The eternal 10-year-old with the unshakeable dedication to becoming the very best like no one ever was is due to take his final bow. Ash Ketchum has been with fans of Pokemon since just about the very beginning and now it’s finally time to say goodbye after more than a quarter of a century.
All things must pass, of course, even the things that Pokemon fans love the most. Even so, that doesn’t mean that the wonder of Ash’s nearly 1,300-episode journey must be forgotten. There are far too many funny, frightening, exciting, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and triumphant Ash Ketchum moments for that to ever happen.
8 Beginning His Journey
It’s safe to say that nobody on planet earth knew that it would be over two and a half decades after Ash first set off on his very first Pokemon journey that his quest would come to a close. His story, like all great myths, began humbly and with quite a few things going wrong in the process.
Fans won’t soon forget the first time he was zapped by Pikachu, or when he and his unlikely starter had each other’s backs while facing an army of Spearow in a brutal lightning storm. The journey's beginning had everything the Pokemon anime would come to be known for: plenty of humor, awesome action, and a tearjerker of an ending.
7 Spotting His First Legendary
There are not one but two all-time great Ash moments in the very first episode of Pokemon. After Pikachu saves him from the pack of Spearows and the storm clouds clear, Ash sees a mystical glowing bird gliding through a newly formed rainbow.
As awestruck as Ash was by the mysterious creature’s shining beauty, fans were even more awestruck, as that Pokemon was Ho-Oh, and it would be more than two whole years before they would be able to enter Johto and catch one for themselves in Pokemon Gold. This franchise’s creators have always known how to create a sense of wonder about the world of Pokemon, but this moment was by far the most wondrous to date.
6 Battling Through A Blizzard
There may not be a more iconic image in the history of the Pokemon anime than the one of Ash being saved from freezing to death by his Poke companions in the quasi-Christmas episode, “Snow Way Out!” However, that one image doesn’t tell the whole story.
Before finding his way to the ice cave where his Charmander, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Pikachu, and Pidgeotto would see him through the blizzard with a legendary group hug, Ash fought his way through the treacherous ice and snow to save Pikachu from falling off a cliff. The heartwarming camaraderie on display that day will echo throughout eternity.
5 Setting Butterfree Free
The word “free” is right there in his name, and yet nothing could prepare fans for the moment when Ash’s Butterfree bid goodbye to his beloved trainer in pursuit of a monogamous life among his own species.
While this episode revolves mostly around Ash’s Butterfree’s attempts to free his friends and win the love of the beautiful pink Butterfree, it’s Ash himself who steals the show in the very end by doing what anyone must do when they truly love something. Amazingly, he wouldn’t be reunited with his adorable winged friend for another 25 years.
4 Victory in the Orange League
It may have been filler intended to buy some time until the official release of Pokemon Gold & Silver, but Ash’s journey to his first championship on the Orange Islands brought fans some of the best battles in the show’s history. His final battle against Supreme Gym Leader Drake in particular was an absolute barn burner.
The real reason why this was such a big moment for Ash, though, is because it would be well over twenty whole years before he won another championship. If not for this moment, the heartbreaking defeat after heartbreaking defeat that he would face in subsequent Pokemon Leagues may have been too much for fans to handle.
3 Beating Gary Oak
Any true Ash Ketchum fan was a tremendous Gary Oak hater for all the many episodes in which Ash could never seem to get a one-up on his obnoxious but skilled rival. Turns out nepotism only goes so far in the world of Pokemon, though, as Professor Oak’s reviled nephew would finally be taken down by Ash and his Charizard in round one of the Johto League tournament.
Ash is absolutely dumbstruck when Charizard comes out on top in an admittedly unlikely type matchup against Gary’s Blastoise. Gary walks off with an indignant shrug at first but ultimately comes to respect the future world champion and the two actually become friends.
2 Battle Frontier King
The Battle Frontier has been a beloved aspect of every game it’s been included in so far, which is probably why it has figured fairly prominently in the Pokemon anime. It's also notable for being the spot where the show’s creators finally threw fans another bone and let Ash taste his biggest victory since the Orange League.
The final season of the Ruby & Sapphire installations in the Pokemon anime is dedicated purely to Ash’s quest to retrieve all of the Frontier Symbols and become the Master of the Battle Frontier. It all comes down to his beloved Pikachu squaring off against the Legendary Pokemon Regice, which doubles as one of Pikachu’s greatest moments, too. It all ends in a hard-earned victory for the boy and his electric mouse which is easily one of the high water marks of their respective careers.
1 Finally, A True Pokemon Champion
The Orange League was not part of the video game canon. The Battle Frontier is only a side quest in the video game canon. But the Manalo Conference? That’s the real deal.
It took Ash Ketchum a generation to achieve it, but he finally became a champion in Black & White’s Alola League, and he did it with some of the coolest Pokemon battles in the show’s history. Watching him finally lift that trophy makes for one of the most rewatchable episodes in series history and Ash's very best moment in the Pokemon anime.