If Leon vs. Alain, or the Tournament in the anime is not your cup of tea, why not read another version of the Masters 8?
The story continues from Pokemon Journeys ep 109, with a brand new bracket from the anime. Ash has finally entered the Masters 8...
I know I have to write this one first before I publish my next chapter...
On December 16, 2022, after the Pokemon Journeys final episode, the Pokemon YouTube Channel made a special announcement video about the future of the Pokemon anime, and the ending of Ash Ketchum's journey with Pikachu (because Goh used Destiny Bond on Ash so they retired together...).
With another preview on the anipoke Twitter account about the next special episode on December 23, 2022. Here's a poster of it. Ash is wearing different clothes than Journeys, so it's a different design (hopefully not an alternate universe Ash).
Ups! Ten obraz nie jest zgodny z naszymi wytycznymi. Aby kontynuować, spróbuj go usunąć lub użyć innego.
The internet absolutely exploded when the news was revealed, just like the day when Ash Ketchum has finally been crowned the World Champion on 11 November 2022. It's such a fun thing that many Poketubers and Pokemon fans were predicting Ash's Paldea team, now they aged like milk...
The new series will start next year in April, much like 25 years ago on 1 April 1997, the first episode of the Pokemon Anime aired. It will feature Rico and Roy in the Paldea region. Some speculate Rico has blue eyes and a hairclip in the shape of Ash's Original Series hat, so she has to be Ash and Serena's daughter. I can only say:
Don't think too much, and you won't be disappointed.
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My thoughts:
Contrary to most others, I am happy that Ash's journey has finally ended after 25+ years.
Back in the "My View on Journeys and How I'll Fix It" chapter in my story, I successfully predicted that Ash will win against Leon, and I preferred the approach that Ash will retire from the series. If he has to appear, he would be a side character (hopefully as an adult). Reason being that there is limited to no room for Ash to grow. What's there left for him after being the World Champion? It's a good way to retire him after he became the World Champion, much like how Nico Rosberg retired after getting the F1 World Champion Title once.
Many people never would have expected that Ash would leave, because he and Pikachu are the mascots of Pokemon, so if they left, they will stop watching the anime for good and the Pokemon Company will go into a downfall. They are the mascots, that's true! But it doesn't mean that their journey couldn't end. I have talked about a way where Ash and his journey could continue in that chapter, and that is to put Ash in the games and let him continue his legacy and journey there. We have seen Ash in Pokemon Masters EX, and that's such a nice addition to the game in my opinion, and the feedback was generally positive.
The fact that they are retiring Ash now also creates a marketing impact for the company. People will start to look into the Pokemon games, cards, and merchandise again, because even the news has broadcast his leave lol. The name Ash is still milking money for TPC. I would say I am generally positive and upbeat seeing his journey draws to a close, and I am glad to be the minority.
