Ash and Pikachu retire from Pokémon after 25 years to make way for new heroes

He’s the very best like no one ever was… so what now? (pic: The Pokémon Company)

The next season of the Pokémon anime is based on the Scarlet & Violet games and the first to not star Ash and Pikachu in the lead roles.

What a monumental year for Pokémon 2022 has been. Aside from it seeing not one but two mainline game releases in Pokémon Legends: Arceus and Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, the tie-in anime series saw its protagonist Ash Ketchum finally cement himself as a pokémon master and become the strongest trainer in the world.

This was a significant moment for the series and its fans. So, with Ash achieving the dream he’s had since the first episode from 1997, there were questions about where his story could go next.

Despite assumptions he would remain the star of the series, The Pokémon Company has made the shocking announcement that Ash and his partner Pikachu are effectively being retired after 25 years.

The current season, titled Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series, will conclude with a series of episodes to send off Ash and Pikachu and celebrate their past adventures.

‘The forthcoming special episodes not only celebrate Ash’s monumental achievement, but they also act as an expression of gratitude from Pokémon to all the fans who have joined him and his partner pokémon Pikachu along the way,’ reads a statement from The Pokémon Company.

Said episodes will also feature plenty of returning characters to elicit as much nostalgia out of fans as possible, with Ash’s original travelling companions Misty and Brock already confirmed.

However, it doesn’t sound like this will be the last fans will see of Ash, as The Pokémon Company adds that the episodes will ‘provide a glimpse at what the future may hold for the world’s strongest trainer in this final chapter for Ash and his Pikachu.’

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We wouldn’t be surprised if there are plans for him to make a cameo role in the next season, which is, as expected, to feature pokémon from the new Paldea region introduced in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet.

The new season is scheduled to air in 2023 and will feature two new protagonists named Liko and Roy (at least in Japan, the names’ll probably change for the English dub) as they embark on their own storylines.

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