrina, Gengar went up against her Mienshao and Lucario, getting defeated by the latter without managing to deal any damage on either.
In Sword and Shield: The Darkest Day!, Ash used Gengar to face a rampaging Gigantamax Coalossal alongside Leon's Dragapult. During the battle, Gengar saved the lives of a group of Workers who were nearby.
In Ultra Exciting from the Shocking Start!, Gengar was the second Pokémon Ash sent out during his World Coronation Series match against Volkner after withdrawing his Lucario from the battle against Volkner's Luxray. It managed to disorient and deal massive damage to Luxray, forcing Volkner to switch it out for his Fan Rotom, which was able to match Gengar's speed. Rotom gained the upper hand by paralyzing Gengar with Thunder Wave and subsequently defeated it with a powered-up supereffective Hex.
In Showdown at the Gates of Warp!, Gengar devolved into Haunter, then Gastly, and finally an Egg as a result of a clash between Dialga and Palkia distorting time. After Arceus stopped the fight between Dialga and Palkia, the Temporal and Spatial Pokémon repaired the distortions their fighting had caused and restored all the devolved Pokémon back to normal.
In The Spectral Express!, one of the spirits from a Spiritomb possessed Ash after he touched its Odd Keystone. After Allister had driven the spirit out of Ash's body, Gengar chased after it into Ash's shadow and grabbed it with Psychic. Working together with Goh's Absol, the two returned the lost spirit to Spiritomb, ending the Forbidden Pokémon's rampage.
In The Winding Path to Greatness!, Gengar was Dynamaxed by Ash at the Stow-on-Side Stadium. When Ash learned that Gengar couldn't achieve the Gigantamax form he had heard of simply by training, he followed Allister's advice. He set out to collect Max Mushrooms to make Max Soup, which could enable Gengar to Gigantamax. When getting the third cluster of Max Mushrooms, Gengar defended Ash from a Drakloak that had gone wild after being agitated by Goh's Grookey. Once the soup was done, Gengar ate it and was able to successfully Gigantamax.
In Battling Turned Up to Eleven!, Ash used Gengar in his World Coronation Series match against Marnie and her Grimmsnarl. A while into the battle, Marnie Gigantamaxed Grimmsnarl, but Gengar managed to survive his attacks and was Gigantamaxed as well soon after. Both Pokémon were still standing by the time their Gigantamax states ended, but ultimately, Gengar emerged victorious, increasing Ash's ranking.
In Aim For The Eight!, Ash used Gengar as his second Pokémon in his World Coronation Series match against Raihan. After a brief battle against Flygon, who used Sandstorm to hide from Gengar while landing some strong hits on it, Ash Gigantamaxed his Pokémon and used it to suck the sandstorm away, allowing it to defeat Flygon soon after. Gengar next fought against Goodra, who utilized rain-boosted moves to deal heavy damage on it. Gengar, however, stood firm, and eventually, both Pokémon knocked each other out simultaneously.
In Friends, Rivals, Lend Me Your Spirit!, Ash visited Pallet Town and introduced his Pokémon to his new friends that he caught during his journey around the world, including Gengar. During the visit, Gengar trained with Ash's Fire-type Pokémon to learn Will-O-Wisp. Ash used Gengar as his last Pokémon in his battle against Paul, using it against his Metagross. Through its newly learned Will-O-Wisp, Gengar defeated Metagross, giving Ash the win. Before Ash left his hometown, it posed with the rest of Ash's Pokémon in a group photo with him.
In Battling as Hard as Stone!, Gengar was the second Pokémon Ash used during his Masters Eight Tournament battle against Steven. It was sent out against Aggron, who had just knocked Dracovish out, and immediately landed a Will-O-Wisp. The burn slowly sapped away Aggron's strength as Gengar bode its time, until the continuous damage became too much for its opponent to handle, and it ultimately fell. Gengar's next opponent was Cradily, whose long-ranging tentacles and constant recovery with Ingrain proved troublesome for it. While Gengar managed to counter an opposing Meteor Beam with its own Dazzling Gleam, it was not able to follow up with any damage and was defeated by the Barnacle Pokémon.
