Hugh
ヒュウ Hyu
Black 2 White 2 Hugh.png
Art from Black 2 and White 2 by Yusuke Ohmura[1]
Age Unknown (game)
12 (Adventures)
Gender Male
Eye color Red
Hair color Dark blue
Hometown Aspertia City
Region Unova
Relatives Unnamed father, unnamed mother, younger sister, grandfather (deceased)
Trainer class Pokémon Trainer
Generation V, VII, VIII, IX
Counterpart(s) Hugh (Masters)
Games Black 2 and White 2, Masters EX
English voice actor Sean Schemmel (B2W2AT)
Unknown (Masters EX)
Japanese voice actor Junko Minagawa (B2W2AT)
Tasuku Hatanaka (Masters EX)
Manga series Pokémon Adventures
Debut The Transfer Student

Hugh (Japanese: ヒュウ Hyu) is the rival character in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2.

In the core series games

Hugh is the player's childhood friend. He is described as feeling passionately for Pokémon battles and Pokémon strength. He is also a doting older brother to his sister; he hates Team Plasma because they stole a Purrloin his late grandfather had caught for her. For that reason, Hugh travels across Unova and challenges its Gyms so he and his Pokémon can become strong enough to topple the new Team Plasma. He considers both his Pokémon and the player to be his partners, and battles with and against them at several points during their journey.

Being extremely quick to anger when it comes to dealing with the villainous team, Hugh initially refuses to forgive the old Team Plasma members living in Driftveil City, treating them with as much hostility as the new members and asking Clay why he forgives them. However, as he continues battling the new Team Plasma and interacting with members of the old Team Plasma, Hugh comes to understand the division between the two sects, ultimately accepting the help of Rood and the old Team Plasma Grunts in the Giant Chasm. After the player helps recover Purrloin (now a Liepard) and enters the Hall of Fame, Hugh battles them once more before he begins helping the old Team Plasma reunite Trainers with their stolen Pokémon. He remains in Driftveil City from then on and can be battled daily.

Pokémon

First battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Second battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



First Multi Battle partner

Hugh teams with the player in a Multi Battle against two Team Plasma Grunts.

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Third battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Second Multi Battle partner

Hugh teams with the player in a Multi Battle against two Team Plasma Grunts.

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Fourth battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Third Multi Battle partner

Hugh teams with the player in a Multi Battle against Zinzolin and a Team Plasma Grunt.

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Fourth Multi Battle partner

Hugh teams with the player in a Multi Battle against two Team Plasma Grunts, and later against Zinzolin and a Grunt.

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Temporary

After retrieving the now-evolved Purrloin from Team Plasma's Shadow Triad, Hugh takes it back to his sister in Aspertia City.

 
Liepard


Fifth battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Sixth battle

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



Rematch

  If the player chose Snivy:



  If the player chose Tepig:



  If the player chose Oshawott:



In the spin-off games

Pokémon Masters EX

Main article: Hugh (Masters)

Hugh forms a sync pair with Bouffalant in Pokémon Masters EX. Hugh became a playable sync pair on November 7, 2022.

Hugh first appeared as an NPC during the story event Revel in Rivalry. He has also made notable appearances in one of the game's Main Stories, the Villain Arc.

Sync Dex Trainer NDex Pokémon Type Weakness Role Base Potential Availability
#159   Hugh #0626   Bouffalant
Normal
 
Fighting
 
  ★★★★★☆EX Sync Pair Scout

Gallery

Sprites

         
Sprite from
Black 2 and
White 2
Overworld sprite from
Black 2 and White 2
Back sprite from
Black 2 and
White 2
VS sprite from
Black 2 and White 2
Xtransceiver sprite from
Black 2 and White 2

Quotes

Main article: Hugh/Quotes

In the anime

 
Hugh in the animated trailer

Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 Animated Trailer

Hugh appeared in the Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 Animated Trailer. He was first seen running with Nate to go meet Bianca in Aspertia City. Later, he was seen battling Team Plasma aboard the Plasma Frigate alongside Nate and Cheren.

Pokémon

 
Samurott
Samurott was seen battling a Team Plasma Grunt's Seviper alongside Nate's Arcanine.

Samurott's only known move is Ice Beam.

Debut Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 Animated Trailer

Voice actors

Language Voice actor
Japanese 皆川純子 Junko Minagawa
English Sean Schemmel
European Spanish Fernando Cordero


GOTCHA!

