Being a large franchise with loads of adaptations and characters who can be interpreted in various ways by various people, Pokémon adaptations are prone to changing character's personalities.
Pokémon: The Series
- The English dub changed several characters personalities in early seasons. For example, Gary was made into more of a Jerkass (making him more similar to his game counterpart, Blue) while Misty's cocky tendencies (in Japan she frequently referred to herself as the "most beautiful girl in the world") were toned down.
- Elesa goes from The Stoic in the games to a Genki Girl in the anime, though the games would later characterize her in a similar way.
- Lt. Surge and Clay go from Eagleland beautiful to boorish.
- Iris goes from cherishing her Genki Girl tendencies and being oblivious to social views regarding her status to a Bratty Half-Pint Know-Nothing Know-It-All (at least outside the topic on Unovan Dragon-types) to admonishing others for being "childish" in order to cover for her own insecurities. She grows out of this by the end of the Black/White series and becomes more like her game counterpart.
- Cilan goes from a Shrinking Violet in the games to a Large Ham.
- Skyla goes from a Nice Girl to an Arrogant Kung-Fu Girl with a side of Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
- Brock doesn't have much of a known personality, but there are no signs of him being a pervert who coos over every mature-enough girl he meets or of him being a Team Mom.
- Falkner goes from an honorable Nice Guy in the games to a narrow-minded, hypocritical Jerkass before Ash defeats him.
- Erika is very much an Ojou in all of her incarnations, but her anime version seems more casual, and she lacks her Sleepy Head traits from the games. She also has more of a temper. Her portrayal in Pokémon: I Choose You! is a Truer to the Text portrayal of her game characterization, which was carried over to the character's reappearance in Pokémon Journeys.
- Misty doesn't have much dialogue in the games but she seems mild-mannered and nice. Most adaptations use the game's interpretation, but the anime makes her one of the most iconic tsundere characters in anime. Pokémon Gold and Silver made her a bit more angry than in Red and Blue, but she's still not up to par with her anime counterpart.
- Sabrina in the games is a pacifistic Reluctant Warrior and a Creepy Good person who is not remotely malicious. In the anime she has an evil Split Personality, but her "true" self at the end of her arc seems more in-line with her game self.
- Lucy goes from the Narcissist to a friendly sugar and ice Nice Girl and possible love interest to Brock!
- Anabel (the teenage Frontier Brain version) goes from arrogant and somewhat sadistic to a Nice Girl and possible love interest (though not really) to Ash.
- Bianca in the games can be energetic largely by accident or when trying to catch up to someone, and her personality was mild-mannered and deeply insecure. She was also very smart, eventually becoming Professor Juniper's apprentice. Bianca in the anime is a Genki Girl who is incredibly outgoing and overconfident, while also suffering from frequent bouts of Adaptational Dumbass and Adaptational Jerkass.
- In the games (and Pokémon Origins), Mewtwo is a Blood Knight that supposedly has the most savage heart among Pokémon due to his genetic makeup. In its animé appearances, it's not so much savage, but rather mistrustful to those it doesn't know. Though Mewtwo in Pokémon X and Y is found alone in an area where mistreated Pokémon live, implying it is lonely and has been abused, bringing it closer to the anime version.
- Jasmine goes from a Shrinking Violet in the games to a confident badass in the anime, at least when it comes to kicking Team Rocket's ass and battling other Trainers aggresively. She keeps her kind demeanor, though, but clearly doesn't hesitate here when speaking. On a side note, when her Ampharos is sick, she's just as fragile and depressed as in the games, but that only lasts one episode before the personality switch.
- Clair goes from an Arrogant Kung-Fu Girl, Jerkass, Tsundere adult with massive Sore Loser issues whom Lance can't respect to a Reasonable Authority Figure, stoic woman whom Lance does respect without hiccups.
- Egregiously, when she shows up during Decolore Islands, she went from The Stoic to an adult Genki Girl fascinated with dragons.
- Cyrus goes from a very emotionless Perpetual Frowner stoic adult to being just like any other evil villain. He is also far more malicious, trying to create a new world that will exclude everyone but himself rather than one where everyone lacks spirit because he genuinely feels human spirit is the source of all suffering.