In Bewitch, Battle, and Bewilder!, Gengar was Ash's second Pokémon in his Masters Eight Tournament battle against Cynthia. It initially battled against her Roserade. It managed to burn it with Will-O-Wisp and landed a Shadow Ball, despite taking damage from Leaf Storm before Roserade was recalled in favor of Spiritomb. While Gengar managed to deal some supereffective damage with Dazzling Gleam, it fell for a Sucker Punch in the process and was taken down as a result.
In A Flood of Torrential Gains!, Ash chose Gengar as his second Pokémon in his Masters Eight Tournament battle against Leon. It first faced off against Inteleon, taking a few blows from his Counter Shield before countering it with a Will-O-Wisp, creating a thick fog in the process, and Gigantamaxing. After trapping Inteleon with a G-Max Terror, Gengar was able to successfully finish it off, but not without taking a critical hit from his Dark Pulse, which resulted in it losing its Gigantamax status earlier than expected. Next, it battled against Mr. Rime, who managed to freeze Gengar, as well as the field, before quickly defeating it with a supereffective, terrain-boosted Expanding Force, though not without first getting its Freeze-Dry disabled by Gengar's Cursed Body. In Partners in Time!, Gengar appeared as a vision to Pikachu during his battle against Leon's Charizard. After Ash had won the battle, Gengar joined him and the rest of his team for the awards ceremony.
Ash left Gengar, along with the rest of his Journeys team, at Professor Oak's Laboratory sometime prior to The Road Most Traveled!, as he decided he wanted to start rotating his team for his new journey.
In Getting to the Heart of it All!, Gengar was shown to have rejoined Ash's team. During the episode, it was sent out to help search for a Pokémon that stole heart-shaped objects from people's homes. It was quickly discovered to be a Banette, which escaped their multiple attempts to stop it. The next day, they were able to track it down and give it Misty's heart-shaped hairpiece, which resembled the one it had worn when it was still a substitute doll. They went out looking for its owner but could not find her by the end of the day. Banette flew off, and Gengar, frustrated, chased after it. It gave the Marionette Pokémon words of encouragement before it left for the next town to continue its search. Upon returning to Ash, it learned they had found its owner, Nurse Joy, and Gengar, Ash, and Dragonite chased after Banette to bring it back. Finally, together again, Banette and Nurse Joy shared a heartfelt reunion.
In The Rainbow and the Pokémon Master!, Gengar assisted Ash in looking for a missing Charmander around Oak's lab, but to no avail.
Personality and characteristics
Gengar was once loyal to its previous Trainer, obeying his instructions to remain at the future site of the Cerise Laboratory. Over time, however, Gengar became resentful of its old Trainer. It grew bitter and developed a hostile nature against all humans, repeatedly attacking them with its powers. This was also characterized with an angered expression. After it bonded with Ash and was caught, Gengar became friendlier, with its facial expression returning back to normal, though it still seems to have a mischievous streak, such as when it showed its concern for Ash by dumping a pile of apples on top of him, and when it scared Ren and Chloe in Memories of a Warming Kindness! by phasing through a wall. In Errand Endurance!, Gengar kept scaring Eevee, Grookey, and a Geodude by repeatedly phasing through walls while moving objects with Psychic.
Gengar dislikes being accused of something it didn't do, as seen in Panic in the Park!, when it appeared out of nowhere behind Ash and hit him with Shadow Ball after overhearing him accusing it of stealing Goh's Pokémon's food, and again in When a House is Not a Home!, when Gengar appeared out of nowhere behind Ren and began to hold onto him ominously after being accused of bringing Grookey to the lab, only letting him go after he apologized.
In battle, Gengar takes advantage of its Ghost-type abilities, allowing it to easily escape snares and confound opponents, as seen in Destination: Coronation!, where it was able to escape the tail hold of Visquez's Raichu simply by phasing through it. However, in the same episode, it was revealed to have trouble combating opponents that can match or exceed its speed such as her Electrode, and later Korrina's Mienshao and Lucario as well as Volkner's Fan Rotom. It also has a habit of getting close to its opponent and taunting them when starting a battle.
Gengar can also become invisible to disappear and reappear. Like all of its species, Gengar can decrease the temperature of its surroundings, as seen in Best Friend...Worst Nightmare!, and hide in the shadows, as seen in A Chilling Curse!.
During the search for the Max Mushrooms, Gengar became very close to Allister. During that same night, Allister and Gengar talked about each other's feelings. When Gengar finally managed to Gigantamax, Gengar looked at Allister's reaction, seeing that the boy had taken pride in Gengar's progress. While training at Professor Oak's lab, Gengar quickly became friends with Ash's Fire types, who eagerly helped it to learn Will-O-Wisp.