Hugh briefly appeared in GOTCHA!.

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

 
Hugh in Pokémon Adventures
 
Hugh as a child in Pokémon Adventures

Hugh first appeared in the Black 2 & White 2 arc. He is a student at the Aspertia City Trainers' School, along with Blake, Whitley, Leo, Yuki, Yuko, and Maya. Despite having a home in Aspertia, Hugh lives in the school dormitories, where he shares a room with Leo. Hugh is obsessed with getting stronger, which tends to put him at odds with his classmates, who tend to focus on things other than battling.

Hugh debuted in The Transfer Student, where he berated Blake and Leo for being late to class and angrily told Blake to focus more on improving himself as a Trainer instead of flirting with girls. Their argument alerted the new teacher, Cheren, who forced the three to sit outside as punishment. While they waited, Blake, Hugh, and Leo spotted the new transfer student, Whitley, arriving at class. Hearing the conversation Blake and others were having about Whitley, Cheren decided to skip the lecture and instead had the students battle each other. Separated into two groups by gender, Hugh battled against Leo and Blake, defeating the former, but losing to the latter.

In Movie Panic, Cheren took his class to a school trip at Pokéstar Studios. Hugh found the trip annoying, as he couldn't see how movies could make him stronger. He was proven wrong after learning the battles in the movies were real despite the dialogue being scripted. After returning to school, Yuki, Maya, and Yuko consulted with the other girls on their plans for the upcoming cultural festival. When Hugh told the girls to go back to their dorms like Cheren said to, Yuki told him off, one of her comments angering him into attacking. The girls angrily went home, but Hugh ending up picking up a pendant containing a memory card.

In Unforgettable Memories, Hugh checked the memory card and found that it contained a list of Pokémon and their Trainers. After finding his name, Hugh flashed back to five years ago, where he received a Purrloin and two other Pokémon from his grandfather. Hugh gave Purrloin to his younger sister as a birthday gift. After his sister and Purrloin became fast friends, Hugh decided to train Purrloin by having it battle against his Trapinch. Their battle alerted a pair of Team Plasma Grunts, who attacked Hugh and stole Purrloin. Claiming that if were stronger, he wouldn't have lost, Hugh swore revenge against Team Plasma. Back in the present, Hugh realized the owner of the pendant must be a member of Team Plasma and decided to reveal her true identity.

In Choir Tournament, Hugh's sister came to the Trainers' School to watch her brother take part in the Autumn Choir Tournament as a member of Team Jigglypuff. After facing off against a variety of other teams in the tournament, Team Jigglypuff emerged as the winner. Roxie, a judge, had her father take the winning team and their class to Castelia City to compete in the Unova Choir Tournament.

In Angry Boy, Hugh's sister managed to stow away on Pop Roxie's boat. She wanted a chance to talk to Hugh as they became distant after he started going to the Trainers' School. After Leo accidentally discovered them, he promised to help Hugh's sister hidden from the others. After they arrived, Roxie encountered an injured member of the executive committee for the Unova Choir Tournament. When the man revealed his Karrablast was stolen by Team Plasma, Hugh, Blake, Whitley, and Roxie headed to the Castelia Sewers to find the culprits. Shortly after they arrived, Hugh and the others encountered a group of Plasma Grunts. Hugh tried attacking, but was forced to run away when the Grunts sent their Muk to swarm everyone. After getting separated from the others, Hugh was approached by a Croagunk owned by Looker, who used a Xtransceiver to talk to Hugh. Croagunk's hat kept the Xtransceiver hidden, leading to Hugh assuming that Croagunk was the one talking. Looker tried asking Hugh what his connection to Team Plasma was, but Hugh refused to answer and ran off.

In Therian Forme III, Hugh left the sewers and returned to Prime Pier, where his class was gathered. He revealed to everyone that Team Plasma returned and a member of their class is one of them, presenting the pendant as proof. Hugh decided to leave the school to fight Team Plasma, but was stopped by Whitley. Finding her behavior suspicious, the class suspected Whitley, but were affected by her Foongy's spores. After the others fell asleep, Hugh realized Whitley was the Team Plasma member he was searching for. Hugh offered to return the pendant if Whitley helped retrieve Purrloin, but before they could do anything, a flying ship known as the Plasma Frigate appeared. The ship used a cannon to freeze several buildings and civilians in an instant. Hugh managed to push Whitley and himself out of the way in time, but ended up falling unconscious.