- Even some Pokémon get this, on the species level no less—for instance, Spearow in the games is a tiny bird that isn't very good at flying and is as likely to flee from you as it is to fight. The anime opts to portray them as vicious little flying nightmares whose Establishing Character Moment consists of them swarming the protagonist and his partner Pokémon simply because the former threw a rock at one of them. Pokémon Sun and Moon used the anime characterization when a group of Spearow attack a Pokémon at the start. This is likely because the line has Names to Run Away from Really Fast, particularly in the original Japanese in which their names contain "Oni-" (Demon).
- Viola is a huge shutterbug, but she goes from that to rarely taking any photos, though she is depicted as a badass fighter.
- Korrina in the games is a Reasonable Authority Figure in the field of Mega Evolution with The Gadfly flavor mixed in and many rollerskating puns she says. In the anime, she's an oblivious and inexperienced Genki Girl Blood Knight (albeit she gets better after her arc is over) without the rollerskating puns (or her personal rollerskating derby).
- To a lesser extent, her grandfather goes from Reasonable Authority Figure to a funny old man (due to putting too much emphasis on a scroll written with Gym Leader hygiene tips he hid in the giant Mega Lucario statue).
- In the games, Lillie has a Dark and Troubled Past, and as such is very shy and reclusive. In the anime, aside from being afraid to touch Pokémon (while her game counterpart instead just hated seeing Pokémon battle), she's more outgoing. She also has a different Dark and Troubled Past.
- In the games, Lusamine is a cold, controlling, Bitch in Sheep's Clothing. The anime, on the other hand, has her being an overly-affectionate Womanchild, with her daughter Lillie being unafraid to visually and vocally show her exasperation toward her.
- Ash in the Alternate Continuity film Pokémon: I Choose You! has slight differences from his mainstream incarnation. He's more of a "normal" everyday kid instead of a Stock Shōnen Hero. He's bighearted but doesn't go around helping people every other day. Ash has some Adaptational Jerkass and Adaptational Intelligence elements as well, being more brash and easily agitated than his main counterpart while also being slightly less of an Idiot Hero, but at the same time he isn't nearly as bratty and stubborn as his Kanto counterpart. Ash also doesn't display shame towards crying like Ash used to in the Original Series.
- Sophocles in the games is an introverted boy. In the anime he is much more sociable and even a bit cocksure and snarky, leaving his insecure side more a case of an Inferiority Superiority Complex.
- Olivia is much goofier and more affectionate than in the games, her suaveness brought down by being the perennial victim of Slapstick. Also, she wears a jacket due to her original appearance being too provocative to younger audiences.
- Kahili goes from The Stoic Blood Knight Perpetual Frowner to Perpetual Smiler who uses Toucannon as a real cannon.
- Red in the games is implied to be The Stoic and quiet. Ash is Hot-Blooded and talkative, much like Red was in Gen 1 artwork and promotional material. Pokémon Origins and Super Smash Bros. Brawl’s “Subspace Emissary” would also portray Red/Pokémon Trainer as more energetic and brotherly, similar to Ash.
- Unlike her crybaby incarnation from the games, Whitney didn't even shed a tear when she lost to Ash.
- Gary's post-Kanto Character Development is different than Blue's. Gary is a lot more humble and aloof. This is because Gary uses a earlier version of Blue's Gold and Silver personality.
- While Hapu retains her formal speech patterns from the games (as a result of not being used to speaking with trainers her own age), her character is initially much more impulsive; presumably as a result of taking the reins of Island Kahuna from her late grandfather Sofu and Tapu-Fini not willing to recognize her in the role; straddling the line between Adaptational Jerkass and Adaptational Angst Upgrade. This contrasts her portrayal in the games as being more friendly and supportive towards challengers, though by the time of the Poni Island Grand Trial, she does become closer to her characterization in the games.
- In the games, Byron is a very serious and stoic Gym Leader. The anime made him a Giant Ham who constantly declares his love for digging, fossils and his own Pokémon, while large explosions somehow appear behind him. He is also quite the Cloudcuckoolander, to the point it took him a while to notice his fossils were stolen because he was admiring the hole Team Rocket dug. This actually made him quite popular in the fandom.
