Ash Ketchum: Difference between revisions

====[[New series]]====

Sometime after his return to Kanto, Ash joined Professor Oak in attending the opening of the new [[Sakuragi Institute]] in [[Vermilion City]]. During the opening ceremony, the head of the institute, [[Professor Sakuragi]], informed the attendees that a rare Pokémon would be appearing at the local port shortly. Ash eagerly rushed over there and found out the rare Pokémon was a Lugia. During this encounter, he also met a boy named {{an|Go}}, and the two shared a ride with Lugia throughout Kanto. When they later returned to the Sakuragi Institute, Professor Sakuragi was amazed by the information they had gathered about Lugia, and he asked them to become his [[Professors' aides|research assistants]]. They accepted the offer and were provided with their own room to stay in. Delia also left Mimey at the institute to take care of Ash while he stayed there.

===Character===

Ash is an only child who lived with his mother, {{Delia}}, until he left for his [[Pokémon journey]] at the age of ten. His main goal in life, as described in [[EP001|the first episode]], is to be the world's greatest [[Pokémon Master]]. One particular characteristic about Ash that has not changed throughout the series, aside from his determination and his passion for raising and training Pokémon, is that he is incredibly selfless. He will often go to extraordinary lengths to earn a Pokémon's trust and respect and to better understand a Pokémon that he sees as troubled. He is also very fair-minded and trusting, a true testament to his good-natured character.

In the beginning, Ash had a bit of an inferiority complex, as well as some form of personal pride, most likely stemming from his [[rival]]ry with {{Gary}}. As a result, he had some bad habits, such as shamelessly boasting of his skill if he were ever on a winning streak, and becoming angered easily if he were personally insulted, as seen in ''[[EP008|The Path to the Pokémon League]]''. Ash used to complain about perfectly legal things, like [[Giselle]]'s {{p|Cubone}} using a bone in ''[[EP009|The School of Hard Knocks]]'', or [[Blaine]]'s use of the lava in ''[[EP059|Volcanic Panic]]''. He even locked himself up in his room and sulked after losing to [[Ritchie]], although this anger was not entirely unfounded as the loss came as a result of both his Charizard's disobedience and Team Rocket wearing out his other Pokémon before the match began. He overcame his disappointment after seeing and listening to how Ritchie took his loss as a way to better himself as a Trainer in ''[[EP080|Friends to the End]]''. Fortunately, during his journey, Ash has gotten over this particular character trait and is now more accepting of criticism of his skill, though he still gets upset if his Pokémon are insulted or degraded.  

Perhaps one of Ash's greatest rivalries was against [[Paul]] during his time in the [[Sinnoh]] region. On the contrary of Ash, who strongly believed in the [[Friendship|bond between Trainer and Pokémon]], Paul's only concern was with a Pokémon's strength, believing that bonding only caused them to become spoiled and unmotivated. Due to this, aside from winning the [[Sinnoh League]], Ash's biggest goal during his Sinnoh travels was to ultimately change Paul's mindset and have the latter finally acknowledge him as a Trainer worth of his attention. After a long and exhausting journey, he finally managed to accomplish this after defeating Paul at the [[Lily of the Valley Conference]], after which Paul finally recognized Ash as his rival and equal.

Ash has changed a great deal throughout the series, particularly in regards to his skill at [[Pokémon training]], but his earnestness, rashness, and determination have remained. Never straying from his goal, he has remained loyal to his friends, family, and supporters, but most of all his Pokémon. Ash became a great Trainer by learning to find and use the inner strength of each of his Pokémon by bonding with them. For example, when he received a banner filled with prints from his Pokémon in ''[[AG187|The Unbeatable Lightness of Seeing!]]'', he knew which Pokémon placed specific prints, showing his close bond with them. He also learns where their hidden abilities lie, as well as resorting to unorthodox strategies when fighting particularly challenging opponents. For example, he uses his Pikachu's speed to outmaneuver larger foes and attack. In another instance, his {{AP|Charizard}} defeated [[Gary's Blastoise]] by causing the field to overheat before mounting a close-quarters attack while Blastoise was blinded by the steam. He also prefers to train a Pokémon to be the best it can without forcing it to [[Evolution|evolve]], as evidenced by his treatment of {{AP|Gligar}} in ''[[DP085|Fighting Fear With Fear!]]''. He is happy when his Pokémon evolve but lets them choose whether or not they want to evolve instead of forcing them.

Physically, Ash is in very good shape, especially for someone 10 years of age. He has constantly been shown to have a lot of stamina, walking miles upon miles through all kinds of environments, while journeying between towns on his journey. He also has huge endurance, as seen when he took powerful attacks from various Pokémon head-on and then recovering quite quickly. Furthermore, Ash has demonstrated himself to be a bit acrobatic, occasionally being able to keep up with {{an|Iris}}, who virtually grew up swinging and jumping through treetops. Ash has occasionally displayed great reflexes, being able to dodge attacks or catch falling objects out of the blue, and even being able to save himself, or others, in the last second during perilous situations. What's more, Ash has exhibited tremendous will power, as seen when he took attacks for long periods and keeps advancing, which also drives his "never give up" attitude when it comes to Pokémon battles. He is also strong, being capable of picking up heavy Pokémon such as Larvitar and Hippopotas.

Ash has traversed much of the [[Pokémon world]] and has thus far participated in various [[Pokémon League Conference]]s, but he is still learning new things about Pokémon all the time. He has also gained a close connection with many {{pkmn2|Legendary}} and [[Mythical Pokémon]], such as the ones who played major roles in the {{pkmn|movies}}. In the English dub [[M02|second movie]], he was revealed to be "The Chosen One" - the one who would bring balance back to the world when it was disrupted.

Although viewed as a normal [[human]], Ash does have some special abilities, as he is said to have the same [[Aura]] as [[Sir Aaron]], a legendary hero, and is theoretically able to manipulate it in much the same way. Therefore, he made a connection with Sir Aaron's {{OBP|Lucario|M08}}. However, he has not received any training in this field, opting to continue his Pokémon journey instead. He has also been likened to an ancient Aura guardian in ''[[DP056|The Keystone Pops!]]'', who also had a partner {{p|Pikachu}}. Later, in ''[[DP071|Pokémon Ranger and the Kidnapped Riolu! Part 1]]'' and ''[[DP072|Part 2]]'', Ash uses Aura again to locate a lost {{p|Riolu}} and read Riolu's mind as well. This time, however, he merely senses the Aura, rather than manipulating it. Ash also has the unique ability to use [[Bond Phenomenon]].