It has finally happened - something many people around the globe have been waiting for for a long time. Ash Ketchum has won the Pokémon World Championship! The eternally-ten year old has been trying to achieve this dream for over 25 years now, and finally on November 11th, 2022 he reached his goal.Ash set off on his epic quest in 1997 alongside his iconic partner and best friend, Pikachu. The two have traveled all over the Pokémon world since then, typically spending each season of the anime in a new region with new friends, and new Pokémon. Ash, Pikachu, and a huge cast of other Pokémon have been battling one another for over two decades to quality for the Pokémon League and win gym badges.Each season, while Ash would overcome many challenges and obstacles, he was never the grand champion. And at over 1,200 episodes, it has been quite the journey. The current airing Pokémon series, Pokémon Ultimate Journeys, has not been like previous seasons. Rather than focus on only one region, Ash has been traveling all over the world battling. That has set him up for this ultimate victory at long last.
The final battle took place over four episodes and was against the former World Champion, Leon. It also included comebacks by some of the most popular human characters over the series, including Brock and Misty from the original Pokémon series. In the end, Ash and Pikachu were victorious, and he was declared the World Champion.
Ash's victory has been celebrated by people all over the world, but one of the biggest celebrations happened in Tokyo on Friday night. All the big screen TVs that surround the iconic Shibuya Scramble crossing were dedicated to Ash's (called Satoshi in Japan) victory. It was just like a real sports event's epic conclusion, and people gathered in mass to celebrate his achievement.
Around the world, global news sites also reported Ash's accomplishments. Many people grew up with Pokémon, and Ash and Pikachu hold a special place in their hearts even if they have not been following his progress over the years. Even Ash's English voice actress, Sarah Natochenny, tweeted her support of the character, and the official Pokémon Twitter's page posted a celebration tweet that has well over 400,000 likes at the time of writing.
The question now on everyone's minds is what the next series of Pokémon will be about. Will it still follow Ash and Pikachu on their journey, even though they accomplished their goal? Will it change its tone to tell the story of what World Champions do next? Or will it change characters and focus on someone new? Only time will tell, but considering the Pokémon anime airs regularly, we should know sooner rather than later.
Source: BBC