- In the original Red and Blue games Giovanni was the Big Bad, but something of a Noble Demon who even pulls a Heel–Face Turn and disbands Team Rocket after his defeat (this proves temporary in future games and remakes but he retains sympathetic qualities). In early episodes of the anime, he is a much more malevolent entity, posing as a Bad Boss to the Team Rocket trio and viewing most other beings besides his Persian as merely pawns to his ends. Interestingly, later seasons and Pokémon Origins evolve him a bit closer to his games portrayal, most noticeably his Graceful Loser qualities and a few Pet the Dog moments when the trio actually contribute something meaningful. He remains more sinister than his game counterpart however.
- Both Colress from the Black and White games and Xerosic from X and Y share the dubious honor of going from members of their respective teams who are simply in it For Science! who eventually turn face to straight villains in the anime with absolutely no redeeming qualities.
Pokémon Adventures
- Red is a Hot-Blooded Stock Shōnen Hero, unlike The Stoic that would be canonized in later Pokémon games.
- Blue Oak is cocky, arrogant, flashy, and before Character Development set in in future games, quite a bit of an obnoxious brat, said to have little respect for his Pokémon. Adventures Blue is The Stoic and Wise Beyond His Years, often acting as the Only Sane Man around his peers. He started out cockier and brattier but changed a few chapters in.
- Green/Leaf, being a Heroic Mime like her male counterpart Red is stoic and quiet in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. In Adventures Green is a flirtatious and mischievously cunning Plucky Girl who gives Red plenty of grief. Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! gives Green a similar personality albeit more friendly and much less abrasive. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Pokémon Masters also portrays Green as energetic and happy in contrast to Red.
- Misty uses her original, more even-tempered personality. The Gold and Silver games made her more into a Fiery Redhead to go with her anime portrayal.
- In the games, Erika's main trait is that she's a sleepyhead. Despite her several appearances in the manga, this never appears.
- Some of the normally neutral, or even heroic, Gym Leaders (such as Koga, Lt. Surge, and Sabrina) and Elite Four characters were made into villains and anti-villians; especially in the first and second generation arcs. For example, Lance in the games is a Reasonable Authority Figure who is somewhat hotheaded at worst, but Lance in Adventures is a misanthropic Well-Intentioned Extremist who is basically N if he were a genocidal maniac.
- Silver in the games is an unpleasant, selfish, grade A Jerkass of a kid who hits the protagonist and constantly complains, unashamedly seeing his Pokémon only as a means to an end, having a Never My Fault outlook on everything, always in denial about his losses, making a point of the fact that he doesn't have any friends, and despising the weak with a burning passion, frighteningly obsessed with being a strong trainer and in the original games going as far as to say he wants to exterminate the weak, with his Character Development focusing on him getting rid of all of that and growing up into a better person. Silver in Adventures is a completely different character, lacking all of these qualities, being more of a Stock Shōnen Rival and Ineffectual Loner, having a previous friendship in Green, treating his Pokémon with respect even if he doesn't name them, being much calmer and far more mature, and none of his trademark obsession with strength being present.
- Ruby's exclusively into contests, despite being Norman's child, which would've put him in the protagonist's role in the games. While the player certainly can do contests to their heart's content in-game, they're an optional sidequest instead of the main goal. He's also rather Camp Straight, which is a trait that neither the hero nor rival versions of him have in either the original games or their remakes.
- Sapphire's portrayed as a Tsundere Book Dumb Wild Child who takes on Hoenn's gyms. In the games, when May is Professor Birch's daughter, she is The Rival, but is more of a Nice Girl who focuses on her Pokédex, while the player is the one who puts more effort into the gyms.
- In Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (and Platinum), Barry was a hyperactive, silly kid who tended to blunder a lot, and frankly somewhat of a dunce with a horrible case of Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny! and a touch of Cloud Cuckoo Lander, often charging into situations that may be unsafe without thinking, but possessing a heart of gold. He is dead-set on becoming the Pokémon champion and as strong a trainer as his father, seeing you as his rival. His Adventures counterpart, Pearl, while also hyperactive, is actually the Only Sane Man of the Power Trio between him, his extremely mellow, kind, but somewhat stupid childhood friend Diamond, and the highly intelligent but emotionally stunted Ojou with No Social Skills Platinum Berlitz, is a lot more cautious than Barry, and his goal here is forming a Boke and Tsukkomi Routine duo with Diamond, meeting Platinum and being roped into going on a journey around Sinnoh completely by accident.
