The Greatest Pokemon Series Nobody Talks About...

Comments · 995

• TE

  @TeamRocketRift · 5 months ago

  The Diamond & Pearl era hit different. Paul wasn't just a rival; he was a psychological hurdle. Watching him push Chimchar to the brink only for Ash to heal that trauma and turn it into Blaze-fueled power is still the peak of Pokémon storytelling. 15 years later and this rivalry still hasn't been topped.

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• TU

  @turborun2345 · 5 months ago

  Before kalos this was the league I always feel like ash should’ve won

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• YO

  @youjianchong6974 · 4 months ago

  DP series really show how a trainer training style effect their pokemon. Paul failed chimchar but Ash succeed; Ash failed Tortera but Paul succeed at his Tortera.

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• AZ

  @azaesal6767 · 4 months ago

  people forget diamond & pearl sold 3x as much as plat + the dp anime was so popular in japan piplup was seen as a legitimate mascot per se

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• NE

  @neosoul9663 · 4 months ago (edited)

  DP was the only time where pokemon was written like an actual sports anime and not just another kids anime like doraemon or shin chan. The final clash between Infernape and Electivire was even a reference to ashita no joe the animated boxing masterpiece which inspired the rocky movies

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• RO

  @Rosh2k10 · 4 months ago

  A lot of people say that the XY series was where Ash feels more like a teenager, but to me, I think the Diamond and Pearl series was when he felt more teenage like!

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• ME

  @megazard5249 · 4 months ago

  The first series where we actually see Ash training his pokes with any regularity. <br>If he has won this league, it actually would have felt deserved!

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• MY

  @MyCarnageExtreme · 4 months ago

  I once saw a comment that perfectly defines this Era of Pokemon for me:<br><br>&quot;Dawn and Brock are amazing characters on their own, then you put Ash by their side, and you have perfection.&quot;<br><br>That&apos;s literally how I felt while watching it. The group has amazing chemistry and a lot of the characters have motion. There&apos;s a story going on, set-ups, progression, payoffs. It&apos;s not only a good Pokemon story, it&apos;s a good story.

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• LE

  @LegendaryCaptain · 4 months ago

  What makes Paul so amazing is multiple reasons<br>1. Lots of screentime from start to finish: most ash rivals either appear too late (Morrison and to a certain extent sawyer) don&apos;t battle as much as they should (Gary and Gladion) etc but Paul not only appears from the get go but he constantly battles ash too.<br>2. His Pokemon: his electivire in particular is a perfect ace for him and I love how not only do ash and paul have a rivalry but infernape and electivire do as well. Not to mention his other Pokemon are memorable too like how busted his drapion and ursaring were and how torterra was secretly helpful<br>3. His interactions with other characters: paul ACTUALLY feels a part of the world as you said. Brock somewhat understands him, dawn tries to reason with him to no avail, Zoey HATES him, Barry fanboys over him, team rocket roots for infernape to take him down, Brandon straight up gives the guy a reality check etc<br>4. His development: Paul is such a well written character at first he&apos;s an absolute asshole but the hearthome tournament he actually becomes MORE of a jerk. Then he gets humbled by Brandon and less condescending but still cold. Then when ash beats him he actually THANKS electivire and respects ash. And I&apos;m SO happy that development continued into journeys

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• CH

  @Cheroace · 4 months ago

  Ash bringing Heracross to counter Tobias&apos;s Darkrai not just with super effective moves but SLEEP TALK was pure genius. He may not have done much but I respect the strategy.

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• PO

  @popstarchamp · 4 months ago

  I liked how Dawn and Ash were able to learn from each other and improve their own ways of battling despite Contests and Gym Battles being somewhat different. And I also loved the Counter shield. Amongst actual clever game related strategies that was a cool way of taking advantage of the anime medium having moves bring a utility outside of straight forward attacking

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• WO

  @Wobbuffet64 · 4 months ago

  It can&apos;t be understated how much having Ash and Dawn&apos;s rivals form their own rivalries helped the series feel more &quot;real.&quot; Like having Zoey lose to Nando, forcing her to reconsider how she views people who do gym battles and contests, or highlighting Paul&apos;s growth with him respecting Barry after their match. It echoes Cynthia&apos;s point that when one life meets another life something will be born.

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