Appearance
See also: Dynamax and Gigantamax
| As an Egg (right) | As a Gastly | As a Haunter | As a Dynamax Gengar | As a Gigantamax Gengar |
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Moves used
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| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||
Max Moves and G-Max Moves used
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| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||||||||||||||
Artwork
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| Artwork for Find the difference | Fourth poster for the Japanese version of Pokémon Journeys: The Series |
Artwork from "After the story" [4] |
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| Official poster from Pokémon Journeys: The Series |
Poster for Pokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master |
In the manga
Daisuki ♥ Pocket Monsters
Gengar appeared in Daisuki ♥ Pocket Monsters as a wild Gengar. It unintentionally scared away Ash's Pikachu, Goh's Scorbunny, and Professor Cerise's Yamper. It was later comforted by Mika.
Pokémon Journeys
Gengar debuted in Caring for a Mystery!. It reappeared in Destination: Coronation!, where Ash used it during his battle with Visquez.
Moves used
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| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||||||||
In the games
Core series games
Gengar, along with the rest of Ash's team from Pokémon Journeys: The Series, was made available in Pokémon Sword and Shield through Pokémon Journeys: The Series broadcasts in Japan. These Pokémon utilize a common password which was revealed during the Japanese TV broadcasts. Players could claim Gengar with the password GENN GER0 GE94, a reference both to Gengar's voice in the animated series and National Pokédex number. Like in Pokémon Journeys: The Series, this Gengar can Gigantamax.
| Wonder Card 148 | サトシ's Gengar Gift | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| This Pokémon may only be redeemed once per save file. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date received is the date on the system when the gift is redeemed. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This Pokémon is Japanese in origin, regardless of the language of the game. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spin-off games
Pokémon Masters EX
Gengar, along with the rest of Ash's Pokémon Journeys: The Series team, appears during the special events The Classic Thunderbolt and Blazing Battle with Ash in Pokémon Masters EX.
Pokémon Mezastar
Gengar appears in Pokémon Mezastar as one of Ash's Pokémon. It appears as an opponent during the first Super Tag set and in the first Double Chain set. Upon beating Ash during the first Super Tag set, the player can receive a Support Pokémon Ticket based on Ash's Lucario, with Gengar as its tag partner. Gengar also appeared as an opponent in an event that recreated the Masters Eight Tournament that ran from October 27 to November 21, 2022. Upon beating Ash during the first Double Chain set, the player can receive a Support Pokémon Ticket based on Gengar, which can Gigantamax.
As an opponent
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Disks
| Tag No. | Name | Type | Grade |
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| 2-1-011 | Lucario |  
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| 3-1-022 | Gengar |  
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| P | Gengar |
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Trivia
- Gengar is the only one of Ash's Pokémon to:
- Be an officially owned Ghost type.
- Use a Ghost- or Fairy-type move.
- Be seen doing a standard Dynamax.
- Gengar is the only non-first partner Pokémon or fully evolved Pokémon caught by Ash to have been abandoned by a previous Trainer.
- It also is the only Pokémon to have been abandoned by a previous Trainer and remain a wild Pokémon for years before being caught by Ash.
- Gengar is the first member of its species in the animated series to have a color scheme that more matches its core series coloration. This would go on to become a standard coloration for all Gengar and Haunter in the animated series starting from Pokémon Horizons: The Series.
- Gengar is the only Pokémon in the animated series seen doing both a standard Dynamax and Gigantamaxing.
- Out of all Pokémon that Ash caught in Pokémon Journeys: The Series, Gengar is the only one not to have been caught in its debut episode.
- Gengar is the last recurring wild Pokémon to be caught by Ash.
- In JN128, the announcer of the World Coronation Series identified Gengar as (Japanese: 神出鬼没の黒い悪魔 The elusive black demon) when discussing Ash's team.
- Gengar is referred to as male in the Brazilian Portuguese dub.
References
- ↑ Confirmed male in the games only via event distribution.
- ↑ Confirimed in the animated series in A Flood of Torrential Gains!
- ↑ Games only, via event distribution.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/anipoke_PR/status/1474983313706459137
Related articles
For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar.
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This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation. |