- A similar case to Sapphire is the above-mentioned Platinum Berlitz; in-game, the apprentice of Prof. Rowan, in this case the NPC Dawn, would be a friendly, plucky Neutral Female who doesn't do much to affect the plot, but is there as your friend and somewhat of a guide. Platinum on the other hand is an unusually sheltered yet serious and studious girl, and has been promoted to a role closer to the player character, battling and taking on gyms. Meanwhile, Diamond, who would be the player character in the games, has no interest in gym battles or battling in general.
- Looker's Cloud Cuckoolander and Funny Foreigner status is nowhere to be seen in his appearances, with him coming off more as a Butt-Monkey.
- If Pokémon Masters is to be believed, then Hilbert is generally level-headed while Hilda is more Hot-Blooded. With the characters of Black (Hilbert) and White (Hilda), it's the exact opposite, and taken to extremes given that Black is a straight-up Idiot Hero and White a Neutral Female, although they both improve in those regards through Character Development.
- Strangely enough, the highly-praised complex Anti-Villain N was actually simplified, with his sympathetic traits being toned down and becoming generally much creepier. Once he makes his Heel–Face Turn, however, he transitions into being like his original game self.
- Bianca isn't quite as shy as she is in the games, nor is Cheren quite as obsessive with becoming the strongest. But then, it appears that he's become like his game self in the Pokémon League, pursuing strength. However, it turns out to just be a brainwashing from Team Plasma.
- While not as energetic as her anime counterpart, Adventures doesn't portray Elesa as someone who usually poses as an Emotionless Girl like in the games. She's much more cheerful.
- Shauna is a peppy Genki Girl in the games, but does a complete 180 and is a pessimistic Little Miss Snarker in this manga.
- Lusamine and her son both have Adaptational Jerkass traits. Lusamine's emotional abuse is more emphasized and Gladion is implied to dislike women in power as a result of his mother. Gladion is also more aggressive than in the games.
- As a result of Lusamine's Adaptational Jerkass, Lillie is a bit more timid and shell-shocked in the manga.
- Lana is a shy Shrinking Violet, which contrasts heavily with her game personality. Or not. In battle, her more aggressive side comes out.
Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl Adventure!
- The usually Genki Girl Candice is presented as The Stoic.
- Cyrus is much more dramatic and excitable than in the games.
- Hareta is a Hot-Blooded Wild Child whose main goal is to meet Dialga (although he does end up getting badges along the way). The in-game version of Lucas is either a Heroic Mime who's always lived with his mother, or a Nice Guy more focused on his Pokédex.
The Electric Tale of Pikachu:
- In Pokémon: The Series, Sabrina has a very malicious Split Personality that terrorized the entire Saffron City with her psychic powers because she could. The Electric Tale of Pikachu, despite being an adaptation of the anime, averts her villainy and turned her into a heroic, motherly figure.
- Ash and Brock are both more blatantly perverts, and even Misty is a Covert Pervert (in a scene that was Bowdlerized in translation) due to the adaptation being Hotter and Sexier. (This was before Ash gained notoriety as a Chaste Hero, when he was still known to show interest in girls at a few points).
Pokémon Zensho
- Sabrina is portrayed as more open and nice than her more stoic Creepy Good game counterpart.
Miscellaneous
- Word of God is that Elesa is supposed to come off as an Emotionless Girl. This can be seen in all her official art and game sprites. She's only shown to be Not So Stoic when she breaks character after being defeated. Despite being a Truer to the Text trailer based directly on the games, Pokémon Black 2 and White 2: Introduction Movie shows Elesa excited and smiling while being challenged by Nate.
- Pokémon Live!:
- Brock and Jessie are given Character Exaggeration. Brock is much more hormonal and has no serious moments, while Jessie is even more campier than in the anime.
- James is a bit more snappy and stands up for himself more.
- Tim Goodman, one of the protagonists of Detective Pikachu, is looking for his father, a famous detective who went missing, but is otherwise an average 17 year old kid. His depiction in Pokémon Detective Pikachu gives him an Adaptational Angst Upgrade (in the form of trying and failing to be a Pokémon Trainer when he was younger), and ages him to 21, which makes him a bit uneasy with working with a talking Pikachu.