In Abyssal Ruins, Hugh awakened at the Trainers' School. He was taken there by Rood of the Seven Sages, who revealed that Purrloin was safe in the care of someone else. Rood asked Hugh to give him the memory card, which contained data on a device capable of counteracting the Colress Machine, a tool that could control Pokémon. When a group of Plasma Grunts burst in the room to stop them, Hugh stayed behind to keep them busy and told Rood to find the memory card in his room. Once Rood succeeded, he and Hugh fled to another location run by good Team Plasma members. With the memory card, they built the device, which eventually successfully stopped the Colress Machine.

In The Final Battle: Crushed Ambition, Hugh encountered Whitley again while infiltrating the Plasma Frigate. He apologized for his hostility towards her at Castelia, explaining that Rood told him everything about the internal situation within Team Plasma. He explained that he was looking for N, as he was told that his sister's Purrloin was in his care. Once N was freed from captivity, he agreed to return Purrloin, but only after Ghetsis was defeated. As they headed to where Ghetsis was, Hugh encountered the Grunts that stole Purrloin. While Whitley and N went ahead, Hugh stayed behind to get his revenge and was assisted by Foongy. Though the Grunts were easily defeated, one refused to give up and tried to continue the battle by sending out a liberated Snivy. When the Snivy refused to fight Hugh, having chosen to side with him instead, the Grunts immediately surrendered. A sudden explosion soon tore the Plasma Frigate apart from the inside, after which Hugh went to meet with the others. After everyone fled to safe ground and regrouped, the Plasma Frigate crashed into the abandoned N's Castle, setting it ablaze and putting the liberated Pokémon Team Plasma left behind in danger. Blake decided the best option to stop the fire was to combine the might of all three stages of the Unova first partner Pokémon. Teaming up with the Snivy he befriended, Hugh, Blake, Whitley, Black, White, Cheren, Bianca, Benga, and Cedric Juniper unleashed a triple, Grass, Fire, and Water Pledge combination attack, successfully dousing the flames. Afterward, Hugh and his sister were taken into N's Castle, where they were reunited with Purrloin.

In Epilogue: Graduation Ceremony, Hugh was forcibly taken to the Trainers' School, where his classmates apologized for treating him poorly and begged him to start attending class again. Embarrassed, Hugh agreed to come back to school and apologized for his earlier behavior as well. Later, Hugh attended the Trainers' School graduation ceremony with his classmates.

Pokémon

On hand
 

 
Trapinch → Vibrava
Vibrava is Hugh's first known Pokémon. As a Trapinch, it was used to battle Leo's Deino at the Aspertia City Trainers' School. It won, but it was then defeated by Blake's Dewott afterwards. Sometime before going to Pokéstar Studios, Trapinch evolved into a Vibrava.

Vibrava's known moves are Sonic Boom, Dragon Breath, and Sandstorm.

Debut The Transfer Student
 
Pidove
Pidove is Hugh's second known Pokémon. It was given to Hugh by his grandfather, along with a Tynamo and a Purrloin. It was first used to battle a group of Team Plasma Grunts at the Aspertia Trainers' School. It used Bestow to give a Grunt's Klang a Choice Band, preventing it from using any move other than Protect.

Pidove's only known move is Bestow and its Ability is Super Luck.

Debut Unforgettable Memories
 

 
Tynamo → Eelektrik → Eelektross
Eelektross is Hugh's third known Pokémon. It was given to to Hugh as a Tynamo by his grandfather, along with a Pidove and a Purrloin. Sometime prior to Abyssal Ruins, it evolved into an Eelektross. It was used to battle a group of Team Plasma Grunts that came to attack Rood.

Eelektross's only known move is Crush Claw and its Ability is Levitate.

Debut Unforgettable Memories
Given away
 
Purrloin
Purrloin is a Pokémon Hugh got for his sister's birthday. Although it wouldn't listen to him, the Purrloin listened to his sister perfectly. Later, it was stolen by Team Plasma, fueling Hugh's hatred for the group.

Purrloin's only known move is Scratch.

