Part 4 of our “Did Ash Actually Earn This?” series! We seek to ask the following questions:
- How many Gym Leaders did Ash fight?
- How many Elite Four members did Ash fight?
- How many awards did Ash fairly earn?
Seasons 10-13 cover the Sinnoh Region. Ash reunites with Brock, a new deuteragonist joins them, and they meet the fucking worst rival in the series.
You know the rules and so do I: Ash must defeat the Gym Leader, Elite Four member, or Champion, either by knocking out all the opposing Pokémon, or if the opponent forfeits.
I’m counting battles that happened in any season (some exceptions apply).
| Gym Leader / Badge Given | How did the battle finish? | Ash earned the badge because… |
|---|---|---|
| Roark / Coal | Ash’s Turtwig knocks out Roark’s Rampardos | Ash defeated Roark fairly |
| Gardenia / Forest | Ash’s Aipom knocks out Gardenia’s Roserade | Ash defeated Gardenia fairly |
| Maylene / Cobble | Ash’s Buizel and Maylene’s Lucario knock each other out at the same time | Maylene was grateful to Ash for being such a challenge |
| Crasher Wake / Fen | Ash’s Buizel knocks out Crasher’s Floatzel | Ash defeated Crasher Wake fairly |
| Fantina / Relic | Ash’s Chimchar knocks out Fantina’s Drifblim | Ash defeated Fantina fairly |
| Byron / Mine | Ash’s Gliscor knocks out Byron’s Bastiodon | Ash defeated Byron fairly |
| Candice / Icicle | Ash’s Chimchar knocks out Candice’s Abomasnow | Ash defeated Candice fairly |
| Volkner / Beacon | Ash’s Infernape knocks out Volkner’s Luxray | Ash defeated Volkner fairly |
Can Ash’s win against Maylene be considered a fair one? Honestly, no. After losing to Paul, Maylene was feeling pretty down about herself. But, defeating Dawn in an unofficial battle made her feel better, and she was willing to have a proper Gym battle against Ash. Both teams fought their hardest, but the final Pokémon for each side was knocked out at the same time. The Gym’s referee then declares a rule that wasn’t brought up in any previous season, and has never come up again: In the event of a tie, it’s the Gym Leader’s decision to confer a badge. Maylene decides to give Ash the Cobble Badge, explaining that she never had a battle that fierce before (even against shithead Paul), and is grateful for the experience.
In the mainline games, there are no ties. The player usually loses in the event of a double knock-out. There are some instances where the player will win, but it depends on what moves and Abilities are used, as well as the Pokémon’s overall speed. For example, if the player KOs the opponent with a move that causes recoil damage, like Double-Edge, the player wins.
In the last few minutes of the fight, Maylene’s Lucario uses the move Force Palm. At the same time, Ash’s Buizel uses a combination of Aqua Jet and Water Pulse. None of the moves used cause recoil damage or passive damage over time. So, going by the incredibly specific criteria, this should have been considered a loss for Ash.
The Sinnoh League in the anime is called the Lily of the Valley Conference (what a mouthful). Once again, it’s a single-elimination tournament. Ash reaches the semi-finals before being eliminated. That’s nothing to sneeze at, especially since the other canon League members were competing. But, how many of them did Ash battle?
| League Member | Did Ash defeat this person? |
|---|---|
| Aaron | Did not battle him |
| Bertha | No |
| Flint | No |
| Lucian | Did not battle him |
| Cynthia | Yes (several seasons later) |
In a surprising turn, Ash actually meets all the canon Sinnoh League members. Also, surprising is how this League actually acknowledges the existence of its Elite Four and Champion. Not surprising, though, is that Ash doesn’t battle all the members. While defeating Cynthia and her absolute BEAST of a Garchomp is a feat in itself, one doesn’t become Champion by only defeating one member of the League.
Ash won 7 of the 8 badges fairly, which unfortunately does not qualify him for the Sinnoh League. His pattern of not getting into a canon Hall of Fame continues, with him only defeating one member of the League. The Unova region is next, with more challenges, more friends, and a less awful rival.
Interesting Times with CaptainHoneydew 
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