Debut Unforgettable Memories
Temporary
 
Jigglypuff
This Jigglypuff was partnered with Hugh during the Autumn Choir Tournament. Together, they performed in Team Jigglypuff and faced off against other students. In the finals, Team Jigglypuff faced off against Team Sawsbuck, but eventually came out on top.

Jigglypuff's known moves are Sing and Hyper Voice.

Debut Choir Tournament
 
Foongy
Main article: Foongy

Foongy (Japanese: ダケちゃん Dake-chan) is a Pokémon belonging to Whitley. During their raid on the Plasma Frigate, Foongy decided to stay behind and help Hugh fight a pair of Plasma Grunts.

Debut A Difficult Parting
 
Snivy
Snivy was a Pokémon liberated by Team Plasma. It was sent to battle Hugh on the Plasma Frigate, but it refused to fight and instead sided with him.

Snivy's only known move is Grass Pledge.

Debut The Final Battle: Crushed Ambition

In the TCG

 
Hugh
Main article: Hugh (Boundaries Crossed 130)

Hugh was introduced as a Supporter card in the Pokémon Trading Card Game during the English Black & White Series (the Japanese BW Era). First released in the Japanese Freeze Bolt expansion, it was later released as a BW-P Promotional card and debuted in English in the Boundaries Crossed expansion, with all three prints featuring an illustration based on the Yusuke Ohmura artwork of the character. Hugh causes both players to draw or discard cards until they each have five cards in their hands.

Trivia

  • During the Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 playthrough on the April 15, 2012 episode of Pokémon Smash!, they chose the name "Hihihiroshi" (Japanese: ひひひろし) for Hugh. The name was initially a backstage in-joke originating from when the Smash! cast was passing time by practicing singing Can You Name All the Pokémon? BW.[2] Following the Japanese naming conventions of the Klink evolutionary family, it was determined that Hihihiroshi was the final evolved form of Hiroshi Yamamoto.
  • In Challenge Mode, it is possible for his team to level down, with his first partner Pokémon, elemental monkey, and Unfezant being level 45, 43, and 43 respectively when battled in Undella Town, but all three being two levels lower when battling alongside the player in Lacunosa Town.
  • Some Team Plasma Grunts note that Hugh's hairstyle resembles a Qwilfish.
  • Hugh is the only nameable rival with a name already entered when the player is prompted to name him.
  • Hugh is the first rival who battles the player more than once with no other Pokémon but their first partner Pokémon.
  • Hugh is the only nameable player or rival character who is not a Pokédex holder nor has a game version name in the Pokémon Adventures manga.

Names

Language Name Origin
Japanese ヒュウ Hyū From hue
English, Vietnamese Hugh From his Japanese name and a homophone of hue
German Matisse From matiz (Spanish for hue) and possibly a reference to French artist Henri Matisse
Spanish Matís From matiz (hue)
French Matis From matís (Catalan for hue) and possibly a reference to French artist Henri Matisse
Italian Toni From toni (tones) or tonalità (hue)
Korean 휴이 Hyu-i From hue
Chinese (Mandarin) 阿修 Ā Xiū* Transcription of his Japanese name
Xiū*
Chinese (Cantonese) 阿修 A Sāu* Mandarin-based transcription of his Japanese name
Sāu*
Russian Хью Kh'yu Transcription of his English name


References



Rival characters
Core series BlueSilverBrendan/MayWallyBarryCherenBiancaNHugh
Calem/SerenaShaunaTiernoTrevorHauGladionTrace
HopBedeMarnieKlaraAveryNemonaCarmineKieran
Spin-off games RonaldPauloLear


Non-player characters in the core series games
Unova Professor JuniperMom (BW)Mom (B2W2)CherenBiancaBianca's fatherHughHugh's sisterCedric JuniperFennelAmanita
CilanChiliCressLenoraHawesLoblollyCharlesIrisDraydenAlderBengaCurtisYancyBrycenSabrinaPop Roxie
HilbertHildaNateRosaIngoEmmetCynthiaLookerNColressMorimotoNishinoPokémon Fan Club Chairman
CyranoBriarCarmineKieranKoraidonMiraidonGeetaRikaClavellPerrinSnacksworthSynclaire
Team PlasmaClydeGym Leaders • Elite Four (Unova · BB) • PWT participantsName RaterDay-Care CoupleJudgeMagikarp salesmanSpecial CoachesGuidance counselors


  This game character article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games.